Chapter 48: The Heir of His Hatred

Ganondorf was a strict teacher, and training with him was gruelling. In between my magic lessons, my fighting lessons at Ashanti‘s school and taking care of the household, I barely had any time to breathe. But these were dark times… yet again, so of course leisure would fall by the wayside.

Two months after I started my lessons, Zelda started showing first signs of morning sickness. And unfortunately… so did I.

„You‘d have done well in showing a bit restraint with your hero“, Ganondorf commented as I was running to the bucket the servants had graciously provided for the third time that morning. „Who in their right mind gets pregnant during times like these?“

„Me, appearantly“, I replied shakily once I had stopped vomiting.

I vaguely heard the Gerudo mumble something about „spoiled, reckless Hylians“.

I finally stood up straight again, rubbing my stomach and hoping that the nausea would pass soon. The herbal tea that Dr. Tori had given me didn‘t seem to help now like it did when I had been pregnant with Gareth. Every morning I felt like my stomach was all up in knots.

Fantastic, I thought to myself as I sat down next to Cassandra on the sidelines. Because this is the perfect time for a difficult pregnancy!

Compared to me, Zelda seemed to have it quite easy. Either that, or she hid her troubles well.

Cassandra shot me a compassionate look, causing me to sigh.

„Gareth didn‘t make me nearly as sick as his little sibling does“, I complained, reaching down to where Gareth was playing with Erika, Ganondorf‘s and Cassandra‘s youngest daughter.

„I‘ve gone through seven pregnancies thus far and let me tell you: Every pregnancy is unique, just like every person is.“

„Seven?“, I asked. I knew for sure that Cassandra had eleven daughters at this point. As insane as that sounded.

„Uh-huh. Two of them were twins and one were triplets“, she explained. „Good thing that Ganondorf and the other Gerudo were always there for me. The Gerudo take the saying ‚It takes a whole village to raise a child‘ very seriously. No Gerudo mother is ever alone in raising and educating her child.“

„That sounds amazing“, I replied, still rubbing my belly hoping that it would stop the nausea. At least I had gotten around to weaning Gareth. And not a moment too soon; he had started teething, a bit later than other children but still within the normal range, as Dr. Tori had assured me, and appearantly he believed my breasts to be a perfect teething ring. Luckily the bruises it left would be long forgotten by the time his little sibling was born.

„Mommyyy!“ Gareth came waddling up to me. He was walking quite well now. „Hungie!!“

„Is it that late already?“, I asked, feeling heavy weariness descend upon me. I looked up and indeed; it was already noon, judging by the position of the sun. „I have to get home and make sure dinner‘s on the table when Link comes back.“

After making sure that Ganondorf really had no ill intentions, Link had stopped watching my lessons and instead committed to his own training. Meaning that, upon returning home, we were usually utterly exhausted.

It really wasn‘t easy being both warriors and parents.

Zelda caught up to me as I was about to leave the training court towards home. „Rebecca! Hold on!“

I smiled and embraced her as a greeting. „Yes, dear?“

She gently stroked my cheek. „Why don‘t you and Link stay for dinner today? I‘ve already tasked the cooks with preparing some baby food for Gareth.“ She gently traced the outline of the dark shadows under my eyes with her slim, elegant fingers. „You look so tired. And Link does, too. You both deserve a bit of a break. I already asked him, and he agreed to join me at the table.“

Well that made my decision easy. „Of course, Zelda. I‘d love to.“

It was so refreshing to not hurry back home and hastily throw together a meal for once. The food was simply divine; an array of delicacies both from Hyrule and the sorrounding kingdoms.

I was just glad that Gareth wasn‘t a particularly picky eater. He ate everything the cooks had prepared for him without complaint. In fact, he seemed to love it. His eyes lit up with delight every time the spoon approached his face.

Zelda watched Link feed him with a thoughtful expression on her face. She looked a little paler than usual, but apart from that nothing about her indicated that she was pregnant. Though of course, as the Queen, she had the very best medical care anyone could ask for.

I put down my knife and fork. „Is something the matter, Zelda?“

She took a sip from her goblet and swiveled the honeywater in it around for a bit. „I‘m worried about the current situation. Now that Demise is about to manifest again, who is to say he won‘t just choose a new host to be reborn into?“

I furrowed my brows. Then my eyes widened. „You don‘t think-“

„It would make sense, wouldn‘t it?“ Her hands tightened. „Your… visions only started after the night the three of us spent together. Isn‘t that true? I‘ve been thinking… maybe it is because in that night, the new heir of Demise‘s malice and hatred was conceived.“

„But which one of us…?“

Zelda shrugged defeatedly. „It could be either of us. Maybe it‘s more likely that my child is that heir. The heir of Demise, born of the bearers of the Triforces of Courage and Wisdom. Then again, you were the one having the visions.“

„Do the children of the bearers of the Triforce inherit their parent‘s powers?“, I questioned.

„I don‘t know. There isn‘t exactly a precedent for the Triforce being split in three pieces. Did Gareth exhibit any kind of exceptional courage thus far?“

I looked over to Gareth, who was trying to „bravely“ wrestle the spoon from Link‘s hand. „Not really.“

Zelda obviously tried really hard to keep her composure. I looked around, only to find that the three of us were alone in the dining room. So I got up, walked over to her and began rubbing her shoulders. They felt like one big, tense knot. Zelda really needed a break. Too bad there was nobody who was trustworthy enough to take over the kingdom while she took a while to relax and take care of herself.

„I think we‘d know if either of our unborn children were evil“, I said.  „You would be able to feel it, right? And I doubt Demise would have the patience to wait another few decades for his new vessel to be grown up.“

Zelda leaned into my touch, her eyes half closed. Now that I was so close to her, I saw the slight hint of dark shadows underneath her eyes, though covered up by powder. „Zelda“, I said gently. „I realize that ruling the kingdom is hard work that never ends, but please don‘t forget to take care of yourself.“

„I don‘t. But I can‘t afford to relax while we are in the middle of yet another crisis.“

„Another crisis means that you need to be at your best. You won‘t be able to help or guide anyone if you collapse from exhaustion.“

„So what do you suggest I do?“, Zelda asked dryly.

I stopped for a moment. Well, what should she do? I was already pretty overwhelmed with juggling combat training and parenting my son. I didn‘t know what to do if one were to add ruling a nation to that mix. „I… I don‘t know.“

Zelda sat up straight again. „...exactly. I appreciate your concern, Rebecca, I really do, but I cannot show any weakness. Especially now. The people need a queen who bears the burden of responsibility without complaint.“

I grew silent, still working the knots out of her shoulders.

Once I was sure that she was at least a little more relaxed, I returned to my seat and continued eating.

Link remained in the castle to continue his training after dinner, while I returned home with Gareth to get some housework done. I put him in his playpen and started wiping down the table and kitchen counters, then I started sweeping the floor.

Hours passed while I wiped, swept, tidied and played with Gareth, until the sun began to set. I wanted to wait for Link to return, but as time ticked on, Gareth became tired and cranky, so I decided to tuck him into bed and read a book by the light of the oil-lamp on my bedside table.

More time passed and at some point I decided that there was no point in waiting any longer. I put the book away, snuffed out the lamp and went to sleep.

Link was in Zelda‘s study, walking up and down with a worried frown etched onto his handsome features. Zelda herself was sitting at her desk with a similarly serious expression.

„We have to do something“, she said finally. „We cannot risk Demise being reincarnated. And she‘s the one who has visions of him.“

„We already have administered the first dose of the poison today, didn‘t we? It won‘t take too long until it works. And she will think that it was a natural miscarriage. A tragedy, but these things happen.“

The words were spoken in their voices, but they sounded so wrong. Nothing this cruel could ever come out of the mouths of the people I loved so much.

„Maybe we should increase the dose of the poison. Just to be safe.“ Link sat down on a nearby chair.

Zelda raised her eyebrow. „That could endanger her life as well.“

Link met her gaze. „...as I said. These things happen. Especially during unfortunate miscarriages.“

I woke up, drenched in sweat, and grabbed the bucket next to my bed. Maybe this really wasn‘t just the typical sickness associated with pregnancy. Maybe… oh Goddesses.

I vomited until nothing but foamy bile came out. It was the middle of the night, and Link still hadn‘t come home.

Once I was sure that there was nothing more for me to throw up, I put the bucket back and rolled myself up in the fetal position, quietly sobbing to myself.

It was just a nightmare, I tried to tell myself. Link and Zelda would never do something so cruel. And there certainly was a good explanation for his absence right now.

I heard the sound of Gareth crying next door; my noisy vomiting and subsequent crying fit had woken him up, no doubt.

I got up and, on shaky legs, stumbled through the door and to Gareth‘s room. He was standing in his crib, his big blue eyes already puffed up from crying. I picked him up, wrapping my arms around him in a protective hug. „Hush, love. It‘s okay. Mommy is here.“

„Mommy“, he whimpered, holding onto me and holding onto the collar of my nightgown.

I took him into the bedroom, humming a soft lullaby to him and lightly bouncing him.

After a few minutes, he finally calmed down enough to fall asleep again.

I didn‘t want to leave him alone, and I certainly wouldn‘t be able to fall asleep again. So I just put him down next to me on the bed and took out a ball of yarn and my knitting needles. I managed to knit a few more rows until sounds coming from downstairs distracted me. I looked out the window. Judging by the position of the moon, it was just a bit after midnight. I hadn‘t even slept two hours.

The sounds came closer. The front door opening and closing. Then footsteps up the stairs and coming along the hallway until the door opened and a very tired looking Link came in. He looked up, eyes widening when he realized that I was still awake.

„I thought you‘d be sleeping.“

„I had a nightmare, and then Gareth woke up.“ I nodded in the general direction of our sleeping son. I was still shaking, but tried to stay calm. No need to get upset with my husband over what happened in a silly dream.

„Oh“, Link replied and then trudged over to his side of the bed, got out of his clothes and slipped under the cover.

„Where have you been?“, I asked casually.

Link looked up at me. „I was training, and once I was done with that, Zelda asked me to come to her study to discuss our plans going forward. The Sages and a few of the ministers were there too.“

Her study. Everything within me tensed up. Just like in the dream.

„And what are the plans?“

Link shifted slightly. „We aren‘t sure yet. It was mostly about what to do with Demise should really chose to be… reincarnated.“

Oh Goddesses.

He scooted over to me, taking Gareth into his arms and placing his own head on my stomach. „I don‘t think he will, though.“

I dropped the knitting needles, and before I knew it, hot tears were running down my face again, dripping down my chin and landing on my chest.

„...Becca?“ Link sat up, alarmed, and pulled me into his arms. „What‘s wrong?“

„Link, you wouldn‘t do anything to harm our children, would you? Not Gareth, and not our unborn child either?“

„What? What are you talking about?“ He let me snuggle up to his chest while stroking my hair.

„I-it‘s nothing. I had a nightmare, that‘s all.“ I took a few deep breaths and told him, interrupted by a lot of stutters and hiccups, about my dream.

He was quiet for a long time, just holding me and letting me cry. Once I had calmed down, he sighed and made me sit up straight again. „...One of the ministers overheard the conversation you had with Zelda during dinner and brought up the idea of trying to...“ He hesitated. „...end your pregnancy prematurely. It took pretty much all of the Sages to keep me from punching him in the face.“ His fingers got tangled in my messy hair. „Ruto surprised me. I figured she‘d be against that plan for morality‘s sake alone, but she gave that minister quite an impressive verbal beatdown. ‚My personal feelings about Rebecca aside, it‘s disgusting that you would consider inflicting this kind of physical and emotional pain on an in this case innocent woman, and just based on the very low possibility that her unborn child could end up evil. If that‘s enough to poison a pregnant woman, you might as well start poisoning EVERY pregnant woman, INCLUDING the Queen.‘. Those were her words. The minister didn‘t say any more after that.“

I let out a soft, surprised gasp. „She said all that… in defense of our baby? Remind me to thank her for that the next time I see her.“

„She‘ll probably blow you off out of embarrassment“, Link quipped. „Come on dear. Lay down and sleep now.“ He slipped under the covers again. I did the same, and with Gareth still sleeping peacefully between us, we drifted off into a deep, restful slumber.

Chapter 47: Magic Lessons

Zelda took her place on the throne, and we gathered around her, with Ganondorf, Cassandra, Lana and Cia standing in front of us. Though Lana took that position mostly to keep Cia quiet.

Link was squirming uncomfortably next to me, and I could imagine why; Cia was leering at him like she was undressing him with her eyes. I moved to stand in front of him, and to my surprise, Ruto did the same. That way, everything but his face was out of sight for her.

„So, Ganondorf, former King of the Gerudo. Would you please repeat what you told me upon your arrival in the castle.“

„Of course, Your Majesty.“ His tone was patronising, and I clenched my fists. How dare he talk to Zelda like that?! He looked around. „Though first I must ask exactly how familiar the people in the room are with Hyrule‘s early history. Specifically about how the kingdom was established and what came before that.“

Empty stares. Zelda leaned back on the throne. „I fear that a lot of knowledge about this land prior to the founding of the kingdom of Hyrule has been lost to time.“

„Indeed. So let me give you a little lesson in history. Long before the kingdom of Hyrule was founded, this world was ravaged by a fierce war between two powerful deities. One of them was a goddess named Hylia, who served the three Golden Goddesses and protected the Triforce they had left behind. The other was an entity so fearsome and cruel that nobody ever spoke his name, and he was only ever called Demise, for demise is what he brought wherever he wandered. Demise sought to conquer the world and gain power of the Golden Goddesses for himself, while Hylia wished to protect the people of the world. Hylia was aided by a young warrior who, unlike the other humans, showed great courage in the face of the seemingly unbeatable Demise.“ At this point, Ganondorf paused, before commenting:„It sounds familiar, does it not, Your Majesty?“

„Indeed it does. But history has the tendency to repeat itself. What exactly are you trying to say with all of this?“, Zelda asked cooly.

Ganondorf smirked a little. „I was about to get to that point. So with the aid of the young hero, Hylia managed to defeat Demise. Defeat, but not destroy him. All she could do was seal him away, and she had to give up her own divinity to do so and being reborn as a human woman was the consequence of that. A woman with divine powers, but mortal nonetheless. Many centuries passed, and as the seal grew weaker, a new hero was chosen, and together with the incarnation of Hylia at the time, he destroyed Demise‘s physical form. But Demise could not be entirely destroyed. However, unlike Hylia, he did not reincarnate as a mortal. Instead, his evil infected a certain bloodline and manifested itself in all of its male descendants, which were… quite rare.“

„So you are the reincarnation of Demise?“, I blurted out.

His yellow eyes darted over to me. „Did you not listen, Glaces? No, I am not his reincarnation, but I am, or rather was, indeed the latest heir of his hatred. And when the Hero of Time pierced my heart with the Master Sword, Demise‘s essence was separated from me. So now I am free of its influence, but that also unfortunately means that Demise will possibly be able to manifest again.“

„And how does the Sorceress fit into all of this?“, Link asked, pushing his way past me and Ruto to stand in the front again and nodded in Cia‘s general direction. „We have been told that she was the guardian of the Triforce before she went mad.“

Ganondorf raised one eyebrow. „Can‘t you guess? The Sorceress was supposed to be Hylia‘s successor. The Goddesses did not allow her to interact with the world she was guarding, so she wouldn‘t make the same mistake as Hylia.“

„Well that backfired horribly“, Naboru commented.

Cia stomped her foot. „These wretched Goddesses! They must have reveled in my torment, my eternal solitude! And then they let the only soul capable of comprehending my torment dance to the tunes of their flutes right in front of my face, with no way of reaching him!“

„Cia! Quiet!“, Lana shushed her.

„Why should I?“, Cia snapped and strained against the crackling magical rope. „I am the guardian of the Triforce! For all intents and purposes, the Triforce, the Hero, this WORLD should belong to ME!“

„Good Goddesses, and I thought Rebecca was a spoiled brat“, I heard Ruto mumble.

„Excuse me?“, I asked dryly.

„You heard me.“

„Are you quite done?“, Ganondorf inquired.

Zelda sighed. „Yes. Please continue.“

He slightly tilted his head in acknowledgement and then continued:„As of right now, he hasn‘t recovered his physical form yet, which makes him exceedingly difficult to fight. It would be prudent to try and predict where he could manifest again, by placing guardians at every spiritually significant place in Hyrule.“

„So you mean the temples“, Naboru said.

„Indeed. However, Demise seems to have taken a certain interest in a certain Glaces. Or so I‘ve been told.“ Now Ganondorf‘s piercing gaze wandered over to me. „Why do you think that is?“

I shuffled my feet. Goddesses, how I hated feeling so vulnerable under his eyes. „...because I‘m the weakest link in the chain. Uh… no pun intended.“

He lifted his chin approvingly. „That is true. Of the people gathered here, you are the one who is most easily manipulated, and has the least actual combat experience. Even the Sage of the Forest managed to get quite strong with the help of the nature-based magic she is capable of using thanks to her status. You however are clumsy at best with your weapon and your magic is about as dangerous as a snowball.“

„Gee, thanks.“

„So“, Ganondorf continued, completely ignoring my sarcastic remark. „Her Majesty and I discussed the best course of action, and decided that it would be prudent for you to get some actual practice both with your naginata and your magic. I do not use a naginata, but I‘ve been told that you have already found an instructor who is more than capable. And I will be the one to instruct you in the art of magic.“

My jaw dropped, and I turned to Zelda. „Please tell me that this is a joke.“

„I don‘t really like it, either. But he is right; it is vital that you learn to control your powers, and to properly defend yourself.“

I bit my lip, and then glared at Ganondorf. „...Fine.“ After all, lover or not, Zelda was still my Queen, and her word was law. I could hardly just tell her „no“.

Zelda settled back into her throne. „Now that that‘s settled, we should probably get to questioning the sorceress.“

Ganondorf and Cassandra retreated to the sidelines, and Lana brought Cia a few steps closer to us.

„Cia, former guardian of the Triforce, sorceress of the Temple of Souls, you stand accused of attempted regicide, among other offenses. This could mean your doom, unless you choose to cooperate now and tell us what we want to know. Do you understand that?“

Cia glared at Zelda, until Lana nudged her. „Cia. Answer.“

„I understand“, she hissed in between gritted teeth.

We spent the next few hours questioning Cia, but she couldn‘t really tell us anything new, except that a mysterious voice had told her that she could easily bend or break the rules of fate if she so desired, and thus had slowly but surely corrupted her.

Once she had been brought back to the dungeon, the Sages bid their goodbyes as well.

Ganondorf turned to me again. „Your training will begin tomorrow morning. I will waiting on the training grounds usually used by the knights of Hyrule. At sunrise, and not a moment later.“

I cast Zelda a pleading gaze, which she returned sternly. Then I sighed. „Very well.“

Back at home I fed Gareth and put him in his playpen. My hands were shaking from the stress, so Link guided me to the sitting area in front of the fireplace and made me sit down on the couch.

„I‘ll come to the training grounds with you tomorrow“, he promised. „There‘s no way I will leave you alone with Ganondorf.“

„Thank you, dear“, I mumbled and leaned into his embrace. „I love you.“

„I love you too.“

The next morning, Link and I woke up while it was still dark outside, to get ourselves ready. We fed the horses and let them out of the stable for the day, then took a very sleepy and slightly fussy Gareth out of his grib. I stroked my little boy‘s cheek in an attempt to calm him down while we walked the winding path up to the castle.

Ganondorf was already waiting when we arrived. He raised his eyebrow when he saw Link and Gareth.

„Too cowardly to come here on your own, Glaces? Do you intend to use your husband and child as meatshields in case I have some nefarious plan?“

I grit my teeth. „I believe that using small children as meatshields is your shtick.“

Ganondorf chuckled darkly. „You‘ve got quite the sharp tongue, Glaces. Pity Demise can‘t be defeated by snide remarks, otherwise we‘d have already won. Can we start, then?“

„Fine.“

Link sat down on a crate standing near the entrance to the castle, while I approached Ganondorf.

The Gerudo began:„I suppose I do not need to go over the basics of channeling your magic again. You seem to already know how to do that. However, you have to learn to concentrate on the image you use to conjure up your spell much harder if you want it to be stronger.“

And so, for the next few hours, Ganondorf made repeat the same spell over and over again, always telling me to concentrate harder. Until I felt completely drained and Link had to get up and rush to me to keep me from falling over in exhaustion.

„Hm...“ Ganondorf rubbed his chin. „You haven‘t made quite as much progess as I would have liked you to, but I wouldn‘t say that today was entirely unproductive.“

I leaned on Link, trying to regain my balance. I had a headache and felt like I had just done two days worth of farmwork on LonLon Ranch within half a day.

But then Gareth began to cry and my motherly instincts kicked in. „He must be hungry.“ I had Link walk me over to the barrel where he had been sitting and was about to pull the collar of my shirt open to let Gareth drink when I remembered that Ganondorf was still there. „Do you mind?“

Ganondorf crossed his arms in front of his chest and rolled his eyes, but did turn around. „You do realize that I have children of my own, do you? Seeing a woman breastfeed is nothing new or interesting to me.“

I was quiet for a moment while feeding Gareth. Maybe it was the calming presence of my son, or the mention of Ganondorf being a parent as well, but I felt a lot less contempt for him at that moment. „I met some of your daughters during that other future.“

„I know. They helped in the siege on my castle.“

„Do you hold that against them?“

He shook his head. „How could I? I forced their hand. They did what they had to do, and they did so with all of the strength and determination I tried to impart on them. And that shows me that despite Demise‘s influence on our lives and my behaviour, Cassandra and I raised them well.“

I looked up. Ganondorf still had his back turned to me, but his posture showed that he still payed close attention to how I reacted. „You really did raise them well.“

„Thank you.“ He sounded sincere, almost gentle.

