Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda.

Well, I'm back. I think this is the first time I've ever been on time. Weird…I watched Aladdin again just to make sure I'm on the right track. I mean, I want to make the story just like it but at the same time different. Or else, it would just be copying. You'll see a quote or two from the movie in this chapter, because they are my favorite quotes.

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Chapter 1: Marriage is Coming…

The next day, the sun greeted the land with its bright golden rays as it slowly ascended its throne in the sky. It was a perfect morning. The sky was a calm shade of blue with puffy white clouds scattered everywhere like large drops of paint on blue paper. The birds chirped excitedly in the trees, some flying into the sky to take their morning rounds for food. People opened the doors of their cottages in Kakariko Village and stretched in the morning's light. Behind them, the lingering scent of freshly baked bread escaped the confines of the kitchen to float outside and create a pleasant smell of home in the village square.

South of the Village and the castle, the sun sneaked its way past the branches of Kokiri forest to dance upon the roofs of the forest dweller's homes. One by one, the children of the forest opened their doors and smiled at the sunlight. It was definitely a perfect morning.

"Link!" The exclamation disturbed the serenity of the morning. A girl with lime green hair ran down the path to a tree house located south of most of the other buildings. She stopped in front of the ladder and peered above into the balcony, searching for her friend. "Link! Sleepyhead! Are you awake?" When she got no answer, she looked up at the roof and whistled. A twinkling ball of light peered over the edge.

"Hello Saria!" it greeted, rushing down to meet the green-haired girl and her fairy.

"Hello, Navi," Saria replied, and her own fairy voiced its hello. "Is Link still sleeping?" The fairy Navi sighed.

"You know him…" was her response. Saria giggled.

"Will you wake him for me?"

"Sure. One sec!" Navi raced back up to the top of the tree house and ducked in. It was relatively small for someone to live here, especially someone who was no longer as small as the other Kokiri. Navi rushed over to the young man sprawled lazily amongst his bed sheets, snoring loudly. It was a wonder why such a sound was not heard outside.

"Link, get up you lazy bum!" The blonde-haired man moaned and turned around. "Oh no you don't! Hey! Hey! Hey!" The fairy flew around his head and all over the bed, shouting 'Hey Link' over and over. Eventually, a pillow came in contact with her and she was thrown back.

"Leave me alone!" Link mumbled. Navi wasn't about to give up. She went over and tugged on one of the young man's long ears. With a yelp, he flew out of bed and landed in a mess of crumpled sheets on the floor.

"Navi!" he shouted as the fairy burst into laughter.

"Serves you right, you lazy boy. Now get up and go down. Saria wants to talk to you!"

"Alright, alright! But let me freshen up first!" Navi went down to tell Saria about Link's request as he quickly brushed his teeth, wore his tunic, and straightened his hair. Then, strapping the belt around his waist and pulling on his boots, he hurried down the stairs.

"No rush Link!" Saria called as he hastily jumped off the last few rungs, straightening his bright green tunic. "You haven't even tied your laces."

"Oh, sorry, forgot!" Link quickly bent down and did the laces in a rather curious fashion. Saria giggled. It was she who had taught him a complicated way to do it so that she could see the look on his face whenever he messed up or couldn't untie it. Conveniently, she had 'forgotten' to teach him properly.

"Anyway," Link said, standing up after a few minutes. "Why'd you get me?"

"Oh…it seems some of the Deku Scrubs have spotted a royal party of some sort coming in from the Forbidden Forest. They need to pass through here to get to the castle. I just thought that if a prince should come barging in here, at least the one young man in the forest should be up and ready to greet him."

"Oh great!" Link said sarcastically. "Royalty. Now isn't that nice? Those people never appreciate us…haven't you noticed the unusually high number of royal parties that have gone through here recently?"

"Of course. Don't tell me you haven't heard about it?"

"Heard about what?"

"Arg!" Navi interrupted the conversation to hit Link on the head. "I keep on saying hey, listen, hey, listen but he never listens! I thought I told you yesterday – and the day before that too. King Harkinian is looking for a suitor for his daughter, Princess Zelda."

"What for?" Link asked. Navi looked Saria and they both sighed.

"Link, don't be so stupid. We all know the Princess's eighteenth birthday is coming up. She needs to be wed before then so she can become queen. Therefore, all the eligible princes are coming to seek her hand in marriage. The law clearly states she can only marry a prince."

"But it's been going on for six months," Link pointed out. "You think she would choose someone by then."

"Princess Zelda is rather…interesting. I've been hearing gossip collected by the Scrubs. It seems that she does awful things to the suitors that come to her. They leave her castle at full speed. No one is going to marry someone like that."

