There was almost no sound as Zelda ascended the stairs, the thick red carpet absorbing the noise. The guards had remained at the bottom of the tower, and she had been left to climb the stairway alone.

She didn't knock. She didn't give him the opportunity to turn her away like the others. Instead, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Her father sat at a desk reading a book. He didn't look up.

"You could at least acknowledge me." Her tone came out harsher than she meant, and she winced at her poor start.

He moved slowly, almost insultingly so, and placed the book neatly on his lap before looking out the window.

"I could see the battle from here. Not the details, but I saw the scale of it. I saw that light, and I knew it was you. Of all my daughters, you would be the one gifted with the Goddess' power."

She wasn't sure if that was meant to be an insult or not and chose to move past the subject.

"We defeated him. Link was the one meant to wield the sword. He fought to protect Gerudo City, then fought to end Ganondorf here."

Her father's eyes moved to her, dark and unwavering. "I am sure he will be back. He always finds a way."

Ruta had told her he was still bitter and angry about how things had transpired: betrayed by his own children. Zelda had come to learn that her father was a self-righteous and paranoid man. His comments didn't shock her anymore.

"I am sure we will fight him back then, if it falls within our lifetime."

"It's unlike you to be so optimistic. That trait typically fell to Mira, or Ruta."

Zelda shrugged, taking in the uncomfortable silence. After a long time, it was clear he had nothing left to say to her. She walked up to him, trying her best to hide the lingering disappointment.

"Link is going to rest a day or so, and then I'm going to leave. We're going to stay in the desert. We're going to rebuild the city with his mother and people." She paused, waiting for some sort of reaction, but received none. "If this is how you would like to leave things, then you will have to live with that. I wanted to give you the opportunity to speak your side."

Her father remained silent, watching her.

"You don't have an explanation? You can't justify it? I have to admit, I don't understand what you were trying to accomplish."

"The Gerudo are not the same as us. They have a history of thievery and betrayal. They were bandits. People like that cannot be trusted or given power. They had too much freedom, and I needed to be able to keep a closer eye on them. You would have kept an eye on things from within their monarchy while the movement of Hylians into the desert would have kept them in line. It would have diluted things. Eventually they would completely fall under our rule. They would have no special laws or ways of life." He paused, his eyes moving along the high ceilings. "We are made in the image of Hylia. The Great Goddess. We are the pinnacle of her creation."

"You know, Ganondorf said something similar. I think it was why he hated us so much."

Their eyes met briefly, though she could not see any sort of emotion behind his. "What I did was right. I was right not to trust him, or his mother, or his people. I did what was best for Hyrule."

Zelda didn't reply. She gathered her skirts and walked out the door, closing it quietly behind her.

"Get it together, Mira. Stop ogling him. It's totally inappropriate." Lota elbowed her younger sister in the ribs, smirking.

Mira practically glowed red with embarrassment. She glanced at Zelda before turning on Lota. "I'm not ogling! He's just dressed so provocatively!"

Her eyes darted back to Link, kneeling on the steps, before moving away in embarrassment.

"He's dressed in traditional Gerudo armour, you dolt." Anna said flatly.

Mira huffed, straightening her skirts and veil.

"That's a bit much, no?" Lota spoke up once more, fluffing up the lacy cloth that covered Mira's face.

"I'm showing respect, Lota. What are you doing?"

Anna rolled her eyes. "Succeeding in bothering you, as always. Don't you ever catch on?"

"Girls." The Queen Mother hissed under her breath, exasperated. "I had forgotten what it is to have you all under the same roof. Your sister, and Queen, is speaking."

Zelda smiled at her mother, not missing the faint amusement in her eyes. Despite the position their father had put her in, their mother remained resilient. She had assisted Ruta where she needed it and, though she may have worried her sensitive nature could impede her ability to rule, the opposite ended up being the case. She was a sympathetic ally to Ruta, and their demeanors were so alike that it most likely provided the support she needed. Their mother almost always seemed to understand.

Together, Ruta and Zelda's mother had thought a memorial to honour the heroes of battle and the lives of those lost would be best. The entire royal family had gathered in the sanctum, and hundreds of citizens had arrived to pay their respects to the fallen soldiers and glorious heroes.

Only one day prior, Ruta had sentenced all of the remaining Yiga. They were vastly outnumbered after Ganondorf's defeat, and the soldiers easily rounded them up. With the heavy task of punishment behind them, a day of remembrance and celebration seemed a fitting end.

Link and several others were being honoured for their contributions to the battle. Each knelt before Ruta and Alrich on the steps before the throne, accepting their thanks.

