Author's note: This story spans the time gap between Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, ending with a coda after the conclusion of TOTK (thus containing spoilers for that game).
It also serves as Part 2 for a BOTW prequel I wrote, titled "Edge of Destiny," and picks up right where it left off. However, you do not need to have read that story first if you want to start with this one. I designed this story to be accessible to anyone familiar with the storyline of BOTW.
Enjoy!
Chapter 1
Princess Zelda finished the last bite of fruitcake and then sighed with deep contentment, her eyes sliding shut against the golden rays of the late afternoon sun.
She was sitting on the bedroll Link had spread out on the grass of Hyrule Field, her sandaled feet tucked up under her comfortably. Empty dishes surrounded them. They hadn't talked much since sitting down to their picnic; at first they had concentrated fiercely on the food, and now that their hunger had quieted, they were both growing sleepy.
To say that it had been a long day for both of them was an understatement.
Link roused himself from his lethargy enough to look down at his hand, which he suddenly noticed hurting. Yes, there was a big blister near the base of his thumb, exactly where he always got one when he had spent too many hours in a day swinging a sword. His fingerless leather gloves were supposed to protect him from that, but the leather had worn so thin that it had torn mid-battle, and now the blister had popped. Link grimaced, tossing away the useless glove and then turning to the side to pour a little water from his canteen over the wound. It stung, but at least now it was clean.
He was lucky not to be injured worse. Today had been the fight of his life, and there had been no guarantee that he would survive it at all. Maybe he wouldn't have, if not for the gifts and assistance he'd gotten from the spirits of the champions, and from Zelda herself. Link felt a quiet pride that this time around, he had done everything the Goddess had asked of him and lived to tell the tale, but the glory wasn't his alone. It had taken all six of them together to finish off Calamity Ganon once and for all.
Link's eyes slid over to the princess. Her eyes were still closed, and she looked to be in danger of nodding off. Some distance behind her, the long metal legs of a deactivated Guardian Stalker sprawled across the grass, its mechanical head sagging in its housing. Link had poked it with the Master Sword to be sure before they sat down, but it was definitely dead. The Malice of Calamity Ganon that had once inhabited the machine had rushed out like smoke, only to be swallowed up in the Sealing power of the Goddess that Zelda wielded. Now Link's horse Lucky was cropping grass near the Guardian with total unconcern.
Link noticed idly that Zelda had a few crumbs of cake stuck to her white dress. He wasn't sure how to tell her that, and after a little debate decided not to say anything. What did it really matter? They were alone here, out in the wilds. Hyrule Field had long ago been ceded to the enemy. All the garrisons and settlements for miles around - including Lon Lon Ranch, where Link had been raised - and even Castle Town itself had all been razed to the ground by Ganon's forces a hundred years ago.
"I wish I could say 'let's go home' now," Zelda said sleepily, her eyes opening once more. "But I suppose I can't." She looked over her shoulder at Hyrule Castle regretfully. Its tattered banners fluttered sadly in the breeze.
She was right, of course. Nothing but monsters had lived in the castle over the last century, while Link slept in the Shrine of Resurrection and Zelda had been locked in a timeless struggle with Calamity Ganon. The monsters had piled their filth everywhere. All the furniture had been broken or rotted. Even some of the castle's stone walls had crumbled. Now that Ganon had been defeated, Hyrule Castle could be taken back by the Hylians, but restoring it to its former glory would be a daunting task. It would take years. Maybe even a lifetime.
In the meantime, the princess would have to sleep somewhere.
"Where would you like to go?" Link asked Zelda. As much as he didn't want to get up, the day was wearing on and they needed to make a decision.
Zelda roused herself with an effort. "I suppose... Kakariko Village," she said slowly. "I would like to speak with Impa and get her advice. I... at least I know her." A shadow crossed her face, and Link understood why. After an absence of a hundred years, nearly everyone they had once known was now dead. The only exceptions were a few of the long-lived Sheikah, like Impa, and some of the Zora.
"I don't think we could make it that far tonight," Link said, glancing at the sun. "I had to ride Lucky pretty hard today, and now we're asking him to carry two. We shouldn't take him above a walk. But we could get to Riverside Stable and stay the night."
"Whatever you think is best," Zelda said.
Link was surprised by her deference, although on second thought he shouldn't have been. His century-long sleep in the Shrine of Resurrection had decimated his memory, but over the last year he had recovered a handful of memories from the short time he had traveled by her side as they prepared to fight Calamity Ganon the first time around. He remembered that at first Zelda hadn't been very friendly toward him. In fact, she had done everything she could to escape his presence as often as she could get away with it.
But eventually things had changed, and in the last moments before his death a century ago, Link had watched Zelda risk her own life in her desperation to protect him.
It was hard to know where he stood with Zelda now. In the moments when it counted the most, they had come to have complete faith in each other. They had worked side by side to defeat Ganon, and that had created a bond between them that could never be broken.
But at the same time... Link had really known Zelda only for a few months, only some of which he remembered, and the first few weeks of that period had been awful. After he had been gifted the Master Sword and tasked with accompanying the princess on her journeys, Link had barely even spoken to her in a misguided attempt to hide from her how unprepared he felt to be called as the chosen hero of the Goddess. In turn, she had been openly hostile to him, which he now remembered had more to do with how inadequate she felt about her ability to defeat Ganon than how she really felt about him.
Eventually they had admitted the truth to each other and now the two of them were trusted partners. Maybe even friends. But Zelda was still the princess of Hyrule and the living incarnation of the Goddess herself. Only hours ago Link had seen her wield an incomprehensible power, radiating the golden power of the Triforce directly from the Spirit Realm, and for the first time he had fully understood how hopelessly high above them all she really was, even in her mortal form.
As for Link... what was he?
He had been the chosen hero of the Goddess. But that role was now completed. Ganon was gone. Where did that leave him?
Link whistled for Lucky, and his horse came trotting up to him obediently. He busied himself with packing up their picnic things, thinking all the while.
He was still a knight of Hyrule. And he was a member of the Royal Guard. The only one left, in fact.
