Hey guys and gals, here's the next chapter! Sorry if I took my time but I just didn't feel motivated to hurry it up… I could have posted this yesterday, but I just wasn't in the mood. Maybe it's because I get so few reviews…
Well maybe I'll get more with THIS chapter!
PS: WOW! How did this chapter end up becoming so long?! I thought it'd be the length as the last chapter!
The fair Zelda was worried, frightened even… just as she had been all throughout the night that had just passed. All throughout last night she had not slept, tossing and turning, one moment hoping that the stern Lady Impa would aid… the next fearing that she would not…
So she had been all throughout the night and still was, since dawn's first light.
And here now she sat, once again in the dining hall of Hyrule Castle… at the feasting table of the young heroking of Hyrule, with the selfsame heroking seated opposite her.
Here now she sat and waited… and worried and feared…
And the young king of Hyrule watched and saw all.
Many were the battles the young king of Hyrule had won… and many were the names he had been given before he became the young king of Hyrule… king's blade, stoutshield, brightblade, strongheart… all these were names were his until at last the people settled and named him Link Swiftblade the Victorious, the young heroking of Hyrule.
Another name that had once been his was the name "Hawkeye," for the young king of hyrule was not only known to be the best with blade and shield, but with bow and arrow as well!
Hence the name Hawkeye, for although the people suspected that sheikahn blood ran through his veins the young king of Hyrule was by no means a bird of the night.
Be he hawk or owl though, the young king of Hyrule had his piercing sharp eyes fixed upon the worriful, fear Zelda. Not for an instant did his eyes leave her… taking everything in… even the littlest detail of her face… watching the expression of her face shift from worry to fear to impatience to hope…
'Did she not say that I would not miss what she intends to bring along…? Did she not say I would not even notice it gone…?'
The young king of Hyrule too had spent a much restless night before this morn for he had come to regret his decision… He felt in his very being that he himself as well now was to fall victim to the law whose name he could not remember… the law, that once invoked, would demand compel the indebted to give the indebted to whatever reward destiny chose…
What worried the young king of Hyrule so much was that it was not destiny that would decide what his parting gift would be but the sly, fair Zelda herself! No matter how the young king of Hyrule looked upon it now… he could not shake the feeling that the sly, fair Zelda would once more make a fool out of him…
It was at that moment that one of the castlemaidens came to the side of the young king of Hyrule.
"Your highness…" she whispered into his ear, "We have searched the fair Zelda's chamber as you had ordered… but we found nothing amiss! Nothing appears to be missing from her chamber! The maidens too who had aided the fair Zelda pack her belongings saw her not pack anything into her bags which was not hers to begin with…"
The young king of Hyrule frowned and took a moment to think.
"Take your maids and search the library!" he whispered back into her ear, "And the study hall as well! And every other place where the fair Zelda has been! See if she took anything from those places!"
The chambermaid sighed tiredly but resigned herself to another hour of clueless searching or two...
"Yes, your highness…"
…and left dutifully.
The young king of Hyrule on the other hand continued to frown, and eyed the fair Zelda now with even more suspicion and distrust!
'The chambermaids found nothing gone or amiss… as of now! So either the fair Zelda spoke the truth and whatever she took with her is truly of so little importance that the chambermaids did not notice or…!'
Here the young king of Hyrule frowned harder, almost furiously so!
'She has yet to take what she wishes to bring with her!'
Here the young king of Hyrule could not help but sit back and half-sigh, half-growl in frustrated displeasure!
'Just what ever is it that she wants to take with her?! What ever is it she desires so much she can no longer bear to live without it?! What ever is it that is supposedly so precious to her?!'
This the young king of Hyrule screamed in a voice of utmost frustration, heard only in his mind…
It was then, at that very moment, that one of the doors that led to the kitchens opened and a castle servant stepped in, carrying in his hands a tray of food… food even for the breakfast of three.
Said servant caused the fair Zelda to look up in relief and hope but the young king of Hyrule in utter confusion.
For the castle servant was no castle servant but-
"Lady Impa?! Why are you serving the food?!"
The young king of Hyrule knew not that the eve before the fair Zelda had gone to speak to the stern Lady Impa, and so he of course knew naught of what had transpired between the two of them.
As such, seeing the stern Lady Impa, right here, right now, bearing a tray of food, which included his own breakfast, as though she was one of the castlemaidens, completely, utterly and thoroughly confused the young king of Hyrule.
