Insert standard disclaimer here.

The Hero of Louise

Part 3

Louise eased around Kirche and Tabitha, grasping Link by the arm and tugging him towards the door, "Come."

"My dainty Louise?" Wardes called questioningly.

Louise looked over her shoulder and raised her hand in farewell, "My familiar and I have a few things to do. You are well enough to take care of yourself for a few hours right, Wardes?"

"Of course," the magical knight murmured, his expression going distant once more. "I will see you this eve then."

"Louise!" Kirche latched onto Link's other arm. "Darling and I must not be separated so soon after reuniting! Naturally, Tabitha and I will accompany you." She grinned alluringly up at Link and cushioned his arm more firmly into her ample bosom.

Louise's eye twitched and she glared at the redhead from the other side of her familiar. "No, you won't Kirche! Go find Guiche and get a room!"

Kirche gasped, giving the pinkette a shocked look, "Guiche? Why, I never – nor shall I ever – !"

Louise flushed red as she caught onto the implication, "N-n-no! T-th-that's not what I meant!" She protested quickly and followed up by clarifying, "I just meant that you and Tabitha haven't checked into the Temple yet, right?" Louise nodded quickly and glanced over to the bluette for the confirmation that came with Tabitha's slight nod, "So! I just meant that you should have Guiche take you to the front desk so that you'll have a room to sleep in tonight. That's all!"

Kirche looked mollified, "Very well, I take your point Louise. And," Kirche added with a haughty flip of her red hair, "I will forgive your slanderous implication."

Louise glared at her, snarling, "I don't need your forgiveness for anything, Zerbst!"

"Of course not, Louise." Kirche nodded, looking unimpressed. She looked over to the still reading bluette, "Come, Tabitha. The more quickly we get that room for the night, the more quickly I can return to darling's arms!" She laughed and released her hold on Link, leading Tabitha out the door.

Louise harrumphed and snuck a look up at her cloaked familiar to see him shaking his head in bemusement. She pursed her lips and tugged on his arm again.

He glanced down at her, voice laced with amusement, "Where to, little one?"

"Back to the roof," Louise murmured, leaning in close so that Wardes would not overhear.

Link nodded and escorted her out of the room, closing the door firmly behind them. He led the way back up to the rooftop of Goddess's Temple and held the roof door open for her.

Louise stepped out onto the rooftop, the sky bright and sunny, wind tugging at her hair. She settled herself near the door, close to where she'd been that morning. Her familiar sprawled next to her, head cradled in his arms.

Louise smoothed her skirt; looked up at the sunny sky, then back at her green clad familiar, "So?"

"Hmmm?" He cracked open one blue eye to look at her.

Louise huffed irritably, "Where did you go off to while I was looking after Wardes?"

Link grinned, "Oh! Around the marketplace mostly, checking to see if there were any useful looking supplies for sale."

Louise nodded, irritation fading as his infectious grin caused an answering grin to tug at the corners of her mouth, "Did you find anything then?"

"Hmmm… nothing that we need," Link conceded before turning his blues on her beseechingly, "But I did find something interesting and since we have nothing else to do until the ship is ready to set sail, I was hoping that you would come with me."

"To where?" Louise asked, leaning forward in intrigue, "What's this interesting thing?"

Link sat up and beamed at her, "It's a shooting gallery!"

"… a what?" Louise furrowed her brows.

"Hmmm…" Link tipped his head, "It's a range near the edge of the marketplace – they let you shoot arrows for a fee and depending on your performance they'll give you a prize of some sort. First part of the game is inside, shooting at immobile targets. The second part is outside, behind the shop where you shoot from on horseback at immobile targets. The final part is shooting mobile targets from horseback."

Louise gave him a half-lidded stare, "You want me to pay for you to play a shooting game?"

Link shrugged, "It's good practice… and aside from that I checked out some of the prizes – there's a ring in there that I pretty sure is a magical item from my world. I'd like to get a hold of it, find out what it does." He smiled at her, "It could be useful, but I wouldn't know until I hold it."

Louise sighed, "I guess… how much does it cost?"

"Ten new gold per try." Link answered promptly. "It shouldn't take long, the ring isn't exactly top prize."

Louise lowered her head thoughtfully, "Alright… we do have the time, and more than enough funds…" She peered up at him, "Just be careful with your hood. We don't want to cause a panic."

Link nodded, grinning, "Thank you, little one."

Louise huffed and looked away, a small smile tugging at her lips, "Don't call me that."

"Of course."

A short trip to the edges of the marketplace later, Louise and Link entered into Flèche's Shooting Gallery. Louise gazed around the area, eyeing up the few customers practicing on the indoor range. To her, they seemed to be doing fairly well, carefully pulling back their arrows, taking steady aim, and releasing to hit on or near the bulls eye.

Link ignored them, striding across the room to the front counter where a young woman waited with a polite smile. Louise hurried after him.

"Welcome, good sir, good lady." The woman brushed her dark locks from her honey colored eyes as she greeted them. "How may I help you today? Supplies? Practice? Or our game perhaps?"

"Hmm… the game please." Link answered and gave the woman a thoughtful look, "What exactly are the rules?"

"Ah, the rules," the woman nodded with a mischievous quirk of her lips, "they are simple enough. You have to complete all three courses within the specified time limit with at least a score of 1,000 out of 1,500 to win anything. Each course has five targets, the outer circle is worth twenty-five points, the inner circle is worth fifty points, and the bulls eye is worth one hundred points."

"And what are the prizes?" Louise piped in.

"For 1,000 points the prize is one free replenishment of your quiver for the month. For 1,250 points you win one piece of these jewelry," she gestured to case behind the counter where Link was eyeing a golden ring with a red heart decorating it, "and for 1,500 points the prize is a lifetime discount of 25% for anything purchased through our guild and your choice of one of the two previous prizes."

Link looked back at the dark haired woman, "The time limit?"

"Ah," the woman grinned, "No more than four minutes from the time I blow the start whistle for each course."

"That's all?" Louise blurted, "That's not nearly enough time to – "

"I accept those terms," Link cut her off. He glanced down at Louise, patted her hair and smiled, "Ten new gold, right?"

"Yes sir!" the counter woman chirped.

Louise hesitated, then shook her head and pulled out her purse. She counted out the gold and handed it over to the woman. "I hope you know what you're doing, this seems unnecessarily difficult."

Link leaned down, "I'm sure that the final course might take a few tries to get right within the time limit. The rest however, I can do right off."

Louise blinked up at him, nibbled at her lip, and then nodded. "Alright. Uphold the Vallière name!"

He blinked at her, and then grinned, "I shall, little one!"

"If you are ready, the first course is set." The woman gestured at an empty range.

Link nodded and stepped up to the range, taking up his bow and waiting for the whistle.

The woman brought the whistle to her lips as Louise watched alongside her, "Ready? Set! Go!" She blew the whistle sharply.

Immediately, Link drew an arrow, notched it and let it fly. To Louise's pleasure, it hit dead center. He rapidly loosed four more arrows, each finding the bull's eye well before the dark-haired woman called time.

"Alright! 500 points so far! On to the second course, this way!" the woman gestured towards the back door.

Link and Louise followed her outside and around to the left where the stable was located.

"Pick your steed, sir and meet me at the third range down."

Link nodded, as he looked over the horses, all saddled and ready for the range.

"Which one?" Louise asked, also looking over the Gallery's selection of horseflesh.

"Hmmm…" Link tipped his head, and then reached into his pouch.

Louise arched her eyebrows as he pulled out an odd looking musical instrument. "What," she asked drily, "are you going to do with that?"

He grinned, brought the instrument to his lips and played a short, enticing melody. Immediately, the horses perked their ears and whinnied. Only one, however, approached the pair.

Louise blinked, looking over the horse. It was a bay stallion, leanly built for speed.

Link patted the stallion's muzzle, ran his hand down the horse's neck as he stepped around to the saddle, and then quickly mounted the steed. He guided the bay down to the third range and Louise scrambled to keep up.

"Alright!" the woman called as they approached, "Take your place at the starting line and get ready!"

Link nodded and gestured for Louise to stand by the other female as he turned the horse to the starting line.

Louise took her place next to the brunette as she brought the whistle to her lips once more, "Ready? Set! Go!" she blew the whistle sharply again.

Link kicked the horse into action, swiftly notching his bow and letting fly his arrows as the horse raced down the well-trodden path of the game range. As before, each arrow found its way to the bull's eyes of the targets. Louise grinned.

"Another 500 points! Please direct your steed to the seventh range for the final course!"

Louise quickly trailed behind the woman as Link galloped past them to line up at the starting line of the seventh range.

"Ready? Set! Go!" the whistle sounded shrilly across the range.

Louise watched anxiously as Link once more kicked the horse into action. He notched his arrows, taking aim at the moving targets as they zipped by erratically. He loosed more than five arrows, Louise was sure.

"…225 points! Total: 1,225." The woman turned to Louise as Link trotted up. "Care to try again or is a free replenishment enough for today?"

Louise lifted her chin and thrust a handful of ten new gold at the woman, "Again!"

The woman smiled, "Very well." She glanced back at Link, "To the first range, good sir!"

Louise waited as Link dismounted and then fell into step with him as he led the horse back to the Gallery. "Think you'll do better this time?"

He smirked and nodded, "Hmmm… now that I'm familiar with the set up of the range courses, I'll definitely win first place."

"First?" Louise blinked and then looked away to hide her smile as she scolded him, "You said you only needed the ring!"

Link shrugged, "No point in settling when I can do better." He tied the horse to a rail outside the door and then moved to hold the door open for Louise. She entered briskly.

Louise kept to the Gallery's shopkeeper's side again as Link went through all three courses once more. She beamed as the brunette announced Link's final score.

"Total: 1,500!" The woman shook her head ruefully, "Come to the front counter to collect your prizes." She turned away and walked back to the Gallery.

Louise eyed her cloaked familiar as he dismounted from the bay stallion for the final time and led it back to the stables. She eased up alongside him and twisted her hand into the folds of his cloak. "I suppose you're not a braggart then."

Link tipped his head and grinned at her. "Braggart, little one?"

"You did seem overly confident before," Louise answered, gazing away in false disinterest.

He chuckled and patted her hair, "Ahh, I see."

"Anyway, collect your ring so we can go." Louise glanced up at him before quickly turning her gaze away.

Link tipped his head in acknowledgement and escorted her into the Gallery and up to the front counter. He unshouldered his quiver and set it down for the impending refill. "Forty-seven arrows please," he requested, "and the golden ring with the red heart on it."

The shopkeeper nodded, quickly counting out the arrows and handing them over. As Link refilled his quiver, she opened the jewelry case, withdrawing the requested item. The dark-haired woman placed the ring into a small, plain wooden box before handing it over to Louise. The pinkette quietly pocketed the little box in her cloak pocket as her familiar finished up with his quiver.

The brunette then reached beneath the counter and pulled out what seemed to be a little, very dusty, but new looking parcel and withdrew a stack of papers. She flipped through them quickly, pulling out pages at seeming random and sorted those pages together in a packet. She then filled in the paperwork and, without glancing up, began to explain, "This will be sent out to the guild first thing in the morning. I just need you to sign in a few places," she indicated those lines with her pen as she flipped through the packet, "here, here, and here again."

Louise blinked, leaned forward and scanned over the documents. Satisfied, she picked up the pen and signed for herself and Link.

The woman reshuffled through the papers, pulling out a small card and jotted down a few lines on it. Once finished, she handed the card to Louise. "Here you are, my lady."

Louise gingerly took the card, flipped the front towards her and looked it over. The card possessed a horseshoe insignia decorated with the symbols of each of the four elements. Below that it read:

Issued by Ouida Marshall

Of Flèche's Shooting Gallery

On behalf of

The Guild of Emilie

To the Patrons

Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière

And

Link of Ordon

Platinum Patrons – benefits include 25% off all wares,

Including food and lodging at select locales with inn services

Louise raised her red eyes to Ouida's, "How will we know which shops are part of this guild?"

The dark-haired woman smiled, "Just look for a small iron horseshoe with the four elements engraved on it. Most shops will have it nailed near the doorway. Feel free to take a look at ours outside when you leave, it's nailed above the doorframe."

"Very well," Louise agreed, as she cast a sideways glance at her green cloaked familiar, "Are you done?" she asked him.

"Hmmm…" he nodded absently, strapping the quiver back over his shoulder. "Thank you," he nodded to the shopkeeper who smiled back.

As Link turned and led Louise out of the Gallery, she took firm hold of his cloak once more. As they moved off, Louise took a quick glance over her shoulder, spotting the stylized horseshoe above the door. Link maneuvered them quickly and easily through the marketplace, only pausing to duck down and ask, "Where to, little one?"

Louise bit her lip, glancing around the crowded marketplace, "It'll be sunset soon." She sighed, "We should head back to the Goddess's Temple."

"To the roof?" Link asked mildly.

Louise started to nod, thought better of it and instead shook her head. "No, to the restaurant first. We can have them pack a basket for us before we go back to the roof."

"Ah!" Link licked his lips, "More fine fare for me?"

Louise hid her satisfied grin in his cloak, "Yes." She relaxed her grip on his cloak, peering up at him, "By the way, what was that strange instrument you used to summon that horse?"

"Hmmm? Oh, that. It's a Horse Call, I used to use it to summon my Epona by playing her song." He glanced up to the sky, "I wasn't sure that any of the horses would respond to it, if they hadn't I suppose I could have used my power … or perhaps I did," he mused thoughtfully.

"You don't know?" Louise raised her eyebrows.

"Well…" Link glanced down at her, "Epona's song has a magic of its own. It may not have needed the rune's power to work, or maybe it did but only used a little. I didn't notice anything markedly different when I played it either way."

Louise sighed, looking up to see the entrance to the Goddess's Temple. "Never mind," she paused long enough for Link to hold the door open for her, then resumed her previous position, "anyway, where did you come by such a strange thing?"

