The next morning, Seres had received confirmation from Viscen of the truth behind his statements. Zelda was to be married to Auru.

She knew that Zelda had gone to sleep with the faintest glimmer of hope that Viscen had been wrong, but Seres wasn't looking forward to being the one to crush that hope for her. Still, that was her job. And she would do it with as much grace and tact as she could.

As much as she wanted to give Zelda her privacy after her rough night, Seres hesitantly knocked on the door and pushed it open to tell Zelda that her nightmares weren't just in her mind, but her waking reality.

It was how they ended up spending the next four hours in the barracks, pouring over maps with the strategists.

Zelda was going to make sure her sacrifice was worth every troop she'd receive, even if it meant she never left the war-planning chambers again.

Zelda had taken Bardo and Leon as her guards to let Link sleep in, though they were true guards, silent and forgotten by the door where they watched for threats. They didn't participate in conversations or offer input on anything. It was actually quite disconcerting, Zelda realized, to have guards who were so inanimate. It was an unwelcome change from Link and Finn's usual incessant chatter.

But she's stared at the maps with those who were willing to help her learn.

She found out that there was no way Ganondorf would ever attack Damel, not with the city's fortified walls or near-perfect territorial placement: the inability to sneak around to the rear for an all-around assault. No, Ganondorf would wait for them on his own home turf.

That phrase agitated Zelda; the castle was her home. Her turf.

Commander Ashei was the one who spent the most time making sure Zelda knew exactly what the maps meant, and why certain forces would attack, or where the best scouting spots were, which royals and kingdoms had the most troops and who would be amenable to potential alliances. And while everyone in the room was surprisingly helpful (and Zelda had learned it may be because they were almost all Hylians—her people, not Daltus'), Ashei was by far the most patient and the easiest to understand.

She laid out all of Daltus' plans. And by 'Daltus', she learned that meant the delegates he'd sent to the strategists in his place. They seemed competent enough, especially when they would unabashedly cringe when they relayed a plan that was so imperfect it was clearly from Daltus himself. There weren't many, but Ashei demonstrated to Zelda why they were so ineffective. As Zelda tried suggesting things, if only to show that she was trying to understand rather than believing her army would actually use her tactics, Ashei would explain using the same logic, carefully laying out which of Zelda's suggestions were smart ideas and which had more fallible aspects as well.

Though, the idea that was the most well-received was using Auru's troops at all. Zelda was beyond surprised when she mentioned Auru' army: none of the strategists had been informed of this plan or the increase in troops that they'd gain.

"Are you sure?" Ashei had asked, studying the map intently. "He's bringing his troops? He has nearly double our numbers. This changes everything. Princess, these are numbers we could win with, especially combined with the ones from King Zora."

Zelda turned to Seres, who gave an affirmative nod. Viscen was sure, and so was Zelda. Zelda looked back at Ashei. "I believe my source is correct, though I haven't spoken with the Prince yet today. If he tells me otherwise, I will immediately send word that you shouldn't take his troops into consideration. If you don't hear from me, you should assume these numbers are what we'll work with."

"Hrmm," Ashei muttered, moving things around. "It would be our greatest advantage. It would be better if there was also support from Prince Midos or even Queen Ruelle as well. I suppose this means we should consider a few more strategies that incorporate more troops. Thank you, Princess."

Zelda nodded. "I'll see what more information I can get today." She smiled weakly, hating what getting those troops meant, as she headed for the door.

"Princess!" Ashei called, moving to walk her out. "You'll have to excuse my bluntness, but you're doing very well… much better than… some people. You're trying, and you're a remarkably quick learner. Don't let up."

With another polite nod, Zelda pushed the door open and leaned on the railing that overlooked the training yard. There had to be about one hundred soldiers training. They seemed to be separated by the new recruits—who were still learning—and the older vets who honed their skills.