Then it was still his job to protect Zelda. A job that would be a little easier now that Ganon was gone. No more blood moons to bring slain monsters back to life. With time their numbers should become more manageable. The Yiga Clan were still around, but the last he'd seen of their master, Kohga had been plummeting through an endless hole in the ground. Maybe now that they were leaderless, they could be routed.
Link pulled his Hylian cloak from a saddlebag and offered it to Zelda. It would turn cool once the sun got low, and her white dress was thin and sleeveless. She accepted it, although she was clumsy fastening it at her throat and putting up the hood; she was swaying on her feet in her exhaustion. After all, it had been a hundred years since she had slept.
"You'd better ride in front," he told her. The last thing they needed was her falling off the back of a horse and getting hurt.
Without objection Zelda managed to get herself up in the saddle, and soon Link was settled behind her, holding the reins and turning Lucky to the southeast, toward Riverside Stable. He worried his horse would struggle with the double burden after such a hard ride against the Dark Beast form of Ganon earlier today, but Lucky walked along placidly enough and didn't seem to be favoring any legs. Link let himself relax a little.
It didn't take long for Zelda to start leaning back against him, growing more limp as the miles slipped by and the light faded. Soon her head lolled back against his shoulder, her breathing slow and heavy. He moved the reins to one hand and put his other arm around her waist to hold her in place in the saddle. It felt wrong to be that familiar, but Zelda was too sleepy to notice, and besides, he couldn't let her fall. In his memory Link saw once again in the Temple of Time the stern face of King Rhoam's spirit softening as he pleaded with Link to rescue his daughter from her impasse with Ganon. Link felt his jaw tighten in response. Despite the hardness of his dealings with Zelda, underneath it all King Rhoam had loved her and tried in his own way to protect her. Since he was gone, Link would have to do what he could in his place.
Lucky walked on and on. Link was starting to feel more than a little sleepy himself, but he forced himself to keep his eyes wide open. There could still be monsters around. He didn't see the glow of any campfires nearby, but that didn't mean it was safe. Sometimes a lone Bokoblin would sack out behind a tree by the side of the road, and if you made too much noise it would wake and jump out, catching you by surprise. Not to mention the skeletal monsters that tended to pop out of the ground at the most inopportune times...
Fixated on looking behind trees and watching for disturbances in the ground, Link nearly jumped out of his skin when a sudden fluttering of wings whizzed overhead, accompanied by the squeak of dozens of Keese. He put his hand on the hilt of the Master Sword, abruptly alert, but luckily the creatures merely flew on into the night.
Finally, the lights of Riverside Stable came into sight. Lucky picked up his pace, seeing it, and soon they came to a stop inside the circle of lamplight. It was late enough that all was quiet; if the stable had other guests, they must have gone to bed. Ember, the stable's owner, recognized Link and lifted his hand in a friendly greeting. Then he noticed Zelda sitting limp in the saddle, and quickly left his post and hurried over.
"Who is that? Is she hurt?" he asked in concern.
"Just tired." Link shook Zelda's shoulder gently. "Wake up. We're here."
"Hmm?" Zelda stirred a little, finally sitting up straighter and looking down in befuddlement at Ember standing beside Lucky. "Oh. The stable?"
Ember held out his hands, and Zelda struggled to get one leg over and then slid to the ground with Ember's assistance. She clung to the confused stable owner for balance as Link struggled to get off Lucky and find his own equilibrium; his muscles had gone stiff over the last few hours. Finally, he managed to get steady enough to peel Zelda's hands from Ember's shirt and scoop her up into his arms.
"Do you have a bed available?" Link asked.
The stable owner seemed relieved to not have a half-asleep stranger hanging on him anymore. "This way," he said, leading Link inside. Ember pulled back the blankets on one of the beds, and Link gently laid Zelda down on it, took off her sandals and covered her with the blankets. She rolled over and curled up on her side without ever opening her eyes. The hood of the Hylian cloak covered most of her face, but that didn't stop Ember from giving her one last curious look before turning toward Link, who was holding out the payment.
"That's too much for two beds," Ember said, sifting through the rupees in his hand, but Link just sat down on the empty bed next to Zelda's and started taking off his boots.
"Take extra good care of Lucky," he said, and then gave into a jaw-splitting yawn before finishing: "He had a rough day."
"I noticed you rode from the direction of the castle," Ember said, keeping his voice down so as not to disturb those who were sleeping. "I don't suppose you know anything about it?"
"About it?" Link mumbled confusedly, getting stiffly onto his feet once more just long enough to turn down his own bed.
"Calamity Ganon. It's just... gone. For hours now." Ember sounded more stunned than pleased. "It's been there my whole life. The castle looks so strange without it. You don't think... you don't think it's running loose, do you? Somewhere out there?"
"Gone," Link muttered, burrowing gratefully into the bed. "Not ever coming back."
"Really? How do you know?" Ember asked hopefully.
There was no way to answer that quickly or simply. Link waved his hand sleepily, his eyes already sliding shut, and mumbled, "Tomorrow."
When Link awoke the next morning, he made the mistake of trying to sit up in bed.
A groan tore from his throat before he could stop it. Everything hurt. Everything. His arms and legs felt heavier than they should be. It hurt to turn his neck. His blisters hurt. His back hurt. Every muscle he possessed was stiff and sore. Even his fingers.
Link lay there smarting for a few minutes in the quiet of the dawn, silently cataloging all his pains, but eventually he came to grips with the fact that he would simply have to continue getting up. Walking it off was the best way to warm up sore muscles. Sparing a wistful thought for the bubbling hot springs of the Eldin region, too far away to be of any use to him now, he hauled himself ungracefully to his feet and shoved his feet into his boots.
Zelda was still asleep, and appeared to have not moved the whole night. Link decided to let her sleep and start getting breakfast ready. It was their old routine from before Calamity Ganon's arrival, and it had worked well. Besides, his stomach was growling and he had half an idea that if he made a good hearty breakfast, it might help with the soreness. He had a few precious hearty truffles in his pack, and decided that would go well in an omelette.
