"Yes."

(I failed you, she thinks, but doesn't say, because she should know better than to think it, really. He's alive. She succeeded.

...should've succeeded faster, though.

Story of her life.)

"Mm."

(I failed you, he thinks, but doesn't say, because for all that happened, she still trusts him.

She ended up awakening her powers in time, but a different roll of the dice, and she would be dead.

He was meant to protect her.)

He lifts the ash to his nose and smells.

And he lurches back.

She reaches for him instinctively, then stops, uncertain. She thinks she has a pretty good idea of what he must be remembering. She doesn't know what she should be doing about it.

"You were so..."

He closes his eyes.

"...bright."

"...I suppose I was," she murmurs. "I wasn't really thinking about it, at the time."

"I'm sorry," he says quietly. The words feel useless and empty. "Should've..."

Should have what? Stupid.

"I should've done my duty sooner," she says, blinking tears from her eyes. "If that stupid lump of evil snot hadn't had time to ruin everything before I bottled him up then we could've solved all this already and you would be fine and Fort Hateno would be fine and there wouldn't be herds of abandoned horses roaming the plains."

Link is not sure about that spin, but he doesn't have the context to make an argument against.

"No point dwelling on it," he says. "The people looked—happy." His eyes snag on a herd walking off in the distance. "The horses don't mind."

Mistakes heal, is what he means to say.

She blinks a few more times, then nods firmly.

"You're right," she says, getting up and pointlessly dusting herself off even though she is of course completely spotless. "Let's go."

Link follows, now glancing at the Guardians as they pass with a different look in his eyes. His hand remains on his sword.

Zelda is walking more alertly, too, even though they really aren't in that much more danger now than they were a few minutes ago. Well, it's generally a good idea to be on your guard around Guardians even if they're obviously defunct. Just in case.

Most of the horses are gathered around the ponds, difficult to sneak up on without alerting the whole herd, but if they go far enough away from the road, there will be some lone horses bold enough to wander off on their own.

One of them is facing a big rock, gormandizing berries from a poor bush, looking eminently botherable.

"Do we have anything to feed it that horses like to eat?" she wonders, rummaging around in her pockets. Apples, the stable guy said. Did she get any apples? She should sit down and write out a full inventory at some point. And then keep it up to date. Just as soon as she finds writing materials.

Yup, Link gave her an apple early on and immediately stopped carrying them. They're everywhere on the Great Plateau and useful in a pinch to eat raw, but not very filling for how much space they take up.

"I'll jump on and lead it over for you to feed?"

She nods. ...and then hands him an apple. "Just in case," she says.

Then he will store the apple and exercise sneaking to get behind the horse, watching his footsteps to not crunch any grass...

...and pounce.

The horse rears up, uprooting the bush it was victimising, and lets out an distressed neigh. It bucks and bucks, trying to get its assailant off its back.

Link holds on for dear life and strokes the horse the way he knows to calm them, murmuring shh shh shhhhh—

OH NO it's the funny two-leg people. She knows what happens to horses that get taken by the funny two-leg people! They get those ridiculous straps put on them and have to tow the rolly things and have people sitting on them ALL THE TIME.

Though this two-leg is... pretty light, actually. And is making nice noises. She shakes her mane and staggers to and fro, but... oh, that's a good spot.

...Apple?

...She's sold. FOR NOW.

(Is this really how horses work???)

Link leads the chastised horse over to Zelda.

Zelda cautiously attempts apple, just in case it helps. She really does not feel confident at all in her strange animal-taming powers.

Apple!! She decides that this girl is very friend-shaped and nuzzles her after she's done munching down the apple. Much better than the horrible thing that jumped on her back.