What if after sending Link backwards in time, it was Zelda alone who retained memories of his heroism? Will Link succumb to nihilism, navigating a life without purpose or meaning? Or can Princess Zelda help piece back together what time has misplaced? WARNING: PLEASE DON'T IGNORE THE MATURE TAG; this story includes NSFW, implied/referenced self-harm, suicidal ideation, and other themes of similar nature. Only proceed if you're comfortable! NEW CHAPTER EVERY THURSDAY Thank you for the #1 spot in the Ocarina of Time and #3 in the Legend of Zelda tags! Sooo excited for the remake this year!

9 years after Calamity, Link and Zelda have settled down and started a family in Hateno. Her quiet and peaceful life with Link and her children is everything Zelda ever dreamed of... Or is it? After all, every rose has its thorns! This novella(?) is a sequel to my other fic Fortune Favors the Courageous, but it can be read on its own :)

"Princess!" he yelled after her. "Where are you going?" "Back to the castle," she replied without stopping. "Not by yourself you're not!" "I'm sorry,"-she whipped around-"I didn't realize you were my father?" "Your father, the king, would execute me for letting you travel by yourself." "Oh, so this is about self-preservation?" "Yes. Yours. There are monsters all over Hyrule now, Your Highness." Blue eyes pointedly looked her up and down. "And by the looks of it, you're not equipped to handle that." She mirrored his scrutiny and scoffed. "What, and you are?" She gestured to the cairns beyond the trees. "Are you going to protect me as well as you protected them?" Calamity is upon Hyrule. The Goddess Hylia appointed but two children to prevent the end of the world. The powers they were promised don't come easily, and after years of outright failure, Princess Zelda can't help but wonder if Hylia chose wrong. It certainly doesn't help that the boy fate has tangled her with makes her seethe. Devotion, heartbreak, inadequacy. Faith, perseverance, and courage. This is a story of finding what lies within. [This story is set in a fusion of Breath of the Wild/Tears of the Kingdom, with a couple tweaks and some familiar faces'n'places from older games joining along the way!] Thank you for the #1 spot in the Zelda tag! 💗 And thank you for #1 in PrincessZelda, LinkxZelda, Zelink, Midna and BreathoftheWild tags!! I'm so floored! All art courtesy of Hiyukee on Bluesky/Instagram!

"You know, you should stop by my place on Tuesday," Zelda comments in a tone so jarringly sweet he's reeled right back in. He shakes his head, certain he's misheard her. "What? I-" "Our cleaning lady comes by on Tuesdays," she smiles. "Maybe she can vacuum all those cobwebs out of your ears-since your head is so pathetically void of any intelligent thought." Link slams the pencil down flat. "If you hate tutoring me so much, why don't you just quit already?" It's Link most daunting adventure yet-High school! Having just moved to the big city, Link is struggling in more ways than one: Relentless bullying, no friends besides his sassy little sister, and to top it all off, he's failing! But when tutoring pits him against the most popular girl in school, he realizes he might not be the only one in need of rescuing. [This story is a BotW-focused AU with a couple tweaks and some familiar faces'n'places from other games joining along the way!] Cover art is courtesy of Hiyukee on Bluesky and Instagram! And thank you for the #1 spot in the Zelda tag! 💗 And #1 in the Legend of Zelda tag!! And #1 in Breath of the Wild!!! And also #1 in the Zelink tag <333