When she'd arrived earlier in the morning, there had been so few people that she could have seen each of their faces. Now, she watched some of them test each other in physical combat, whether with weapons, or without. She saw some running laps around the yard. Some were performing incredible feats, jumping over objects, moving from a lying position to jumping all in one motion, or pulling themselves up on bars. It was a melting pot of those who were doing everything to train for the upcoming fight.

"Seres?" Zelda said, motioning for the girl to join her. "Is that Finn?"

Ashei and Seres moved to the sides of Zelda and squinted. "Yes, I believe that it is."

Zelda turned and watched Seres with interest as she watched Finn, and Zelda mentally tucked that one away.

She sighed, looking around, leaving Seres to stare at Finn in relative peace. "I used to go on the parapets and watch the soldiers train back before. Usually, I was alone. My sister would join me. Occasionally, I'd even have my father and his guards with me. When I went out to Hyrule Field, I felt like I knew them. Now, I'm feeling rather… detached."

Ashei gestured to the field. "You're free to go observe. They're your soldiers. If you want to see them spar on a plank over a pit of mud, they'd do it for you. Let me know if you'd like me to set up a demonstration."

"That's a bit much," Zelda laughed, though she found her feet guiding her towards Finn, unsure if she was headed there for Seres' sake, or because it was where she knew she at least had one person she trusted.

Ashei was on her tail as well, though at a respectable guarding distance. Unlike—

"Link?"

"Zel—Princess?" he said, not bothering to hide his surprise. He was repeatedly pulling himself up on one of the horizontal bars when he'd noticed her, so he let himself drop. His chest was heaving, and she had a good look at it without his shirt on. There was a fine sheen of sweat over him, beads dripping especially from his forehead.

They were mostly secluded, out of hearing range of the others, so she allowed herself a quick look over him, though she decidedly tried to keep her eyes off him after her one brief indulgence. He grinned his greeting and wiped the sweat off his palms, gesturing to the door she'd just left. "You've been in there a while."

"You knew where I was?" she asked, trying to keep her eyes on his, though it was a losing battle for multiple reasons. Even with her knowledge of King Auru, she couldn't pack her feelings for Link away overnight, and looking him in the eye caused a hard pang in her chest.

Of course, without being able to look him in the eye caused a new problem, as she couldn't quite let herself look anywhere else. It wasn't like she was about to deny that she found him more than attractive and here he was, his body basically taunting her, reminding her that she had nowhere she could focus her attention on him.

She tried to keep her eyes on the grass, but she'd never felt so awkward. She was used to looking at people, not splotches of green that broke through dirt when she spoke. Giving up, she had to clasp her hands around her wrist behind her back to manage to look at his blue eyes, clenching her fist as she did.

Not that she would call it a 'relief', but she could see Link struggling with the same issue, unsure where to let his eyes rest and settling on hers with a pained glint, though he tried to force a look of distant familiarity with her, like old friends who weren't quite in the same conversation with each other.

He nodded. "Finn said you had Bardo and Leon with you, so I decided to get some training in. When I got here, I heard the Princess was in a meeting with the commander and the other strategists." He ran a hand through his hair, wiping the sweat off him as he did. Glancing at his hand, he made a face and wiped his hand clean again against his pant leg. His hands went to rest on his knees as he kept focusing on keeping his breathing steady.

"Are you okay?" Zelda asked, unsure what to make of him anymore. "I've never seen you so out of breath."

A flirty retort died on his lips, and he opted for a more friendly tone. There was no possible way to shut her out completely, even if he wanted to. "While traveling with you, you spoiled me, Princess. I haven't done any training this intense in months. Plus," he looked up, glancing at the position of the sun, "I'm a few hours in." He backed away from her with a pained expression that had nothing to do with him being out of breath, though he managed to get control of his face quickly.

"Hours?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. She couldn't even imagine pulling herself up to the bar one time, or doing most of the other exercises the soldiers were performing.

