Dear readers,

Sorry about the late update, but I kind of have writers block. I have been working on a book and I seem to have worn myself thin. Anyway I do hope this chapter will be to your liking. I will probably rewrite it in the future since this is kind of pulling a rabbit out of a hat. Oh and THANK YOU to BLUEZELDA868 for reviewing. You are honestly the reason I forced myself out of my writers block (somewhat, I am still struggling.)

I ran up to Zelda just as the song ended. She was grasping a second glass of wine from a servant when I caught her attention. She giggled and hiccupped, "Why Link, it is jolly good to see you." I stared at her seeing her sway slightly saying to myself 'yep she is drunk.' I grabbed her wine from her hand and asked "Zelda, might I talk to you in private." She nodded and I extended my arm out to her. She grasped my arm and I lead her out to the center of the royal garden.

The royal garden was a maze of bushes, and at the center of it was a gorgeous fountain. I sat her by the fountain. I couldn't help but stare at her, she was gorgeous. She smiled at me and my heart started to flutter. "You look beautiful tonight," I said. She was silent but she didn't glare at me like she had when I first said she was a beauty at the tailor's shop. After a few minutes she looked back up with a genuine smile and said, "Thank you link." I turned beet red as she kissed my cheek and walked back into the ball room.

I followed her and suitor after suitor asked her to dance. I hated to say it but I was terribly jealous. Impa appeared beside me again and asked, "Why haven't you asked her to dance yet?" I shrugged. I doubted that the Princess of Hyrule would even want to dance with me…although, she did kiss my cheek. I rubbed the spot where it still seemed to tingle. She smirked; I guessed she was spying on us. I sighed and finally replied, "I doubt her council will approve, besides she is probably exhausted anyway." I chucked slightly as I saw her stagger slightly into a duke while dancing. She managed to knock the duke's glass of wine into Lord Ganondorf. I just about lost it. I was trying so hard not to laugh that I seemed to stop breathing. She apologized and he waved it off. Impa wasn't kidding when she said she couldn't hold her liquor. It wasn't helping that the decorative mask she wore probably obstructed her peripheral vision somewhat. The only thing that could have made that moment better was if it had been red wine instead of white.

The next song started and Lord Ganondorf took her hand. It was a tango. I am sure he was still fuming but he took it out on her through dance. Although, I must admit, despite her being tipsy, she kept up with him like a champ. The dance came to a stop and I saw him speaking with her while giving her what looked like a card. She opened it and said "Oh a miniature portrait…..of you." She tried her best to look pleasantly surprised. He then told her to flip it over. When she did I saw her emotions seem to crash. She looked like she was about to cry. Noticing this, I walked towards her and that is when I heard it. SMACK. I stopped…stunned…He turned his head that now had a red hand print back to her and she stormed out of the room.

One of the Princes picked up the portrait and flipped it over to see what had upset her so. His eyes went wide. He turned around to face Lord Ganondorf and said in a most unregal manor, "DUDE, SERIOUSLY…YOU GAVE HER THE CARD OF A PLASTIC SURGEON! ARE YOU REALLY THAT STUPID" I couldn't believe what I just heard. Immediately I dashed out of the ball room and ran to look for her.

ZELDA'S POV

I slammed the door to my room. Tears were rolling down my face. I was FURIOUS! How dare he give me the business card of a plastic surgeon? I threw a random vase on the floor in disgust. I then sat down at my vanity and took of my mask. The bruises were starting to show as the makeup was getting washed off by my tears. I then took a good look at myself in the mirror of the vanity. I was even uglier than usual. Bruises covered my face and behind my gown concealed many more. I hated the woman I saw in the mirror. Not only was she hideous, but she was also weak. I could no longer control myself. I punched the mirror as hard as I can. It cracked. I smiled weakly and slid to the floor.

Finally calming down some I scanned the room and realized the vase I threw contained the rose Link gave me. I crawled over to retrieve it and sat in a corner holding it tightly. The thorns dung into my skin, but considering the bruises I had from Ganondorfs punishment, it was nothing. I sat with my head between my knees. My hair covered my face.

Just then I heard a knock at my door. "G-Go Away!" I screamed. Despite my request, the door opened to reveal Link.

LINK'S POV

I looked around the room there was glass everywhere. The vanity mirror was crushed. I scanned the room until I finally spotted who I was looking for. She sat curled up in the corner. Her hair covered her face, but I could tell she was crying because she was shaking. She was clutching the rose I had given her for dear life. I knelt down in front of her curled up form and grasped her hands. The rose hit the floor and I noticed the blood. Some was from the glass and some was from the thorned rose (he he he authors name, pun intended.) I rubbed my finger across her knuckles to see if there was any more glass stuck in them. I then pulled her to her feet. She was looking to the ground. Her hair covering her face was starting to bug me so I lifted her chin and placed her hair behind her ear. When I did, I stumbled back in shock. The poor girls face was black and blue. I instantly hated myself when she saw my reaction. She ran into the bathroom and locked the door. I sat up against it, listening to her sob.

CLIFF HANGER!