Ruta addressed Link first, signalling for him to stand.

"In all of our history, there has never been a Gerudo Knight of Hyrule. It is with great honour that I bestow the title on you, the first. Hyrule owes thanks to you, your mother, and your people. You fought valiantly to protect your home, an important piece of Hyrule."

She turned to Liana, who knelt beside Link.

"Liana, you fought tirelessly to protect Gerudo City and, close to my own heart, Hyrule's youngest princess. You put your life in danger to bring us invaluable information regarding Ganondorf's plans. Without your sacrifices, Ganondorf may have succeeded in overthrowing the Kingdom of Hyrule. For this, you will be granted an honorary title of Knight of Hyrule, the first woman to achieve such a title."

Zelda bit her lip, trying to hold back her laughter. Liana gave Link a smirk, raising a brow as Ruta moved onto Garini, a man who had helped hide a group of civilians in his barn when the Yiga moved through Hyrule Field.

"Look at her. It's gone straight to her head." Anna said with a faint half smile.

"She's probably going to demand another raise." Lota added.

"We suffered heavy losses, but we have always recovered."

Zelda jumped a little, surprised by Saula's voice. She had been lost in thought, watching from the palace steps as the women in the city worked to rebuild.

Gerudo City was a different place than when she left. The front half of the city was a mixture of ash and blood. The trees that lined the central square had fallen or burnt away, and the delicate blue tiles that lined the pools of water had been shattered and lost. Every once and a while Zelda would catch a glimpse of blue where it shouldn't be – on a roof, or in the leaves of a potted plant. Some houses had crumbled, and almost everything flammable had been burned away. When Kotake died, and her soldiers turned to ash, they covered the city in a thick black soot.

"The sand is still stained red with our fallen sisters. Even when they are whisked away in the wind, we will remember. We will walk where they fell, and we'll remember." She gripped Zelda's fingers in her own, squeezing tight.

One of the merchants in the square looked up, meeting Zelda's eye. She gave a curt nod before continuing on – propping up the re-sewn canopy of her shop.

"Liana told me what Ganondorf said to you both."

She turned to Saula, a mixture of shock and embarrassment. Despite how horrible a man he was, he had been right. She could understand why he would be angry and insulted by her. She was an outsider, and she walked into his ancestral home – somewhere only his people had flourished - and took the place of a leader.

Zelda hadn't forgotten his words.

"I feel no less Gerudo working alongside a Hylian. It is not an insult. Each of us in this city has worked and fought for the desert. We have paid our rent in blood. Some more than others. You did not walk in here expecting to be worshiped." Saula's eye narrowed with conviction. "You have earned your place here with the rest of us. Don't give his words a home in your head. That dead thief doesn't know anything about you, let alone his own people." Saula burst into loud laughter then. "He was such a terrible Gerudo, not even the desert sand wanted his body. He keeps dying in Hyrule Field, the idiot."

Zelda was in the middle of a fit of laughter when Link approached.

"Are you ready?"

Saula composed herself, releasing Zelda's hand. "Go and enjoy the afternoon. Tomorrow you won't be able to escape the rebuilding. We'll be scrubbing walls for weeks."

After a quick farewell, the two slipped out of the city through the barracks, where a sand seal lazed in the sun.

"Only one?" Zelda asked as she watched Link place a shield in the sand.

He nodded. "Like the first time."

"And where are we going?"

She stepped onto the shield, picking up the reins and handing them to Link as he extended his arms around her.

The mischievous glint to his eye had returned, and he gave her a small smile. "Somewhere you've yet to go."

He snapped the thick leather, and she nearly fell into him as they took off. This time, it seemed, he was much less cautious with her as a passenger.

Link weaved and bobbed over and around the sand dunes. They curved east around the back of the racing track, speeding past the empty arena. They descended into a shallow valley, and Zelda thought he was about to show her the remains of whatever beasts had lived there. As they flew past the massive bones though, something else came into view.

Link slowed their seal as they slid into a ring of massive statues.

Seven women towered over them, most resting the tip of a stone sword in the sand below. They were as tall as the canyon walls, each carved in impressive detail. Over time, it seemed their features had faded. Some were missing noses, their features smoothed by the sands. At one time, it appeared they had been adorned in bright jewels and paint.

Zelda tried to imagine the Heroines after their completion, glowing under the desert sun.

"Do you like this place?" Link spoke from somewhere over her shoulder, though she did not look to see where.

She only nodded in reply, speechless.

"For some reason, the Gerudo never come here anymore. These are just ruins now." He moved past her, slowly making his way to the steps of an old shrine. "They are probably the most impressive thing my people have built."