He smirked as he resumed his exercise. She was surprised that he had any air left in his burning lungs to talk to her. "I'm working off some… frustration."

"Oh," she said, nodding to herself, understanding. She turned and watched Finn make his way over, gesturing behind him at several other soldiers who'd all stopped their training to stare. She was glad there was someone else she could look at.

"Princess, what a surprise!"

Zelda nudged Seres discretely, urging her to speak. "Oh," she muttered. "We were, um, in a meeting."

"I just wanted to look around," Zelda said, waving politely at the onlookers. "Perhaps say hello."

Finn made a gesture that Zelda and Seres should follow, and Zelda jogged up beside him.

It was nearly time for dinner when she'd gone back inside. She'd spent hours with the soldiers, hearing the stories of any who wanted to tell them. She'd heard horrifying tales, and stories of hope. There were those who'd escaped Castle Town, some who—like Finn—had been in the dungeons, and those who'd been in Hyrule Field. There was even one who'd been treated by her months ago.

Link and Finn had both been close by the entire time that she spoke with the other soldiers, though they kept their distance, letting her feel like she had some privacy from them. She saw Link emerge from the crowd a few hours in, clean and washed up. It was soon later that Finn followed and she realized they were swapping off between them.

Her day had been so ordinary, yet nothing about it seemed right. While she relished the opportunity to meet her soldiers more personally, she remembered the reason why she couldn't look her own soldier in the face, even as he followed dutifully behind her. And that catalyst for the reason appeared in front of her as she made her way to the dining room, walking beside her with an annoyingly happy, smiling face.

"Dear cousin!" Daltus called. "It's been ages since I saw you! How are you today?"

She took her seat without glancing at him and waited for the food in front of her to cool off a bit before finally speaking. "I spent the day with our soldiers."

"Oh?" She could hear the surprise in his voice. There was a hint of alarm in it too. Her command over the majority of them had him nervous. "How were they?"

Zelda shrugged as she took a bite of her food and then a rather large sip of her wine. "Soldier-esq. I don't know." She didn't want to engage in polite small talk with Daltus, and she hoped he got the hint.

"Well, that's lovely" he managed, though it was forced and insincere, "I'm glad the soldiers mean so much to you that you'd spend time with them before our fateful battle with Ganondorf." Zelda narrowed her eyes when Daltus spoke, and oddly, his attention was on Link where he stood by the door rather than on her. Daltus stared with barely concealed disdain for too long before turning back to her, and she felt goosebumps along her arm, unable to figure what was passing through Daltus' mind as he looked at Link. But when his eyes rested on hers, they hardened into an entirely different look: excitement mixed with malice. "I have something I'd like to tell you, actually, while we're speaking of soldiers. I've heard word from King Auru. Do you remember him?"

"I do," she said stiffly, taking another swig of wine before holding her cup out for more. If she was going to listen to this, she was not going to do it stone-cold sober.

"Well, he has made us a great offer. He'd like to allow us the use of his army to aid in the defeat of Ganondorf." He waited for her to respond, or ask for details, but she stared blankly at him, taking a much slower sip as she did, so he continued. "He would do this very generous act through marriage, of course. To you. You'd have full access to his army."

Zelda took the glass again and met Daltus' eyes. "Tell him I accept."

"You… what?" Daltus asked, not expecting her answer. "I said you'd be married to him."

"Yes, I'm not deaf, Daltus," she muttered. "It's a good plan."

"I worried you wouldn't be… amenable, cousin."

She set the empty glass down again. "It's not news that I would marry politically. Did you want me to react differently?"

"N—no," he stuttered, though his eyes screamed that he was hoping or a far more intense reaction. And again, she was surprised that they darted to Link before looking back at her. She scoffed, realizing that—if nothing else—he had an inkling of her romantic entanglement with her guard.

"Speaking of marriage," she said, leaning forward to bring his attention off of Link, "I'm glad you brought it up. I heard through that Queen Ruelle is looking for a husband. Her army is quite vast. You should look into it." She sucked in a breath, hoping some of the things she'd learned that morning about military numbers would have a very quick payoff.

