There was nothing for the next few weeks, no declaration of war to be had, absolute silence since the hastened and frenetic meeting, six weeks prior. For many, it was sheer bliss. Link and Zelda had become fast friends, oftentimes spending hours upon hours of time talking and getting to know each other. However little the actual amount of information was shared about Link's past, Zelda felt she had known him for years. He was beginning to grow on her. Zelda however, had permanently planted herself in his heart without her even knowing. He couldn't tell if it was the eloquent nature at which she handled everything, or if it was her smile, her intelligence, or just her. Smitten though he was, he knew it couldn't be, and not for the issue of their stark class difference. No, it was more complicated than he, or anyone else could have imagined. This brought him out of his thoughts as he looked at the princess, hair lighter in the new summer sun, blue eyes popping out from under her wavy brown hair, loose with nothing but a simple chain set with seven cerulean blue beaded crystals strung across her forehead. She had a slight smile as she sat in a rare moment of complete calm, basking in the sun under the green branches. Link became entranced again as he watched her, mismatched eyes burning with his unprofessed fondness. Lost in another wave of thoughts about the beautiful creature in front of him, he wasn't aware of his staring, at least not until the princess broke his train of thoughts, calling his name fruitlessly to an unresponsive statue of a person.
"Link… Link…" Zelda huffed in exasperation as she rolled her eyes before yelling his name again. "LINK."
"Huh? Sorry, what?" He asked, looking at her expectantly.
"You were staring again." She replied flatly amusement hidden underneath her tone.
"Staring at what?" He asked as innocently as he could.
"Me." She replied, trying now to get the point across.
"No I wasn't." He replied, still trying to uphold his façade of innocence.
"Yes you were."
"Sorry Princess, but I was clearly staring at the tree behind you." He said, gesturing to the tree with a nod of his head behind her.
"Really." She flatly stated and half asked.
"Really, really." He replied, his lips curling into a small smirk, pulling more to the left of his face than the right, a little idiosyncratic quirk of his that Zelda found herself more and more attached to every time she saw it. She laughed once breathlessly at his antics before continuing.
"So, you're telling me that you were staring at a tree with the burning look in your eyes?" She asked him, body turned towards him on the bench as she smiled lightly, raising her eyebrows in mock questioning.
"Yes." Link started with a matter-of-fact tone, closing his eyes before opening them to give his explanation. "I was trying to burn that tree down." Zelda laughed at his bad humor and weak attempt at evading explaining why he was staring at her. They both stopped their laughing as they sat in an aftermath of contented peace and quite, once again exploring the sun-riddled garden before them. Moments passed as the clouds rolled by, few in number, but big and increasingly more gray with each one's passing.
"Have you ever been to the forest?" Link asked, looking at her with questioning eyes.
"No. I've actually never been to New Ordona, and obviously I've never been to Ariat. Honestly, I can't really remember the last time I went outside of the castle." Zelda answered, tone falling slightly as she tried to remember her last venture into the open. "Although, I have been to my own version of a forest."
"And what would that be?" He asked quietly, still listening and watching her every movement.
"The Library." She answered him sweetly. He paused a moment before answering, his smirk spreading to the left side of his face, and his right eye brow raising as he looked at her, then resuming his regular soft smile as he answered. "I guess that does count. In a way. Though it's nothing compared to Faron woods in Ariat, or that even of New Ordona, which pales in comparison to Faron Woods I might add."
"Really?" she asked, looking at him curiously. "Well maybe I'll go when this damned war is over. If it ever starts soon." Her smile falling from her face as she looked down in front of her.
"How about I take you there myself?" Link responded, trying to get the sadness from their conversation. "It'll be my promise. To you, before the war. Similar to how, I don't know, the love struck fiancées do to their lovers with some ridiculous poem or something else as cheesy as cheesy gets."
"I wouldn't expect anything less from you." Zelda replied, laughing a little as she thought of all the cheesy things Link would try to say.
