Life in Zora's Domain - Part Two

Chapter 6 - Astra and the Master Sword

Summary: Astra unites with the Master Sword from the Lost Woods.

It was late in the evening at Hyrule Castle when the meeting with Zelda, Purah, and Astra ended, and they walked together to the living quarters. As a friend and trusted advisor, Purah always stayed in one of the family bedrooms whenever she visited. And it made even more sense for Astra to do so as well. So Purah said goodnight first and went to her room as Astra and Zelda continued walking down the hallway.

"You said this was your room?" said Zelda as they reached the empty bedroom two doors down from her own room.

"Yes, my older sister had the one between yours and this one," said Astra.

"Would you prefer this room or the one next to mine?"

"The one next to yours," said Astra. "I will never forget my past, but I want to move forward now. Also, I can protect you better if I'm closer."

"That's true. I guess I keep forgetting your other side," said Zelda with a smile. "Of course, you can have the room next to mine."

Zelda stopped to speak to one of the guards on duty and asked them to request the housekeeping staff have the room next to hers made up.

"Please join me in my room until yours is ready," said Zelda. "It won't take long. And while I think of it, let me inform my chief of staff, Myra, that I will need to take another day off tomorrow, after all. I hadn't planned on such an eventful day."

Zelda went to her desk and composed a short note, which she then gave to one of the guards in the hallway to slip under Myra's door. That allowed Astra to glance around the room in the meantime. There was the usual collection of bedroom furniture, as well as a desk and a large bookcase. She noticed a wedding picture on the end table by the bed and some paintings of scenic Hyrule locations on the walls.

Then, on the far wall, a picture she recognized caught Astra's eye, and she approached it. It was the picture of Zelda, Link, and the Champions that Purah took after the Champions Inauguration ceremony with King Rhoam over 125 years ago. Link had the same picture hanging in his Mikau Lake house, for it portrayed one of the pre-calamity events that overlapped both timelines. Of course, the picture was more poignant in this timeline, as Zelda was the only one in the picture still alive here.

"Yes, I imagine you would have seen that picture too, and it's a miracle it survived," said Zelda, coming to Astra's side. "I still remember it, how keen Mipha was to have a picture with Link. It used to hang on a wall in his house in Hateno Village, but I moved it here after he left. It helps me to better remember all of them. I suppose it should go back to Link's house when I'm gone. Oh, Link's house is a small museum now, by the way."

"I should like to visit his old house sometime, and yes, my father cherishes that picture," said Astra. "He would say it was a happy moment of togetherness."

"Yes, Daruk certainly brought us together," laughed Zelda. "Most of us laughed, but Mipha was breathless, and Revali fit to be plucked over his perceived loss of dignity. He made some remark about Daruk being big but having never grown up."

Zelda paused as she looked at the picture and sighed, then spoke up again.

"Speaking of the past, I noticed something in our meeting, a topic you glossed over a bit," said Zelda. "I also saw you glance at Dr. Purah as if to see if she noticed."

"Yes?"

"When we were speaking about your father, you described Link as a man in his early forties, which is what he would be if he were still here," said Zelda. "But based upon the dates you mentioned earlier in the conversation, that you left in the year 58, Link would be closer to sixty years old by then."