As was their little tradition, Link walked Zelda to her rooms. As soon as they were not in plain sight of the king or any guards, Zelda leaned her head in. "What was that all about? Being part of the Royal Guard?"
"I meant it," he whispered back. "I need something to keep myself busy, and no amount of money will keep me content. I need to do something during the day; after this ball, I won't have any more dancing lessons, and I'll be miserable bored."
"Is that it?" Zelda asked quietly. "Just so you won't be bored living a life of comfort?" It almost made her laugh, thinking of Link surrounded with finery and being miserable, but it was also very true.
"Well, no. I mean…" he squeezed her hand, secretly. "I'd get lonely pretty fast without you." He looked at her and Zelda smiled, turning her head away and blushing.
It was pretty clear to him that it was the easiest way for Link to stay close to Zelda, even after he was done being her personal guard. In a way, he'd still be her guard, but he'd be one of hundreds. He had been thinking about it off and on since she told him about his 'retirement' once his duties were completed. Plus, he enjoyed battle. It would give him a great opportunity to participate in any that arose, as well as keeping fit.
They stopped, like usual, at the bottom of the staircase. Zelda reluctantly withdrew her hand from Link's arm, offering him a little smile. "Do you think you're ready for tomorrow?" she asked softly.
"I think so," he replied. He bent down and kissed her hand, squeezing the fingers once. "Good night, Your Highness."
"Good night." She smiled at him and went upstairs, her hand resting again on the box in her leather pouch.
-
Link had been woken up in very uncomfortable and sudden ways many times while living as a vagabond and then a jack-of-all-trades at the tavern. Screaming matrons that the chimney was plugged and the flotsam collected inside had caught on fire, a sharp kick from a steel-covered boot for him to move on from the decrepit alleyway of a bar, and even, once or twice, almost being mugged, as it was assumed he was dead. Since living in the castle, it was far more gentle of an awakening, especially once he became accustomed to it. The soft shaking of his shoulder, sometimes a distant, whispered, "Master Tolrose, it is morning." Even after those first initial days when he still woke up swinging, it was relaxing in comparison.
Unfortunately though, Link had to open his big mouth and tell the king his idea. So the day of the ball, two hours before he'd usually be woken up by the soft whispers of the girls that tended his rooms, a gong went off next to his head.
It wasn't really a gong; it was the flat side of a sword blade struck hard against the round bottom of a massive copper bowl. Link jumped out of his skin, his legs tangling in the sheets and his whole body going over the bed, where he landed painfully. "Get up, soldier!" boomed the powerful voice of the guard captain. Link stared up at him with dazed eyes, confused. He kicked his way out of the bed sheets, and the captain threw clothes at him; raggy, patchy, 'new fish' soldier clothes, old and worn, and with curious stains through the seat of the pants. At least they were freshly washed.
He pulled on his clothes fast, catching the boots as they were thrown at him, catching up quickly. At least he had not lost his habit of waking up at a moment's notice. The captain noted this, and silently approved. "Out!" he shouted, chasing Link out of his rooms and towards the massive practicing field out back, past the bewildered and half-asleep maids that were heading to the kitchens for breakfast.
Practicing with the army was, in many ways, easier than dancing. He already knew what steps they'd be taking and how to take them, just not the order. It was easier for him to catch up this way. They started their practice before dawn, the grass still wet and the sky grey. Link huffed and sweated, swinging around a rusty and chipped sword as he practiced. A year and two months of doing nothing but repairs and following Zelda around had not been kind to his sword form. The guard captain kept his eye on the new recruit, and Link could only feel that his ribbing would get worse from the men who had to keep an eye out.
"Bruiser might actually be kinda dangerous. He's already not bad," one of the guards muttered to another as they polished the metal of their boots.
"Yeah, that's for certain. Makes me wonder where he got his moves from." They went silent as Link walked past, his plate already polished and put away, and he in his underclothes. He was thankful for his own private bath, and that he would not have to share the same massive tub as the other men.
"Doesn't seem like a poor Viscount's son should know battle so damn easy."
"Maybe it's all them dancing lessons."
They shared a laugh over it, and took up the next piece of armor to polish.
-
Link managed to get a quick breakfast between training and his dancing lessons. He had gotten dressed in his plain clothes, and poked into the kitchens to see if anyone would miss a cinnamon bun. A young serving girl snuck it over to him with a wink and her finger across her lips, hushing him. He backed up a step to leave, and turned back around, remembering something, leaning back in. "Could you… have Zelda let me know if we'll have time for lunch today?" She nodded with a smile. "Just tell her to leave a note in my rooms or something." The girl nodded again, and Link beamed, thanking her.