He went outside, wincing as he twisted his torso this way and that in an attempt to ease the stiffness. He stopped at the horse stalls first and checked on Lucky. Ember had done a good job grooming him and caring for the gear, and when Link checked he found that his horse had even been reshod. Lucky seemed content enough, so Link gave him a carrot from his pack and stroked his neck for a minute before limping on toward the cookfire.
No one was there, so he busied himself with breakfast. First he melted a slab of butter and sliced in the hearty truffles. Once they were cooked to softness, he scooped them out into a bowl and cracked the eggs into the pot, scrambling them and then gently scraping the bottom of the pot so that the liquid cooked evenly. The moment the eggs turned fully solid, he scooped the mushrooms back into the pot and folded over the eggs to make a neat omelette. He pulled it out before it could overcook and divided the omelette evenly between two plates, sprinkling on a little salt as a finishing touch.
It was how his mother had made omelettes. Lanna. Link mouthed her name to himself several times as he worked, nervous that he might forget it again. He had recovered only two precious memories of her, but oddly enough his hands seemed to remember a vast catalog of dishes she had taught him how to make. Mother had been the cook at Lon Lon Ranch. She had lived with Link in a little cottage there, built by the wages of his father Ranulf, who had been a knight of Hyrule. When Link was old enough, he had left the ranch to be a squire for his own father.
Link recited these facts over to himself, trying to cement them in his mind. He wished he knew more about his parents. They both must be long dead, of course, but he didn't even know exactly how or when they had died. Maybe eventually he would recover more memories. He could only hope so.
Setting aside one of the omelettes to keep it warm for Zelda, Link was just about to put the first forkful of eggs in his mouth when he heard someone call his name. He turned to look, and immediately grimaced at the pain that shot through his stiff neck.
"Link!" Ember, the stable owner, hurried over to him with a handful of excited stable guests following in his wake. "Finally, you're awake! We've all been waiting for you!"
Sighing, Link put down his fork and plate and stood up to exchange polite greetings with everyone. There was Gotter, a stout man with a handsome face he had previously exchanged recipes with, and Parcy, who had once given him useful tips on how to get into the castle. There was also Endai, a traveler Link had briefly met on the road one day, and a stranger he had to be introduced to, a doctor named Spoone.
"Do you really know what happened over there?" Ember asked, jerking his thumb in the direction of Hyrule Castle. Belatedly, Link looked over and verified that yes, Calamity Ganon was still gone. The castle looked strangely deserted without his circling malevolence. That was going to take some getting used to.
Link took a deep breath, and then hesitated. Where to begin? All five of them were looking at him with eager expectation, and suddenly he felt uncomfortable. Talking to one or two people was fine, but he didn't like being the center of attention in a gathering. He found himself swinging his arms nervously, instinctively looking down to avoid their gazes, but he realized almost immediately that that wasn't appropriate. Without even thinking, he made himself rest his hands on his belt so that he wouldn't fidget. Automatically his posture seemed to correct, and he found himself standing straight and tall and looking right into everyone's eyes. It felt simultaneously natural and yet somehow unnatural. Link stood there in confusion for a moment, trying to remember. Where had he learned this mannerism? It seemed important.
"Well?" Ember prompted him.
Shaking off his distraction, Link explained as succinctly as he could about his infiltration of Hyrule Castle, his battle with Calamity Ganon, and his reunion with Princess Zelda. All five of them were riveted by his story, and astonished at the various turns and twists. They all seemed to believe him implicitly, but Link knew it was a lot to take in. None of them had ever known a world in which Calamity Ganon was not the master of Hyrule Castle. No one had looked for the return of the Royal Family after such a long absence. A lot of things were about to change for them.
"Where is she?" Spoone asked eagerly, when Link had finally satisfied their many requests for more details. "Where is the princess now?"
At that exact moment, Zelda emerged from the interior of the stable, still wearing Link's Hylian cloak over her white dress, looking around her in groggy confusion. Everyone followed Link's gaze, and Zelda froze when she saw a small crowd of people staring at her. One hand went up to hastily smooth her sleep-tousled hair, and then she walked toward them in a slow, dignified way.
Usually when people met the princess, they bowed their heads respectfully, but none of the stable guests were making a move to do that, although they were looking at Zelda with great interest as she approached. Suddenly Link realized that no one here could be familiar with royal protocols. The monarchs of Hyrule were only an old story to them.
Link almost turned to whisper to them what they should do, but then a hot flush of embarrassment washed over him as he realized that he had nearly made a mistake of protocol. Zelda wasn't a princess anymore... she was the queen! They were supposed to kneel to her, as King Rhoam's subjects had once done for him. Nudging Ember's arm meaningfully, Link slowly sank down onto one knee and bowed his head to show them how it was done.
There was a long moment of hesitation, and then one by one the stable guests followed his example and knelt before Zelda.
She looked surprised by the gesture. That made Link feel a little better. She must have forgotten she was a queen, too. It was understandable. They had both had a hard day yesterday, and a lot of things had changed very quickly.
There was short silence, and then Zelda blurted out: "Please! Um... you may rise."
Everyone got back to their feet and looked at her expectantly.
Zelda cleared her throat and clasped her hands together before beginning to speak. With great dignity she thanked them for their courtesy and then asked Link to introduce everyone to her. As she met each one, she immediately addressed them by name, looked them in the eye and politely inquired after their business. Ember received warm thanks and sincere compliments on the hospitality of his stable. She listened to Endai's concerns over monsters on the roads with close attention. And when she met Parcy and learned her advice had helped Link reach the castle safely, her gratitude was expressed with real feeling. Within a matter of minutes, she had all five of them smiling and hanging on her every word, as anxious to please her as she had just been to please them.
She did it all so effortlessly that Link felt a stab of envy. He had to put every ounce of focus he had into making a good impression when there were that many eyes on him.
