Scattering petals
Link & Zelda
Chapter 16: The blessing's curse
When the princess' resentment is her worse enemy
Author's note: Small reminder that we are starting the chapter just right before memory number five: Zelda's Resentment. However, in the first note of this story, I already warned you that this wouldn't be a written literal retelling of the canon with the memories as we see, so on this occasion, the experience will be narrated from Link's point of view.
Unquestionably, the princess' mount had galloped upstream in the direction of the Rito territory. After crossing the great bridge over the river and checking the staging post, Link decided to continue the pathway to the north. Tabantha region consisted of glacial tundras in the west region, so the option was immediately discarded. After all, Princess Zelda left Hyrule's castle in her royal gown with no intention to go on an adventure alone. The knight doubted she even had provisions for a long journey. All in all, all clues indicated that she couldn't have gone too far. However, the wind had erased the trail on the sandy way and after the great river bridge. Link had to rely on his sole instincts to find her highness before she could get hurt in the wild.
Call it a sign from destiny or a godly aid, suddenly the breeze carried a familiar cloth in Link's way. As if Hylia herself had defined this, the knight found his own handkerchief back in his possession. Though it was currently stained with some dry blood from the needle incident back in the princess' quarters. There was no doubt, Princess Zelda was close.
Link allowed Epona to continue riding up the hill, just entering the ancient ruins of Tabantha. Intuitively, his mount led the way, slightly following the trail that other travelers used. Either way, the escort trusted his horse enough to track Royal's trail. Meanwhile, Link rumbled thoughts in his head involving her majesty's well-being. Finding the handkerchief flying in the wind was a bad sign. Maybe something had attacked the princess. Or maybe it had been the Yiga clan, though it seemed unlikely due to the location. Or perhaps it had been her that intentionally got rid of it as a result of her resentment towards him. Either way, he was glad to have retrieved it. After all, it was one of the last belongings he owned of her deceased mother. Time had been gentle to it and the embroidery of Link's and Aryll's initials was still intact. Thank goddess Hylia.
Link made sure to put the handkerchief in the safety of his pockets and made a mental note about not lending valuable objects, at least emotionally, to royalty. As a knight, he couldn't take the princess' actions to heart. That recent lesson had been taught by his father, who had his fair share of years guarding the deceased queen of Hyrule.
Nonetheless, Link couldn't help but feel that he had something to do with the princess' volatile behavior. Not just because she thought he had betrayed her by telling of her use of technology to the King, that was a very recent matter that just worsened their relationship. The conflict had its roots further back in time: when he obtained the master sword from the Lost Woods.
The princess' resentment had grown in her chest since he had been promoted as her escort. He had heard witnesses that knew her well and several of them warned him that it wasn't personal, that she had spent years struggling in finding the divine fragment hidden inside her: an unclaimed birthright, a divine one nonetheless, promised to end a war. Link, instead, went on an adventure with some fellow knights and returned to the castle with the legendary darkness-sealing sword and the promise of becoming the hero of the kingdom. That must have hurt Princess Zelda.
Either way, Link tried to not take personally the princess' dislike. It was his job, a duty he swore to honor under oath. He couldn't allow his feelings to get in the way despite having to assume greater responsibilities than he expected in the beginning. The weight of the sword on his back reminded him of the importance of his existence. And he had to fulfill his role, even if it meant getting along with Princess Zelda. Whichever way if that could be possible…
Epona whined and increased the pace. A few seconds later, Link realized the reason for the behavior change on his horse. Zelda's mount, Royal, was near. Just around the corner, the knight noticed a trail of bitten grass and flowers on the land. The horses back in the royal stable enjoyed munching on fresh flora, especially the one on the mountainside. Royal wasn't an exception. Epona got to explore and get out of Castle Town much often, so it wasn't as prone to it as the princess' mount.
The trail was recent and Epona was smart enough to figure it out on its own.
And, luckily, there in the distance next to a shrine, the princess' golden mane shimmered brightly in the sunlight. Epona couldn't help but do what Link couldn't allow himself: run fast to her.
Apparently, Zelda noticed her horse's cheerful whining from the distance and turned to see the source of the sound. Her sole presence was ethereal itself. The beauty of the spot was frozen in Link's sight as his lips escaped the sacred word:
"Princess!"
She sighed out loud with enough strength for Link to hear it. The knight felt instant regret for raising his voice as it had been a natural impulse he just couldn't resist. He had been sickly worried. And seeing the princess standing in the wilderness with such peace…
"I thought I made it clear that I'm not in need of an escort."
The beautiful ambiance was broken by Zelda's sentence. Link got off Epona and hurried to stand before her, not willing to give up on his job. His eyes were met with defiance from the royal heiress, who was as stubborn as him. Her hand was as good as new and her hair had that peculiar volume she got whenever riding her mount for a long time. Her expression showed clear annoyance because of his presence. Her other hand, the one holding the sheikah slate, -again-, was clenched in a tight fist. Unfortunately, he had learned with time to read her body language. And it was not a good sign.