"It's a deal then?" Link asked her, his eyebrows scrunching and raising to the middle of the forehead in question.
"Yes." Zelda replied.
"Okay then. I promise to take you the all the forests in Hyrule when the war is over, and you have to promise to go with me." Link said, a small smirk forming.
"I promise." Zelda replied. "Although I must admit I was expecting something cheesier than just a promise."
"Would you like something more ridiculous, because that's no hassle for me."
"No, " Zelda laughed. "Save it for your lover." Link and Zelda both laughed a bit.
"Well, I can't really since she just told me to save it for her… that came out wrong. Wait. SHHHH. I didn't say anything did you hear that?" Link tried to cover up his tracks at his slip up, knowing that he screwed up. He tried to hide his face and his embarrassment as he looked at the fountain to his right, trying to hide himself from the princess on his left who whipped her head around to look at him with surprise.
"D-did you just say what I thought you did?" Zelda asked, trying to put things together.
"No." was the short and curt answer she received from a still turned away Link.
"Yes you did. You have feelings for me?" she asked.
"No it just came out wrong." He answered, biting his lower lip as he tried to think up ways to get out of his predicament. You just professed your love to the Princess of Hyrule! You IDIOT! What will she think? He sat pondering his mistakes, frantically slapping himself on the forehead mentally.
"Oh." Zelda said sadly, silently smiling to herself inside. Oh I can get him to admit it, alright. Thing is, oh shit. Do I like him too? Her fallen tone of her "oh" caught Link's attention, as he looked at her over his shoulder, trying to pick up the pieces of his blunder.
"Is that a bad thing? If I didn't just say I have feelings for you?"
"I don't know." Zelda said, looking at him with slightly raised eyebrows, making as sweet a face as she could, based on how she saw other girls try and get what they wanted from their significant other. She had no idea it would work though, as Link turned so quickly to face her, catching her completely unawares as his lips met hers. Her eyes widened in surprise as the boy she secretly had feelings for professed his for hers in a most unorthodox way. Like she cared, she stopped to close her eyes and kiss him back, if only for a second, which is what it was as Link frantically pulled away, mumbling a string of apologies and excuses for having to go and train with the rest of the soldiers as he tripped over the bench on his way out, catching himself as his hair flew in seven different directions. The princess just watched, sitting still as the statue to her far left, trying to process what happened, if it even happened now that Link had disappeared in a flurry of motions. She turned forward on the bench, placing her hands in-between her knees, pursing her lips together as she thought of what she was supposed to do next. What if I scared him away? She thought again and again, trying to figure out why he left in such a hurry. She stopped though when she though of his kissing of her. Her first kiss from someone. She blushed uncontrollably as she smiled, placing her fingers on her red lips.
Later that same evening, Zelda went looking for Link. She had tried nearly everywhere, the last place she was heading to now. If he is seriously not there, boy, is he gonna hear it. What if I'm just going crazy? No. That definitely happened. Lo and behold, as she neared the training grounds reserved for the elites, she heard the clang of a sword followed by the unmistakable tone of Link's voice grunting and yelling as he hacked at the dummy. Zelda walked to the open archway, clear of all doors now that it was summer, only hinges left in their place. She looked out onto the grounds in the golden sunlight as Link attacked a practice dummy as viciously as he could, obviously trying to vent about something. As she proceeded to sit on one of the benches on the edge of the sword grounds, she noticed something sitting on the bench that she hadn't noticed before because of the blinding light. His shirt. Shit. Okay, just be casual about this. He hasn't seen you yet; maybe you can run back out. Nope. Okay feet, sure. Keep walking to the bench. Okay great, now we are sitting. Yes that is most definitely a shirt. Don't look at him. Don't resist the temptation, Zelda. Ohp. Too late. Zelda sat as calmly as she could, trying to figure out why she was sitting where she was, trying not to look at Link, much to her chagrin that plan failing miserably. Oh please something happen this is abhorable. She waited as Link went through a set of moves, his sweating form dancing around the dummy, his back still miraculously facing her. Where did he get all those scars? Zelda tried to focus on the lines on his back, trying to make out how big they were. They look like, flogging scars. Oh my goddesses. Zelda silently let every possibility run through her head of how and why he got those scars, if it hurt, and if he was captured and tortured at some point or what. During her reprieve of thought. Link had successfully knocked the head off of the dummy, with Zelda failing to hear his whisperings of how much he thought he was an idiot, until he turned around and they both looked at each other. Caught in surprise on both ends, they completely stopped all thought and movement as they stared at each other. Zelda tried not to look at his stomach, wondering if he had a six-pack that all the other noble girls freak out about when one of them would court with a more muscular man. However, her peripheral vision betrayed her as she saw he did in fact have exactly that.
