Chapter 11:
Beginning
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Far to the east of the Castle Hyrule.
A clearing near a forest among the outskirts of the country.
With a single burst of light, something tears through space.
A portal opens.
And the black-armored, hunched over demons begin marching through.
Once again, the sunlight flows through the window, stabbing his eyes to wake him up.
He groans, clenching his eyes shut, covering his face with his hand.
Link hates mornings, quite simply. He hates being woken by the sun, hates the insistent light forcing him from his more pleasant dreams.
Although, from the weight on his shoulder, he doesn't really mind too much, today...
He looks down, at the naked, beautiful woman lying next to his own sans clothes body under the covers, her gold hair slightly ruffled, her delicate hand lying against his chest as she smiles, slowly rousing from her earned slumber.
"Good morning," he says.
She smiles, moaning, resting her head deeper into their pillow, pressing herself closer to him.
"Good morning to you to, Link..." she moans, "What time is it...?"
"Time we decide whether or not your father'll kill me."
She smirks, sitting up, Link catching a glance at her beautiful, cream-skinned naked body before she covers herself with her side of the comforter.
"I doubt he'd be angry," she says, "Believe it or not, my father likes you. I'm not sure we should tell him what we were doing, but he wouldn't be angry that I spent the night here."
She leans over, pressing her lips against his.
"It's not like this was the first time, either."
"Yeah, but the last time we slept together, you were ready to bite my head off."
She smiles, chuckling, kissing him again, his hands sliding over her bare back...
And he groans as a fist insistently bangs on the front door.
"Ah, no...," he mutters.
He reaches over the side of the bed, grabbing his slacks and pulling them on, climbing off the bed and quickly looking to the door, and then back to the bed, where Zelda is still laying.
"Um...hide."
"Hide where?"
"I...uhm...under the covers, I guess," he says, shrugging, and walking to the door.
He checks to see her pulling the covers over herself, then turns to the door, opens it...
And sees a shaking Malon standing there, who quickly walks through.
"Malon?" he asks, "Malon, what are you-"
"Link, I have a problem." she shakily says, her voice noticably trembling, "I really need your-"
She stops in mid sentence as she peers across the room...and sees someone hiding under the covers of his bed. Sees discarded ladies clothing by one side.
He reaches over, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder...
And receives a hard slap in the face for it as she storms out, closing the door behind her.
He looks over, dumbfounded, from the door to the bed, as Zelda sits up, covering herself up to her shoulders with the sheets.
"What just happened?" she asks.
"That...was Malon."
"I know. Why did she just slap you?"
"I...well, I'll be back in a sec."
He opens the door, running out.
She sighs, shrugging, and starts to gather her clothes from the floor.
Link immediately regrets not wearing shoes as he feels both the loose stones in the ground on his feet and the slightly chilly air on his bare torso.
"Malon!" he yells, hurdling down the porch steps, "Malon, wait!"
He easily catches up to her quick strides, grabbing her shoulder and turning her around. He ducks to the side, her retaliatory punch flying right by his head.
He grabs her shoulders, holding her in place as he stares her right in the eyes, Malon's eyes narrowing to slits as she grits her teeth.
"Who is she, Link?!" she demands.
"Who...what do you mean?"
"I want to know who the woman is, so I can hunt her down and throttle her with my bare hands!", she growls, pushing off his hands, turning to walk back down the path.
He simply stands there, for a moment, shrugging before walking after her.
"Malon, what is your problem?" he asks, "I never remember you being this pissy!"
This time, her punch doesn't miss.
He stumbles back, holding his jaw, swearing loudly through his now muzzled mouth.
"How dense are you?!" she demands, "How hard is it for me to get a clue through to you?!"
"Um...I'm sorry?"
"I've been hitting on you since we met!", she screams.
He stands there, stock still and dumbfounded, watching as she folds her arms, still shuddering with anger and resentment.
He raises a finger, nodding.
"You...were hitting on...me?"
She nods.