„Now what is that?“, called Cassandra‘s voice from the entrace to the castle. „I can‘t believe you two are actually getting along!“ Her voice was light and cheerful. „I half expected to arrive here and find the place in ruins!“

„Do you really think I have so little self-control, Cassandra?“, Ganondorf asked dryly.

„I have complete faith in your self-control“, Cassandra replied, the golden beads of her elaborate headdress jingling like tiny bells when she came bouncing down the stairs from to entrance up to Ganondorf and wrapped her arms around his mid-section. Next to him, she was comically small. „But you know, things happen, situations escalate, and with all of the hostility shown to you thus far...“

„You speak without thinking again, Cassandra“, Ganondorf told her sternly. „Princess… pardon. Queen Zelda has already shown us a tremendous amount of clemency by not immediately arresting and executing us.“

„Sorry“, Cassandra replied. „I‘m just happy that we can be here now. And I often get anxious that something could go wrong.“

Ganondorf bent down, picked her up into his arms and kissed her. „Nothing will happen. Don‘t worry.“

I smiled to myself. In a way, they reminded me of Link and me when he tried to calm my fears.

A man like that… a man who was proud of his daugthers for fighting for a good cause and clearly loved his wife couldn‘t be a truly bad person. That much I was sure of.

Chapter 46: A Red Moon Rises

Zelda promised to look into the matter of the apparition when we visited her. Especially my description of the man in the mirror had her concerned, though she tried to assure us that no harm could come to our family while we were in the immediate vicinity of the castle and promised to keep us updated on anything she might find. With our minds slightly eased, we returned home. Link was on the pasture with Gareth, playing with the horses, while I was doing the laundry in a big tub that was located at the back entrance of the house, where I could still watch my husband and son. While I scrubbed one of Link‘s undershirts over the washing board, I caught a glimpse of a reflection on the water‘s surface. Just a hint of something or someone standing behind me. The hair at the back of my neck stood up and I clenched my hands into fists to stop myself from panicking. Tiny spikes of ice started to spread over my hands, the wet fabric, and the water in the tub, until chunks of ice were floating around in it like tiny glaciers. Then, someone touched my shoulders. I immediately flinched and spun around, a dagger made of the frozen washing water in my hand, only to be met with the blue eyes of a very, very startled Malon, with Jalon in her arms. I immediately dropped the make-shift weapon, causing it to melt back into a small puddle of dirty water. „Malon! By the Goddesses! I almost killed you!“ „No kidding“, she said, her eyes still wide with shock. „I just delivered some milk to the castle and thought I‘d drop by and let Jalon and Gareth play for a bit. I didn‘t expect to be greeted like this though.“ I took a deep, calming breath. „Some things happened lately that made me a bit jumpy. Sorry that I startled you.“ „It‘s okay.“ She hugged me lightly, making sure not to crush Jalon in the process. He, adorably, also tried to hug me with his tiny baby arms. I looked at the almost finished laundry. „Just let me hang up the last pieces of laundry and then we can join Link on the pasture.“

Link‘s face lit up with a smile when he saw me enter the pasture with Malon and Jalon in tow. „Malon! So nice of you to visit!“ She hugged him as a greeting. „So nice of you to have me!“ Then she set down Jalon on the ground next to Gareth. „I thought our boys might want to play for a bit.“ The two toddlers eyed each other like curious puppies. For a moment, I was worried. While five months of difference in age didn‘t mean much to adults, for infants, it was a lot, and I feared that Gareth might not understand that and accidentally hurt Jalon. But Gareth crawled away, only to return soon after, excitedly showing Jalon a crushed bug, making the younger boy squeal in delight. I just hoped that Gareth‘s way of showing affection would develop past that eventually. And if it didn‘t… well, there were plenty of bugs on the pasture. Malon and I sat down on the grass, while Link excused himself. „I don‘t want to be in the way of your ladies‘ talk. And someone has to keep an eye on the kids.“ With that, he jogged after the boys, who had taken a keen interest in the water trough. „I still can‘t fully believe it“, Malon said as we were watching them. „So much has changed in such a short amount of time.“ I fully understood where she came from. Our childhood felt so close, as if it had just been yesterday we were running around the marketplace, pretending to be proper princesses searching for their knights in shining armor. And now we were both wives and mothers. I had become a warrior and mage, she had learned how to be the head of her family and run the ranch. „True“, I agreed. „So, how is everyone at the ranch doing?“ Malon chuckled and plucked a daisy out of the grass, rolling the stem of the fragile little flower in between her fingertips. „They‘re all fine. My father adores being a grandpa, and treats Matthias like the son he never had. And Ingo… well, he‘s being Ingo. I don‘t think he will ever change. But I did catch him babytalking to Jalon once.“ „Aw, that‘s adorable“, I commented. Deep down, I had always known that Ingo was a big softie underneath all that grumpiness. „So, care to tell me what makes you so jumpy at the moment?“, she asked. „That‘s a long story, and I don‘t think I should tell you.“ „Since when do you keep secrets from me?“, she asked, pouting at me. I wrapped one arm around her shoulders. „You‘ve got enough on your plate running the ranch and raising your boy. I don‘t want to burden you with my problems.“ „Hmhm… But if you ever need my help, you know that you can rely on me. Right?“ „Of course.“ I kissed her cheek.

Malon‘s visit had done a lot to calm me, and as I saw her ride off on her wagon, I couldn‘t help but smile. Whatever the visions meant, and whatever the future held, Link and I would never have to worry about facing it alone. And with that comforting thought, we returned to our usual schedule.

That comfort lasted precisely until I went to bed that night. As soon as I had drifted off to sleep, the nightmare began. At first I was in an endless void, the kind of blackness that swallows all light and even seems to muffle any kind of sound. Then, in the midst of that darkness, a flame sprung to life. A flame that began to spread, to become bigger and bigger until it shaped something vaguely human. The flames forming the body soon began to dull, leaving behind a soot-like grey-ish black substance, while what would be the hair still burned and danced around in a non-existent breeze like a flame. And within the blackness of the creature‘s face, two eyes like glowing embers opened. This… this man was huge; at least twice the height of a grown man, if not more, and impossibly muscular. He opened his mouth; it was packed with sharp, crooked, black teeth like daggers of obsidian. He stretched out his huge, clawed hand. „My puppet may be free of my grasp now, Glaces. But do not be mistaken. I will rise again. A circle has no end.“ I woke up with a startled yelp, with the man‘s words still echoing in my mind. A circle has no end.

„That‘s what he said?“, Link asked me to confirm what I had just told him. After waking up, he had gotten me out of bed and down to the kitchen, where he brewed some calming tea for me. And now we sat at the table, with me clutching the cup in my hands. „Yes. That‘s what he said.“ Link sighed and rubbed his eyes. „We need to go see Zelda again once the sun it up.“ „We can‘t keep bothering her with this. She said she‘d look into it, and that‘s all we can expect of her right now. Remember that she‘s the sole ruler of Hyrule now. She has more important things to deal with than my paranoia.“ I put the cup down. „It‘s just me having these visions, right? Maybe it‘s really just paranoia, and trauma, and my mind being too weak to deal with everything that has happened.“ „Rebecca.“ Link put his hand on mine. „You are a lot of things. But certainly not weak-minded.“ „Still. We cannot push this on everyone unless there‘s more evid-...“ Link put up his hand, and at first I thought he wanted to insist on telling Zelda again, but then I saw the look on his face. His eyes were wide open in shock, his mouth slightly open. And then I felt it too. A sudden uneasiness, that soon turned into full-blown fear. The hair on my arms and the back of my neck stood up, and then I noticed it. The pale, silvery light of the moon, which was streaming through our windows, suddenly turned red. Blood-red. Link and I jumped up and ran to one of the windows facing the castle. And behind the castle, a red moon rose, with a red aura spreading from it over the sky, like ink in water. „Go upstairs and get Gareth. We‘re going to the castle right now!“, Link ordered, and I didn‘t hesitate. That was the proof I had been waiting for. Something was very, very wrong. Hopefully, Zelda knew something more.

Zelda was already rushing out the gate when we arrived. „Link! Rebecca! I was just about to send a messenger to come get you!“ She threw her arms around both of us and hugged us. „Are you hurt?“ „No, we are alright.“ „Zelda! The moon… what does this mean?“, I asked, voice thin with terror. „It means danger“, another voice said, and my breath hitched in my throat when I saw Ganondorf step out from inside the castle. „YOU!“, I shrieked, blasting a spell from my free hand while holding Gareth with my other arm, but Ganondorf parried it without much trouble, sending it toward a wall instead. „Impressive, considering you barely seem to know what you‘re doing“, Ganondorf said dryly. „But now is not the time for games.“ „Do I look like I‘m playing games?“, I hissed, readying another spell. „Rebecca!“, Zelda cut in. „Enough. Ganondorf knows what is going on, and has offered to help.“ „Help?! For all we know, he is the source of what is going on!“ „We have already confirmed that that is not the case“, Zelda insisted. „Please. And Link, you too.“ Link, who had unsheathed the Master Sword, sheathed it again. „Fine. We will hear him out. But that does not mean that we will trust him.“ „I do not ask that of you. But remember that the Triforce of Wisdom does grant me a certain foresight, and this time, I see no ill intentions in him.“ I let the magic in my hand fizzle out. „...Fine.“

Zelda led us to the throne room, where to my surprise not only the Sages but also Cassandra, Cia and Lana were waiting. Cia was tied up in a rope made of magic. „Link!“, she yelled and tried to lunge for him, but the magic rope crackled with energy and held her in place. Naboru stepped forth first, glaring at Ganondorf before turning her attention to Zelda. „With all due respect, Your Majesty, but it is foolish to even allow him to walk freely inside the castle.“ „Still holding onto old grudges, Naboru?“, Ganondorf asked mockingly. Again, she merely glared at him. Princess Ruto approached. „We should kill him now, while he‘s weakened, and spare ourselves the trouble of having to deal with him later. Besides, pretty much everyone in this room apart from maybe the witches and his little servant still have a bone to pick with him.“ „Wife“, Cassandra corrected her in a deadpan voice. „I‘m his wife.“ „Whatever!“, Ruto snapped. „Point is: Whatever information he has certainly is something we can find out without having to rely on this… this… monster!“ „Enough!“, Zelda yelled, causing everyone to go quiet. „I have already made a decision in the matter. And while I greatly value your counsel, that decision is final. Do not worry. He is under constant surveillance while he is at the castle, and any suspicious behaviour will be reported to me immediately.“ Ruto narrowed her eyes. „Oh please!“, Cia called. „Let the Hero kill him. Oh how I would love to see my hero in action again!“ „Cia!“, Lana hushed her. „Okay, and why is the witch here?“, I asked, nodding in Cia‘s general direction. „For questioning“, Zelda explained. „We have reason to believe that Cia‘s sudden turn to evil and rapidly declining mental state are directly linked to the figure that has appeared to you.“ „Oh?“ I settled down a little, but still found myself eyeing both Ganondorf and Cia warily.

Chapter 45: The Man in the Mirror

When I awoke, it was still dark outside, and for a moment I was confused. Why was I awake? I looked over to Link who also raised his head, obviously still half-asleep and just as confused as I was. But then someone gently touch my shoulder.

It was Zelda, standing next to the bed, fully dressed again. „I‘m sorry, but I have to leave. My chambermaid will come to my chambers to wake me in an hour, and the whole castle will be in a panic if I‘m not there then.“

„Oh. Okay. Goodbye, Zelda“, I mumbled gently.

„Goodbye, Zelda“, Link said with a soft yawn.

Zelda smiled, and in the light of the moon through the window her eyes seemed to be a bit teary. „I hope I will see you again soon, my loves.“

I fell asleep again after Zelda left and awoke a few hours later. It took a moment for me to realize that I was alone in the bed. But from the door leading out to the roof terrace I heart horses whinny and Link talking, though I couldn‘t quite understand what he was saying.

I put on a dressing gown and a pair of fur-lined slippers and stepped outside onto the terrace, looking down to the pasture, where Link had just let the horses outside for the day. And in his arms, he carried Gareth, talking to him about Epona and Glory and how he could have a horse of his very own when he was older. I leaned against the balustrade and watched the exchange with a smile. Then Gareth looked up and spotted me, stretching out his tiny arms squealing:„Mommy! Mommy!“

Link turned and used his free hand to wave at me. „Good morning, sweetheart! Care to come down and join us? We‘ll have breakfast on the pasture!“

„Coming!“, I called down to them and then returned inside to get dressed and gather up some food for breakfast.

A little while later, Link and I were sitting on a blanket in the middle of the pasture, keeping an eye on Gareth, who was crawling around in the grass hunting bugs.

The perfect time of the year for picnics was long over, but Link and Gareth were bundled up in their warmest clothes and I… well, I didn‘t feel the cold anymore. So I could watch them and enjoy the warmth that spread in my chest when I had them around me. My perfect little family.

„Mommy! Mommy!“ Gareth came crawling up to me, trying but failing to stand up and walk a bit of the way, and excitedly showed me the remains of an unfortunately crushed bug in his hand.

„That‘s… nice, sweety“, I said, taking out a hankerchief and wiping the dead insect from my son‘s hand. „Why don‘t you try to catch a living one?“

He giggled and scampered off again.

„He‘s growing so fast“, Link commented. „It feels like it was just yesterday that he was born.“

„Indeed.“ I watched as Gareth was again trying and failing to stand up and walk.

Link took my hand in his and kissed my knuckles. „So… about what happened last night...“

„What about it? We all wanted it, didn‘t we?“, I asked.

„That‘s true, but still I can‘t help but feel like it was… wrong, somehow.“ He stroked the back of my hand with his thumb. „When we got married, I vowed to be faithful to you. And even with your consent and participation, I broke that vow last night. I desired another woman.“

„Not any woman“, I reminded him. „You desired Zelda. Our friend and Queen and lover. You desired her, and so did I. I for one regret nothing.“

He placed his arm around me and planted gentle kisses onto my jaw. „I just want you to know that it doesn‘t change anything between us. You are still my wife, the one I vowed to love until the day I die.“

„I know that. And I will also love you until the day the Goddesses reclaim my soul.“

He did not answer for a moment, but we continued exchanging short, sweet kisses while still keeping an eye on Gareth.

A few minutes later, a messenger from the castle approached us. „Master Link, Mistress Rebecca, Her Majesty requests your presence in the council room. Immediately.“

Link and I looked at each other, somewhat horrified. What was going on?

We snatched Gareth, who began wailing because his playtime had been interrupted, and made our way to the castle while trying to calm him down.

The council room was a huge hall with a table that occupied the majority of it, as it had to accommodate all of Hyrule‘s dignitaries at times, though that was rare. Right now, the only people in the room were Zelda, the Sages, Link, Gareth and I.

Ruto‘s eyes widened for a moment when she saw me with Gareth in my arms, but then she turned her head in a dismissive gesture.

„There you are“, Zelda said calmly. „My apologies for interrupting your morning, but I fear that I have troubling news. Have a seat.“

We sat down next to Naboru, who nodded at us with a smile before returning her attention to the Queen.

„As you may remember, Link and Rebecca killed Ganondorf not too long ago, and I felt it prudent to swiftly return to the city to make sure Link gets the medical attention he needed at the moment. However, shortly after that, I sent a troup of soldiers to retrieve Ganondorf‘s body. Both to properly bury him, and to make sure he was truly dead.“ She let her eyes wander from person to person. „And it pains me to say this but… he was gone. There was no body.“

Shocked silence. Then, whispers.

„Gone? What does she mean by gone? Does that mean he is still alive and out there?“, Saria asked thinly, clearly terrified and thinking about what happened to Kokiri Forest in that other future.

„This can‘t be“, Ruto whispered. Her usually vibrant scales seemed to lose all colour from the shock, and she seemed to be close to a panic attack. „It has to be some kind of mistake.“

„This guy is as persistent as a cockroach, and twice as pesky. I have no trouble believing that he defeated death yet again just so he could continue making life difficult for us“, Naboru mumbled. „Try to stay calm“, Zelda said with a slightly raised voice. „We have no exact proof that Ganondorf is still alive. There were animals living around the fortress, no? That could be another possible explanation. I called you here to make sure you know what is going on, and to make sure you could prepare for the worst case scenario.“

„And we appreciate that, Your Majesty“, Darunia replied. „Whatever may happen, the Gorons will be ready!“

„All of Hyrule will be“, Impa added. „There aren‘t a lot of warriors in Kakariko, but I will mobilize whatever forces I can.“

While everyone was busy planning their defenses, Link and I looked at each other with wide eyes and pale faces. We had spent the past months in the blissful illusion that the nightmare was over.

But suddenly, I remembered what Lana had told me.

„There are powers at work that far exceed the greed of a single man.“

I had a terrible feeling that her words would prove woefully true…

„You may leave now and prepare your people“, Zelda finally said and got up from her seat. „All of you… except for Link and Rebecca.“

Ruto looked at me for a split second, and her eyes narrowed in suspicion. But then she followed the rest of the sages out of the room.

Once it was just us, Zelda stepped closer, smiling at Gareth and stroking his cheek while talking to us.

„I‘m sorry that this has to happen now. Just when we thought things could finally settle down a bit.“

„It‘s not your fault.“ I took her hand into both of mine and gave it an encouraging squeeze. „Let‘s just hope that his body was just dragged off by wild animals or collected by some of his goons to be buried.“

„I‘m sure that‘s the case“, Link said, trying really hard to sound confident. „Don‘t worry too much, okay?“

„I‘m the Queen. Making hard decisions and worrying is what I‘m here for“, Zelda joked, but she sounded too nervous for the joke to really land. „However, now I‘m happier than ever to have you closer to me. Having quick access to the Hero of Time will be a huge advantage should the worst come to pass.“ She kissed both of us on the mouth and Gareth on the forehead. „You may return home now, my loves. I will send someone to you if there are any new developments.“

Link and I returned home, and Link took Gareth inside to prepare dinner while I mucked out the stable. It was good, familiar work, hard as it was now that I was so out of practice. Once I was done, I returned inside to find Link already setting the table. A delicious scent of beef stew hung in the air, and Gareth was happily playing with his favourite toy, a wooden figure of a horse, while sitting in the playpen.

Link looked up once the last bit of dinnerware was at its place. „Ah! There you are. The stew needs a few more minutes.“

„That‘s fine“, I replied and walked over to him for a hug and kiss. After the brief contact, his lips hovered over mine for a second, and he smiled. „You smell so good, love.“

„I highly doubt that“, I replied with a chuckle. I was sweaty and dirty from mucking out the stable. „Let me wash up before we eat, okay?“

There wasn‘t enough time for a bath, so I just filled the basin in the bathroom with water and cleaned myself up with a washrag and a bit of soap. I bent over the basin to wash my face, and when I looked up into the mirror again, there was a huge man with burning red eyes behind me. He had long red hair that seemed to dance around like flames, and a glowing, x-shaped scar on his forehead.

I whirled around, letting out a short, ear-piercing shriek and blasting the spot where the man would have been with a spell, but there was nobody there.

The door was thrust open violently, and Link came rushing in. „Rebecca?! I heard you scream! What‘s going on?!“

I looked at him, but needed a moment to get my vocal cords back under control before replying. „I… I saw something in the mirror. But there was nothing. I must have imagined it.“

Link looked at the spot on the floor that was now covered in thin icicles. Then he breathed a sigh of relief. „Thank the Goddesses. I thought Ganondorf might be here and trying to hurt you.“

„He‘s dead, Link“, I said, as if to try and convince both of us. „He won‘t come back.“

Link ran up to me and threw his arms around me, kissing me wildly. „I‘m just glad you aren‘t hurt or in danger. I have put you in danger far too many times already, and I would never forgive myself if something actually happened to you.“

I kissed him back at first, but then stopped him. „Come on… our dinner is getting cold and I don‘t want to leave Gareth alone for too long.“

Gareth looked up at us when we returned to the dining area. He still had the small wooden horse in his hand and let it walk along the edge of the playpen.

His dark blue eyes followed our movement as we filled the stew into our bowls and sat down at the table.

He really has his father‘s eyes, I thought to myself and returned my attention to Link, who took my hand over the table.

„Link, I won‘t be able to eat like that“, I protested, but the chuckle that came along with it made it clear that I actually didn‘t mind too much.

We ate, and while we did so, my mind wandered back to the man in the mirror. He had looked a lot like Ganondorf, but not the same. Ganondorf, huge and intimidating as he was, was still undeniably human. But the vision I had seen had looked more like pure darkness given humanoid form. And those piercing, red eyes… eyes like flames, much like the man‘s hair. Fire…

„We should tell Zelda about what just happened“, Link said while scooping the last bit of stew out of his bowl.

