Chapter 10: The Drama Piles High

Thank the goddesses that she possessed magical powers. Zelda was sitting alone in the dark confinements of her prison on the verge of giving up all hope until she remembered that she could use telepathy. She contacted Ashei and waited patiently for her to come to her rescue. In the darkness, Zelda could feel herself grow weary and since it was her by herself, she had nothing to do but think. And think she did. After she got out of the danger zone she was going to hurry up and have Link choose a wife because they would need a sturdy monarch on the throne for what was going to be one of the biggest decisions they had to make as rulers. They were inevitably going to go to war. Zelda wasn't really stuck on the fact that they would be going to war as much as the fact that her little brother was going to be married. Who would be a candidate for her sister-in-law? Perhaps one of the girls he mentioned in his letter. Thinking about the letter was like thinking of a time that passed eons ago since her sense of time had weathered the longer she stayed confined. From what the princess could recollect, Midna seemed like a good choice because it was obvious that he was smitten with her by what he had written and the girl was a good match since she could hold her own against a prince of his caliber. Zelda could hardly wait to get out and meet her.

"Your highness!" Zelda looked up and felt herself swell with happiness. Ashei was looking down at her shining like a ray of hope.

"Ashei!"

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"Look! Here they come!" Midna glanced at the couple that was making its way through the hall. Her peers had cleared a path for the duo like they were royalty so she could see them clearly. Midna smiled at that thought, but when she saw Illia holding onto Link's arm possessively while he just subjected himself to it, the smile disappeared as anger boiled within her. She slammed her locker closed and hurried away from them, or at least she thought she had.

The truth was that since the Link x Illia fan club had been created three days prior, people began to worship the two supposed lovebirds as they believed that it was true love and something worthy of worship. It was irksome and everywhere Midna went, people were talking about them. Maybe she was only irritated because Link was passively accepting all of it while making it seem as though that snowy night on Snow Peak hadn't happened. Midna could still remember his strong arms around her and the feel of his lips against her own…

Frankly, it pissed her off that he was letting everyone believe that he and Illia were the perfect couple, when in fact he was unfaithful. Midna grumbled to herself and laid her head down on her desk. It wasn't like she had room to complain anyway. It wasn't like they were secretly dating behind Illia's back or anything. They'd just kissed a couple times. Besides, she couldn't be with him. She'd only cause him pain. If he ever found out about Ganondorf's secret plans then it'd be over between them. Maybe it was for the best that he kept his distance from her. If they crossed anymore of the borders that separated them, neither was going to be happy.

The red head inhaled a deep breath. Maybe it was time she got a new boyfriend.

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Link sighed deeply and closed the book he was reading. It had been an entire week since Ashei went to save Zelda. He hoped that she hadn't run into any trouble, otherwise he'd have to send troops. He didn't want a major scandal happening before he was even coroneted for his kingship, so if he had to mobilize the army then people would start getting suspicious. War was the last thing he wanted his people to worry about, especially since they'd been accustomed to a peace that had been hard gained in itself. He had locked himself up in his room everyday for hours on end trying to find a way to reach a peaceful negotiation without having to go to war, but all his books offered no such solution. The frazzled prince scratched his head furiously and sighed heavily. If that wasn't enough, his eighteenth birthday was coming up fast and he needed to choose a wife. That thought preoccupied his mind more so than the safety of his sister or possible war with the Gerudo.

Who was he going to marry? Lately, Illia had become a great hit amongst their peers and people were very supportive of their relationship, so Link had to put that into consideration. Maybe she'd make a good queen, but the more he thought about a lifetime with her by his side, the more his heart seemed to sink. The truth was he didn't want to marry her.

He let his mind wander to thoughts of Midna. A vivid image appeared in his mind and made the prince's heart race. She had been ignoring him lately and he had a sneaky suspicion that it was his fault even though it was Illia's friends who were the ones that were rude to her. He leaned back in his seat leisurely. Thinking of that night, he wondered what it was exactly that she wanted to tell him. Before he could ponder it anymore, his phone rang. He nearly fell to the floor when he scrambled clumsily to his feet to reach it on the third ring.

"Hello?'

"Hey wasup Link buuuuuuuuuuuddy?" It was Coro. Link tried to hide his disappointment that it wasn't Midna and said, "Not much. Just in my room reading…"

"Yeah about that, you can't keep yourself cooped up like a pigeon all day. You're a young man! It's not healthy! You'd think you'd be with that cute girlfriend of yours in your spare time… I know I would!"

"… Yeah… I guess…" Link silently thought to himself, "Don't let Din hear you say that…"

"Speaking of, she and the rest of the gang decided to hang out today. Wanna join?"