"Originally, it belonged to Ilia, a childhood friend of mine," Link began as they strode into the restaurant, "she then gave it to a little old lady named Impaz from the Hidden Village. Impaz gave it to me after I helped her, asking me to return it to Ilia. I did that and Ilia gave it back to me – she'd meant to give it to me before…" he trailed off as a waiter rushed up to them.

"Mistress! My most sincere apologizes! Come, come, we have a dining table prepared for you." The waiter, looking harried, gestured to an empty, elegantly set table on the terrace.

Louise blinked, and then straightened, "No need. We will be taking our dinner elsewhere. I require a basket of food and wine, quickly!"

"Yes, yes!" the waiter bowed and swiftly retreated to the kitchens.

"… he was expecting you?" Link gave her a questioning look.

Louise shrugged, "Perhaps another tactic from Wardes. He keeps trying to win my favor."

Link tipped his head, "…yes… about that – "

Louise scowled up at him, hissing quietly, "Not here!"

He stared at her for a long moment, then shrugged and looked back towards the kitchens.

For her part, Louise stood quietly next to her green cloaked familiar. Her thoughts turned over to what she could possibly say about Wardes, about how she wanted to end the engagement, about how she feared that such a choice would invoke the ill will of certain … family members. Louise swallowed and the entire noble upbringing drilled into her by her mother could not stop her from fidgeting unseemingly with Link's cloak.

So lost in thought was she that Louise barely noticed the waiter's return, Link's acceptance of their dinner, and nearly the whole walk up to the roof.

She blinked sharply when Link opened the door to the final stairway leading to the roof of the Goddess's Temple. Louise glanced around, realizing where she was and that she could barely recall getting there. She sighed and shook her head at herself; such inattention to her surroundings would have earned Mother's disapproval and a swift reprimand.

She trudged up the remaining stairs, keeping close to her familiar's side. Now that she was paying attention, the smells wafting from the basket were making her mouth water. As Link opened the roof door, she darted around and outside, settling herself into a firm stance a few feet from the door. She glanced at the sky, already dark and illuminated only by the twin moons and the bright stars. Link, following behind, carried the basket past her and to the center of the roof. He quickly unpacked several candles, lit them, and withdrew their dinner from the basket, laying out all the tasty morsels of their picnic. Louise folded her arms impatiently, suppressing her eagerness.

Finally, after what seemed to her like an eternity, Link glanced over his shoulder at her, "Ready, little one."

Louise quickly sat beside him, claiming her own plate and piling it with food as he poured their wine. She'd managed a few bites before Link started on his own plate. Taking a moment, Louise swallowed down her mouth full before asking, "So, that ring you won," he glanced over at her, stopping in mid-chew, "do you want it now? To see what it does?" Louise kept her eyes on her plate, feigning nonchalance as she sipped at her wine. She wanted to keep the topic off Wardes for as long as possible.

Link shrugged, chewing again.

Louise's eye twitched at his indifference. Wasn't he curious too? Wasn't he the one that dragged her out to the Gallery so that he could win the ring? She shoved another bite into her mouth, fuming quietly as she chewed.

Several minutes passed, Link chewing his way through his dinner at a leisurely rate while Louise ate evermore quickly in her mounting aggravation. As her temper reached its end, she forcefully set down her dinner and utensils, while taking a deep and steadying breath to relax herself. Exhaling, she gritted out, "Aren't you the least bit curious? Didn't you want to get the ring just to find out what it does?"

Link paused, and then answered around his mouth full of food, "I'm eating." He swallowed and wolfed down another bite.

Louise grimaced in distaste at his lack of manners before pushing on, "The food isn't going anywhere," she withdrew the box from her cloak pocket, "here." She held it out to him.

Link looked between her, the box, and his plate before exhaling noisily through his nose. He forcibly swallowed down the food in his mouth and set his plate down, snatching up his cup and taking a quick gulp of wine. "Fine." He took the box from Louise's outstretched hand and opened it. Under her pressing gaze, Link picked up the ring, tipped his head, and then placed it on his right hand's forefinger. That done, he picked up his plate again and resumed eating.

Louise's jaw dropped, her face going red as she struggled to speak. After mouthing silently for a moment, she pulled herself together enough to sputter semi-coherently, "A-a-aren't y-you g-going to t-tell me wh-what it does?"

Link grinned and took another gulp of wine before shoveling down more food.

Louise clenched her fists and ground her teeth as she realized he was deliberately teasing her. She pressed her fists onto her lap as she glared at her plate, furiously thinking of a way to get him to talk. Perhaps offering him something that he liked … Louise chewed at her lip before her red eyes lit up as she struck upon an idea.

"Big Brother," she cooed sweetly, carefully easing into the happy, childish mannerisms that she once used to wheedle Cattleya. Louise tugged at his cloak, wrapping it around herself, bringing up a side of it to clench between her teeth, as she turned big, bright red eyes on her familiar. She was quite pleased to see that Link had frozen, his own blue eyes wide as he stared back at her. Looking as small and cute as possible, Louise innocently blinked up at him, "Big Brother, won't you please tell your sweet little sister? Big Brother's always so good to her, and she cares for him so!" She cuddled up to him, smiling sweetly.

Link worked his jaw, silently mouthing words before squeaking. He jerked, coughed into his fist, then cleared his throat, "Unnnn…"

Louise beamed.

"Y-yeah," he nodded slowly, tearing his blue eyes way from her to study his hands, "it's a healing ring."

Louise made a cute mewling noise of interest, drawing his attention back to her. She tipped her head cutely, releasing his cloak as she pressed her forefinger to her chin. "What does Big Brother mean?" she managed to make her eyes even wider and absolutely oozed adorableness.

"… Big Bro – er – I mean that if I'm injured, this ring's power will begin to gradually heal my injuries over time as long as I keep moving. It deactivates when I'm still, that is, in a resting state, to allow my natural healing process to take over."

"Oh…" Louise breathed. That sounded quite amazing to her, she'd never heard of any artifact that could do such a thing.

Link awkwardly patted her hair, grinning shakily.

Louise smothered her own grin by burying her face into his shirt.

"… anyway," Link began more steadily after a few moments, "I wanted to talk to you about Viscount Wardes."

Louise nodded after a moment, not looking up.

"Right, then. What exactly happened between you two yesterday night while I was sleeping?" Link pulled her closer and began to pet her hair.

Louise relaxed, muttering, "He said things like 'You'll be a great mage one day', comparing me to the Founder. He brought up the fact that you're a Windalfr…" she trailed off for a moment before admitting, "he asked me to marry him after this mission."

Link paused in his petting to tap his fingers thoughtfully, "Is that what cause you to spill wine all over me?"

Louise blushed and shook her head, "N-no… he, um, mistook my suggestion to sleep for … something else."

Her familiar was silent for a long moment, and then he grasped her by the shoulders, pulling her away. Louise tensed, looking up at his serious expression, tinted with suppressed anger. He spoke softly in a tightly controlled voice, "Little one, the things that Wardes said before our match discomforted me – combined with this, I must say to you that I am suspicious of him."

Louise blinked, "W-what? Of the Viscount?" she floundered at that thought. He was Captain of the Griffin Knights and had served their Majesties loyally all his life – what was there to be suspicious of?

Link opened his mouth to answer before snapping his jaw shut, looking up sharply as the moonlight above them seemed to vanish.

Louise followed his gaze. Looming over them, blocking out the moonlight appeared to be a misshapen giant. She inhaled sharply as it came nearer, revealing itself to be a stone golem – strangely its shoulders were, rather than rounded, pointed and extended twice the height of the golem's head. And, perched on its shoulder, the person controlling the golem –

"Fouquet!" Louise shouted pointing accusingly at the escaped thief.

The green-haired woman above them, sitting on the golem's bizarrely formed shoulder, cheerfully called back, "Oh, it is indeed such an honor to be remembered by you!"

The sword on Link's shoulder finally took interest in its surrounds enough to wiggle out of its scabbard far enough to ask, "Shouldn't you be rotting in prison?"

Fouquet leaned down a bit and shouted back, "Someone possessed a most generous and kind heart. They realized that a beauty such as myself should be striving to work towards the welfare of the world and so they helped me to escape." Fouquet turned slightly nodding to her left.

Louise squinted, red eyes straining to see in the darkness, but she was able to make out in the shadows that there was a masked figure dressed in the black cape of nobility standing next to the escaped convict. Was that person the one who helped her escape? While the mysterious noble obviously supported Fouquet's actions, he or she remained silent, contributing nothing to their banter.

"…So what business do you have here, Miss Thief? Looking for revenge for your well-deserved punishment perhaps?" Link mocked and brandished his sword with his left hand and his shield with his right.

"I'm here to thank you for the long vacation you gave me – in other words, I'm simply here to show you my appreciation! Hahaha!" Fouquet howled in laughter as the huge golem pulverized the edge of the rooftop with one hit.

Link rapidly sheathed Derf and grabbed Louise, quickly leaping away and back towards the door. He set her down and gave her a firm shove towards the door as he placed himself between her and their attackers. "Go! Find your classmates and get to a safe location. I'll take care of this and meet up with you." He awkwardly pulled out and put on his dirty Roc's Cape, his green cloak's hood falling down in his struggle.

Louise opened her mouth to protest, hesitated, then turned and dashed through the door and raced down the stairs. She made it all the way down to the first floor before finding her traveling companions engaged in combat against a slew of soldiers, battling in and out of the restaurant and front foyer.

She drew her wand, noting that the other nobles and guests were hiding under the front counter and tables and shaking in fear. The fat innkeeper, distressed by the damage caused by the fighting, called out to the soldiers, "What are you doing to my establishment?" But one of the attacking soldier's arrows slammed into his shoulder, leaving him to slump, stunned, on the ground.

Louise took cover behind a large potted tree and began casting random spells, each exploding violently – most throwing the soldiers off their feet and causing minor injuries, a few literally blowing them apart. She gagged as the foyer was showered in blood and chucks of flesh; the pained screams of the soldiers ring in her ears. Louise swallowed down the vomit rising in her throat and steadied herself against her cover. As she blinked back tears, wishing for her familiar, a large hand grabbed her by the arm pulling her to the floor.

Louise stared wide-eyed as Wardes pressed a finger to his lips and nodded towards the restaurant. He released her and carefully darted across the foyer to duck behind an arrow-ridden desk. He glanced around then gestured for her to follow. Heart pounding, Louise swiftly raced across the foyer to Wardes, flinging herself behind the desk.

"Louise," Wardes whispered seriously, "we must get to the back door, from there we're going to the harbor."

"What?" Louise whispered back, voice hoarse, "what about the others?"

"They have agreed to take care of the soldiers, giving us the cover we need to go ahead and complete Her Majesty's mission." He explained quickly before moving towards the back of the hotel as a volley of fire blasted through the foyer behind them.

Louise glanced nervously over her shoulder before trailing after Wardes.

Wardes was crouched close to the rear exit, ear pressed to the door as he listened for any indication of further opposition waiting outside. After a moment, he murmured over his shoulder to her, "There doesn't appear to be anyone."

Opening the door, the pair dashed into the night streets of La Rochelle, Wardes leading the way.

"Come, my Louise, the docks are this way."

Louise bit her lip as she ran towards the harbor, the road illuminated by the bright moons above. She was beginning to recall that Link had misgivings about Wardes, and though she didn't understand it, she worried that perhaps going alone with the magical knight was a poor decision. Not, she reflected, that there was much choice in it at the moment. Shaking her head, she did her best to keep up as Wardes ran towards the seemingly endless staircase of a sturdily built building, and began walking up them.

After climbing the long flight of stairs, they arrived on top of a small hill. Seeing a huge tree, with branches as thick around as two of Fouquet's golems branching out in every direction brought a wave of relief to Louise. She peered through the branches to see a ship still docked above. She relaxed slightly. If they could board and hold out for the eclipse then certainly Link would have made his way back to her by then.

Wardes ran into the tree's hollowed out roots, Louise tagging close behind. They scaled the wooden stairs inside, making their way up the hollow tree, and as they reached a rest stop midway to their destination, Louise heard footsteps behind her. She turned in time to see a shadow flying towards her and landing mere inches away. Inhaling sharply, she'd no time to react as the man seized her by the arm, and with a sharp jerk, swept her off her feet and into his arms, bridal style. Louise screamed as the man leapt away in a smooth, acrobatic maneuver. This close to him, she realized it was the same masked man that had been aiding Fouquet.

The masked man grunted and jerked abruptly as he was struck from behind by a wind spell. He dropped her in favor of latching onto a column for support and Louise plummeted to the ground.

In an instant, Wardes had jumped off from the platform, and dove towards Louise like a grebe. He caught her, bridal style, and floated in the air while carrying her. With a bit of elegant maneuvering, Wardes flew back to the platform and deposited the pinkette on the floor before drawing his sword-wand as he turned to face their assailant.

The masked man whirled around, jumped on the platform, and pulled out a black staff from his waist as he faced off against the Griffin Knight Captain.

Louise watched, shakily standing up, as Wardes wasted no time, waving his sword-wand into a spell as his masked opponent chanted a spell of his own. Wardes was the quicker of the two, his wind spell forming an air hammer, and solidified block of air struck the other man, knocking him off the platform and plummeting below.

Wardes turned to her, nodding lightly as he touched the brim of his hat, "Please, have confidence, my Louise, that I am just as capable of protecting you as your Windalfr." He smiled, "Come my dainty Louise, it is time to go."

Louise nodded and started after him as he turned away to resume climbing the stairs. She failed to notice when he paused, glancing over his shoulder with a disturbed look. Wardes, she decided as her breathing calmed, may be a strange and persistent suitor, but he couldn't be the suspicious figure that Link seemed to think he was. Likely, her familiar's over protectiveness was clouding his judgment.

Beyond the last flight of stairs was a branch to which a good-sized ship was docked. Louise eyed it up; it was merely yacht-sized and sported side wings standard for wind ships, most likely a small merchant vessel. Numerous ropes dangled from the sides of the wind ship – each anchored to the side branches that splintered off from the main docking branch, which extended from where she and Wardes stood, all the way to the wind ship's dock.