He walked briskly back to his rooms, eating in large bites. But he felt awake, alive, and like he had a new purpose. That now, he'd be even better at protecting Zelda. But for now, he took some time to himself in his rooms to relax.
Zelda, meanwhile, had finally been woken up while Link was sitting in his rooms with his quick breakfast. She took her time getting ready, bathing in scented bathwater. These little luxuries were some of her favorite things about being a princess. As she soaked up the clean floral scents of the water, two of her maids thoroughly washed and combed her long hair, trimming up the ends evenly. A third was gently buffing her nails, and yet another was scrubbing her arms and face gently with a rough stone, to smooth the skin.
She let her eyes slide closed as she fell back asleep, soaking in the tub. The maids held their breath until they were certain that she was not awake.
"Do you think Master Tolrose will be pleased with her appearance?" one of the hairwashers asked the other. They all laughed softly.
"We are certain they haven't kissed yet, right?" asked the girl buffing the nails.
"As certain as we can be; they're watched almost constantly to keep that very thing from happening. I think we'd hear about it by now."
"This betting pool is gettin' ridiculous. You know the men have a differen' one?" offered the girl buffing Zelda's skin.
"Oh? What would that one be?"
"Well, they think that the princess an' Master Tolrose are…"
All four maids went silent and slowly looked down at Zelda, whose eyes were open. She slowly extracted her hand from the slack grip of the girl doing her nails and folded her arms. All five women stared at each other. "No more talk," Zelda muttered quietly. The maids nodded their heads slowly, reluctantly going back to their tasks.
Because she woke up late and wanted to take her time getting ready, Zelda forgot to meet Link for lunch. Because the second she ran into the princess' room to give the princess Link's message, her arms were stuffed with the day's laundry, the girl from the kitchens failed to let Zelda know of his request. And because she was so eager to assure that she had done her job to the satisfaction of His Majesty and Her Highness, Madame Curieire held Link an extra hour and a half, working him as hard as she could over more difficult dance steps. By the end of it, he was sweaty again, and Madame Curieire was glowing with an inner pride. "I think," she said softly, folding her arms, "you are ready."
Two maids had been waiting patiently outside of the ballroom. Link thanked his dancing partner, apologizing again for her feet. She smiled, a little more this time.
"It's alright, it was inevitable. I'm just glad I helped you learn." They shook hands, a little awkwardly.
"Uh, what's your name?" he asked as they shook.
"It's Phoebe," she replied, flicking her dark hair out of her eyes.
"Thank you, Phoebe."
"Just watch out for Her Highness' feet."
"I'll try." He smiled as he stepped out, eager to share lunch with the princess and tell her that Madame felt confident in his dance steps. But he was latched onto by two of the heavier cooks running the kitchen.
"You're running late!" one of them shouted. "You were supposed to be bathed an hour ago!"
"I already bathed!" he shouted in a panic as they started dragging him to his rooms.
"Learning to dance takes time!" Madame shouted down the hall in her defense.
So because of these factors, Link did not get to see Zelda much at all during the day. While she was gently having her hair combed one final time before being misted with more scented water and carefully styled atop of her head, the thick-armed cooks were scrubbing Link almost painfully.
"Hold still!" one growled at him as she tackled his hair, which had barely dried from his own, private bath earlier in the day. As her maids carefully dusted a light pink powder across the apple of Zelda's cheeks, Link was having his own hair quickly combed and trimmed. Zelda was applying her own lash stain, pressed close to the mirror, as her maids checked the beading on her shoes and dress to make sure none were amiss, and that her gloves, beautiful cream satin things that buttoned from wrist to elbow, were clean.
Link, during this, was arguing with one of the ruddy-faced cooks and the shy, trembling girl trying to apply makeup.
"I'm not a damned woman! I'm not wearing all that shit on my face! You think I'm a poof or something?!"
"It's the style, Master Tolrose, just to enhance your masculine features—"
"I don't give a shit what the style is! Did Her Highness tell you I'm wearin' knee high boots too?! I'm an affront to all this bloody pomp y'all think is so necessary, and I like it that way!"
"Master Tolrose!" shouted the cook, but she did not get very far.