"I found your shirt." Zelda said, trying to break the silence between them. Link silently walked forward the fifteen paces to the bench, grabbing his shirt sheepishly and turning the face the wall of the garden to put it on, his back to her. She watched him do it, trying to count the scars on his back. He sat down next to her, trying to mop some of the sweat from his damp hair and forehead in an attempt to make himself look more presentable.
"Where'd you get those scars?" Zelda asked him.
"Which ones?" He asked back, looking at her almost sadly, the pain written in his eyes.
"The ones on your back." She said, looking at him with a calmly.
"The flogging scars? My father gave them to me." Link said, looking forward as he repositioned himself to sit more comfortably before looking at her again. At least that isn't a lie. Though I can't really call that demon of a man my father.
"Oh. How come?" Zelda's morbid curiosity got in the way as she tried to think of the best way to approach the situation.
"Well, I did tell you I got into a bit of trouble when I was younger." Link said, his smirk coming back to his face as he was attempting to change the subject. He didn't have to however, as Impa abruptly entered the scene with her teleportation spell. Scaring both Link and Zelda as the words fell from their lips.
"Princess, you must go to the council room immediately, the Declaration of war has arrived. We are at war with Ariat." Zelda's face dropped as she looked at Impa, then to Link with her fallen and worried face, now riddled with surprise and fear as she told Link she would talk to him later, racing into the castle. Link stood up as she ran away, looking after her worriedly, wondering if he should comfort her or not, while thoughts of his impending role in the war rushing into his head like newly opened floodgates. Impa, of course stopped him. He looked at her with his mismatched eyes and slightly agape lips, waiting for her words.
"I don't know when we will be able to speak again. So I will tell you now. You mustn't stray from the path. You weren't supposed to fall in love with her." Impa looked at Link, her hand still on his shoulder as he looked down at the ground, his eyes watering against his will.
"I know, Impa." He said.
Zelda rushed down the hall to the council room as she noticed every corridor was buzzing with frantic and fearful activity, many servants running instead of walking places, preparing the castle and themselves for the war. Zelda threw open the large doors as she flew into the council room, filled with just as much activity as the halls. All decorum was obviously null and void as she approached the standing and conversing groups of the council, mostly conglomerated around her father at the end of the table as the looked over at the declaration of war. I found Veronica on the outskirts of the group as she walked towards me, worried as she began to speak.
"The Declaration is here. As I suppose Impa told you." She stopped and looked at my father and the others before looking back at Zelda.
"She did." Zelda said quickly as she was about to walk to the end of the table look at the document before Veronica's hand stopped her by gently touching her shoulder.
"My Lady, Zelda, you're not going to like what it says. Just-just be calm when you read the ending. Please, it was a surprise to us all, though some of us were expecting it." Zelda looked at her worried friend's face before breathing in sharply, wondering what could be written on there, feeling as if she knew exactly what it was. She made her way over to her father as the council members and other high-ranking nobles moved out of the way for her. She reached the document, one aesthetically beautiful at first glance, but wretched and vile in content. Her eyes scanned the paper as her father turned to his right to speak to a noble about troupe preparations of the respective houses as Zelda's eyes landed on the signatures. Her lips mouthed the words as she read it.