Louise followed Wardes up the branch and stepped on board of the ship, right behind him. A sailor, who looked as though he'd just been sleeping on the deck blinked up at them. "Hey you! What are you doing?"

"Where's the captain?" Wardes asked curtly. Louise peered around him and at the sailor.

"He's sleeping. Come back in the morning." The man replied, rude in his drunkenness, and took a long swing from his bottle of rum.

Wardes' face darkened as he leveled a cold glare at the drunkard and pulled his staff out. "Do you really want a noble such as I to repeat what I just told you?"

"A n-noble!" The sailor stuttered fearfully, as he immediately scrabbled to his feet and ran for the captain's quarters.

The minutes stretched as Louise waited quietly with Wardes and finally, the sailor reappeared, trailed by an older man – possibly in his fifties – sporting a sleepy look with his worn captain's hat. The captain passed by the sailor, approaching them directly and spoke in a tone gruff with sleep, "What do you want?" He looked at Wardes and then Louise suspiciously.

"Leader of Her Majesty's Mage Guard, Captain Wardes." Wardes formally introduced himself, pointedly directing attention away from Louise.

The captain's eyes bulged, and Louise stifled a tired, amused grin as he switched to a more formal address upon learning that Wardes was a high ranked warrior and noble of Tristain. "Oh, uh... then, what, uh... how may we serve you, my lord?"

"Take us to Albion. Depart now." Wardes ordered.

Louise jerked her gaze at him, startled. If they departed now the others would be left behind… she bit her lip, well Tabitha had a dragon didn't she? And Link was quite resourceful…

The captain immediately protested, "Madness!"

"This is upon Her Majesty's orders. Do you mean to tell me that you are going against the Royal Court of Tristain?" Wardes countered, voice dropping with a dangerous edge.

"I don't know what you're going to Albion for, but we can't depart until morning!" the captain attempted to reason, holding his hands up in surrender.

Wardes tipped his hat up, raising an inquisitive eyebrow, "Why?"

"Albion's the closest to Tristain in the morning!" he explained hurriedly, "We don't have enough wind stones to get there from here right now." He paused, licking his lips before continuing, "Your Excellency, this ship only has enough wind stones in store to travel the shortest distance to Albion. If we'd had more, we could've gone earlier. But for now, we cannot depart. We'd plunge out of the sky about halfway there."

Wardes' lips curved into a half-smile as he counter offered, "Then I'll make up for however much power you lack in your wind stones. I'm a square wind mage."

The captain looked back at his sailors, who watched them expectantly; ready to follow whatever orders he gave in the matter. The captain smiled grimly, then turned to Wardes and nodded. "Then that's fine. You'll both have to pay for passage, though."

"What's the cargo?" the magic knight asked mildly, looking around the deck.

"Sulfur." Came the prompt reply, the captain's brow furrowing as he studied Wardes, "Right now, it's worth its weight in gold. The nobles of Albion have increased the price – they are desperate for security in these troubled times. In order to have that security, gunpowder and the fire elements are a necessity, as I'm sure my lord knows."

Wardes nodded, "I do. Captain, I'll purchase your entire cargo at that price."

A devious smile tugging at his lips, the captain nodded in agreement – to Louise he seemed quite pleased to have sold his cargo so quickly and with such little bargaining. The deal between them done, the captain turned to his awaiting crew and began barking out orders rapidly, "Untie the anchors! Prepare the sails! Depart from port!"

The crew sprang into action, expertly untying the ropes from their branches, securing the anchor ropes on each side of the ship, and released sails. Louise heard one man complaining about the early departure under his breath as he passed and from the looks of the other men, she suspected they felt much the same – even if they were not all as vocal. With the ropes released from the branches, the wind ship abruptly sank down before lifting again, floating with the power of the wind stones stored deep within the hull.

"When we will arrive at Albion?" Wardes asked. Louise watched as the sailors prepped for sail anxiously and moved to the portside rail.

"We should arrive at Scarborough Port at noon tomorrow." The captain replied with a backwards glance at the Griffon Knight.

Louise peered down at the ground below from the port side, the harbor could still be seen between the branches of the huge docking tree. A short distance away, the city of La Rochelle's lights faded too quickly into the darkness of the night. Louise shifted uncomfortably at the thought that somewhere in those vanished lights, Link was still battling Fouquet. She closed her eyes and swallowed down bile as she abruptly recalled the scattered pieces of the soldiers from the inn. The wind tugged at her pink locks as the wind ship began to pick up speed – quickly reaching its top traveling speed.

Wardes approached her, and laid his hand upon her shoulder, "According to the captain, the Albion Royal Army near Newcastle has been completely surrounded by the rebel force: the Reconquista. Currently the royals are engaged in fighting an uphill battle against their enemies – there is no telling how long they will be able to hold out."

Louise, heart pounding with fright, asked, "What about Prince Wales?"

Wardes shook his head. "I'm not sure. From what I understand, he should still be alive…"

"Wait..." Louise's brow furrowed, "wasn't the harbor completely taken over by the rebels?"

"Yes." The Griffin Knight nodded.

"Then how can we contact the Royal Family?" Louise wondered, worry over coming her fear.

"We'll just have to fight our way out. It takes only a day to travel on horseback from Scarborough to Newcastle." Wardes replied, as if fighting their way through a battlefield was a small hindrance.

"Fighting our way past the rebels?" Louise asked, voice incredulous. He couldn't honestly think the two of them could do that… and she personally wasn't in a hurry to continue to blow up people like she'd done at the Goddess's Temple.

"Right." Wardes confirmed, "That's the only choice we have. They can't really openly attack the Tristain nobility, I think." Louise exhaled in relief, relaxing slightly as she heard that, "We'll have to find an opportunity to get through their siege and run straight for Newcastle. All we'll have to worry about at that point is riding in the dark."

Louise, still feeling a bit of trepidation, anxiously nodded, and asked, "Speaking of which, Wardes, where's your griffin?"

Wardes smiled and leaned around her, out the portside, and whistled. Directly from beneath the ship came the sound of the griffin's wings. The winged beast landed on the deck, frightening some of the sailors with its unexpected appearance.

Louise smiled wanly; at least riding griffin back would shorten their journey from a day's ride. Maybe she could even make it back to Scarborough before Link caught up with her. Then she wouldn't have to worry about him running into the army at least – she could definitely see her familiar trying to take it on in combat. The stupid dog, she mused warmly.

Louise rubbed at her eyes tiredly, and then glanced up at Wardes, "Is there somewhere that I can sleep?"

Wardes nodded, and sat down on the deck, leaning back against the portside rail. He gestured for her to sit with him, "This is a cargo ship, they haven't quarters suitable for guests. For tonight, my dainty Louise, rest with me. I shall keep you safe."

Louise pursed her lips, wary of the offer. But her eyes refused to stay open, continuously dropping. She rubbed at them again and peered around deck. With all of the sailors on board working around them, surely she didn't have to fear Wardes doing something untoward. Relenting, Louise carefully eased down next to the Griffin Knight and gingerly laid her head against his shoulder. Not as good a pillow as her wolf, nevertheless Louise drifted off to sleep quickly.

When morning came, Louise awoke to the sailors' noises and the blinding light of the rising sun. She blinked blearily at the blue sky in front of her, rubbed her eyes and slowly sat upright, away from Wardes. She sat there for a few moments, blinking slowly, adjusting to full wakefulness before standing up and stretching. She ran her fingers through her pink locks, as she looked down the portside of the ship, where she could see the thick morning clouds as the ship sailed right above them.

"Albion ho!" the lookout bellowed from above.

Next to her, Wardes stood, adjusted his attire and muttered politely as he excused himself. The magical knight then made his way to the captain.

Louise, barely sparing him a glance, looked up towards the sky. From between the clouds above she could see dark land. The mass continued to grow larger as the cargo ship sailed ever closer. Mountains carved the island's landscape, and rivers flowed down from between them.

The lookout yelled again, "Ship approaching starboard side!"

The pink-haired noble looked towards the indicated direction. A ship was, as the lookout had said, approaching, and it was many measures larger than the small cargo ship that she was on. A high number of large cannons jutted out of holes on other ship's portside – it was clearly a heavily armed vessel.

Louise frowned, muttering under her breath, "This isn't good. Could it be the rebels? ... or is it the Royalists?" Feeling anxious again, she looked for Wardes, spotting him behind the wheel, where he and the captain were also looking at where the lookout was pointing. She abandoned her place and quickly made her way to his side. Louise stood next to Wardes, sorely wishing that Link were with her.

The sky vessel, like so many others of its kind, was painted black to indicate its status as a warship. It sailed closer, each of its twenty or so portside cannons aimed at the smaller cargo ship.

"Albionian nobility? Signal to them! Find out if they are a cargo ship as well." The captain called up to the lookout as he signaled for the other man to open communications with the other vessel.

The lookout hoisted the signal flags, but as the minutes stretched, the black ship offered no response.

The first mate dashed up to the three, his face pale, and reported to the captain, "That ship doesn't have any nationality flags!"

"Then... are they pirates?" The captain looked back up the larger ship, his eyes wide and face paling to match the first mate's.

The first mate nodded furiously, "It must be! I heard they got really active after the rebellion began..."

"Run! Full speed!" The captain barked, clearly wanting to run from the other wind ship as quickly as possible, but even Louise realized that they were too late. The black ship maneuvered to sail parallel to them and fired a shot directly ahead of them.

BANG!

The cannonball sailed past the bow of the cargo ship and disappeared into the clouds. The black ship's mast then hoisted a four-color signal.

"They're ordering us to stop, captain." The lookout called down, voice cracking with fear.

The captain winced and looked to Wardes for help.

"All of my magic is being used on keeping the ship afloat and moving. We have no choice – we must surrender and comply with their demands." Wardes answered calmly. Louise bit down on her lip; if Wardes could be so calm about this then perhaps she was worrying too much…

The captain quietly muttered, "There goes my fortune, Brimir damn them," and gave the order. "Men! Wrap sails. Stop the ship."

"We're pirates! Do not resist!" A man onboard the black ship yelled to them through a horn. On the black ship's portside deck, her crew lined up with bows and rifles. They aimed and shot hooked lines, grabbing onto the cargo ship's starboard side deck. More heavily muscled pirates, about ten of them wielding axes and curved sabers, slid down the ropes and onto the ship's deck.

Wardes, who perhaps could tell that Louise was feeling distressed, moved closer to her and put his hand on her shoulder, whispering "They're not just armed barbarians, sweet Louise. They have a lot of cannons pointed at us. If you want to survive on the battlefield, you've got to accurately measure their strength and yours. They might even have mages on their side."

He was, Louise decided, very bad at comforting people. But his words were true and she lowered her head in acceptance, in spite of her unease. She wanted to be a respected mage, and that meant sometimes facing combat like the night before – even, she reflected, feeling queasy, killing other soldiers. It also meant that she would have to learn how to pick her battles.

Wardes' griffin, which was sitting at the front of the deck, flared his wings in fear and growled menacingly at the pirates as they approached him. Louise watched as one pirate tossed a pouch at the griffin's feet and, with a murmur and gesture, he was then engulfed in blue-white smoke, and the griffin collapsed onto the deck, fast asleep.

"A sleeping spell..." Wardes murmured, "So it seems they do have mages."

One of the pirates, with a patch covering his left eye, was dressed quite exquisitely. He wore a shirt that looked like it used to be white, but was dirtied to nearly black from sweat, dirt, and oil. Louise could see his strong and well-tanned chest muscles in the shirt's openings, and her lips turned down – Link could show him how to do it better. This man seemed to be the pirates' leader.

"Where's the captain?" He demanded in a rough tone, looking around him.

"Here." The captain, shaking but still trying to keep his composure, raised his hand.

The pirate leader walked over to him in long strides, took out his saber and leveled it at the captain's face. "What's this ship's name and what cargo does it carry?"

Resignedly the captain answered, "Tristain's Marie Galante. The cargo is sulfur."

A gasp came from the pirates. The leader sniggered, picking up the captain's hat and putting it on his head. "I'm buying everything on this ship then... with the price being your lives!"

As the captain shook in shame, the leader finally noticed Louise and Wardes standing nearby.

"Oho, we have noble guests!" The leader approached Louise, disregarding Wardes entirely, and raised her chin with his hand. "We have quite a dainty beauty here. Would you like to be our dishwasher, mistress?"

The surrounding pirates laughed, low and rough. Louise, her previous fear displaced by anger, slapped his hand, and glared at him, "Get off me, you low-life!"

"Oh no, she called us low-lives! I'm so scared now!" The leader mocked cradling his cheeks in his hands, and his men laughed loudly. "Alright, boys, take them all away. We can get a helluvah lotta of ransom for this!"

It seemed to Louise like the Marie Galante's crew had helped to take over the ship as the crewmen helped the pirates carry up the cargo and transport it over to the black ship. The leader had taken her wand and Wardes' sword-wand, allowing them to be taken prisoner unrestrained. After all, without their wands, mages were mostly harmless. But Louise felt that shouldn't apply to herself or Wardes. They were escorted over to the black ship and down into its hold where they were locked in with the cargo.

Taking in her surroundings Louise could see wine barrels, cereal sacks and gunpowder casks haphazardly thrown around. Heavy cannonballs were piled up in the corner of the room. The food stores reminded her that she hadn't eaten since dinner last night, and she hadn't even finished half of that. She lowered her head in embarrassment as her stomach protested its emptiness loudly.

Unlike herself, content to merely look from where she stood, Wardes explored the cargo with a great interest.

Louise daintily took a set on a nearby crate, clasping her hands together on her lap. After looking around a bit more and listening to Wardes' shuffling around, Louise dropped her gaze to her clasped hands. She wondered if the others were okay. Tabitha, she knew, had been in such situations before to have already earned the rank of Chevalier before Fouquet's capture. Perhaps even that fop, Guiche was okay, after all he was the son of a well-respected General. And Kirche … it was difficult to believe that those soldiers could have extinguished that one's fire. Certainly, Louise decided, Tabitha would not have allowed it. She pursed her lips. And Link…

Her thoughts were interrupted by the door opening as a fat man with a plate of soup entered. "Food." He grunted keeping a firm hold on the plate as his eyes squinted at her and then searched the hold for Wardes. Thankfully, the magic knight stepped out from between some boxes of cargo and went to stand by Louise. The fat man nodded at them, "Only after you have answered a few questions, of course."