Eventually it occurred to the others to insist on finding Zelda the best seat by the fire while they served her a hot breakfast, arguing with each other in a good-natured way over what they should make for her. Soon they were putting five different dishes in front of her, and Zelda gamely tried it all and praised everything. The omelette Link had made was forgotten, but he didn't mind much, as it was cold by now and would not impress anyone. He ate both portions himself and felt dramatically better right away. The hearty truffles had been a good addition. He would have to remember that recipe.
As soon as Link was done eating, he slipped away to prepare Lucky for departure himself rather than ask Ember to do so, as the stable owner showed no signs of tearing his attention away from Zelda. Link could not suppress a pulse of pleasure as he retrieved a second horse he had registered at the stable several weeks ago, and saddled him up, too. He was hoping to get a good reaction from Zelda when she saw this horse, and he was not disappointed. As soon as he came around to the other side of the stable, she took one look at the white stallion and gasped loudly.
"Link!" she cried, hurrying over with her eyes locked on the horse. "Is that... that can't possibly be... is that Trigger?"
"One of his descendants," Link said proudly. "I caught him on Saffula Hill and brought him in. Do you like him?"
"I love him," Zelda said warmly. "Oh, and this is Trigger's royal gear he's wearing too, isn't it? Or a very good replica."
"It's real. I got it from Toffa at Outskirt Stable."
"I must be sure to thank him as soon as I meet him," Zelda said eagerly. "May I... do you think he will let me pat him? What is his name?"
"I called him North, but he's your horse. You can name him something new if you want."
Zelda was stroking the stallion's neck, her green eyes gleaming with pleasure. "He's beautiful. Thank you, Link. I can't wait to ride him." Her voice suddenly dropped to a whisper. "Shouldn't we be off now, anyway?"
Link caught on right away; Ember and the others would keep Zelda here all day if she let them.
"We better head out so we can make it to Kakariko Village in time," he said seriously, speaking loudly enough for the others to hear.
Zelda put on a show of reluctance, but soon they had everything packed up and Link helped her up into the saddle. She opted to sit side-saddle - awkwardly, as she lacked the saddle attachment needed to help drape her legs comfortably to the side - but there was nothing for it, as she had only her white dress to wear and clearly didn't want to show her bare legs to everyone now watching them depart.
"Oh, I must buy trousers as quickly as possible," Link heard her mutter under her breath, and then she smiled brightly and waved goodbye to everyone before turning North to follow Lucky down the road.
Once they had gone far enough down the road to get out of earshot, Zelda turned toward Link.
"You remembered what I taught you before," she said in a tone of approval. "Don't think I didn't notice, when I saw you talking to everyone first thing this morning."
Link frowned. "What you taught me?"
"Yes. About posture and eye contact and all of that."
He blinked. "You taught me that?"
"Oh," Zelda said in surprise. "You don't remember. Yes, you once told me how uncomfortable you get when there are too many eyes on you. You used to fidget, and I suggested you hang onto your belt instead. It gives your hands something to do and it helps you stand up straight and feel more confident."
Her words had an oddly familiar ring to them. Link's eyes narrowed, and then widened as the memory returned all in a rush.
They had been sitting by a campfire at night, out in the wilds, with no one but the two of them around. He had been reluctant to admit to Zelda his trouble, but she had been unexpectedly understanding. And she'd given him good advice on what to say to people and how to say it, which he had taken to heart. She'd even had him try out his new skills on the people they met on their travels. He'd done it often enough that it had become a habit, one his body apparently still remembered even though his mind had forgotten the reasons why.
The memory faded, and Link came back to himself with a sharp intake of breath.
"Are you all right?" Zelda said with some concern, staring at him. Both of their horses had come to a halt in the middle of the road. "What just happened?"
"I remembered," Link said calmly. "I didn't mean to frighten you. But that might keep happening to me." He hesitated, and then admitted: "I hope it does."
"I wasn't frightened," she said quickly. "You just sort of stared into space for a minute. Well, now I'll know not to worry if I see that again. I do hope you remember more. How- how much have you remembered so far?"
They started their horses walking again, and Link took his time answering. "I remember things from when you and I traveled together, before Ganon came," he said at last. "I remember a little of Urbosa and Daruk and Revali and Mipha." He took a deep breath. "I don't remember much from before I became your chosen knight. The images you left on the Sheikah Slate helped me get my most recent memories back, but they can't help me with my childhood. I did remember a little of my parents when I went to the ruins of our cottage at Lon Lon Ranch."
"Oh." Zelda looked relieved. "I was almost afraid to ask that. So you do remember them, then."
"Just a little. I know my father was a Royal Guard, and he trained me to be a knight. I remember living at Lon Lon Ranch with my mother when I was small, learning to cook with her. But... I don't remember what happened to them after Calamity Ganon attacked. Do you?"
Zelda bit her lip. "I'm not certain about your mother," she said slowly. "On the day Ganon attacked, you helped Captain Imbert's unit of knights fight monsters in a field not far from Lon Lon Ranch. Do you remember that?"
Link shook his head.
"Well," Zelda said, looking disappointed, "the Guardians we used to help us fight the monsters ended up turning on us. And then Vah Naboris showed up and began destroying Mabe Village. You had a bit of a scare when it turned on Lon Lon Ranch next, but Captain Imbert told us everyone from the ranch had evacuated before the Divine Beast got within range. He said he personally helped your mother up onto her horse and saw her leave in safety. I'm afraid I don't know anything more after that."
Link absorbed that in silence for a while. "And my father?" he said.
She answered his question with another question. "Do you know what happened to my father?"
"Yes. His spirit spoke to me on the Great Plateau." He met her eyes, which had shadowed at his words. "I'm sorry that you lost him."
She acknowledged his words with a dip of her head, and then hastily moved on. "When I went to Hyrule Castle to confront Calamity Ganon, I-" She broke off, and there was a very long pause, in which Zelda's eyes grew visibly wet. Finally, she made herself speak, although her voice was unnaturally high and not quite steady. "I went toward the Sanctum, but in the room just outside it, I found-" She suppressed a sob. "My father had fallen there. Monsters and Guardians attacked together, I think. And he wasn't alone. Most of the Royal Guards were with him. They fell bravely defending him. I am afraid that I saw your father among them."