By tradition, this Declaration of War is hereby signed by all surviving members of the Royal House of Ariat.
King Dresden G. Damien of Ariat
Prince Raven Edric L. Perseus of Ariat
Zelda's heart stopped as she read the last signature. Prince Raven Edric Perseus. He's alive. Zelda Looked to Veronica, the worry and sympathy shared in one look between them. Zelda made her way over to her to try and relieve some of the fear that was building in her heart.
"He's alive." Was all Zelda could say to the other woman.
"Sure is." Veronica said back, still as stunned by the signature on the paper as Zelda.
"Council members and nobles." The King began "If you would begin to take your seats, the council meeting will begin." Zelda and everyone else in the room followed silently through the motions as the meeting began, albeit quick and brief it was, it had a heavy weight on everyone in the room. While the meeting progressed, the multiple jobs and tasks in preparation to be completed were given out and the townspeople were gathered in front of the stairs where the Declaration of War would be read to the people officially. Blindly moving through the motions, and hour later Zelda stood in front of a large portion of her people, listening to the news as she watched messengers ride out through the gates to alert all other towns and provinces and nobles that they could, some even going to other countries to warn them to be on alert. She could feel the tension in the air until it finally burst as the king read off the Prince's name.
"Prince Raven Edric L. Perseus of Ariat." Were the solemn and weight bearing words out of the king's mouth that led to a frenzy of energies erupting in crowds. They quickly resumed the quiet and respectful presence they had before as they listened to the King as he declared the movement of troupes in the morning to meet the enemy in the south. Zelda didn't hear much of anything but the wails and shouts of the people as they began their walk back inside after the briefing of the town. Over that, she heard the ironic boom of thunder in the newly darkened skies.
Proceeding back to the council room, they began one last meeting going over everything a second time, now adding things here and there that were missed before. Zelda found herself looking out into the dark windows, the faint lines of grey clouds nearing them as the lighting began its dance in the sky, the rain soon to follow once the moon was blotted out in the east. She barely ate the dinner that was haphazardly brought in for those in the meeting, trying to distract herself with thoughts of something else. Not that they really needed her input at the moment anyway. She continued her observation of the sky, smelling the humid air that was pouring through he window, something she would love to enjoy if the damn war hadn't decided to start today. If she had her time off right now as she usually did, she would be sitting in the gardens until the rain came down full force, something she would sit in if her dresses weren't so expensive and valuable. This time though, she would be sitting with Link. Link… She forgot she had abruptly left him and Impa, Impa who was now in the room with her, occasionally running in and out as she fulfilled her duties set to her by the king to fetch other nobles or lesser titles who were within the castle for affairs and so on. But Link, she wondered what he would be doing right now. Probably preparing to move out in the morning, trying to lighten the mood of his comrades as he made stupid jokes, trying not the think about the horrors of that have now presented themselves to us. Link, the Link I had kissed today is leaving for battle in the morning to an almost guaranteed death on the front lines. This realization hit Zelda as she lost touch with everything, suddenly wishing she could leave and never come back, stick her head in the sand and never have to deal with a war or a supposedly dead Prince being alive. That damned prince. If he had just died like everyone had thought this wouldn't be happening.
Zelda was brought out of her thoughts of hatred as the thunder shook the windows, the storm getting closer. She looked back to the table of people in front of her, a new resolve building in her heart. She was going to kill that bastard and his power hungry stepfather. Impa noticed this change in disposition of the Princess as she watched her eyes harden and glaze through her current of thoughts. She new something had been made up in her mind and she didn't know if she liked it. The second to notice the suddenly hardened Princess was Veronica, and then lastly, Lord Rhizon as he watched her begin to come alive in her hatred, picking up the notes of a killer growing inside of her. He made eye contact with Impa who had figured it out and was already a step ahead of him, her eyes warning him of getting involved, and warning him of the darkness that would fuel the cruelty of the once gentle princess. He nodded his understanding once, before returning to the meeting at hand, Veronica watching all the while.
