Sorry I took so goddamn long to update: Life's a pain in the behind (especially work!), my muse turned out to be non-existent (seriously, there's a muse for poetry, another for drama, another for songs… but no muse for prose!), I also suffered from writer's block, etc., etc.… and I also worked on some later chapter (good news there: the final chapter is as good as done! Encoded too!) and was partially side-tracked by another story.

Sorry in advance, 'tis just another staller. But… our troubled fair Zelda is meeting our young king again so some might like this.

Feel free to skip this; it's just some rant.:

I must say, that review I got in the last chapter where that Anonymous Guest expressed his fears about our fair Zelda jumping off the balcony really amused me!

I just found the notion too… silly!

1st off; our fair Zelda wants to go home! Back to all her dear friends and her dear old father; that won't happen if she kills herself now will it? I mean, sure there were plenty of idiots who killed themselves over the silliest things (not too long ago I heard of a teacher who killed him/herself just 'cause she couldn't handle all the paperwork… another guy killed himself 'cause all the selfies he took and posted on facebook gathered no/negative attention… I also heard of a kid who jumped off a building 'cause he wanted to fly like Pikachu…) but, don't worry, I made our fair Zelda is too smart for that.

2nd, I kinda modeled the fair Zelda after myself in the last two chapters and the guy who wrote this fanfic (eg. me) first contemplated suicide back when he was less than nine (!) years old…

Don't worry; I wasn't seriously contemplating it… it was just a… philosophical/rhetorical question; I was questioning the worth and sense of my life seeing that I wasn't anyone special in anything, there were so many people out there that were so much better than me at everything (still are!), and sooner and later we're going to die anyway! So, I wondered (just wondered!), why not just 'skip' right to the end?

Anyway, I came up with something that spoke against it (it turned out to be false though), and till today I'm not in favor of suicide.

One; I find it cowardly and disgraceful… (especially for men. After all, us men are expected to be strong one way or another) and pride is probably my biggest sin, though it just might be also my biggest virtue; so far, I was too proud to kill to myself.

Again, sometime ago, I read on the net about a guy who killed himself because all his selfies gathered no or only negative attention.

'Dunno that person, but… sounds like a real loser to me. So, he sucked at taking selfies… so what? He could have joined a photography class and learned how to take good pictures (or at least better ones). Or, if photography really wasn't his thing, he could have tried something else. Playing an instrument, writing fanfics, drawing sketches, playing some sport… it just seems so stupid to me…

Also, I find suicide a waste… a waste of chance, a waste of opportunities, a waste of possibilities… etc.

Besides; there's nothing for me in death. I don't believe in heaven or hell (I just have a gut feeling that it'd be too perfect or too just if those two places really existed; that'd just be too… idealistic. That's just wishful thinking if you ask me.)

While reincarnation for some reason sounds attractive to me (that is, as long as I don't get reincarnated until I get to witness the end of our planet, that'd suck) I'm betting that once you die you're gone and that's it.

So, don't worry folks, I won't be killing myself (at the very least, not before I finish this story; afterwards…?)

As for that guest, thanks for the review though, it really amused me and I don't get enough amusement in life (most of us don't).

Man, I had a weird dream. Something about two guys having posted some rather negative reviews and I couldn't delete them… 'cause, they were right or something like that.

Man was I relieved that was just a dream. Maybe I'm taking this FFN thing too seriously and better quit…

…

…

…

Nah… my life would get even more boring if I did that. And it'd be cruel to you guys if I quit… at least before finishing this story. Probably everybody here knows how it feels to read an awesome story and then all of a sudden it just stops!

I don't want that to happen with "The Queen's Treasure."

Sorry, what follows next is a teaser-chapter.

The fair Zelda knew not when she had fallen asleep; nor did she know for how long she had slept. What she did know was that someone was knocking at her door and calling for her.

"Young Zelda? Are you there? Can you hear me?"

"Yes, Lady Impa," answered the fair Zelda, having recognized the lady knight by her voice.

"May I come in?" asked the stern Impa.

"Yes, feel free to," answered the fair Zelda.

The door opened and the stern Impa made to enter. But she stopped the moment her eyes found the fair Zelda.

"Young Zelda… what is the matter? What ails you?"

The young maid was perplexed by the lady knight's words and the tone of them.

"Whatever do you mean, Lady Impa? Nothing ails me."

