Link walked down the stairs behind his parents. His adopted parents. He didn't know who his real parents were, but he was happy to have grown up as the son of the captain of the guard. He had grown up educated and was good at sword fighting. He was also good at archery and knew at least the basics of most other weapons.
He looked around at the ballroom. There were a few other teens his age, but most people were at least two years older than him. He glanced at the ornate doors across the room from him. He thought he saw two faces on the other side of the frosted glass, but after a moment they were gone. He shrugged it off, thinking his eyes were playing tricks on him. He followed his parents over to a group of five people standing to one side.
"Ah, captain! How are you?" one of the group, a Zora, said.
"Fine, thank you, princess," Link's father replied, "it's good to see you again."
"Likewise."
The conversation moved on to boring topics, so Link zoned out. He tried to catch his best friend Saria's eye, but she was focused on another of the women in the group, who was looking around exasperatedly. The two of them had a short, whispered conversation before they left through the doors leading into the palace. After a few minutes, Darunia went to check on them, and they returned a minute later.
Finally, Link was able to catch Saria's attention and winked at her. She smiled. In appearance, she was only thirteen, and shouldn't technically have been allowed at balls, but she was since she was a Kokiri and more likely to be older than anyone else there. Link gestured to her and she nodded. They excused themselves from the conversation and went off on their own. They stood near the wall and hugged. Then they watched the dancers as they talked.
"Wow. It's been so long!" (A/N: If you're reading this, Carla, I love you! xD) Saria remarked.
"I know. With all your sagely duties you never have time for me anymore!" Link faked a pout.
Saria punched his arm playfully, "oh please, Link. Don't go throwing any pity parties my way. I'll hit them right back."
They laughed. Saria could be mature when she wanted, but when she was around Link, she was just a normal teen. Link had met Saria at a young age through his father. When he was young, she babysat him, and as he grew older, they started hanging out more like friends. They had gown quite close, but then she had to leave due to her being a sage. That was two years ago. They hadn't seen each other since. Until now, and it was like they had never been apart. They talked, watching the dancers, until late into the night. At one point the Zora princess and Sage of Water Ruto, came over and had a short conversation with them, but she left a moment later.
"Hey, Link," Saria began after Ruto left, "tomorrow's Saturday, and since the sages are going to be here for a little while, we were planning on taking a tour of the castle. Everything's already been arranged, and I was wondering if you'd want to come with us."
"Uh, sure! Sounds like fun!" Link replied.
"Great. I can't wait!"
Just then, the door on the platform opened and the Sage of Spirit, Nabooru, came in.
"Ooh, Impa's gonna let her have it!" Saria said, more to herself than to Link.
Link didn't notice anyway. His eyes were fixed on Nabooru, just like the eyes of all the unmarried men in the room. Nabooru's tan face, dark eyes, red hair and sharp features were pretty good eye candy. Her fiery hair was pulled up and off her face, then fell straight down her back. A few strands had been left out to fall around her face. She wore a thin dress with a skirt that was a combination of peach, white and cream. Her corset was white and shimmered with a thin silver veil that covered her chest. The dress was strapless. It was true, she looked good in anything. And she knew it.
As she approached the other sages, Impa pulled her away from the group and they talked quietly for a few minutes before returning.
The ball lasted long into the night, and as the night drew to a close, Link asked, "where are you staying?"
"In the Stock Pot Inn. Why?" Saria replied.
"Why would you stay there? Why not here? The king would be more than happy to let you. Heck, even I've stayed in the castle."
"You've stayed in the castle?" Saria asked.
"Yeah. Sometimes, when my dad leaves for a long time, my mom and I move in until he gets back."
"Oh. I didn't know that. But, we stay in the Inn because we don't want to arouse suspicion."
"You arouse more suspicion by not staying in the castle."
Saria shrugged, "it wasn't my idea. Anyway, for the tour tomorrow, you can meet us there."
"Okay." Link heard his father calling him, "I have to go. See you tomorrow!"
"See you!"
Link walked over to his parents. As he approached, his father said, "Link, I want to say goodbye to the king before we leave."
"Okay," Link replied. He followed his parents over to where king Daphnes Nohansen Harkinian was standing.
"Your Majesty," Link's father said, bowing respectfully. His mother curtsied. He bowed, too. "Thank you for inviting us this evening."
"No trouble at all," the king said, "I'm glad you came. Are you leaving?"
"Yes sir."