He mimicked her, leaning forward across the table. "Hyrule is not my kingdom, remember? It's yours. You made that clear to me the other day. That means the sacrifice and honor should be yours as well."

Zelda raised an eyebrow. His words stung, but she didn't let up on him. "I'm shocked you would turn down the opportunity to actually rule rather than play this game you do here. Ruelle is a queen. You don't have to wait for your two healthy parents to die to take the throne. Besides, you mustn't forget, you are still my heir. However, once I marry and have children, you will lower in the line of succession. Auru would be next. But that's not today. If I should fall to Ganondorf, Hyrule will be your responsibility, and you'll lose my alliance if I'm unmarried by then."

Daltus swirled his own drink around, grinning to himself as he watched the ripples. "I doubt you'll remain unmarried for that long, cousin."

She nodded slowly as his words sunk in. So, Auru planned to marry almost immediately. She wouldn't even be surprised if it was his only reason for a visit here before marching on, and she slouched slightly. "I hear my betrothed," she spat, "has more than double the forces we have. That will be useful, anyway."

Snorting, Daltus finally looked back up at her. "No, no, his forces are about equal to ours."

Zelda's eyes narrowed. "Are you sure?" She wondered if it was his own incompetence that had him messing up on such a large miscalculation.

"Positive. It was all in his letter. Our armies might even make up the greater number of the two."

Zelda was dying to turn to Link, to the competent soldier in the room that she could ask to confirm or deny that, but she gripped the table to physically keep her focus on Daltus. Ashei had said it was double. Why wouldn't she listen to the woman who spends her life knowing this information? "May I see the letter?"

Daltus hummed, pushing his empty plate away. "It's in my study. Come, let's move in there anyway. This room is drafty."

Zelda let out a deep breath and stared longingly at her empty glass of wine, wondering if she should just bring it with her. One look at Daltus, though, had her requesting a small bit more. Two half-glasses in and she could feel her head was slightly lighter than usual, but that buzz was what she needed. Well, she needed far more than a light buzz, but perhaps not at this moment.

"Here," he said, holding the letter from Auru out to her.

She scanned it quickly but didn't let go. It was an impersonal acceptance of marriage and a description of his military, the troops he'd offer in the exchange. And Daltus was correct. The number was actually less than theirs was.

Shaking her head, she folded the letter and nervously flipped it around in her hand. "I'm not marrying him for these abysmal numbers. Write him back and tell him no, not unless there are more troops. Or tell him Prince Midos has made an offer of marriage and let him feel pressured into giving us more."

"I cannot do that, cousin. He's already on his way here."

That had Zelda surprised. "How is that possible? I said yes in the dining room. Are you telling me you had someone fly to him between then and now?"

But Daltus went quiet, instead moving to lean casually against the wall and to pretend he hadn't heard her.

"Daltus!" Zelda balked, storming over to him. "What did you do?"

His smile was insincere, though there was joy in it. Joy for himself. "I know that you are a selfless young girl who would never deny her people their right to live, even for her own pride. I knew you'd do your royal responsibility to marry King Auru because it is the right thing to do. So, I sent your response ahead, accepting. I hoped it would bring him here faster." His words sounded rehearsed, like he had already prepared a speech for her.

She gasped, her mouth dropping. "You did what?"

"What is the problem? You've accepted already, and now we can end this war sooner. Do your duty, Zelda. If I were the Prince of Hyrule, I would not hesitate, but I am not. Your people will think you don't care for them if you complain about your duties as a royal Princess."

Perhaps it was the wine. Perhaps it was just that she couldn't stand to hear Daltus speak one more time, but she felt her hand jerk up, tossing the rest of her wine at him, too enraged to find humor in his mortified expression as he dripped red droplets off his chin.

"You belong in the lowest of the nine hells, Daltus."

