Time's Moving Faster Than I Can Count

The Final Words

Link sat on the floor of Zelda's study, sorting through some of the old things that were in his house. He went through the letters of his family, some odd trinkets that belonged to his parents. It was a collection of stuff that Mayor Bo and the other adults had managed to piece together when he was just a child, before he moved into his own place properly. He brought them with him to the castle to go through them in his own time, away from prying eyes and people desperate to talk to him. He'd never gone through these things before, too afraid, too upset. There were many interesting things, some of which looked very familiar.

The book had sold well, and pretty quickly too. It was quite shocking to see that so many people actually cared. He told Shad to just keep all the profit from it, he didn't care for money. All he wanted was to have Time's story out there, and now it was. Whether or not people believed it was something else, but at least it was finally out there, at least now people would know.

The aftermath of the Resistance finding out that he was the wolf was interesting for sure. There had been many questions, but he had avoided all of them. Guilt-trips were common, regardless of if they meant them, and he just didn't want to deal with it. The guilt in Rusl's eyes was exactly why he avoided him in Ordon, and never said that he was leaving.

When everyone else found out, that was harder.

Link didn't want to see Uli's face when she found out. Nor the kids. He didn't want to know what they thought, what they had to say. There were some things he just didn't think he could handle, and this was one of them. That didn't stop the letters though. They asked where he was, how he could hide that, why didn't he say anything, why was he hiding now, and more. Even a letter from Renado came through, and just like the rest, Link didn't respond to it. His head felt numb, his heart ached, and he just wanted to go away from everyone.

As his thoughts went over the last few weeks, a specific piece of paper caught his attention. The boxes on the table held letters from people he knew presently, but the box on the floor with him held older letters. He gently lifted the one that caught his attention, recognising both the name and the handwriting.

Malon.

This was one of Time's letters, it had to be.

He couldn't help himself, despite how much it hurt. He eased the envelope open, aged and delicate as it was, and pulled out the long letter. His hands shook badly, and he could feel tears start, but he willed them back. His heart pounded in his ears, and he felt lightheaded, but he needed this more than anything. He took a long, deep breath, and began reading.

Malon,

Please, get to safety. I think the war coming is from Ganon and his acolytes. As much as I want to see you one more time, your safety is more important. Take Talon, take Epona, and please get to safety.

As excited as I am to be a father, and as much as it hurts to know I'll never see it happen or meet them, I won't let it get in the way of your safety. You are more important to me than my own feelings.

To answer your question, no. I haven't and I won't tell our boys of the danger at home. They don't need to worry about a tired old man who drags them down with every passing moment. The end is going to be hard enough on these boys. They don't need it to be harder.