"It seems like I am the only one with a mind of my own [...]"
And as Zelda kept talking, Link found himself drowned in a sea of continuous thoughts. A mind of her own? Being in her blue royal gown was striking enough for the Yiga clan to notice her escape. Anybody really that she crossed paths with could guess she was royalty by the vibrant clothing and the golden jewels adorning both her head and her neck. Maybe while being in her traveling outfit she could temporarily stay camouflaged among the crowd. But with the garments from Hryule's castle? Impossible to not set an eye on her.
She was regal-looking. Her majestic presence seemed out of this world. As she spoke, Link considered the option of Princess Zelda not belonging to Hyrule. She could be in the place of one of those stone statues of winged female entities all across the kingdom and people would worship her. The comments of those who criticized her lack of divine component were completely wrong and clearly stated so because they had never been in her company. If Zelda could see herself with his same eyes, she would stop doubting herself. Maybe then they would manage to get along. Despite not being gentle at the moment, she still could pass as an entity out of this world sent by the gods to burden humanity for its actions…
"[...] and tell that to my father, please."
Link snapped out of his inner turmoil of thoughts to find the princess leaving the place. Not a word got through him as she spoke. Not that it would have if he had been listening either.
His feet automatically moved to follow close behind her. Her form was stiff and uptight, clearly upset because of all the rules commanded by the King. The floral scent that characterized her followed close behind, being Link's only rival. Ironically, their recent interactions had been always the same: The princess running up and down and him following cluelessly around wherever she went.
Another sigh was released from the Princess. Link felt a shiver crawling down his spine. His instincts never failed to warn him before something bad was about to happen. Zelda turned to face him once more and released all of the air she had been capturing in her lungs.
"And stop following me!"
He didn't.
For a long moment, Princess Zelda considered making a brief visit to the royal lab or even the shrine with the magical power of the slumber of resurrection. But she knew well that Robbie and Purah were dependent on the castle's funding. And, surely, her father wasn't pleased about research projects when it had been her main distraction from the strict routines of the sage's council.
However, obeying the King's commands was now out of the question. She had fled from the castle despite having explicit orders: not to abandon the royal perimeter. It was too late to return without anyone noticing. The staff or maybe the court back in the castle should already have warned her father about the recent events. Link, nevertheless, was the only one following her around despite her command. No matter how much anger and rejection she expressed towards her own escort, he still shadowed her anywhere. He was just three steps away from her, riding with Epona in a constant gallop. He could easily overtake her mount and eventually stop her from running away, but he didn't. Not a single word had passed his lips even though she was clearly clueless about their next destination. But princess Zelda kept gawking at the horizon as if she were searching for something to save her from insanity, for a triggering event that could awaken her powers, for example.
And then, it hit her. An amazing idea that could get her out of trouble. Probably.
It wasn't that close to the shrine of resurrection but the location was still near the castle. Constructed in the Great Plateau, the Temple of Time stood proudly in the distance. Some sages and even the fortune-teller spent the majority of their day cooped up inside. If she was intelligent, the move could spare arguing with her father about her princess obligations. Plus, with some luck, she had some odds to find Robbie and Purah around the area since it was close to the shrine's cave.
Quite the contrary to Zelda, Link found the landscape and the buildings rather charming. All sorts of decorations were carefully placed in the right spots to make the perimeter look, or at least at plain sight, the most sacred Hyrule could make it seem. Even the horses found solace in the open space of the gardens surrounding the temple. The princess, in fact, had some trouble keeping Royal from eating the flowers situated near the main fountain. There were also a bunch of apples as an offering to smaller-sized effigies distributed around. Epona was having a hard time not approaching and eating them as Royal was trying.
"Royal, please." Zelda sighed while getting a firm grip on the reins. "You are embarrassing us."
In the end, the princess felt like she had to get back on the ground to properly contain her mount. Likewise, the escort mimicked her, earning a harsh glance from the royal heiress. Despite that fact, the knight felt some contentment while seeing how the princess and her mount were trying to get along. At least she was following his advice…
Royal didn't calm down until drinking some water from the fountain. Zelda almost fell trying to remove the lotus flower from her horse's vicious teeth. The ends of her hair almost drowned in the water and the knight wondered if he should tend to her… difficulties. Zelda's eyes told him the contrary as soon as they crossed glances again. What she didn't know was that her mount was just as stubborn as her. Link just wouldn't say it out loud.
"It's getting late." He reminded. Another furious gaze threw daggers at him. But it was true and furthermore, she had left the castle without permission. It was a fair warning. But Zelda wouldn't just say it out loud either.
