Chapter Text
"And then, when all that has been done, we can start collecting taxes."
"Taxes. Just the thing everyone needs."
"Oh, shush, Link, we need the funds to rebuild Hyrule, and I don't think the Royal Vault has enough for an entire country."
Link and Zelda walked side by side, Zelda tapping away at the Sheikah slate as they travelled, Link pulling in both their horses right beside her.
“Okay, but taxes? How do you plan on collecting taxes from all the regions, princess?" the champion asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, how else are we going to get funds from the people? We can't exactly just ask them for large amounts of donations." Zelda turned to her knight, mimicking his expression.
"Technically, you could, I'm sure the people of Hyrule would be more than happy to help for a good cause." Link motioned to the vast country beside them, looking out at the ruins of Hyrule Castle.
Zelda stopped at the mention of the Hyrulean people, clutching the Sheikah slate tightly. Link noticed this immediately, stopping in his tracks. "Princess?" his head tilted slightly to better see her expression.
She pursed her lips tightly, shaking her head. "Maybe you're right, Link. What made me think that I could unite Hyrule under one monarchy again?" she sighed, shaking her head. "Hey, that's not what I said," Link told her, frowning. "I know it isn't, but I've just been thinking. Maybe the people don't want to be ruled over by one government again." She turned to face him, gesturing to the landscape behind him. "We've been gone for a hundred years , but everything's still mostly fine. They don't need us at all." She hung the Sheikah slate on her belt, rubbing her arms.
Link placed a hand on her shoulder, shaking her lightly. The princess looked up at him as she was shook, teary-eyed. "Maybe you're right. Maybe they don't need us right now, but you shouldn't give up just because of that," he said, wiping her eyes with a thumb. "What if something happens again? The people need to unite and work together, and they can't do that without a strong leader like you, Zelda." He smiled, gently cupping her cheek.
"I know you're gonna do great, and hey, if they really don't want to be under a monarchy again, we could always just go to Hateno and live there, start a new life or something. So don't give up, alright?" His hand moved to pinch her nose between his fingers, causing her to flinch and take his hand away. She sniffed and wiped her eyes with a palm before nodding. "Alright... thank you, Link." She nodded, returning his smile.
The two continued walking, Zelda discussing her future plans for the country while the hero nodded quietly beside her, giving comments or opinions every once in a while. Eventually, they stopped, Link tying their horses to a nearby tree before catching up to Zelda, who was much further ahead.
They looked up at the facade of the Temple of Time, or at least, what was left of it. "What are we doing here?" Link asked, turning his head to look at her. Zelda raised her Sheikah slate and used the camera rune, snapping pictures of the ruins. "We're here to assess the damage on the temple, so we know how much rupees we need to restore it," she stated, moving to the left of the temple.
Link raised an eyebrow, watching her walk before jogging up to her. "I thought we were repairing Hyrule Castle first?" he stopped beside her, watching as she took pictures of the left side of the temple. "No, we're repairing the Temple first." She stopped to look up at him, raising an eyebrow. "But, the Castle is the symbol of Hyrule-" "And the Temple of Time is the symbol of our culture, Link, we have priorities," she cut him off, continuing to walk forward.
"How?" he asked, following after her, looking towards the ruined temple. Zelda stopped abruptly, surprising the Hylian champion as he bumped into her. "I read that long ago, even when the first people of Hyrule started living in this land, the Temple of Time was there, and it stood strong." She looked up at the temple, temporarily putting down her slate. "Our ancestors worshipped the goddess inside, and even the Master Sword itself was housed in the Temple, I'm sure you know that." She turned to him, crossing her arms. "After all, you sneaked into the Temple all those years ago and pulled it out," she stated as-a-matter-of-factly.
Link inhaled sharply, avoiding her gaze and scratching the back of his neck. "Look, I heard a voice, I followed, and it was inside the chamber. It's not my fault the guards weren't paying attention-" "Are you calling our guards incompetent?" Zelda once again cut him off, placing her hands on her hips and furrowing her eyebrows.
The Hero jumped at her sudden outburst, stepping backwards. "No! I mean, technically I became one of them for some time- Ah, look, let's just keep going." He sighed, gesturing for her to go ahead.