Louise, irritated, stood up from her makeshift seat, "Ask."

The large pirate looked down at her, "What business do you have in Albion?"

"Travelling." Louise answered with a decisive voice, putting her hands firmly on her waist.

"Why are you, a Tristain noble, traveling to Albion?" he pressed, "Why are you touring in a war-torn country?"

"I do not have to tell you anything about my personal affairs." Louise retorted, pushing down her unease with anger.

"Still pretending to be tough, despite being scared?" The heavy pirate set down the plate of food as he began laughing.

Louise turned her face away reddening with anger. She grabbed the abandoned plate with soup and water to throw at him, but...

Wardes took it from her.

"Hey!" She protested, glaring at him as the still laughing pirate left the hold, locking the door behind him.

"It's not healthy to stay hungry." He tisked at her.

Louise grudgingly took the plate of soup with a pout, flushing red again as her stomach rumbled once more.

She took her makeshift seat on the crate again, setting the plate on her lap. Quietly, Louise ate the rice soup and sipped at the water until nearly half of it was gone. It wasn't very filling, but she had to leave some for Wardes.

Louise picked up the plate of soup and water, standing and carrying it over to Wardes. The magic knight nodded his head slightly, taking the plate from her. He set it on a nearby crate and stood there, dining from his awkward makeshift table.

Louise smoothed out her clothes and resumed sitting on the crate.

When he finished up the remainder of their meal, Wardes took a seat on the crate next to her and leaned onto the wall with a tired expression on his face.

At that time, the door opened again. This time it was a thin pirate standing before them. The pirate looked at the noble pair with piercing eyes and asked, "Good evening, are you the aristocrats going to Albion?"

Louise did not answer, eyeing him disdainfully. Wardes did not stir from his slouch.

The scrawny pirate snorted, "Hmph, judging from your silence it's true. Although we do not appear like we respect nobles, it is thanks to the aristocrats that our business is going well."

Louise blinked at that, furrowing her brows in confusion, "But, isn't this a warship of rebels?"

"No, no, we are employed," he explained, "We are involved in a fifty-fifty relationship with both sides. Thus we are in legitimate relation to both factions. No rebels here, you see. So what is it? Are you nobles? If it is true, then you will be allowed to go free in the closest port."

Unimpressed by his reasoning, and moved to anger by his free admission of associating with rebels against nobility, Louise glared at the pirate, "How dare you have anything to do with those dirty rebels? Do not disrespect Albion nobles! I myself am from one of the noble families. Albion is still a kingdom, and the royal family is still a legitimate government in Albion. Because I'm a noble traveling to Albion on behalf of Tristain, I am, in other words, an ambassador. Therefore, I demand an ambassador's treatment from you."

"I'll just go and report that to the Boss then." The scrawny pirate left laughing.

Louise scowled at his retreating back, wishing that the empty dishes had been close enough for her to through at him. She cast a short, sideways glare a Wardes for not helping – not that he noticed; too busy staring blankly off into space. Fuming, she crossed her arms and glared at the door, as it was locked shut.

Louise wasn't sure how long she sat there glaring at the door but eventually the door opened again, and it was the same thin pirate from before. He looked them over before shortly announcing, "The Boss calls."

The aisle passed up the narrow stairs and took the three to a splendid room built on the upper deck.

The Boss... apparently, the captain of the pirates – Louise wondered what he looked like, what sort of person he was. She frowned and shook her head, she'd find out soon enough.

The skinny pirate opened the door, and upon entering, Louise immediately noticed another pirate, sitting at a gorgeously crafted dinner table, playing with a cane adorned with a large crystal on top. The pirate captain was obviously a mage himself. Glancing around, Louise inwardly conceded that the Boss's room was far from what she'd expected – it was more suited to nobility. However, Louise refused to allow her surprise to show or to sway her. She held onto her anger, pushing away any other feelings that might distract her.

The Boss, from the moment she'd set foot in the room, tracked her movements with an intense gaze from where he sat. The skinny pirate poked her sharply from behind, "Hey, you! Yer standing in front of the Boss. Show some respect and greet 'im properly!"

However, Louise pursed her lips and stood firm, glaring at the Boss as he smiled at her.

"Ah, I'd expected a child when I chose to met with you – but instead I've found a strong willed woman. I like that." The pirate boss remarked cheerfully.

"I demand the treatment of a royal ambassador." Louise, not paying attention to the Boss' words at all, repeated her earlier demand.

"An ambassador? And what would an ambassador be doing here in the midst of a civil war? Surely the other countries are waiting to see who is the victor before attempting to continue relations with Albion." The Boss pressed, as he ignored Louise's demand. He paused and then eyed her questioningly, "… and did you say royal?"

"Yes, I did." Louise confirmed, lifting her chin defiantly, refusing to acknowledge his other questions.

"Are you going to meet with the remainder of the royal family?" he tilted his head as he noted with a wane smile, "They'll be gone tomorrow."

"I won't tell you." Louise sniffed haughtily. She refused to look at Wardes, why wasn't he saying anything?

The Boss grinned, tone joyful, "Are you willing to betray the nobles, my lady? If not, I may not be able to guarantee your safety – even for a considerable fee, mage or no."

"I'd rather die." Louise stated flatly, staring at him with a half-lidded gaze that she hoped did not betray her fear. Her body was already doing that with its incessant trembling, she thought sourly as she grit her teeth.

"I'll ask you again." The pirate captain repeated sharply, "Are you willing to betray the nobles?"

Louise looked straight ahead. She crossed her arms, and put out her chest, "You keep talking nonsense – I have already given you my answer. If it is your wish to bark like some slovenly mongrel, direct it else where." Really, it was as polite as she could be.

The Boss gave her a long, wide-eyed look before bursting into laughter. "Oh my, my stomach hurts!" gasped the Boss as he stood up still laughing loudly.

Louise watched him, confusion overcoming her fear and anger, puzzled by the sudden change of atmosphere and glanced sideways at Wardes to see if he understood this better than she did. The magical knight caught her look and shook his head, apparently just as puzzled.

"Oh, I am sorry. As a noble I should properly introduce myself as well." The pirate captain, who until that moment had been laughing loudly, abruptly sobered and stood up straight.

He removed his black curly hair from his head. Louise raised her eyebrows in disbelief at the sight of the wig. He also took off the black eye patch, and then removed his fake beard. Before her was standing a young person with blond hair and an unmarked, clean-shaven face.

"I am the General of the Albion Royal Air Force and also the commander of our country's fleet. Though to tell you the truth this warship, the "Eagle", is the only ship in our fleet – which is quite a powerless fleet. Oh dear, even commoners from the street could easily defeat it." The young person bowed while introducing himself. "I am the prince of the Albion Kingdom, Wales Tudor."

Louise's mouth opened wide and her equally wide red eyes stared in disbelief at the surprising appearance of the young prince of Albion. Next to her, Wardes watched the prince with great interest.

Wales smiled with a charming smile and moved a chair, gesturing for Louise to sit. "Welcome to Albion, Ambassador. Now, let's talk about your message."

However, Louise was still speechless. She stood there dumbfounded, unable to move, thought processes completely stalled.

"Why do I dress up as a pirate?" the prince asked rhetorically, "To hide myself? No, the rich rebels sent a lot of support to the rebellion, and it is a basic war tactic to cut enemy's supply line. It was necessary so I had to dress myself like a dirty pirate." Wales admitted laughingly. "No, it was really rude to treat an ambassador like that. But you have to admit you don't look much like a royal messenger. And I never thought about support from other country's nobles. Yet, still, I should apologize – and I do. Forgive me, Ambassador."

Even after Wales' words, Louise's mouth still kept opening and closing without uttering a single sound. She hadn't been mentally prepared to meet the prince so suddenly.

"We brought a secret letter from Her Highness Princess Henrietta." Wardes spoke up on her behalf, finally participating in the conversation, while gracefully bowing.

"Oh, from Her Highness. And you are?" Wales leaned forward.

"Captain of Tristain's Griffin Knights, Viscount Jean-Jacques Francis de Wardes." After that, Wardes introduced Louise to Wales. "And this is the ambassador sent by Her Highness from the Vallière family, Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière, Your Highness."

"Indeed! And you are such a splendid noble, Miss Vallière. And here I only have my ten bodyguards to greet you ceremonially – it's such a miserable greeting. Well then, do you still have the secret letter?" Wales asked, eyes peering intently at Louise.

Louise, panicking, took out Henrietta's letter from her clothes. However, she stopped before giving it to Wales. After a few moments of hesitation she opened her mouth. "B-but..."

"What?" Wales tilted his head, looking vaguely impatient.

"Excuse me, but are you really the prince?" Louise asked, wanting confirmation to avoid betraying her princess' trust.

Wales laughed, "Oh dear, you don't believe me even when I showed you my true face. I am Wales. And I really am a prince. I will show you further evidence then." Wales continued after noticing the water ruby ring shining on Louise's finger as she grasped the letter carefully away from him. "Here, allow me to hold that ring for a moment."

At her hesitant nod, Louise's hand was taken and the ring that shone on her finger was removed. The prince brought it close to his ruby ring. The two rings reacted to each other, shining with a bright light.

"This ring belongs to the Albion royal family, the ruby of the Wind, while that one belongs to Henrietta from Tristain royal family and is the ruby of the Water. Am I right?" Wales asked absently.

Louise nodded.

"Water and the wind make the rainbow." He explained, watching the light, "A rainbow, which is formed between royal families."

"True, I am sorry for my rudeness." Louise apologized formally as she dutifully handed Wales the letter and bowed.

After looking at the letter lovingly, Wales kissed the signature. Then, the seal was carefully removed, the paper inside was taken out, and Wales began to read. The minutes stretched as he kept on reading it with serious expression. "Is the princess marrying? The beautiful Henrietta. My beloved... cousin."

Viscount Wardes bowed his head silently, with an affirmative expression.

Wales dropped the glance to the letter again and smiled when he read the last line. "Understood. The princess is informing me with this that she wants you to return this letter. And more importantly, the princess also hopes that I will return a letter from her. Seems like it."

Louise beamed with pleasure.

"However, it's not in my hands right now. It's in the castle of Newcastle. I didn't want to bring the princess' letter onto this pirate ship." Wales said laughingly. "So, even though it's a hassle, please come with me to Newcastle."

The warship Eagle took Louise and Wardes to the ragged coastline of Albion. They had been traveling for a mere three hours and could already see the cape, and a large castle looming on its very edge. Wales had explained to Louise, who was standing with him on the front deck, that it was the fortress of Newcastle. However, the Eagle did not head straight to the city, but instead sailed down the coast.

"Why are we going downwards?" the pinkette asked, looking up at the prince.

Wales pointed at the sky behind the castle where a huge ship was floating. However, it apparently could not see their ship, which was hiding on the other side of the cloud. "The warship of the rebels." He answered wryly.

Louise eyed the ship; it was twice as long as the Eagle with an incredible number of sails, and it was aiming for Newcastle port. With no warning it opened fire aiming at the castle, and she jumped slightly at the unexpectedness of it. The cannonball crashed into the wall and Louise could see a small fire from where she stood on deck. The shockwave from the impact was so powerful it could be even felt on the deck of the Eagle. Louise bit her lip.

"That ship, the "Royal Sovereign", once belonged to the fleet of our country. Yet, when the rebels took control of it, they changed the name to "Lexington". It was named in honor of the battlefield where they snatched the first victory from us." Wales said with a smile. "The warship keeps up a constant blockade of Newcastle from the sky. It shoots at the castle from time to time, not in order to do any damage, but just to annoy us."

Louise looked through the cloud to study the warship. There were a lot of cannons on each side, and a dragon was painted on the surface of the ship.

"It has 108 cannons and really looks like a fire breathing dragon at times." Wales mused, "The whole rebellion started from that ship. We can't match it, so it's better for us to sail through this cloud and slip past unseen. We can reach Newcastle from the other side, as there is a secret port that only we know about."

Louise looked around as the sky around their ship darkened as the ship went under the continent, the landmass above blocking the sunlight. In addition, they were still surrounded by clouds and she could barely make out Wales standing next to her.

Wales explained, voice cutting quietly through the darkness, "The rebels never go under the continent because traveling this way is a dangerous endeavor. However, for the navigators of the royal air force it's easy to navigate by relying on topographical maps, using magic of light and measurements." Wales laughed quietly, quoting, "The noble that does not know the sky is not an intelligent person."

They sailed in the darkness for what seemed to Louise an unreasonably long time, but eventually the ship reached a section of landmass, which opened into black hole overhead. Illuminated by the magic light from the mast, the sight of it was really spectacular; Louise wondered what Link would have thought of it.

Wales' voice rang out, "Stop here for now."

"Aye Aye sir, stop here!" Wales' order was given to the crew. The sails were taken off and the Eagle started to drift right under the hole.

"Slowly increase speed." Wales ordered.

"Aye Aye sir, slowly increase the speed!" The confirmation echoed back.

The Eagle rose slowly toward the hole. Following just behind was the Marie Galante that navigators of the Eagle had boarded.

Wardes nodded, "You are definitely not sky pirates, Your Highness."

"We are precisely sky pirates, Viscount." Wales disagreed with a small smile.

The warship docked at the secret port of Newcastle. Many people were bustling around on the quay, darting to and fro as they fulfilled their daily tasks. Some waited patiently as the ship was prepared to unload. Ropes were thrown to the sailors to tie down the Eagle and finally the wooden gangway was attached.

Prince Wales hurried Louise and Wardes down the gangway. A tall and aged mage approached them. "Ha ha, wonderful military results, right, Your Highness?"

"Rejoice, Paris. Sulfur, it is sulfur!" At Wales' joyful shout, the soldiers around him gathered cheering.