To confirm her knight's warning, the princess reached for the sheikah slate in the bag attached to Royal's saddle. It displayed a reasonable hour on the main lock screen, almost three hours before dusk. As always, he was exaggerating and being overprotective.
"It's not that late." She told him, finding no other pastime than talking to him. Even if it was just to argue.
But destiny had other plans. Link's keen eyes spotted a person approaching from the temple's courtyard and his reflex instantly reached for the slate in the princess' hands. The movement was so unexpected that her fingers didn't offer resistance. Her mind was too tired to react properly to her escort stealing the sheikah slate from her. When Zelda noticed, it was too late.
"What are you-..." Link's gloved hands were hiding the tech behind his frame. She tried to retrieve it, but it was of no use.
"Ah, what a sight for sore eyes." A manly voice exclaimed from the distance.
Princess Zelda turned to find the court's poet approaching them. The convenient appearance strike at the right moment to save Link from another scolding.
Zelda actually had to look behind her twice to confirm what just happened: Was Link directly contributing to keeping the sheikah slate a secret?
"The Chosen One is also here. What is the occasion, Your Majesty?"
Irel kneeled before Princess Zelda out of respect and admiration. Her muscular memory reacted and made her hold out her right hand automatically for the poet to kiss. Meanwhile, Link felt something unknown burn inside him. Like flaming embers in a goron's oven.
"I was showing our hero Hylia's sacred lands." Zelda kindly replied, motioning for Irel to get up. She had decided that it was best for the rest of the people to not notice her disagreeing with the Chosen One's presence around her. Though she was sure the court already knew how complicated getting along was at the moment. The poet was no exception to that rule. "What about yourself?" She asked back.
"Actually, I was just thinking about you, Your Highness." Irel confessed, showing off his lyre. "I came here in hopes to aid your spiritual pilgrimage. I heard rumors about the existence of some priests' journal entries from the past century explaining in full detail the witnessed marvels of your ancestors. Including our beloved Queen, may she rest in peace."
Coming from someone else's mouth, Princess Zelda would have not liked that last sentence. But Irel was actually doing something useful without searching for personal profit, out of devotion. For her. Nobody else had done that voluntarily in a long time. The court staff under her orders surely did aid her on a daily basis. But the poet seemed sincere and caring. Something else tied him to her which resulted in showing infinite loyalty to Hyrule's throne. His words weren't empty though they seemed excessively ornated while reciting ballads and chants. Deep down, she wanted to think that he was a fish out of the water like her: always swimming against the tide.
"That's so thoughtful of you, Irel." Zelda praised him and the poet's face blushed, though Link was the only one that spotted it.
"Your divine thought accompanies me night and day, Princess Zelda. It's the least I can do to contribute."
Irel offered his arm and led the princess through the enchanting garden for a walk. Zelda gladly accepted and left her escort some steps behind, shadowing them both.
The absence of the ringing bells meant the religious council was still reunited inside the main chapel. The daily rituals performed by the priests in the Temple of Time were meant to remain as loyal to the Hyrulean tradition as possible. Irel explained some of the praying methods and most used offerings with a profound vocation, mixing some mythical and legendary lore of the kingdom in the process too. Apparently, Link's encounter with him the other day had been just the beginning of his research journeys in the Great Plateau. Through his narration, the poet mentioned several diaries, registers, and old documents that had been locked in the archive back inside the temple. Princess Zelda, meanwhile, listened carefully to each of his words as if the key to unlock her powers were hidden among them. With the amount of concentration she had to use, she forgot how powerful her glance could be. Eventually, Irel had to break the visual contact to hide his pinkish grin. He used the opportunity to pick a flower from the bushes growing in the sacred garden.
"Your powers will bloom as these same flowers do, Your Highness." The poet sweet-talked, handing the blue lily-like flower to Zelda.
"I appreciate your faith, Irel." She sighed out loud, looking at the sky with resignation. If Hylia could hear her prayers at last…
"I am convinced of it. Especially after what I found written in some ancient scripts."
The sentence caught the princess' attention. Her jade iris lit up like fireworks on a Gerudo night. The hand holding the flower loosened, the tension caught up in her body fading in the air. Link felt a sharp arrow piercing his chest with jealousy but remained still.
"May I know the content of them?" She questioned further.
Her curiosity encouraged the poet's actions. He guided her through the pathway to sit on a handmade bench of exquisite wood. The opportunity was, as always, used for him to find an excuse to make contact with her. And so the sheikah man achieved to hold her silky hand while resting in the middle of the sun.
"A spiritual awakening must be followed by a revelation. Though it may not always be related to an act of faith." Irel shed some light, using his words strategically to catch Zelda's full attention. He continued despite the burning gaze of the knight behind his back. "There isn't the greatest source of inspiration that the fondness of a loved one."
