XIV: A Century Ago

After the Calamity

Zelda's POV:

I thought about it. A lot. The first time we kissed...

Holding Ganon back for 100 years left me alone with my own thoughts for quite a while.

For so long I resented Link. I don't even know why. From the moment when I first saw him when we were kids... I wanted to be better than him. I never was.

I never really even knew him until he became my knight. I merely observed him- noticed him more than the other knights, I guess. I was furious that he was so successful.

I guess trying to be better than him was so hard because falling for him was so easy. I loved him. When we were together I forgot about everything- my father, my failures, even the Calamity... I never once wanted to be better than him when I felt so strongly for him.

He was so... easy. Easy to love. I was confused and frustrated with him in the beginning. His silence... I couldn't understand. But he was so gentle. I was never scared when I was with him.

He was my first... everything. First kiss. It felt like I was never even allowed to look at boys when I was in the castle. Granted, there weren't many to look at anyway, but that made it worse. I was always alone. After my mother died, the fun ended. I grew up too fast.

Link was my fun. Link was everything to me for a while. And just like that... he didn't even know who I was. The most important person in the world to me didn't even know my name.

Sending him to the Shrine of Resurrection was necessary... but it was painful. I knew he would wake up with no memory. No memory of us. I thought about him every moment of everyday and he didn't think of me once.

I watched him on his journeys. I saw his dedication grow, I saw him become stronger after every defeated monster. He let loose on them- when I was with him, he let them keep their lives. He didn't remember that though.

Everything was destroyed by Ganon many years ago- there was little to lose at that point. I knew as the princess I had a duty to protect Hyrule... but my motivation to seal Ganon was Link. I prayed everyday to Hylia that she would keep him safe so that one day, maybe, I could be with Link once more. I just wanted to look him in the eyes. Everything that transpired between us was nearly a century ago- it seemed like it didn't even happen. I needed reassurance that it did.