"Ooh! Sulfur! This is for the honor of our guardianship!" The old mage began to cry. "I served for sixty years under the previous king...," he sobbed and then continued with a sniffle, "There won't be such happy days again, Your Highness. After the revolt happened it's all turned into sorrow... Even with sulfur we won't make it..."

Wales laughed with a smile. "Even if we're defeated, we'll show the rebels the royal family's courage and honor."

"A glorious death." The old mage agreed, drying his eyes, "My old bones are trembling with excitement. It was reported that the rebels are going to attack the castle tomorrow. It's really all or nothing now, Your Highness."

"With our last breath we'll put their soldiers to shame!" Wales declared as he and the others laughed with ease from the bottoms of their hearts.

Louise became worried after hearing the word defeat. She gazed around at the masses of soldiers, understanding that these men expected to die. Louise bit her lip, weren't they afraid?

"And who are these people?" The old mage named Paris asked Wales after spotting Louise and Wardes.

"This is an ambassador from Tristain, Lady Louise Vallière," Wales explained, gesturing to Louise, "She came because of an important business related to the kingdom." He then turned to Wardes, "This is the Captain of the Griffin Knights, her escort, Viscount Wardes."

Paris looked surprised for a moment, doubtlessly wondering what would an ambassador from another kingdom be doing that was so important she would brave the twilight of the Albion royal family. But soon enough he put aside his puzzlement and a smile returned to his face. "So you are an ambassador, Mistress Vallière." The old mage gave a short bow, "Paris Chamberlain at your service, madam. It's nice that you came all the way to Albion. Though it might not be much, we will have a small feast tonight. By all means - please come."

Nodding her agreement, Louise and Wardes followed after Prince Wales as he moved off and into the crowd. The pair followed Wales directly to his room, which was behind the kitchen area and rather plebian looking to Louise's eye. It's furnishings included a very simply built wooden bed, table, set of chairs, and a beautifully done, out of place painting on the wall illustrating a battle scene.

The prince sat on the chair and opened a drawer of the desk, inside of which was a little jewelry box. Wales took the necklace off his neck, a small key glinting in the light as it dangled from the necklace. The blond used the key to unlock the little jewelry box and opened it. From where she was standing, Louise could see Henrietta's portrait lying in there.

Wales, who had noticed Louise looking at the box, explained embarrassedly, "Strongbox."

There was one letter inside from what Louise could see; doubtless this was the letter from the princess that was the cause of all their troubles. Wales took it out with love and read it. The letter looked older than it should from being constantly re-read.

After reading it Wales gently folded it and put it into an envelope, then he handed it to Louise. "This is the letter I got from the princess."

"Thank you." Louise accepted the letter graciously while bowing deeply.

"The Eagle will take you back to Tristain tomorrow, as we won't be using it in the battle." Wardes explained, "For tonight however, I'll have you escorted to suitable quarters."

"But, Your Highness... What did you have in mind when you mentioned a glorious defeat?" Louse asked with hesitation, more concerned with the earlier show on the docks than with her sleeping or leaving arrangements.

Wales answered easily. "It is just so, as I said. My army has three hundred men while the enemy force has fifty thousand. There is no chance of victory. So let us at least die in glory."

Louise looked down at her hands, clutching the letter in a white knuckled grip, "Your Highness, do you also mean yourself when you talk about dying in battle?"

"Of course." Wales agreed with an amused smile, "I will die as well."

Louise's shoulders dropped when she bowed deeply to Wales, "Your Highness... Forgive me for being impolite, but there are a few more things I must say."

Wales tilted his head, a small, soft smile gracing his lips, "What do you want to say?"

"What is written in this letter?" Louise, after asking her question, looked up with determination. "When Princess Henrietta gave me this task she looked like she was worrying about her lover. And in the box there was a portrait of Her Majesty, and seeing the gloomy face after you kissed and read the letter... Are you and she...?"

Wales smiled more fully, "Do you want me to bluntly say that cousin Henrietta and I have a love relationship?"

Louise nodded. "Yes. Forgive my rudeness. But if this is so, then the content of this letter is..."

Wales put his hand to his forehead and made a vague gesture, as if he were worried for a moment about what he should and shouldn't say. After a few moments, Wales spoke, his voice quiet, "A love letter. Just like you guessed. If this love letter were to be passed to the imperial household of Germania as Henrietta informed me by her missive, it might become a great threat. In the letter she is swearing eternal love for me in the name of Founder Brimir. It is like an oath of marriage, you see, love sworn in the name of the founder. If this letter is brought to light, she will be accused of committing the crime of bigamy. The emperor of Germania is sure to break off his engagement with a princess who violated the rules like that. Then, there would be no alliance. Tristain might be politically ignored by other countries' noble families."

"So," Louise murmured, "Princess and Your Highness were in love with each other?"

"It's an old story." Wales nodded.

Louise leaned forward; hands clenched, and in a feverish tone, demanded "Your Highness, return! Return to Tristain!"

Wardes abruptly put his hand on her shoulder. However, Louise refused to allow this to stop her, as she continued, "I beg you! Please, come to Tristain with us!"

"It cannot be done." Wales denied with a laugh.

"Your Highness, I disagree." The pinkette refuted firmly, "Princess Henrietta would think so as well! Didn't it say so in the letter? I have known the princess since our childhood; I know very well how she thinks. Princess Henrietta does not desert the people she loves! Your Highness, you didn't say it, but I am sure she told you to run away as well!"

Wales shook his head, denying, "There is no such line written in the letter."

"Your Highness!" Louise kept on pressing Wales.

"I am from a royal family. I am not lying. There is no request by the princess for me to run away in the letter, I swear it by my honor." Wales swore softly, sounding as if he was in pain. "Henrietta is a princess. She has to give priority to her country rather than me."

Louise understood what he meant by that. Even if Wales liked Henrietta, other nobles would never support it, given his situation.

Wales tapped Louise's shoulder. "You are a honest girl, Vallière. You have honest, clear and kind eyes."

Louise looked down, high praise for traits that were useless to her now.

"But let me give you some advice. It's not good for an ambassador to be honest like that." Wales smiled down at her with an attractive smile. "However, you are a perfect ambassador to a ruined country like ours, as a government that will be destroyed tomorrow is more honest than anyone, since it doesn't have anything to defend besides its honor."

After that he pulled something out of his pocket. From the shape and running arrow it seemed to be a clock. "Ahhaha, it is time for our little party. Since you are last guests of our kingdom, I would like you to attend it as well."

Louise nodded, turning away and retracing her steps out of the room and through the kitchen. She completely missed the lack of Wardes' silent, unsupportive presence.

The party was held in the castle's hall. Louise spotted the king of Albion, James I, sitting on the throne, watching the nobles and vassals who had gathered through narrowed eyes.

Though the following day everyone would die, it was still quite a feast and the table was filled with various treats.

Louise and the reappeared Wardes were watching this colorful party while standing in the corner of the hall. She observed quietly, "They're putting all the troubles of tomorrow behind themselves tonight and are trying to enjoy the present."

Wardes nodded in response, "Yes, they behave in a joyful manner. There is little point in moping about the inevitable here, and they acknowledge that."

When Prince Wales showed up, there was some enthusiastic sighs between the ladies. Louise covered an amused smile with her hand, it seemed like he was popular not only as a prince but as a handsome man as well. When he approached the throne, people started whispering.

James I tried to stand up straight and greet him, but because of his old age he staggered and almost fell down.

Some laughter could be heard from the hall.

"Your Majesty! Its too early to fall!"

"Indeed! Save that for tomorrow!"

James I obviously wasn't insulted by such comments, as he smiled back, "Don't worry, it's just that my legs were numb from sitting for too long."

Wales next to James I and supported the king's body with his. There were a few more chuckles as the king managed to straighten up enough to address them, "You. I will tell all of you brave and loyal vassals, that tomorrow 'Reconquista' is planning to attack our Newcastle with their full force. You have followed and fought bravely for this incapable old king, however tomorrow there won't be a battle. It is going to be a one-sided slaughter. Let's stand proudly and show our bravery for one last time." The king coughed loudly, after that he continued talking. "But it might be asking too much for all you to die. Thus tomorrow morning the warship Eagle will take all women and children and the ones who chose to leave to a safer place far from this forsaken continent."

However, no one answered to take the king up on that offer. One noble loudly informed the king. "Your Majesty! We are waiting for the order! Whole Army Forward! Whole Army Forward! Whole Army Forward! Since our hearing is so bad tonight, I doubt we will be able to hear any other orders!"

All the people nodded.

"Yeah! What would others say if we were to run away?"

"It's too late to retreat, Your Majesty!"

"It's alright! We will continue to serve the king like we did years before! Tonight is a good night! The founder has blessed us with a wonderful moon and warm night! Let's enjoy drinking and dancing for this eve!"

With this everyone returned to the feast. The two guests from Tristain attracted a lot of attention. The nobles didn't seem to be sad or worried to Louise, as they playfully kept on joking and offering wine or food to the guests.

"Ambassador! Try this wine! Tell us which country's wine is better!"

"Here! Try this! It's Albion's speciality - chicken with honey, it'll make you a healthy and strong mage for sure!"

Louise felt that these joyful celebrators were the saddest things she'd ever seen, laughing as they were in the face of slaughter. She couldn't endure the atmosphere anymore and shook her head, fleeing out of the hall and to the room she'd been given earlier.

Louise flung herself upon the bed, grabbing her pillow and burying her face into it as she cried. She just didn't understand these people, why did they choose to die? The king had even been so kind as to offer them safe passage away, and they had refused! And even Prince Wales… her poor princess loved him so and he returned those feelings. Why choose death? Why celebrate it as if it were the happiest of occasions?

Louise sobbed harder. She just didn't understand it. She didn't understand them. They were foolish and she disliked them and their country. She wanted to go back to Tristain. She wanted her familiar. Louise sniffled, that stupid dog, leaving her alone like this…

A sharp rap at her door, cause Louise to start, jerking her head up from the pillow. She blinked blearily at the door, wiping her tears away as the sharp knocking continued. Releasing the pillow, Louise slid off the bed and answered the door.

Cracking it open, Louise blinked in surprise to see Wardes waiting on the other side. She lowered her gaze, "I thought you were at the party."

Wardes cupped her chin in his fingers, raising her face to look up at him, "Have you been crying my dainty Louise?"

Louise pulled away, refusing to look at him, "No!"

"… as you say," Wardes agreed dryly, "But here, I have good news to cheer you up."

Louise scrubbed at her face to rid herself of tear tracks before turning to look at Wardes, "You do?"

"Yes." Wardes smiled benignly, "I have spoken to Prince Wales, he has agreed to marry us at dawn. Very gracious of the prince, don't you agree?"

Louise blinked sharply in disbelief, "What? But, I… didn't I tell you already? I cannot marry you Wardes! I –"

"I understand that you are nervous, my Louise," Wardes cut her off with a frown, as he moved to sit on her bed, "But this is for the best. I know that perhaps you are too young and innocent of the world to understand, but these things come in time. Just trust that I will uphold the agreement of our families. We will wed; I will be a good husband to you. If it is your wish to continue your studies, I will even allow that – after all, have I not said that I wish you to reach your potential as a mage? You will be great in time."

Louise slowly shook her head, "But… this is… it's too soon! I-I am not ready to marry…" she trailed off, looking up at him pleadingly. "I… am grateful that you are willing to make concessions, Viscount, but … I still… I cannot marry you."

Wardes grimaced, giving her a pained look, "My dainty Louise, please, the arrangements have been made. Don't force my hand…"

Louise blanched at that, and panicking, she turned and darted to the door, flinging it open. She froze at the sight of a blond haired cardinal on the other side, she recognized him from the party earlier – Cardinal Mazarin. Louise took a step back as her red eyes met his cold blues.

Cardinal Mazarin quietly addressed her, "There is no where for you to escape, little void mage." He raised his hand, a silver ring with a square purple stone on his finger beginning to light. "We've need of you."

Louise opened her mouth to retort when a strange feeling came over her. Suddenly, she felt as if she were floating through a thick fog. She was relaxed, almost sleepy. Distantly she could hear the cardinal addressing Wardes.

"It is done. Get her ready."

"My thanks. The prince's serving girls will be here soon, they will look after my Louise and see to that she is prepared for our morning matrimony."

"So be it, Viscount." A door clicked shut.

"Dear Louise," Wardes distant voice called, "listen to me carefully."

Louise drifted, hardly caring.

Absently, she felt a hand grab her shoulders and another forcing her face up. She blinked slowly at Wardes.

"… my dainty Louise," he whispered, "I am going to put a letter in your pocket, right next to the Princess' letter. Remember this and read it when you are safely back in Tristain." He chastely kissed her brow.

She heard the door open again and an unknown female's voice rang out through the fog, "Sir Viscount?"

"Yes, yes, here girl, look after my young bride and have her ready for our wedding in the chapel at dawn."

"Yes, my lord."

The next morning, a few hours before dawn, the serving girls prepared Louise for her wedding. Unresisting, Louise was bathed, dressed again in her now washed clean school clothes, and draped in a white mantle, which was borrowed from Albion's royal family. Only brides were allowed to wear it, as it was a mantle of a virgin. Her letters where returned undisturbed in her pocket. Next, they fixed up her hair and put a bridal veil borrowed from Albion's royal family on Louise's head. The veil was exquisitely made, and the flowers, which were eternally fresh due to magic, made it look indescribably beautiful. Finally, they lightly applied makeup to her face, giving her pale cheeks the healthy blush of a young bride.

Through it all, Louise drifted carelessly, watching and listening with detached interest.

A door opened and Louise dimly recognized Wardes' voice, "Girls, is my dainty Louise prepared?"

"Yes, Viscount!" the maids chorused back.

Wardes' pleased voice again echoed through the fog, "My Louise, how beautiful you look on our wedding day. Come, I'll escort you to the chapel. His Majesty awaits."

Through the fog, Louise noted with absent interest that Wardes was still wearing his regular clothing and magical mantle. Apparently he did not feel obligated to dress formally. She felt her arm cradle in his and her body automatically moved to follow Wardes out and to the chapel.