His eyes burned like fire as he closed the gap between them. "How dare you, you arrogant bitch!" he hissed as the back of his hand crashed against her cheek with a horrible retaliating smack.

Tears unwittingly sprung to her eyes as she gasped, her hand covering the spot she'd been hit.

But before she'd even had the chance to cover her cheek, someone was in front of her, gently pushing her back. It took her a second, but she realized that Link had Daltus pinned to the wall, his arm pressing hard into the Prince's throat as he spewed an impressive string of hushed curses and threats in his direction leaving Daltus to listen in the his breathless silence.

As he did that, the guards in the room all drew their weapons. Zelda felt herself immediately press her back to Link's, hoping that they weren't willing to sacrifice her just to stab Link.

But as one of the guards held out his hand for her to take, to move her safely out of their way, she realized something. Their swords weren't aimed at her or Link.

They were on Daltus.

"Link," she muttered, tapping him with urgency. When he didn't respond, she spun to his side, feeling safe enough for Link and herself that she could leave his back unguarded. "Link," she tried again, her hand on his arm. "You can't kill him. I can't protect you if you do. He's a Prince. Let him go."

Link relaxed his arm, allowing Daltus to take a long, choked breath, though he didn't move away. When Daltus' pathetic eyes slid to Zelda, almost pleadingly, Link grabbed his collar and slammed him back into the wall. "She's the only reason you're not already dead."

"Link, please," Zelda whispered, lightly pulling his arm.

Glancing at her, Link stepped back and glanced at his hand, wet with the wine from Daltus' soaked shirt, and shook it off, sending a droplet onto Daltus' nose.

But something in Daltus snapped at the entire situation and he began to laugh hysterically. "Yes, call off your rabid lap dog! Heel, boy!" He cackled, cackled, as he looked between Link and Zelda.

Her grip had tightened on his arm over Link's tense muscles. Daltus's eyes bored into that one spot where they connected, unable to control himself, like the wine or Link had opened a floodgate of defensive maneuvers. Daltus could never win a physical fight, but he knew exactly where to look to find a weak point in one's armor, and as a royal, he'd been taught to use his words as his sharpest weapon. "Do you know how satisfying it is to know that your little peasant lover will be forced to stand guard outside your door on your wedding night and every night until you're with child? That you will both suffer in that? That I am not the only one who loses here!"

Zelda felt physically sick and let go of Link, stepping back like she'd been hit again. Link turned to watch her carefully this time; he was more concerned for her than with Daltus, though she'd never seen Link look more dangerous than in that moment. She genuinely feared Link might kill the Prince.

"Link," she whispered in a hush. "Please, just ignore him."

And he heard the annoying hum of Daltus' voice continuing his mad tirade, an endless onslaught against the two of them, though mostly aimed to provoke Link into acting in a way that could have him easily call for his death. Threats against Zelda, against Link, about things that Link already knew in his nightmares. Link could only keep Daltus' words from reaching him by keeping his focus entirely on Zelda.

She could see his struggle, so she briefly turned her attention to the guards behind her, both of whom were unsure of what to do with this development, but waiting, tense, for Zelda to command them to act. However, when she did, it wasn't quite what they expected.

"Please, would you both fetch Master Niko for me? Tell him it's urgent, but tell him nothing else. Move quickly."

"Yes, Your Majesty," one said, bowing before they both took off.

When they'd gone, Zelda grabbed Link's hand in hers and held it tight, all notions of a wedding to some strange king forgotten. It was only her and Link. As evidenced by his incessant taunts, there was apparently no reason to pretend around Daltus. She let her hand rest against Link's neck, feeling his racing pulse and letting her thumb run a light, calming pattern over his skin.

Link subconsciously leaned into her hand and he shook his head as he stared at the distinctive mark on her cheek. His free hand went to lightly brush her cheek where the skin was red. She flinched away, still feeling the sting too acutely, but held his hand tighter when she saw his gaze drift back to where Daltus heaved against the wall, out of breath from his tirade, but too afraid of Link to move a muscle other than his mouth. "Don't," she cautioned again. "Just look at me."

