Hero by Heart

Chapter 15

As soon as Zelda had secured her and Link a bed at the inn, she dropped her gear on hers. The two beds were way too close to each other for her liking, but it was only for the nights, and hopefully not for long.
     She walked back out into the Domain and looked around at the beautiful structure. Whoever had made this place was seriously talented.
     The statue of Mipha in the center of everything caught her eye again, as it had on her way to the throne room.
     It still hurt to think of her, of the kind heart and sweet smile that fitted her so well. The Zora had not exactly been her best friend, but she did admire her unprejudiced kindness and willingness to help others.
     The Zora princess had been unlike anyone else, always gentle and soft-spoken, but with a strong spirit. Her healing power had fit her perfectly.
     Zelda could now admit to herself that she had been jealous of her more than once. Not only did Mipha have a power she actually knew how to control, but it was preciously useful too. The amount of times Zelda had seen her work it were endless.
     She had been jealous of her automatic connection to Link too. Their bond had been so natural, so deep, and had seemed so effortless. Zelda had never fully understood it and doubted she would ever learn.
     She remembered watching the two of them interact with a tight feeling in her chest, wishing she could have something like that. Whenever Link needed someone to talk to, or whenever he got injured, his first choice would always be Mipha. She had been his lifelong friend, whereas Zelda had never treated him quite like he deserved. She had kept him at a distance for so long she hadn't really known how to allow him in.
     Zelda wandered up the path on her right, deep in thought. It was a gentle winding slope with water flowing down it, reaching just above her ankles.
     She thought of how confused she had always felt around the Zora princess. On one hand she had really liked her, with her warm personality and strong sense of duty, but on the other hand she hated her connection to Link.
     He was her appointed knight, her companion everywhere they went, and yet his relationship with Mipha was often better than theirs.
With her mind elsewhere, her feet led her over the path, until she stumbled upon a Zora, standing on a circular platform and looking out over the world below.
She had wanted to meet other Zora, to get to know the people, which was why she had gone for this walk. Now that she found someone, though, it left her feeling a little anxious.
She was used to feeling like she was an important person whenever she arrived somewhere, with everybody dropping their business to attend to her needs. But after one hundred years of absence it seemed that most people had forgotten about her.
She no longer turned heads everywhere she went, but instead had to watch Link receive all the attention and admiration, while she disappeared to the background.
She didn't mind the lack of attention, not at all. She felt like she could finally go her own way, without having to explain her actions to everyone. She did, however, feel rather awkward when meeting new people. It felt weird to have to introduce herself as the princess, as if she was boasting about her status or something.
     Although it hardly felt like something to boast about, with the kingdom in the state it was in.
Now, wherever they went, everybody seemed to know Link personally. They all greeted him with great enthusiasm and thanked him for everything he had done. She did think he deserved the reward and gratitude, but it took some getting used to.
     Hardly anyone even seemed to notice her anymore.
Arriving here, in the Domain, it had been the first time she was the first to be greeted. Sidon and his father remembered their etiquette and had welcomed her, long before addressing Link.
It was how it should be according to the old days, which reassured her. This was what she knew, what she was comfortable with. Every time she got overshadowed by Link's presence she felt completely out of her element, unsure of what to do. Their roles had reversed completely.
     Was this what he had always felt like?
She doubted it. He used to be silent and content with his role in the background. He had already struggled enough with his destiny and the burden it put on him, without standing in the spotlight while doing so. She knew he had never felt like he was missing out and gladly let her take the attention.
Losing his memory seemed to have changed this, though. He seemed more relaxed when talking to people, with no trace of awkwardness or discomfort. He talked to them animatedly and laughed easily, so unlike his past self.
Zelda had to admit she liked to watch him interact now, secretly proud of his development. He finally seemed free of his burden and could truly be himself, showing the best parts of him.
She had known it was there, but had only discovered it long after they met. It had taken her a long time to get him to open up, but when he finally did she found there was so much depth and beauty in his personality.
     Having to rediscover himself had taken away some of his reservations, whereas being locked up for a century had left her unfamiliar to the world and its ways, to the people and to the surroundings. She now was the quiet one, trying to adjust to this new world, while Link was out there doing most of the talking.
It was why she wanted to meet people without him. She wanted to see for herself that she was still able to make a connection, to open up to people.