"I kept on inviting you to dinner, kept on making small talk with you.", she responds, smiling slightly, "Link...I really like you. Honestly. I thought...there was a chance."
"You also told me about your old boyfriends."
"Yes...I wanted to make you jealous.", she responds, pacing about, "I wanted to get a reaction, make you want something...dammit, Link, you're nice, honest, handsome...and too damn moral!"
"Malon...I'm not in love with you."
She turns back to him, nodding, smirking slightly.
"You're too honest," she says, "Alright, who is she?"
"She?"
"The woman you broke a thirty year old vow of celibacy for," she responds, "Who's the lucky girl?"
"Um...it's Princess Zelda."
She folds her arms, sighing.
"Link, please be serious about this-"
"Link?"
They turn at the sound of the voice...and she sees Princess Zelda standing in the doorway of his house. Malon's mouth opens, her eyes wide open, her arms going slack and hanging limply by her sides.
"Link, I think you two should come inside," she says, "It's considerably warmer in here and I don't need you catching cold."
He nods, turning back to Malon...and she faints, collapsing in a heap on the ground.
He turns back to Zelda, and shrugs.
"She does that often," he says, and picks her up, carrying her with him to the house...
Zelda smooths out her collar as she puts on her flat-heeled shoes, watching as Link lays Malon down on the couch.
"I can guess what she was upset about," she says.
Link turns to her, shrugging.
"I take it you knew, to," he says, grabbing his tunic and throwing it on, "Zelda, could you get me the cloth I keep in my icebox?"
"Cloth?"
"I keep it there just in case I start to faint," he responds, walking over to the bar and looking over the bottles.
He finally grabs a small blue-green one, shaking it slightly.
She looks up from his kitchen, holding the slightly damp white cloth in her hand.
"Link, what are you doing?"
He turns, twirling the bottle in his hand.
"It's an herbal remedy," he says, "Kind of like smelling salts, but a bit more potent."
"Ah...use it often?"
"One of those 'just in case' sort of things," he says, "Want to hear the dish on me and Malon, yet?"
Zelda sighs, folding her arms and fingering the cloth.
"I thought you two never saw each other before the other day," she says, walking over.
"Not really. Malon's been one of my friends during the past few years. I never helped on the ranch, she never helped on my farm. But we get along. Unfortunately, my complete inability to take hints made it so she had to finally explain that she was hitting on me."
He pops the cork as she hands him the cloth, walking over to Malon.
He gently lays the cloth on her forehead as he places the bottle's nozzle under her nose...
And she sits up with a start, gasping as he pulls the bottle away.
"Welcome back to the waking world, Malon," he says, "How do you feel?"
"Ah...like something Epona kicked..."
"I can't really say I know the feeling," he responds, "So...what did you want to tell me?"
Malon quickly opens and closes her mouth, looking over her shoulder and seeing Zelda standing by the kitchen.
"I...should I?" she asks, "I don't want to intrude."
"Don't bother," he responds, "She's good at keeping secrets. Aren't you, Honey?"
"Call me 'Honey' again and I'll see to it you never walk again," she flatly responds.
He looks at her for a moment, and turns back to Malon.
"So...well, how can I help you?"
Malon looks over to the Princess, then to her friend.
She sighs, looks down, and shakes her head.
"Link, I think I'm possessed."
Garrison stands at attention as the King signs document after document, stamping the papers before taking out a thick book from under his desk, flipping through it.
"Commander?" the King asks.
Garrison straightens, nodding.
"Your Majesty?"
"Have you heard rumors about my daughter being courted?" the King asks.
"...yes, I have."
"Good. I want you to spread the world that there will be no suitors. Spread the word very distinctly. One noble tried to court her the day she announced Sir Jacob's death, and he was lucky to walk away from the encounter. While I think she will marry soon, I do not think it will be to a self-righteous noble."
Garrison nods, folding his hands, standing stock still.
"You see," the King continues, "There is a loophole in tradition. The King may overrule the necessity of the heir marrying a noble or royalty. But, just in case..."
He stands up, handing the documents to Garrison.
