Prophecy
I
IHis fingers could almost grasp it, could almost wretch the drowning girl from the torrential waters. Her face was obscured between the flood of whitecaps, and her voice was quelled by the waters that drowned her life away. He cringed as his fingers entwined with hers. It had never been hard for him before, but now it seemed that his superhuman strength, his will to dominate any 'ordinary' situation like this had completely evaporated. Like liquid, it seemed her hand slipped away from his in a nanosecond. He blinked, looked out to the sea. It seemed that he beckoned her name, and as he looked to the whitecaps upon the black, choppy waters, he could only see the pale, blond hair on her head bobbing distantly in the sea./I
"Link! Oh, I can't believe you-it's almost eleven in the morning, and here you are as usual, dead asleep in bed. Don't you think that's disgraceful? There could be children in Lake Hylia, drowning-"
He winced as he managed to drown out Zelda's voice. She'd been especially agitated lately, but then again, it wasn't unusual for the Princess to be a bit upset whenever her father had planned for a visitor to come. He bit his lip and pulled himself onto his feet, though not before receiving a harsh slap on the cheek.
"Ow! Zel, what the Hell was that for?"
"For saying what you did last night, right before you ran off to bed to avoid getting your due punishment."
"I don't remember."
"Hmph, how convenient whenever you're set for punishment, you never remember what you've done wrong!"
He puckered his lips. "I'm sorry. I should know to be nice to you when you're crabby."
That was all it took. In seconds, she'd stormed out of his bedroom.
Chuckling, he moved into his private bathroom to be in complete and utter privacy. The dream still flowed heavily on his mind. He was never the one to prophecy of horrible things, and he knew for sure that what he'd seen wasn't a prophecy-- but what if it was? Zelda had always paraded around the Castle, declaring her sovereign leadership over everyone she met for the mere reason that she was able to see things that so many of them couldn't. Many villagers, peasants, even, came to the Princess looking for divine intervention-divine answers-in their everyday lives. What Link saw, however, wasn't a situation of winning money or anything like that at all. He saw black deaths riding in the sea. Was Hyrule destined to drown?
There was a light knocking on the door, and he jerked his head upright to stare at his reflection in the mirror.
"Yes?"
"Link? It's Impa. Zelda's very concerned about you."
"No, no, I'm fine. What time is it?"
There was a pause as she answered.
"Almost twelve."
Link forked his salad around his plate, trying to create the illusion that he'd eaten at least some of it as not to hurt the feelings of the palace cooks. It wasn't that the food was bad-it was just that his stomach always felt full lately, and nausea plagued him nearly all hours of the day. The sun had risen several hours ago, and Zelda was still upset about the events earlier in the day. She'd figured that he'd gone back to sleep, although he was quite undecided on what had truly happened during that hour he'd thought he'd only been daydreaming for a few minutes. He bit his lip as he smeared a bit of dressing onto it, allowing his tongue to fork out to gather it up. Zelda wouldn't be pleased in hearing about what he considered to be a relevant cause for worry. Even he was unsure on whether or not his vision was reality. After all, he could remember in the back of his mind, he'd had terrible, realistic nightmares in the past, and Zelda had always reassured him that it wasn't just a dream. A few trickles of sweat streamed down his forehead.
But what if it wasn't?
He glanced to Zelda, who was seated at the other side of the table. Surely if something related to the Triforce or-Heaven forbid!-Gannondorf Dragmire, she would have warned him about her visions, her feelings of uneasiness. As far as he could see, however, Princess Zelda was at peace. Her father was preparing to resign from his title within five years, and for the first time in a century, Hyrule exhibited a peace foreign to neighboring allies overseas. Link knew that he should share that same peace, that same contentment and serenity. He and Zelda would be announcing their engagement in a few short weeks.
Yet the dream still lingered in the back of his mind incessantly, like a plague slowly coiling around every vein and muscle in his body. He hated this sudden display of mental weakness within himself. He'd never been the one to worry so much-that had been Zelda's position throughout their adolescence, and as they both neared the age of twenty-one, both were beginning to settle down in their lives. Adventures had become less and less frequent, as the biggest threats were nothing that the Knights couldn't handle. Link stabbed lettuce onto his fork and shoved it into his mouth.
Then again, Zelda was slowly becoming too subdued in her mannerisms. When King Harkinian brought up issues that she disagreed with, she merely shrugged her shoulders, cocked her head sideways, and shot him a sweet smile without as much as a word implying that she desired otherwise. Her longing for adventure had ceased, and the mention of a romantic moonlight horse-ride left her rolling her eyes and coiling in disgust. He could hear her oft-used answer ringing in the back of his mind:
"Ugh, Link. We're not children anymore, and as we both know, that's all child's play. You don't have to romance me anymore, you know. Just be yourself-I'm much more content spending my days here, anyway."
Apparently, Zelda had stopped trying to romance and impress him. It seemed she never wanted to do much of anything anymore. Perhaps her supernatural powers had slowly slipped away from her reign over the years as they become more and more unused. He lowered his gaze. Was it a good time to bring up the situation?
He smiled. She was passing him a glass of wine.
"Zelda, I think it's time I brought up something-"
"Oh! Yes, certainly." His jaw hadn't even raised to the next word as Zelda added, "Daddy, Link and I are going to be married!"
"Married!" The rotund King managed a merry chuckle and leaned back in his seat, a wide grin on his face. "My, Zelda, Link! This is wonderful news! I will make sure it's broadcast all over the Kingdom. The townspeople will love to hear that their favorite Princess and Hero are to be wed!"
"Yes, yes of course, Daddy."
As Father and daughter continued talks about their wedding plans, Link sank lower and lower into his seat.
