Ooooo... a longer chapter... No one gets the imaginary thingymajiggy this time. Nice try InuYasha fan3; I guess there are lots of fics with Ganondorf's daughter meeting Link and Zelda but this one's different! Heehee. C'mon! The offer's still good and this chappie has quite a few hints! Review and try to guess part of Kira's history! The more you review the more chances you'll get!
Disclaimer: Well... it's kinda painfully obvious that I don't own Zelda...
Chapter 5: Dining With Royalty
Impa met the three Hylians at the bottom of the stairs. "Princess! You know that we have some special guests today! The King and Prince of Calatia shouldn't see the Princess of Hyrule in a simple shirt and skirt! As for you two, well... just get yourself cleaned up a bit. We all have to make a good impression."
The three sighed and traipsed back to their respective rooms. Impa smiled and took up a position against the wall, waiting to escort the princess and her guests to dinner.
That girl... that girl Link rescued. I wonder...
Kira flopped down on a plush chair. She didn't have any other clothes; her tunic was dirty, and she couldn't just wear her shirt and shorts to a royal dinner. She stared at the high ceiling, reflecting upon her current situation.
People here are so nice! It's too bad I have to leave as soon as my wounds are healed... but... if I told them the truth... then they'd probably think I'm crazy and then they won't want me anymore. I might as well try my hardest to seem like a mannerly young lady while I'm here.
Quietly walking across the hallway to the room she had seen Zelda enter, she knocked on the door, hoping the princess would be able to help. A very flustered Zelda answered. "I told you I don't need your help! Leave- oh sorry Kira. I thought you were one of those pesky maids who are supposed to help me dress. Hmph. I'm fourteen already, old enough to do that myself!" Zelda straightened out her circlet and added, "Did you need something?"
Kira said hesitatingly, "Um... I was wondering if you would have something I could wear to dinner. Anything one hundredths as pretty as yours would be nice."
Zelda laughed. "This? Pretty? This is just my normal ceremonial dress. Well come on in. I don't set traps in my room so don't worry!"
She fumbled around in her closet as Kira glanced around the room, amazed at all of the books and rich trappings that decorated it. "I never imagined that I would be staying right across a hallway from the Princess of Hyrule."
Zelda continued searching. "That's pretty much what Link said when he came to live here. Ah, here's a nice one." She held up a sleeveless lavender dress. It was simple yet elegant, and Kira's eyes sparkled when she saw it.
"Wow! It's so beautiful! Thank you so much, Princess Zelda!"
"Please, just Zelda. I'm glad you like it. I think that it would look nice if you just wore it over your shirt."
Kira exchanged her tunic for the dress. She twirled around in front of a large mirror, a huge smile plastered on her face. Then, unexpectedly, the dress caught on the edge of Zelda's reading desk and ripped apart in the side. Kira clasped her hands to her mouth while the princess sighed. "Stupid desk. Always does that. Don't worry about the dress, we can go and get that fixed up."
Before Kira could state anything, a sound of splashing water issued from the far wall, followed by "Din's Fire!" and a yelp. Zelda sighed again and gestured to the wall. "Looks like our dear Sir Link has come up with a new way of washing and drying clothes in his room."
"SIR Link? Ahh! I- I haven't been treating him with proper respect!"
"Don't call him that; he hates it. I just do that to make fun of him," explained Zelda as the two girls rushed to Link's room, Kira doing her best to hold the dress together and fold her tunic at the same time.
Link emerged, his clothes, minus the hat, steaming and a sheepish grin on his face. Seeing Kira's tunic, he exclaimed, "I'll wash that for you!" Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed it and ran into his room, locking the door.
"No! Link! Wait! St-"
"Din's Fire!" echoed from the room, and Link reappeared a second later with Kira's tunic, also steaming like his, and handed it back to her. "You can wear this instead of the dress. The King's not gonna approve of his daughter's guest wearing something with such a wide slit."
Kira blushed and headed back to Zelda's room to change. The princess peeked into Link's room, only to see a large water bucket, almost empty, and a red hot metal rack standing in the middle of the room. Link noticed her observations. "Like it? My own invention. Makes washing and drying much faster."
Zelda sighed again, the third time in fifteen minutes.
Note to self: Make Link get a new hobby.
Kira reemerged in the hallway, dressed in her tunic, now clean. "I left the dress on your bed. I'm really sorry for ripping it."
"Don't be," said Zelda.
"Ahh... And I'm really sorry for not mentioning this earlier, but... um... I wanted to thank both of you for saving me and treating my wounds."
Link grinned. "No problem. Now can we finally go to dinner? I'm starving!"