At that point, Link already knew where the conversation was going. And he wouldn't allow it. He was sure that if Impa were present to chaperone the princess, she wouldn't either. Zelda, instead, was way more innocent and didn't catch the poet's intentions. She had been raised in the bubble of the court, where people among the castle possessed a far more elaborated etiquette. The knight, however, had witnessed the working class' language and had seen his fair share of flirting and courting processes. The poet, despite being a member of the royal court, was no exception to the language of love.
"What should it be?" The princess inquired once more.
"The spark of chivalry in one's chest, beloved princess. Passion itself is the engine of life: fauna, flora, sheikah, gerudo, zora, goron, hylians… Our nation wouldn't be what it is if living beings were afraid of the emotions hidden deep down."
For a moment, Link thought he would have to intervene and put some distance between the sheikah poet and the princess. Besides overstepping the boundaries, Irel was also confessing his feelings to royalty. The knight hadn't been instructed how to proceed with suitors, but he knew King Rhoam would appreciate it if he avoided romantic interactions. Or at least that was what the hero wanted to convince himself to believe.
Though, all of sudden, Princess Zelda's feminine laugh echoed in the wild.
"Don't let the priests hear you, dear Irel." She giggled as if the poet had told the funniest joke in all of Hyrule. Her reaction was so unexpected that he, the court's chatterbox, was at a loss of words. "You know well that courtship is the last thing I should be worrying about. Besides, Hylia is a lone goddess and I shall follow her path."
Link wondered if Princess Zelda had truly renounced to find her other half. Was it true that marriage in royalty was just politics? It seems the poet was thinking the same thing as the knight. Irel was drowned in desperation to make her understand:
"It's not just Hylia's decree, Your Highness. The legend of Hyrule's salvation always implied two persons." At that point, the poet realized he just might have been pointing at a romance between hero and princess. He quickly corrected himself: "Greatness doesn't have to be a secluded experience, Princess."
But Zelda felt so alone in her daily obligations as heiress to the crown that she couldn't even contemplate sharing her burdens with another person. Much less a suitor.
"Oh, Irel, that's sweet of you." She replied, patting softly on his palm. "But I'm afraid your dreamy chanting does not correspond to reality. It's the curse of the blessing, after all. A burden one must bear alone."
Just as Link was about to interrupt and suggest to go attend to their duties, the bells on top of the central chapel rang. As his expression softened, the poet's instead grew colder with disappointment. The priests would be out of their afternoon prayers any moment now.
Saved by the bells, Link thought bitterly.
"Grievously, I shall leave for the castle already." The poet announced, head down in despondency.
"Likewise, I'm afraid." Zelda agreed.
The couple got up from the bench, coordinated with the sudden silence of the absence of ringing bells in the air. Link made sure to hide the sheikah slate well under his knightly garments and positioned himself right beside the princess. Only then, his blue eyes met with Irel's sheikah jewels.
"It has been a pleasure, as always." This time there was a different tone in the poet's voice now that the hero was in his visual area, but the princess didn't seem to notice.
Princess Zelda allowed the poet to place one last kiss on her blessed hands. Maybe his aid in the ancient script research hadn't been as crucial as other duties she tried to uphold, but it still had been a nice try to make her forget the worries that clouded the day. More than a fact, Irel's conclusions had been more a subjective opinion rather than an actual possibility to awaken her powers. However, as Impa often said 'don't look a gift horse in the mouth'.
Except it was Royal, of course. Zelda should have been more careful in that regard.
"The lotus flowers!" A saddened priest yelled with disgust. Royal was chewing on them. Again. "Whose's this horse?!"
"Oh my!" The princess forgot about the poet as soon as she saw her mount causing trouble around. She hurried to apologize with embarrassment about the mayhem Royal had caused in the fountain's vegetation. That left Link and Irel alone to themselves.
"Watching you try getting along with her knowing it's going to be a disaster amuses me." The poet commented before motioning an apparent friendly goodbye for the other to see. "Good luck with that, hero."
The sweet tunes of the lyre accompanied Irel to the exit of the gardens. Link tried to remain cool in order to not fall into the sheikah's provocations. The knight swore he had never experienced such a difficult time biting his tongue.
Royal as comic relief and main zelink shipper in this fanfiction than any other character. Joking, Impa and Urbosa surely are higher up in the rank (and Irel in the bottom). But we will see that in a near future. I won't make the hinting at Gerudo Valley too obvious for now.
I felt like I needed to give Hyrule's lore and religion more depth. However, there are some elements in this story that do not have to do anything with canon. Remember the inscriptions on the wall of the shrine of resurrection that were mentioned not too long ago in a past chapter? Well, keep them in mind because the message hidden will be important to our main characters. And to the plot, of course.
I really liked how this chapter turned out in the end, especially the last scene in the temple of time with Irel, Zelda and Link. I hope you enjoyed it as well.
Read you next week!
Stella