"Bring these down to processing," he says, "As soon as possible."
Garrison bows, nodding.
"As you wish," he says, and walks out.
"Um....possessed?"
Link folds his arms, furrowing his brow.
One of his closer friends, one of his only friends, actually. One of the four women he'd ever consider courting. His neighbor.
Who just told him that she's possessed.
Zelda quickly walks over, placing a hand on Malon's shoulder.
"Alright, Malon," she says, "Tell me what has happened."
The woman shudders, wrapping her arms around herself.
"It...it's odd," she says, "Epona was trying to get me to ride her. So I did, and we went to the Lost Woods...and he came to this clearing where this old sword was. There was also some sort of ball floating there, and...and then I blacked out."
"Then how do you know you're possessed?" Link asks, tilting his head.
"I...I healed a horse," she responds, "One of the ones who was attacked...Link, I did it by touching her!"
"Then it's a benign possession," Zelda says, shrugging, "You now have healing powers. I consider it a benefit-"
"A benefit?!"
Malon looks over to the princess, slowly rising to her feet.
"Having someone else in my head is a BENEFIT?!" she yells, "Look, Princess, I have something roaming around in my skull. I don't like it, it makes me pass out, and quite frankly, I WANT IT OUT!!!"
Her hands clench and unclench, Malon's breathing heavy, as she looks between the two, her eyes reminiscent of a caged animal.
Link places a nervous hand on her shoulder, Malon's eyes slowly turning to her.
"Malon, I really think we need to get you back to the ranch-"
Which is when her eyes glow gold.
"You must excuse her," the distinctly different voice says from her mouth, "But she has not adjusted to my presence, Hero of Time. I wish you no malice, and I will see you sometime soon."
And she disappears in a flash of light.
Link and Zelda look to each other, a look of blank confusion on both their faces.
"Oookay," he says, "Know what that was?"
"No idea, but we could find it in the library.", she responds, picking up the book from the table, "I think we should go back to the castle."
He nods, turning to the door.
"Walk or portal?"
"Portal," she says, and makes a gesture.
A glowing, rippling blue portal appears before them, and they both walk through.
Chapter 12:
Little Revelations
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Nina skips along a corridor in the castle, singing a little song her mother taught her, having long ago eluded the guards escorting her.
She skips along smiling to herself even though her mother has yet to return. She doesn't know where she is, but she has an idea.
And a pleasant idea, because she likes Uncle Link. She likes the way he acts like her father did, and especially how he looks at her mother the same way her father did.
She knew it from the start that he was a good one. He was funny, nice, and brave. Mother told her how he saved a lot of people a few days ago. She called it foolhardy and a 'complete lack of concern for his own safety', which meant she was worried about him.
She's still waiting for them to get back from wherever they are. She wants to see if he'll become her new father-
She stops as she sees someone standing in the hall. An image of a man, really.
Tall, imposing. Red-orange hair and a big nose. And really bad-looking.
Not a nice man. Someone her mother wouldn't want her to talk with.
The man looks at her, narrowing his glowing eyes...
And scoffs, turning about and disappearing.
The portal deposits them in the throne room, the guards tensing and then relaxing as they watch the Princess and the commoner who saved Princess Nina two nights before walking out of the glowing gateway.
"Your accuracy's getting off," he mutters.
She smirks, turning to the soldiers.
"Is the King here?" she asks.
The soldiers absently looking to each other, nodding in aggreement.
"He is in his quarters, Your Highness," one of them announces.
She nods, turning to the commoner.
"To the stairs, then," she says, turning and walking to a stairwell near the throne.
"Fine," he responds, following her, "But don't you think we should change? Maybe shower? I'm wearing the same tunic as yesterday, so he'd pretty much be able to figure out we were-"
"Link!" she says, an amused and flustered tone in her voice, "Not in front of the guards!"
They laugh, the guards looking to each other, confused, as the two disappear as they walk up the stairs.
The remains of hundreds of demons marr the landscape as Ganon opens his eyes once again. He rises to his feet, lifting a hand.