Link had braced himself to hear something like that, but the news struck his heart with the force of a cannon anyway. He felt his eyes growing wet, and he looked away from her, breathing quickly.
"Link, I am so, so sorry," Zelda whispered to him.
He hardly knew what to think. A part of him wasn't even sure why he was taking it like this. He barely remembered his father. He had recovered just one precious memory of him from when Link was smaller, when his father had called him brave but cautioned him against recklessness. He knew the name: Ranulf. He remembered the face: a straight nose like Link's own. Light brown hair. Blue-gray eyes that crinkled at the corners when he smiled.
And that was all.
He barely knew his own father to miss him, but suddenly his absence felt like a gaping wound in Link's chest. He must have loved his father. He must have wanted to be like him. Why else would he have trained with him to be a knight? His loss would have been a terrible blow if Link himself hadn't fallen the very next day. They had joined each other in death, separated by miles, both of them going down fighting in failed attempts to protect Hyrule's Royal Family from Ganon's evil.
Was it possible his spirit had met his father's before they had gone their separate ways? Link couldn't remember. From the moment of his death on Blatchery Plains to the moment he had awoken in the Shrine of Resurrection, there was nothing but a blank in his mind. A hundred years gone, and not likely to ever be recovered.
"It happened a long time ago," he said at last, working to speak past the tightness in his throat.
"Not for us it didn't," Zelda said with a sudden fierceness. "Not for us."
He and Zelda traveled in silence for a long time, each lost in their own sorrows.
Finally, when they were getting close to Kakariko Village, Zelda stirred in her saddle and asked Link tentatively if he could tell her as much as he could about the status of the village and the Sheikah who lived there to help her prepare for her imminent meeting with Impa, the village elder.
"Didn't you see the village yourself?" he asked curiously. "Watching over the kingdom with the eyes of the Goddess?"
"To be honest, I didn't do that much watching over the kingdom over the last hundred years," Zelda admitted. "You see, while I was holding Ganon back, time moved strangely. I was in something like a trance much of the time. I was aware each time he started slipping away from me, and I would work to renew my grip. But often, I think I was nearly as asleep as you were. I really only watched over you, Link, once you awoke. Things were becoming difficult then. I was so tired. And he never stopped trying to escape me. I spared my attention for you as much as I could, but he was always drawing me back. I wondered sometimes if he was doing it deliberately. Trying to keep me from helping you. He must have known that with your return, the balance of power could turn in my favor." She let out a soft contemptuous breath before moving on. "So yes, everything you've learned in your travels about this new era of Hyrule will be immensely valuable to me."
Link nodded, and told her as much as he could about his recent visits to Kakariko Village. By the time he had finished, their horses were walking under the wooden posts that marked the entrance to the village.
"One more thing, Link," Zelda said, and she pulled North to a stop for a moment. Link stopped Lucky, too, and looked at her expectantly.
"I... appreciate what you did this morning at Riverside Stable," she said carefully. "But I must correct a misunderstanding. You see, no one should be kneeling to me."
Link was confused. "But you're the queen," he said uncertainly.
"I'm a princess," Zelda said, quiet but firm.
"If you aren't the queen, who is?" Link asked, even more confused.
"Eventually, it must be me, of course. It is the will of the Goddess." Zelda's voice went a little weary at that statement. "But it must be done formally, with a royal proclamation and then a coronation. It is a fearfully solemn event, and all the right things must be said and done, and it must be held in a fitting location with all the leaders of our settlements in attendance to formally declare their loyalty to the crown. And, well, I don't think any of that can happen anytime soon. The kingdom is in shambles."
She took a deep breath, looking overwhelmed. "I will immediately begin working to restore everything that has been lost. My title doesn't matter much, at least not now. As the only remaining member of the Royal Family, I will do my best, even though I... I certainly expected to have more time to prepare before I was asked to lead."
"I'll help you," Link said firmly, and she smiled at him a little sadly.
"That means more than you might think," she said.
She urged North forward, and Link followed on Lucky. In just a few minutes, they entered Kakariko Village.
The princess received a warm welcome from all the villagers, and she spent the next several days closeted with Impa in her home near Lantern Falls, getting brought up to speed on the state of the kingdom and making plans for the future. At first, Link had tried to excuse himself to enlist Claree in making Zelda some new clothing, as well as handle their other resupplying needs, but Zelda had firmly insisted on having him present for all the meetings. Instead, Claree had been sent for, and briefly took Zelda upstairs to take her measurements in the privacy of Paya's bedroom.
It felt strange to be a part of the important decisions Zelda was now making. As far as Link could remember, he had never even attended a planning meeting with King Rhoam and his advisors, much less been asked to share his opinion. Once he had drawn the Master Sword, he had immediately been sent to accompany Zelda on all her travels and had taken no part in castle life.
But now, both Impa and Zelda were frequently prompting him to say what he thought about the various ideas they were batting back and forth, and each time Link drifted to the back of the room, defaulting to his instinct to merely listen in silence, one of them would make a point of pulling him back into the discussion.
They did the same thing to Impa's granddaughter Paya, who seemed to want to hover in the background as much as Link did. More than once, the two of them found themselves exchanging mildly panicked "save me" expressions, but there was nothing they could do; when the elder of a village or a royal princess asked someone for a comment, to refuse would be impolite, no matter how inadequate they felt for the task.
Piece by piece, a plan began to form. Zelda would soon embark on a long journey with stops at every major settlement of Hyrule. Although news of the princess's return would quickly spread, Impa felt that it was important for the leaders of each village to meet her in person as soon as possible. This would prevent rumors from spreading like wildfire. Zelda was in full agreement, focused on establishing good relations with the various people she would be working with throughout her reign.
Each stop would be an opportunity to Zelda to learn about the unique challenges of each region and think of ways to help them. It was the responsibility of the Royal Family to provide for the defense of Hyrule and ensure safe travel and trade, but all of those needs had gone unmet over the last century. Bridges and roads were in disrepair. The only people who traveled or traded were those with the weapons and the courage to protect themselves from monsters. Both Link and Zelda remembered a time when anyone and everyone had freely visited other villages, confident that the garrisons of knights stationed throughout the land would keep them safe. Zelda was determined to restore that confidence. That meant they would need to begin recruiting volunteers able to fight or willing to learn.
