Contemplations

So this is me messing around with what I have considered while playing BotW. Like, you know, how traumatic it would be to have zero memories of anything, and stuff. Multiple bits and pieces here and there most likely. Maybe this will become an actual story. We'll see.

Chapter 1: Silence

Two Months After Ganon's Defeat

Link sat atop a small hill a few steps down the road from Dueling Peaks Stable, overlooking the rolling plains between the stable and the Hateno Fort. A gentle breeze swept across the valley, moving the grass like waves on the sea. Everything was so... Calm. There hadn't been a single monster for days. Most of them had gone in to hiding-- they no longer had Ganon to revive them every blood moon-- and now Link felt bored, suprisingly.

After all the wandering, fighting, helping out random strangers in his quest to save a Princess and kingdom he vaguely remembered, he was bored. He let out a small sigh, turning around in the direction of the small stables. He recalled the first time he stumbled across the place. Link had been so confused then. The only thing he remembered was his name, and King Rhoam's spirit had tasked him with a such a heavy burden... His gaze wandered to Zelda, who was playing with the two children who had taught Link to tame a horse. She laughed with the twins, and Link smiled a little.

This was their second trip into this region to check on Hateno and Kakariko, both of which had sent letters reporting of significant growth. Link mostly kept to himself on these trips, he didn't know what there really was to talk about. He let Zelda do most of the talking for him. She knew better how to handle things like that better than he did, after all. He was basically just her bodyguard at this point.

Not that he minded this, it was a better job than helping to clean up the castle, though on more than once occasion he had been called to help kill some pack of 'Blins or Lizalfos who had taken residence in some part of the structure. But he missed having a real... purpose.

He watched the grass move with the wind, spotting a few small animals and a goat or two feeding on the plants. He didn't know how much time passed before Zelda called his name.

"Link, aren't you going to come eat?" She asked from one of the chairs next to the small cooking pot outside the stable. Link nods, and walks over to the warm fire where everyone else was, eating some Hearty Radish Soup. He was offered a bowl, which he accepted.

He stood behind Zelda as she spoke with the workers, the conversation was mostly small talk, where are you going, what are you going to do, that sort of thing. Again, Link let her do the talking, he had no reason to butt in.

He finished his bowl, and set it aside, staying by the fire a little longer to warm up before walking towards his horse, who was feeding on some apples the two children had left her. He patted the neck of the creature, who let out a snort and lifted her head to look at Link.

"Hey Raindrop, wanna go for a ride?" He asked the horse. He had named her Raindrop because he happened to have finally managed to tame her in the middle of the rain, she seemed to like the rain as well. Raindrop let out a quiet neigh, which Link decided to take as a yes.

He mounted the horse, and urged her forward at a trot with a flick of the reigns. He had been riding her since he first stumbled across the Dueling Peaks Stable, she was the horse he had tamed during the unofficial "Second Hyrule Horse Training Tournament". She was completely dark brown, with white fur around her hooves, and a white mane. A beautiful horse.

He rode her along the road a-ways before turning off into the field, littered with Guardians and old, decayed pillars of stone that Link could only guess the purpose of. 'I should ask Zelda about them.' He thought. 'No, she's probably tired of my questions by now...' Since Zelda was the only one of the two who had their memories intact, he had asked her many times already about 100 years ago. He'd asked about the Champions, her father, all the ruins he had stumbled across...

Now, she wasn't the only one he had asked. Impa, Purah, King Doran, Prince Sidon, anyone who was alive back then. They'd all gladly taken his questions... But there was one nobody could answer. Who was Link before he became a Champion? The only thing Zelda knew was that he was a well known and skilled swordfighter in the Hylian army before he had been chosen, but that wasn't enough for Link. His whole identity was locked away from him, his parents, where he grew up, childhood friends, everything.

And what little he did remember heavily biased the way he spoke of things. He still had trouble being around Zelda constantly. She had always seemed to dislike him so much, and even though it seemed to his fragmented memory as though that had begun to change somewhat towards the end, he still felt like she didn't trust him.

Raindrop rode past the spot where he recovered his last memory. The ancient husks of the Guardians clambering atop eachother, all aiming their gaze at a single spot, right where Link and Zelda had been standing all those years ago. He had died, and yet here he was, looking on this spot, as safe as can be. It felt weird. It always felt weird to come across spots like this. He spurred Raindrop onward, looking away from the site.

He road across the field to Fort Hateno, and let Raindrop take a break under the shade of the trees on the other side, while he lit a fire underneath the cooking pot next to the gate and sat down. The cool night air nipped at his nose as he warmed himself by the fire. He forgot to bring his hood on this little ride, but he'd be fine. He'd been in colder places.

His eyelids began to feel heavy. It was dark by now, and he needed to rest. The stable was still very close but... Link felt very comfortable against this tree, the fire warming him as he sat there. 'I'll sleep here...' He yawned. 'And try to get back to Zelda before morning so we can finish the trip...' His eyes slowly closed, as he drifted off to sleep.

"Link..." He heard a voice say as he slowly woke up, his eyes still closed. 'Zelda. I forgot to wake up early.' He yawns, looking up to see her in her usual attire looking down at him. "Finally. I was beginning to think you were ignoring me. What are you doing all the way out here?" She asked, hands on her hips.

"I went for a ride, and lost track of time." He shrugged, rubbing his eyes. He stood up, dusting his bright blue tunic off. Raindrop was standing next to Zelda's pure white horse, and let out a huff, as though she was equally confused by Link's actions.

"Well come on, we're already late and you haven't had breakfast." She turned to walk towards her horse.

"I'll eat when we get there." He replies, walking up to his own horse and producing a carrot, which he fed to her, patting her head.

"Are you sure? I'd hate for you to go hungry like that." She looked at him, tilting her head.

"I'll be fine. I'm not hungry right now anyways." Link climbed into the saddle Raindrop's back after she had finished the carrot, and Zelda did the same.

"If you say so." She says, before clicking her tounge and tugging on the reigns, making her horse turn around and begin heading forward. Link followed without another word.

So, this was actually alot of fun to write. I am totally continuing it. Please R and R, and I'll see you all next time! Hope you enjoyed!

-ALXNDR