The stern Impa eyed her in a manner befitting her name and motioned to the vanity that had been added to the room.

"Look at yourself," said the lady knight in a stern voice.

Confused, the fair Zelda went to sit at the vanity and see herself in the mirror. At once she saw what the stern Impa had meant. The fair Zelda looked an utter mess. Her hair was very disheveled. Her eyes were red and puffy. Her face was pale and drained. The fair Zelda truly looked as though she was suffering some cruel disease.

The fair Zelda gave the stern Impa a weak smile.

"There is no need to worry, Lady Impa, I fell asleep earlier, and I always look this terrible when I wake…"

The knightly Impa believed her not.

"Young Zelda speak truly, what ails you?" the tone of her voice was most stern, and many a time had it broken the spirit of the young king back when he had been a squire and later page.

The fair Zelda, though quite frightened, shook her head, "Nothing ails me, Lady Impa… I assure you, you need not worry."

The stern Impa frowned, almost viciously, and was most displeased. However…

"Be that as it may, Young Zelda… the young king will sup soon, and he wishes you to join him."

...

The stern Impa then spoke to a couple of chambermaids(?) who were waiting beyond the door, "Come in and groom the young Zelda, and help her dress. She must look her best before our king."

Thee two maids nodded and quickly got to work…

A good while later the fair Zelda, accompanied by the stern Impa and the two chambermaids, made her way to the castle's dining hall. The pretty farmmaiden felt most uncomfortable. Not only felt she alone, her first taste of finery and being a lady tasted rather bitter.

The two chambermaids had dusted her with so much powder that she had fought hard not to cough.

They had sprayed her with so much perfume that she had nearly gagged.

The dress that she was forced to wear now was most uncomfortable. It was beautiful to look at, yet constrictingly tight to wear. Her waist hurt, and she found it difficult to draw breath. The fair Zelda, for all her wits and intelligence, knew not how she was to stomach any food wearing a dress as tight as the one she wore.

Her feet hurt worse. Though the shoes she wore were most elegant, they hurt her feet so badly that the fair Zelda feared that she would lose the sensation in them if she was forced to continue wearing these painful shoes. She also had to fight hard to maintain her balance as she walked. Any moment she feared that she might fall. And yet, she had to walk elegantly, in a stiff and formal posture.

To her great relief and thanks, it was not far to the dining hall, and soon she found herself before its large doors.

At once her relief vanished and gave way to worry and fear. She knew that beyond these doors the young king was awaiting her, but she knew not how she felt about it.

On one hand, it was not as though she disliked the young king. Quite the contrary. Most of the times she had spent speaking with him had been rather pleasant, so she bore him no ill will.

But then… on the other hand, it was his fault that she was here now, here in this castle, away from her home, away from her dear father and all her dear friends.

Yet, again this was not truly the young king's fault was it? Was it not her own foolish tongue that had brought the fair Zelda into this mess?

This way and that did the thoughts of the fair Zelda twist and turn about.

"Young Zelda!"

The sudden call of the stern Impa startled the pretty farmmaiden out of her reverie.

"Enter young Zelda, our king awaits you."

The fair Zelda stepped into the dining hall. Just beyond the door's threshold she halted and curtsied.

"Enter, fair Zelda," said a clear joyous voice.

Raising her head, the fair Zelda's eyes met those of the young king. When they did, the fair Zelda took note of how joyful and glad they looked, and the fair Zelda knew not how she felt of this. If anything, it brought her yet more worry.

"Come, fair Zelda, do not stay there in the doorway, you too, Lady Impa, come sit with us and let us dine," invited them the young king warmly.

The fair Zelda and the stern Impa did as they were bid. They promptly made their way to the table and sat down. It was no grand celebration, the young king had wanted it to be a private dinner, so aside from the servants who were waiting on them, and some guards to watch them, there were only four people present in the dining hall, all seated at the king's table.

One of course was the young king himself. To his left was seated, to her great discomfort and growing anxiety, the fair Zelda. She herself would have chosen to sit in a chair farther from the young king, and said king not invited her to take the seat next to him, and the obedient maid, though very much confused and quite possibly frightened, fortunately still had enough of her wits with her as to graciously accept the king's kind offer as to not displease him.

Furthermore… there was the stern Impa, and the fair Zelda dared not think displease the young king while she was present, which she most certainly was, seated right to the left of the fair Zelda, which added all the more to the poor maiden's discomfort.