And there was another reason to visit the Gorons, the Rito, the Gerudo and the Zora. Link and Zelda soberly agreed with each other that it would be good and proper to hold a commemoration for each of the fallen champions in their homelands. It had been a century since their deaths, of course, and while they knew that their people had long ago mourned them and moved on, the fact of the matter was that there had never been a formal royal acknowledgement of their brave sacrifices.
"I suppose my reasons are really more personal than that," Zelda confessed to Link during a break in the meetings when they had both stepped outside for a breath of fresh air, leaning against the railing to watch the sanke carp swimming below as the rushing sound of Lantern Falls filled the air. "Revali, Daruk, Urbosa and Mipha were our friends. For us, they've only just gone. We... we must mourn them, you and I, even if everyone else has moved on." Her lips turned downwards, and suddenly she blurted out: "Oh, what I wouldn't give to have Urbosa here in these meetings!"
As fierce of a warrior as Urbosa had been, Link had noticed back then that the Gerudo champion had also served as something of a motherly figure for Zelda, since the princess's own mother had died when she was just a child.
As for Link, it was the Zora champion Mipha who he had known best. In one of the memories he had recovered, Mipha had spoken as though they had spent much of their childhoods together. The trouble was, Link barely remembered anything from that period of his life. He could only imagine that he must have been hit hard by her death.
He now knew how Mipha had felt about him, considering what he had learned about the rare Zora armor she had made for him long ago. A Zora princess would only have given such a precious gift to the young man she intended to marry. But with such large gaps in his memory, Link didn't know if he had felt the same way about her.
Thinking about that made him uncomfortable, but luckily Zelda was already turning to go back into the house and resume their meeting, and Link seized on the distraction gratefully. The four of them needed to reach a decision on what to do about the Divine Beasts. Vah Medoh, Vah Ruta, Vah Rudania and Vah Naboris were all presumably still parked in their respective regions, right where they had been left when the spirits of their pilots had finally entered their well-earned rest in the light of the Golden Goddesses.
"The Divine Beasts are dangerous," Zelda said as soon as she and Link and Paya had settled back down in their chairs surrounding Impa on her stack of cushions.
The admission seemed to choke her. Before Ganon's arrival, Zelda had been endlessly fascinated by the Divine Beasts, as well as the Guardians the Sheikah had unearthed. It had been a terrible blow to her when Ganon had wrested control of the machines for himself.
"In the end, once Link freed them from the influence of Ganon, they did their part to protect Hyrule, and for that we must always be grateful," Zelda continued. "However, with Ganon gone and their task fulfilled, I think it would be unwise to simply leave them lying around the kingdom."
"It would be unwise to ignore their usefulness," Impa said, gentle enough despite her contradicting words. "Our records imply that Ganon has a cycle of returning to Hyrule even after a resounding defeat."
"Not within our lifetimes, surely!" Paya interjected, eyes widening.
"Perhaps not," Impa acknowledged in her cracked voice. "It may not occur for millennia, but if and when he does return, it would be well for our descendants to have these powerful tools at their disposal to put Ganon back in his place."
"What's to stop him from taking control of the Divine Beasts for the second time?" Zelda asked. "The kingdom cannot afford another disaster of that nature." She fought to keep the emotion out of her voice, and Link knew exactly what she was feeling because he felt it, too. "A hundred years ago they destroyed Castle Town, as well as every other settlement and garrison in Hyrule Field. To say nothing of the havoc they wreaked on the Zora, the Gorons, the Gerudo and the Rito more recently."
"Given time, my people could fully master their functions," Impa said calmly. "Perhaps even improve on their designs."
"There was a time I would have agreed to that without hesitation," Zelda said. "Now, however-" She paused to search for the right words.
"-we're hesitating," Link filled in without thinking, and immediately flushed at his own audacity in finishing the princess's sentence for her. He silently cringed, waiting for her annoyance to show.
"Yes, exactly," Zelda said, looking at him gratefully. "We shouldn't assume that we have the time to do what you suggest."
"Do you fear Ganon will return before we are confident in our control of the Beasts?" Impa probed gently.
"That doesn't seem likely," Zelda said. "But there are threats other than Ganon."
"The Yiga Clan did everything they could to help him," Paya said, looking a little shy about speaking up, but both Impa and Zelda nodded to her encouragingly. "They're still around."
"They are leaderless," Impa said.
"They may not remain so," Zelda said. "Link didn't actually see Kohga die. And even if he did die, a successor may simply take his place. They've gained powers since my father's reign; they didn't teleport before. Who knows what they may come up with next? If the Yiga manage to take control of the Divine Beasts, they could do just as much damage with them as Ganon did."
"You have already committed to rebuilding Hyrule's army," Impa pointed out. "Your soldiers could stand guard over the Beasts."
"These things take time. My forces won't have nearly the numbers my father's did, no matter how long and hard we recruit," Zelda said flatly. "I must be realistic. Even Hyrule at its strength couldn't maintain control of the Beasts. Our arrogance on that point is what led us to the current situation!"
"If we move quickly to train new pilots for the Divine Beasts," Impa said patiently, "we may be able to use them to prevent the Yiga from regrouping in the first place."
"It's a gamble," Zelda said, "with the lives of my subjects at stake. No matter what we do, the Yiga will continue to oppose us. And there will always be monsters to contend with. The trouble with the Divine Beasts is that they make it possible to end those conflicts with a shocking finality. Perhaps that would work in our favor... and perhaps it wouldn't. It's gone both ways now."
There was a short silence.
"Link isn't speaking," Impa said.
All three of them turned to look at him.
"Link?" Zelda prompted. "What do you think?"
"When I fought Ganon," Link said slowly, "I used the Master Sword that was gifted by the Goddess. All the gifts that she gave to the champions, they lent to me. And it was Zelda's Goddess powers that Sealed him away. Everything we used against him came from the Goddess."