"Is Midna gonna be there?"

"Eh? I dunno. Does it matter? You guys haven't been talking much recently. Are you fighting or something?"

"I guess that's one way of seeing things. Anyway, where are we meeting?"

"The fountain. See ya!"

"Bye!" With that, Link decided to rest his brain for a little while and went on his way.

His friends were as rowdy as ever and Link could barely keep up what with his lack of sleep and weariness. But he had to admit that it was a helluva lot better being with them than being cooped up in his room all the time. He was going to miss this freedom when he became king.

After cutting up around town, the group of teens needed to rejuvenate their energy and went to an ice cream parlor called, Beth's Spot. After they all placed their orders, they combined two tables and sat together having small talk. When their orders finally came, all of them tried some of their food and gasped with surprise.

"Hey! This smoothie's pretty good!" Din exclaimed, "How come I've never eaten here before?"

"That's cuz this place is new and no one knew about it until now. You're almost as bad as Link," Coro commented, helping himself to some of his girlfriend's shake. She slapped him on the head and stuck her tongue out at him.

"This tastes kinda like the ice cream in Ordona," Illia said, "Don't you think so Link?" The boy stopped eating his sundae and nodded.

"Oh yeah. I forgot you two were from Ordona. Somehow I can't imagine Link as a country bumpkin," Tetra said pointedly. Her friends laughed at her comment and Illia turned a bright pink.

"… So you think I'm a country bumpkin?"

"Huh? No! I was just saying, Link's so proper and princely all the time that I can't imagine him out in the country. I didn't mean to upset you."

"Speaking of princes, you guys think that the royal siblings are even living in that new castle at the edge of the city?" Aryll asked. Her friends looked at her as they contemplated her question.

"I dunno. They're so isolated that everything about them is a mystery," Ralf said, "That place looks abandoned most of the time except for the guards that are stationed at the entrance."

"I'd hate to think they'd use our tax money to renovate that castle and not even live in it," Ivan proclaimed. His friends nodded in agreement.

"How come they're so secretive anyway? Does anyone even know what they look like?" Aryll asked.

"Ever since the assassination of the king and the queen, no one's seen them. They were kids then so they must be adults by now," Nayru stated. Link felt his ears warm and to save his pride, he said, "The royal family prides itself on being discreet. Maintaining a kingdom is hard work in itself so being famous and allowing other nations see into the heart of Hyrule would problematic. Besides, the county's running smoothly so there really is no need to fret right? By the way, the prince is going to be turning eighteen in a few months' time. Then he's going to be coroneted for his kingship. That's a public affair so we'll see him then." Everyone looked at him in shock. Some ice cream dripped from Coro's hanging mouth. For a long moment, no one said a thing and Link was scared that he had given himself away.

"Wow… Who pays attention in class like that?"

"Leave it to Mr. Know-it-all…"

"Link why do you know so much? Oh I get it! It's from being locked up at home all the time and reading all those books!" Sighing with relief, Link smiled and laughed at his friends' comments.

"Wow. The gang's all here." The group turned to see Midna smiling at them. Link's heart thumped against his chest painfully at the sight of her.

"Hey Midna! Came to join us?" Tetra asked. She scooted over and motioned for the girl to pull a seat up next to her. Midna hesitated and when she saw Link she stuttered, "W…w… well actually…"

"She's here with me." The group looked to the burly football player that they hadn't noticed until just then. Fado wrapped an arm around Midna possessively and smirked at them.

"We're on a date."

"WHAT??" Everyone exclaimed. Midna's cheeks turned a soft pink and she avoided her friends' eyes, namely Link's. He looked like a beast ready to go on a rampage.

"So does that mean you guys are going out?" Tetra asked. Everyone waited.

"Yeah. We are," Fado answered. Link wasn't aware that he'd been squeezing his spoon tightly so when it snapped in his hand, creating a loud noise, everyone jumped in surprise.

"Sorry…"

"… Well, at any rate. Why don't you pull up a seat and join us bud?" Coro asked. They made room for the couple and everyone started talking again like before. But unlike before, Link wasn't interested. He kept stealing glances at Midna who was being openly affectionate with her newest boyfriend. Link felt like hitting her, well, not her but he definitely wanted to hit something. His sudden sour mood hadn't gone unnoticed by Illia and Midna. Both girls tried to keep the atmosphere lively by being over exuberant in the discussions. When the waitress brought Midna's and Fado's orders, and some refills for the others, Illia gasped.

"Beth! Is that you??"

"Huh? I…Illia?? Wow! It's been a while!"