To the right of the young king sat an old man dressed in long auburn robes. The fair Zelda had not spoken much to this old lord during her stay back those two years ago when she and her old father had been the young king's guests, but she still remembered who he was.

He was known in Hyrule as the wise, old Rauru, and he had been the old king's most trusted advisor, and counselor in religious and stately affairs.

"I am joyed to see you, fair Zelda," began the young king in a joyfully. But his voice carried worry, "How feel you? The Lady Impa let me know that earlier you seemed rather unwell."

The fair Zelda flinched at the young king's words, but then she quickly recovered.

"Worry not, your highness," she answered, forcing her lips into a weak smile, "It was merely the farewell I bid my dear old father and all my dear friends… it had turned out to be much more heart-rending than I had imagined."

The young king slowly nodded.

"know how you feel, fair Zelda…" said the young king in a melancholy voice, "I too had to bid many farewells… to many a good friend… and in some cases, tis my fault I will not see them again…"

The stern Impa half-rose at his words.

"Li- I mean, your highness-"

But the young king gestured her to take her seat again, "Lady Impa… tis the truth. I am well aware of my successes, of my victory. But even so, I am much more aware of my failures, my losses…"

The stern Impa held her tongue and took her seat again.

For a good long moment, silence reigned. Then the young king took up the word again.

"Fair Zelda, Lord Rauru, I am aware that I have already done so before, since it has been two years since, I shall introduce you to one another once more. Fair Zelda, please meet Lord Rauru the Wise. He was my late uncle's closest adviser and most loyal friend. If ever my late uncle had to travel to the neighboring kingdoms on diplomatic visits, Lord Rauru would either be at his side or remain here in Hyrule and rule her in his stead."

"When I was younger, while the Lady Impa trained me in the arts of war, and schooled me in the code of chivalry, the wise Lord Rauru had me educated in the pursuits of the scholar. Reading, Writing, Literature, Geography, History… all these the wise Lord Rauru taught me. And I still learn from him. And just as he counselled my late uncle, so does he counsel me today at court."

"I have let the wise Lord Rauru in on my plan, and he has agreed to partake."

At this the wise, old Rauru bowed.

"So I have… though tis a most unorthodox scheme is our young king has come up with, I see the wisdom in it. It may indeed be the best course of action. So, young Zelda, I have agreed to take part in it. Just as I have educated our young king, so will I now be teaching you, young Zelda, until you will make a good queen."

"And he will not be the only teacher you will have," took the stern Impa over the word, "I too will be teaching you. The lord Rauru will guide you in your scholarly pursuits most the time, and I will be teaching you in the ways of proper conduct."

The fair Zelda took a moment's time to consider what she had been just told. Then she bowed her head.

"I am honored to be under your care, my lord, my lady."

Just then, the servants came in and brought the food, and the young king and his guests began their evening meal.

...

The very next day the fair Zelda began attending her lessons. That very day and most all the days that followed, the fair Zelda was kept most busy. Form the very founding of Hyrule until the very present day of the kingdom. From a simple barter to the whole trade between Hyrule and her neighbors. From a simple curtsy to a curtly dance. All these, and many and much more the fair Zelda had to learn. The young king, the stern Impa and the wise, old Rauru also required of her that she be present whenever the young king had to meet with the common folk, whenever someone sought his kingly aid and advice. And once the stern Impa and the wise, old Rauru had deemed that the fair Zelda sufficiently knew about decorum and etiquette and that she knew how to properly behave in court, she attended royal balls with the young king, and was to speak and interact with Hyrule's nobility and visiting dignitaries.

Both the wise, old Rauru and of course the stern Impa were strict teachers and pushed her hard and fast in her studies. And the young king, though most kind to her, had high expectations of her. But still, the fair Zelda spent not all of her days in study. Every quartermoon, she was given a day or two to rest and spend at her leisure. Well… almost, to be true. One of these days she had to spend in leisure with the young king. It need not be said that the purpose of these days was so that the friendship between the young king and the fair Zelda would bloom into something more.

Alas, things went not at all to the young king's expectations. Though the fair Zelda had a sharp enough mind for queenhood, her heart was not even in the littlest agreeing. The fair Zelda learned little and slowly. Not because her lessons were beyond her understanding. Not because she found her lessons impractical or unnecessary. But simply because she knew the more she committed herself to her studies, the less likely it was that the young king would send her home. T'was also the reason the fair Zelda would act rather withdrawn whenever she was with the young king. She wanted not his love, she wanted to be home again.