"What a shame," he glanced at Link, "Ah, this must be your son. What's your name, boy?"
"Link, your Majesty," Link replied.
"Ah, a good, strong name. Bear it well."
"Thank you, your Majesty. I will," Link replied.
His father led the family away. They ascended the stairs to the platform and left. As they did so, Link couldn't help but realize just how clean the floors were.
Link woke up and for a minute he forgot why he was so excited. Then he remembered the tour. He hopped out of bed and got dressed. He wore a green tunic and hat, just formal enough for seeing the sages and the palace, but comfortable and not overly formal. He left his room. His mother was bustling around the kitchen preparing breakfast. "You're up early," she remarked when she saw him.
"Saria invited me to take a tour of the castle with the sages today," Link explained.
"But you've seen the castle."
"I haven't seen Saria. Not in years."
His mother laughed merrily, "true. Have fun. But eat something first!"
Link sat down and ate the pancakes she had already put on the table. As he ate, his father came out of his room, "good morning, family!"
"Morning, dad!" Link said.
"Good morning, dear," his mother said.
"Well, Link, you seem awfully happy today," his father said.
"I am," Link glanced at the clock on the wall, "gotta go. Bye!"
"What's got him in such a good mood?" his father asked after he left.
"He's going to see the castle with Saria," his mother explained.
Link walked to the Stock Pot Inn and arrived just as Saria stepped out into the sunlight. She waved as he approached, "good morning, Link."
"Morning, Saria."
"We're just waiting for everyone else to finish breakfast. It shouldn't be long."
"Okay." The two of them stood and talked for a few minutes before they were joined by the other sages. When everyone had arrived, they walked to the castle. When they entered through the main entrance, a woman and two girls were standing there. Link recognized the woman as Telma, the head servant, but he didn't know who the two girls were. One was a pretty red head with dark blue eyes. She wore burgundy dress that was more rag than dress and she was barefoot. The other had golden hair and bright blue eyes, almost the same as his. She wore a dirty pink dress that was worn and slightly torn. Her shoes were old and looked a bit small on her. She met Link's eyes, and immediately looked away.
Zelda waited with Telma as the sages approached. But she thought there were only six of them. There was a seventh person with them. He had bright blue eyes and shaggy blond hair. He wore deep green, a color that complimented his eyes well. He looked at her and she immediately looked away. She regarded the other sages. Three of them she recognized; they had been the ones who had been arguing outside the ballroom when she and Malon were trying to spy and Ilia had snuck up on them.
Besides those three, there was also a Zora who seemed just a few years older than the blonde boy, a beautiful tan woman with red hair that was even brighter than Malon's, and an old man that seemed wise, but nice.
As Zelda regarded the sages, the one with white hair kept staring at her. It was starting to make her feel uncomfortable. Hadn't the green haired sage called her Impa last night? It was an odd name, yet it seemed familiar to her. Suddenly, Telma was talking.
"Good morrow to you, the Six Sages of Hyrule! And I see you have brought the son of our beloved captain of the guard!" The shaggy headed boy straightened and bowed slightly when Telma said that. So that's the son of the captain… Zelda thought to herself.
"These two girls are very dedicated workers here in the palace and they know it better than the king himself! This is Malon and Zelda," Telma gestured to the girls in turn, and they both curtsied.
At the mention of Zelda's name, Impa whispered a few words to the old man, who nodded but said nothing.
"Now, girls, be sure to show your respect! But have fun!" Telma said so only Malon and Zelda would hear before she left them.
Zelda, unsure of what to do, stood there for a moment, but she was saved by Malon, "welcome, sages! Shall we begin?"
They both turned and began leading the way through the castle. "Thanks," Zelda whispered to Malon.
"No problem," Malon whispered back.
As they walked through the first main room, Malon gave information on the palace as well as a basic background and architectural feats that were achieved in the building of the palace. She did most of the talking, but Zelda made sure to throw in anything that Malon left out. As they approached the door on the other side, Malon said, "this door leads to the throne room, but we'll save that for last." The girls had been given basic instructions on where to take the sages and in what order.
As the morning continued, Zelda began to talk more and the girls loosened up. They told jokes and the sages laughed. By midmorning, they were no longer in front of the sages, but part of the group. It didn't take long for Link to end up in between the two girls.
"Hi. You're Zelda, right?" Link asked.
"Y-yes," Zelda replied, her confidence suddenly leaving her.
Link nodded, "and Malon, am I correct?"
Malon merely nodded and continued talking about the palace.
