Until The Last Breath

10 - Let's Get Some ShUtEyE

Zelda didn't want Link to let go of her hand so soon, and when he did, her hand felt cold.

It sounded childish, but she was scared. Ganondorf being alive and here brought back bad memories.

She couldn't help but think of her father...what had happened to him back at the castle? Did Ganondorf know? If she asked him, would he tell her what happened to him? Did she even really want to know?

She followed Link, making sure not to look back at Ganon who was walking behind them. She wanted to make sure that he saw that they weren't concerned about him whatsoever, and that he needed them if he was going to get anything done in Gerudo Town.

"You want to stay the night here?" Zelda asked, seeing that Link was leading them to an inn in Kakariko Village. "I'll join you guys later, but...I trust you not to kill Ganondorf while I'm gone."

Link snorted and mumbled, "No promises."

Zelda gave him a soft smile, then made her way to Impa's home. She needed to tell her that she and Link had dealt with the cave situation. Hopefully Impa would handle the whole Ganon-coming-back-to-life thing well.

"Oh, Princess!" Paya exclaimed as she opened the door. "How...how nice it is to see you again. Is your...is your knight with you?"

"No," Zelda said, wondering why Paya cared. "He's at Shuteye Inn. I need to speak with Impa, is she available?"

Paya nodded. "Of course! Let me just...let you in."

Zelda stepped into their house and was surprised to see Purah there.

"Princess!" she exclaimed. "Or should I say Queen of Hyrule?"

Zelda knew Purah meant well, but the thought of her being Queen reminded her that she had lost her father. It had been a century, yet the pain felt the same.

"Princess is okay for now. Besides, we don't know if everyone will be okay with me becoming Queen..."

"Anyone who doesn't is foolish, my dear," Impa said, stepping into the room. "You could ask Nayru herself and she'd say you deserve it."

A small smile appeared on Zelda's face. "Impa! How are you?"

"As good as the last time you saw me."

"That's good. Unfortunately, I have some...not so good news. Actually, I'm not so sure what kind of news this is. It could be taken as bad, or as nothing at all. But I personally think—"

"So what happened, Zelda?"

"Link and I went inside the cave that was giving some problems...and we figured out what it was."

"That's brilliant!" Purah beamed. "What was it? A lynel? A moblin?"

"Calamity Ganon. In a way."

Everyone went silent, waiting for Zelda to say it was a joke. She didn't.

"What?" Impa finally spoke.

"It was technically Ganondorf. He kind of split from Calamity Ganon, the malice leaving part of him. I don't know how to explain it, but he seems...not bad. He doesn't seem to want to destroy Hyrule or anything...he just wants to go to Gerudo Town."

Purah blinked. "And...and you're taking him? I mean, not only can he not get in but he's Ganondorf."

Zelda sighed. "I know, and I'm trying to think of what to do about it. Right now we're all staying in Shuteye Inn."

Paya gasped. "There's no need, Princess. You...you and Master Link can stay here! Ganondorf can have a room."

Zelda tried to conceal her surprise when Paya said 'Master Link'. What was that all about?