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It was over.
The bright glow from Rauru’s arm was the last thing Link remembered before it engulfed everything. He was floating, stripped of everything but his lower clothing. His bow and shield were gone, leaving him with only the Master Sword on his back. He did not know where he was - all he saw were swirling clouds washed in emerald and gold. The colors reminded him of Zelda - her blonde locks and green eyes. The Champion’s gaze drifted below, where the draconified princess rested with her eyes closed.
Zelda… The hero bit his lip. Her tears had given him glimpses of her time ten thousand years ago when she met the First King and Queen of the Kingdom of Hyrule. There was a lot to unpack from that - meeting the descendant of the Hero of the Skies and Hylia’s incarnate, the founding of the kingdom, and everything else - but he decided to set it aside for another day. He wanted to talk to his princess first and tell her it was over. They had won, and she could finally rest easy.
Would she even understand? Would she be able to return to her original form? Link did not know nor had the power to do so. Perhaps the other heroes could advise him, but the future remained uncertain. There was no way for him to know if the Goddess would call him back for that quest.
Still, the Champion chose not to despair anymore. He had lost many - his memories, wings, family, friends, and home - but had regained some and more. He was not the same person when he woke up in the Shrine of Resurrection, even though his full memory had already been restored. Nor was he the silent and lonely royal guard more than a hundred years ago. The hero had people he could trust to watch his back - he was no longer alone.
His right arm trembled and lifted forward involuntarily. Link gasped as light poured from his palm onto the Light Dragon. A gentle breeze brushed his side, and he turned to see Rauru’s spirit hovering beside him. Sonia was at his other side - her wings were white, dotted by gold in a pattern similar to the Hero of the Skies’. They fluttered behind her slightly, the feathers ruffled by the gentle wind.
The golden light blazed at their presence. The First King and Queen of Hyrule floated closer to the Champion and placed their hands on the back of his hand. He could only watch in awe as the glow completely engulfed Zelda like a cocoon. It was bright - too bright - even as it peeled and disintegrated into tiny orbs. When it finally faded, Rauru’s arm and the Light Dragon were no more, leaving behind the hero’s restored limb and the princess he recognized.
“Link,” The said man perked at the voice he had only heard from Zelda’s memories and turned around. Queen Sonia was smiling at him warmly like an old friend. “It was a pleasure to finally meet you. Zelda has told me a lot about you.”
Link rubbed his nape as he smiled sheepishly. “Good things, I hope?”
The queen giggled. The sound echoed like wind chimes ringing on a windy day. “Yes. She’s quite fond of you, from what I could tell.”
The Champion flushed to the tips of his ears. The implications of that, well, his romantic relationship with the princess was no secret to the rest of Hyrule. Sonia drifted closer and cupped his cheeks. “How I wish we had time to talk, but we must go. Instead, we will leave you a little gift.”
“Wherever you are, be it in the Sky, the Surface, or the Depths, across time and space, I hope you will remember Rauru and me this way,” The queen said. “Remember us, hero, but mourn for us not. You no longer walk alone. You have people who stand by your side and share the hope and the future you and Zelda strive for.”
“We leave the future to both of you. A future more glorious than we have ever envisioned. The path may be rough, but we know you can overcome it. We will watch and pray for you.”
“Link,” Rauru spoke up, and the Champion straightened attentively. The Zonai had been like a guide to him, and he respected him not just because of the former’s status as royalty. “We may not have known each other for a long time, but I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You have shown me courage beyond what I could readily offer. One that goes beyond time itself. One that can surpass the might of the gods.”
“I pray you will remain brave and steadfast as you are kind and compassionate. May the Three bless you and the path you choose. Never falter, hero, for your journey’s end will be of happiness and prosperity.”
Sonia held the hero’s calloused hands and smiled softly. “Tell Zelda I am proud of her. I am blessed to be her ancestor and to have spent time with her, even for a short while. Please continue watching over her, will you, Link?”
Link squeezed her hands firmly and nodded. “Of course, Your Majesty.”
“Thank you, hero.”
The queen glided back to her husband’s side. The latter held out a hand, and Sonia gratefully placed hers atop. They smiled at the Champion one last time. “Both of you have our blessing. Go, and bring peace to the world.”
A gust swept over them, blowing upwards. The hero watched the First King and Queen of Hyrule float away and disappear into tiny emerald lights. Link slowly closed his eyes as the cool wind and warm light swallowed his body, and then…
…Then, he fell. His eyes snapped open as he dived headfirst toward the solid ground. The wind whipped and whistled against his ears as he continuously lost altitude. However, the Champion did not panic - he was used to it - but noticed he was falling faster than usual. A sharp tug was against his back like he was attached to a contraption.
A shadow passed overhead, and his eyes widened at seeing feathered appendages attached to his back. They were familiar - the black, white, and vibrant blue was precisely like the ones he had lost during his last stand against the Guardians in the Blatchery Plain. However, they were different, too. The blue feathers gleamed in an emerald sheen like Rauru’s arm, and the edges of the primaries and secondaries were gold like Sonia’s.
How did…?
“How I wish we had time to talk, but we must go.” Queen Sonia had told him. Her eyes twinkled as she spoke those words. “Instead, we will leave you a little gift.”
So, that was what she meant. The hero felt tearing up but set it aside when he caught a familiar form falling meters below him at the corner of his eye. His breath hitched when he recognized who it was.
