Chapter Text
Epilogue
The Queen’s shoes clicked against the hard stone ground as she passed through narrow walkways overlooking the training grounds. She remembered the days without fondness where the expectation was that a Royal dress her best anytime she could be seen in the public eye. That often meant shoes that pinched her toes and blistered her feet and dressed or corsets so heavy and tight she needed four hands to take them off in the evening and a cooling salve to smooth away her blistered skin. Days like this where she no longer felt obligated to dress in heels and heavy skirts with tiaras that left a kink in her neck made her thankful for all the power her coronation granted her once she became Queen Zelda of Hyrule.
So many changes, all for the better.
It was true. In the months following that night that the princess found Link in the abandoned keep, everything seemed to change rapidly. The war ended much quicker than anyone had expected. Despite protests, Zelda did not allow herself to sit idle while her men fought for her. She took up arms as well, clad in most of her Sheik garb but no longer with the falsified identity of a Sheikah warrior but as Princess Zelda who’d been trained with exceptional skill by her Sheikah caretaker and personal guard. Before long the threats were vanquished and for the most part, peace was restored to the people of Hyrule.
Then the princess returned to the castle and preparations were planned for her royal coronation as queen. More changes happened. Tiaras were put away for smaller and lighter varieties, exuberant daily gowns and dresses diminished to smaller more comfortable and mobile garments. A new slew of young men were officially knighted, and one in particular brought to the rank of royal guard and head of the knights training.
Zelda was crowned. Three months later the Queen of Hyrule announced her engagement and plans for the most talked about and scandalized wedding in Hyrule’s history begun.
And she wouldn’t change any of it.
“The Zoras are asking for confirmation that you’ll still be coming to visit in the Spring for their Independence Festival.” Impa walked close beside her, chin held high with with as much furious determination as ever. Yet there seemed to be something different about her; something just this side of softer in her walk and voice. “And your husband as well, of course.”
The royal beside her groaned with an exaggerated roll of her eyes and if it were any women besides Impa, they probably would have laughed at the young Queen’s antics.
“Eventually you are going to have to get used to that title,” the Sheikah commented glancing for a moment at the royal walking beside her. “Link has seemed to grow into his soon-to-be-title nicely.”
Zelda threw her partner a look that could burn down the best bridges in the kingdom, but the Sheikah remained unwaved, closing the notepad in her hands without another word as they rounded a corner. They stopped before a half-wall overlooking the far end of the training grounds. Below a group of 60 young men all dressed in training gear watched as their instructor — clad in green and royalty gold — demonstrated a variety of ways to carry and wield a sword.
“He really is good at his job,” Impa commented upon seeing her Queen’s distracted stare. Zelda smiled broadly, feeling a warmth glow in her gut and spread out over her skin until it tingled in her toes and fingertips. She watched the man below give a furious battle cry then slice the blade in hand through a solid wooden manakin as if it were made of gelatin. The bright sunlight above gleamed off the fine edge of his impressive blade and if she looked hard enough she could almost trace the lines of muscles in his arms.
The mannequin fell to pieces to the ground and all of the young men in attendance applauded respectfully.
“I’m surprised it took you this long with the way you look at him.”
Zelda smiled fondly. “Well it was important to me that I finish my coronation as Queen before I took him as my husband. He wouldn’t be given a title otherwise and I think it appeases the kingdom that at least I’ll be married to a prince if not a king.”
From down below her soon to be husband must have felt her stare because he chose that moment to look up and catch her eyes. The smile e gave her sent a warm weight straight to her stomach.
“You’re right,” Impa replied flatly. “But I was talking about the pregnancy.”
Zelda’s mouth fell open in shock with a deadly glare, finally earning a well-deserved smirk from the Sheikah leader beside her. “My Queen, I know everything .”
Zelda just stared dumbstruck at the older woman’s words. Impa walked around her and looped one long arm around the young woman she’d helped raise, pulling her to the side a moment. “Do you know how far along you are?”
Zelda groaned loudly and dropped her head against the Sheikah’s shoulder in an over dramatic sign of defeat. “I was so careful. Always mixed and took my elixirs the way you taught me.”
“Clearly not.”
The younger woman groaned again but composed herself enough to stand. She glanced back over the railing without releasing the other woman’s arm and caught sight of her future prince now going over a new maneuver.
“Have you told him yet?” Impa asked quietly as a guard passed behind them.
Zelda’s frown was answer enough. “I’m almost positive it was during that trip to the Gerudo Desert four weeks ago. I didn’t have my ingredients there.” Zelda’s voice had diminished to the size of a small child, partly out of privacy and partly out of embarrassment.
She’d also been especially distracted then by harsh sun and way too much exposed skin. What would the people say?
“That works out perfectly.”
Zelda’s eyes flew to the Sheikah after such a comment. “Perfectly?” She questioned incredulously. “The Queen of Hyrule became pregnant out of wedlock and you are calling it perfect?”
Impa smiled. “You’re getting married in three days. If we spin it off that you simply delivered your child a few weeks early, no one can argue that it didn’t happen on your honeymoon .”
Hmm. The Queen’s ears almost twitched .
“Besides,” Impa continued with her authoritative voice once more. “Right now your job is to marry your Hero , and then we can worry about growing a happy, healthy baby.” To prove her point she put her hand against the Queen’s stomach for a moment in a protective and uncharacteristically warm movement for the Sheikah warrior. Impa smiled broadly before retracting her hand and then walking away back towards the castle doors.
Zelda stood there for a moment in attempts to catch her spinning head and unconsciously covering her very flat stomach where the Sheikah’s hand had just been.
It’s improper, she’d once thought when this whole relationship were just starting.
A loud, familiar whistle grabbed the young woman’s attention and when she looked towards the source a familiar brilliant smile beckoned her towards him with the characteristic devious smirk on his lips.
The queen smiled and bit her lip feeling that all too familiar tingle of excitement bubbling in his chest and warming her toes. She knew that look all too well.
Fuck propriety.