I So much for that attempt. /I
I
IHis fingers could almost grasp it, could almost wretch the drowning girl from the torrential waters. Her face was obscured between the flood of whitecaps, and her voice was quelled by the waters that drowned her life away. He cringed as his fingers entwined with hers. It had never been hard for him before, but now it seemed that his superhuman strength, his will to dominate any 'ordinary' situation like this had completely evaporated. Like liquid, it seemed her hand slipped away from his in a nanosecond. He blinked, looked out to the sea. It seemed that he beckoned her name, and as he looked to the whitecaps upon the black, choppy waters, he could only see the pale, blond hair on her head bobbing distantly in the sea./I
"Link! Oh, I can't believe you-it's almost eleven in the morning, and here you are as usual, dead asleep in bed. Don't you think that's disgraceful? There could be children in Lake Hylia, drowning-"
He winced as he managed to drown out Zelda's voice. She'd been especially agitated lately, but then again, it wasn't unusual for the Princess to be a bit upset whenever her father had planned for a visitor to come. He bit his lip and pulled himself onto his feet, though not before receiving a harsh slap on the cheek.
"Ow! Zel, what the Hell was that for?"
"For saying what you did last night, right before you ran off to bed to avoid getting your due punishment."
"I don't remember."
"Hmph, how convenient whenever you're set for punishment, you never remember what you've done wrong!"
He puckered his lips. "I'm sorry. I should know to be nice to you when you're crabby."
That was all it took. In seconds, she'd stormed out of his bedroom.
Chuckling, he moved into his private bathroom to be in complete and utter privacy. The dream still flowed heavily on his mind. He was never the one to prophecy of horrible things, and he knew for sure that what he'd seen wasn't a prophecy-- but what if it was? Zelda had always paraded around the Castle, declaring her sovereign leadership over everyone she met for the mere reason that she was able to see things that so many of them couldn't. Many villagers, peasants, even, came to the Princess looking for divine intervention-divine answers-in their everyday lives. What Link saw, however, wasn't a situation of winning money or anything like that at all. He saw black deaths riding in the sea. Was Hyrule destined to drown?
There was a light knocking on the door, and he jerked his head upright to stare at his reflection in the mirror.
"Yes?"
"Link? It's Impa. Zelda's very concerned about you."
"No, no, I'm fine. What time is it?"
There was a pause as she answered.
"Almost twelve."
Link forked his salad around his plate, trying to create the illusion that he'd eaten at least some of it as not to hurt the feelings of the palace cooks. It wasn't that the food was bad-it was just that his stomach always felt full lately, and nausea plagued him nearly all hours of the day. The sun had risen several hours ago, and Zelda was still upset about the events earlier in the day. She'd figured that he'd gone back to sleep, although he was quite undecided on what had truly happened during that hour he'd thought he'd only been daydreaming for a few minutes. He bit his lip as he smeared a bit of dressing onto it, allowing his tongue to fork out to gather it up. Zelda wouldn't be pleased in hearing about what he considered to be a relevant cause for worry. Even he was unsure on whether or not his vision was reality. After all, he could remember in the back of his mind, he'd had terrible, realistic nightmares in the past, and Zelda had always reassured him that it wasn't just a dream. A few trickles of sweat streamed down his forehead.
But what if it wasn't?
He glanced to Zelda, who was seated at the other side of the table. Surely if something related to the Triforce or-Heaven forbid!-Gannondorf Dragmire, she would have warned him about her visions, her feelings of uneasiness. As far as he could see, however, Princess Zelda was at peace. Her father was preparing to resign from his title within five years, and for the first time in a century, Hyrule exhibited a peace foreign to neighboring allies overseas. Link knew that he should share that same peace, that same contentment and serenity. He and Zelda would be announcing their engagement in a few short weeks.
Yet the dream still lingered in the back of his mind incessantly, like a plague slowly coiling around every vein and muscle in his body. He hated this sudden display of mental weakness within himself. He'd never been the one to worry so much-that had been Zelda's position throughout their adolescence, and as they both neared the age of twenty-one, both were beginning to settle down in their lives. Adventures had become less and less frequent, as the biggest threats were nothing that the Knights couldn't handle. Link stabbed lettuce onto his fork and shoved it into his mouth.
Then again, Zelda was slowly becoming too subdued in her mannerisms. When King Harkinian brought up issues that she disagreed with, she merely shrugged her shoulders, cocked her head sideways, and shot him a sweet smile without as much as a word implying that she desired otherwise. Her longing for adventure had ceased, and the mention of a romantic moonlight horse-ride left her rolling her eyes and coiling in disgust. He could hear her oft-used answer ringing in the back of his mind:
"Ugh, Link. We're not children anymore, and as we both know, that's all child's play. You don't have to romance me anymore, you know. Just be yourself-I'm much more content spending my days here, anyway."
Apparently, Zelda had stopped trying to romance and impress him. It seemed she never wanted to do much of anything anymore. Perhaps her supernatural powers had slowly slipped away from her reign over the years as they become more and more unused. He lowered his gaze. Was it a good time to bring up the situation?
He smiled. She was passing him a glass of wine.
"Zelda, I think it's time I brought up something-"
"Oh! Yes, certainly." His jaw hadn't even raised to the next word as Zelda added, "Daddy, Link and I are going to be married!"
"Married!" The rotund King managed a merry chuckle and leaned back in his seat, a wide grin on his face. "My, Zelda, Link! This is wonderful news! I will make sure it's broadcast all over the Kingdom. The townspeople will love to hear that their favorite Princess and Hero are to be wed!"
"Yes, yes of course, Daddy."
As Father and daughter continued talks about their wedding plans, Link sank lower and lower into his seat.
I So much for that attempt. /I