As soon as the meeting ended, Zelda took off after answering questions and making appropriate conversation. She went straight to the gardens, which were still dry for the rain had yet to fall. She sat on the bench where Link had kissed her, not but a few hours ago, trying to clear her head of all that had happened in the past couple of hours. She looked up at the evening sky, the moon starting to be eaten away by the clouds rolling in as she felt the winds rush into the gardens, the humidity enveloping her in a soft blanket. She breathed in the fresh scent of the air as she reveled in her favorite weather. She sat there for some time, staring at the clouds moving above her head, watching for any lightning and listening to the drumming of the thunder as the storm climbed its way overhead while the humidity hugged her softly. She tried to think of nothing at all as she sat there in the dark, the fountain sparkling in the now drowned grey light of the clouds, glistening feverishly when lightning lit up the sky.
"Zelda." She heard from her right. She looked. It was Link; he was standing there, his sad eyes looking at her as he staid, waiting. She noticed he was wearing the padding that would be placed under his armor, minus anything too constraining so he wouldn't have to spend too much time in the morning getting ready. She just sat and watched as the wind played with his hair and the lightning lit up his mismatched eyes, outlining a scar on the right side of his face that nicked his eyebrow, bottom lip, and chin. She hadn't really noticed it before, and it made her realize how much she didn't know about him. Not that she cared much about that anyway. Looking at the traces of the scar, it looked as if he had jumped out of the way just in time, if he hadn't, she might not have been able to ever see his one green eye. They stared at each other, drinking in the scenes before them, knowing this would be the last time they would most likely see each other for a long time, if at all ever again. The storm continued its whisperings as it moved above their heads, sending its tendrils of turbulence to dance with all that was stuck on the ground.
"I leave in the morning." He said flatly, both of them still not moving.
"I know." The wind moved in again, this time ripping through their hair a little more strongly.
"I-I think I love you Zelda." He said. She watched him as fat rain drops starting to come down from the sky, dotting the bench and ground and leaves and eventually them as well.
"I know." She said again. "It's just, so different now."
"I know." He said back.
"But, I think I love you, too." He sighed once and came to sit next to me under the tree that provided some refuge from the few falling drops as it moved furiously in the wind. For the second time that day, he kissed her, and she kissed him back. This time however, in a much different way. It wasn't in nervous excitement, but in way much like the calm before a storm. After they pulled their lips away, they sat with their foreheads together, eyes closed, trying to savor the moment as much as they could.
"I'm going to kill him." Zelda said, breaking their silence, her eyes still closed. "I'm going to kill the Prince of Ariat." Link opened his eyes at this, surprise and a mix of other emotions running through him like a bolt of lightning as he tensed at her exclamation. "I'm going to kill him so nothing like this ever happens again. It's his fault everyone is in this position. If he had just died when he was born like he was supposed to this wouldn't be happening. He deserves to die." Link's breath hitched as his once gentle princess professed her violent goals to him.
He looked at her, sitting back as she opened her pained and hardened eyes to look back at him. A thousand things were swimming through his head as the rain started to come down heavier as the final wave of thunder and lighting and wind heralded the storm's arrival. He was surprised he had even gotten any tangible words out at that moment.
"Hopefully you won't have to."
"But I want to. This is different than killing a random person, this is killing someone who is only destined to be evil."
"No, Zelda. You don't know that. You don't know who he is, what he's like. What if this isn't what he wants either? You can't jump to conclusions like this." Link said, taking her by her shoulders, worried about what had gotten into her.