The demon shells lift from the ground, whirling about at the god's direction.
They converge into a shape rising from the ground, standing at seven feet tall. Some parts snap into armrests, the structure forming its base.
With a single cutting motion, it stops. And standing before him is a throne made from demon flesh.
Gannon walks to it, sweeping out his cape as he sits down, silently looking up to the sky, to the barrier surrounding his sky that prevents his further conquests.
And raises an eyebrow as a small scratch runs down part of it.
Their arms wrap around their naked bodies, her hands pressing herself against him as he reaches out, turning the small, polished nozzle to the right.
The shower comes to life as a steady stream of heated water strikes the back of Zelda's head, breaking her kiss with Link.
"How'd you convince me to do this, again?" she slowly asks, her hair matting to her body, Link stepping away slowly.
Surprisingly to her, he's still looking at her face. Not at the complete lack of clothes they now have.
"Well, you really convinced me," he says, grabbing the soap, walking to her and handing it to her as they press against each other, "I tried to be a priest, Zelda. I know how to control myself."
"You didn't try last night," she giggles, kissing him softly, "You do my back."
She hands him another piece of soap, turning her back to him, sweeping her wet hair over her shoulder, over her breasts.
She sighs as she feels the soap on the small of her back, sliding up her spine, over her shoulders.
"So, how's Nina doing in her studies?"
She opens her eyes at the question, raising an eyebrow. Here she is, in her most vulnerable position...and he's asking about her daughter? Well...it does show something she's rarely seen.
An ability to control those urges. Maybe that's what she always loved about him. That he saw her as less than just something to gawk at...
"Oh...oh, she's doing rather well," Zelda says, as she feels the soap on her shoulders, running down her sides, "She's really doing quite well. She's been going at a pretty quick pace."
"That's great, Zelda," he says, "Who does she inherit it from?"
"We're not sure. I'll have to see if she takes up painting."
She manuevers his hands around her waist, tuning her head, kissing him. He returns the kiss, running the bar over her stomach, pulling her down with him as he runs it over her long legs.
She breaks the kiss momentarily as she turns, her feet on his as she sits on her knees, her hands on his as she rests her chin on her hand.
"Do you have any intention...?"
"Of...oh, no. Zelda, this is your bathroom. Nina could come in any second. She'd be very, very confused."
She smiles, leaning her head against him.
"Then hand me that bottle over there, Link."
Malon shakily works on Epona's saddle, the grey-red horse snorting as she trots around.
"Epona, let me get on!" she yells, grabbing onto her reigns, "You got me into this in the first place, so let me-"
"hrrrr...."
She turns, quickly...and sees five of the monsters moving out from the forests.
Followed by another five.
And another five, slowly walking on all fours. Eyeing the horses. Eyeing her.
Eyeing them like fresh prey.
She stands there, stock still, the other horses running for the stabbles.
She chokes, backing away as the monsters begin running...
And a blast of light shoots from her hand, slicing a demon in two and causing it to be consumed by flame.
Another blast lances from her other hand, her muscles tensing, lifting her arms up, directing them...
And her eyes begin to glow bright gold, the voice inside her head taking over.
"Demon!" she roars, "You dare to come here again! Prepare to return to the Hell that spawned you!"
And arcs of light burst from every finger. Demons scream as the energy runs each and every one of them through, tearing them to pieces in burning holy light.
The last demon explodes from the blasts, screaming as the explosion tears its head from its body, landing and rolling until it hits her booted foot.
Malon's eyes refocus, returning to normal. Her arms droop to her sides as she slowly looks around, mouth agape...and jumps back when she sees the decapitated, inhuman head by her foot.
"Epona!" she yells, "We're going to the Forest, NOW!"
Father, she may be unworthy, Love says, This woman is not the warrior Justice would need.
And she has not the steel of will. We know she was most often the maiden in terror, not the imperiled Princess we had gifted.
We must have one who embodies the three of us. We must have the Princess.