"I refuse to wear that fecking makeup, an' so help me Goddess, if ye try an' put so much as a smudge o' that stupid stuff on my face, I…" What could he do? Well, he was the son of a Viscount, right? "I'll have you thrown out!"
They stared at him in shock. "Very well, Master Tolrose," muttered the cook. She shooed away the girl with the makeup, who looked very near to tears. Oh, Zelda would hear about this, no doubt.
Zelda sucked in a deep breath, and slowly exhaled all she could, gripping one of her bedposts tightly with two hands as two of her maids pulled with all their strength on the ties to her corset. They went as tight as possible, until the fabric creaked like old wood and Zelda's face flushed with exertion. She put in her own earrings, a little sensitive about her ears, glancing at the other box she'd brought home from the jeweler's. She reached out and touched one corner, smiling slightly.
Link was finally starting to get dressed, his hair parted on one side and neatly combed, lightly waxed to stay in place. "Oh," muttered the girl doing his hair. She cowered slightly at Link's gaze, but he was no longer angry with anyone.
"Well, sir, your earrings… they're kind of a purple and don't match."
"So?"
"Look, it's just for one night. I'll see if there's some simple ones like those you can borrow. Okay?"
She was already running off before Link thought to ask her who she was borrowing them from.
-
Zelda hardly turned around as her doors opened, as she was trapped halfway through her underdress. The top, unseen when the overdress was laced over it, had no straps or sleeves of any kind, and had a thin layer of reinforcing material to smooth out any wrinkles or lines from her corset, so that a chemise would be unnecessary. It hooked in the back, and she stood with both arms raised as a maid helped hook the dress closed.
"Master Tolrose wears earrings, his uh… aren't the right shade," the newest girl to enter the room muttered to another maid, searching carefully through a box of Zelda's older jewelry and fishing out two tiny gold hoops.
"Wait, wait," whispered the woman nearest her. "He threw a huge tantrum about not wanting to wear makeup and look like a poof, but he wears earrings?"
The first girl shrugged, the earrings tucked carefully in her palm. She almost left when Zelda called out "Wait!"
Nervously, the girl turned and walked over to her, curtsying. Zelda looked her over carefully. "Let me see your face and those earrings." She made careful note of the girl's features, a freckle above her upper lip, a short, squat nose, and two terrified brown eyes under a loose, short shock of brown hair.
"Very well," she muttered, turning away.
At first, the girl insisted on trying to put the new earrings in Link's ears herself. But after a few minutes of her poking and scratching the area around his piercing with the end of the post, he took them from her and did it on his own, popping in the earrings in two seconds. But he did need help tying his cravat, and she happily obliged. His boots some kind soul had polished while he was getting the life scrubbed out of him, and he put them on quickly, feeling a little more comfortable in his attire once he had something familiar on. His maid gave him one last look over, reaching up and tucking a strand of his hair back into place, and finally nodded her approval.
Zelda was still getting dressed when Link was done. She pulled on thin cream stockings with a similar ribbing pattern to her dress, attaching them to a garter belt at her thighs so they would not slip. They finally pulled on her overdress, lacing it together in the front, and someone put her earrings in while she sat patiently as they threaded hair pins through her hair, the ends that poked out stuck with tiny blue gems. She held out her arms and two girls buttoned up her gloves around them, making sure they were secure. Finally, she packed a small purse that she would wear on her hip with extra lip stain, a blotter for sweat, a tiny fan, and a comb in case her hair got out of line. She stood and put her feet in her shoes, taking up the unopened box from the jeweler's, and did a little turn for her maids. They clapped in amazement for her, and Zelda laughed, her eyes bright. "Let us go downstairs and see if Master Tolrose is ready, yes?"
They led her down in a small entourage. Link was already standing downstairs, talking amicably with the guards who were to ride in the carriage with them. His back was to the hall that led to Zelda's rooms, so he did not see her until one of the girls cleared her throat to announce the princess.
He wheeled and stared at her, his mouth opening in surprise. She smiled and looked towards the floor, shy at his reaction. The guards bowed deeply to her, and Zelda's father appeared from another hall, beaming at his daughter. Zelda swept over to her father and hugged him, kissing both his cheeks. "You look absolutely stunning, my dear," the king said with a glow of happiness around him. "Isn't she lovely, Master Tolrose?"
Link could only slowly nod, his eyes wide. "She's beautiful."
The king narrowed his eyes, but turned back to his daughter. "Do you have everything?"
"Yes Father, I do."