Zelda!
There was no fiber of hesitation in his being as he shifted to a diving position. Link willed his newly restored wings to tuck against his sides as he dived for the princess. He reached out, fumbling with his fingers to touch and grab. It felt like déjà vu - that fated journey below Hyrule Castle flashed in his mind’s eye. He had failed to reach her when the ground crumbled and collapsed beneath their boots.
The Champion thought he had lost her forever when she disappeared before his very eyes. Only through her memories and Mineru’s story had he learned the truth. Since then, he vowed not to let it happen again. The princess - his princess - was back, and he would reach her this time, unlike before.
The hero gritted his teeth as he lunged forward. His hand wrapped around Zelda’s wrist, pulling her toward him with all his might. The lake was getting closer by the second, and he embraced the princess tightly, using his arms to shield her head from the imminent impact. Like a long-lost instinct, he clumsily spread his wings open, hoping to slow their fall. Everything became a blur the moment they hit the water.
Cold.
Dark.
Painful.
Silent.
Those were the things Link felt when he got his bearings back. Water surrounded them - the abrupt entrance stirred a multitude of bubbles. His wings made swimming tricky, but the lake was thankfully shallow. He broke to the surface with a gasp for air and carried Zelda back to the shore. His damp wings were heavy as he dragged them behind him, but he managed and set the princess carefully to the ground.
The Champion checked her pulse and breathing and felt her stir under his touch. Zelda’s eyes slowly fluttered open and landed on him. He tried not to get too emotional as recognition slowly sparked in her eyes. The princess sat up and stared at him as if he were an illusion.
“Link? How are you…” Zelda reached for the Secret Stone on her neck. “But I was…”
Turned into a dragon? The hero wanted to supply but held himself back. The princess was still confused until her gaze landed on the Master Sword slung on his back. They heard her chime in greeting.
“She reached you…after all.” Then, a realization - the reality - finally dawned on her. Zelda gasped, her eyes watered. “He’s gone…The Demon King…I’m not in a dream, right?”
Link shook his head, giving her a soft smile. “It’s not a dream, Zel. It is real. It’s over now.”
“Ah….” The hero had only a second before he was engulfed in a hug. “Y-You did it,” The princess sniffled. “Oh, Link, you really did it!”
Link wrapped his arms around her. His voice and hands were shaky as he held her like she was his lifeline. “No, Zel.” He whispered. “We did it. You, me, King Rauru, Queen Sonia, Tulin, Riju, Yunobo, Sidon, Mineru - everyone in Hyrule, past and present, helped. This is our victory.”
Zelda sobbed against the crook of her hero’s neck. They held each other until there were no more tears to shed, until the fear and anxiety of their untimely separation and their own adventures finally bled out. Only the relief and truth that it was finally over was left to sink in.
They let go, and Link carefully helped the princess stand up, keeping an arm out to catch her should her unsteady feet give up on her. He watched her inspect herself, no doubt wondering how she was able to return to being Hylian.
“I turned into an immortal dragon, but how am I…” Zelda turned to the hero. “And your wings…how?” She paused, considering something before shaking her head. “No, I understand.”
As expected of his princess. Link smiled approvingly. “It’s a gift from King Rauru and Queen Sonia. I guess they used their powers to reverse time like they did with you. Though,” He stretched his wings slightly. “It’s a bit different from what I remembered.”
Zelda reached out, caressing the gleaming feathers of blue and green. “Yes, I don’t think they just restored them.” She said. “I think they also blessed them, too. I can sense a very powerful divine power from them.”
“Please tell me I’m not going to start glowing like a Giant Brightbloom Seed and bust divine light from my hands.” The hero joked. “I don’t want to steal that role from you. Plus, I had enough divine ‘intervention’ for one reincarnation.”
That earned him a playful slap on the chest. “Don’t jinx it.”
Link chuckled and followed Zelda’s line of sight toward Hyrule Castle. Unlike a few moments ago, there was no overflow of gloom, armies of monsters, or even a draconified madman hellbent on world domination. The palace was still above ground, but everything had quieted to a peaceful lull. The sky was blue, the grass was green, birds flew overhead - the fight earlier almost seemed like a fevered dream.
“I had been sleeping all this time. But when I felt something…like a warm, loving embrace, I woke up.” The princess closed her eyes, taking in the peace. She did not notice the flush on the hero’s face at those words.
“Thank you.” Zelda turned to Link, smiling so brightly that the latter almost forgot to breathe. She reached out and cupped his face. “Thank you for finding me. Thank you for saving me. Thank you, thank you, thank you -”
The hero interrupted her with a kiss. The princess melted against him, a soft sigh against those warm lips. “Zelda, I will always find you, no matter what. No matter where you are or what era you ended up in, I will always come for you. As long as you want me, I will find you…”
“...I love you, Zelda.” Link pressed his forehead against hers. “I love you.”
“Me, too. I love you.” Zelda smiled. “I have a lot to tell you.”
“Oh?”
“Yes! Link, I met such wonderful people. I saw Hyrule as it was. I have so much to tell you. So much happened!”
The hero could not help the joyful laughter that bubbled in his throat. That was the Zelda he knew and loved. He wrapped his arms around her waist, giving her a fond smile. “I can’t wait to hear it, Princess.”
Zelda mirrored his smile. “Oh, Link…I’m home!”
“Welcome home, Zelda.”