The light before them flashes brightly. Out of anger or sympathy, they do not know, for He embodies both those and many other traits.
Enough, He echoes, We have chosen her because We know what is to be. Your request is unneeded. Your aid will be.
And with that, their father disappears, leaving the two goddesses to ponder the meaning of His words.
If Zelda is anything, she is passionate about whatever she does.
Passionate about being a mother, in how she raised Nina to never know a day of sadness if she can help it.
Passionate about being a princess, ensuring that she will be a loved and respected Queen when she must ascend.
Passionate about being able to defend herself and her kingdom, having honed her impressive magick abilities and enhanced them even more by when she touched the Triforce.
And, Link remembers, passionate...well, there. It was kind of...odd...when she practically took control last night. Which he doesn't mind, she's a lot more experienced than he is.
While most men would be angry that the woman they just deflowered wasn't pure or chaste or something along those lines, he's accepted the face that she has loved someone else. Someone he'd be proud to meet, in all honesty.
He looks up as they climb the stairs, admiring the charcoal grey dress she's wearing. She's the type of woman who could make any sort of clothing look aristocratic. She's the type who'd make snorting in public look aristocratic.
And Zelda says he obsessed over her.
How could the peasant boy not?
"Think he'll be happy?" he asks.
"He really likes you, Link," she responds, "I think he'd laugh and ask when we're getting married."
"Before or after we tell him we made love last night?"
She turns to him, giving a bemused smile.
"After."
She climbs up the last stairs, opening the door.
"This way," she says.
"Zelda, I've been here before," he responds, taking her hand, "Who goes in first?"
"I do."
He nods, following her to the doors, turning her to him.
"Link..." she sighs.
"One question," he says, "Was last night...planned?"
She blushes, screwing her face as she looks him in the eyes.
"A bit," she says, and taps his chest, "I didn't plan to sleep with you..."
"You never do," he responds, smirking.
She sighs, suppressing a laugh.
"But it had crossed my mind," she responds, "Several times. Link, how long have you wanted this?"
"Since I met you, Zelda," he says, "Since I met you to begin with..."
She looks down, nodding.
"Besides," he continues, "I had to follow up on at least one romantic lead."
She emits a small laugh, placing her hands on his shoulders.
"So I was it?" she asks, "I was the lucky one?"
"Well..."
He sighs, shrugging.
"Well, Rukio only eats fish...and I can't stomach fish. I hate the smell and the prospect that the little thing's been swimming in my own wastes."
She purses her lips, chuckling.
"Saria's a spirit," he continues, "She's a great friend, and I love her as a friend, but she's so far beyond me I'd be insulted. And Malon's...well, I've honestly never saw her as a romantic interest until she admitted she was hitting on me. I'm really that dense. You, on the other hand, have saved my butt so many times I have to pursue you. Anyone who has saved me from those many near-death experiences has to have some place in her heart for me, and I, on the other hand, found you beautiful, charming, and intelligent. You'd win the battle of wits every time, and I'd enjoy it."
She smiles, smirking, tightening her hands behind his neck.
"You know what I want to hear," she says.
"It's the truth."
"And that's what I like about you."
She smiles, pulling him close, her lips edging towards his...
"Momma! Unca Link!"
They break the embrace as the soot covered Nina runs towards them, leaping into Link's arms.
"Nina!" Zelda yells, aghast, pulling out a cloth from her dress, "Were you in the dungeon again!"
Link turns to her, mouthing 'dungeon?' before she gives him one of those 'I'll explain later' looks, wiping off her daughter's face.
"Where were you, Momma?" the still exuberant child asks, "Where you with Unca Link?"
Sharp kid.
Zelda smiles, slightly, pushing away some of her daughter's hair.
"We talked for much of last night, baby. I'm sorry we were gone, but it was late."
She kisses her daughter on the forehead, taking her from Link's arms.
"Now, we're going to see Grandpa, Nina. Do you want to come?"
"Okay, Momma."
Zelda smiles, her muscles untenseing as she locks eyes with Link. She nods to the door, and they walk in...