"Since when did you decide things for me? I'll be in the library if you want to talk to me." She got up before she could yell at him and make their last moments together tense and riddled with disagreement. Link stayed as she walked away, not moving as her form receded into the glowing halls of the castle. He sat there until he knew she was no longer able to hear him before he broke down. Everything came crashing down on him at once, the war, the princess, the prince, himself, Ariat, Hyrule, everything. He slumped to the ground; his back against the bench as he began to hyperventilate as his hands took fistfuls of his messy and quickly dampening blonde hair, tears mixing with the increasingly heavier drops. He didn't know what to do.
Zelda sat on the window seat overlooking the gardens she had just come from, watching Link sit there for a while until he got up as the rain began to come down in sheets. She had taken her shoes off as well as her light crown and other ornamentals, and had taken refuge underneath a thin blanket, her back against a conglomeration of pillows. She listened to the thunder and the rain through the open window high above her, just small enough so very little water could get through because of the cornices above it on the outside. She had pulled out her favorite book, one about the trials of Hyrule during the terror of Twilight, written by her great-grandmother, Zelda the XIII, whom many say she looked like. Countless times she had read the book, fingers fondling the worn pages, eyes memorizing the pictures and sketches the other Zelda had made. She had gone back to reading in her hidden nook as she heard the large door screech open, heralding Link's entrance.
"Princess?" He called.
"To the right, three rows down, walk to the wall then turn left again, I'm by the window in the walled in nook." She explained as she flipped to the next page, the jolt of thunder so loud it startled her a bit as the window rattled in protest. Link turned the corner, walking her direction with his damp hair as he sheepishly approached.
"May I?" he asked, gesturing to the window seat. Zelda nodded and scoot over, leaving room just enough for the damp soldier to take his seat. Zelda looked at his mismatched eyes, dim in the candlelight of the corner she so often took refuge in.
"What time is it?" She asked him.
"It was around eleven when I walked in, so probably 11:02 to be exact." She smiled at his attempt at being light, and looked back to her book as his damp form adjusted next to hers, trying not to fall off of the one person seat.
"You need help there?" She asked him, watching his struggle with gravity and lack of seating.
"Just a bit." He said, giving a breathy laugh. She moved so he could sit where she was before she boldly leaned against him, something anyone that wasn't either of them would have a heart attack over. She felt him tense at first at the unexpected contact of her back against his chest before he snaked his arms around her, lightly and tentatively.
"What are you reading?" He asked her as his eyes scanned the drawing of a boy in green next to a very tall Gerudo, both poised to fight.
"Zelda the thirteenth's retelling of the events of Twilight." She replied as her eyes scanned the picture.
"Ah. With the hero whose name is forgotten at his request, and who can also turn into a wolf?"
"Exactly. My favorite of the legends. " She replied as she flipped to the next page, the wording on the left as another picture dominated the right. This time, it was of a bloodied hero, looking as if he was beginning to struggle against the larger opponent.
"This part always intrigues me. In a morbid way. 'After an arduous beginning of a battle, the bearer of courage misses one step, and lands himself on the end of the Demon King's sword, nearly piercing him all the way through. He pulls himself off his own enemies sword in an attempt to escape the man's grip as he takes the Hero and slams him into the barrier, successfully gripping his hands around the Hero's neck, forcing him against the pulses of the barrier, causing him more bodily harm. The Hero attempts to cause the relinquishment of the man's hold over his neck as he kicks at his head, gripping his arms all the while to try and sustain for himself some from of air. It was at this point that I realized something needed to be done, or all of the sufferings that were endured would be for naught. Standing on the saddle of his horse, Epona, I jumped onto the barrier myself, letting an arrow fly towards the man as I was forced back, watching blood now come from the Hero's mouth as he choked from the damage of the barrier. Landing with nothing more but bruises, I looked and saw the Demon King stagger back, turning to look at me as the Hero lifted himself from his fallen state, once again taking up the Master Sword with an ever hardened resolve to end the tyranny all had suffered as the blood ran over his lips.'" Zelda read off the passage to Link as he listened, picturing the battle in his head as the Hero of Twilight was stabbed, and then forced to take damage to his lungs as he choked on his own blood.