"Good, good. The carriage should be ready shortly." He patted Zelda's hands, and turned to Link, reaching out to shake his hand. Link fell for the trap and the king jerked him in close, grabbing him by the back of the neck. "If you violate my daughter, you will wish that a beheading is all you will receive."
"Father!" Zelda shouted, grabbing him and tugging on his shoulders. "I can take care of myself! Link is a good and virtuous person!"
Link thanked whoever was watching him that he'd been too frozen with surprise and intimidation when the king grabbed him, otherwise his first instinct would've been self-defense. He wheeled away from the king's grip, who granted his daughter one last kiss on the cheek before wandering back to his rooms to pore over documents of great import. Zelda shook her head, though she understood her father's concern. Link shook himself like a wet dog to release the too-late rush of adrenaline, and when he looked up again, Zelda was holding a box in her gloved hands.
"I um… I found your outfit was a little plain, so I got something for you." Link looked down at his clothes and raised an eyebrow. This was plain? Zelda opened the box and took out the brooch, only two inches across, stepping forward to pin it to his lapel. She was mere inches from him, the skirt of her dress brushing against his knees, her hand warm through her glove and his shirt as she carefully pinned it on. "There," she murmured, patting the pin. She smiled up at Link, clearing her throat and stepping back.
They didn't have to wait long for the carriage, and were sent off with a small basket of a light dinner; bite-size sandwiches, two small corked bottles of sparkling water, and tiny chunks of fruit meant to be eaten with forks to keep their hands clean. It would be a near three-hour trip to the mansion, and even then they were leaving a little late. The guards helped Zelda up into the massive white carriage first, carefully crushing her skirts inward as she wriggled through the narrow door. Link climbed in afterward, careful to not step on her dress as he sat across from her, the guards hopping in and sitting down in the remaining space.
The many servants and maids stood at the doors, waving as the horses started on their way to the party. When the carriage was out of sight down the main road, one of the serving girls nudged the other. "Shall we open up the betting pool now?"
Away all of them dashed to the kitchens, propping open the door into the main hall so that they could hear if they were being called. Cook started a stew going over the fire, and two of the guards tapped a massive keg of ale, passing around mugs.
"Alright!" shouted one of the oldest women employed by the castle, standing near the fireplace alongside one of the oldest guards. "You've all got your bookie slips, I hope! Now gentlemen, you've been losing so far-"
"There's still plenty of time!" shouted a guard, the others kicking up cheers.
"Oh please," one of the younger maids retorted. "They're practically clawing up the walls with lust for each other, you saw how Tolrose was starin' at Her Highness! No man stares like that what isn't a man with an itch!"
"Well we've changed our bet!" shouted one of the other men. "We're bettin' if he's gonna give it to 'er tonight or not!" A few of the guards laughed.
"That's vulgar as all hell!" shouted back the first maid. But privately she began to whisper with the girl next to her on how viable that was.
"Oh I very much doubt it, he seems pretty honorable, really."
A guard broke out a set of playing cards and they gathered around, talking and muttering, some lighting up cigarettes as they chatted about Link's curious background and the likelihood of the couple 'doing it'.
-
The two guards that were accompanying Link and Zelda had drawn the short straws for the ride. But this wasn't necessarily a bad thing; they were the ones who were going to report if the two kissed or not; to the betting pools first, and then the king. Since they were being so careful though, the guards would ride on the back of the carriage on the return trip, albeit listening through the narrow opening cut in the back of the carriage cover for ventilation. Link shifted in his seat. The carriage was spacious enough and decorated elaborately, but he could feel the wooden ledges just under the thick seat pillows with every jolt.
Zelda stretched out her legs and ate carefully, mindful of her clothes. Her feet accidentally bumped Link's feet, and she apologized in a low voice. They ate most of the dinner by the first hour of the trip, and the rest was spent in silence.
"How, um. How was your first day of… training?" Zelda finally asked, twirling one of the loose locks of hair around her face on one finger.
"It was…" Link shifted, looking at the two guards. "It was good. At least, I thought so. Uh…" he looked at the two guards again. "I feel a little rusty about it though. I'm… glad to get back out there on the field. It feels good to hold a sword."
The carriage fell silent again, and quickly.
Zelda rested her forehead against the side of the carriage, letting her eyes close. Link looked around at the very bored guards, and then down at the brooch the princess had pinned on him, looking it over. It entertained him for a bit, and finally, he rested his head against the wall of the carriage too, closing his eyes.