"I'm Link. Nice to meet you," Link said, stretching out his hand.
Zelda took it and smiled.
"A bit on the quiet side, aren't you?" Link asked.
Zelda was suddenly nervous, left trying to find an answer, when a voice on her other side said, "don't pester the tour guides, Link."
Zelda turned to see the green-haired sage.
"Hi, I'm Saria," Saria stretched out her hand, too. Again, Zelda took it, "sorry if this idiot over here is a bit of a loser. He's not that bad once you get to know him."
Zelda giggled, "is that so?" She felt quite comfortable around this young-looking girl.
Saria smiled sweetly, "every word is true."
"Except the idiot part," Link broke in. They all laughed.
As the morning continued to progress, the group began to have an actual conversation, as opposed to Malon and Zelda just talking about the palace. As they entered the sleeping chambers, Zelda noticed that Impa kept trying to get close to her. It was a little weird, but Zelda figured that she just wanted to talk, like Saria had, so she allowed Impa to catch up.
"Hello, Zelda," Impa said. Her tone of voice was slightly different from that of the other sages that had spoken to Zelda. So far, she had had conversations with Saria, Nabooru, Darunia and Ruto, and they all seemed all too happy to talk to her before they would go and talk with Malon. Then there would be a group conversation again before someone broke of and talked to one of the girls alone again. During this process, Zelda and Malon had gotten to know the sages, with the exception of Impa and Rauru quite well, but they did learn Impa and Rauru (the old man)'s names. But this was different. Impa almost seemed in awe or surprised somehow.
"Hello, Impa."
"Can I pull you aside for a moment?"
Zelda slowed slightly and looked at Impa. She stared into those familiar red eyes. Why was this woman so familiar? She slowed to a stop and gestured at Malon to keep going. When she looked back at Impa, she was nodding at Rauru.
"Let me ask you a question. Have you ever heard the story of the lost princess?" Impa asked.
Zelda seemed taken aback. Everyone had heard that story. The story was that the king's wife had become pregnant just after they were married. But just a month after the queen gave birth to a beautiful princess, the castle fell under attack. It was no big deal; just a few rebels trying to stir up a little trouble, but the queen and princess were made to leave the castle just in case. According to the story, the queen hid the princess away and raised her on her own, as neither of them was heard from again.
"Yes, of course," Zelda answered.
"Do you know that there is more to the story than what people tell?"
Zelda remained silent.
"The queen is dead. Her body was found just after the rebels' attack on the palace. No one knows what really happened to the princess. This was knowledge that no one was told but the king, the sages, and the captain of the guard, and I doubt he told his family. The princess's body wasn't with the queen's, so we have speculated time and time again on exactly what happened to her. We never thought…" Impa stopped and shook her head a moment with her eyes closed before she started again. "There was another piece of evidence that was not revealed to the public. Did you ever hear what the princess's name was?"
Zelda shook her head, "what does any of this have to do-"
"With you? I'll tell you. The princess's name…was Zelda."
Zelda's eyes widened. Then she cocked her head, then shook it, "no, that can't be. I'm a servant girl. An orphan! I was raised by Telma. She's been like a mother to me!"
"But she is not your mother," Impa got down on one knee and put her hands on Zelda's shoulders, "I have talked it over with Rauru. We agree on the same point. All the evidence points to you being the lost princess. We believe that the queen gave you to Telma and told her to protect you. Maybe even to raise you as a servant, knowing that someday someone would put the pieces together. And we have."
Zelda contemplated asking a question that had been plaguing her since she set eyes on the white-haired woman. Then she asked, "why do you seem familiar to me?"
Impa's eyes softened, "child, I was the queen's midwife. I would have been the first person you set eyes on. You will not have any real memories of me, but me seeming familiar to you only continues to point to you being the princess."
"Wow. This is…a lot to take in." Zelda suddenly felt dizzy, "Impa, I think I'm gonna…" Then she fainted.
Hello!
If you've stumbled onto this story, and you've read this far, I must not be half bad! Anyway, thanks for reading. I just have on itsy bitsy little tiny request...could you please review? I know I get emails whenever someone adds one of my stories to their alerts, but I love reviews! :)
Anyway, hope you're enjoying the story so far! I have good news while you're here, too:
I am thoroughly inspired to continue writing this story, so not only do you lucky people get two chapters in one day which happens to be the day the story is published for the first time, you also get a promise that the next chapter won't be long! ^-^
~Maya