The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule's Hope

Chapter 51: A New Form of Evil, Part 1

After returning to Hateno Village, Rhiannon crashed into her bed and slept all day. She felt fatigued, even after sleeping at Korok Forest. No one dared to bother the slumbering princess; she had been so quiet, for a second Dori had thought she was dead and Zya thought she was hibernating. It was around 4 am the next morning when Rhiannon woke up feeling fresh as a silent princess. Feeling hungry, she went outside and grabbed some apples from the apple tree near the pond. Hateno Village was quiet as everyone slept. Rhiannon changed out of the Starlight Armor and reached for her old workout clothes from a chest that Dori had brought from Kakariko Village. She had not worn those clothes in 25 years yet they still fit her: the top and jacket slipped on effortlessly, the leggings gave her a little bit of trouble, and her special-made workout sneakers were ever-so-gently tighter than she remembered. Nevertheless, Rhiannon picked up her once-again long hair into a ponytail and went outside for a jog around Hateno Village and towards Hateno Beach, taking in the morning air. For the first time since resurrecting, she felt alive. She jogged from one edge of Hateno Beach to the other but did not dare to go to the base of Mount Lanayru, so she jogged back to Hateno Village and towards the lab. Around 5 am, she decided that jogging was not enough. Outside near the pond, Rhiannon began doing push-ups, sit-ups, and every exercise she could think of. Her body felt renewed as she felt every muscle in her body stretching and every bone gently cracking. As the sun began to rise in the sky, she noticed her shadow casting on the house's wall so she decided to shadow box. Feeling unsatisfied, Rhiannon walked to the shed in the back and looked for an empty sack. Once she found one, she walked back down to Hateno Beach and collected as much sand as she could. When she returned, the village was starting to slowly wake up. The first few villagers to wake up witnessed as the princess walked back to her house; it was already 6 am. Rhiannon could hear the Cuccoos crowing in the distance. At one point, Rhiannon noticed Dexter, her little friend, walking out of his house and up the hill towards the schoolhouse. She tried to wave hello at him but he looked away, almost afraid to meet her gaze. Confused (and slightly upset), Rhiannon continued walking to the house, walking in silently and heading to the basement. Once there, she used a rope she found lying nearby to tie the sack of sand to the ceiling. After a few warm-ups, she began boxing and kicking it. Her grunting and punches woke Zelda up. She decided to investigate where the noises came from. She gasped softly when she saw Rhiannon with the sand sack. "Good morning, Rhiannon!" Zelda exclaimed. "Huh?" Rhiannon turned around, stopping the sack from hitting her in the face, "Oh, good morning, mother."

"I see you are up early today," Zelda said. "Yeah," Rhiannon nodded, returning to her boxing position, "I've been up for quite a while. Since around 4 am, more or less. I can't tell time anymore without the Sheikah Slate."

"What if I told you there is another Sheikah Slate?" Zelda suggested. Rhiannon stopped the sack one more time. "Wait, are you serious?" she asked, "Are you talking about Dori's replica?"

"No," Zelda giggled, "take a break and come with me. I have something to show you."

She led Rhiannon out of the house and to the back, where she spotted a well. "Has that well always been here?" Rhiannon gasped. "This well contains my secret study room," Zelda answered, "when Hyrule Castle was under reconstruction and I moved in with your father, I added this room behind his back."

Carefully, both princesses climbed down an old wooden ladder. "Your father went back to his old pre-Calamity ways of always following me around," Zelda continued, "I needed some time alone, and alas, I decided to commission this room. At the same time, it seems, your father decided to build his secret weapon stash."

"Wow!" Rhiannon gasped–she glanced at the spacious cave with a small pond. She could see glowing mushrooms and glowing fish she had never seen before. "Ah, here it is!" Zelda said as she walked over to her old desk, "I forgot I left it here! Thank goodness I did not leave it at Hyrule Castle! Ta-da!"