Louise drifted, barely aware of their passing surroundings, occasionally a strange noise or light would echo through the fog. Presently, in what seem to her at no time at all, she was being led down an isle. Through the dense fog, Louise could make out the figure of Prince Wales. He seemed to loom closer until she could almost see him clearly. Prince Wales was dressed in the Crown Prince's formal uniform. He wore a bright purple mantle, the color of the royal family, and a hat with seven colored wings, the symbol of Albion's royal family. He looked troubled, glancing out the window before turning back to her, his face smoothing out into a smile.

In her dim awareness she, with Wardes beside her, stood in front of Wales, who was standing below the image of the Founder Brimir, wearing his official uniform.

"Everyone is prepared? Well then, let us begin the ceremony." The Prince's voice reached Louise's ears, cutting through the fog. However, it was like a weak sound of a distant bell. Louise's mind was still lost as she continued to drift.

"Bridegroom, Viscount Jean-Jacques Francis de Wardes. Do you take this girl as your wife, and swear to respect and love her in the name of the Founder Brimir?"

"I swear."

"Bride, the third daughter of the Duke de La Vallière, Louise Françoise le Blanc de La Vallière…"

Just then, Louise's hazy mind realized that she was in the middle of a wedding ceremony. Her partner – the mysterious and strange Wardes, for whom she once yearned… a man who had helped a cardinal spell her. Who some how knew she was a void mage. Suddenly, Louise no longer felt so detached with her surroundings, nor did she feel sleepy. But try as she might, Louise could not stir from her relaxed and drifting state. The fog of her mind, though thinned, refused to lift.

"Bride?" Wales voice cut through the fog once more and Louise's gaze shifted up to see that he was looking at her.

She could not respond, the fog weighed heavily upon her.

"Are you nervous? That's all right. It's your first time, it's normal to be nervous." Wales smiled, and then abashedly, "Oh dear, we still have to follow etiquette. Doing this will only have meaning if we follow etiquette. Then, once more. Do you take this man as your husband, and swear to respect and love him in the name of the Founder Brimir…"

Louise's attention drifted again as the fog abruptly thickened. Suddenly, she felt herself beginning to speak and the echo of her words resounded in her mind. "I do."

Mind reeling in shock, the fog abruptly thinned and Louise could almost see clearly as Wales smiled beautifully at her and announced, sounding suddenly much closer, "Viscount Wardes, you may kiss your new wife, the Lady Wardes."

Louise wanted to scream, to cry, to do anything but allow Wardes to tilt her face up and press his lips chastely to her own.

Wardes withdrew, a satisfied smile on his face, "Our marriage contract?" he asked, glancing sideways to the prince.

Wales nodded over to the cardinal, "Witnessed, signed, and sealed. The good cardinal will deliver them to the pope immediately and then send copies to your families from there." The cardinal sketched a short bow and departed from the side exit, doubtless to make it back to the Eagle in time for departure.

The viscount pulled Louise into an embrace as he smiled brilliantly, "Wonderful. You have our thanks, Prince Wales."

The prince nodded, "I am glad that – "

The chapel doors slammed open, cutting him off and drawing the attention of everyone in the room.

Louise stared; wide-eyed through the fog as her familiar, completely uncloaked, glared at Wardes with his feral blue eyes alight from behind his blond fringe.

Link bared his teeth in a wolf-like fashion as he loudly declared, "I am here on behalf of the Reconquista to take the void mage!"

The fog surrounding Louise completely vanished as she squawked in outrage, "W-W-WH-WHAT?"

"That's right!" Derflinger crowed from over Link's shoulder, "We're the bad guys!"

Link nodded, smirking.

Prince Wales flushed with anger, and apparently unconcerned that he was facing an elf, snarled, "You, such rudeness! This is an insult!"

Louise tore her shocked and angry gaze from Link and over to Wales as the prince grabbed hold of his sword-wand… and was abruptly run through.

Wardes, his sword-wand still piercing through the prince's chest, looked thoughtfully over his shoulder at Link. He addressed Louise, "It seems your familiar is already on the correct side of this conflict. I was a bit concerned about that… well, no matter."

"D-damn you…'Reconquista'…" Wales ground out as blood suddenly gushed out of his mouth and Louise screamed.

Wardes muttered while piercing his shining cane deeper into Wales' chest. "You knew that you would die today, Wales, whether by my hand or not, it matters little." He withdrew his sword, allowing the fatally wounded prince to collapse onto the chapel floor.

Louise rushed to the prince's side, trembling and shouting, "Crown Prince! What have you done, Wardes?" She was married, and to a traitor! The prince smiled up at her wanly, blood seeping from his lips. Wales removed his Wind Ruby and, with an unsteady hand, offered it to Louise. The pinkette tearfully accepted it, watching the dying prince smile sweetly one last time before taking his final breath and lying still, relaxing as death claimed him.

"The Prince!" the guards cried.

Louise looked up to see half of the guards closing in on Wardes and the other half almost entirely slain already by Link. Oh… that's right… even her familiar was a traitor.

"That's right. I am really a member of Albion's noble faction, 'Reconquista'," Wardes announced in a cold, emotionless voice as his wind spells sliced cleanly through his opposition.

"Why!" Louise gasped from where she sat by the dead prince, "Why, Wardes, would you, Tristain nobility, do such thing?"

"We are the first heralds of Halkeginia's future – a union of nobles that has no national borders. We are borderless." Wardes raised his sword-wand again as he finished off the last of the guards. "Halkeginia will be reunited into one by our hands, we will restore the Founder Brimir's 'Sacred Land' once again."

"Before..." Louise clutched at the ring in her hand with a white knuckled grip, "you weren't like this before. What changed you so much? Wardes..."

"Time, accidents, and destiny. Though it changed me from the man you knew, it didn't change my nature." Wardes turned from her to study Link.

Link narrowed his eyes back, "Stand away from her." He leveled Derflinger at the magical knight, "You and I have business."

"… I see." Wardes lowered his head, a smirk gracing his lips, "Even though we are on the same side?"

"I cannot allow your trespasses to go unanswered," Link replied coldly, "regardless of what your allegiances may be."

"Damn you, elf…" Wardes muttered. "What do you know of my 'trespasses'?"

"A familiar's ability," Link answered shortly, "Enough to condemn you. Arm yourself." His blue eyes glinted as he lunged forward.

Wardes dodged his attack by jumping back. The magical knight quickly raised his sword-wand to block the follow-up swing and disengaged, whirling away from his elfin attacker.

"Tell me," Link called, "How do you recognize me as Louise's familiar? I was well cloaked when we last met."

"Is that all?" Wardes smirked slightly as he took advantage of the pause to cast a quick spell. "Not interested in how I knew anything else?"

Link tipped his head, "Fouquet managed to tell me enough before she died."

Wardes unleashed his Breaking Wind spell in response. Link, as before on the rooftop, slammed into the wind spell with his shield, reflecting it back at Wardes. This time, however, Wardes had already begun to dodge and avoided the rebounded spell completely.

"Ha! Just try to ignore me after this! I'll show you how cool I am!" Derflinger suddenly shouted as his blade started to shine.

Link glanced down at the blade as Wardes recited Breaking Wind again. Then Link glanced up and tried not to roll his eyes as he realized Wardes was using the exact same spell again.

The raging wind flew out again, aiming at Link as he put out the shining Derflinger in front of himself.

"It's useless! A sword cannot stop it! You would have been better of with your shield!" Wardes shouted.

Yet, the wind, instead of touching Link, was sucked directly into Derflinger's blade causing the light shining out of it to intensify.

"Derf?" Link murmured.

"This is my true form, Partner!," Derflinger answered excitedly, "It was a long time ago, so I forgot it! My tired body changed itself! Anyhow, it's a pretty interesting story, partner!"

"Make it short!" Link snapped, eyeing Wardes.

"Impatient." Derf tisked, "I forgot it before. But, don't worry, partner. I suck in all magic around me! That's me, Gandálfr's left hand – Derflinger!" The sword made a coughing noise, "Now the Windálfr's left hand, of course."

Wardes looked with interest at the sword that Link was holding. "Indeed… You are not an ordinary sword. I should have expected no less from an elf's blade. Time to even the odds as it were," He smiled grimly, "Ubiquitous Dell Wind…"

Link tensed as the spell was completed and Wardes' body suddenly doubled. And then again, and again, until he faced four doubles alongside the real Wardes.

"Doubles!" Derf noted.

"It is not only "Double". It's "Ubiquitous Wind", an uneven distribution of wind. The place where it blows is not just a matter of appearance, but it has a substantial power too."

One of Wardes' doubles suddenly pulled a white mask from the cloak and donned it.

From where she sat next to the dead prince as she watched their battle, Louise's body trembled. She was shivering with anger and fear. The masked man was Wardes! The man who had been standing next to Fouquet… The one who attacked her at the docks was none other than Wardes!

Link, however, seemed unsurprised as he nodded, "What a treacherous but handy spell. You can appear anywhere." He tipped his head, "I take it that this is how you knew me by sight?"

"Indeed." Wardes agreed before continuing, "And getting back to my spell, each one of them has the power of the original. I told you, right? 'Wind' is unevenly distributed!"

Link shook his head, glancing at Louise. The pinkette had finally gotten over the repeated shocks of the last while and was standing up, fury reddening her face to contrast the white knuckles of her hand as she raised her wand.

"Fireball!"

The spell, aimed at the real Wardes, exploded violently against his side, taking out several chunks of flesh and shattering his arm.

As the real Wardes collapsed to the floor, face white with shock, Link rapidly lunged forward to intercept the doubles.

As her familiar clashed with the multiple Viscounts, Louise made her way over to where her new husband was sprawled on the chapel floor. He was clutching at his side, gasping as blood seeped from between his lips and fingers, pooling beneath him on the floor.

Louise leveled her wand at his head, and voice trembling with anger, "Goodbye, traitorous Wardes."

"My…" he gasped.

"Fireball."

Louise didn't twitch a muscle as Wardes' head exploded, showering her bridal wear with his blood and tissue. Stiffly, the bloodied bride turned to her familiar.

Link stood quietly, weapons sheathed, no trace of the doubles apparent.

Louise stared at him, angry tears beginning to make their way down her cheeks, mingling with the blood, "What," she gasped, voice still trembling, "do you have to say for yourself?"

"… it was a joke?" he offered weakly.

Louise's eye twitched and her hand jerked. "J-j-jok-ke?"

Link licked his lips nervously and slowly approached her, "Little one…"

"DON'T 'LITTLE ONE' ME, YOU, YOU VILLAIN!" Louise shouted and seemingly teleported over to him, she dashed so quickly. She beat on him with her tiny fists, "I WANT AN EXPLANATION AND YOU WILL BE HONEST!"

"Villain?" her familiar muttered, and then caught her flailing fists in one hand while pulling her into an embrace with his other arm. "Are you done? Can I explain now?"

Louise twisted and savagely kicked his ankle. "YES!"

He sighed and released her fists to pet her veiled hair. "We should go somewhere safer first."

Louise considered hitting him again, but instead sagged against him, pressing her face into his shirt. She was just too exhausted.

"How about that port, partner?" Derflinger suggested, "None of the soldiers will be there."

"Hmmm…" Link released Louise long enough to pick her up. Turning heel, he strode across the chapel and out of the doors he'd barged through a short time ago.

Outside, Louise lifted her head to the sounds of explosions and battle. They were distant for the moment, but would eventually be upon them. As she raised her gaze to follow the direction of those sounds, Louise blinked and had to look twice as her vision was filled with dragons. She straightened in Link's arms, turning her head from side to side as she took in what had to be an entire flight of dragons guarding the chapel.

Louise stared up at Link, red eyes wide, "What is this?"

He glanced down at her, then up at the dragons and shrugged, "I only wanted one but they insisted."

"But what if the soldier here see this?" Louise asked, "They'll think the rebels are attacking!"

"Hmmm… the rebels are already attacking – most of the soldiers here should be at the front gates right now. The ones left here are all dead." Link pointed out.

"Cause you killed them!" Louise snapped.

Link tipped his head, "They were in the way. I cannot allow or forgive a person who would keep us separated."

Louise flushed, "Stop it!"

Link grinned at her, "Besides, the dragons got the ones out here, not me."

"Eh?" Louise blinked as one large dragon, obviously the lead as the other dragons watched its movements, stepped aside, revealing a small company of dead soldiers.

Link cleared his throat as Louise stared at the dead soldiers with a half lidded gaze, "Would you know a safe, preferably remote, area that we can go?"

Louise glanced up sharply, and then realized he was addressing the dragons.

The lead dragon rumbled, nodding its head.

"Great! Let's go." Link paused, and then eyed her apprehensively, "You're okay with riding dragonback, right?"

Louise nodded tiredly.

Link smiled softly and carried her over to the lead dragon. It lowered itself as much as possible and Link foisted Louise up onto it's saddle. She grunted and settled down comfortably as Link clambered up behind her. Her familiar pulled her close and reached around her to pick up the reins.

"Ready?" He asked.

Louise spared him a tired look and then nodded. She blinked sleepily and drifted off as the dragon flight took off into the skies of Albion.

Louise absent-mindedly wandered in her dream. She was back at her home, la Vallière. She went to a small lake in a forgotten courtyard…

There a small boat was floating… Here where Louise fled and lied down with her blanket when she was faced with difficulties. Louise always hid herself and slept there. Her own little world in which no one else intruded. Her secret place…

Now, Louise's heart was in pain.

But Wardes didn't come here anymore. Gentle viscount Wardes, her childhood noble crush, her fiancé of marriage arranged by their fathers' mutual agreement, her murdered husband…

Young Louise sobbed softly, there was no Wardes who would take her from her secret place anymore. He was a dirty betrayer that murdered the courageous prince, those kind hands belonged to a murderer… a murderer that she had, in turn, murdered…

Louise cried in her little boat, huddled beneath her blanket.

But then, someone came.