Link practically growled as he looked away from Daltus. "I could absolutely kill him for that. I wouldn't even regret being held down and beheaded for it."

"No," she said, her eyes also on her cousin. "I can do this without you dying. Just trust me, Link."

His brows furrowed, unsure what she meant, but he nodded. "I trust you."

They waited, doing everything in their power to let his constant string of words wash over them until the guards returned with Niko.

When he saw what was happening, he immediately began to shake nervously. "What's happening? Daltus, are you alright?"

Zelda wasn't entirely surprised to see Daltus's entire expression change when Niko entered. She had Seres to thank for that information, and she wished it wasn't what she needed to use, but it was. Zelda lightly pushed Link away from her, and he let her move him aside, though his eyes were pinned back on Daltus, daring the Prince to try and escape… to even move.

"Niko," she asked gently. "Did you know about my marriage to King Auru?"

Niko looked around with relief. "Is that all this is about? Yes, I did. Prince Daltus was going to tell you today. I gather it didn't go over well."

"It went fine, actually," she said, glancing over at Daltus for a moment, cautioning him to remain silent with her glare before taking Niko's hand in hers, leading him into the center of the room. "I actually wanted to know something. I wanted to know if you liked living here? This house? This town? Or, perhaps, you'd prefer somewhere else, like the palace? Do you like it here?"

Zelda let him go. Niko was surprised by her question and began to walk toward Daltus instinctively. "I love my home. But if you are offering a position in the palace, I'd be honored. If not, my home is my pride and joy."

"I can tell," she said, picking up a golden vase. "Niko, you're a loyal Hylian, correct?"

"Of course, Your Majesty."

"'Majesty,'" she repeated, putting the vase down to look fully at him. "You accept that I am the ruler of this kingdom, then? The things I say or do, you'll abide by them without question?"

"Y-yes," he looked around, confusion all over him. "What is this about?"

"Niko," she said, as if he hadn't spoken. Her eyes turned to Daltus, despite addressing Niko. "You are hereby stripped of your title and all your lands and properties. You will move into the barracks immediately to begin training to fight for Hyrule where I'm sure you'll be honored to join the front lines with the rest of our soldiers who are willing to die for our kingdom. We need more people since it seems King Auru has refused to bring us his entire army or has lied about his numbers, and Daltus has already accepted his offer in my stead."

"What?" Niko breathed. "No, no, Zelda, this is a mistake! I-I-I didn't do anything!"

Her eyes shot back to his. "Princess, not Zelda. And it's not a mistake. I'm afraid that Daltus has put us in a difficult position. You can thank him for this unfortunate turn of events."

"Daltus?" Niko breathed.

"No!" Daltus hissed. "Don't do this, cousin. Don't. He's not a fighter."

Zelda moved closer to her cousin until she was a breadth away from him. "I could recant."

"What do you want for it?" Daltus said, pleadingly.

"Unquestioning respect. Loyalty."

"Done."

But she wasn't. "You never touch me, you never look at Link. I'm taking some of Niko's household for myself. Your army is a part of mine. There is no separation between them until this is all over and either we've won, or Hyrule is yours through my death. Until either of those options occurs, your troops are all a part of the Hylian army where they answer to my command, not yours."

Daltus nodded, but his thoughts seemed stuck on her threat to Niko. "Why are you doing this to him? It was my offense, not his!" Daltus tried, glancing between her and Niko frantically.

She turned to Link for a moment, watching his brows furrow as he watched Niko's panic. Then, she turned back to Daltus and lowered her voice. "Because, I know what someone would do for the one they love. I know the lengths that you'd be willing to go, even if you can't always reach them.

