My first fanfic. :) Please enjoy! Reviews greatly appreciated.
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. Nintendo does.
A Hyrule Hitch
chapter one: another day
Sometimes, I honestly wondered if I had a say in anything.
"Father, I swear to the goddesses, you shouldn't do th-"
"Nonsense, dear. I have ruled this land for many, many years now, and you, my precious Zelda, have not. I know what I'm doing."
"Father. I told you about my dream. Are you really going to let yourself become so ignorant?" I demanded, feeling quite exasperated. Last time this happened, guess who had been right? Oh, yes, that was me. Guess who saved his royal ass from death? Oh, yes, that was me, with the help of Link, of course. I felt an inward shiver. The mere spark of that name in my head created oodles of mental images, but I pushed them away and went back to the task at hand. Not that I got very far.
"Zelda. Quit being so ridiculous." And with that, my father, the foolish King, pushed me out of his counseling parlor and into the corridor.
The lock clicked. I shook my head and sighed.
Unfortunately for me, I had been having bad dreams again - no clear cut premonitions, mind you - but it was enough to tell me that whatever my father was doing, it was...well, for lack of a better word, just plain wrong. I went to Impa about it right away, but Impa was acting strange. I wasn't surprised by this, because every few months she'd stop speaking and go through intense fasting cycles. My guess was that it was some kind of Sheikan ritual; I'd never asked because she'd been doing this odd ritual since I was born. It was irritating that this behavior had come in such an untimely manner, but what could one do?
"Well, um, later Impa."
Silence was the reply. I shut the door quietly and made my way to the stairs.
"Well, well, what would one have to do to court the lovely Princess Zelda?" drawled a loud voice on the corner of the corridor. I glanced back, and groaned silently. The guard who stood there from six in the morning to noon was quite possibly the most irritating, cocky, and sometimes perverted out of the bunch that are hired to stand around all day. Most think that the guards reflect more or less the same personality, but this guy was the epitome of the opposite. Often, he was the reason I spent the majority of my day on the upper floors of the Castle. He is that petulant.
Finding myself unable to ignore the fellow - mostly out of my polite character, I turned slowly on the spot and gave the guard a steely stare. He grinned cockily, knowing I could not be rude enough to continue walking. The expected manners of a princess, I cursed myself. And now, the twit was expecting an answer. After another silent moment of something close to glaring, I inhaled. My close-lipped smile masked the vexation I was feeling. I could tell by his expression that he was expecting me to play along.
"Perhaps not be an egotistical, conceited servant of the Royalty," I replied coolly. The twit's grin faltered momentarily, and I knew he had not been expecting such a harsh response. Other days, I would have chuckled politely and put up with this guy, but I was still riled from my father's growing ignorance. Before the guard could answer, I turned on my heel and dismissed the short lived conversation.
On the way up the staircase, I knew that had been a low blow. Insulting one's personality and job was not something that the Princess Zelda did. Shaking my head, I swallowed my guilt and went back to my chamber.
About an hour later I came back down, knowing full well the annoying guard, Rido, was gone. I wandered to the courtyard, where it was nice and shady during the afternoons. I picked a flower and twirled it between my fingers, worrying about my father. A soft pad on the grass pulled me out of my reverie, and I looked up.
It's hard not to feel butterflies at the sight of Link. There was just something about those river blue eyes that were so intensely passionate; the slow, easy smile on his lips; and messy blonde hair poking out from beneath his cap. I knew for a fact I was not the only girl in Hyrule that swooned over the sight of this man in tights. Granted, I hid it very well, but I felt it every time I saw him.
He didn't say anything when he sat down next to me - maybe my smile was enough of a greeting? Or was he waiting to greet me? Already, I was obsessing about how I looked. Was a braid slightly loose? Anything in my teeth? Cross your legs, Zelda. Sit up a little more. Tilt your chin towards him. Smile with your eyes.
He poked my shoulder. "Hey."
"Hi," I said, almost breathlessly. Well, that's how it sounded to me. Maybe I hadn't lost my composure yet.
He studied me for a moment, and I almost melted and panicked at the same time. "You looked deep in thought. What's wrong?" he asked gently. Goddesses, no woman deserves this angel of a man.
I looked away, my stomach still flipping from staring into those endless blue eyes. I twirled the flower again. "My father," I began, and unconsciously slumped a bit. "He is foolish and attempting to find other kingdoms. Conquer them, I mean. Like...Termina." I looked back up to see his reaction.
He raised an eyebrow. "Termina?"
"Yeah, I know. I told him he can't find it. You found it by accident, and I don't know why he's being so imprudent and selfish. Hyrule is more than we need."
He crossed his arms, and looked away thoughtfully. "Termina is beautiful, and not run by any king that I know...Perhaps that is the weakness he finds desirable."
I nodded. "That's what I thought too, but this just seems unlike him. Termina, from what you've told me, has a hefty amount of people. Enough to match Hyrule, though not in size of land. This is just...wrong and unlike him. And he won't listen." I began plucking the petals from the flower. He loves me, he loves me not...
"Hm." He was still a hundred miles away.
"And... bad dreams again too. No premonitions, but... yeah." I dropped what was left of the flower. I didn't like thinking about those dreams. Waking up from them was awful. They were so realistic, and I'd wake up thrashing in a feverish sweat, tears running down my face... I shuddered.
Link was staring at me again. "Really?"
I sighed. "Yeah. Impa is in weird ritual mode now too." I looked back down at the ground. He knew what I was talking about.
He leaned back. "No wonder you were looking so forlorn. Don't worry Zelda, I'll help you figure this out," He smiled reassuringly, and I wanted to hug him. If only he knew about this little girl crush I had on him. So I just smiled back instead.
"Thanks Link. I mean it."
"Anything for you."
I laughed. "Be careful with what you say, now."
We walked out of the courtyard together with me feeling much better.