"The Final Battle." Link said, wistfully as he continued picturing the ending, as the Demon King was finished off, the bloodied hero victorious.
"Mhm." Zelda replied as she flipped to the next page. The two of them finished to book, and Zelda placed it on the cushion by their feet before timidly settling into Link's arms.
"I don't know what to do. About this war and all. About everything it feels like." She said, turning to look up at him. "You're damp."
"I am." He laughed a bit, his chest rumbling under her. "Probably should have gotten out of the rain a bit sooner but it was so nice out." She rested her head on his right shoulder, just beneath his chin as they sat in silence once more.
"Zelda."
"Yeah."
"What if the hero was here?"
"What do you mean?"
"What if he was reincarnated in our lifetimes?" She looked up at him, a curious hope in her eyes as the storm continued its early summer rage outside.
"Do you know of him? If he is living?" She asked.
"No. Just speculation." He replied, indecision marking his features as the Princess resumed her previous position.
"I hope he is. Then we'd have a major pawn against the Araitians. If he so wishes to be." She said, huffing out a sigh as her tired eyes began to get heavier and heavier.
"Me too." Was Link's last reply as they fell asleep on the window seat.
Impa was searching for the Princess, having searched her personal chambers, and was next heading to the library as she new it was where the princess often frequented. She strode into the library, doors scraping as she opened them. The dim light from the candles gave a soft glow in the dark wooded labyrinth of books, Impa taking the direction to the hidden nook the princess always occupied. She turned the last corner and jolted to a stop at the sight before her. She observed the princess and the soldier laying together under the thin blanket, the storm raging behind their sleeping forms. She thought better of freaking out at them, goddesses know she would have as any mother might have, but instead chose not to. She silently stepped her way over to the pair, careful not to wake the Princess up as she went to awaken Link. A tap on the shoulder was all he needed as his senses and reflexes woke him up, startled and aroused. He began to look with fear as Impa quelled his worries.
"It's alright. I won't murder you. Yet. I was only looking for the princess as it is nearly at the hour of one. And if I'm not mistaken, you are to leave for your post in only five hours time. I only come to let you know. If the soldiers ask where you were when you get back, only tell them that I had you under my jurisdiction." She explained as she watched the two young people.
"Thank you, Impa." He replied, whispering as she had to keep from waking up the princess.
"You're welcome. Now, before I go, since I won't see you for quite some time possibly, remember what we had talked about. You need to win this war. Do not loose sight of who you are." She said as she gestured to his gloved left hand.
"I won't, Impa." He replied as she began to turn around and leave.
"Oh, and Link."
"Yes?"
"Be careful. War is a dangerous thing, and one slip up and you'll end up in worse condition than the Hero of Twilight, against much bigger odds, and we wouldn't want anything to happen to that face of yours." She said, jesting after her heavier notes, giving him an extremely rare moment of hers where she actually showed emotion.
"I will, Impa. Thank you." He said as she disappeared around the corner, still catching his last words. He looked down at the sleeping princess, and waited until he heard the door close before waking her.
"Zelda…Zelda." He said, gently shaking het.
"What?"
"It's one in the morning."
"Which means sleeping, not waking me up."
"No, it means we're not supposed to be here. It means I'm supposed to go back to the barracks and you to your room."
"Oh." She said surprised as she remembered where she was and what had been happening.
"Well good thing you woke me up."
"Good thing indeed."
"Will I get to see you in the morning?"
"If you get up and are at the front gates at six. Though I believe it's tradition for the Royal house to see off the troupes on the first day of war."
"It is, but that's not what I was asking. Will I get to see just you before you go?"
"Yes. Meet me in the garden one last time at five thirty."
"I will."