The three met Impa again at the same spot. She beamed at them. "That's MUCH better, Princess. You'll give a fine impression, indeed. Link, it's too bad that our guests are both males. They wouldn't appreciate how much better you look with your face and clothes clean. And..."
"Kira. Her name's Kira," Zelda chipped in.
"It's nice to meet you, Kira. I'm sure our guests would love to meet such a lovely young lady."
"Thank you."
"Now hurry along to dinner. The King is waiting," Impa finished as she directed the young Hylians toward the dinner hall.
Kira... Hmm... Could she be the one? I'll have to uncover her past. If it matches up with the one we made... Then I'll know it's her. As for what route we'll need to take...
She saved the thought for future consideration and headed toward the dinner hall herself.
A gaudily dressed herald welcomed the late arrivers at the door. "Greetings, your Majesty. The King is waiting for you."
"Have the guests arrived yet?" Zelda asked.
"No, your Majesty. But they are expected to arrive any moment now."
Zelda nodded and entered, followed by Link and Kira. Impa stationed herself by the door, in case of intruders. Seeing his daughter, King Harkinian III (A/N: random number) rose from his seat. "My dear princess, how are you tonight?"
"I'm fine Father, but will you not also offer greetings to Link and Kira?"
"Ah yes, of course, how rude of me. Welcome Sir Link and Lady Kira. Please take a seat."
"Yes, please do," Zelda added.
Everyone at the table sat down obediently. Almost immediately, the heralds announced the arrival of "King Cirlatan of Calatia and the Prince Lyson". The doors opened and two richly clothed people sauntered in. King Harkinian rose from his seat again. "Welcome to Hyrule Castle. Dinner will be served momentarily. I hope your trip has been pleasant."
King Cirlatan smiled agreeably and began a conversation with the King of Hyrule, now seated, but the Prince sniffled. "It was horrible! We had to pass through this stifling forest, and all these midgets stared at us! A little green-haired shrimp gave us a useless branch and said it was as a blessing! Imagine that!"
Link clenched his fists under the table and was about to say something nasty, but Zelda silenced him with a look. "Prince Lyson, the Great Deku Tree, although still small, is the sacred guardian of the Kokiri Forest, a place which many wish to see. It is a great honor to receive one of its branches! You should be grateful for it!" She eyed the prince coldly, but he didn't understand the message.
"Why would that be an honor? Personally, I feel that the only honor I wish for is to be able to dance with you, my sweet princess, with your radiant blue eyes, and locks of golden hair..."
Zelda looked completely disgusted, and Link gagged.
What a pathetic idiot!
The prince turned his beady black eyes on Link, who stared back with clear blue ones. Lyson ran a grubby hand through his oily brown hair. "Hmph. Commoners shouldn't be allowed to dine with royalty. Especially those with such horrible manners."
Zelda answered him angrily, "Link is a fine warrior and a good friend of mine. And he also partly serves as the ambassador of the Kokiri Forest."
Kira's eyes began to tear. Link noticed and quietly asked, "What's wrong?"
"Oh nothing. Just some dust in my eye, that's all." She smiled cheerfully at him.
Prince Lyson observed the entire exchange and rudely commented, "Now look here Father. These peasants are disregarding our great presence here and flirting in front of our very eyes! What do you have to say to that?"
The King of Calatia only nodded, continuing his conversation on taxes and foreign policies. Both Link and Kira glared at Lyson, who stared back haughtily and continued, "I do say, Princess Zelda, that you haven't done a good job teaching these commoners court manners, have you?"
It was Zelda's turn to glare, and she was about to launch into one of her royal tirades, but King Harkinian interrupted just in time. "Zelda dear, King Cirlatan informs me of the Prince's desire to remain in Hyrule for a few months. I say that we grant him his wish and let him be the guest-of-honor at our ball. The King tells me that Prince Lyson is a wonderful dancer. He would be the perfect partner for you!"
Zelda looked as if she were about to faint; Link was staring icily at Lyson, who was smirking, and Kira seemed utterly sick. King Cirlatan smiled. "Then it is settled. I shall be returning to Calatia tomorrow. Promise me that you will be a perfect gentleman."
Prince Lyson drawled, his voice full of mock sweetness, "Don't worry dear Father. I'll set an absolutely wonderful example for the Hylians, and I'll be sure to show this Link fellow what a "fine warrior" should really be."
"Do not worry about him. I shall make sure that he receives the best treatment that Hyrule has to offer. Let us start dinner, shall we?" exclaimed King Harkinian.
A/N: Lyson may seem like your average snotty prince, but I'm planning something for him. You'll have to keep reading and reviewing to find out! Anyway... did you catch the hints? There's still time! Don't forget that you might win an imaginary thingymajiggy! And if that doesn't convince you to review then please do it to let a new authoress know how her writing is! PRETTY PLEASE!