She wanted to be the first one they saw and talked to, without anyone else catching their attention. Would she even be interesting enough for others?
     As she stepped onto the small plateau she glanced at the male Zora standing there, dark scales covering his body. He wore plates of finely carved armor and held a typical Zora Spear.
     As she approached he looked up at the sound of her splashing footsteps. A smile appeared on his face as he lifted his spear in greeting, nodding his head once. 'Princess Zelda! It is great to see you.'
Zelda smiled back and raised her own hand in greeting. 'Hello.' She cocked her head, trying to remember whether she knew him.
His smile didn't waver as he seemed to realize she didn't recognize him. 'I'm Bazz. We have met before, over one hundred years ago. I was little more than a kid back then, so I don't blame you for not remembering me. You, on the other hand, have not changed at all.' The Zora raised his hand for her to shake and bowed deeply. His big grin diminished the effect a little, but it still amused Zelda.
'If you don't mind me asking,' she started, 'how exactly have we met before? Maybe I can recall some details if you help me a bit.'
The Zora nodded and returned to look out over the Domain. 'I am a good friend of Prince Sidon. When we were young we always played together with our friend group.' He glanced over his shoulder at her. 'I don't think you had a lot of attention for the noisy little kids.' He laughed, his joy infectious. 'You occasionally talked to Sidon a little, but we were often around and tried to make you notice us. Very annoying.'
Zelda frowned, vaguely remembering those days she had spent in the Domain. She never really interacted much with the Zora children, only Sidon from time to time, because he was Mipha's younger brother and part of the Royal family.
She did, however, remember he would often run around with about three or four others and cause a lot of commotion. It had sometimes bothered her how loud the children were, but most of the time she could laugh about it.
'You were always so kind to us,' Bazz continued. 'It was no miracle that most boys secretly had a little crush on you.' He winked at her.
Zelda laughed and went to stand beside him, crossing her arms as she watched the world below.
'I remember a day where Rivan said he would ask you out, so innocent and full of confidence.' Bazz grinned. 'We all just laughed at him, because we knew he would never have the guts to do it.'
Zelda tried to remember and slowly pieced together a picture of Sidon with his little band of Zora. Bazz' younger face swam before her eyes, with that same mischievous grin. She now also remembered another little Zora boy, his scales a shade of green.
     She had hardly ever heard him speak, until the day he had come to her with all the dignity he could gather and had asked her to have a playdate with him. Zelda smiled fondly at the memory, impressed with the great courage it must have taken to ask her.
'He did do that, you know,' she said to Bazz, who raised his eyebrows high in disbelief.
'No way!' He exclaimed. 'He kept insisting he had done it, but no one ever believed him. He was always so shy and quiet, we didn't think he would dare.'
Zelda laughed and shook her head. 'No, he did. I felt so bad for refusing him, he was just so sweet.'
'Well, I think we all owe the man an apology,' Bazz chuckled.
'I wonder if he resented me for that,' Zelda added, a frown on her face.
The Zora beside her quickly shook his head. 'No way. He always spoke so highly of you. There was nothing but admiration. He would not hear a single bad word about you, not even after...' His voice faltered for a moment, but he quickly plastered his grin back on his face. 'I wouldn't be surprised if he secretly still has a crush on you, despite the fact that he has a daughter now.'
Zelda laughed again, curious to know this little boy that had now gathered the experiences of an entire lifetime.
'When you disappeared from the kingdom, he was truly devastated, the poor guy,' Bazz said, looking at her sideways to gauge her reaction.
She raised her eyebrows, but her mind was wandering off, back to the day she had left for the castle and to everything she had left behind.
Zelda shook the thoughts from her head and grinned at the Zora. 'I would love to properly talk to him again. Do you know where I could find him?'
Nodding, Bazz raised a hand to point towards the Great Bridge. 'He is often standing guard at the entrance there, alongside his daughter. I think you would have the best chance if you start there.'
Zelda nodded, suddenly linking the guard she had met before to the image of his younger self. How silly that she hadn't realized before. Still, no matter how eager she was to get to know him, she remained where she was. It was nice to talk to Bazz, to bring up old memories. It felt so natural with him, as if she hadn't changed at all.
     It was refreshing.