"Too bad…" Navi sighed. "She is pretty, and I've heard she's really smart and fun if you get to know her."

"Yeah, well, what are the chances of that?" Link sighed. "I mean…I've dreamed of living in a palace when I was younger, when I still didn't understand about the world. But now, I'm glad I don't have to leave here and go out very often. The outside world is very complicated."

Saria was about to respond when a loud trumpet interrupted the conversation. It was soon followed by a whole set of musical instruments that sounded from the entrance of the Lost Woods. One by one, all the Kokiri stopped their chores and rushed to the path to the exit, eagerly awaiting the arrival of the prince. This was their only chance to see the man if he was chosen to be king, since the only source of outside news were the words spoken by the Deku Scrubs if they happened to be in a good mood. And if he weren't chosen king – like the rest of the lot – then he would be coming back here once again. But no one would be out to see him that time.

The first soldiers appeared in the entrance, followed quickly by musicians and more soldiers. In the middle of the party strode the proud Prince Marth, his name and crest blazoned on his banner. He looked proudly from side to side, and everybody in the clearing automatically knew he could probably win the princess over with his looks, but never with his attitude. He pulled up to the front of the parade and smirked at all those he considered inferior.

The passing would have been done within a few minutes with no mishaps whatsoever if it wasn't for a small frog that randomly jumped out of the bushes and landed in the middle of the path. Concerned for its safety, Saria burst out of the crowd and rushed over to it, picking it up. She did not see that the horses were almost upon her. With an angry snarl, Prince Marth's horse reared back to avoid hitting her as she cried out.

"You stupid little girl!" sneered Marth as the rest of the party was forced to halt. He reached for his whip. "Don't you dare-,"

"Hey!" Before the weapon could make contact with Saria, Link rushed in and blocked it with his arm, throwing it back at Marth. "If I were as rich as you, I could afford some manners." Prince Marth frowned and kicked him in the chest, throwing him into the bushes as the Kokiri gasped.

"That'll teach you," he retorted before urging his horse on. His procession followed. Navi floated over to Link, who lay sprawled in the grass. He stood up and smirked at the leaving prince.

"Look at that!" he shouted quite loudly to Navi. "It's not every day you see a horse with two rear ends!" The royal party stopped immediately, the prince turning around to give Link a cold glare.

"I wouldn't be saying that if I were you, boy. You live with children, and you shall always be an insolent child in need of a good beating! Go play with your friends…fairy boy!" With that, the angry prince rode off past the exit. Link scowled as Saria ran over to him.

"It's okay, Link. Calm down!"

"Someday I'll show that guy. I know I will."

………

The sun's rays delicately fell upon the castle. As the morning grew brighter, the sunlight streamed in through the balcony and windows to dance upon the bed of the princess. The sun's light searched in vain for her face, for her whole body was deeply buried in the half a dozen sheets and comforters. Nevertheless, the new warmth made her moan and turn around. As if on cue, three dressing maids entered the room with supplies. The sleeping princess awoke to the sound of the door being unceremoniously banged open and then harshly slammed shut. It wasn't rudeness; it was just a surefire way to make sure the young heiress to the throne would be awake by the time they needed her.

"Good morning, Princess Zelda," the first maid said, carrying a large breakfast tray. "Would her Highness prefer breakfast before or after a bath?"

Zelda did not reply. The maid was used to this and knew by now that the door had done its job of waking her up and she was just pretending. The maid that had carried in the soap and other bath necessities hurried over and pulled off the sheets from the lazy princess's head. Zelda's reaction was to groan noisily, but the maids paid no notice. Nor did they care that she did not answer the question.

"Would her Highness prefer lavender, peach, or jasmine?" the third maid asked, holding out the three different types of soap and shampoo.

"Jasmine…" Zelda mumbled as the second maid took her hand gently and tugged her out of bed.

"To the bathroom, your Highness. My dears, fill the tub will you?" As the second maid helped Zelda out of her light pink nightgown, the first maid locked the door and searched for a gown as the third maid got the bath ready.

Zelda slipped into the warm water reluctantly. Eventually, she started to enjoy the feeling and leaned back against the tub to relax. The first maid brought in the gown that Zelda was to wear, along with several petticoats and underskirts. It was a dark green embroidered dress with even darker patches of embroidery and decoration, trimmed in gold. It had a belt of green leather with golden chains hanging in loops along the bottom. Zelda stared at the gown. It wasn't one of her day outfits. She raised an eyebrow, and the first maid was quick to respond.

"His Majesty, King Harkinian, has invited Prince Marth of the Kingdom of Emblem to lunch. Perhaps her Highness would consider him?" Zelda rolled her eyes. Part of it was for the fact that Marth would be coming to visit her to ask for her hand in marriage – which she had already decided she would refuse – and partly because she hated to be referred to in third person as if she wasn't there.