„What? No. She has enough on her plate already. We don‘t have to bother her with this… hallucination.“

„But what if it isn‘t a hallucination?“, Link asked. „What if what you saw is connected to Ganondorf somehow?“

I stared at my now empty bowl. „...They do look similar…“

„See? This has to mean something. And the consequences of ignoring it if it does far outweigh any inconvenience it might cause if it doesn‘t!“

I sighed. „Yes, you‘re right.“

Chapter 44: Jalon

Chapter 44

Jalon

I awoke in Link‘s arms the next morning, torn from my slumber from the sounds of Gareth fussing in his room. I yawned, gently freed myself from my husband‘s embrace and got up to take care of our him.

We had swapped the cradle for a bigger crib. Gareth was growing fast; I was pretty sure he would end up being taller than Link eventually. And now he was sitting at the bars of his crib and rattling them, loudly squealing to be fed.

„It‘s alright, sweetie. Mommy is here.“ I lifted him into my arms and pulled down the collar of my dress so he could drink. Then I left the room and tiptoed down the stairs, hoping not to wake Link, so I could prepare breakfast.

I passed the front door on my way to the kitchen, only to stop and slowly look to the floor. There lay an envelope. A letter adressed to Link and me. I picked it up and continued on my way to the kitchen, settling Gareth in his kitchen-crib after burping him and opening the letter.

My eyes widened as I read it. Then I dropped it onto the table and rushed upstairs to wake Link.

I all but jumped onto the bed, grabbing his shoulders.

He opened his eyes wide, and for a split second, I wondered what I must have looked like to him. What did he think, opening his eyes only to see his wife looming over him with wide eyes and a broad grin plastered onto her face?

„Rebecca?! What‘s going on?!“ „We just got a letter from Talon! Malon had her baby yesterday. It‘s a boy!“

A few hours later we had saddled Epona and Glory and were on our way to LonLon Ranch. I mentally smacked myself for not having prepared any baby-gifts. And giving Malon Gareth‘s hand-me-downs felt kind of tacky. So we had bought a pretty little wooden rattle with little sheep and cows painted on it, and a soft blanket for her little boy at the market on our way to the stable.

Talon greeted us when we arrived. „Hello, dear friends! So good to see you. Malon and Matthias are inside.“ His cheeks were rosy and there was nothing but joy in his eyes. „Malon will be so happy that you have come to welcome little Jalon into the world.“

„Is she alright?“, I asked, remembering how taxing the birth of Gareth had been.

„As well as she could be! Of course she‘s exhausted, but that‘s to be expected. Come on in, now!“

Malon was in her room, sitting in her bed with her newborn son in her arms. She looked up and smiled at us.

„Rebecca. Link. You came.“

I hugged her. „Of course we did. I‘m just sorry that I completely missed my opportunity to prepare gifts for your little one.“ With that, I placed the rattle and the blanket on the bedside table.

„Well, he‘ll be around for a while, so there‘s still time“, she joked, rocking Jalon in her arms. „These are fine, don‘t worry! Thank you so much.“

Link stepped closer, Gareth in his arms. „Congratulations, Malon.“

„Thank you, Fairyboy“, she replied. „I see you brought Gareth.“

„Sorry about that, but my parents were busy and we couldn‘t find another babysitter on such short notice“, I explained. Then I gently took Gareth‘s hand and waved it at Jalon. „Say ‚Hello‘, Gareth!“

„Ahh ohhh!“, Gareth replied, trying and failing to copy the sounds that came out of my mouth and causing us all to giggle.

We stayed for a bit, talking to Malon and Matthias, before Malon grew tired and we had to bid our goodbyes, so she could rest.

Once we were back home at the city, I started to prepare supper while Link was playing with Gareth. The whole time, I couldn‘t stop smiling to myself. A new life being brought into the world was such a beautiful thing… a myriad of possibilities for little Jalon to grow up. And maybe he and Gareth would be as close as Malon and I were.

Two more months passed, during which we just went about our normal business. We occasionally visited Zelda in the castle and checked up on the progress of our new house, or visited Talon, Malon, Matthias and Jalon at LonLon Ranch.

The heat of summer faded, and a noticable chill in the air announced the arrival of autumn. Gareth was now almost nine months old, and Link and I were happier than ever.

Then, in the middle of autumn, we received word that our new home was ready.

We hadn‘t visited Zelda for a few weeks because she was busy with her royal duties, so we hadn‘t had the opportunity to see the house since the topping out ceremony. And so we hadn‘t known what to expect.

It was a large farmhouse, similar to the main building at LonLon-Ranch, but bigger with a facade of wooden beams and white clay. It had two stories, like our old house, but the second floor seemed to be a bit smaller than the first floor to make room for a roof-terrace. Next to the building stood a smaller, wooden building with  two entrances; one accessible from the outside and one leading to a large fenced pasture.

Worked into the clay wall above the front door was the crest of the royal family; the Loftwing with the Triforce between its wings. Why would Zelda tell the builders to put this there?

My eyes widened. This was no house, this was an estate!

„There you are!“ The foreman, a large, middle aged man, approached us. „Whaddaya say? Her Majesty didn‘t have much to say about the specifics, she just told us to make it big for you. Furniture an‘ all is already included. I dunno who ye are, but the Queen sure seems to like ya a bunch if she gifts so sumthin like this! I hadta make all of my boys work day n‘ night to get it done in time!“

„It‘s beautiful!“, I said, trying to keep my voice under control so I wouldn‘t squeal like a delighted child.

„Well… about the furniture...“, Link began hesitantly.

„Dontcha worry ‚bout a thing, forest boy! Her Majesty told us to make the furniture look forest-y for ye.“

„She did? That‘s great!“ Link took my hand. „Come on, let‘s take a look inside!“

The first floor consisted of the kitchen, with a stove, stone-oven and sink, dining area with a huge treestump serving as the table, a living area with a fireplace, a couch and two armchairs and two staircases, one leading down into the cellar, where the food-storage was, and the other leading up to the second floor. And while the furniture was very forest-y, as the foreman had so eloquently put it, it was at the same time definitely not the same. There were elaborate swirly-patterns carved into the bark of the furniture. The floor of the living area was covered in a carpet that, in work that must have taken ages, had a pattern of lighter and darker greens, yellows, browns and reds stitched into it to make it look like the forest floor covered in foliage. And above the fireplace the builders had mounted a Hylian Shield with two swords crossed behind it. There were racks for displaying weapons at the wall.

We continued upstairs, and found ourselves in a hallway with five doors. The one up ahead led to the a large bedroom. As the bed in our old home had been, the new bed was cut from a single, huge tree. And that tree must have been truly enormous, because it was also at least twice as big as the old bed. And it had a canopy made of pieces of fabric cut to look like leaves. On both sides of the bed were small tables made form the stumps of slightly smaller trees, and on the other side of the room were a basin for washing and a door that led to a walk-in closet. The floor was covered with the same kind of carpet we had seen in the living area. And above the bed, again, was the crest of the royal family.

The next room was the one adjacent to this one. It was a bathroom with a huge tub, big enough to fit in at least five people. And to my joy I discovered that they had actually hooked us up to the water-system of Hyrule, something which only high nobility could afford under normal circumstances. So we also had a proper toilet, and there was a fireplace underneath the tub so we could heat up the water in it.

The tub itself was made of ceramics, with intricate patters worked into it in beaten gold.

The next room was Gareth‘s nursery. The crib was in the middle; a loverly bed with the same forest design most of the other furniture had. There was a crib-mobile fastened on the ceiling above it, with tiny horses and cows dangling from strings. On one side of the room, there was a large chest filled to the brim with toys.

The remaining room was empty, so we would have to come up with a use for it.

To say that I was overwhelmed as we concluded our tour of the house would have put it mildly. Sure, I had been a guest at the castle for extended periods of time before, but being a guest in a luxurious place and actually owning one were two completely different beasts. I felt dizzy, so Link led me to one of the armchairs downstairs and urged me to sit down.

„Well this is… certainly a house“, I said carefully.

„It is“, Link confirmed, his voice giving no indication of his actual feelings about this place.

„So…“, I said. „What now?“

Link sighed, rubbing his eyes. „I… suppose there are a few things in our old house that we could use over here. Most of our clothes, for example. And after that, we could sell it. Or maybe rent it out. I still have plenty of rupees left, but a steady source of income would be nice.“

„And we have to get Epona and Glory over here“, I added.

Link and I looked at each other and let out a deep sigh. This house would take some getting used to.

We left the house for a bit to go fetch our possessions from our old place. Clothes, weapons, Gareth‘s toys and of course our horses. It was already late evening when everything was packed away and Epona and Glory had been introduced to their new home.

We were just about to retire to our bedroom when someone knocked on our door.

„Did we invite anyone?“, I asked, puzzled.

„Not that I know of.“ Link got up and answered.

A few moments later, Zelda stepped into the living area, weaking a black cloak over her finery so she wouldn‘t be spotted so easily. „Hello, you two! I just wanted to come by and see how you liked your new home!“

„It‘s so big“, I replied, accepting her warm, welcoming hug. „And luxurious.“

„The two of you deserve no less. The people of Hyrule may have forgotten what you have done for the kingdom. But I haven‘t.“ She lightly kissed my cheek, though I couldn‘t help but notice how close to the corner of my mouth that kiss ended up. She then hugged Link and gave him the same kind of kiss; mostly on the cheek but very close to the corner of his mouth.

I nodded in the direction of the fireplace. „Why don‘t you have a seat? Would you like something to drink? Link and I just drank some tea, and the water should still be hot.“

„Tea sounds lovely right now, thank you.“

Link took Zelda‘s cloak while I walked into the kitchen, getting out one of our finest teacups and prepared some tea for Zelda. When I returned to the living area, she had settled into one of the armchairs, while Link sat on the couch. I handed the cup to Zelda and then sat down next to my husband. Zelda was just about to speak when something, or rather someone, tugged at her skirt. With a smile, she reached down and lifted Gareth onto her lap. „Hello there, little one. Did you come to say hello to your dear auntie Zelda?“ Then she stopped for a moment. „...Goddesses, that just made me sound terribly old, didn‘t it?“ Then she shook her head. „No wonder, though. I feel like I have aged ten years since my coronation.“

„Even if you did, you‘d still be pretty far from old“, I remarked.

Zelda lightly pinched Gareth‘s rosy cheek. „The ministers are starting to pester me about marriage.“ She pulled a face, causing Gareth to giggle, and said in a mocking imitation of a typical aristocrat‘s voice:„It doesn‘t have to be a king, Your Majesty. Of course we wouldn‘t insinuate that you aren‘t perfectly capable of ruling Hyrule on your own, Your Majesty. But you should at least take a royal consort who can give you an heir, so the kingdom isn‘t left leaderless incase something happens to you.“ She sighed and continued in her normal voice:„They are correct, of course. But it‘s hard to agree to a marriage born out of politics or convenience when I know how happy marriages out of love can be.“ With that, she cast her sad gaze at us.

I blushed and at the same time felt tears sting in my eyes. I felt no guilt over being Link‘s wife anymore. But I felt for Zelda.

Then I had an idea. „...does your heir have to be the result of a marriage?“

Zelda tilted her head to the side. „No, I suppose not. Since the father would actually be quite irrelevant. Why do you ask?“

My heart stung, but I turned to Link. „Link, you love Zelda, don‘t you?“

Link blushed and looked at me with wide eyes. „What? I… I love you, more than anything, and my feelings for Zelda-“

„Link, I am not doubting your fidelity. You love Zelda. Hell, both of us do! And we can help her right now.“ Then I looked to Zelda again. „...if you will agree with that plan, Zelda.“

Zelda looked at both of us with her mouth hanging open. „You… would do that?“ Once the initial shock had worn off, she looked off to the side. „I couldn‘t do that to you, Rebecca. For that, I cherish you too much. If we‘re doing this… then it‘s going to be all three of us.“

My heart skipped a beat, and my face flushed red. „All three of us?“

She leaned forward, suddenly smiling. „I wouldn‘t be the first Queen of Hyrule to have multiple lovers.“

„Lovers…?“, I muttered, feeling my blush deepen.

Zelda slightly shook her head. „I thought you would have noticed by now. How I have come to love you as much as I love Link.“

„Zelda...“

Link got up. „This is absolutely insane.“ Then he smiled. „Insane enough to be the perfect plan for the three of us. Let‘s put Gareth to bed and then retire to the master bedroom.“

I could barely contain the flurry of emotions within me as we entered the bedroom. Lacings were undone, tunics and underclothes dropped to the floor with barely a whisper of sound, and before I knew it, Zelda was on top of me on the bed, her erect nipples grazing against mine as she kissed me. I moaned into her mouth as her fingers found my most sensitive spot and began to circle around it, enough to tease and arouse, but not enough to satisfy.

Link was breathing heavily, just looking at us touching each other, before approaching and putting his hands on Zelda‘s hips. He let his hands run up and down her thighs, then slipped one of them between her legs and followed the glistening slit of her vagina. She tensed a little and moaned, but never stopped stimulating me, even though I was already dripping wet and loudly groaning for more.

Once Link found Zelda ready, he put his hands back on her hips. „I‘m… I‘m going to put it in now, Zelda.“

She half turned to him. „Go right ahead.“

Nothing could have prepared me for the rush of arousal I felt when I saw Link push forward into Zelda‘s body, and the feeling of her tair tickling my breasts as she pressed her face onto my chest. Seeing two people I loved so consumed in pleasure was indiscribable. And the whole time, Zelda didn‘t stop touching me. I felt my orgasm approach and moved against her fingers. As much as I would have loved to feel Link inside of me at that moment, her fingers felt amazing. I reached down, finding the bundle of nerves between her legs, and began rubbing it with the rhythm of Link‘s thrusts. Zelda dissolved into a sweaty, moaning mess and screamed into my breasts as she finally unravelled. Link cried out in pleasure and spilled himself into her. Both sank down on me, panting and exhausted.

I wasn‘t quite satisfied yet, but this evening wasn‘t about me. So I just watched them gather themselves. Zelda was the first one to regain her voice.

„It seems that you didn‘t get your due, Rebecca“, she mumbled, tracing the outline of my breasts with her index finger.

„It‘s fine“, I assured her.

„Absolutely not.“ She slid behind me, pulling my legs open so I was all but presenting my intimate zone to Link. „Look at her, Link. How can you say no to that?“

Link lifted his index finger to ask us to wait. „Give… give me a moment.“

„Suit yourself.“ And while we were waiting for Link to recover, Zelda stroked my breasts and kissed the base of my neck. „You have an amazing body, Rebecca. Even after giving birth, you‘re still so beautiful.“

„Nothing can beat your beauty“, I said in a low voice. „You seem quite comfortable with yourself. Have you done this before?“

„Not with other people.“ She kissed my earlobe. „But a good Queen knows to feign confidence.“

„Hmmmm...“

Meanwhile, Link turned to us again, his member once again standing proud.

I cried out as he pushed into me. And clung to him, even while Zelda was kissing me and egging us on. But Link was still exhausted, and I had been on the verge of climax anyway, so that second round didn‘t last long. At the end of it, the three of us crawled under the bedsheets; Zelda in the middle and Link and I snuggled up to her sides. Link and I rested our entwined hands on her stomach, and huddled together like that, we soon fell asleep.

Chapter 43: Enough travelling for now

We stepped through the portal, followed by our horses and Jenna, who was still holding Gareth in her arms.

We found ourselves on the road leading up to the castle, conveniently right next to the cave entrance that lead to the Great Fairy Fountain. Jenna approached it, turning around one last time.

„Don‘t worry. Little Gareth is safe with me. Quick, go save the Queen!“

We nodded at her and then followed the road. The guard posts were deserted, and there were signs of a battle. Clawmarks, broken weapons strewn about. While we rushed past the big meadow in front of Hyrule Castle, I couldn‘t help but notice that appearantly Zelda had contracted someone to build a house there… on which was technically the Castle Grounds. Odd, but I couldn‘t think about that any further right now. Zelda was in danger.

I prayed that we weren‘t too late.

The hallways of the castle were littered with the dead bodies of monsters. Only monsters, mind. I couldn‘t a single dead Hylian among them, which gave me some hope. While we weren‘t familiar with the complete layout of the place, there was noise coming from somewhere down the hallway we were currently in, so we followed that until it led us to an ornate door.

„Ready?“, Link asked, gripping the hilt of his sword tighter.

„Ready“, I confirmed, and we kicked the door open… and stopped, slack-jawed at what we were seeing.

„...Link?“

„Yes, love?“

„Why were worried again?“

„I… honestly don‘t know.“

The door had led us to the throne room, which, much like the hallways, was full of dead monsters. And on the floor in front of the throne was Cia, hogtied and cussing up a storm. Next to her, bemused and thankfully unharmed, stood Zelda, using a hankerchief to wipe monster blood from her rapier. She looked up as we entered, and a smile lit up our face.

„You‘re late.“

We looked from Cia to Zelda and back, before bursting out laughing at the ridiculousness of the situation. How could we have even believed for a second that Cia could take on Zelda in a fight?

Zelda approached us and pulled both of us into a warm hug. „It‘s good to see you again.“

Cia hissed. „I can‘t believe that idiot Volga failed at something as easy as killing two women and a baby!“ She wiggled in her bonds but only managed to tighten them in the process. „Just you wait! The Hero WILL be mine, and I will-“

While she was having her monologue, Link turned to me. „You wouldn‘t happen to have a spare hankerchief on you, would you, Becca?“

„Actually I do.“ I pulled said hankerchief out of my pocket and gave it to Link, who then approached Cia and stuffed it into her mouth.

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. „Well, now that this unpleasantness is over, maybe one of us should go and fetch Jenna. We‘ll explain everything once she‘s here.“

„I‘ll go!“, I said. „Be right back!“

As I left the throne room, I heard Zelda ask:„Who is Jenna?“

„She‘ll undoubtedly introduce herself once she‘s here.“

Fetching Jenna didn‘t take long, and once we were back in the throne room, she curtsied in front of Zelda.

„Your Majesty. It‘s an honor to meet you. I am Jenna, a...“ She looked up, at Link, Gareth and me, before continuing:„A merchant. And a friend of Link and Rebecca.“

Zelda smiled at her. „Any friend of theirs is also a friend of mine. So be welcome, Jenna. And now, please tell me why this sorceress tried to kill me.“

Zelda took us to the tea room again while leaving the servants of the castle to clear away all of the dead monsters. Once we got there, the three of us gave her a rundown of all of the things that had happened, starting with Link and I recounting our journey through Hebra and the revelation of my ancestry and ending with our encounter with Cia.

And after we concluded the story, Zelda just sighed and rubbed her eyes. „I think I read something about her in a book once, but it was worded in a way that made it seem like her existence was mere conjecture. And while I understand that existing in solitude for so long does a lot of damage to a person‘s psyche, we cannot let her get away without punishment.“

„So what you suggest?“, Link asked.

„I don‘t know that yet. I will have her put in jail for now until I have decided on a fitting punishment.“

„Wouldn‘t the most fitting punishment be the death sentence?“, I asked dryly. „We‘re talking about attempted regicide here. That‘s not exactly a trivial offense.“

„But we also have to consider the mitigating circumstances“, Zelda replied. „Which is exactly why I have chosen to imprison her for now. Impa knows an ancient technique of the Shiekah that can surpress her magic, so she can‘t escape.“ She shook her head, as if to clear her thoughts, and then smiled. „On to more cheerful subjects, though: Did you notice the construction site in front of the castle?“

„I did“, I said.

„Me too. What‘s up with that?“, Link asked.

Zelda traced the rim of her teacup with her index finger. „I wasn‘t sure how long you would be gone, so I had commissioned it hoping it would be done by the time you return. It was supposed to be a surprise. You see… I wanted to have the two of you close to me. Closer than just in the city, I mean. But I also know that you probably wouldn‘t be comfortable with palace life. So I thought that giving a house on the palace grounds to the two of you might be a good idea.“

„It‘s supposed to be for us?“, I asked incredulously. „Zelda that‘s… we couldn‘t possibly accept...“

„Please“, she said. „I would sleep so much better knowing that Link was only a few minutes of walking away from me. We could visit each other without much trouble. Your little son would grow up with so much more space.“

„Well…“ Link stared into his own teacup. „...if it makes you happy.“

Zelda clapped her hands with joy. „Wonderful! Construction has only just begun, so it will take a while. It‘s not supposed to be just a tiny shepherd‘s cabin, after all. Anything you would like the builders to add to your house?“

Link and I answered at the same time:„A stable.“

Zelda nodded. „Understood. I will pass your wish on to the builders.“ Then she beamed at us. „I am so glad that you accept my gift. It will be nice to have you living so close to me.“

After leaving the castle, we said our goodbyes to Jenna and then returned home.

„Do you think we should start preparing for the move already?“, I asked as we stood in the middle of the living area.

„I‘m honestly not sure“, Link replied. He was holding Gareth in his arms and twisted his face slightly as our son grabbed a bit of his hair and pulled on it. „Now now, Gareth, no hair-pulling. Nobody likes getting their hair pulled.“

„Speak for yourself“, I muttered with a grin, causing Link to blush.

„Yeah, Rebecca. Great lesson to teach our son.“

„I‘m just saying.“ And with that, I put a kettle on the stove and grabbed a pair of flintstones to light a fire underneath. „Would you be a dear and go fetch some water?“

„As my lady commands“, Link chuckled before placing Gareth in the small crib at the table and walking out with a bucket in hand.

