Saving A Lost Kingdom

Zelda

I was surrounded in darkness when a light in the distance appeared. I started to walk towards it and with every step I took, the light became brighter. I raised my hand to block the intense light but it didn't really work. Once I was within a few steps of the light's origin, I could hear a voice. It sounded so familiar. Then the voice suddenly stopped and my eyes slowly began to open. I looked around to take in my environment. Is this Impa's house? I could feel someone's head on my hand. I looked down to see someone with long blonde hair and a blue tunic with the Master Sword sitting next to him. I placed my free hand on top of his head. Not even a few seconds later, Links' head jolted up and he looked at me with relief. He didn't have to say a word for me to figure out that he was overjoyed to see me. I sat up then jokingly said, "Took you long enough." Link just scoffed and rolled his eyes. Suddenly, a girl with red hair arrived at the top of the stairs, gave a good look at me, then ran back down the stairs. Before I could even ask any questions, the girl returned with Impa. "Zelda! Thank Hylia, you're awake!" Impa said as she began to run towards me and to hug me. I hugged her back. "I missed you so much Impa! I also have a lot of questions." I paused as I thought of what I should ask her first, "How long was I in a coma for?" Impa and Link turned to look at each other. They seem hesitant. That's not a good sign. Link seemed cautious as he spoke up. "A year.... It's been a little over a year, your highness." As I looked at him, I felt extremely guilty and concerned. Does he really feel so guilty that he can't even call me by name anymore? If he's felt like this ever since I went into a coma, then I'm the one who should be feeling guilty. Afterall, it was my idea to go to the Korok Forest to begin with. A million questions ran through my mind. Then the red-haired girl spoke, "Link we should probably let her rest for the night." I turned my head to look out the window and noticed the sun was setting. I turned my head back towards Link as he nodded, stood up, patted my shoulder, then left the room with the girl. "So, who's that?" I asked Impa once the coast was clear. "I don't know. I never got her name. Although, her and Link seem to have a close relationship." "Yeah. They seem close." I replied in a depressive tone, almost implying that I was upset that Link had met another person.

The next morning I woke up with one mission: find out who the red-haired girl was and why she's so close with Link. I went downstairs and exited Impa's house. In the distance, I saw Link and the girl exiting the inn. A small wave of jealousy came over me when I saw that she had said something to him that made him smile. I walked up to them but still kept a few feet between us. I turned to look at Link as he instinctively kneeled out of respect for my royal title. "Link, you don't have to do that, it's fine. Also, can I borrow you for a little bit?" He stood up and just nodded in response. As I began to walk away, he walked behind me but never came up next to me. I led him just outside of the village and to a nearby hill. When I got to the top, I sat down. Link came up behind me but remained standing. I patted the grass next to me, signaling him to sit. He removed the Master Sword and its sheath from his back, sat down, and placed it in his lap but never took his hands off it. Does he ever give himself a break? I let several minutes of silence go by as I just observed him. He couldn't even look at me. I looked into the distance as I spoke. "I never got the chance to thank you for bringing me back." Then I turned back towards him again and placed my hand on his. "Thank you." He slowly pulled his hand away causing me to become confused. "Link, did something happen while I was away?" His eyes moved from the sword and into the distance. He wasn't even giving me a nonverbal response. I tried again and looked at him with growing concern. "Link?" As I moved my hand over to him in an attempt to shake him, he gently stopped my hand. Then he finally spoke, "Marin". He hesitated for a moment then turned to look me in the eye. "Her name is Marin." I figured that he was referring to the red-haired girl. There were several questions I wanted to ask him about her but I didn't want to seem invasive and creepy. Maybe if I ask him an open-ended question, he'll fill in the blanks. "Who is she?" I could tell that he was thinking carefully about how to answer.