This is a gift fic for the lovely CarlileLovesAnime (one of the awesomest people I know here really). I promised her that I would write something long time ago and the idea finally came to me so here you go.
It's loosely (or not so loosely) based on Twilight Princess because one: it's a cool zelda game and two: because yumikuri really reminds me of midlink (a paring I ship with unparalleled passion) but with a happier ending (because you know, having your otp stuck in different realms without a way to ever reach each other. Not okay).
Mark of a Heroine
The bearer of the Mark certainly betrayed all of her expectations, making believe that her kingdom's fate was sealed.
She expected an adult man, a knight of noble line. Scars lining every inch of his body to tell of his victories.
What she got instead was a peasant-born, frail looking, short and rather petite young girl. Her bright blue eyes shining with untainted innocence, speaking of how carefree her life was.
But then she saw the girl chasing after the bandits who kidnapped her village's children, and then getting locked up despite her hard efforts.
Ymir hummed thoughtfully as she followed suit.
The girl was too adorable to be all chained-up in a dark dungeon, and Ymir was willing to change that.
For a price, of course.
She struck a bargain: Ymir would free her and help her get back the kidnapped children, and the girl would pay back by finding certain artifacts for her.
The girl — Krista, as she later introduced herself — was wary of her at first; Ymir's current appearance and her behavior were less than pleasant to say the least, and she wouldn't deny it.
Her kingdom was under siege, she was cursed into looking like an imp, and she was tasked with finding the kingdom's savior who then turned out to be less than impressive.
So yeah, she was allowed to be bitter and hateful. Not that she was interested in being friends with the girl; she was a way to get her place back at the throne and nothing else.
Krista surprisingly complied; travelling throughout the kingdom and taking out on different dungeons and getting back the lost artifacts one by one, becoming more and more of an experienced swordswoman and the savior many legends had described.
She allowed herself for one moment of relief and hope before she once again ordered Krista to get the last artifact.
Maybe we aren't so doomed after all.
As expected, letting herself hope for the best was her downfall.
The Evil King found them just when they got the last piece, and took every single artifact they collected, rendering their efforts utterly futile before heading towards another realm that they couldn't reach.
Krista was knocked unconscious and Ymir herself was about to die, the curse strengthening to lethal levels.
There was only one hope though, and that was telling Krista where to find the sword that banishes all evil.
The moment she felt Krista stir awake, she called out to her.
"Krista…" she rasped, her voice faint and little, so different from the haughty tone she used to have. The young warrior's eyes widened, for this was the first time Ymir her called by her name.
"Deep in the forest you will find a sword that will help defeat the evil." It took all of her power not to succumb to her death when she continued, "I'll give you magic to use it on the sword to travel where the Evil King is."
Slowly raising her hand, a glowing crystal formed above it. "Take it and go."
The last thing she saw was Krista's concerned — too concerned — face, and Ymir, in a far corner in her mind, thought that it wasn't that bad of a death to die in her arms.
The foolish girl saved her, she actually went all the way to find a healer and saved her.
After all the hurtful remarks, after all the bossing around, after acting cold and aloof throughout this quest… she saved her.
"Why?" Ymir asked, blinking confusedly.
"We were together when we started this quest, and we will be together when we finish it," Krista answered simply with a bright smile.
It was a simple reason — rather stupid and adorable, really — but against her better judgement, Ymir fell for it, fell for that smile Krista always had on her lips.
She never realized how… well, pretty Krista was until this moment.
Ymir snorted and then smiled back at her. "When this is over, let's get married."
Krista chuckled in response and only nodded good-naturedly.
Something changed within her after her near-death experience.
She's become nicer (although she was sarcastic on occasions, but not as much as before), she actively sought Krista's company and felt alone when she wasn't with her (people in the market didn't like seeing an imp after all). She constantly worried over her now, ordering her to take a rest whenever signs of fatigue showed on her features.
She also felt guilty — so very, very guilty — for her previous actions and treatment towards her. Why Krista was still willing to go on this quest was beyond her; she saved the children long time before.
She had no reason to stick with her, to help her defeat the Evil King. She could call it quits and leave and Ymir would be powerless to stop her.
But she didn't. The heroically foolish girl didn't.
And maybe that was the reason why, when they finally reached to the Evil King's realm, she used her magic to teleport Krista away and tried to face him herself. She wasn't the bearer of the mark nor the wielder of the legendary sword, so it was a foolish decision to do so.
Ymir didn't care, she only wanted Krista to be safe. She hoped with all her heart that she could stop him, even if victory demanded her demise.
But she, in the end, had failed.
Blinding light engulfed her and then she was standing tall, somehow back to her original self as the princess of this land.
She tried to reason why — maybe she was dead, maybe she wasn't, or maybe someone out there gave her a second chance.
She realized this was all real when she heard the sound of footsteps nearing her, knowing who it was before she turned around.
There Krista was, all battered and tired and exhausted and scarred, looking at her with awe.
And, in Ymir's opinion, she couldn't be any more beautiful.
"What?" she asked, smirking amusedly, "am I too attractive for you?"
The awed look melted away from Krista's face and she only smiled fondly at her, knowing that she was still the same.
She was serious, you know, about marrying Krista.
"She is the heroine of this kingdom and I really don't give a damn about what you think," Ymir announced on a meeting with her council.
They, fearing her wrath, quickly gave their approval and blessings.
And, after several years of courting the said heroine, Krista finally figured out that Ymir really loved her and happily accepted her hand in marriage.
The rest, they say, was history.
End.