The Legend of Zelda: Wisdom and Courage

Chapter 9: Deceptions in the Darkness

Zelda pulled her knees to her chest as she wrapped her arms around them and let out a quiet sigh, the warm fire burning in front of her lighting up her falsely scarlet eyes. She sat close to the fireplace of Impa's house in Kakariko Village, where the two of them had stopped for the night before going onto the Shadow Temple in the morning. The Sheikah guardian had insisted that the princess get some sleep before they head out to save the hero, but Zelda found that she simply could not rest at a time like this, not while basically anything could be happening to Link. All of her worry was entirely focused on him at the moment; she didn't even bother to devote any of it to how she was going to infiltrate the Shadow Temple and go up against Veran to save him. She couldn't even bare to think about the chance that she could lose him forever; the two of them had been so close for so long that she could hardly even imagine what life would be like without him. It was for that reason that Zelda was completely resolved to bring Link home no matter what. She would never be able to live with herself if he lost his life because she failed to help him in time.

"Can't sleep?" a sudden voice broke the princess out of her deep train of thought. Slightly startled, Zelda turned her head to see Impa approaching her from the dark upper floor of the house, a small yet weary smile on her face.

"You could say that…" the disguised princess said distractedly, returning her gaze to the flames before her.

The Sheikah was silent for a moment as she took a seat on the floor next to her. "He'll be fine, Zelda," she said reassuringly. "You always worry about him too much."

"I have every reason to worry, Impa!" Zelda exclaimed, turning her attention to her guardian once more. "I know he's fought through untold danger before, but Veran seems to be so much worse than anything either of us have ever faced!" She lowered her voice to a nervous whisper as she glanced down to the ground. "What if… what if I can't save him?"

Impa frowned with pity for the princess, understanding her dread well. "Zelda, let me tell you a little story…" she began, but the princess merely sighed in exasperation.

"Impa, don't you think I'm a little old for a bedtime story?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at the Sheikah guardian.

"It isn't a bedtime story," the Sheikah laughed slightly, shaking her head. "It's something that I think you need to hear right now. Long ago, before Hyrule was even formed, there was a boy and girl who were the very best of friends. The two of them had grown up together, their affection for one another never fading through the years. However, when tragedy struck the pair and the girl was stolen away by evil forces, the boy set out with a resolve to do anything and everything in his power to save her and bring her home. He faced many dangers on his perilous journey and he almost died on many occasions, but he never gave up and he never abandoned hope that he would meet her again. And, through all of his struggles, he finally saved her and the two of them were together again…"

"Impa, I know that story," Zelda frowned, recognizing the tale as one she had studied countless times before. "It's the story of the goddess Hylia and her chosen hero. Everyone in Hyrule knows it, and honestly, I really don't see how that has anything to do with what's happening now."

"Well then, let me tell you another story," Impa said, her cryptic smile widening. "Not too long ago, there was another boy and another girl, this time a princess. When evil fell upon the land and the boy was sealed away for seven years, the princess disguised herself as a Sheikah and took it upon herself to aid the boy when he awakened as a hero. Together, the princess and the hero drove back the darkness and all of the pain that had been wrought upon the kingdom had been undone. In the past, they reunited seven years ago and they have been the best of friends ever since."

Zelda couldn't help but smile softly upon hearing this. "Impa…" she said, rolling her eyes. "I know that's me and Link's story… You don't have to sugar coat it for me."