"The Divine Beasts weakened him first," Impa pointed out, the ornaments on her hat swinging.
"Yes. It helped," Link agreed. "I'm glad I took the time to recover them, and to set the champions' spirits free. But I've been thinking about how the fight would have gone without the Divine Beasts."
"You think you and I could have done it alone?" Zelda asked, startled.
"I don't mean this time around. I mean a hundred years ago. How would it have gone if the Sheikah never unearthed the Divine Beasts and the Guardians in the first place? The champions would still have had their gifts from the Goddess. They could have come with us to fight him. Revali could have attacked him from the air. Urbosa could have stunned him with her lightning while I moved in with the Master Sword. Daruk could have protected us all, and Mipha could have healed anyone who got hurt."
"If all six of us had attacked him together," Zelda said wonderingly, "you think we could have defeated him without using the Divine Beasts at all?"
Link nodded.
"Well..." Zelda mulled that over for a while. "Well, fighting is your area of expertise. I won't argue with your assessment. But what is the conclusion? When we face our next threat, whatever it may be and whenever it may come, we won't have all the gifts of the champions anymore. Unless..." Suddenly she went hopeful. "Do you still possess them?"
Link shook his head; he had felt their powers leave him when the champions' spirits had departed to the Spirit Realm.
Zelda looked disappointed for a moment, but then she straightened up again. "But if the Goddess gave such gifts in a time of need, she could certainly do it again. Perhaps we should keep a close watch to see if anyone from the other races begins to develop special abilities. That might even be a clue that the Goddess thinks a conflict of some sort is approaching. I do wonder, though..." She turned thoughtful. "The whole reason we began excavating in the first place was because the royal fortune teller told us the key to defeating Calamity Ganon was hidden underground. When we unearthed the Guardians and the Divine Beasts we were certain we had found what she was referring to. But all of that went so badly wrong that I begin to wonder... do you suppose she was mistaken? Or perhaps we misinterpreted her words somehow."
Paya frowned. "You think there was something else hidden underground that you were supposed to find?"
"Perhaps. I don't suppose we can ever know," Zelda said slowly. "If so, whatever it was down there, we managed to defeat Ganon without it."
They talked the matter over for a long time and didn't reach any conclusions on what to do with the Divine Beasts, although Zelda did give permission for the Sheikah to recover as many as the defunct Guardians as possible, to ensure no one unqualified would try to experiment with them and come to a bad end. As the light faded Zelda saw that Impa was beginning to tire, and she suggested they sleep on it and renew the discussion in the morning. Paya offered to make them dinner, but Zelda politely declined and went outside with Link, although she had been staying in Paya's room since their arrival since it afforded more privacy than the Shuteye Inn, where Link had been staying.
"I want to talk to you alone, if that's all right," Zelda said as the double doors closed behind him. "I don't suppose you remember how to make meat pies, do you?" Her tone had turned hopeful.
There weren't many villagers around this evening; everyone must be in their homes making their own dinners. They went over to the cookfire and Link pulled out a sack of ground Tabantha wheat and began to cut butter into it to make a nice dough for a pie crust. Zelda watched in silence, but when he finished mincing and salting the meat, scooping it into the first crust and then covering it neatly with the second, she took a deep breath and said, "I don't think Impa is as worried about controlling the Divine Beasts as we are."
"It's your decision," Link said as he shifted the pot into place over the fire. "Not hers."
"Yes, well, that is the trouble, isn't it? This is the sort of disagreement that led to the creation of the Yiga Clan in the first place," Zelda said wearily. They walked over to the outdoor dining area and sat down to wait for their dinner to cook.
"Thousands of years ago, the Sheikah wanted to develop their technology further, but one of my ancestral kings was more cautious, fearing it would lead to a bad end," she continued. "The Divine Beasts were buried by his orders. The Sheikah who could not bear his restrictions broke off from their more peaceful brothers and became outcasts. Soon they swore their allegiance to Ganon, hoping that he would allow them the liberties my ancestor would not. I... feel I must tread carefully in this matter."
"Impa won't join the Yiga Clan," Link said.
"No, of course she wouldn't," Zelda hastily agreed. "But some of her people might. Some of them might want me to turn the Divine Beasts over to them and let them experiment freely. And a part of me wants to do it. Oh, I did love them so. Such clever construction!" Her eyes darkened. "And then they killed the people we programmed them to protect."
"If you don't give the Divine Beasts to the Sheikah," Link said, "what would you do with them?"
"I'm not certain," Zelda confessed. "Is it possible to destroy them? They're so large, and so heavily armored. I suppose they would have to be dismantled, and the pieces scattered or perhaps melted down. And there are four of them." She sighed heavily. "It would be quite a daunting task. Perhaps that is why they were buried thousands of years ago, and not destroyed. But then again, anything that is buried can be unburied. So perhaps we would only be delaying the inevitable. I wonder what my ancestor would have thought if he knew we would one day excavate the machines and suffer the exact fate he was trying to avoid."
A long silence fell. Zelda looked uneasy, and Link could guess why.
"You'll do the right thing," he told her. "You'll make the right choice."
She looked grateful for his words, but a moment later she laughed humorlessly. "Link, I hope you appreciate the difficulty of the situation," she said. "I'm 17 years old. Hyrule's monarchs don't typically hand over rule of the kingdom to their heirs until they are quite a bit older than that. My ancestor was almost certainly much older and more experienced than I am. And he got it wrong!"
"The Goddess didn't only give you her Sealing power," Link said. "She gave you Wisdom."
"Perhaps, but I... I don't even have a council of advisors to help me sort this out!" Zelda said, her frustration growing.
Link opened his mouth to respond, but just then he noticed Claree was approaching them. He nudged Zelda and she quickly rearranged her expression into one of dignity.
"Princess," Claree said eagerly, bowing her head respectfully. "I've just finished your order!" She glanced at the cookpot, which was putting off a delicious smell of simmering meat. "Well, don't let me interrupt your dinner, but come by Enchanted when you're ready, and you can try everything on. I can make any last-minute adjustments you need."