Zelda moved to the centre of the ruins, sitting beside him on the cold stone steps. "It's probably the most impressive thing in Hyrule. I swear these are taller than the Divine Beasts. It's a bit of a shame how all of these things are now unused or forgotten."

"One day we will rebuild them."

Zelda tore her eyes away from the monuments. She wondered if he had been watching her the whole time. He reached up, moving his fingertips across the bruises around her throat.

"He told me you were dead."

Their eyes met. "I'm sorry you believed it, and I'm sorry it took me so long to come."

She shook her head and waved a dismissive hand. "It doesn't even matter now, does it?"

His fingers fell from her throat to the chain she wore, pulling at it until the delicate pink flower rest in his palm.

"I saw your light across the battlefield. I had no idea where you were, or if you were safe. I was alone and didn't know what to do, but then there was that beam of light. I knew I had to get to you before he did." He laughed a bit. "I didn't accomplish that, but I should have known you could hold your own against him. You always have against anything."

He shifted a little, and Zelda got the sense he was itching to say more. He seemed apprehensive, so she waited, giving him the time find a path forward. Eventually, he shifted his eyes to hers once more.

"The tree in the garden…" he faltered, his brows creasing in frustration. That was not what he wanted. "I mean, you said that the tree reminded you of how much your great great grandfather loved your great great grandmother. In a strange sort of way, these statues…or the Heroines at least, remind me of you. They led me to love you."

Zelda could only sit and watch him. Nothing, she was sure, was equal to what he was trying to say.

"In the temple, and showing you the statue in the sand. Every day of the festival. Everything you did added up until I realized I loved you. I didn't need an arrangement to want to marry you. I didn't need anything else other than you. The night of Movement...the way you danced and laughed and looked at me. I loved you. I don't know why I didn't say it. I should have." He looked up at the faces above him. "They remind me every time I see them how much I love you. Like the garden your great great grandfather built, this place holds all of my love for you."

She smiled a little, mirroring the mischievous glint in his eye. "It's a bit over the top."

He smiled his classic half-smile. "When we first came to the desert you asked me if this was a choice I would have made for myself. Most Gerudo don't marry, and you had asked if I would have wanted to be with one person for forever. I said yes. Marrying for love is something I would have been able to choose. You had replied that this was always what was set out for you though. If it wasn't me, it would be some other Lord or Prince from wherever. You'd be married off to someone your father approved of and wanted. Now that there isn't really an arrangement, I wonder if you still want this? You're no longer bound to stay here."

She was shocked. "You don't think I want to stay with you?"

He laughed, and Zelda couldn't help but see his mother in him. "No. I do. I think so, at least. I just…I want you to decide. The women here have a say in their futures and roles. I want you to make that choice. I'm not going to take that away from you." He fumbled around for a moment before pulling a small ring from his pocket. It was a plain band of gold, but there seemed to be tiny engravings on it, swirling and sparkling in the light. "It seems right to ask if you would marry me. Would you like to be married?" He seemed nervous, shifting his eyes away from her.

Zelda felt the laughter bubble up within her until she could no longer contain it. For a moment, Link looked horrified.

"Of course." She leaned towards him, placing her palms on his cheeks and bringing his forehead to rest against hers. "I would absolutely choose you. You, and the desert, and the sands."

So that's it. The end.

It's a strange feeling to finish something like this. It was my first fanfiction in probably 13 years, and it was a much larger undertaking than I anticipated (though I realize it probably isn't even that long). I really had to work to get it finished, and though I'm a bit sad to see the story and characters go, I'm ready to move on. I'm so happy that so many of you have loved the things I loved writing the most - specifically Anna, Lota and Liana.

To the 99 of you who have followed this story - thank you so much. I appreciate every follow, every favorite, and every review or DM. I never for a moment thought that anyone would be interested in what I had to write, so all of you really are amazing.

For now, I'm going to go back and edit the first half of this story. It's clear to me now that the first several chapters were written rather poorly, and I intend to improve certain parts of that. One main thing being the King.

I'm also going to begin writing my next story. If you've looked at my profile, you'll have seen I plan to write something about Sheik. Like with the Gerudo, I've been fascinated by Sheik and the Sheikah in general (For real. I have the Sheikah eye tattoo). So, I would like to explore her and the tribe a bit more. I plan to focus on her training, her friendship with Impa, a growing romance with Link, and writing more with Ganondorf. I hope that some of you will be into what I have planned next, and I'd love to hear your ideas for that story!

Thank you again if you've made it this far. You're all superb!