"I still need you, Daltus, and you can't turn back without losing your people now, so we're stuck in this with each other. Let's stay out of each other's way unless we are forced together. Can you handle that?"

"Yes, just… don't send him out there to die. Please."

Zelda let out a breath, finally stepping away from him. "Then it's settled. Niko," she said, turning to him. "You may remain here, and you don't have to fight, though I believe you still should, I will not force you into service."

"Thank you," Daltus breathed.

But she took another step towards him, narrowing her eyes. "You know very little about me, cousin. I would never actually do that to Niko just because you insulted me. That's the difference between you and me. I know what it's like to lose those you love. And I know you love Niko. I would never hurt someone just to get to someone else. Ganondorf did that to my entire family. If you cross me again though, I will because now you know that's treason, not some sad attempt to rile me or Link. If you knew me, that would have been obvious." His eyes darted to Link, easily catching the double meaning in her words; she wasn't just talking about her family. But she moved to block his view. "You don't look at him, remember? Not after the things you've said. Take Master Niko and get out of my sight. I'll see you tomorrow so we can discuss King Auru and any remaining options we might have. That army size is not negotiable. We get more troops or I walk, and I don't care what you promised him. I won't send Niko to die, Daltus, but I have no problem casting him out of this place without a title or anything to his name. You are going to help me fix this. We are getting his troops."

"Yes, cousin," Daltus muttered weakly as he grabbed Niko and hurried out the door without a look back.

Zelda turned her attention back to the guards. "Would you please follow them to their destination? Make sure they… don't send an assassin after me or something?"

One smiled slightly at her, "Of course, Your Majesty. You're safe, trust us."

"Thank you. And thank you for defending me back there."

They both bowed and left the room, leaving Link alone with Zelda.

Neither said anything for a long time, settled in the silence that passed between them.

Finally, she let out a breath. "I'm sorry to do this after yesterday, but Link, you're staying with me tonight. I hate to admit it, but I'm nervous about retaliation."

His hand shook as he brought it up to her face again, though he rested it on the other cheek, unable to stop himself, unable to look away from the red mark on the other side again. "Of course."

She leaned into his hand and brought her own up to grab his. "He shouldn't have said any of that. You're none of those things he called you, Link."

He shrugged. "I'm a few of them. I am pretty poor."

She breathed out a laugh, but shook her head as she felt the tell-tale sign behind her nose that warned tears might fall. "No, you're not. When we win, I'll give you a lot of rupees so you can't even say that anymore."

Link's thumb brushed her skin. "I don't want rupees."

His words constricted her chest, though she couldn't move away from the slow rhythm of his thumb against her cheek, mimicking her earlier gesture. Zelda wiped away the few tears that ended up falling, deciding to change the subject. "It reminded me of Ganondorf. I haven't been hurt that way since we were his prisoners. It seems like it was years ago sometimes."

Nodding, Link glanced back where Niko had been standing, then to where Daltus had been. She watched his eyes darting around, wishing she could ask him what he was thinking, but not trusting her own voice.

Link bent his head down and Zelda and felt his lips brush so lightly over her red cheek that she wasn't even sure if he'd actually touched her skin.

"If anyone ever touches you again, King, Prince, assassin, anyone… I don't think I could let them walk away like Daltus just did."

"Link," she whispered, knowing she needed to back away but feeling too safe in his closeness. "We're a team. If you do something brash… I lose my partner, my guard, my friend. I can't lose you again, not in any other way than I already have."

Nodding, Link did the only thing he knew he could safely do. He wrapped her into his arms into a tight embrace and felt her arms pull him close. Because, gods, he loved her, and this was the only way he could pretend that there weren't tears in her eyes, or a mark on her face.

Something was wrong, and not just the obvious. Daltus was up to something. Link had seen it in his every move and Link felt that Niko was the only way he'd figure out what was happening. And until he knew what it was, Zelda wasn't safe. Her arms were the only things that kept him from doing anything reckless. And he needed that more than he realized.