I rummaged through the kitchen closets, searching for some tea-leaves. By the time I found them, Link returned with the water. „There you go!“

„Thank you, Darling.“ I blew him a kiss and he pretended to catch it out of the air. We shared a soft chuckle before falling into a comfortable silence.

While I continued preparing the tea, Link lifted Gareth out of the crib and grinned at him. „So, how did you like our little adventure?“

Gareth squealed in typical baby-noises.

„I‘m glad to be home, too.“

I smiled to myself, enjoying this precious moment of peace. Maybe I could ask Link to sleep with me again that night. I didn‘t want to push him on the subject so shortly after the war and his imprisonment, so my plan had actually been to wait for him to bring it up. But it had been so long, and I was yearning for his touch. And, though I hated to admit it, I needed some kind of confirmation that I was still desirable to him. Pregnancy had left its marks on me, as expected. Though I was still young, my stomach wasn‘t as firm and toned as it had been before Gareth was born. And by now, Gareth was old enough to be left alone for an hour or two.

„Say, Link“, I began as I carried the cups with our tea to the table. „How about we let Gareth sleep in his room tonight?“

„Why?“, Link asked.

I gave him a meaningful look. „I just feel like you and I could use some alone time. Please? Just for a bit?“

Link looked around uncomfortably. „...I‘m not sure that‘s a good idea, Becca.“

My heart sank. „Why not?“

„Hush, love. It‘s not what you think.“ He took my hands over the table, and a dumb, childish part of me wanted to pull them away. „It‘s just that I don‘t want to risk getting you pregnant again before you even weaned Gareth. Wasn‘t it you who insisted on nursing Gareth for at least a full year?“

„Yes, because that‘s what Graynne advised me to do.“

„Exactly.“ He stroked the backs of my hands with his thumbs. „Right now, making sure that Gareth grows up healthy should be our biggest priority.“

We grew silent for a minute, but then he sighed. „However… I‘d be lying if I said that I didn‘t miss being intimate with you. I guess we could try ways that wouldn‘t result in you getting pregnant again.“

The sadness disappeared, being replaced by giddiness. „You mean it?“

„Absolutely.“ He lifted my hands to his mouth and gently kissed my knuckles. „I love you.“

„Oh Link… I love you, too.“

Chapter 42: The Guardian of the Triforce

„Her… other half? Like her lover?“, I asked, not being able to make sense of what Lana was telling me.

„‘Other half‘ as in ‚She and I used to be the same person‘“, she corrected me. „We got split in two when she decided to leave behind her role as the Guardian of the Triforce.“

„Guardian of the Triforce? I have never heard of something like that… and I‘m reasonably well versed in the lore sorrounding the Triforce. I‘m not an expert, but I‘m sure that if there was a Guardian of the Triforce, people would know.“

And said guardian would have stopped Ganondorf from getting his third of the Triforce. And thus made sure none of the terrible things that could have happened had any chance to ever happen.

Lana sighed. „She could observe, but never interact. That‘s why people just… forgot about her, I suppose. Like they forgot Hylia. And the Glaces.“ Her eyes wandered down to my left hand, which was resting on the table and was sorrounded by a thin layer of ice by now. „And many other powerful people and races. A lot of things just end up lost to time. History warps itself, as it is always told by people. And people make mistakes, and forget things, or embellish or change the way they tell it to suit their needs.“ She shook her head once more, as if to clear her thoughts. „But that‘s not important now. She has broken her vow to remain a silent watcher of the world, and decided to interfere with it to a dangerous degree. While the Hero marrying anyone but the Princess wasn‘t part of the plan, it also didn‘t render him unable to perform his duty as a hero and protector. But Cia brainwashing him most certainly does. And while Ganondorf may be dead, the evil that drove him to do what he did is not killed this easily.“

„What? There was something making Ganondorf do these things? I mean, apart from his own greed.“

„There are powers at work that far exceed the greed of a single man“, Lana replied. „It is a long story, one that you will undoubtedly learn when the time has come. But now, we have to focus on freeing the Hero from Cia‘s spell. And for that, we have to fight Cia. Your powers should prove useful for that.“

I looked at my hand, then at Lana. „I don‘t know how to use them yet.“

She took my hand into hers. „Then allow me to show you.“

We walked outside again, and Lana led me to the middle of the unkempt field. It was kind of sad to see this farm abandoned like that. Who could it have belonged to?

„Concentration“, Lana said. „That‘s the key. Concentration and visualisation. You have to imagine the ice sprouting from your fingers. It has to be a clear image. And then you have to concentrate on it.“ Then, she let a beautiful frost flower sprout from her hand. It shattered, and she came up to me. „Now you try it. I‘ll hold your child while you do.“

I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. „You do not honestly ask me to hand my son to a stranger who just confessed to be connected to the woman who brainwashed my husband, do you?“

She sighed. „It‘s only natural to be distrustful after what happened. But we really don‘t have the time for this. Would you rather just set him down and have him crawl away while you work?“

„I could hold him“, said someone who had just joined Lana and me. We turned around, and I almost cried with relief. „Jenna! You‘re here!“ Then I stopped. „Wait… why are you here?“

„I always visit my old home right after returning from Hyrule“, she replied, but there was no smile on her face. She looked sympathetic, if anything. „I just saw Link while riding through the village, and he had a weird… woman with him. I said hello to him, but he didn‘t even seem to hear me, and didn‘t look at me either, even when I stood right in front of him.“ Her facial expression made it perfectly clear that „woman“ hadn‘t been the first word on her mind when trying to describe Cia. „I asked some of the villagers about you, and they said that they saw you follow another woman here. Rebecca, what is going on? And why are you two practising magic in the middle of my family‘s farm?“

I looked around. Ow, now it all made sense „I didn‘t know it was your family‘s farm. Sorry.“

„Me neither. It looked abandoned, so I thought it would be a good place for us to train“, Lana explained.

„Look, Jenna. Link isn‘t himself right now. And he needs help.“ I flexed my fingers, trying to get rid of the thin coat of ice covering them. „Help that may or may not involve fighting Cia. The woman you saw with him earlier.“

„Great, I‘m in. It‘s already enough to have you for a rival, but that Cia? No way we‘re losing Link to HER.“ She pumped her fist in the air. „Let‘s show her what the true women in Link‘s life are capable of!“

I handed Gareth to her. „Thank you, Jenna. Your support means a lot.“

„As the old saying goes: The enemy of my enemy is my friend. And don‘t actually condone adultery, which is what Cia is doing right now.“

„Oh?“, I asked.

„Yeah. I mean if Link ever fell in love with me, I would talk him into divorcing you before we did anything.“

„How very comforting.“

„Ladies“, Lana said, clapping her hands to gain our attention. „As touching as this friendly reunion is, you really need to get some practice with your magic before you can even think about confronting Cia.“

„Right. On it.“

For the next few hours, Lana made me do a few basic spells. Like the one she had showed me first; making a frostflower appear on my hand. It all felt… strangely natural. As if the magic had always been there, and I just hadn‘t known.

I occasionally glanced over my shoulder to see how Jenna and Gareth were doing. She was sitting on a big rock nearby and was having a very lively „conversation“ with him.

The sun soon began to set, and a pair on horseback. My stomach dropped when I recognized Link on Epona. And Cia… on Glory!

„What in the name of Farore‘s green crabs is this witch doing on my horse?“, I yelled out, beyond furious. And then my hand just slipped.

The ball of frosty energy blasted ahead and hit Cia dead in the face, knocking her off Glory and appearantly temporarily snapping Link out of his brainwashing. He looked from me, to Glory, then to Cia, and back. Then he rode up to me and dismounted. „Rebecca!“

„Link!“, I sobbed, throwing myself into his arms.

Glory approached us as well, causing me to let go of Link and hug her. „Oh Glory! I‘m so sorry you had to carry that woman on your back. Don‘t worry, I‘ll give you a very thorough grooming once we‘re back in the village.“

„You… little…“ Cia got up, her face reddened from the ice I had blasted her with. „You are meddling in affairs that don‘t concern you, Glaces! Why don‘t you go back to your frozen wasteland and let my hero and me have our happily ever after?“

Link drew his sword. „Get lost. Now. Before I make you.“

Cia blushed and cupped her own face with her hands. „Oh Link, I love it when you‘re being so forceful! Don‘t worry, sweetheart. I will remove this relic from our sight. Then we will continue our journey to the Temple of Souls!“

„Who‘re you calling a relic? I‘m not the one who has been wasting away in the same place for thousands of years.“

Cia‘s sharp gaze wandered over to Lana. „Lana… so you told her.“

„Link doesn‘t love you, Cia. He has chosen a love for this lifetime. We must respect his choice.“

„His choice should have been the Princess. If he can ignore the rules, so can I.“

I couldn‘t help but notice that Cia sounded like a petulant child.

„Do I sound like that when talking about Link?“, I heard Jenna mutter somewhere behind me.

Cia turned her attention to me again, pouting… and then turning away. „I really don‘t want to have to deal with you. Oh Volga!“

From seemingly out of nowhere, a massive red dragon appeared, which then turned into a man in red  armor.

Cia pointed to me, barely lifting her arm, as if I wasn‘t even worth the effort. „Get rid of that woman for me, will you?“ Then she looked over to Jenna. „The other woman and the brat, too. I do not allow my future children with Link to have any half-siblings from a worthless mother.“

Link gripped his sword tighter. „You will not touch my wife or son, witch! And neither will your servant!“

The man named Volga scoffed. „Servant? A dragon does not serve anyone.“ Then he drew his spear. „You better start praying to the Goddesses, boy.“

„Go ahead, have your fun“, Cia cooed. „I will come and collect my hero once you‘re done.“

Link looked over his shoulder to me. „Rebecca, take Gareth and run!“

„I won‘t abandon you!“, I insisted. „I have my magic! I can help!“ I gathered the magical energy around my hands for emphasis, feeling the air around me grow colder.

The dragon-man‘s gaze wandered over to me. „You are quite bold, Glaces. Very well then. Let‘s see how your ice fares against my dragonfire.“

Link stepped in front of me. „You will not harm her!“

But Volga just sneered. „Step aside, Hero. I have challenged the Glaces, not you. Do you intend to bring dishonor upon your wife?“

„Link“, I said firmly. „Step aside.“

„But Rebecca-“

„I am not the fragile woman I was before. Protect Jenna, Lana and Gareth, and leave Volga to me.“ I drew my naginata, feeling my magic flow into the weapon until its blade was covered in an icy blue aura. I raised my voice. „I shall accept your challenge, Dragonknight.“

He smirked. „Well spoken.“ Then he rushed towards me, engulfed in flames. I parried the blow of his spear with my naginata, the frost of my magic clashing against the blaze. A shower of sparks erupted from where our weapons met.

I jumped back, gathering energy for another strike while moving off to the side to dodge any attacks Volga might throw at me. We prowled around each other in a deadly dance, until I spotted an opening and attacked, striking a crack in his armor that was undoubtedly a scar on his dragon body. He stumbled, and I let the frost creep up on him, engulf him, until only his head was free.

Then I carefully approached him, weapon still readied in case he would attack once more.

But his pitch-black eyes were only sizing me up with an almost admiring look in his eyes.

„Where has the witch gone?“, I asked, trying to ban the slight shiver of my voice.

„Hyrule“, he replied with not the slightest hint of defiance. „She initially intended to imprison the Hero in the Temple of Souls and then attack Hyrule Castle to make sure the Princess wouldn‘t try to free him. But now that the Hero broke free from her spell, she changed her plans and will now try to get rid of the Princess first.“

Link and I looked at each other in horror.

„Zelda!“, we both gasped at the same time.

Jenna approached us. „What will we do? It‘ll take days to get back to Hyrule, even if we don‘t take a single break!“

„I will open a portal“, Lana said confidently. „Take your horses and step through it. It will lead you right to the castle.“

„Alright.“ I turned to Jenna. „Jenna, would you please take care of Gareth just a little longer? Just until we made sure that Zelda is safe?“

„Of course“, Jenna replied gently. „I will find a hiding place close to the castle and wait for you there.“

„The Great Fairy‘s Fountain“, Link said. „Not even Cia would dare try to defile it. We‘ll drop you off there on our way to Zelda.“

Chapter 41: The Sorceress

I slipped in and out of conciousness for another two days before I finally awoke on the third day. I remembered very little of the two days during which I struggled with the fever that had gripped me, but Link had been by my side nigh constantly; only leaving it to eat or bathe or take care of Gareth.

When I opened my eyes, feeling that the fever was gone and I was finally more aware of my surroundings, he was slumped over at my bedside, snoring softly. Gareth was sleeping in a small, make-shift cradle made of a pile of furs.

For a while I just lay there, watching Link sleep. He needed it, no doubt, after taking care of me for so long. And while the purple shadows under his eyes showed his exhaustion, he was still so breathtakingly beautiful, and I felt lucky to have him. My beautiful, gentle, powerful, dedicated husband.

I sat up, making sure not to wake him up, and looked around. We were in a wooden house; a bit simpler than the houses back home in Hyrule. The kind of house one might find in a village.

The air smelled of salt, and I heard the gentle sound of waves meeting the shore. Right, we had made it to the Great Lebian Coast. Jenna‘s home. The next thing I noticed was that there was a cup of water on the nightstand next to the bed I was in. I was absolutely parched, so I took the cup… but as soon as my hand closed around it, the water began to freeze until it was completely solid.

I just stared at the lump of ice for a moment, completely dumbfounded. „What the hell…?“

Finally, Link stirred awake, rubbing his eyes. „Rebecca? Oh, you‘re awake!“ When he noticed my facial expression, his gaze wandered to the cup in my hand. „Oh. Did it freeze again? Don‘t worry, I‘ll go get you another cup. It was almost impossible to get you to drink while you were unconscious. Every time I tried, the water would just freeze. In the end, I had to give you hot water so it would take longer to turn to ice. The Doctor says it‘s because your magic went out of control while you were sick.“

„Magic? I remember hearing something about this while I was sick, but… I don‘t...“ I still stared at the ice, trying to make sense of everything. „...Is it because I‘m a Glaces?“

Link‘s shoulders slumped a little. „I think so, yes. The Glaces were spirits of ice and snow, remember?“

A terrible thought occurred to me. „I didn‘t hurt anyone, did I?“

Link shook his head. „No. Thus far, your powers have only affected water in your vicinity.“ Then he took my hand. „See? No worries.“

There was a knock at the door, and a young woman with a kind and gentle face entered. She had long black hair and lavender eyes. „Ah, you are awake. That‘s good. How are you feeling?“

„I‘m… better. I think the fever is gone.“

„That‘s good. Your husband gave us quite a spook when he came gallopping into our little village with an unconscious woman and a crying baby in his arms and screaming for help.

„What was I supposed to do? Rebecca suddenly fainted and fell off her horse, and I had no idea why. So I panicked.“ I could almost hear the pout in Link‘s voice.

The woman chuckled and came closer. „I am Dr. Alma. And you are in Lakia Village, in case your husband hasn‘t told you yet. As I said, you caused quite a ruckus with your arrival… especially with the local womenfolk.“ She blushed a little. „All of the girls were so enchanted by that beautiful man suddenly showing up. Until they realized that he is married and has a child.“

„Link has that effect on women“, I replied cheerfully. Then I became serious again. „Any idea what was wrong with me?“

„As I already told Link, it was likely due to stress and exhaustion. So while the fever is gone, I must ask you to continue to rest for at least a few more days. You can leave the bed and take a walk around the village, but you should take frequent breaks and return to the inn once you start feeling tired.“

„Understood.“

A few hours later, Link and I were strolling through Lakia Village, with me carrying Gareth in my arms. It was a tiny fishing village, just like I had suspected. The men and women at the harbor were busy mending their nets and bringing in their haul, but I did notice some of the women looking up and smiling at Link as we walked past. And some people put up decorations that looked like flowers made of colourful waxed paper and garlands of flowers.

A group of girls, maybe a few years younger than me, came up to us with baskets full of beautiful flowers.

„Hello!“, one of them, a lovely girl with honey-blonde hair, called out. „So nice to see new faces. Will you stay for the Ocean View Festival?“

„Ocean View Festival?“, Link asked.

„Yes! We celebrate it every year when the full moon is at it‘s brightest. We dance and feast and tell stories and pray to the spirits of the ocean for good fortune“, another one of the girls said. „People say that spending the festival with your sweetheart means that you will be happy together for as long as the tides exist.“

„It‘s tonight“, the last one said, looking up at Link with big, hopeful eyes. „So, will you stay and watch the moon with someone?“

Link looked over to me. „What do you think, Becca?“ With a bit of jest in his voice, he added:„Eternal happiness as a couple sounds like a good deal for just watching the moon, right?“

„It sure does“, I replied, seeing the girl‘s faces fall from the corner of my eye. Then I looked down to Gareth. „What do you say, Gareth?“

He made a squeaky noise, as babies that age do, which I liberally interpreted as agreement.

The evening approached, and as the bright sun slowly faded behind the horizon, the village was still alight. Turns out that the paper-flowers held within them a kind of luminescent stone. One of the villagers explained to us that these stones were occasionally washed ashore after full moon and never seemed to lose their glow, so the villagers used them as safe light-sources. They were called Gifts of the Sea.

Despite the late hour a lot of vendors still had their stalls open. Some with smoked or grilled fish, some with sweet pastries, and some with wine and juice. The villagers had started a giant bonfire in the middle of the beach, around which people were already sitting and telling stories.

Link and I bought some small cakes, which contained a slightly sour kind of red berry, and strolled down the sandy beach to a spot where there weren‘t many people yet. We sat down and watched the moon rise, eating our cakes and just being comfortably silent. We had left Gareth in the care of Dr. Alma, who had kindly volunteered to babysit him while we were enjoying the festival.

The moon was slowly rising, and after a while, Link sighed and let himself fall back. „This is nice. Ever since my little trip to Termina, I‘ve had some issues with going moongazing. As if every second it would grow a face and start falling. But I think now I can look at it and not be worried anymore.“ His hand wandered over to mine. „You changed my perspective on so many things, Becca. It‘s moments like this that make me truly grateful to have you in my life.“ His voice grew softer. „Sometimes, I seem to forget that. I have spent so much time of my life worrying about everything… that I sometimes just forget to appreciate the good things in my life. Because every time there was something good, I always had that nagging feeling that I would lose it soon.“

Now I let myself fall backwards, too. „...I love you.“ My voice was soft and a bit hoarse. „I love you so much. More than I ever thought I could love someone.“

From somewhere behind us, I heard someone scoff quietly. I looked up, but found this section of the beach mostly empty.

„Is something wrong?“ Link asked.

„I just thought I… nevermind. Just my mind playing tricks on me.“ I snuggled up to him, wrapping my arms around his torso and resting my head against his chest, so I could listen to the gentle, steady beating of his heart.

After about half an hour of just enjoying each other‘s company, other couples started taking over that part of the beach, so we returned to the bonfire, where some of the older people and children were still sitting and telling stories. They were telling of… fairies? And the Triforce? All phrased like they didn‘t exist. A lot of „It is said“ and „People believe“s were thrown around. It was so bizarre hearing these people talk about the realities of our homeland as if they were but myths. Especially since I had seen the Triforce with my own two eyes. And I had travelled in Navi‘s company so long. Then again, it kind of made sense. Yverna had mentioned that we were far beyond the influence of the Goddesses at this point.

I wondered what kind of deities these people worshipped. The girls we had met earlier had spoken of the spirits of the ocean. Were those the center of their religion? It would make sense, considering that all of their livelihoods depended on the sea.

After a while, a hooded woman approached and sat down close to us. The hood mostly obscured her face, but a few white strands of hair were peeking out. And a pair of very unsettling eyes rested on Link.

„So you are the famous Hero of Time. This is your title, yes? How lovely to meet you.“ Her voice was lowered, so none of the villagers could overhear her.

Link stared at her for a moment, mouth and eyes wide open. „Who are you? How can you possibly know?“

She leaned over to him, which made her cloak part just wide enough for us to see that her cleavage was low enough to reach her belly button. She ran her black fingernail over Link‘s shoulder, in a very suggestive gesture. „Wouldn‘t you like to know? I know many things, Hero of Time. All of your past lives. All of your past titles. Who you are. Who you were. What your destiny is. But it seems this time, you have decided to break with tradition.“ Her gaze flickered over to me for the briefest of moments before returning to him again. „So I thought ‚If the Hero does not want to follow the beaten path this time, why should I?‘. So… here I am. But it is late. You should sleep… We can discuss this more in-depth in the morning.“

„Of… of course… I will go to bed.“ He got up, a bit shakily, and staggered off.

„Link? Link?!“ I cast one last look at the mysterious woman before dashing after Link.

Something was very, very wrong.

I wouldn‘t fully realize just how wrong everything was until the next morning. I woke up alone; Gareth was still in the makeshift cradle and was crying to be changed and fed.

I got up, thinking that maybe Link had just gone to the privy, and took care of Gareth. Half an hour passed, without Link returning. Growing worried, I got up and left the inn.

The sun was bright, and the villagers were busy taking down the decorations. I walked along the rows of houses until I spotted Link… and my heart momentarily stopped.

There he was, indeed. And clinging to his arm was a beautiful, statuesque woman in very skimpy clothing. Her white hair marked her as the woman from the previous night.