"We'll see," Zelda replied monotonously, though she might as well have said no. It meant the same thing anyway. The maids looked at each other and shrugged as they finished pampering the princess. Soon the room filled with jasmine scent as the women poured large quantities of the shampoo onto the princess's fine golden hair and put soap that made the tub fill with jasmine smelling bubbles. After the long bath was done, the first maid pulled out the stopper and the water drained slowly.

When Zelda climbed out of the tub onto the pink marble floors, the three maids were ready to smother her with fluffy white towels to dry off every single part of her body. The third maid vigorously rubbed the towel on the blonde locks as the other two wrapped the towel around Zelda and made her sit on a bench. Then, they got to work drying and styling her hair, adding jasmine scented oil to keep it healthy. One of the maids started to put jasmine lotion all over the princess's arms and legs to give them a healthy sheen.

Before finishing the hair, the maids decided to take a break and put on her gown. Zelda was already tired of all this treatment, and she felt sick from the lingering scent of jasmine getting too strong. Nevertheless, the vision of the bright pink bathroom disappeared for a moment while a petticoat was stuffed over her head. Her head barely had time to resurface when the actual gown came down, followed by the underskirt from down below. Zelda couldn't even blink in the time they had fastened the button and done the snaps.

"It's over!" Zelda cried, exhausted from merely hustled about and ready to eat.

"Not yet!" Zelda coughed and sneezed as they sprayed –what else? – jasmine perfume over every inch of her body. The first maid quickly brushed out her hair to make it wavy, putting a tiny amount of eyeliner and shadow to add a finishing touch. Then, with powder and lipstick, Princess Zelda was truly done.

Except for jewelry. Zelda moaned as they quickly fetched the exquisite emerald choker that had a pair of gaudy earrings to match. They set her prettiest tiara, one with pearls and diamonds, upon her head and put her royal ring on her finger. Then, they literally forced her into high heels that made her even taller than she needed to be.

I'm sick and tired of this! Zelda mentally screamed. The first chance I get, I'm getting out of here!

"We're done. Would her Highness like to have her breakfast now?" Zelda's stomach grumbled in response. She had almost forgotten about eating in all the preparation.

"Of course…" Zelda went over to the seat and sat down as they brought the tray to her. She picked up her knife and fork and looked up at her maids. "Thank you. You may all go and take a rest."

"Thank you, your Highness." At least they referred to her like she existed that time. The three maids left in an orderly fashion. As soon as they left, Zelda dropped her utensils back on the tray, taking her omelet and eating it by hand. However, she did not have much of an appetite left. Her bathroom was reeking of jasmine, along with her hair and body. And probably after she ate, she would have to brush her teeth with jasmine toothpaste and wear jasmine lip gloss and brush up on her jasmine scented make-up.

Isn't my life a party? Zelda thought sarcastically.

………

As expected, she did have to brush her teeth with something supposedly smelling and tasting like jasmine, soon afterwards wearing jasmine lip gloss to finish off her jasmine scented make-up. It was safe to say Zelda was quite angry and annoyed when she arrived in the throne room before her father.

Unluckily for her, Prince Marth had arrived and was conversing with the king as she walked in. She hoped she smelled enough like jasmine to even repel him away.

"Ah! Zelda, my dear, come, come!" Zelda wondered why her father was so excited. He probably knew by now she would turn the prince down. "I would like you to meet Prince Marth, my dear. Marth, my boy, this is my daughter Zelda."

"Such beauty needs no introduction," Marth said in a tone that seemed to suggest he had practiced it and was showing off. He bowed to her and kissed her hand. She swept him a curtsey and mentally shrugged. It was better than being told her eyes were as beautiful as the calm sky, or the calm ocean, or by something else calm and blue. This was, so far, original.

"Good morning," Zelda greeted with a smile. Her eyes searched him for a weakness, anything she could use to make him go running like she did with the rest of them. Usually asking them to be a slave to her or eat with her less-than-polite manners was good enough, and sometimes she even had to go far enough as to make their chambers uncomfortable or give them servants that were way too chatty. But she was getting bored of that. She would need something else.

The answer came to her as King Harkinian started talking about the property.

"Oh yes," he said. "We have so many rooms it's impossible to count, my boy. And we have a couple of dining halls…the ballroom…and I haven't even talked about our garden! It looks like a sanctuary, and I built a maze to get to it so no one but Zelda and her nurse Impa would be able to find their way. My dear little princess must have her own little resting place! And oh yes…there's the large pool in the backyard…the middle of it is as deep as Lake Hylia…"

"I don't swim…"

"You don't. Oh my, that's a tragedy. It matters not. Zelda dear has a boat that you can go in."