"Is that you, Viscount?" Louise asked in her dream, and then she shook her head. No, the viscount didn't come here anymore. She scrubbed at her eyes even though tears continued to fall, who had come?

It was her wolf, Link, who shifted to his original body, uncloaked and looking very much like he had when they first met. His countenance was soft, his shield and original sword were hanging on his back, and then he, without hesitation about getting wet, stepped into the pond and approached Louise's little boat.

Louise sniffled as she watched him.

Link leaned over the side of her little boat, gently cradled her face, and wiped at her tears with his thumbs.

"Dry your tears, little one." He smiled softly, "and forgive me for making you cry."

"I'm not crying over you." Louise denied, pushing down a twinge of uncertainty.

Link picked up Louise out of the boat and held her in his arms. "Little sister," he murmured into her hair. "I'm so sorry."

Louise nodded childishly in her dream, accepting his apology. She felt it was important, though she couldn't member why he would need to apologize to her.

Louise closed her eyes and cuddled closer to him. She listened to the beating of his heart, the sound of his breathing, as he softly hummed her lullaby.

"I cannot always protect you." He whispered.

Louise opened her red eyes, "But you said that you'd teach me. Right, Big Brother?" she asked childishly, "So I can be safe when you are away."

"Hmmm…" he nodded, "That's right."

Louise beamed and snuggled back up to him, closing her eyes again as she relaxed.

The world lurched alarmingly and Louise awoke on a dragon's back, securely in Link's arms. She peered up at his face, as it seemed like he didn't notice that she was awake. He was, she noticed, humming her lullaby though.

"Aah, this isn't a dream." She muttered.

Then… Louise's mind was filled with feverish thoughts as she recalled the past day. Meeting Wales, the party, Wardes and the cardinal, being spelled, her marriage, the treachery of the viscount and her familiar, the prince's death, Wardes' death by her hand…

The sadness of it all almost made Louise cry. However, not wanting to cry in front of Link at the moment, she closed her eyes. Therefore, Louise decided to pretend she was sleeping.

She watched the other dragons flying nearby from the corners of her half-closed eyes. Most stayed in formation, but occasionally a few would swoop up and down or bank off to the side.

Their dragon increased speed as the entire formation banked left and flew lower.

Strong wind hit her cheeks. But that wind felt pleasant. Louise closed her eyes.

Her mind was in turmoil…

Traitorous Wardes.

The Crown Prince's death…

The 'Reconquista' victory…

Link…

For various reasons, Louise felt sorry for them all, but at the moment all Louise's thoughts were blown away by the wind. She leaned back against her familiar, resting her cheek against his arm as his humming lulled her back to sleep.

The next time that Louise awakened, Link was holding her in his arms as he slid down off the dragon. She scrubbed at her eyes, looking around. Link set her down on her feet and Louise reflexively reached out and grasped his tunic.

They were in a good-sized glen, a small lake and much smaller waterfall on one side, tall cliffs on the other, and trees surrounding the other sides. Louise looked up to see that most of the dragons had either perched or sprawled along the cliffs while a few, she confirmed with a sideways glance, were splashing around in the small lake. The lead dragon they had flown on moved off and slid gracefully into the water with its fellows.

Louise sighed and looked up at her familiar, who was watching her with those feral blue eyes. He smiled and then nodded over at something. Louise followed his gesture, spotting a few stones that had been arranged like benches.

She turned her gaze back to him, "I want to bathe." She pointedly gestured at her bloody appearance.

Link tipped his head and glanced back at the waterfall, "Give me a moment, little one."

Louise made her way over to the stone benches and daintily sat down as she watched her familiar. He called down one of the smaller dragons from the cliffs and Louise could see that one it's saddle were several bundles. Obviously this one had been the packdragon of the flight, carrying all the supplies the soldiers needed but wouldn't weigh down their battledragons with. Once the dragon landed, Link shuffled through it's bags and pulled out a rope, three posts, and a pair of blankets.

Link carried the supplies to the waterfall and set them on the shore. He drove one post into the ground next to a large stone jutting out from the side of the cliff. The second, much longer than the first, he carried in to the water, stopping when he was calf deep and driving it into the sand. He repeated this with the third pole, setting it when he was waist deep and close to the whirling waters, churned by the waterfall. Link then draped the first blanket between the first and second pole, and then the second blanket between the second and third pole. The third side he left bare as it faced the cliff and waterfall.

Link grabbed a few more supplies from the packdragon's bags before he surveyed the makeshift privacy curtain and then glanced over his shoulder at Louise, "Whenever you're ready, little one. Just pass me your clothes after you strip so I can wash the blood out for you."

Louise nodded, standing up from the bench and making her way to the blankets. Link handed her a bar of soap and a few cloths to wash and dry with. Louise accepted then with a murmur of thanks before ducking behind the privacy curtain. She stripped down, leaving her clothes and veil at the edge of the blanket, and took to the water with her bath supplies.

Though the waters weren't too cold, Louise rushed through her bath. She scrubbed down quickly, washed her hair, and double-checked that she'd gotten all of the blood off. Exiting the waters, Louise wrapped herself in one of the towels and dried her hair as best she could with the other.

Stepping out of the blanketed area, she spotted Link scrubbing away at her clothes several yards away. Louise strode down the bank, clutching at her towel, and quietly watched him for a few moments.

Eventually, he looked up and, spotting her, smiled, "Blood doesn't come out easily, little one. By the way," he added, "I found the letters in your pocket and set them over there," he pointed behind her and Louise glanced over to see a small camp set up, well camouflaged by the foliage. "Inside the tent."

"… alright." Louise acknowledged, suddenly feeling on edge, "what about clothes."

Link eyed her, "I left a bag of spares in the tent as well, but I don't think that they'll fit you." He grinned, "You are much smaller than the riders of this flight."

Louise harrumphed and turned heel, crossing the clearing and ducking into the tent. She pulled out some of the spare clothing and realized that her familiar had been correct. Louise settled for just an oversized shirt that fell just past her knees and snatched up her letters, stuffing them into the shirt's pocket.

Wandering back outside, Louise seated herself on one of the stone benches and folded her hands onto her lap. She watched the dragons as a cool breeze tugged at her damp hair. The sun, shining brightly, warmed her. She gazed around that the utter calm of the glade, it was hard to believe that mere hours ago, that very morning she'd been married, betrayed and widowed.

Louise blinked and then studied her hands. Widowed…

A splashing caught her attention and, grateful for the distraction, Louise looked up to see Link coming out of the small lake. He walked to the makeshift privacy curtain and pulled down the blanket, allowing it to pool partly in the water and mostly on the shore. He carefully draped her clothing on the line then picked up the blanket and made his way over to her.

"…are you hungry, little one?" He asked, tipping his head.

Louise opened her mouth to answer but her belly beat her to it, rumbling loudly as it protested its recent lack of nourishment.

Link chuckled and nodded, "Rations okay?"

Flushing, Louise nodded.

He fetched her some of the dragonriders' rations and sat next to her as she began to eat.

He glanced down at her, "So… where would you like me to start?"

Louise chewed thoughtfully, before swallowing and asking, "You said that Fouquet died right?"

He nodded.

"Start there." She muttered, taking another bite.

Link looked up at the sky, "Hmmm…after I dispatched her golem, she attempted to escape again…"

Flashback

Link leapt and glided over the ruins of the stone golem, spotting Fouquet as she fled down the empty street. He quickly reached into his pouch, pulling out his Clawshot. Taking aim, Link fired, bracing himself firmly on the ground. The tri-pronged hook snapped open as it flew through the air and then snapped closed as it pierced through a few layers of cloth and into the soft flesh beneath.

Fouquet's scream of pain rang through the empty streets as she was yanked backwards through the air.

Link grunted as her momentum slammed her back into him, an act that rung another agonized scream from the green-haired woman. Link quickly pinned her face down on the cobblestone street, one hand plucking her wand out of her grasp and twisting that arm behind her back while the other held her down with the Clawshot.

"How about answering a few questions, Miss Crumbling Dirt?" he muttered in her ear, pressing the Clawshot down with his weight.

Fouquet sobbed softly before gasping, "OK! Anything! Just, please – my back!"

Link raised an eyebrow, easing off the Clawshot a bit; "I suppose I could pin you with my sword instead."

"Dunno, Partner," Derf mused, "No telling where she's been, aside from prison and the school of course."

It was wholly inappropriate, but Link cracked a grin anyway. "True. But enough of that," he sombered, narrowing his feral eyes at the thief, "tell me how you got out prison. And more to the point, was it Viscount Wardes?"

Fouquet licked her dry lips, "Wh-what makes you say that?"

Link refused, "I have my reasons, now answer!"

"No!" Fouquet spat, "If you want information, you have to offer it! Otherwise, I'll gracefully accept the death you intend for me?"

"… are you so sure that I won't torture you?" Link asked, curious.

Fouquet paused, "… no, I am sure that you haven't the time, though. You want to catch up to your mistress, right?"

Link nodded, "Fair enough. Let's see… the fact that he invited himself along on our journey was suspicious, the princess doesn't seem the type to send last minute additions without warning. Then he knew all about Windalfr. How could he know that when the only other ones in the know didn't wish to bring it to outside attention? Every time Wardes mentioned how he discovered this information, he kept changing the source: friends, library, so forth. An honest man tends to pick one truth and sticks with it. He also knew that I could change shapes, which is not a very well known fact."

Fouquet wheezed for a moment, "Fine… yes, Wardes released me from prison. He's part of an organization called Reconquista, a faction of rebels on Albion, and my release was conditional on my agreement to work for them. He did ask about my capture, found out about you and pressed me for more details. I told him everything."

"I see…" Link tapped the Clawshot thoughtfully, "what is his interest in Louise, exactly? It isn't about their engagement, though he tries to make it seem so." He considered asking outright if Wardes knew about Louise's void magic, but dismissed it. If Fouquet didn't already know, then there wasn't much point in telling her.

Fouquet shook her head, "I don't know, just that it has to do with you… sort of."

"… alright, last one. Your masked partner, who is he and where did he go?"

"That was Wardes – or well, a wind duplicate of him anyway. Probably following Wardes around, it can't go too far from him without dissipating. Doubtless they are both headed to the docks with your mistress." Fouquet replied before tiredly asking, "Am I allowed a last request?"

"Generally, I don't do last requests," Link answered with a surprised look, "but then, I usually don't have enemies asking for them either."

"Is that a yes or no?" she glared at him from the corner of her eye.

Link tipped his head, "Make your request. If it's within reason, I swear to Farore that I will fulfill it."

Fouquet blinked, "Farore?"

"One of the three goddess of my world," Link explained, "She created life that would uphold the laws."

Fouquet nodded slightly, "My request is this: In Albion, there is an orphanage in the forest near the village of Saxe-Gotha. If you should ever find yourself there, tell the one who runs it that her Mathilda has found herself a good husband, and that she is living a happy and peaceful life as a wife and mother."

"Done." Link agreed, and then asked politely, "Do you have a preference for this?"

"Beheading. It is my right as a noble." The mage answered shortly.

"Very well." Link drew Derflinger, and standing back, swung quickly and forcefully. Fouquet's neck sliced cleanly in half and her head rolled to the side, hair obscuring her face, as her blood sprayed over it and the road. Link bent down and yanked the Clawshot out of her back, pausing only long enough to clean it on her cape.

"What now, Partner?" Derf asked.

Link shoved the Clawshot into his pouch, and then removed both the Roc's Cape and his green cloak before shoving them in as well. "Take advantage of my appearance."

"Oh?" Derf chuckled.

"Hmmm…" Link smirked. "With any luck, I won't be recognized as Louise's shape shifter without my cloak but as an elf. People should steer clear, make things less of a hassle for me, yeah?"

"Guess so."

Link nodded, and wiped Derf clean with Fouquet's cape before sheathing it. He stood, looking around, "Let's see, the docks are … that way."

Link dashed down the streets, towards the docks. Hopefully, he'd be quick enough to catch Louise before she set sail on a ship with Wardes.

He'd barely gone three streets when he stumbled as his vision became distorted in his right eye. Blinking a few times and rubbing at his eye as he ran on, Link frowned.

"Something the matter, Partner?" Derf asked.

"The vision in my right eye is off, become distorted for some strange reason," Link muttered, turning down another street.

"… You might want to hurry up then, Partner," Derf suggested in a tone that indicated deep thought, "If I'm remembering correctly, this happens when a familiar needs to see through the eyes of their master – usually because said master is in danger and the familiar needs to know where they are."

Link immediately speed up, as his right eye's vision completely altered to show a masked man attacking the viewer – Louise – from inside a stairwell. He did his best to concentrate on where he was going but watching Wardes battle himself in an obvious ploy to gain Louise's trust made Link growl. As the battle ended, Link's vision corrected itself, no longer allowing him to see through Louise's eyes.

End Flashback

"So that's how you knew." Louise muttered, finishing off her rations.

"Hmmm?" Link gave her an inquisitive sideways look.

Louise blinked back at him, "In the chapel, you weren't surprised by Wardes' doubles or that one of them was the masked man."

Link nodded, "Ah. True," he shrugged, "I'm just surprised that you noticed. You were a bit out of it at the time."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Louise demanded angrily.

Link eyed her, lips twitching in amusement, "Just that you were too busy dealing with repeated shocks like Wardes' revelations. I simply didn't think you were paying much attention to me in light of that."

"Oh," Louise deflated, and then puffed her cheeks out, "But none of this explains why you claimed to be involved with the Reconquista!"

Link nodded, "I was just about to get to that. You see, when I made it to the docks, I had arrived in time to see a large ship sailing off. I was certain that you were aboard and was left wondering how I'd manage to catch up to you…"

Flashback

"Ha~," Derf gave a short, unamused laugh, "seems we've missed the boat."

Link nodded, expression grim.

"Maybe we should check to see if there is another ship sailing out?" Derflinger suggested.

"… we don't have much other choice," Link noted, turning to the stairwell.

Before he could enter, a voice called out, "Pardon me, good elf!"

Surprised that anyone would be willing to approach him, never mind actually address him, Link turned around and pinned the speaker with an incredulous look. "…Yes?"