As I got closer, I heard her talk:

„Oh this would just look darling in our home, wouldn‘t it?“ She held up a tapestry.

„Of course… my love...“ Link‘s voice sounded mechanical, and not at all like himself.

I wanted to approach them, and confront that woman, but someone grabbed my shoulder.

A girl with long, light blue hair was standing beside me. „There‘s no use in talking to him now. He‘s too entangled in Cia‘s spell.“ She sounded sad, almost desperate. „Come on, I think we need to talk.“

„But… Link...“ I was in tears at that point, and Gareth, sensing my distress, began whimpering, too.

„You can‘t help him right now. But don‘t worry. We‘ll get this mess fixed.“

The girl led me to a farm close to the village. The place had obviously not been taken care of or a while, but the house showed signs that someone had been there recently.

My companion sat down at the table in the kitchen area of the house and sighed. „I‘m so… so sorry.“ She shook her head. „Cia is… a sorceress. A sorceress who has insight into all kinds of things, including the true nature of Link‘s soul. And that‘s what made her grow obsessed with him. I tried to stop her, but...“

„Hold on… How do you know that? Just who are you?“

The girl looked up with a sad smile. „My name is Lana. And I am Cia‘s other half.“

Chapter 40: Rebecca Ice-Born

A/N: To anyone still reading this fic: Hello! Thank you for coming this far. I have started this fic a little less than a year ago and should have probably finished it with chapter 38. But I am a little bitch who can't stand things ending, so I will continue and from here on out, I will experiment with this fic a little. Expand on the universe with more things from other Zelda-games, including spin-offs like Hyrule Warriors, some (and I only do mean SOME) elements of My Inner Life and my own stuff, too. If that isn't your cup of tea, just pretend the story ended with chapter 38. I will also probably post another, alternate ending that I had planned but scrapped, at some later date. To anyone else: Feel free to stay and have fun! I know I do! 

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„You know who we are?“, I asked. Gareth was looking at the figure intently. „I know many things“, the guardian replied, rising from its seated position. „It is not often that Hylia‘s people come here. You have strayed far from the light of your Goddess, young one, and even farther from the influence of the three Golden Ones.“ „Hylia? Like the lake? And why do you speak of a single Goddess only?“ The guardian chuckled quietly. „Ah, what miserable times in which Hylia has become forgotten. She, the one who serves and the one who protects. She who gave up her divine form to seal the nameless one‘s evil away.“ The guardian came closer, though it left no imprint on the floor and no footsteps were heard. „But I am certain that you are not here for a history lesson, are you, child? You come to ask me to show mercy to the Rito. To spare the fledgelings, and ease the burden of the adults. Is that not it?“ „Indeed“, I confirmed. „But I would also like to know what they did to deserve this in your eyes.“ The guardian hummed thoughtfully. „What did they do? It‘s not about what they did. It‘s about what they did not do.“ The guardian stretched out its arms, billowing the cloak to make it look like wings of an owl poised to strike. „I am the guardian of this region. And yet I am treated like legend and hearsay. I refuse to suffer the same fate as Hylia; I will remind the Rito that their lives are in my hand!“ Then it lowered its arms again. „And you, Rebecca Ice-Born? What would you do, if you were in my position?“ „Why do you keep calling me that?“, I asked, slowly getting agitated. I did have a naginata of my own now, and I had it with me, but I couldn‘t fight while carrying Gareth. The guardian stopped and looked at me curiously. „You have no idea, do you? You do not know of your heritage, or the powers that dwell within you.“ Now it looked up to the ceiling of the cave, almost wistfully. „Once, there were many of my kind. God-like beings that guarded Hebra and ruled it. But some of them began to mix their blood with that of other creatures. New bloodlines sprung from these connections, and though most of them have been extinguished with time, there is one that remains.“ Behind the eye-holes of the mask, a pair of seemingly colourless eyes began to glow. „Yours. And while my people dwindled, driven to their deaths by despair over the passing of their mortal lovers, I remained here in the mountains, bound to my duty and the land that my people once called home. Waiting for the one that survived. Waiting for you. And, by extension, your son. Do you not feel it? How the snow welcomes you? How the howling winds caress you? You were born of snow and ice, like all of us. Rebecca Ice-Born, descendant of the Glaces.“ I took a few steps back. „This can‘t be. I have always been able to feel cold. It‘s only now that I can‘t anymore.“ „Yes, because now is the time for you to awaken.“ I took a deep breath ot gather myself again, then shook my head. „You know what? It doesn‘t matter. Instead, let me answer your question: I would not let my pride drive me to make innocent people suffer.“ „Pride...“, the guardian repeated. „What do you know of pride, Rebecca Ice-Born? How could you possibly understand the years of toil and loneliness I have gone through? And how SICK I am of keeping peace with a race that will not even remember my NAME.“ What followed was a tense silence, only interrupted by the ice around us crackling with the guardian‘s fury. „Then tell me your name“, I demanded. „Tell me, and I will remind them.“ The guardian laughed bitterly. „Remind them? So they can forget me again?“ „Or you could remind them yourself“, I retorted, becoming annoyed. „Of course they will forget you if you keep hiding here. You showed yourself to me and my husband; why not show yourself to the Rito? You are speaking to me, why not speak to them?“ „If only it were that easy“, the guardian sighed. „I have never actually left this place. What you saw outside of the cave was merely a projection, a play of light, unable to speak, only to show itself. I am bound to this cave, for better or worse, for the souls of our people buried within the ice covering this cave are keeping me alive.“ Now it looked up. „...but I see that your intentions are pure. Hylia and the three Golden Ones must smile upon a soul so kind. Very well then. I will stop the blizzard plaguing Hebra and open the entrance of the cave again. Your beloved hero should be waiting there for you. Return to Rito Village and tell the Rito of Yverna, the guardian of Hebra, and how she has been guarding the region all on her own for thousands of years.“

I went back the way I came, only to find Link standing with Epona and Glory at the open entrance. Once he spotted me, he ran up to me and kissed me, mindful not to crush Gareth between us. „Rebecca, what happened?“, he asked, voice rough probably from calling for me so much. „You were gone all of a sudden, and then I found Glory standing here all on her own, but for some reason I couldn‘t enter the cave to go look for you. The storm stopped… did you talk to the guardian?“ „I did“, I replied. „And you won‘t believe what I learned...“

„...and Yverna has remained like this, confined to this cave, guarding the region, to this very day“, I ended the account of my encounter with the guardian. After returning to Rito Village, we had gone straight up to the Elder to tell Yverna‘s story, and had told every Rito we encountered on the way to come along and listen. In our audience, I spotted Ano with a small, light-brown Rito girl on his shoulders, and his wife, a beautiful Rito with cream-coloured feathers sitting beside them. „She must have been so lonely“, one of the younger Rito whispered. „Mommy, can we go visit the guardian and say hello to her? Maybe she won‘t be so lonely anymore“, another asked. And while the Rito eagerly made plans to try and include Yverna so she would not turn Hebra into a frozen hellscape again, I was thinking about what she told me about my heritage. Could it be that I was truly of her kind? A Glaces, a spirit of ice and snow? Meant to guard… to protect. But what? And if I was… what would that change? What would it mean for my life… and for the lives of my family? My parents? My husband and son? If I was a Glaces… and so was Gareth… then that meant so was either my mother or father. Link had not said much about the revelation. Did the thought abhor him? But why would it? He was friends with so many people of so many different races… It was certainly just my usual pessimism that struck again, so I tried to distract myself. Forcing positive thoughts. How much I loved him. How much light his presence had brought into my life. How I adored the way he smiled at me when he was feeling comfortable and relaxed; the smile of a kind man who loved life. And how losing him surely would destroy me.

We stayed in Rito Village for two more days, stocking up on supplies… and barely talking to each other. Link had become so distant. And as much as I hated to admit it… I understood why. Ever since my meeting with Yverna, it was like I saw a stranger every time I looked into a mirror. He still was very caring towards Gareth, though. Taking his turns holding him, cooing at him and talking to him. Never thought I would ever be jealous of my own son. And once we were back on the road, Link and I still didn‘t really speak. It was beginning to frustrate me. I hated this silence. A silence left behind by things that should have been said, but weren‘t. Someone had to start the conversation. So after a few hours of riding, I spoke up:„What‘s wrong?“ Link stopped Epona, staring at his hands that were tightly gripping the reins. „I don‘t know. This whole thing about you being the same as the guardian… I don‘t know what to make of it. A few days ago, I didn‘t even know that the Glaces existed. And now I am married to one of them? It‘s just… it takes some time to get used to the thought.“ „But Link, nothing changed. I‘m still who I always was.“ I couldn‘t banish the unmistakable sound of approaching tears from my voice. „I‘m still your Rebecca.“ „I know that. It‘s just...“ He gestured helplessly. „I don‘t know. Just… give me some time, okay?“ I bit my lip hard enough to draw blood. „Fine.“ Once Link had spurred Epona again, I let myself fall back, stubbornly riding behind him, where he could safely ignore me.

This went on for days. Link and I never spoke more than absolutely necessary. I let him sleep in the tent with Gareth while I slept outside, closer to the campfire, even though I did not need its warmth. A week after our departure from Rito Village, we saw the glistening sea on the horizon, lit up into a dance of yellow, orange and red by the rising sun. The Great Lebian Coast. I had expected to feel euphoric upon seeing the sea for the first time. But I just felt drained. I wanted to return home. This whole journey had been a stupid idea. If only I had surpressed my urge to go adventuring and had remained a nice, loyal little housewife. Of only I had… It was at that point that I realized that I was slipping out of the saddle. I wanted to pull myself up again, but my vision began to blur. The last thing I heard before unconciousness took me was Link calling my name.

When I awoke again, my mouth felt like I had swallowed a handful of sand, and my throat wasn‘t much better off. I was curled up on my side in the fetal position. And I felt hot and clammy. It had been a while, but I remembered the feeling. Fever. I couldn‘t open my eyes, or move much. „Will she be alright?“, I heard a voice ask softly. „This kind of sickness usually comes from a lot of stress. Did anything happen to her lately that could have caused this?“ A moment of silence. „We fought. And she gave birth to our son less than half a year ago, so he is still a bit of a handful. And… some other things.“ „I see. Well, she will certainly recover. She‘s young and strong. Take good care of her… and try to keep her magic under control.“ Magic?, I thought. I didn‘t know how to do magic. This person couldn‘t possibly be talking about me. Then I heard the quiet rustle of fabric as someone sat down next to the bed I was resting on. Then the person took my hand, and when he spoke again, I finally recognized him. „Oh Rebecca… I‘m so sorry. Had I known what would happen, I wouldn‘t have ignored you like I did. No… I shouldn‘t have done that, period. I‘m so… so sorry.“ A squeal temporarily distracted him. „Just a moment, Gareth. Daddy has to take care of Mommy.“ Another squeal. „Okay, fine.“ Link got up, but returned a few seconds later, playing a small, warm bundle onto the bed next to me. „Becca, Gareth was worried about you, too.“ And truly, the small bundle… my son… nestled himself close to me chest, tiny hands gripping the fabric of my shirt. I wanted to say something, but I was still so tired. I wanted to just sleep, with the comforting weight of my little boy clinging to me, and Link‘s gentle voice echoing in my head.

Chapter 39: The Journey begins (anew)

The following days, Link and I gathered everything we needed for long-time travel. Bedrolls, a tent, a supply of non-perishable food, bottles to keep water in. And of course anything we‘d need for Gareth. We would take turns holding him and maybe let him sit in front of us in the saddle while we rode. I was in a consistently good mood during these days. The idea of travelling excited me. Link had seen so much of the world already; next to him I always felt a bit naive and uneducated. But now it was my chance to make up for that. Then, finally, the day had come. We visited Zelda one last time before departing, and also dropped by LonLon Ranch to say goodbye, before taking the road west past the Haunted Wasteland and to the Hebra region. It would be about three days of travel before even reaching Hebra, and we were cheerfully chatting about all of the things we would see once we left the familiar borders of Hyrule. We spent the nights in our tent or sometimes just in bedrolls, looking up at the starry sky. And then, at around noon of the fourth day, the snow began to fall.

Gareth hadn‘t seen snow before, and the soft white flakes dancing through the air delighted him. He stretched out his arms to catch them, squealing with glee as they melted in his tiny hands. Link rode closer to me and took my hand. „Looks like our boy is enjoying himself.“ I wrapped my shawl tighter around my shoulders, event though I wasn‘t really cold. „And you? Are you enjoying yourself, too?“ „Oh yes. It feels good to travel without having to worry about the apocalypse happening. Come on, I think it‘s my turn now.“ With that, he reached over and lifted Gareth out of my saddle and into his. Despite the overcast sky, the landscape was breathtaking. Hills and mountains, valleys and thick pinetree forests covered in powdery snow. In the distance, I could see a deer walkin in between the trees. It was pregnant, from the looks of it. I wondered if its fawn would ever see green grass or flowers. Did the snow in this region ever melt?

Some time later, as the sun was already setting, we arrived at a small inn that served as a waypoint for travelers. We rented two spots for our horses and a room for us; happy to be able to put up our feet after a strenuous day of riding. In the lobby of the inn, we found a strange bird-like creature carving complicated patterns into its bow. It was a lot taller than us and covered in black and white plumage. It looked up when we entered and waved its wing at us. „Greetings! A pair of travellers, I take it?“ „Uhm… yes. We are travellers from Hyrule“, Link replied, a bit taken aback that the creature could talk. „I‘m Link. This is my wife Rebecca, and Gareth, our son.“ The bird-creature smiled as far as it was possible with a beak. „A whole family, huh? How sweet. I have a wife and daughter back home, too. My name is Ano, of the Rito tribe. Nice to meet you.“ Ano shifted to the side a little. „Come, sit by the fire. It‘s pretty cold at the moment… It‘s getting colder and colder.“ He lowered his voice to an almost conspiratorial tone. „Some say that we angered the guardian of the mountain, and that‘s why the weather is getting worse. Rito Village is built in an area with a lot of vulcanic activitiy, so it‘s usually quite warm there. But now the village is covered in snow, and some of our younglings even died before they could hatch because of it.“ „That‘s terrible“, I whispered. „You must be very worried about your daugther.“ „I am“, Ano confirmed. „And the snow makes it difficult to feed ourselves, as well. The Rito are hunters by trade, but the snow drives all of your game away, so we have to stray further and further away from the village in order to find food.“ Ano put his bow aside. „But enough about me. What about you? You said you were from Hyrule. I‘ve never been there. What is it like?“

We spent the rest of the evening telling Ano about Hyrule, and the different people and cultures it harbored. The next morning, we retrieved Epona and Glory and continued on our way. As we were riding through the snowy landscape, across the road Ano had marked on our map to show us how to get to Rito Village, I suddenly heard a sound like a windchime, and when I looked towards the forest, I saw a figure clad in white disappear between the trees. „Did you see that?“, I asked Link while pulling Gareth into my arms. „That figure just now?“ „I didn‘t see anything“, Link replied. „It was probably just a bit of falling snow you mistook for a person.“ „Maybe“, I replied, not entirely convinced that that was what‘s going on. And what worried me more: I still didn‘t feel cold. Not even in my face, despite the harsh wind and falling snow. It was as if the cold couldn‘t even touch me.

During the rest of the ride to the village, I would occasionally hear the strange sound and see the figure again, but once I tried to get a good look, it would disappear. Rito Village was built around a mountain, wooden huts connected by walkways that spiraled around up to the peak. It really didn‘t look like it was built for snowy or stormy weather. We approached the bridge that would lead up to the mountain, and there, right in front of it, stood the figure again, wearing a white cloak and a mask that resembled an owl‘s face. „Woah!“ Link stopped Epona. But then, the figure faded again, becoming more and more translucent until it was gone entirely. „I take it you saw it this time?“, I asked dryly. „THAT is what you saw the entire time?“, he asked a bit breathlessly. „Yes. Maybe the Rito will know more about it.“

We left Epona and Glory at the entrance of the village and were greeted by a young Rito girl. „Hello, travelers! So nice to see some new faces! I‘m sorry, but I fear Rito Village isn‘t much to look at right now.“ She looked a bit downtrodden for a moment, but then perked up again. „But I hope you will enjoy your stay anyway! Why don‘t you go say hello to our Elder? He adores meeting new people and hearing stories about other countries. His hut is at the top of the village. Come on...“

The Rito girl ushered us all of the way up to the Elder‘s hut. The Rito Elder turned out to be an obese Rito resembling a big brown owl. His voice was deep and booming when he greeted us:„Well met, travelers, and welcome to Rito Village! Where do you hail from?“ „From Hyrule, Sir“, I replied politely. „Hyrule… ah, yes. So close to home, and yet nobody here has ever visited it, and Hyrule‘s people hardly ever venture outside of their homeland‘s borders. I wonder if your sudden appearance could be a sign. You may have heard that our people have fallen from grace in the eyes of the guardian of the mountain.“ „This guardian“, I blurted out. „What does it look like? Does it look like someone in a white cloak wearing an owl-mask, by chance?“ The Elder‘s eyes widened. „Why yes, young lady! How could you know that?“ „The guardian has followed us here“, Link replied. „At first, it only appeared to my wife, but as we approached the village, it showed itself to both of us.“ The Elder hummed thoughtfully. „The guardian has clearly taken an interest in you. Maybe you are the answer to all of our prayers.“ He shook a little, puffing up his feathers. „Normally, I would hesitate to direct such a bold request towards total strangers, but could you please speak to the guardian for us? You already have its attention, it seems, so maybe it would be willing to listen to you. The guardian resides in a cave in the center of the Hebra region. Here, I will mark it on your map...“ „So much for not getting caught up in world-saving missions anymore“, I heard Link mumble behind me. Indeed.

There was another inn on the way to the cave, where we rested, before making our way through the thick snow toward the mountain at the center of Hebra. Then and again, we saw the figure of the guardian in the distance, appearing and then disappearing. It would have to answer a lot of questions when we reached its cave. The blizzard became worse and worse, until we could barely see anymore. Yet we kept going. „Damn, it‘s like we‘re not getting any closer to the mountain!“, I yelled. When I received no answer, I looked around only to find that Link wasn‘t riding by my side anymore. He was gone; there weren‘t even any hoofprints that could have indicated where he had gone. I pulled Gareth closer to my chest. His tiny body was warm and comforting… as if he, like me, couldn‘t feel the cold. „Link?!“, I called out again, turning my head in hopes of seeing him somewhere. But by now the snow had become so heavy that there was nothing but white in my vision. I called for Link, my heart racing with fear. Then, suddenly, the snow stopped… and I stood in the middle of a cave. „Wha-...“ I looked around, holding onto the reins for dear life. „How…?“ I turned around, only to find the way I came from blocked. And the cave ahead became more and more narrow, so I wouldn‘t be able to ride any further than this. I dismounted and gave Glory a comforting pat on the neck. „Don‘t worry, I‘ll find a way out of here for both of us.“ I hoped. Oh Goddesses, how I hoped.

The cave‘s walls seemed to be entirely covered in a thick layer of ice. I head to tread carefully so I wouldn‘t fall. And within the ice, I saw my reflection walk alongside me. Gareth seemed fairly unbothered by our situation. He turned his head left to right, trying to see everything around him, with the cheerful kind fo curiosity only small children have. After a few minutes of walking, the cave expanded into a huge hall again. And in the middle of it was a throne made of ice, the backrest ending in a collection of icy spikes that looked almost crown-like. And upon that throne sat the guardian in its shimmery white cloak, the mask covering its face softly clacking as it cocked its head in acknowledgement of my arrival. „Greetings, Rebecca Ice-Born“, the guardian greeted me. Its voice was hard to describe. It sounded young, yet old, deep, yet high, melodic, yet rough. Despite just being one voice it sounded like a thousand voices speaking in perfect unison. I couldn‘t see its eyes, if there even was a face behind that mask, and yet I could feel the guardian‘s gaze wander to Gareth. „And of course, my greetings also extend to you, Gareth, son of the Hero of Time.“

Chapter 38: Happy Days

We returned to our home in the city after the party. For the first time in what seemed like years. And after that, everything seemed to go back to the way it was. Link made a full recovery, I continued to attend my fighting lessons at Ashanti‘s school once a week, during which I would leave Gareth in either Link‘s or Sanna‘s care, and worked on Malon‘s wedding dress. Navi soon left us to return to the forest, promising to come back if we ever needed her. The chill of winter slowly faded into the gentle warmth of spring, which was then replaced by the heat of summer approaching. And when the first day of summer arrived, I spotted a familiar wagon while out shopping.