The maids woke Zelda up at five as she had asked, the groggy and grumpy princess dragging herself out of bed to get herself into the necessary regalia for the sending off of the troupes. After around twenty minutes of preparation, she was left alone to look at herself in the mirror. What she saw was foreign to her. She wore paldrons over her shoulders with a connecting middle piece, with gauntlets covering her forearms; soft grey rabbit pelt padding her arms from the metal underneath. With all of that she wore a blue dress, accented in silver and grey. To match her silver armor, she wore a silver belt that also provided as some protection, showpiece though it was. On top of that she wore a grey cape with a hood that hooked over her armored form, and a simple silver crown with one decently sized sapphire in the middle. She ran her gloved hands over the skirt of the dress, the coarser material heavy under her fingers.
With this, she turned away from the reflection in the mirror and made her way to the gardens. There on the same bench as he had been so many times prior within the six weeks sat Link. She saw his armor glint in the sunlight, as he sat forlornly on the bench, waiting for her. When he heard her, he turned and stood up, taking in the appearance of the armored princess.
"Well. Don't we both look joyous?" He cracked, getting her to smile as he sighed.
"Indeed." She said, looking at his armored form. He wore the same padding as he had previously, this time however with the metal gauntlets, pauldrons, chest plate, thigh and shin bracers that went with it. He also had the given sword and shield strapped to his back. The black and blue of the padding with the Royal insignia sewn on the right shoulder in gold between the space in the armor indicated his involvement in the Elites. 1 in 100.
"I like the Elite armor better than the regular." Zelda said as she looked back up at his face, uncovered by the helmet he held in-between his arm and hip on his left side. She looked at the collar that attempted to hid some of his long hair in the back, spilling parts of the blonde locks, as there was too much of it. She then looked one last time at his jaw, his lips, nose, ears, and those mismatched eyes one last time, meanwhile, he did the same.
"You'll write to me when you can?" Zelda asked.
"Of course. Whenever I am able."
"Good." They waited a moment in silence more before they finally broke as Zelda felt a tear slip down her face. They hugged each other as tightly as they could in the constricting armor, silence carrying on around them in the water-laden garden. They stayed there until it was time for them to leave.
"The ceremony is going to start in about fifteen minutes. We should probably go." Link said as he reluctantly pulled his arms from around her.
"What's your plume color?" She asked, referencing the stiff and short feathers that line the tops of the helmets to indicate rank.
"Blue and Gold."
"You're a captain?"
"I am. Second in command."
"I never knew. Congratulations."
"I'm also the head fighter. Best of the best, is what they say. I'm second in command because I'm so young."
"Wouldn't want to make you too cocky, now would we?" Zelda replied, trying to jest a little as they stared at each other again.
"No we wouldn't." Link laughed.
"I guess this is it, Link."
"I guess so."
"I'm going to miss you.
"Me too." He said as he kissed her one last time, tears slipping from under his one blue eye. He hugged her close one last time as he heard her whisper to him: "Don't die."
"I won't because I have a promise to keep."
)()()()()()()()()(
Review please, it does help! Here's all the clarifications:
The prince was born 2 months early.
Link and Zelda are six months apart in age, Zelda 16, Link 15. So young… even though I'm 16, 15 feels like a baby. Zelda's B-day is May 13th, Link's November 13th.
(Which is kinda weird because I made that before I met my boyfriend, and turns out he's six months younger than me, and his birthday is November 13th, mine May 13th… So yeah. And we compared him to TP link and oh my gosh I never knew I would end up dating link. Albeit with brown/green eyes and darker blonde hair. We also started dating in June, which is when this chapter takes place.)
I think that's all I really needed to clear up for now, besides the issues with the map, which will be drawn up later because I scrapped my old one. Until next update, which I promise will be frequent, now that I feel I can actually write and I have motivation to do so. Once again, please ever do kindly review. It means a lot!
-Christina (Bean) 13
7014 words