Children of the Triforce: Retold

Chapter 8 – Everything Will Be Okay

The months passed, and Link and Zelda soon found themselves busier than ever before. As it turned out, trying to raise three children was a lot of work, in addition to keeping up with their duties around the castle, what with Zelda being a Princess, and Link being a knight.

Nevertheless, the couple made sure to spend most of their time with their kids. Their oldest, Cecil, was growing fast and it always seemed like the boy had energy to spare. He delighted in running throughout the castle halls and courtyards, playing "hero" with whoever was willing to entertain him. In a lot of ways, he acted just like his father.

Meanwhile, Kristin had recently turned four, and surprisingly enough, had started her schooling. She was rather young for such a thing, but the girl was naturally inquisitive, and showed promising signs of intelligence. She proved to be a fast learner, accepting everything she was taught and applying it almost immediately. Link and Zelda were incredibly proud of her. She clearly behaved just like her mother.

However, the majority of their time usually went to their youngest, Kyla. Being an infant, she was easily the most demanding, typically requiring her parents' attention far more than her siblings did. Not that Link and Zelda ever minded. They were always happy to step in and soothe the crying child.

Unfortunately, the girl was still rather frail, despite several months having passed since her birth. She was still growing, of course, but it was a slow and delicate process. She clearly wasn't making as much progress as her siblings had at this age. This caused Zelda to worry, but the physician had assured her that it was perfectly normal. That being born prematurely only meant that she still had some catching up to do, and it would just take time.

However, this wasn't the only concern when it came to Kyla. In addition to being frail, the baby also tended to be rather sickly. She ended up catching a number of colds during her early months, which only weakened her body further. The poor child often grew uncomfortable at times like these, which just made her all the more fussy.

Link and Zelda were very patient with her though, constantly watching over her and doing whatever it took to help her recover. It was tough and diligent work, but they didn't mind. This was their child, and they would gladly do anything to help her through these difficult times. Besides, it wasn't like any of this was Kyla's fault. She couldn't help it if she was weak and sick all the time.

And so it went, until the first year of Kyla's life came to a close. As promised, the now one-year-old child had slowly started to grow stronger, and her health seemed to be improving as well. At the very least, she stopped getting sick as often as she did, much to Link and Zelda's relief.

One day, the couple was seated on the floor of their bedroom, playing with Kyla. However, they soon set the toys aside so they could focus on something else. This was a rather exciting moment, as Kyla seemed to be showing signs that she was ready to take her first steps.

Link took his daughter and set her down a few feet away from where Zelda was seated. He then held her tiny arms as she stood on her short, stubby legs.

Zelda just smiled at her baby, already feeling so proud of her. She soon extended her hands out in front of her, and called to the girl in a soothing, motherly voice. "Kyla, come here, sweetie. Come to mommy."

The baby grinned, clearly recognizing her mother's voice. She ended up taking a few slow, shaky steps forward.

"Let her go, Link," Zelda told him. Her arms were still extended, and she was ready to catch Kyla at a moment's notice should she stumble.

Link just smiled. "Right." He soon withdrew his hands, and Kyla stood there for a moment, making sure to regain her balance. "Go ahead, sweetheart," he encouraged her.

The baby smiled once more, her eyes still on Zelda. She lifted her foot, swinging it forward haphazardly, but managed to stick the landing.

"Good girl, Kyla," Zelda called out to her. "You're doing so well. Keep coming!"

Kyla did as she was told, and took another shaky step. And then another.

"Ha ha, there she goes," Link said, smiling proudly. It was always a joy to see one of his kids achieve this.

As Kyla took her fourth step, she faltered a bit, and ended up stumbling forward. Fortunately, Zelda was already there, ready to catch her in her arms. "Whoa!" she exclaimed. "Kyla, that was so good!"

"She's gotten a lot stronger in the last few months," Link noted. "She never would have been able to do this before."

"Yeah, things finally seem to be looking up," Zelda agreed with a smile. She then paused for a second as she glanced down at the baby in her arms. "Hmm? Kyla?"

There was a short silence. Zelda's smile soon faded from her face, and was quickly replaced by a look of concern. As she stared down at the child in her lap, she could tell that there was something wrong.

Kyla seemed to be panting. And her forehead was covered in a thin layer of sweat.

"Oh, what's the matter, sweetie?" Zelda asked her infant. "Are you tired?"

Kyla didn't respond to her voice as she often did. Instead, she just kept panting, her ragged breathing steadily growing louder.

Zelda just stared at her child with a look of sympathy. "Kyla…?"

Suddenly, things seemed to take a turn for the worst. Kyla's panting turned into deep inhales and exhales, each one sounding more like a wheeze than an actual breath. And they were coming quickly too, in rapid succession.