The normally stern Impa merely shrugged with her shoulders.
"I just went to the kitchens to see what would be served for breakfast this morn… and since the kitchenfolk were just about to serve you your morning meal, your highness, I thought I might as well just bring it to you myself and join you for breakfast…"
The young king of Hyrule frowned hard once more!
'That cannot be right!'
This the young king of Hyrule knew with the certainty of death! For the stern Lady Impa had never before brought him any meal! Not even when he had been sick as a little, young lad!
…she had instead nearly force-fed him some horrible sheikahn medicine which, although it had been most effective in curing his illment, had nearly killed him with the sheer horrendousness of its taste!
The stern Lady Impa though took no notice of the young king's bafflement, and neither did she took notice of the hopeful eyes of the fair Zelda's. Instead she served out the food that she had brought:
Loaves of soft, white bread…
Fragrant, white, herbed cream cheese…
Slices of rich, fat bacon…
And more…
…and one more particular thing for the fair Zelda.
"Here is the flagon of wine you asked for, young Zelda…"
The joyful, fair Zelda received it most gratefully!
"Thank you, Lady Impa… a thousand times thank you!"
"You jest…" said the young king of Hyrule aghast, trusting neither his eyes nor his ears neither of which had never before failed him, "A bottle of wine?! That is what you wanted to bring along with you?! That is what was supposedly so precious to your heart that you cannot bear to be apart from it?!"
"Gracious no! No, it is not, your highness!" exclaimed the joyful, fair Zelda, "This wine is not for me… it is for you!"
"For me?!"
"Yes, your highness!" nodded the joyful, fair Zelda, "The thought to part from you on such ill terms pained me so much, your highness… I went to see the Lady Impa. And I asked her what wine it is you favor… and she agreed to go and buy a flagon of it for me."
The young king of Hyrule was struck speechless by what he heard. At last he asked,
"You mad maiden, you… do you honestly believe that a flagon of wine this late will buy you any forgiveness?!"
"I am well aware that it will not…" answered the demure, fair Zelda sadly, "But what else can I do? I am nothing but a poor, old farmer's daughter, soon to be cast out from your sight… this is all that I could think of I could do… so however meaningless it may be… I shall still attempt it and hope for the impossible…"
Again the young king of Hyrule was struck speechless.
At last he turned to look at the stern Lady Impa. His eyes asked more eloquently what his tongue did not,
'Explain just what in the blazes of Demise is happening here!'
The stern Impa however said,
"Be it wine or food… we shall partake of neither before we offer a prayer to the three golden goddesses…"
With that she began to recite a few lines in an old, old tongue…
…which instantly had the young king of Hyrule come alert but left the fair Zelda rather mystified.
"What language did you just speak, Lady Impa? I am afraid I have never heard this tongue before…"
"It is the old tongue of the ancient Sheikah…" explained the stern Lady Impa, "Aside from a very select few… no one but the Sheikah speak it…"
"I see…" said the awed, fair Zelda, "And what was it you said, Lady Impa?"
"Just an old, simple table prayer, my dear…" responded the fair-haired Lady Impa, "I gave praise to the farmers who grew the wheat… I gave praise to the hunters who caught the meat… I gave praise to the cooks who prepared the meal… and most importantly I gave praise to golden Farore, goddess of life, mother of all the woods and every beast, who provided us all… the last line I recited translates as 'Praised be Farore…'"
"Praised be Farore…" echoed the devoutful, fair Zelda prayingly.
"…praised be Faroe…" echoed the young king of Hyrule tonelessly…
…for he was among the select few who spoke the ancient tongue of the Sheikah!
In the common tongue, the sheikahn table prayer the fair haired Lady Impa recited would translate into:
Lynx of gold!
Stay alert and beware!
The sly vixen plots and schemes!
Your watches and waits!
The fair Zelda however, instead of beginning to eat, rose from her chair with her flagon of wine in her hands.
"Before we break our fast…" she spoke, "I would like to propose a toast to you, your highness… may I pour you some of this wine?"
At once the watchful Lady Impa rose from her chair.
"No, fair Zelda, though you are soon to depart, you are still guest here in Hyrule Castle… I shall be the one to pour the wine…"
The young king of Hyrule knew fully well why the stern Lady Impa, despite her being of high ranking, insisted on pouring the wine herself… it was not hospitality that drove her to do so, it was caution! To deny the fair Zelda any chance of adding something into the wine when she would pour it into the young king's goblet.