"Thank you," Zelda said warmly, and Link could tell her gratitude wasn't feigned; she was eager to have clothing better suited for travel. "I will be there shortly."
Claree left, and Link checked on the meat pie and decided it was done. He served it up and they dug in.
"One more thing," Zelda said after a few minutes, pausing with her fork in the air. "I've been meaning to ask you. You see..." She paused. "Link, do you remember when I once asked you what you would do if you didn't want to be a knight like your father, but everyone demanded that you be one anyway?"
"We were under a tree. It was raining. I was doing a kata with the Master Sword."
"Oh, good. Well, I confess I was really talking more about myself than I was about you. Being a princess and all."
"I know."
Zelda unexpectedly smiled. "Of course. Anyway, this time I truly am asking about you. About what you want. I'll be leaving on my journey soon. What is that you want to do?"
Link frowned. "I'll go with you. I'll guard you while you travel."
"Yes, I know you'll do your duty, but I'm trying to find out if that's what you want to do."
"What else would I do?" he asked blankly.
"I don't know. Anything you wanted. You said you have a house in Hateno now."
"I'm not a farmer."
"No, but you're good with horses. You would have space to train them there. You grew up on a ranch. I am sure you could earn a living that way if you wanted."
He felt a little taken aback. "Is that what you want me to do?"
"Don't be ridiculous. I want you to stay with me. But not if it makes you miserable. I want to make certain. No one ever thought to ask me that question."
"I want to travel with you. Really."
Zelda visibly relaxed. "Good. I'm hoping to leave the day after tomorrow. In the morning we'll discuss the Divine Beasts a little more and settle on our itinerary, and then I'll write some letters for Impa's people to deliver to all the major settlements, letting them know I intend to come for a visit."
"I can get us resupplied while you're writing them."
Zelda nodded, and stood up. "The sun's nearly down. I had better collect my clothing now. Thank you for dinner. And for listening to me. And... for saying all the right things."
"Good night, princess."
"Good night."
But by morning, the plan had apparently changed. Link woke in the pre-dawn light to find Dorian, one of Lady Impa's guards, shaking his shoulder. One of the other guests in the inn was snoring lightly.
"Link!" Dorian whispered. "Lady Impa needs you right away."
Link sat straight up. "Is it the Yiga?" he blurted out, one hand groping automatically for a weapon.
"No. She wishes to speak to you and the princess right away. She didn't say why."
Zelda was staying in Paya's room, which meant all three of them would already be waiting for him. His mind racing with curiosity, Link dressed quickly and strapped on the Master Sword before following Dorian at a trot across the commons and up the stairs to Impa's house. Rain was falling heavily today.
The three women were waiting when he walked in. Impa was perched on her pile of cushions shaded by her enormous hat, looking the same as always. Zelda was dressed for the first time in her new traveling clothes, close-fitting dark brown trousers with a blue and white blouse, similar to what she had worn during their travels before Ganon's arrival, although Claree had added a smart pair of boots to the ensemble, along with a Hylian cloak with more elaborate ornamentation than the one Link had.
Paya, standing beside Zelda, clearly hadn't had time to put her white hair up in the usual high bun, and Link found himself staring; he had never seen her with her hair down loose like that, and it made her look so... different. She was staring back at him, and after a beat Link realized he hadn't pulled his hair back either, and she was probably thinking the same thing about him.
Zelda looked back and forth between them. "What?" she asked blankly.
Link and Paya both quickly looked anywhere but at each other.
"I had a dream," Impa said in her wavering voice, and all three of them turned their attention to her. "A vision from the Goddess. We are to visit the Great Plateau and return to the Shrine of Resurrection."
Zelda frowned. "What for?"
"That was not made clear. But I felt that there was some urgency."
The princess looked uncertain for a moment, and Link knew she was thinking of all the plans she was in the middle of making, but then she nodded. If the Goddess was asking it of them, there must be a reason.
"Let us prepare to depart," she said.
The next hour was a flurry of packing items, preparing horses and buying last-minute supplies. To Link's surprise, Impa was preparing to come with them. He had never seen the village elder even leave the front room of her home, and had assumed she was too old for travel. Her guards Dorian and Cado would come along to assist her, and so would Paya. Hasty messages were sent to summon Purah, the Sheikah researcher at the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab, and Robbie, who was stationed at the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab. They were both familiar with the equipment in the Shrine of Resurrection and might be needed to operate it.
Link couldn't help but wonder, as he saddled up Lucky and the white stallion that Zelda had decided to rename Renatus, why the Goddess was bringing them back there. The Shrine of Resurrection had already performed its needed function. It had brought him back to life after his premature death so he could complete his mission to defeat Ganon, but all that was over now.
Was it possible someone had found the shrine, and was attempting to use it? Link felt instinctively that would be sacrilege. To pull someone's spirit back from its rest in the Spirit Realm was a serious matter. It should only be done at great need, with the guidance of the Goddess herself. And besides, no one was supposed to be on the Great Plateau at all. It was sacred ground, and only those with formal permission from the Royal Family could go there. How could anyone get up there, anyway? Link had not been able to leave the plateau until King Rhoam had provided him with a paraglider, and the only way he had returned was by using the Sheikah slate to transport himself directly to one of the shrines. The cliffs of the plateau were steep and to say it would be a dangerous climb was an understatement.
Finally, all was prepared. An improvised litter had been attached to the back of a horse where Lady Impa could ride in comfort, protected from the weather. Dorian rode beside her, and Cado accompanied Paya. The four Sheikah followed behind Link and Zelda on their horses as they left the rainy village at a walk, the villagers coming out of their homes and shops to watch the unusual procession with great curiosity. Dorian lifted a hand to wave goodbye to his two small daughters, left in the care of Claree and her sister and grandmother.
Within a few minutes, the last of Kakariko's cottages slipped from sight, and Link found himself once again in the wilds.
TO BE CONTINUED
Author's note: I welcome feedback! Let me know what you think so far.