Link and I were walking side by side, talking about whatever trivial things came to our minds. Link was holding Gareth and I carried the basket. While I let my eyes wander over the stalls on the marketplace, I stopped and called out:„Jenna!“ Link must have heard the excitement in my voice, because he gave me a puzzled look. „Why are you so excited about her being here?“ Oh right. I hadn‘t told him. And he would have to wait for an explanation. I just grabbed his sleeve and tugged him towards Jenna‘s wagon. „Come, let‘s go say hello to her!“ Gareth, sensing my excitement, cooed and stretched his tiny hands out towards where we were headed. He was four months old now and much more aware of his sorroundings. Jenna poked her head out of the wagon when she heard my voice, and gave me an annoyed look, until she saw Link. She gave him her usual bright smile and waved him over. „Link!“ Link looked at me doubtfully. „What...“ „I‘ll explain it later“, I assured him and stepped in front of Jenna. „Hello, Jenna. Good to see you again. How have your travels been?“ Both Link and Jenna seemed equally baffled by my cheerful attitude. They looked at each other, then at me. „It‘s been… nice. Always good to see a lot of the world“, she sputtered, caught completely off guard. „That‘s good to hear. Hey, Link and I were planning to make baked salmon for supper. Why don‘t you join us, so you can tell us all about what you were up to?“ She looked at Link again. „Sure. I‘d love to.“ „Great! See you at six!“

„What was that?“, Link questioned as we moved on, occasionally stopping in front of stalls to browse their wares. „I met Jenna in the erased future“, I replied, and then explained what had happened. Link was quiet for a long time after I finished, just silently rocking Gareth in his arms. Then he finally asked:„So you think you can become friends with her now, based on what you experienced during your time-travel.“ „I know I can. Jenna has a good heart.“

That evening, just when I got the salmon out of the oven, there was a knock at our door. Link went to open, and a few seconds later Jenna stepped into our dining area. She wore an exquisite blue dress made of silk, with a low neckline and fine embroidery on the seams. Her hair was done up in a crownbraid. „Ah, just in time!“ I placed the food down on the dinnertable. „Make yourself comfortable!“ She sat down at the table, still looking at me suspiciously, before she turned to Link. „Oh, your house is beautiful, Link! It must be so nice to live here!“ „It is.“ „Though I kind of expected you to have a bigger home“, she continued. Before Link could answer, Gareth, who was sitting in a crib we had placed in the dining area so he could sit with us while we ate, started fussing. I took him into my arms and rocked him until he calmed down. Jenna slowly turned her head to look at him. „...Is this your child?“ „Yes“, Link replied, his chest positively swelling with pride. „That‘s my son.“ I could almost see Jenna‘s heart break. She looked at the toddler in my arms with her mouth slightly open as if to say something. I wanted to comfort her. To say, or do anything to make her feel better. So impulsively, I stretched out my arms. „Do you want to hold him?“ She swallowed, but took Gareth, holding him close to her chest. „So cute“, she mumbled. „I wonder what you would look like if I was your mother.“ I reached over, but only to stroke Gareth‘s cheek as he dozed in Jenna‘s arms. „I‘m sure you‘d have the prettiest babies, Jenna.“ She looked at me, bit her lip and looked away. „Well I guess we‘ll never know.“ With that, she carefully placed Gareth back in the crib and started eating. After a while of quietly enjoying our meal, I tried to get the conversation going again:„So where have you been, Jenna? You were gone for almost a year, so it must have been far away.“ „I went to a lot of different places“, she replied, pulling the fish apart with her fork. „I went back home for a while, and then travelled through the Faron region just east of Hyrule‘s border. Have you ever been there?“ I sighed wistfully. „Unfortunately not. The only time I ever left Hyrule was not too long ago, while I was… looking for someone.“ Link and I exchanged a quick look. „But even then, I was still fairly close to the border.“ „Oh, Faron is a beautiful region. Most of the trees there are palm trees, and you can find all kinds of exotic fruit and animals if you know where to look. But it‘s also fairly dangerous. There are thunderstorms every other day… the locals say it‘s because there‘s a dragon living in the region. I never saw it, though.“ Jenna‘s demeanor had brightened considerably. „And what about your homeland? What was it called? The Great Lebian Coast? Where is that?“, I asked further. „It‘s very far to the west. You see, north of the Haunted Wasteland lies a region covered in snow, called Hebra. Now if you go further west, you eventually cross the border to Labrynna, and right behind Labrynna is where the Great Lebian Coast is.“ In between two bites of potatoes, she continued:„I technically still own my parent‘s farm, but I was so lonely living there alone and I couldn‘t run it all by myself. That‘s why I became a merchant. I hoped that travelling around would help me… find a good husband. Someone to continue my family‘s legacy with.“ „I‘m sure you will find someone eventually“, Link said with a smile. „You are a sweet girl, Jenna. Someday, someone will see that.“

As the night went on, Jenna told us more about the many places she had visited. Countries I had never even heard about, with odd people and even odder costums. And the more I heard, the more I wished to travel myself. When it was finally time to say goodbye, Jenna was smiling at us. „Thank you for the invitation.“ „You‘re welcome. And feel free to visit us whenever you like while you‘re in the city.“

I didn‘t have much time to think about travelling after that. The days leading up to Malon‘s wedding were busy, to say the least. As the matron of honor, I was in charge of most of the preparations. I helped the bridesmaids decorate, I oversaw the preparation of the food, and I finished Malon‘s dress and veil just in time. She looked beautiful in it, like a princess. „Matthias will love this“, I told her as I finished some adjustments due to her advanced pregnancy. „I know I do“, she replied, a bit misty-eyed. „Thank you, Rebecca.“ I lightly booped her nose. „Anything for you.“

And then, finally, the day had come. I held back tears as I saw Malon walk down the aisle, holding onto the arm of her father, while Matthias beamed at her. I had made sure that LonLon Ranch was properly decorated. Flowers of all colours were wound around the arch, and the aisle was covered in petals. For this day, the ranch had been turned into a fairlytale bathed in flowers. Once Talon handed her over to Matthias, I took Malon‘s bouquet and listened to the words of the priest. It was the same kind of sermon he had giving during my wedding; the standard for most couples. Malon and Matthias were looking at each other the whole time, as if only they existed in their own little world. „I, Malon, take you, Matthias to be my lawfully wedded husband...“ „To love, to cherish… „...in sickness and in health...“ „...until death do us part.“ They exchanged the rings, and then kissed. The whole wedding party cheered, some were crying. Talon was probably the loudest, blowing his nose into his hankerchief.

The reception afterward quickly became a big party, with all of the guests drinking and dancing. I mostly stood by the side with Link, watching everyone have a good time. At this point, I was quite happy just watching. I was exhausted from the preparations, but it felt good to see everything come together in the end. Link took my hand. „Reminds me of our wedding. Our reception wasn‘t quite as lively, though.“ „Well… we kinda got married in a rush because of the approaching war.“ He nodded thoughtfully. „Do you think we should have another wedding? A proper one this time?“ „I mean, we could technically renew our vows at some point… but I think it‘s a bit early for that.“ „That‘s true. Maybe a few years down the road, then.“ Now that I was finally a bit calmer, I looked over to him. „Actually… there‘s something I wanted to talk about.“ He raised his eyebrow. „Oh?“ I was quiet for a moment, not quite able to find the right words. But then I just blurted out:„I want to go travelling!“ „Travelling? But what about our home? What about Gareth?“ „We can take him along. He can grow up seeing all kinds of different places.“ I held onto Link‘s hand, begging for him to understand. „I‘m not saying we should leave Hyrule forever. Just… see a bit more of the world. Without the threat of certain doom constantly on our minds.“ He took a deep breath. „I… I‘d be lying if I said that I haven‘t thought about this before. But are you sure?“ „Absolutely!“ I insisted. „All of the places Jenna mentioned… and much more! I want to see them all with my own two eyes!“ This was ridiculous. I felt like a child begging for candy. Link thought for a few more seconds. „...We‘ll have to wait until after the coronation and then ask Zelda what she thinks about it. It may be an unofficial title, but I‘m still the protector of Hyrule.“ That sure as hell didn‘t bother you when you left ten years ago, I though but didn‘t say it out loud. I didn‘t want to start a lover‘s spat at my best friend‘s wedding. Speaking of best friend, Malon walked up to us, a wide grin on her face. „Hey there! I hope you enjoy the party!“ „Sure we do, Malon“, I assured her. „What about you?“ „Oh it is everything I ever dreamed of.“ She hugged me and kissed my cheek. „Thank you, Rebecca.“

The coronation was not long after the wedding. Link and I were standing in the throne room, somewhat off to the side, while we watched Zelda walk down the red carpet up to the throne her father used to occupy. She now wore an elaborate gown of white and purple, with the emblem of the royal family stitched down the front of her skirt. It was noon, and the sun‘s rays that were falling through the window above the throne hit her hair and almost made it look like she had a halo around her head. The sages were gathered around the throne, as they would be her vassals during her reign. She bowed before them, and they reciprocated; a sign of mutual respect. Rauru stepped forth. „Zelda, once Princess of Hyrule, do you vow to protect Hyrule and its people?“ „I do“, she replied. „Do you vow to keep the peace, to rule justly and with mercy?“ „I do“, she replied again. Now Rauru turned around. „Will the representatives of the races lend our new Queen their power?“ „By lake and stream, sea and river, us, the Zora, will grant Her Majesty our loyalty“, Princess Ruto replied. „By mountain and hill, rock and stone, us, the Gorons, will grant Her Majesty our strength“, Darunia added, pounding his fist against his chest for emphasis. „By darkness and shadow, by secrets to be kept, us, the Sheikah, will grant Her Majesty our protection.“ Impa gave a small smile as she said that. „By forest and meadow, and all things green, us, the Kokiri, will grant Her Majesty our friendship.“ Saria beamed up at Zelda. It was good to see how much the once so reclusive Kokiri had become part of the kingdom. „By sand and spirit, blood and steel, us, the Gerudo, will grant Her Majesty our support.“ Rauru nodded, then turned to Zelda again. „And I, Rauru, grant Her Majesty the blessing of both her ancestors and the Goddesses they served. May Her reign be long and prosperous.“ He took the crown that had been resting on a small table next to him, and gently put it on Zelda‘s head. The gemstone on the middle of the piece flared up in the sunlight, and Zelda turned to the people. The hall erupted into cheering, its echo so deafening that I had to cover my ears. But I smiled. Zelda would be a wonderful Queen.

The coronation party lasted for hours, which Link and I spent dancing and talking to the sages. But once it all died down and people started to go home, we could finally catch Zelda alone. „There you are!“, she said. Then she looked around. „I hope you enjoyed the celebration.“ „It was grand, Your Majesty“, I replied, not sure if I could still call her Zelda now that she was Queen. „Rebecca“, she said gently, taking my hands. „It‘s still me. I‘m still your friend. Me being Queen doesn‘t change anything.“ Then she leaned over and planted a gentle kiss on my cheek. She smelled sweet. Of lilac and roses. „There‘s actually something we wanted to talk to you about“, Link said, nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other. „Rebecca and I have been thinking about going travelling for a while.“ It wasn‘t hard to see that this revelation hit her. „You want to leave? Now?“ „Not… now. There‘s still a lot to be prepared. But sometime within the next year.“ „What about your son? And your home? What about m-… “ She stopped, stuttered a bit. „What about Hyrule? Link, you are our most powerful warrior. What if something happens while you‘re gone?“ „We won‘t be gone for long“, Link promised. „We‘ll be back before you know it. With a lot of new stories to tell.“ Zelda faltered. „I can‘t stop you, can I? No. You were always a restless spirit, Link. Alright then. But do stay in touch.“ „We will“, I promised and kissed her hand. „We will always return to you. No matter how far away the wind takes us.“

Chapter 37: Back to Life as it was

I took Link along on Glory, since Epona was still in the city stable, and together, he, Zelda and I made our way back to Hyrule. I took a long, deep breath of the fresh air as we rode along the shore of Lake Hylia. It felt so good to see the lush, green grass again. And the sun! How I had missed the sun! I looked across the lake and saw a family of Zora play in the water. If Link hadn‘t been in such poor shape after his imprisonment, I would have stopped to nap in the grass and maybe take a dip in the lake. Just enjoy all of the things Ganondorf had destroyed in the future. But Link needed to see a healer, and I wanted to see Gareth again. My sweet, darling son.

We only took occasional breaks, but it still took us two days until we finally stood in front of the castle again. We stopped when we noticed the group of people standing in front of the gate. Naboru was the first to notice us. „There are our heroes!“, she called out, waving at us with a wide grin. „You‘re all back!“, Zelda exclaimed. Her eyes darted to Impa, who gave er a motherly smile. „You‘ve done great, Princess.“ „You‘ve all done great!“, Darunia shouted in his booming voice. „Too bad nobody but us remembers!“ I shook my head. „I think it‘s better that way.“ Princess Ruto looked at me, still some hostility in her eyes. Then she turned away. „You did okay, I guess.“ I smiled at her. Princess Ruto and I would probably never be friends. But I was okay with that. „Memory or no memory, how about we celebrate our victory before everyone returns home?“, Saria asked. Zelda rubbed her chin. „I think I could arrange something. But all of you should return home, first. And I will prepare a celebration of all of your return.“ Then she turned to Link and me. „Would you mind staying in the castle for a while? Link probably needs a lot of supervision from a doctor during his recovery, and...“ She paused for a moment. „...I just really want have the two of you close to me right now.“ I leaned over on Glory, making sure not to lose balance, and hugged her. „Of course we‘ll stay, Zelda.“

I brought Link to the royal doctor‘s office. And while Dr. Tori was taking care of him, I took his hand. „Darling, can I leave for a moment? I want to go pick Gareth up.“ Link gave me a weak smile and stroked the back of my hand with his thumb. „Yes, please. I want to see him, too.“ Just then, Zelda entered the room. „That won‘t be necessary. I just told a servant to go fetch the woman who cared for him while we were gone.“

A few minutes passed, during which I almost cried from the anticipation. I had missed my little boy so much, and now I would finally be able to hold him again. I jumped up as soon as the door opened and the gardener stepped in with Gareth in her arms. This was it. I was just a few steps away from holding my baby again. „There you go, mistress“, the woman said as she handed him over to me. I had to take a few deep breaths before I could tell her:„Thank you so much for taking care of him.“ „Oh it was nothing. Your boy is such a sweetheart!“ I held Gareth a little closer. „Yes. Yes he is.“ Then I returned to Link‘s bedside and asked:„Do you think you can hold him, Link?“ Link held out his arms, and his eyes became watery once I had passed Gareth over to him. „Sorry that I‘ve been gone for so long“, he mumbled, gently rocking the sleeping baby. „I swear that won‘t happen again.“ Zelda joined us by the other side of Link‘s bed, and gently put her hand under Gareth‘s head to help support it. „Your son is blessed to have the two of you.“ Then she looked up, smiling at both Link and me. „And so am I.“ „Aw, Zelda. I‘m already sentimental enough as it is.“ Too late, there were a few tiny tears running down my face. I was just happy to have my beautiful little family all in one place again.

The days after our return were incredibly busy. All of the races in Hyrule were in an uproar about their beloved leaders returning. I helped Zelda with the preparations for the ball the was to be held in celebration for the sages while Link was still recovering from his imprisonment. And finally, the day had come. The most important people of Hyrule were gathered in the ballroom of the castle; ministers and priests and nobles. I was wearing my green silk-dress and Link his silk-tunic. It was pleasant callback to first days of our relationship. And we stood among the guests as Zelda welcomed each of the sages. First was Princess Ruto, wrapped into a shawl of sheer, deep blue fabric that made her look almost ethereal. Upon her head she wore a golden headdress with amethysts worked into it that had the same hue as her eyes. Then came Impa, dressed in an exquisite purple kimono with black cranes embroidered onto it. Darunia, without any ceremonial armor or clothing. He let his mere presence speak for itself. Little Saria, in a lovely green dress and a flowercrown upon her head. Naboru in her pink bedlam, but with a crown-like headpiece worked around the jewel on her forehead that let everyone know that she was the queen of the Gerudo. And finally, Rauru, now in his human form, wearing his usual clerical garb. Once they had all taken their place in front of Zelda, she softly cleared her throat before raising her voice: „My dear friends. Words cannot express the kind of joy I feel about your return. Your disappearance had left a hole in all of our hearts, and now, it is like each race of Hyrule has regained a piece that has been sorely missing. So let me say, in the name of all of Hyrule: Welcome home.“ „Welcome home!“, all of the guests said in unison; some bowed, among them Link and I. Zelda lifted her hands to gain the attention of all attendees once more. „And now, let us be merry in honor of those that returned… and those who now watch over us from the great beyond.“

As the music began to play, Link and I retreated to the sidelines, where Zelda stood, talking to Impa. The Shiekah turned to us and smiled. „The Hero of Time and his wife. Finally, we can meet in person.“ I curtsied. „It‘s an honor, Lady Impa.“ „It‘s good to know that you‘re back, Impa“, Link said cheerfully. „Well.. it‘s good to know that everyone is back. But I‘m sure Zelda will need you to watch her back for her while she‘s busy being Queen.“ „I‘m sure she will. I trust that you will attend her coronation as well?“ „Wouldn‘t miss it for the world“, I replied, smoothing down my skirt. The crowd parted slightly, and Princess Ruto came up to us, giving me a sour look and then turning to Link. „Link, would you please dance with me?“ „Uhm… I‘m not sure it would be appropriate, since I‘m married and-“ „I think it‘s a great idea. I was just about to ask Princess Zelda for a dance, anyway.“ I smiled. Princess Ruto let go of his arm and glared at me. „Link doesn‘t NEED your permission!“ „You‘re right, he doesn‘t. I‘m just saying that he doesn‘t need to worry about me being jealous.“ Link shrugged. „Okay, then I don‘t see why not.“ Ruto gave me one last withering glare before tucking her arm into Link‘s and leading him off onto the dancefloor. I bowed to Zelda. „May I ask for this dance, Your Highness?“ Zelda chuckled. „Happily.“

She was a fantastic dancer, and managed to even out all of my small mistakes. While we were twirling on the floor, we passed Link and Princess Ruto, just as it was time to swap partners. „Do you want to dance with Link now?“, I asked Zelda. She smiled and her cheeks flushed a little. „I‘d love to, but then who will you dance with?“ Before I could answer, the uncomfortably familiar feeling of scales burying into my skin interrupted my train of thought and Princess Ruto dragged me off, leaving a slightly befuddled Zelda and Link behind. Ruto wasn‘t as gracious a dancepartner as Zelda had been. Her movements were absolutely perfect, but she made no attempt at concealing my lack of skill. „Just so you know, I still hate that you and Link are married. And I still hate you. He deserves better.“ Her amethyst eyes bore into mine. Then she sighed. „But I also know when I am beaten.“ „Oh?“, I asked. „Where does that change of attitude come from?“ She huffed. „It‘s not like I can change the way he feels. The whole time we were dancing, he kept looking at you. He thought I didn‘t notice, but I did.“ Now she let go of me and disappeared into the crowd, leaving me standing awkwardly in the middle of the dancefloor, until I quietly slipped to the sidelines again, where Saria stood. „What‘s with the sad face?“, she asked kindly and motioned for me to bend down. Then she plucked a white moonflower out of her flowercrown and tucked it behind my ear. „Today is a joyful day! You should be smiling!“ I bit my lip, not wanting to unload my emotional baggage onto her. She had already seen and lived through enough. „Uhm. I don‘t know. Maybe it‘s just the stress catching up to me. There wasn‘t much time to unwind with everything going on right now.“ „Oh, that‘s understandable. Do you want to go out onto the balcony? Get some fresh air?“ I sighed. „I‘d love to.“

The sun was slowly setting, and I took a deep, relieved breath. „Ah… this is much better.“ Saria out onto the cityscape and then back to me. „And now, won‘t you tell me what is bothering you? I can tell it‘s not just the stress.“ „Well… it kinda is. And I‘m sure that what I just lived through plays a big part in it. But mostly… I‘m not sure where to go from here. I can‘t just go back to being the person I was before all of this started. I spent the entire journey doubting myself and wishing to turn back time and just be a farmhand or even a wife and mother again. But now, going back to that would feel like regressing. And another thing is… So many things happened in that other future that brought Link and I closer. And all of those things were erased now, and he doesn‘t remember.“ „Maybe he doesn‘t remember, but I‘m sure he still feels it.“ She took my hand and gave me a kind smile. „He loves you. I can feel it. Don‘t you feel it, too? It wasn‘t too long ago that this love was sown in his heart, but it took root and now it is on its way to becoming a beautiful tree.“ She closed her eyes. „Speak of the devil. There he comes. I‘ll leave you two alone.“ She walked off, and I turned my head towards the horizon again. I didn‘t have to see or hear him. I felt that he was there, his gaze lingering on me, before he came to stand next to me. „Are you enjoying the party?“, he asked gently. My lips twitched into a half-smile. „It‘s… overwhelming. How about you?“ „Way too many women want to dance with me“, he said, wiping some sweat from his brow. „I passed Saria on the way here and promised to dance with her later. But first, I wanted to spend some time with you.“ He took my hand and kissed it. „Come on. Dance with me.“ And before I could answer, he pulled me to his chest and led me into a slow waltz. I leaned my head onto his shoulder, taking in his scent, and just followed his movement. I was glad that nobody would look at us out here on the balcony. This was a private moment; other people would have just made it less intimate. This way, I could just bask in the perfection of the moment. Together, at last.

