-Fast forward to a year later-

~

Zelda woke up to sunlight streaming through the window, and she sat up and stretched as she felt Link begin to wake up as well. She watched as his eyes fluttered open and leaned down to kiss his cheek. A lazy grin spread across his face as he sat upright.

The two of them got dressed, putting on clothes that the Gerudo, Rhondson had created for them after they'd hired her to be the castle's official tailor. Hudson had come with her to help work on the restorations.

However, the princess and the knight had stayed at Link's house, since the castle hadn't quite been ready for them. The construction was well under way, though, and the two of them would be living there soon.

After they were dressed and had eaten, they used the Sheikah Slate to head over to Hyrule Castle, as they did most days.

Zelda had been patient. Nothing had changed between her and Link over the last year, as neither of them had attempted to bring up the topic of marriage again. However, she did think about it very often, and she grew more impatient every day. She had nearly forgotten to take his own feelings into consideration.

Time was getting shorter, though, and he would have to choose eventually. They couldn't just keep living the way they were.

Zelda and Link greeted Bolson and the rest of his crew, who were already hard at work. The two of them continued to the throne room, where the princess would sit and have audiences with dozens of citizens for a few hours.

"I'll come see you when I have the chance." She said to him, hastily kissing his lips.

"I'll be looking forward to that." He replied, the corners of his mouth curling into a grin.

"Good luck today." She told him as he untangled his fingers from hers.

"And to you as well." Link gave her one last kiss on the cheek before heading off to the courtyard. He had been training Hyrule's new army as Captain of the Guard, and after a year, things seemed to be working out decently. The Hylians that had been recruited were skilled, loyal, and well prepared to defend their land.

It had been difficult for him at first, since Zelda was often stuck in the throne room and he didn't have as much confidence without her, but he soon grew comfortable. When it came to training, Link was an excellent and knowledgeable leader. He had grown to like his new position. Since he had already done his part as the hero, it was comforting to know that he was still contributing in other ways.

Meanwhile, Zelda sat on her throne and listened as various people from around the kingdom came in and voiced their concerns. As it turned out, her subjects had many more problems and questions than she could have anticipated. It grew tiring quickly, and the princess often became frustrated because she could not fix everything right away. However, it was her duty, and she would help her people as much as she possibly could.

Later that afternoon, she finally found time to go and see Link. She quickly made her way to the courtyard, where she watched as he finished speaking to the army. When he was done, he turned to see Zelda waiting for him. He planted a kiss on her forehead and reached down to hold her hand.

"Have things been going well here today?" She questioned, to which he nodded. "Excellent." She paused, "I myself am exhausted. There are more people and more problems than I ever could have imagined in this kingdom." He gave her a sympathetic look.

"I've run my fair share of errands for many citizens. It can be quite taxing." Link proceeded to give examples to her, such as the arduous task of gathering 55 Rushrooms for an old man at a stable. That story elicited a laugh from his princess.

They spoke for a few more minutes before being interrupted by a Rito courier. The blue feathered messenger greeted them, sinking to a knee before the princess.

"I bring urgent news. I have heard that the Yiga are planning an assault. I even saw them leaving the desert with my own eyes. I believe they are headed toward the castle. That is what the people have said."

Zelda froze. She knew that this was bound to happen eventually; they had not yet crushed the ever-present threat of the Yiga that loomed over the kingdom. And this was the price they would have to pay. The warriors would be stronger and more skilled by now. If they took the castle, there was no telling what terrible fate would befall Hyrule.

"That doesn't give us very much time." She stated. The princess's expression hardened as she hastily devised some form of a plan. She instructed Link to go prepare his army, and for the Rito messenger to tell the Champions that their warriors were needed at the castle.

That night, Zelda had trouble sleeping. She and Link had decided they would set up camp at the castle that night, where they were needed. She didn't stop trying to come up with a solid plan until the middle of the night, and despite her exhaustion then, she couldn't fall asleep. Instead, she paced back and forth while Link tried to reassure her.

"This isn't a big deal," He spoke softly, "We will be able to handle this."

"But what if something goes wrong? I cannot fail my people. Not after I have just returned to them."