And although the good Malon and the slim Anju came to visit her whenever they could and were allowed, it did little to ease her heartache. Rather it intensified it. The fair Zelda wanted not merely to see her dear friends… she wanted to be with them. All the time. She had longed to be back home the moment she had stepped into the carriage, and each day it had grown to torment her more.

The young king had been most welcoming to her, and the wise, old Rauru and the stern Impa too were most kind to her. So were the maids and all the other castlefolk… at first.

But not for long.

The young king had made his strange plan never known, yet still the people at the castle soon suspected why the fair Zelda was staying at the castle and was much too often at the young king's side. Many of the castlemaids, and even some of the menfolk, felt jealous and wronged. Many of them had served the young king for many months, some had even served at the castle long before him. So why were they not given the chance to prove themselves worthy of a royal partner? Why this lowly farmer girl?

Needless to say, if the lowly servants felt this way about the fair Zelda, then so much more felt so the highborn nobles. And unlike the servants the nobles were not shy about making their displeasure known. Much more so their complaints and protests.

At first the young king made efforts to uphold his secret, saying that the fair Zelda was not his fiancée but merely a good friend and guest of his, and therefore to be treated with all respect and kindness, but soon his words fell on deaf ears and none believed. When the young king realized this, he said not much more on the matter. He did not outright confirm their suspicions as true but neither did he deny them as being false. But this doth not mean that he did not defend the fair Zelda whenever someone dared speak ill or mean to her. Quite the contrary. Fiancée or not, he would always say, he would not allow anyone to belittle her.

One can easily guess that the fair Zelda thus found little pleasure in being the young king's fiancée. True, she could wear sparkling jewelry and beautiful garments, and dine from the finest dishes, but she felt lonely and unwelcome and most of all painfully homesick. She ached to be back home, back to the farm of the good burly landlord Talon, back to her dear old father, back to all her dear, loving friends… alas, without meaning to, the young king denied her this. Despite everything the young king held on to the belief that the fair Zelda was the right one, the right one for the throne, the right one for his heart.

Both the stern Impa and the wise, old Rauru had already informed the young king about the fair Zelda, about how she had seemed distraught and distracted, and how she was not performing as well in her studies as they had hoped she would.

Nonetheless, the young king told them to be patient with her and to give the fair Zelda more time.

Whenever the young king spent time with the fair Zelda, he noticed her unease. He had also noticed that she never reciprocated any of his advances, which were actually much too gentle and kind to consider them as such. He was well aware that his presence seemed to bring the fair Zelda only discomfort.

Nonetheless, the young king kept his hopes.

The young king's persistence, the jealousy of the servants, the disdain of the nobles, her growing homesickness… all these soon had the fair Zelda grow bitter frustration.

And that frustration soon drove her to do something to spite the young king. And anger him.

I know this is just a teaser, but I'm still somewhat happy with this chapter… I think it did a good job of raising the drama and give you the oh-shit-no-what's-gonna-happen-next-feeling.

Well, finally, now I can go back to the original story… rejoice folks; the second trial is about to come, wherein our fair Zelda will use her wits again to 'defeat' our young king once more! But you won't like it!

Sorry in advance; I'll be damn busy next week, so… expect nothing this October. First week November maybe.

PS:

Are there any New Zealanders reading my story? If so, I'd like to get to know them; I'm thinking of going there on vacation. And eventually move there permanently.

Second: I've had another crazy LOZ fanfic idea; Any Naruto-fans here? Ever read Naruto Deserted Island? It came to my mind that maybe I or someone else could do an LOZ equivalent.

PPS:

I'll be throwing out a tragic LOZ legend-ish one-shot soon. Please take a look if you're interested. The title is "The Golden Goddesses' Godlings."

Man, it feels like a century since I last posted this;

Please review and comment. All forms of reviews, comments and criticisms are very welcomed and appreciated. You are also welcome to send me private messages.

If you do not have the time to leave behind such, a numerical ratings from 0-10 will suffice just as well.

10 = PERFECTION!

9 = Awesome!

8 = Very good!

7 = Good

6 = Nice

5 = Not too bad

4 = Not so good

3 = Bad

2 = Why did you post this?

1 = Why the hell did you even bother write this?!

0 = Delete this shit… NOW!