"Oh my goodness," Zelda gasped, her entire self immediately becoming alarmed. "Kyla? Kyla, what's the matter, sweetie?"

Upon hearing the seriousness in his wife's tone, Link quickly became concerned too. "What's going on?"

"She…She just keeps wheezing," Zelda said, a look of terror on her face.

With a firm look of his own, Link quickly rushed to their side. "What is it? Is she choking on something?"

Wasting no time, Zelda stuck her fingers into the child's mouth, making sure that nothing was stuck in there. "I don't think so. She didn't have a chance to stick anything in her mouth. And this…this is different. It's like she just can't breathe."

Link clenched his teeth, suddenly growing nervous. All the while, his child continued to wheeze away.

Zelda felt tears welling up in her eyes. A strong fear took hold of her. "L-Link, what do we do?" she choked.

Link just shook his head, deciding to take action. He quickly scooped Kyla up out of Zelda's lap, and held her carefully in his arms. "I'm taking her to the physician. He needs to examine her right away."

Zelda looked lost, but she soon nodded and rose to her feet. She knew that this was no time to be paralyzed by fear. Their daughter needed help, and she needed it now.

Wasting no time, the couple rushed out of the room, carrying the wheezing infant with them.

Fortunately, they managed to make it to the infirmary in a timely manner. The physician was present and able to administer treatment immediately. He ended up feeding Kyla some sort of concoction, which slowly seemed to settle her breathing.

Once Zelda knew that her baby was going to be okay, she wanted to rush up and cradle her in her arms. However, the doctor stopped her, claiming that he still needed to perform an examination to see what was wrong with her. Besides, it would be better for Kyla to rest for a bit.

So, Link and Zelda stood in the room off to the side, waiting for the physician to finish his examination. The passage of time was honestly torture. They desperately wished to know what was wrong with their youngest.

Link was sitting in a chair with his arms crossed, staring at the floor. Meanwhile, Zelda slowly paced around the room, all while nervously biting her lip.

"Why don't you come and sit down?" Link eventually asked his wife.

"I can't," she replied. "I'm too worried."

"Kyla will be okay," Link told her. "She's in good hands."

"I know…"

"It would be better to stay calm. There's no use in worrying."

"I can't help but worry!" Zelda snapped back. "She's my baby, Link. I can't stand the thought of her suffering."

Link sighed. "I know. I'm worried too. But I don't want you to run yourself ragged when there's nothing we can do."

Zelda stopped, releasing her own heavy sigh. She then gave her husband a sad, tired look. A moment later, she walked over and sat in the chair next to him. She then leaned her head against his shoulder.

"Tell me everything will be okay again," she requested softly.

Link smiled before wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "Everything will be okay," he assured her, before planting a kiss on her forehead.

The two of them sat there for a few minutes, comforting each other in silence. Eventually, the door to the infirmary opened, and the physician stepped out. Link and Zelda immediately rose to their feet.

"Well?"

"How is she?"

"Please, relax," the physician said, raising up a hand. "Princess Kyla is resting soundly inside."

Link and Zelda each released a small sigh of relief, happy to hear that things were still stable.

"Can we see her?" Zelda asked.

"Just a moment," the doctor said, shaking his head. "I've finished my examination, and I need to tell you what I found."

Zelda just looked to Link, her concern slowly rising again. "What is it, doctor?" he asked.

"Please, sit," he insisted, gesturing to the chairs.

It was hard to relax, but Link and Zelda managed to find their way back into their seats. Zelda just ended up slowly reaching over and holding Link's hand in her own. She needed his reassurance.

"Well, as I'm sure you expected, I have some bad news. It would seem that Princess Kyla has been plagued with asthma."

"Oh no," Zelda immediately gasped.

Link just blinked. "Asthma? What is that?"

"Asthma is a condition that affects the lungs and the airways connected to it," the physician explained. "When it strikes, it causes Kyla's airways to narrow, making it harder for her to breathe. Hence, what happened earlier."

"So, she really couldn't breathe?" Link asked with a frown.

"Not without great difficulty," the physician said, sadly shaking his head. "Unfortunately, asthma can be rather vicious. If not treated quickly, it can sometimes even prove fatal."

"Fatal?" Zelda whispered. She honestly looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"Worry not, Princess," the physician tried to assure her. "Fortunately, I am able to brew a concoction that should help ease her airways whenever it strikes. As long as you keep some on hand, Kyla should have nothing to worry about."

"And how long does this last for?" Link asked. "A couple of weeks?"

The physician shook his head once again. "No, Sir Link. I'm afraid that most people that have asthma are afflicted by it throughout their entire lives."

Link's eyes widened in shock. "So…Kyla is going to have trouble breathing…for the rest of her life?"