"That won't happen." He reassured her, wrapping his arms around her waist. She buried her face in his shoulder and took a deep breath as he ran his fingers through her hair. "I promise."

~

Link and Zelda spent the entirety of the next day preparing the castle for the oncoming attack. They made sure that everybody knew where to go and what to do, and Link helped teach his soldiers as much as he could about the type of warriors that they would be facing.

It was all a lot to handle, but Link tried to help his princess stay as positive as she could. Though there was much work to be done, he knew that her well-being was his first priority.

And the day after that, they waited, knowing the attacks would come soon and the only thing they could do was stand their ground. Despite Link's concerns, Zelda was armed with her bow and ready to fight alongside the others. He was going into battle as well, and she refused to sit back and watch.

Finally, a courier arrived, telling them that they needed to be ready. The soldiers all got into position, preparing for whatever came next. Zelda stayed alongside her knight, and they waited. Soon enough, they heard people approaching the castle.

The Yiga did not hesitate to launch their attack; they initiated the fighting without a single word. Link went to work with his sword, used to the motions, even when fighting the unpredictable warriors of this tribe. Zelda pulled out her bow, picking off more distant enemies as her knight took down the closer ones. Her heart raced with fear, seeing the threats to her people right in front of her.

As the battle continued, more fighters fell. After a while, Zelda noticed that the Yiga were close to breaking through their defenses further away. Without thinking, she rushed toward them, trying to shoot down all of the enemies that she could. Her efforts helped, but that alone was not enough. Already feeling weary, she was not sure if it was wise to expend the last of her energy here, but she was becoming overwhelmed.

Meanwhile, Link fought through the seemingly endless number of enemies, dodging blows left and right and taking down as many as he could. When he got a chance to catch his breath, he noticed that Zelda was not with him. He finally began to panic as he scanned the battlefield. However, he couldn't look for long, as he was fighting for his life. He slashed at several warriors, elbowing and kicking others. A few times, the enemies managed to land hits on him, causing a small amount of damage. But he did not care, because the only thing he could think about was Zelda's safety.

The princess cried out as the tip of an assassin's blade caught her. If she continued to be careless, she would fail. And that was not an option. She used her dwindling powers to send out a surge of energy that brought many surrounding Yiga warriors down. She could finally breathe as she sank to her knees, feeling weak. The air around her was oddly silent as she sat, hoping that she would have time to regain her strength before the enemy caught up.

Link continued to fight, feeling weariness threatening him. However, he kept going because he needed to find Zelda.

"Where is the princess?!" He shouted to the other soldiers, his usually calm voice full of fire. "Where is Zelda?!" He took down another warrior, wiping the blood and sweat from his brow. He got no answer, but still he did not stop. If he had to kill every single enemy himself to find her, then that's what he would do.

After a period of fighting that felt agonizingly long, what was left of the Yiga had fallen back. Link looked around frantically, trying to take in his surroundings. The princess was not in his sight and his heart began to race as he felt dread in the pit of his stomach. His blade involuntarily dropped from his shaking hands, fearful and angry tears forming in his eyes.

"Where... is she?" He asked his soldiers once more, his voice weak and desperate. The men had no words for him, only looked upon their leader with sympathy.

He was terrified; he had no idea what had happened to Zelda and he was worried sick that something had gone wrong. Finally, he caught sight of a group of people gathered around something,and he briskly made his way over, despite his burning lungs that were seemingly empty of air. Sure enough, the princess was there, kneeling on the ground and breathing deeply. She looked weary and defeated, however her eyes lit up as she saw her knight approach.

"Link!" She exclaimed as he knelt down beside her. He felt a huge weight lift off of his chest as he wrapped his arms around her tightly and she melted into his embrace. He realized that if he couldn't even stand to be away from her for that long, if he had grown that worried, then perhaps he had been making a mistake when he ever doubted his faith in himself. He took a moment to breathe her in again, to relax knowing that they would be okay. And then he finally said the words that she'd been waiting to hear ever since they were reunited.

"Marry me."

~

A/N- this is such a lame way to wrap it all up forgive me. But anyways there's an epilogue after this which I will probably put up soon and then he on the lookout for a new LOZ story from me which is gonna be fudging awesome!! I'm drawing up some "official art" for it currently as well ;)