"Oh, but I'm not a very good…fan…of deep water."

"Nonsense! Zelda, will you please show him the pool?" A devilish smirk crawled onto Zelda's face, quickly masked by a polite smile.

"Of course. Please come this way, Prince Marth."

"Just call me, Marth."

"Okay, then, Marth. The boat's over here!" Zelda cheerfully made her way to the pool, already scheming up the perfect idea. But it did require some assistance on Marth's part, but she was sure it would work. And of course, he wouldn't get hurt. Panic was the target, not peril.

The two arrived in the backyard moments later. It was a large, spacious area with trees lining the perimeter and a large pool in the middle surrounded by a stone walkway. Birds flew around the clearing and sang sweet songs. It was a truly beautiful sight.

"There's King!"

"Who?" Marth asked. He got his reply as Zelda raced over to the edge of the pool. A finely carved boat of a bright red hue floated lazily by the side. It had the head of a wise lion. But it was not any ordinary boat. In fact, as Zelda drew nearer, it turned its head and spoke to her.

"Good morning, Zelda. Here for a ride? Now who's that young lad?"

"King, this is Prince Marth." The blue-haired man raised his eyebrows as he walked carefully closer to the talking boat. "Marth, this is my friend, the King of Red Lions."

"How do you do?" The boat smiled and tipped his head. Marth stared blankly.

"What's wrong?" Zelda asked.

"It's a boat," Marth stated dumbly. "A piece of carved, talking wood just bowed to me." The king flared up at this remark.

"A piece of wood? Is that what I am? Let me show you…" Without warning, the King of Red Lions grabbed Marth by his pants and threw him over the shoulder into the water. With a strangled cry, Marth resurfaced and flailed wildly.

"Help! Somebody help! I'm drowning! I can't stay up much longer!"

Zelda and King burst out laughing. Marth hadn't been thrown far enough – he was still floating in water only three feet high. Hearing their amusement, Marth stopped flailing and turned red from embarrassment. He stood up and realized the water didn't even come to his waist. However, he was totally wet and King had ripped the backside of his pants, revealing his bright red boxers. Zelda and King giggled even harder as Marth, red as his underwear, covered himself with his cloak and ran right back into the castle.

"We won't be seeing him again," King said. "Wonderful idea, Zel. You knew he would insult me, didn't you?"

"He seemed the type. Unfortunately, he was one of the better looking ones." The lion boat shook his big red head, rocking back and forth and sending ripples through the water. Zelda looked into her wavering reflection. She didn't have to wait long now.

"ZZZZEEEEEEELLLLLLLLDDDDDDDDAAAAAAAAAAAA!" screeched her father, rushing out into the backyard as fast as he could. Zelda calmly stared at her father's approaching figure, sitting on the edge of King. King Harkinian stopped in front of his daughter with his hands on his hips, his face wearing a scowl.

"Now…why did Prince Marth storm out of the castle, rally his soldiers, and disappear so quickly?"

"Oh father!" Zelda sighed with an air of innocence, petting the side of her boat. "King was just playing with him…Marth's just being a sore loser."

"Zelda…he was soaking wet and had his pants ripped apart…arg!" King Harkinian growled as he walked a few paces away. He stopped abruptly, clasped his hands behind his back, and turned to look at Zelda. "Oh Zelda, please try to understand. Your eighteenth birthday is in two weeks. The law of Hyrule states you must be married to a prince by then!"

"Oh please!" Zelda muttered, getting up from her boat and placing her hands on her waist. "The law is wrong! I want to marry for love, father. I don't want some stupid suitor coming in here trying to buy my hand in marriage." King Harkinian sighed as he went over to the princess and put his arms on her shoulder as she looked up at him sadly.

"You're a princess, Zelda." Zelda scowled.

"Then maybe I don't want to be one anymore." Zelda spun on her heels and stormed out of the scene, leaving King Harkinian frustrated behind her.

"Oh!" he said, turning to King. "Goddesses forbid you have any daughters!" King Harkinian marched off as well, leaving a confused boat behind. I mean, the king of Hyrule didn't really expect a piece of carved, talking wood to reproduce, did he?

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Oh wow, that was kind of a long chapter. Apparently I held up to my promise, eh? Anyway, I'm glad I managed to finish that (I actually had to cut out a part and put it in the next chapter to even the lengths). I tried to include some name reference too, just for fun. The jasmine-scented beauty products were of course referring to Jasmine. The name of Jasmine's tiger is Rajah, which means "king". And Marth…well, he's just a guy I randomly throw in somewhere in my Zelda stories because I love him so much. That's all! Review! (of course, update date on my profile in case change is necessary).