     For a while she stood there, simply talking to the Zora. They first brought back some of their shared memories, but there weren't that many. They then continued on about the Zora and their way of living.
     Zelda found that not much had changed since she was last there. That wasn't so strange, considering these people lived so long. The same Zora she had known still lived, which was strangely exhilarating.
     Eventually they moved on to the Royal Family of the Zora and how Mipha's death had affected them.
     Zelda felt the usual sadness press down upon her, combined with guilt and pity. She had caused these people so much grief. All because she had not been able to unleash her Sealing Power.
     She learned how Sidon and his father had mourned, retreating from society for a while. Sidon had been the first to make his appearance again, but according to Bazz it had changed him.
     He was no longer the little boy that ran around the Domain. He was now a grown man, prince and heir to the throne. In one swift stroke, he had received an immense amount of responsibility.
     Bazz told her that the young prince had turned away from his friends, that he sought out solitude whenever he could. A light seemed to have gone out in his eyes, replaced by a fierceness to protect his people.
     Zelda felt a sharp pain shoot through her chest at his words. That little boy she had known did not deserve all that sorrow. He should have gotten the happy and carefree youth that had seemed promised.
     'But he was so cheerful when we arrived. Was that all fake then?' She asked him.
     Bazz shook his head. 'No, he slowly learned to cope with the loss. At first he pushed us away and we didn't know how to act, since we were all just children. But eventually we decided we'd had enough of his behavior and that he needed us.' He shrugged. 'He is a social creature. We knew he needed people around him. Being alone would only make things worse. We thought he should know we were not going anywhere.'
     It was quiet for a moment. Zelda didn't know what to say, but there was no need.
     'We started forcing ourselves onto him,' Bazz continued with a smirk. 'We would drag him with us and invade his rooms when he fled. We would follow him wherever he went.' He laughed at the memories. 'He hated it so much. He kept yelling at us to leave him alone. He would even run away and hide somewhere he thought we wouldn't find him, but we always did.'
     'It sounds like he had found good friends in you,' Zelda muttered, but he didn't seem to hear her.
     Bazz' eyes were on the far horizon, his mind obviously far away. 'Eventually he seemed to relax a little more and he accepted that he wouldn't get rid of us. He started to join us from his own accord and even seemed to like it.' A fond smile spread on his face at the memories. 'He slowly became a happy kid again, playing and laughing like he should. He would temporarily forget about his sorrows. He always remembered them eventually, but it was good to see the old Sidon again.'
     Zelda looked at him, grateful for this little insight into the Zora's life.
Bazz glanced back at her. 'He learned to appreciate the world again. It was like he finally realized he still had his own life to live. He has never truly been the same, because he became more mature, more responsible. He learned how to be an heir.' He shrugged. 'I think he needed that to truly grow into who he is now. I mean, running around with us he might never have grown up.' He chuckled.
     'I'd say he has become a pretty damn good person. I personally wouldn't hesitate to give my life for him.' Bazz raised an eyebrow at her, gauging her reaction.
Zelda smiled. It warmed her heart to hear him speak so highly of the prince. From what she had seen so far, it wouldn't surprise her if most of the Domain felt the same way.
'You are still good friends I suppose?' She asked. She imagined it must have been hard on him to see his best friend struggle so much.
Bazz nodded. 'When he finally allowed us back in we were all inseparable. He taught us so much, basically getting us to grow up. We were always together, him, me, Rivan and Gaddison. That has faded a little over time, but we remain close. We all became part of the Zora Guard because of our training with Link.'
Zelda quirked her eyebrow at that. She knew he had often played with Zora children when visiting the Domain, but apparently the knight had left quite the impression.
The unexpected mention of Link now reminded her of her duties again. She looked up at the sky and realized it was getting quite late. She should prepare for dinner with the Royal Family.
'It has been really great catching up with you, Bazz,' she said, 'but I have to get ready for dinner. Surely we will meet again soon.'
Bazz nodded and smiled. 'It was great talking to you, Princess. You can come find me anytime.' He turned to face her and placed a hand on her shoulder, winking. 'Enjoy your dinner.'
Zelda chuckled and nodded, thanking him before she started her way down the watery slopes again.
     Hopefully this dinner was going to be as pleasant as the rest of her welcome had been.