"If you insist…" said the fair Zelda coyly, and obediently handed the flagon of wine to the watchful Lady Impa.
The watchful Lady Impa however did not pour the wine.
"What ever are the kitchenhelpers doing… can they not even properly wipe a goblet?"
With that the stern Lady Impa took out her handkerchief and thoroughly wiped the interior and the rim of the young king's goblet.
Again, the young king of Hyrule knew the true reason the watchful Lady Impa wiped his goblet for him… it was to ensure that the goblet was clean indeed… in particular clean of poisons.
Many times had a man died eating and drinking food and drink that had been poisoned… may times enough to cause the nobility and royalty to be very cautious about what they were served… a trustworthy, watchful spy in their own kitchens… a poor servant to do the first tasting… and quite a few other such measures for safety…
…which is why the truly cunning poisoners now put their evil concoctions not in food or drink… but on cups and cutlery!
The young king of Hyrule was however a little mystified as to why the watchful Lady Impa would do this, seeing that the fair Zelda had not touched his goblet…
'…then again I do not know for certain that she has not been into the kitchens earlier this morning…'
"There… that is better… here is your wine now, your highness…" with that the dutiful Lady Impa poured the young king of Hyrule some wine… and quickly and discreetly handed him a tiny vial full of fluid!
The young king of Hyrule immediately took it, just as quickly and discreetly, knowing fully well what it was that the little vial contained: a very powerful emetic… one so powerful that even just a tiny drop of it on the tip of the tongue could cause a soft-bellied man to lose his lunch in an instant!
When she had poured everyone their fill of wine, the dutiful, Lady Impa took her seat and the fair Zelda rose from hers and spoke,
"I raise this goblet in your honor, your highness…" began the shrewd, fair Zelda, "And I drink to your health and to your happiness… may you find ever-lasting happiness with your soon-to-be-wife! To the young heroking of Hyrule!"
With that the shrewd, fair Zelda drank from her wine.
"…to the young heroking of Hyrule…" echoed the watchful, Lady Impa after a good, long moment of observance and also drank from her wine.
The young king of Hyrule however did not drink, instead he observed the shrewd, fair Zelda and the stern Lady Impa carefully, the stern Ldy Impa more than the shrewd, fair Zelda.
Although the cautious Lady Impa also had her vial of emetic at the ready, the young king of Hyrule was more than ready to rush to her side and force the contents of his own vial down her throat should the maybe-poison render her unable to drink her own.
But a good long moment passed and not a thing happened; neither the fair Zelda, nor the fair-haired Lady Impa showed any sign of being ill or unwell.
"Your highness? Is anything the matter?" asked the shrewd, fair Zelda innocently.
The young king of Hyrule said not a thing, and instead eyed the wine in his goblet suspiciously and distrustfully… then he threw a questioning glance at his loyal friend and knight, the stern Lady Impa. She gave him a slight nod, so the young king of Hyrule took a little sip from the wine.
"Well then now… let us break our fast," said the shrewd, fair Zelda invitingly and began to eat. Again, the first to begin her meal was the shrewd, fair Zelda. A good moment later, the watchful Lady Impa also began to eat and not much later the young king of Hyrule also began to break his fast…
…all the while keeping the little vial of emetic at the ready.
But neither the wine nor the food seemed to cause any sort of discomfort or anomaly… not to the fair Zelda, not to the stern Lady Impa, not to the young king of Hyrule…
…or so he thought!
As they progressed through their meal, the young king's eyes began more and more to close and his mind more and more to dull.
When at last he realized this, the young king of Hyrule at first feared that the wicked, fair Zelda had somehow managed to slip him some poison after all!
But then he realized that the watchful Lady Impa was perfectly fine and that she did not seem to sense anything abnormal so he wondered if it was not simply the restless night he had spent before that was at last coming back to haunt him…
When at last he realized that the shrewd, fair Zelda had indeed managed to drug him after all it was already too late by far!
The last thing the young king of Hyrule saw before the darkness of his mind claimed him was the crafty smile on the shrewd, fair Zelda's face.
The young king of Hyrule liked it not!
Not the littlest bit!
"…Demise take you…!"
Well? What do you guys think? What has our shrewd, fair Zelda done THIS time?
Tell me in the comments, don't be shy, don't hold back!
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