Princess of Ruins

3

Darkness was not enough to usher Zelda into the fantasy world of sleep. She stared up at the ceiling, awake and aware of the light of the Shiekah tower streamed into their room. Link's massive figure slumbered yet did not snore, hugging loose onto her in bed with the frigid expanse of muscles of his arm.

He was shirtless, back turned against the wall, no doubt cold in his sleep once again. Yet, he said he didn't mind sleeping so close to her, even if it meant having to deal with that. To him, or so he had told her, getting to wrap her in his arms at night was one of the greatest feelings he had ever felt. Which, in its own way comforting. There was nothing she enjoyed more than the warmth of being tucked away in his chest, kept steady by another presence in the dark.

Now, a week after the celebration of Urbosa, Zelda had been home for three or four days. Or, at least, what was supposed to constitute home to her. The reason their sleeping arrangement had evolved to the manner it was at now, was because Hateno Village was the only place they had to stay, since it was his home and she couldn't sleep in the ruins of Hyrue castle.

Link, of course, had decided that they could sleep in the same bed, and while she should've had objections to it, she was not opposed. Even though she'd been awake into the abyss of night, the last few days spent with him wrapped around her side had made her feel protected, more at ease, and a little more alive than she had been feeling in a while. Not that it made her any less likely to stay awake in the night.

Instead, she found herself staring at the ceiling, wishing she could find the peace that Link seemed to find. She had seen every step of his journey with nothing but admiration and a vow to be just as courageous as he was, and yet now, when on her own she could not muster the strength to let go of the past. Zelda thought that perhaps mourning the losses of the champions would do that for her, but here she was still, attempting to pick up the pieces of something long gone.

With light fingers and a light touch, she moved over Link's arm, so that she could escape the hot confines of their bed. As she stood up she looked down at his sleeping figure. The thought of it being their bed proliferated her mind, and for a moment terror poked its head through the image of peace that her mind had conjured up. Sharing a bed with Link, it was a thought she had not thought about in its rawest and truest form. And yet, in the grand scheme of things she had never actually been so close to a man before.

Somehow, in some way, Link made it easy to be with a man. He was patient and kind, always protected her without fail, and never ceased to care for her, despite how fragile she had been since they had gotten back. Zelda wished that he wasn't that way towards her. It was amazing, and she felt treasured when he was near, but it had to be exhausting to him. He couldn't possibly keep up with her the way he had been. Part of Zelda wished she could hide, could find another place to let go, to call home.

Instinct took over Zelda's mind, and she found herself creeping down the stairs to the main room of the house. From there she grabbed the great thunder blade that Link was storing on one of his weapon racks and carried it up the stairs with her. She stopped in front of the photo of the champions. The light of the blade illuminated the photo for her so she could see the goofy faces of everyone in the dark.

Bitter, lonely, silent tears began to stream down Zelda's face as she stood there. A nimble hand brushed glass as she touched the figure of Lady Urbosa. If only she could run away to the desert tonight, just to go see her again. She would laugh and smile, and things would be easy. She wouldn't be trapped in the horrible confines of the dark. Zelda tried her best to hold in the wheeze that came out of her mouth, and held on to the massive sword for support.

However, her noise made Link stir from his bed. He lept out of sleep in surprise, only relaxing when he saw that she was still in the room with him. Zelda watched as his gaze softened towards her, and he got out of bed with slow and graceful movements. She wasn't sure if he could see her tears, but she knew in a moment he wouldn't have to. Her breath bounced, and soon wobbled off the tightrope that kept it easy, instead falling into bursts of quivers.

Link came and hugged her from behind, and all at once she felt the warmth that made her drop the great thunder blade. He caught it, and rested it on the floor. His hands rubbed up and down her bare arms, making her realize that she had been cold before. Guilt exploded within her at having woken him up for something as trivial as this. He hugged her tighter to which she gasped out.

"Hey, hey," he soothed. "Take a deep breath in for me."

"Go back to sleep," she said. "I'll be fine."

His hair brushed her neck as he shook his head. "No can do. I can't sleep without my princess next to me."

"I mean it Link," said Zelda. "You shouldn't be up and worrying about me."

Link sighed, running his hands through her hair in a soothing way. "Remember our deal."

"I don't understand why," she said, whispers fading into the soft night. "Why?"

The question was all she could think of. Why did they live, when the champions died? Why couldn't she have saved them? Why did she still have to feel it now? But most importantly, why couldn't this be over? Why did Link have to be up with her in the depths of the night? All she could do was try to keep the screams inside her mind, because she didn't know what would happen if she let them out. Regret seemed to blossom its poison flower within her chest.

"I miss them too," said Link. "Just know, it's not your fault."

Zelda remembered Daruk was Link's friend and began to sob some more. He was wrong. It was her fault. Daruk, Revali, Mipha, even Lady Urbosa — they were all gone. And despite the ceremonies that she'd taken part in, nothing could console her in this moment. Only the emptiness of exhaustion weighed heavy upon her. She wanted the pain to just shut up and go away for a long time, yet her insides reared with emotion she couldn't control.

"How do I make it stop?" she asked to no one in particular.

Link hugged her tight. "You can't make the pain stop. You just have to keep walking forward, and someday you'll wake up and you'll find that the past is long past."

Zelda glanced at the photo again. "Let's rebuild Hyrule, alright Link?"

He nuzzled his nose against her neck. "Anything for you, my princess. But first, let's get some sleep alright? I'm tired."