Zelda let out a 'hmph!' before continuing forward, continuing her picture taking. "Well, as I was saying, the Temple is an ancient treasure, and we must restore it. Plus, all our ceremonies will be held inside, and it wouldn't exactly be respectful to conduct them anywhere else," she said, moving towards the back. "Like your future coronation as queen?" Link chuckled, crossing his arms. Zelda flinched, turning a little pink. "I don't think I'm ready for that just yet..." she mumbled, rubbing her cheek. Link patted her shoulder before gently pushing her forward, "Maybe not now, but you will be. Now come on, let's finish this up and have some lunch afterwards," he said, nudging the Sheikah slate she held. Zelda huffed, brushing his hand off her shoulder as she held up the tablet, "Is food the only thing in your mind?" she teased, shaking her head.
A comfortable silence soon drifted between them as the princess finished photographing the perimeter of the Temple, before she gestured for them to enter the ruins through the main entrance as they circled back around.
They stepped inside after Link made sure there were no monsters lurking about, Zelda raising her slate to take pictures of the interior. "I was thinking something simple, like rice balls. Not too heavy, but just enough to feel full," Link said as he picked up a clay pot, peeking inside it. "What are you feeling, Princess? Vegetables, fish, maybe meat?" He continued, looking back to her. The princess chuckled, now facing him. "I was just joking before, but now I'm genuinely curious, is food really the only thing on your mind?" she asked, crossing her arms. The pot was broken, and a green rupee bounced out, Link picking up quickly. "Maybe it is, or maybe I'm just trying to make sure neither of us die of starvation." He shrugged, a small smile on his expression.
"Neither of us are going to die of starvation, Link. It's just that..." Zelda hummed, looking back down to her slate, "You're so...chatty. You didn't talk this much back then," she said, fiddling with the slate. Footsteps were heard, and when she looked back up, Link was standing right in front of her, hands on her shoulders once again. "You already know why I was much quieter years ago, Princess. Now, would you like me to be quieter while you do your work?" He asked, his smile much wider. Zelda shook her head and returned the smile, placing one hand over his. "No, I enjoy your newfound talkativeness, even if all you ever talk about is food."
Link let out a huff, and a look of disbelief appeared on his face. "I talk about other things! Ah, but now that we are talking about food." Zelda let out a yelp as she was quickly hoisted up his shoulders, clutching her slate tightly. "Link, put me down! I'm not finished yet!" She protested, wriggling around in his grasp. "I'm only speeding up your work, Princess, you keep stopping and it's slowing us down." The Hero chuckled, walking towards the Goddess statue. "Now come on, the sooner we finish here, the sooner we can have some rice balls." He softly patted Zelda's bottom, humming. Zelda, however, continued to struggle, demanding to be put back down on solid ground, while her champion merely gave chuckles and hums in response as he walked.
The two continued their one-sided squabble, Link occasionally stopping to readjust his grip on the princess, but was quickly stopped when a strange noise came from behind the statue. Link's playful expression quickly morphed into something more serious as he quickly put Zelda down, the latter moving behind him as he pulled out the Master Sword from its scabbard on his back, readying in a battle stance, one arm outstretched to protect Zelda.
Silence followed, Link watching the statue warily, ready for anything. After a long few seconds, another noise was heard, that of metal against stone, and the rustling of leaves. The Hero tensed, tightening his grip on the sword. Zelda held her breath, placing the Sheikah slate back in its place on her belt in fear of breaking it. She watched the Goddess statue as well, one hand clutching the dagger Link gave her for protection.
The pair watched as a figure appeared from behind the statue, the light from above giving it a sort of ethereal silhouette as it stumbled into their sights. It appeared to wear some kind of armour, though faint traces of green around its body seemed to suggest some kind of vegetation growing on the armour. Its metal boots scraped against the stone floor, and its helmet, accented by two horns on either side, though one seemed to be cut clean, lightly tapped against the statue. A low grumble could be heard from the figure as it straightened up, what looked to be a hand raising to hold its head, though it was hard to tell with the large shield attached to its forearm.
Link let out a breath he never knew he was holding, and quickly unbuckled the Hylian shield from his back, briefly looking back to Zelda before he stepped forward. The figure seemed to finally notice the two in front of it, and straightened up as it also noticed the weapon in Link's hand. "Halt!" A male voice left the figure as it raised one hand, the light shining against the golden gauntlet. Link did as he was told and stopped, raising his shield in preparation.
The hand that was outstretched pointed a finger at the Hero. "That sword you wield... How dare you hold the Master Sword in the absence of its master," the figure stated. Link looked to his sword, frowning. "This is my sword. I am its master," He told the figure, raising the sword in warning. A dry laugh was heard. "That is impossible. The figure finally stepped forward into the light, revealing a strikingly familiar face within his helmet.
Link found himself looking at his own face, just missing an eye.
"I am its master." His mirror image told him, lips pulled into a frown.
The Master Sword glowed.