"Only when the condition rears its ugly head," he clarified. "The attacks themselves should be fairly infrequent, but yes, she will likely have to deal with this throughout all her years."

"My…My poor baby," Zelda choked before forcing her head into her hands. The tears were now freely spilling down her cheeks.

Link just rubbed her shoulder a bit, feeling about as awful on the inside as she looked on the outside. "So…what can we do?"

The physician sighed before crossing his arms. "Well, you're going to want to start keeping a close eye on her. Make sure that she isn't pushing herself too hard or struggling to breathe. If she does, you'll need to feed her the concoction immediately. I'll prepare plenty of it, and I'll make sure that the two of you have it on hand at all times."

"I understand," Link said, nodding.

Zelda brought her head up from her hands, sniffling a bit as she wiped her tears away. "I…I understand too."

"Very good," the physician replied. "Now, I'll go ahead and spend the next few days brewing the concoction. In the meantime, you are free to collect Kyla and take your leave. And of course, please contact me if anything else comes up."

"Right," Link said as he rose to his feet. "Thank you, doctor."

The two of them shook his hand before the physician took his leave, disappearing into the infirmary so he could return to work. Link then turned to Zelda, and the two of them stared at each other in silence.

Neither of them knew what to say.

The couple collected the sleeping Kyla, and carefully carried her back to their bedchamber. Once there, Zelda slowly walked inside before taking a seat on the bed. Link just closed the door behind them.

Zelda stared down at the infant, carefully studying her with her eyes. A moment later, those same eyes began to fill with tears once again.

"This is all my fault," she sobbed.

Link quickly frowned. "What do you mean?"

"It's my fault, Link," she insisted. "I…I couldn't give her a healthy body. That's why she gets sick all the time. That's why she can't even breathe properly…" She soon sobbed again, as the tears continued to fall.

Link just shook his head before walking over and joining his wife on the bed. "Stop it, Zelda. This isn't your fault. It's no one's. It's just something that happened."

Zelda shook her head. "No, it's my body. It couldn't give her the life she deserved."

"There's nothing wrong with your body," Link argued back, still keeping a calm and soothing tone. "You gave me two beautiful, healthy children before this, remember?"

"Then why couldn't I do the same for her?" Zelda demanded, her attention solely focused on Kyla. "It's not fair! Why does she have to be the one who suffers? How…How could the Goddesses be so cruel to her? To us?"

Link quickly frowned. He had never heard Zelda speak out against the Goddesses. Not even once. "Don't say that, Zelda. If anything, the Goddesses blessed us with a beautiful girl, didn't they? You said it yourself on the day she was born. That you were so happy to have her in your arms."

Zelda's lip quivered a bit. "Of course I was…"

Link soon gave her a soft smile. "And besides, what makes you think that the Goddesses are being cruel?"

Zelda blinked before turning to him in surprise. "Wh-What?"

Link smiled some more. "Listen to me. This asthma might not be a good thing, but that doesn't mean that no good can come from it. Sure, I imagine that Kyla's life might be difficult, but that just means that she'll grow up and learn to become strong. These trials that have been placed upon her will eventually forge her into a better person. And it doesn't just affect her either. You and I will be forged into better parents because of this. We'll become more attentive and caring, all to make sure that our little girl stays happy and healthy. Isn't that right?"

Zelda just gawked at him. Never in her life had she heard him give such a dedicated, well-spoken speech like this before. What was even more surprising was that his words had managed to move her broken heart. Even now, she was starting to feel a sense of hope again.

"You…You're so optimistic," she stuttered, sniffling a little. She then smiled. "But…I think that I honestly needed to hear that. Thank you, Link."

"Of course," he said, pulling her in close to give her a kiss.

As he pulled away, Zelda just ended up giving him an amused smile. "I have to wonder though, Link. Where did you learn to give a speech like that?"

"What, that?" Link asked with a small laugh. "I'll have you know that it all came straight from the heart."

"To think your heart had such a way with words," Zelda said, still looking amused. "And here I was wondering if you had been reading more books recently."

Link laughed some more. "Maybe I should. Now that Kristin has started her schooling, I don't want to find out that she's suddenly become smarter than me."

Zelda laughed as well before flashing a smirk. "I would start sooner rather than later if I were you. That girl is intelligent, and she'll pass you up before you know it."

"Well, as long as Cecil doesn't surpass my skill with the sword, then I won't lose all of my pride, at least."

Zelda's smile softened a bit, before she leaned her head on his shoulder, just as she always did. "Well, even if our children do surpass you, you'll always be my husband, and nothing will ever change that."

"Well, that's reassuring," he replied. He soon leaned his head against her own.

"Everything will be okay, won't it?" Zelda whispered.

"Everything will be okay," Link promised.

Are you feeling bad for the baby yet? Because I am :(