"I know right! So this is your shop huh?"

"Yeah… I needed to get away from Ordona. City life suits me much better after all, so I started selling my own ice cream. Wow, I can't believe you're actually here! And who are all these people?"

"My friends, here I'll introduce you to them." And Illia did. Then she went on to give a little background information as to how the two knew each other. Apparently, the girls both grew up in Ordona together. Everyone listened intently to her recaps and when she finished, Aryll said, "That is so freaky seeing a friend after so long! Hey, did you know Link too?" Beth raised an eyebrow in curiosity before saying, "Link? That name isn't familiar… Should I know him? The only Link I know is the Prince of Hyrule. He used to vacation there with the rest of the royal family until the king and queen were killed." Link's face burned. No one said anything and then Aryll pointed at the flabbergasted boy.

"Well, I'm talking about this Link right here. He's Illia's boyfriend and she claims that they were friends back in Ordona…" Beth looked a Link a little closer. She studied his face intensely for a couple of minutes before gasping dramatically.

"L…Link!? Your… your majes-" Before she could finish, Illia jumped on her and the two fell to the floor with a loud "thud!" The food spilled everywhere. Everyone gasped and went to help them. Link took this as his cue and hurriedly left during all the pandemonium.

He was sitting at the fountain alone when someone's shadow cast itself over him. Link looked up and saw Midna smiling sheepishly at him.

"Hey," she greeted. The prince didn't say anything and instead returned to looking at his feet. Silence fell between them and Midna took a seat adjacent to him. She inhaled loudly and asked, "That was a close call huh?" Link didn't reply.

"I bet you're glad that that girlfriend of yours sacrificed herself so you could get out of there. I was feeling kind of nervous for you…"

"…Why are you with that guy?" Midna looked at Link curiously for a minute and then studied the clear water in the fountain. Neither spoke and Link was growing more irritated the longer the noiselessness dragged on. In truth, he had been relieved to leave so he wouldn't be in her presence anymore. He didn't care if his identity was found out. To him, it didn't seem nearly as big a deal as her and her newest fling.

"Why should it matter to you," she snapped tersely. Her tone made Link look at her. She was glaring at him coldly and he wondered why she was angry. If anything, he was the one entitled to anger.

"Why shouldn't it?" For a minute neither spoke and then Midna got up and started walking away. He wasn't going to let her get away that easily.

"What," she hissed when he grabbed her roughly by the arm. The prince didn't back down and instead he met her challenge.

"Don't walk away while I'm talking to you!"

"Oh, my bad! I thought this conversation was over with since there really isn't much to say. You're only my best friend Link and you already have a girlfriend! Speaking of, where she anyway?" Midna placed a hand on her forehead and started looking around like she was searching for her. The young man didn't get angry but instead he looked at her sadly.

"…You're with him because you aren't with me?" Midna's face turned twenty shades of red in less then twenty seconds. She snatched her arm away from his grasp and started shaking her head vehemently.

"Wha- no! Oh no! Get over yourself! I'm not dying to be with you so much that I would try to suppress my yearning for you by making seem like I don't yearn for you by being with someone else!" Her words slurred together in a fast sentence that Link barely comprehended, but he comprehended them nonetheless. Smirking coyly, he crossed his arms over his chest and started circling her. Midna became more flustered by his behavior because she felt like she was his prey that was laid out on in the open in easy reach for him.

"… Oh really," Link stated calmly, "Well, when you put it so eloquently like that, I guess I can't argue with you. However… I don't recall ever saying that you and I quote 'yearn for me.' Where did that come from?"

"I…I… I don't know what you're talking about!" Midna tried to get away again but Link was too fast and he grabbed her again, this time pulling her into his arms. They looked at each other lovingly and Midna whispered, "You seem so eager to keep me close. Why is that your highness?" It was Link's turn to blush. Instead of being put off by her comment and letting her go, he only pulled her closer. Midna's eyes widened in shock at his behavior and Link simply smiled at her.

"I… Midna I…"

"Yes?" It was too much. He missed her so immensely that it was beyond him to control his body's desires any longer. He leaned forward eyes closed. Midna's heart raced and she closed her eyes preparing for the kiss that she had been yearning for. Both of their mouths had barely brushed together when a bright flash light shined for a split second and a loud clicking sound resounded. Link immediately pulled away from her and she him as they looked around for whatever was the cause.

"Link… What was that?"

"I don't know…" In truth, the young man had the suspicion that it was a camera. But who would want to take pictures of them?

"… I think I'll be going now…," Midna stated. Even though he didn't really want her to, Link nodded in agreement.

"Good idea." The two separated, walking off in different directions.