Chapter 36: The Heart of a Mother

Cassandra paid the innkeeper to keep the dining room free for us, und once we were all gathered around the dinnertable, she let out a long, drawn out sigh. Gareth still looked grumpy and glared at Link and me as if he blamed us for his „mother“ telling him off. „I still don‘t understand what‘s wrong, Mother. Why do you have to talk to these peasants? And why do I have to be here?“ „First off, you shouldn‘t talk about your parents that way.“ Both Cassandra and I closely watched his reaction. He just knit his eyebrows in confusion. „Those aren‘t my parents. You are my mother, and Father is in the castle.“ It was very evident that it was hard for Cassandra to explain this to him. „When you were a baby, you were… stolen from your birth family. Have you never wondered why you are the only son in our family? And why all of your sisters look like your father, while you and him look nothing alike?“ „No!“, he insisted. „That can‘t be!“ „I‘m so sorry, Gareth.“ The boy was quiet for a moment, but he was still redfaced with anger. „And even if it‘s true, why should I ever consider them my parents? I do not know them! And Father loves me! I am his son, I am the prince of Hyrule!“ He got up and glared at me. „If you think you can take me away and make me give up being a prince, you‘re wrong! I will tell Father about this!“ Then, he rushed out the door before any of us could stop him. „Gareth!“, I called after him, but he was already gone. Cassandra sighed and rubbed her temples. „I‘m so sorry. For all of this.“ She reached into the bag around her waist and produced two long shards of metal. „Here. I somehow convinced Ganondorf that those would be safest with me. They‘re the last two shards, and Sage Darunia already awaits you at the top of the mountain. Now go. You don‘t have much time. I will mobilize my daughters for the final battle, and send word to Princess Zelda that once the Master Sword has been reforced, the siege on Ganondorf‘s castle can begin.“ I got up, still a little shaken from the encounter with Gareth. „Thank you for your help, Cassandra.“ „It‘s the least I can do after I broke the seal that held him.“ I left that uncommented. We had already assumed as much, and giving her grief about it wouldn‘t change what had happened.

Death Mountain had barely changed in the past ten years. It had always been a barren road that led up to the volcano, but this time, even the Tektites seemed to have vanished. While we were walking, Link pulled a red tunic from his satchel and threw it to me. „There you go. It‘ll protect you from the heat inside of Death Mountain.“ „And you‘ll transform into a Goron this time?“, I asked. „Naturally.“ He gave me a smile and took my hand. „We‘re almost at our goal. Once we defeated Ganondorf, we can use the combined power of the Triforce to reverse all of this.“ „Yes“, I replied, looking blankly ahead. „And then, we can save everyone.“

Darunia was waiting for us in front of what I assumed to be the fire temple, and with him was Link the Goron. They didn‘t seem the slightest bit surprised when Link walked up to them in his Goron form. „Do you have all of the shards, brother?“, Darunia asked, prompting Link to pull all of the shattered remains of the Master Sword out of his satchel. „How long will it take?“, I asked, sweating despite the red tunic. Without it, I would have probably been in flames. „A few days, at least. In the meantime, you should contact the other sages. Tell them to mobilize all of our allies.“ We nodded. „Understood.“

Link the Goron brought us back to Goron City, where we could rest and plan the final battle. I had expected myself to feel relief now that everything was out of our hands for now. But not having a solid grip on the situation only heightened my anxiety. Link spent a lot of time telepathically communicating with Saria, who then relayed all of his messages to the other sages. We all would gather in front of the gates of Hyrule City once everything was prepared. There was just one last thing that bothered me. „Didn‘t the Sages say that the sword alone isn‘t enough? And that it needs to be charged with holy energy?“ Link sighed. He was polishing his sword for the third time that day, showing that he was just as anxious as I was. „True. But Zelda says that she has a plan.“ That calmed me down a little. When Zelda had a plan, it was always a good one.

The days crawled by, and finally, Darunia stepped forth from behind the statue in his room, bearing the Master Sword in his hands. „It is done.“ Link got up and took the sword in his hands, and once his fingers closed around the hilt, it was like a missing part of his arm had been returned to him. His eyes lit up with a smile when he turned to me. „Now we can defeat Ganondorf once and for all.“

We gathered all of the Gorons and all of the people in Kakariko who were capable of fighting. Led by Impa and Daruina, both in the traditional armor of their respective people, we approached the gate of Hyrule City. There stood Princess Zelda with the remaining Hylians, and a whole army of Labrynnians. Princess Ruto had donned her people‘s traditional armor, light, gold plated scale armor. Next to the Hylians and Labrynnians were the Gerudo, with Naboru at the front. I even recognized some of Cassandra‘s daughters among them. Once everyone was gathered, Zelda lifted her voice. „My people, my friends and allies, today is the day we take back our homes. We all suffered loss at the hands of Ganondorf. No more! He will pay for his crimes, and we will make his tower of obsidian crumble around him. We are all here because we do not fear death, and at this point, we gave naught to lose anymore, but everything to gain.“ She gestured towards Link. „See the Hero of Time, bearing the Sword of Evil‘s Bane! It is our duty to pave his way to Ganondorf, so that he may free us all.“ She drew her rapier and held it aloft, and Link followed her example with the Master Sword. „To victory!“ Everyone rasied their weapons and repeated „To victory!“ loud enough that the chorus must have rang up to the castle.

We fought our way to the city, killing the monsters that now infested it. Redead. The sight of them made me shiver, and I couldn‘t help but wonder how many of them had once been people I knew. Were my parents among them? I shook off the thought. I couldn‘t get scared right now. We made our way to the castle, mowing down all of the monsters in our path. Link slipped through the skirmishes, up to the throne room, and I followed him, Zelda close behind me. This was all between the four of us.

The roar of battle had become a murmur by the time we entered the huge throne room and were met by Ganondorf… with Gareth sitting on the armrest of the throne. „Ganondorf, your reign of evil ends here“, Link said, brandishing the Master Sword and approaching his hated foe. Just in that moment, Ganondorf snatched Gareth and held him to his chest. „Father?“, Gareth yelped and tried to free himself, but Ganondorf was far too strong. „I wouldn‘t do that if I were you, Hero“, the Gerudo smirked. „Would be a shame if something were to happen to your precious son.“ „Using a small child as a meatshield? That‘s low, even for you“, I spat. Ganondorf didn‘t even look at me. Instead, his eyes wandered to the Master Sword. „Is that all the Goddesses have to offer? A has-been hero, a failure of a princess and a puppet that won‘t stay down?“ „Father! Father! I don‘t understand!“, Gareth whimpered. „Please, Father, it hurts.“ „Quiet. I put up with your brattiness long enough. Time for you to fulfil your purpose.“ Ganondorf tightened his grip on Gareth, and I was about to lurch forward. Zelda yanked me back. „Don‘t!“ Ganondorf laughed his deep, guttural laugh. „So helpless, just because I am holding this little brat hostage.“ I was close to tears. No, I couldn‘t let him hurt Gareth. „Gareth! Gareth, Mommy and Daddy love you! We love you so so much.“ Now Gareth‘s eyes filled with tears as well. „Mommy…?“ And it was at this point that he seemed to understand. „Mommy, Daddy, I love you too.“ It was like an echo, faint at first, then clearer in my mind. Love is to be each other‘s Power, Courage and Wisdom, and thus, in love, the Goddesses are among us. The Master Sword began to glow, and Ganondorf‘s eyes widened. „No! Impossible! I destroyed the Sacred Realm! The Triforce is mine!“ He cast Gareth aside, and I could only watch in horror as my son crashed against the wall and slid to the ground. Unconcious or dead? The throne room dissolved around us, and another wave of monsters rushed towards us. Zelda grabbed my arm. „Come on, we have to keep the monsters away from Link, so he can take on Ganondorf!“

I tried to concentrate on fighting, but I couldn‘t help but throw glances over my shoulder to make sure Link didn‘t need any help. And Gareth… Oh please, Goddesses, let Gareth be alive. Link fought bravely, and finally, light filled the sky and with a long, raging scream, Ganondorf collapsed to the ground. The monsters around us either dropped dead or turned and fled, and I rushed to Link. But instead of hugging him, I ran past him to where Gareth was sprawled out on the ground. There was a thin trail of blood going down his face, and as I cupped his cheeks, his eyes fluttered open. He had dark blue eyes, like his father. „Mommy… I don‘t want to be a prince anymore.“ I sobbed. „That‘s okay, sweetie. You don‘t have to be a prince if you don‘t want to.“ „You and Daddy can make everything right again. Right?“ I nodded, tears running down my face. „Yes, sweetie. That‘s why we‘re here.“ „It‘s going to be difficult“, Zelda said as she approached us and crouched down next to me. „I do have Ganondorf‘s fragment of the Triforce now, but a piece seems to be missing.“ „I have it“, Cassandra‘s voice said from behind us. In her hand, she held a small red crystal, the very crystal that had been embedded into her chest before. Zelda took the shard and gave Cassandra a grateful smile. „You have more than made up for your deeds, Cassandra.“ „I really haven‘t“, Cassandra replied. „There‘s no absolution for the destruction my carelessness has caused.“ Gareth smiled at me, but it was a painful smile. „It‘s okay, Mommy. You can go. Make everything right again.“ I kissed his forehead. „I promise.“ Zelda reunited the crystal with the rest of the Triforce, and opened a timeportal with it. Through it, I could see the scene of Ganondorf cornering her and Link in his old fortress, shortly after he sent me forward in time, but it was like I was standing behind Ganondorf. Link took the Master Sword. „Let‘s go.“ Together, we charged through the portal, sword pointing at Ganondorf‘s back.

It pierced it heart from behind, and before either Link or Zelda could react, the future Link and the Master Sword dissolved as their timeline was erased. Ganondorf fell dead, and I looked up at my husband and the princess with a bewildered look. „Rebecca!“ Zelda called out and ran up to me to hug me. „But Ganondorf just...“ „It‘s a long story“, I told her. „And you will learn of it soon enough through your Triforce of Wisdom. What‘s important right now is that Ganondorf is dead.“ I looked at the Gerudo‘s body and softly sighed. Finally. Finally it was over.

Chapter 35: A Trial of Friendship

 I was walking through the forest, watching the sun send it‘s beams through the leaves of the trees. It was warm, and comfortable. Judging by that, it must have been late spring or early summer. Taking a deep breath, I walked over to a bush in full bloom, plucking a few flowers and weaving them into a flowercrown. Maybe I could make Link wear it once I rejoined him. Then I heard a giggle from beyond the trees in front of me. Curious, I stepped forth, only to find Link sitting at the edge of a small pond, watching a very naked Jenna dance around in the water. I dropped the crown, and all I managed to produce was a long, tormented wail.

„Rebecca?! Rebecca, wake up!“ I woke with a start, only to find Jenna and Link crouching next to me. Link grabbed my shoulders and pulled me into his arms. „We woke up from you crying and feared that we had been attacked!“ „I… I‘m sorry. I just had a nightmare.“ I wrapped my arms around his shoulders. Jenna averted her eyes. „We have to get going“, she said after a few seconds. Link let go of me, but still helped me get to my feet. „We should already be close to the border of Hyrule.“ „But we haven‘t seen any sign of the shard yet!“, Jenna said. I looked at around… and then at my companions. „I… I think we did. We just didn‘t know.“ „What do you mean?“, Link inquired. „The illusion we saw yesterday. Jenna‘s perfect reality? Maybe that was it.“ Link crossed his arms in front of his chest. „That would require Ganondorf to know that we would be travelling with Jenna.“ „Maybe it wasn‘t directed at Jenna, per se. Maybe it just showed the perfect reality of the first person to look at it. And that just happened to be Jenna. I mean, thus far, all of the traps Ganondorf laid out for us were designed to somehow mess with out minds. And who knows what this fake Link would have told us if we had stayed to listen.“ Jenna stared at me blankly, then looked away again. „So I will be able to see him again?“ I sighed. „Yes, but we need to be careful. VERY careful.“

We retraced our steps back to the farmhouse, and while we walked, Jenna asked:„So what was that nightmare about?“ I bit my lip. „It was… it was nothing. Say, Jenna… do you think we could really be friends, you and I?“ She was quiet for a moment, but her hand was tensing up around mine. „It would be difficult.“ She looked at Link, who was still walking ahead of us, and continued in a low voice. „I still love your husband, after all.“ I lightly squeezed her hand back. „No hard feelings about that. You‘re far from the only one. I‘ve gotten used to it.“ More or less, I added mentally, still trying to forget the image from my dream of Link watching Jenna bathe.

Once we reached the farmhouse again, the other Link came running up to us, grabbing Jenna and pulling her away from Link and me. „Oh Jenna, my love! I am so happy that you returned to me!“ Jenna tensed up in his embrace, her hands tightened into fists. „Are you really my Link?“ „Of course I am, my beloved!“ He covered her face with kisses, and as he did so, the children came running out of the house again, screaming „Mommy Mommy!“ at the top of their lungs. I continued to hold onto Link and just watched the scene unfold. Jenna in the arms of a copy of my husband, and their children around them. There was something strangely peaceful about it. Link lightly squeezed my hand. „That‘s not me“, he assured me. „I‘m here and I love you.“ I sighed softly. „I know. I just thought that it‘s so cruel that we can‘t let Jenna have that kind of happiness.“ „Hmhm...“ Then he pulled me past the loving family. „Come on. We should search the house while the illusions are still distracted.“

The house was nicely furnished, with a lot of decorative cushions and elaborate carvings in every wooden surface. Link and I split up, hoping that we wouldn‘t get lost. He went up the stairs while I searched the downstairs area for any sign of the shard. While I did so, I always looked out of the window to see if Jenna was still keeping the other Link occupied. My heart grew heavy when I saw her like this. She deserved this kind of happiness… but how could she get it if I was married to the man she loved? For the probably millionth time that annoying little voice in my head told me that everyone would be happier if I had never met Link. Everyone but me that is. But I just had to be selfish and put my happiness over the happiness of everyone else… I shook my head and continued my search, going through chests and drawers and even an ice box that seemed to just be cold without anything keeping it that way. No luck. And while I rushed past the entrance door to check around the fireplace, I overheard the fake Link say: „You do not need any friends, my darling. In fact, they are probably just using you. And what will happen if you continue helping them? They are going to take you away from me.“ „But Link… my love… They are...“ „And that shadow bearing my face“, the other Link continued. „You love him, because he looks like me, right? What am I supposed to think about this, Jenna? That you just run after every man who looks even a bit like me? If you truly loved me… the real me, you would get rid of this imposter and his little wife. And then you and I could be together forever, and live our life here, with our darling children. For you and I, we belong together. We complete each other.“ I rushed on, hoping that Jenna wouldn‘t fall for it. Either that, or Link and I would have to snap her back into reality later. But right now, I needed to focus on finding the shard… A few seconds later, Link came rushing down the stairs, a sharp, v-shaped piece of metal in his hands. The tip of the Master Sword. „Got it! And now let‘s get out of here!“

We left the house and were faced with Jenna, standing next to her Link, who was regarding us with naught but coldness in his unnaturally blue eyes. „There they are, Jenna. Now show me that you love me and that you will not stand for some imposter acting as me.“ Jenna was shaking so badly she almost dropped her weapons, her eyes darting from her Link to the real one and back. And then she looked at me. I returned her gaze calmly, and then I said: „Do you really want to spend the rest of your days in an illusion, Jenna? Live without friends, bound to this place?“ „Do not listen to her, Jenna!“, the fake Link hissed. „She would try and seduce me, given the chance! Just look at this harlot! How can you call her a friend when she takes everything you wished for for herself and won‘t let you have any happiness?!“ Jenna‘s hands tightened around her phoenix circles. „You will not speak of my friend this way.“ The blades of her weapons cut through the fake Link like he was smoke. He dissolved, and so did the children, and the house, until it was just the three of us, standing in a clearing of the woods. Jenna dropped her phoenix circles and ran up to us. To my surprise, she threw her arms around my neck and hugged me close. She was crying into my shoulder. I hugged her back, resting my chin on her shoulder. „I‘m so sorry, Jenna.“ Link came up to us and wrapped his arms around both of us, closing his eyes and sighing. „Come on. We should continue our journey. Do you want to continue travelling with us, Jenna?“ Jenna looked up from my shoulder. „I… I don‘t think so.“ „Are you sure?“, I asked gently. „You‘d be more than welcome to come along.“ She smiled hesitantly. „Thank you, but I really need some time to myself right now.“

Jenna accompanied us to the edge of the woods, where our horses were still waiting. She hugged both Link and me one last time before retreating back into the forest. She had mentioned wanting to help the Kokiri rebuild their village. „Will she be alright?“, I asked as I watched her slender frame disappear between the trees. „She made it to the village once, and I‘m sure she can do it again“, Link said confidently while lifting himself into Epona‘s saddle.

Our next destination was Kakariko, where we suspected the final two shards of the Master Sword. We rode past the ruins of LonLon Ranch again, and the sight made me tear up. Wherever Malon, Talon, Ingo and Matthias were… I hoped they were alright.

We didn‘t know what to expect when we entered Kakariko. But certainly not the entire town on their knees in front of a little, brown haired boy, who was sorrounded by a group of Gerudo… and Cassandra was with him, too. My heart leapt into my throat when I heard him speak:„That‘s right! Kneel before your prince, peasants!“ He looked at a woman kneeling among them. „YOU THERE! You‘re not bowing low enough!“ Then he turned to the tallest and probably eldest of the Gerudo around him. „Dahlia! Show her what happens when someone disrespects me!“ Dahlia… what a strange name for a Gerudo. Said Gerudo shook her head. „Don‘t forget that even as a prince, you‘re still my little brother, Gareth.“ And then she wacked him over the head with the blunt side of her naginata. „I don‘t have to take orders from you.“ „HOW DARE YOU?!“, Gareth exploded. „Father will hear of this! I will have you thrown in the dungeon! ALL OF YOU! MOTHER! Mother, tell them to do as I say!“ My heart broke at the sight. No way my son could have turned out like this. No way. My sweet little baby, the precious bundle of innocence Link and I had brought into this world, would never end up like this. We approached them further, until Gareth turned around. „And who are you?! On your knees, or do you want to spend the rest of your days in a dungeon?!“ I flinched away, and Cassandra came up to Gareth, grabbing his shoulder firmly. „Gareth, that is enough.“ He turned to Cassandra. „But Mother, these peasants won‘t respect me! Aren‘t I the prince of Hyrule? Don‘t I deserve respect?“ Cassandra gave me a somewhat apologetic look, until one of the Gerudo exclaimed:„Aren‘t these two the ones Father had been looking for? Mother, if we bring them to him, he will-“ „You will do no such thing, Adaira“, Cassandra cut in. „From now on, I want you to disregard all of your father‘s orders as much as you can without putting your safety in danger.“ Then she turned to Link and me. „Come. I think we have a lot to discuss. Come, Gareth.“ „But Mother...“ „No ‚but‘.“ She marched towards the inn, sometimes looking back to make sure we were following her. And we did. Hopefully, she could provide some answers now...

Chapter 34: Unwilling Sisters-in-Arms

I awoke the next day feeling a lot better. The Kokiri were alive and well, considering the circumstances. Link was with me, and we had finally gotten a good night‘s sleep. For the first time since this mess began, I felt something akin to optimism. Link was already awake, propping himself up on his elbows. Next to our pile of leaves stood a Kokiri boy, holding two bowls with nuts and fruit in them. „I brought breakfast for both of you.“ „Thank you so much“, Link said kindly. „We really appreciate it.“ „You should thank Jenna. She was up really early gathering food for everyone.“ I looked over to Jenna‘s pile of leaves, where she sat and was having breakfast. Link and I took our bowls, and before I could to anything, Link snatched a piece of apple from my bowl and shoved it into his mouth. „Hey!“, I said with a giggle, but then I noticed his serious expression. In a hushed voice, he told me:„I wasn‘t trying to be cute. This was just a safety measure. To make sure that she didn‘t put anything into your food.“ „And what if she put something into your food?“, I replied, taking a piece of pear from his bowl and eating it before he could stop me. „...hm, tastes fine, and I don‘t feel anything.“ He let out a long, drawn out sigh. „Please leave the food-testing to me in the future. During my travels, I often had to improvise when it came to food, so I have a strong stomach.“ We ate our breakfast, and once the bowls were empty, we set them down. „So… do you think that the shard of the Master Sword could be here in the temple?“, I asked, deeming this a good opportunity to discuss strategy. „I don‘t think so“, he replied. „And… there‘s something else bothering me. Don‘t you think things have been too easy thus far?“ „I‘ve mostly just been thankful for that.“ Link took his sword from its scabbard and began examining it for any wear and tear. „We can‘t rely on it going on like that. Cassandra may have promised to make it as easy as possible for us, but there‘s only so much she can do, now that Ganondorf knows what we‘re doing.“ I remained quiet for a moment. „Either way, we have to find the shard of the Master Sword. It has to be somewhere here in the forest.“ „Hmhm….“ Link was still examining and cleaning his sword. „In the forest… Maybe somewhere in the deeper part of the Lost Woods.“ „You think so?“ „I mean, it makes sense, doesn‘t it? Take it to a place that‘s so wide and open it would take forever to search for it. He views his servants as expendable anyway, so he could just have sent one or two of them to hide the shard in the woods, trusting that they would turn into Stalfos if they weren‘t Stalfos already, and let them act as the shard‘s guardians.“ At that point, Jenna got up from her pile of leaves and then walked over to us. „So, what‘s the plan?“ We both gave her an odd look. „Why do you want to know that?“ „Because I will help you, of course. I can fight, and three pairs of eyes see more than two.“ I bit my lower lip, trying to decide whether to welcome or reject her. She was right; we could use the help. Then I turned to my husband. „What do you think?“ „We should accept.“ Jenna‘s face lit up. „Oh, fantastic! You won‘t regret it, I swear! Hold on, I‘ll go grab my phoenix circles!“ „Phoenix circles?“, I muttered as she scrambled away.

When she returned a few minutes later, she was holding the probably gaudiest pair of weapons I had ever seen. They were circular blades, seemingly made of gold and encrusted with shining jewels. „By the Goddesses“, I mumbled, but said nothing else. Instead, I just grabbed my naginata. Link had finished taking care of his sword and sheathed it again. „Alright then. Let‘s go.“

The Kokiri bid us goodbye as we left, wishing us luck and begging us to bring peace back to the forest and then come back safely. Even Mido came up to Link, grabbed his wrist, looked him firmly in the eyes and said:„If you die, I will never forgive you.“ Link gave him a somewhat patronising pat on the head. „Hey, I saved your behind a lot of times already. This one won‘t be any different.“ We climbed down the vine in front of the temple and than made our way east, towards the border of Hyrule, deeper into the forest. Once we left the safe zone around the temple, Link took my hand again. „Hold onto me. Jenna, hold onto Rebecca.“ „But why?“, Jenna complained. „I‘m not some small child that needs her hand held! At least not by Rebecca!“ „Do you want to turn into a Stalfos, Jenna?“, Link asked somewhat aggressively. „Because that‘s how you turn into a Stalfos. Now take my wife‘s hand and stop complaining.“ Jenna pouted, but took my offered hand and followed us. „What if we have to fight?“ „I suppose it‘s okay to let go then“, Link said slowly, as if he had to consider his answer first. „And be careful. The magic of the Lost Woods gets stronger the deeper we get into it. Different realities overlap here. It‘s also where I found the portal to Termina.“ „Other realities?“, I asked. „Yes“, Jenna said in a soft, surprised voice. „Like that one?“ We looked over to where she was pointing, and there stood a huge farmhouse. It kind of reminded me of the main building back on LonLon Ranch. Except this house was bigger and had a white fence around it, with a stable, a barn, a coop and a pen for animals. The door opened, and out came Link. Or rather, something that looked like Link. If I had a rupee for every fake version of my husband I have seen on this journey thus far, I could buy a house like this, I thought dryly. And this one was more than obviously fake. He was even more idealized than the fake Link I had encountered in Ganondorf‘s childhood home. He was taller than my Link, and way more muscular, while still having his soft face. His eyes were so intensely blue that it almost hurt looking at them. Kind of like looking at the sun. And from behind him came four children; the first one a boy that looked like a younger version of him, then a brown-haired girl, then a set of twins, with the boy being blonde and the girl being brunette. And the fake Link was smiling at Jenna. „Jenna, my love! Where have you been? The children have been missing you!“ Jenna was almost in tears. „Oh Link, my love! I knew we would eventually find each other!“ She was about to let go of me, but I grabbed her wrist and yanked her over to me. „Jenna, don‘t be a fool! What you‘re seeing isn‘t your reality! He probably mistakes you for his reality's version of you!“ „But...“, she began. „No ‚but‘! Do you want to be lost forever and turn into a monster?!“ She was trembling, but with a lot of effort, managed to turn away from that fulfilled wish of hers. „Let‘s go.“ Link nodded and ran ahead, and we followed, with the desperate calls of the fake… no, the other Link wailing after us.

We only stopped when we absolutely couldn‘t keep that pace up anymore. We let go of each other; as long as we weren‘t on the move, there was no danger of getting lost. Link sat down on a fallen tree and Jenna sank to the ground quietly whimpering to herself. I sat down next to her, avoiding eye-contact. „I‘m proud of you, Jenna.“ She looked up with teary eyes. „H-huh?“ „What you did there. Turning away from a reality where all your dreams have come true. That must have been incredibly hard. But you did it, and I commend you for it.“ She sniffled. „Well.. you were right. That Link had his own Jenna, one that was probably pretty different from who I am, and just shared my face.“ She wiped her tears away with her sleeves. „Do you think that‘s what my children with Link would have looked like?“ I shrugged. „I guess. They looked similar enough to both of you.“ She was quiet for a moment, before proceeding:„Link Jr., Elyesia, Roan and Reena.“ „Huh?“ „That‘s what I would have named them.“ I took a deep breath. And then smiled at her. „...those are good names.“ Now she met my gaze. „I never asked what your son‘s name is.“ „Gareth. We… we named him Gareth.“ She chuckled, though still sounding choked. „...that‘s a good name, too.“ It was strange how watching her face her wishes and reject them in favor of the greater good had made me sympathetic towards her. For the first time since I met her, I actually felt fond of Jenna. Link had watched the exchange wordlessly, but now he got up. „We still have some daylight left. Let‘s continue.“

We continued onward, fighting our fair share of monsters on the way. Most of them being Dekus and Dekuranhas, but also stumbling upon one Moblin on the way. Gaudy as they were, Jenna absolutely knew how to use her phoenix circles effectively, and with her the help of her skills, Link‘s swordsmanship and my somewhat shaky abilities with the naginata, we made out way towards a big tree that seemed to be a good spot to set up camp. Link and I gathered up some dry wood, which Jenna then lit on fire with the help of a pair of flintstones she had been carrying with her. As we sat around the campfire, Jenna looked up at me an gave me a somewhat sly grin. „Soooo… are you two planning to have any more children?“ I looked over at Link, but he was already asleep, so I had to answer. „Why does it always come down to kids with you?“, I asked somewhat exasperated, but it was a fond kind of exasperation. „I don‘t know. Gareth wasn‘t exactly planned, but in the future, when things have gotten better, sure.“ „And?“ „And what?“ „How many? And do you already have names in mind for them?“ I stared into the flames until my eyes hurt. „We wanted to name a girl Carys. But beyond that… I‘ve honestly never thought about it. I usually stick to the saying ‚We cross that bridge when we get to it‘.“ „Aw, that‘s no fun.“ „Do you have the names of all of your future children planned out? I mean, beyond the four you have already told me?“ She grinned. „Of course! I have tons of names… too bad I lost my wagon to a group of Ganondorf‘s goons. I had a whole book with name ideas.“ „A whole book?“, I asked incredulously. „Just how many children do you plan to have?“ „As many as the Goddesses will give me.“ I thought about it some more. Thought about all of the romance novels I had read as a girl, searching in my memories for names I would like my children to have. „Perhaps Aiden for another boy… and Inessa for another girl“, I finally said. „But Link and I will need a bigger house if we want to have more than one child. Our house in the city only has space for one nursery, and I would like each of our children to have a room of their own.“ „Hmmm… yeah, that would be best“, she hummed thoughtfully and then yawned. „We should probably sleep as well. We will need all of our strength tomorrow.“ „True“, I said. „G‘Night, Jenna.“ I rested my head on the bedroll, but before I fell asleep, I opened my eyes one last time. „Oh, and Jenna?“ „Hmhm?“ „Thanks for the breakfast.“

Chapter 33: A small Glimmer of Hope

I awoke with the sensation of small hands touching my upper arms and face, shaking and poking me as if to check if I was still alive. I groaned, and tried to swat the hands away. „She‘s moving! She‘s alive!“ „What about Link?“ „He, too. But they were very tired.“ I opened my eyes, and the first thing I saw was the childlike face of a Kokiri girl. „Oh, she‘s awake!“, the girl exclaimed. „Hello!“ I let out a soft, tired hum and sat up, rubbing the sleepy dust out of my eyes. I wasn‘t quite awake enough to realize what was going on yet. Next to me, Link also stirred awake, though much faster; eyes wide open and staring at the Kokiri sorrounding us. „You‘re all alive“, he said, voice thin with overwhelming joy. „LINK!“, a loud, female voice interrupted us, and a blur swept past me and right to Link. Oh Goddesses… that voice. I knew that voice. „What“, Link said, sounding a bit choked. Probably because Jenna was hugging him so tightly that he couldn‘t breathe. I quietly groaned and turned to the Kokiri girl who had woken me up. If memory served, her name was Fado. „What is she doing here?“ Fado shrugged. „She just came stumbling into the village right before the monsters came. She said she was Link‘s friend.“ Jenna was in tears, sobbing into Link‘s shoulder. „Oh Link, I thought I would never see you again!“ Link was quite obviously uncomfortable. „Uhm… I‘m sorry, but…. Do we know each other?“ Jenna jumped back as if he had just hit her. „What? You don‘t remember me?“ She waved her hands about. „I‘m Jenna! The woman who would have given you many beautiful strong children if you had given her a chance! We met on the road ten years ago!“ Link knit his eyebrows, and then the memory seemed to return to him. „Oh right. We travelled together for a bit before Rebecca and I got married. Goddesses, that was a long time ago.“ Then he cast me a slightly desperate look. I shrugged, kind of at a loss. „What are you doing here, Jenna?“ „Oh, I have been searching all over Hyrule for you. After Ganondorf became king, I thought you might need my help! But I couldn‘t find you. Then I remembered that you mentioned visiting Kokiri village and thought that it was worth a try! So… here I am!“ Her eyes were shining with joy. „Oh to think that after ten years I would get a chance to rekindle our romance!“ „Hold your horses. There was no romance. And there will never be a romance. In case you didn‘t listen: I am married. Quite happily.“ Link gestured over to me, and Jenna followed the gesture. Her smile faded and a sour pout took its place. „I see.“ I surpressed a condescending smirk. No need to be petty. Instead, I adressed Fado again:„Why are you all here? Why didn‘t you go back to the village after the monsters were gone?“ She nervously shuffled her feet. „We thought it would be too dangerous. The Forest Temple has not yet been infested with monsters, so we figured it would be the safest place to hide.“ „Are all of the Kokiri there?“, Link asked. „All except for Mido. He said he wanted to scout out the area, but he hasn‘t returned yet.“ Link got up and dusted himself off. „I‘ll go looking for him then. Rebecca, could you please go into the temple with the Kokiri and make sure everyone is alright?“ „Of course“, I said, though my stomach was in knots over that. I didn‘t want to let him go again. Every time he was out of my sight I felt like he would just disappear again, like he had so many times during our courtship and marriage. But he would probably be more effective in searching for Mido without having to keep an eye on me. „I‘m going with you!“, Jenna insisted, but Link shook his head almost frantically. „No! Uhm… I mean… Rebecca could surely use some help. And besides, I‘m faster when I‘m alone.“ He came over to me and hugged me. While he was doing so, he whispered:„Try not to kill each other while I‘m gone, okay?“ „I‘ll do my best“, I replied and kissed the corner of his mouth.

We could enter the Forest Temple by climbing a thick vine that had been lowered from one of the trees framing the entrance. Jenna and I went first, followed by Fado and the two other Kokiri. The inside of the temple was somewhat similar to the interior of Hyrule Castle, though obviously long abandoned and overgrown. The rest of the Kokiri were gathered in the entrance hall, big empty eyes telling of the trauma they had suffered when the monsters attacked their village. Only few of them looked up as I approached them. Some of them were injured, though only lightly. I only had very little medical knowledge, but I knew how to deal with cuts and bruises. While I treated the children‘s injuries, Jenna was hovering over my shoulder, pointedly „correcting“ everything I did and loudly wondering why Link would ever marry someone as clumsy as me. I huffed and straightened my back. „Hah! I bet Link will soon leave you and that hunched back of yours-“ „Will you shut up already?“, I snapped at her. „I don‘t know if you can look that far past yourself, but these children are scared and injured. How about you actually do something to help them instead of pestering me?!“ A small hand tugged at my shirt, and I immediately crouched down to be on eye-level with the little Kokiri who had tried to get my attention that way. „Yes, dear?“ „Are you and Link here to save us?“, he asked. Even for a Kokiri, this boy was tiny, and probably an actual child even by Kokiri standards. „We will do our very best. Kokiri Forest is still Link‘s home, after all.“ The boy was shaking, but he managed to give me a small smile. „Thank you. When they came… and killed the Great Deku Tree… we were all so scared. But with Link being here now, we all know that things will get better.“ „We will put an end to all of this, I promise“, I replied. „Link is a hero, after all.“ I couldn‘t help myself… this little boy reminded me of Gareth. I put my hand on my stomach. Naboru had said that Ganondorf had corrupted him… maybe I would even have to face my own son during this journey. Would he recognize me? What would I do? Would I even have a choice? I tried to swallow the lump in my throat and smiled at the boy. „How old are you?“ „We Kokiri don‘t count the years.“ „I see.“ I sighed. „I have a little son, who would be about as old as you look like now.“ The boy perked up. „Really? I hope your son is alright then.“ „So do I“, I mumbled. The Kokiri scampered off, and I met Jenna‘s slightly horrified gaze when I straightened my back again. „What?“, I asked, slightly annoyed that she was still stuck to my heels instead of making herself useful. „You actually have a child with Link?!“ She seemed absolutely appalled by that. „Yes. What of it? You want to steal my child on top of constantly harrassing my husband?“ I was absolutely done with her at this point. She stomped her foot like a petulant child. „This is not fair! Why should you have everything I want?! You have the best, strongest husband and he gives you children! And what did he give me? The cold shoulder!“ I took a deep, exasperated breath, not wanting to freak out the Kokiri by losing my composure even more than I already had. „Then maybe you should learn that the world doesn‘t owe you these things.“ „Why wouldn‘t it?! After all I‘ve been through, I should at least get...“ „You won‘t get anything unless you have a serious change in attitude.“ Great, now I was talking like I was her mother. I sighed and rubbed my eyes. I was still tired from going without sleep for two days. Fado came up me. „We made you a bed over there.“ I smiled at her. „Thank you so much, Fado. That means a lot. Just let me take care of the rest of the Kokiri first.“

I spent two more hours taking care of frightened and injured Kokiri, cleaning out scratches and cooling bruises, before retiring to the pile of leaves that was my bed. But I couldn‘t fall asleep quite yet. Link wasn‘t back yet. Had something happened, either to Link or to Mido? I hoped not. On a similar pile of leaves near me, Jenna stirred, appearantly still just as awake as I was. Then, the gate to the temple opened and I heard the familiar sound of Link‘s boots approaching, accompanied by a set of smaller feet probably belonging to Mido. They were talking to each other, but I didn‘t understand what they were saying, as they were whispering. A few seconds later, Link approached me, the soft light of Navi guiding him. „I‘m back“, he whispered. I stretched out my arms, and he lowered himself onto the pile of leaves into my embrace. „Are you two alright?“, I asked softly. „Yes… Mido was hiding in a tree after being chased up there by some monsters. He didn‘t get hurt, and the monsters were so occupied with patroulling around the tree that they didn‘t even notice me until it was too late for them.“ I breathed a sigh of relief, and with Link back in my arms and all of the Kokiri safe and sound, I finally managed to fall asleep.

Chapter 32: Return to Kokiri Forest

I was only familiar with the kind of magic these witches used from Link‘s stories. But at least through that I knew how to tell when they prepared a spell and how to dodge it when it came. Link and I did just that, and I sincerely hoped that he would come up with a way to beat them without the mirror shield. So all we could do was dodge their spells to the best of our ability. A bright light flashed through the room, and a young woman‘s voice yelled:„Stop!“ On the other end of the room, behind the altar where the piece of the Master Sword had been, stood a woman about my age, with dark brown hair and green eyes. She was dressed in an elaborate, dark red gown with golden embroidery, and red gem was embedded into the skin right on her chest. She took a look around and stepped forth, looking at the two witches. „Ganondorf has summoned you.“ „And we will follow his command, but we have to deal with these meddling fools first!“, Koume screeched. „He said that you are to seek him out immediately“, the woman replied, her voice stern and commanding. „I wouldn‘t keep him waiting if I were you. Let me deal with the intruders instead.“ Kotake scoffed. „You may be Ganondorf‘s wife, but that does not mean that you can order us around, Cassandra(4)!“ Cassandra smirked. „We will see about that. Last time I checked, I was the Queen by his side, not you. Now move along.“ The witches grumbled to themselves, but disappeared as the woman named Cassandra had ordered them. Once the two crones were gone, she turned her attention to us, and her entire demeanor changed. Her confidence melted away, and her eyes became pleading. „Please… you must stop him.“ Link and I exchanged a quick look. „What?“ She came a bit closer. „You must stop Ganondorf.“ She wiped her eyes with her sleeve. „I love him, but he has gone too far. The Zora… I never wanted any of this to happen. Had I known it would get this bad, I would have never… never...“ Her voice became choked, but she gathered herself and continued:„I will let you out of this place; after all, you have what you wanted.“ She pointed at the glowing platform that had brought her down into this room. „This platform will take you out of here. But many of the Gerudo are still under the influence of the witches, so you mustn‘t linger in the valley for too long.“ She swallowed. „I will keep Ganondorf distracted as much as I can. Now go!“ We ran to the platform, and the last thing we saw as it lifted us out of the room was Cassandra breaking down in tears.

Once outside again, we snuck through the fortress to the stables, where we got our horses and bolted out of the valley, as fast as Epona and Glory could carry us.

When we felt it was safe enough to slow down, I looked over to Link to find him deep in thought. I reached for his hand. „Everything alright, dear?“ „I‘m just thinking about what that woman said. Do you think she was the one who broke Ganondorf‘s seal?“ „How would she do that?“ „I don‘t know.“ He took a deep breath. „We should probably go to Kokiri Forest next. It‘s the closest.“ He clenched his fists. „I hope the Kokiri are all safe. We… They aren‘t exactly prepared for battle. Why would they? Kokiri Village is a peaceful place.“ He made Epona go faster, and Glory and I followed suit, worried about the state the forest would be in.

It was eerily quiet as we approached the seam of the forest. Even Saria‘s song had become silent. Link took my hand again as he led me through the short stretch of the Lost Woods until we reached Kokiri Forest. While the atmosphere did change and it became easier to breathe once more, it wasn‘t the clear and lively air I remembered from my first visit. It was as if a darkness was draped across the small village, which seemed to be completely deserted. Link‘s eyes widened, and before I could stop him, he dashed off, calling the names of all of the Kokiri, hoping for an answer. „Mido! Fado! Everyone, it‘s me!“ Silence was his only answer. I followed him to the meadow where the Great Deku Tree stood. But all we found was its predecessor, still dead and silent, and the massive stump of a felled tree, drenched in dark-red resin. It almost looked like the tree had been bleeding. Link sank to his knees, breathing heavily. „They… cut down… the Great Deku Tree...“ His scream of rage and agony echoed through the forest. „THEY CUT DOWN THE GREAT DEKU TREE!“ There were no words in our language or another that could consoled him. I knew as much. So I just stood by and let him scream. But after he had stopped, I approached him and put my hands on his shoulders. „We will make Ganondorf and his goons pay for this.“ He got up, his complete body tense. „Yes, we will. Come now. We have work to do.“

We returned to the village, and Link lead me to a clearing in the trees. „This is the threshold between Kokiri Forest and the Lost Woods. From here on out, you must make sure to never let go of my hand. Understood?“ I nodded. „Alright.“

That short bit of Lost Woods at the entrance to Kokiri Forest had been nothing in comparison to what lay ahead. The deeper we went into the woods, the thicker and harder to breathe the air became. I held onto Link, even tough he was walking so fast that I was stumbling frequently. „Link, wait… I‘m so tired… please, just give me a moment to rest...“ He turned to me. „Don‘t worry, we‘ll reach the Sacred Meadow soon. We can set up camp there.“ I took a deep breath, nodded, and continued following him through the labyrinth that was the Lost Woods.

We soon arrived at a literal labyrinth. Link turned to me. „This place is crawling with monsters. But if we could manage to climb one of the walls, we could just walk over them and they won‘t even notice.“ Link gave me a leg-up and I pulled him up after me, just like we did it in the Water Temple. We had to jump across a few gaps, for which Link had to lift me into his arms again, but in the end, we made it to the place Link had called the Sacred Meadow. It was a small, enclosed space in front of the entrance to what must have been the Forest Temple. Link sighed. „At least this place is still as calm as ever. Could you please gather some of the dry wood around here, so I can make a fire?“ „Of course“, I said.

Once the fire was lit, Link and I just sat in front of the fire, each of us occupied with our own thoughts. Then he looked up. „I didn‘t really get around to saying this until now, but… I‘m sorry for picking a fight with you back then.“ „Picking a fight with me..? What are you talking about?“ „Well… you know. Right before Ganondorf caught me. After the vigil for the victims of the war.“ „Wait, so that‘s when he caught you? I had assumed that you never left his fortress after confronting him. Link shook his head. „No. I was just returning from my discussion with Zelda, and as soon as I was out of view of the guards at the gate, something pounced on me. The next thing I remember is waking up chained to the wall in Ganondorf‘s fortress.“ „You don‘t really need to apologize for that anymore. Truth be told, I‘m surprised you even remember it.“ „Probably because I felt so bad about it.“ He shuffled over to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulder. „And in the past ten years, I couldn‘t let go of the thought that the last thing I said to you was ‚Only Zelda would really understand me‘.“ I snuggled up to him. „That wasn‘t really the last thing you said to me though.“ I still remembered the truly last thing he said to me before I was sent forward in time… him muttering my name. I closed my eyes and began to drift off into a light slumber, haunted by the images of trees bleeding onto the graves of small children...

(4): Cassandra was the main character of the first fanfiction I ever wrote, and my TLoZ self insert. She's a woman from our world who ended up being Ganondorf's wife.