The speaker was an older man clothed in priestly garbs, whatever rank he held in the local church, Link didn't know. A pair of nervous soldiers, one of whom was glistening from his cold sweat, flanked the man on either side. The priest stepped forward, "Perhaps you would consider this forward of me… but I would like to make you an offer in return for your aid."

Link stared at him, "… what sort of aid?"

"A small matter," the priest assured, "I am involved with an organization called Reconquista – currently it is attempting to overthrow the monarchy of Albion… though that likely doesn't interest you," he muttered before continuing, "You see, what we need you for is to retrieve a person for us – a young noble female who we believe is possessed of great potential. Currently she should be in the care of one of our members… unfortunately some among us believe that his loyalties are questionable. Hence, the need for an outside hire that can retrieve the girl."

"I… see…," Link answered slowly, unable to believe his luck, "… and who is this girl?"

"A Tristain noble, la Vallière." The priest replied quickly, "She is small of stature, has long pink hair and red eyes. Her familiar is a shape-shifting wolf, another of our number should have already disposed of that one, however, so you needn't concern yourself with it."

Link tipped his head, "And why are you so eager to seek out a strange elf and hire him for such a sensitive mission?"

The priest bowed his head, silent as the minutes passed. Finally, he raised his eyes to Link; "Our options are limited as is our time. You, sir elf, have no stake in this; what care you for human politics?" he chuckled dryly, "And there can be no doubt – if our other is a traitor as some suspect, you can surely defeat him in battle with ease." The priest shifted his weight from one foot to another, "I am aware that the price of your services will be high, but the reward for us is greater. If you will consent, I am sure we can come to a satisfactory arrangement."

Link narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, "Truly?"

"Yes," the priest nodded quickly, "… but we do ask that you keep silent about your involvement. We do not wish for the Reconquista to be associated with elves, pardon me," the priest tacked on hastily in an attempt to avoid offense.

Link glanced from the priest to the soldiers, who were tense as a drawn bow, and back to the priest, "And where would I find this 'la Vallière' of great potential?"

"We will arrange for you to retrieve her, either from the ports or Newcastle itself. But we must not tarry over long, our windows of opportunity are brief."

Link nodded, "Then, shall we discuss payment on the way?"

The priest looked pleased, "Oh, of course."

Link smiled grimly, this Reconquista was reminding him too much of Zant. He exhaled and shook his head as he followed the rebels, for now he could use them to get to Albion and reach Louise. If they proved to be too great a threat, he'd go ahead an initiate a pre-emptive strike to delay their forces until Louise's country could marshal their defenses.

End Flashback

"You were with the Reconquista," Louise declared softly.

Link tipped his head, "Sort of, but not really. In the end, I used them to achieve my own goals and then turned on them."

"… by not taking me to them?" Louise laughed bitterly.

He gave her a half-lidded stare, "That too. But I was actually referring to something else entirely."

Louise fell silent.

"The archbishop and I negotiated for almost the entire way to Albion." Link explained, "In the end we managed to reach what I believe was a fair bargain shortly before we reached the Lexington…"

Flashback

"Command of an entire dragon flight?" the commander of the Lexington, Sir Gervais, sputtered after Archbishop Matthias explained the terms of Link's payment. Running his hand through his red hair, he reflexively glanced out the open window as a sudden breeze swept in and then jerked his gaze back to the other two occupants.

Link nodded, speaking before the archbishop could get a word in, "Yes, no riders are required to assist me, but the dragons are essential for breaching Newcastle and retrieving the girl. One of the dragons of my choosing will be part of my payment, of course."

Sir Gervais shook his head slowly, "Wh-why… no, never mind. I… do not wish to involve myself with the affairs of elves." He turned to the archbishop, hissing quietly and unaware that Link could hear, "Why in the founder's name did you bring an elf? Are you mad? What else have you promised?"

Archbishop Matthias gave the commander a sharp look, replying in low tones, "Now is not the time, nor the place for this discussion."

The commander's jaw flexed in agitation before looking at Link, "You may explore the ship until such time that you are needed to fulfill your mission as agreed."

Link tipped his head, "Very well." Without a glance behind, Link turned on heel and strode out of the room, closing the door firmly behind himself.

The Hylian ducked into the room next door and locked the door. He studied the adjoining wall for a moment and realized that eavesdropping through it would be unlikely. Link snorted softly and made his way to the window. He eased it open, glancing around. The winds were a bit strong, but it was nothing that he couldn't handle. Link eyed the ledge running from beneath his window and around to the commander's neighboring window. He carefully stepped out, and made his way to the other window.

Stopping short of it, Link listened in on the archbishop and commander's argument.

"- that you would risk an elf?" the commander shouted.

"I am aware of the risks," Archbishop Matthias answered coldly. "However, so long as he is unaware of why we consider the young la Vallière to have great potential, she should remain unharmed."

"Oh, yes. Let's bank on keeping the elf ignorant of a possible void mage! After all, she'd only be the first to appear since the Founder, and we all know how the elves felt about him!" Gervais spat. "We might as well gift wrap the girl for her execution!"

Link narrowed his eyes.

"Enough!" Matthias barked, "Do not think I am such a fool as to risk the void mage so carelessly!" He inhaled deeply before continuing, "The girl, herself, doesn't seem to realize her power. So long as we keep our mouths shut, then nothing should go wrong. She'll be retrieved, stowed away in an undisclosed location, and tutored in her magic."

"You're overlooking that fact that we have no void mage tutors. No one has possess such magic in six thousand years." Gervais noted dryly.

"Not so," the archbishop refuted. "We do possess the Holy Book of the Founder that was left to Albion. It is known that his spells lay within – it is merely a matter of the young la Vallière unlocking them."

Link perked up.

"Truly?" the commander breathed, "Where is it?"

"My quarters," Matthias noted, smugness seeping in his tone.

"I see…" the commander mused, "we should redouble the guards there- "

"No!" the archbishop snapped, "You will do nothing to draw undue attention to my quarters. Ignorance has kept the Holy Book safe for millennia, it can continue to do so for a few more days."

Sir Gervais was silent.

From his perch, Link was grinning.

Archbishop Matthias spoke again, "Is there anything else, commander?"

"… No, Your Eminence." Sir Gervais answered resignedly.

At that Link retreated back to the neighboring room as swiftly as he dared. He closed the window carefully, and quietly left the room, making his way back up to the deck.

"How about that, Partner?" Derf whispered gleefully, "A gift for the little lady!"

Link tipped his head, fighting down a smirk. "Hmmm…"

"When will you be fetching it?" the sword asked, curiously.

Link shrugged, glancing around at the crew, who were all giving him a wide breadth and avoiding eye contact. "Most likely tonight at some point."

"Eh? I thought you'd have a better plan than that," Derf drooped.

The blond Hylian snorted in amusement, "I'm not even sure of what all needs to be done here. Have to scout for more information first."

"Oh?"

"Hmmm… yes, now hush." Link murmured as he spotted a brave looking soldier – in that he'd made eye contact and didn't seem anymore put off by an 'elf' than the Archbishop. The fact that the soldier was flanked by a dragon was also fortuitous.

Link approached the auburn haired soldier, an easy smile on his face, and attempted to look as harmless as possible.

"Hello," he greeted the other.

The soldier eyed him warily, and then nodded, "Greetings, sir elf."

"How goes it?" Link asked, casually.

The soldier tensed momentarily, and then relaxed and nodded off towards Newcastle. "We're preparing another bombardment."

"Ah…" Link tipped his head, questioningly.

The dragon's rider flushed slightly, cleared his throat and explained, "We take a shot or two with the cannon at Newcastle every so often. Keeps them aware of our presence, and their inevitable defeat."

Link nodded, smiling, "I see! May I?" He gestured at the railing behind the soldier.

With a glanced over his shoulder, the auburn-haired soldier nodded, standing aside. The dragon, however, only moved to lower its head to inspect Link. It's nostrils flared as it cocked its head, studying him.

'This one seems strange for a human,' it mused aloud.

Link ducked his head briefly to hide his smile as he passed by the dragon and stood at the railing. He took in the view below for a few minutes before a thunderous bang nearly deafened him. Link grimaced as the castle wall was struck by the cannonball, a small fire springing forth from the wreckage. He tightened his grip on the rail as the shockwave from the impact shook through the Lexington.

Link leaned forward, eyes sweeping across the area. A movement beyond the clouds caught his attention. He squinted, pondering about using his Hawkeye, when the soldier behind him piped up, "A good shot, eh? Another one like that and the ground troops will be able to just stroll into Newcastle tomorrow!"

Link glanced over his shoulder, peering at the soldier from beneath his blond fringe, "Tell me, why are you overthrowing your king?" He didn't understand these rebels' motives. Zant had been motivated by his misguided ideals and greed – what drove the Reconquista?

The soldier favored Link with a wary, but curious look and replied, "… We wish to unite all of Halkeginia. To do that the monarchies of each country must be overthrown. We start here, in Albion where the Reconquista was born. Then, once we have control over this land, we'll go forth." The soldier considered this for a moment, before continuing, "Possibly to Tristain and establish a foothold on the mainland there. After that, we'll keep going until there is only a single country – Halkeginia."

Link stared at him, "That's…" words failed him, "… is that … your only goal?"

"No," the soldier nixed, "but I cannot speak of it any further with you. Our main intention, which I have just told you, has been announced already. Other goals are not for you or anyone else to know."

Link turned away and looked up at the sky; it was all so much like the Usurping of the Twilight Realm. His course was set then, he would have to make a pre-emptive strike. His little one was terribly fond of Princess Henrietta, who'd made it clear that Tristain was in no position to take on these rebels. Link breathed steadily as his mind whirled, piecing together a plan. At the very least, he would try to buy Tristain some time to pull together their defenses. Louise would be safer this way – happier too, if Princess Henrietta came out of this brewing conflict alive and well.

"This ship," Link began, not looking at the soldier, "it's the strongest of your fleet, correct?"

"Yes…," the soldier drawled, bemusedly, "why?"

Link shrugged carelessly, "It's not very impressive, is all." He grinned at the soldier's indignant noise before continuing, "anyway, I'll be taking command of your dragon," Link turned around to see the soldier's face go from bright red to sickly pale white. He bared his teeth, feral blue eyes glinting, "He'll be part of my new flight."

The soldier staggered back a few steps before turning and fleeing beneath deck.

Link watched the soldier's retreat and when he was out of sight, turned to the dragon. "Hello. Think I'm a strange one do you? That's fine."

The dragon reared back in surprise at being openly addressed in such a manner.

Link grinned, "Tell me, where are the other dragons?"

A short while later, Link was making his way down the depths of the ship. Hallways cleared quickly as people retreated at his approach, and doors were shut and even barred in a few cases.

If Link weren't preparing to kill these people, he might have been bothered to care. As it was, he was quite pleased that they stayed out of his way, allowing him to set up his attack unhindered. After all, sabotage wasn't his usual thing so anything that lessened his chances of discovery was a welcome boon from the goddesses.

It didn't take much exploring to locate the wind stones supporting the ship. The ceiling of the bottom-most room had dozens of them tightly secured to the rafters. Link tipped his head, studying them. For his plan to work, the ship would have to lose at least a full third on one side.

"Hmmmm…" Link looked around, and finding nothing that would help, he left the wind stone room to explore the rest of the ship.

Several hallways later, Link had found the cargo bay. He was pleased to find that it was filled with arms, ammunition, and – what he was interested in – barrels full of explosive powder, the staple of bombs worlds over.

Link worked quickly, scouting the halls before and after he moved each barrel he needed. Soon enough, the wind stone room became the cargo holder of a good half dozen barrels.

Using a large axe that he'd also generously liberated for his personal use, Link began to hack away at a far wall as quickly as he dared. Eventually, one of Link's swings faltered as his vision began distorting again. Briefly, through his right eye, Link could see Wardes and another priestly-garbed man. He watched, pensiveness giving way out fury and outrage as Louise was placed under a mind control spell. Both men would answer for this, Link fumed, clenching his fist angrily around the axe handle. Wardes he would definitely meet again – the other, Link made a note to keep an eye out for that particular priest. Snarling, Link hacked more forcefully at the wall – and managed to breach the outer hull of the Lexington.

Breathing deeply, Link tossed aside the axe and pried at the broken planks to widen the small gap. Link shoved the white rag he'd been using to polish Derflinger through the hole, and fixed portions of it to the broken planks while the rest dangled freely outside of the hull.

Link carefully positioned them in a stack near the hull and hauled himself up to the rafters. Over Derflinger's grumbles, Link sliced gingerly through the ropes securing the wind stones. Once he determined that enough ropes were damaged, Link made his way back down the barrel stack and pulled several bombs from his bag.

Link carefully squeezed the unlit bombs between the barrels and the hull. Then he pulled out a few more and placed them on the tops of barrels. Link shoved the stack of barrels as close to the hull as he could get it.

That done, Link eased out of the wind stone room and jammed the door's lock after closing it firmly. If anyone attempted to enter the room, they'd either have to be able to unjam the lock or break down the door.

As Link made his way back up the stairs, he decided to pay the archbishop. It was as good a time as any to get that Holy Book … and find out about mind control spells. Link growled softly, thinking about that.

Stalking through the hallways, expression dark with anger, Link eventually found Archbishop Matthias' room.

Schooling his expression into a polite smile, Link rapped loudly on the archbishop's door.

Matthias eased open the door, a look of surprise etched on his features. "Er… sir elf?"

Link tipped his head, "May I come in, Archbishop?"

From the look of dread that momentarily passed over the other man's face, Link may as well have uttered a dire threat. But Matthias muttered an agreement and stepped back, allowing Link to enter his room.

It was lavishly decorated, more so than the commander's quarters, with finely carved furniture and carpets. Link crossed the room, skimming for any tome that might look like a Holy Book, came up with nothing, and settled himself into the chair behind Matthias' desk. Link leaned back, crossing his ankles, and looked up at the archbishop.

"In regards to my mission," Link began without preamble, "I've become aware that another of your station has placed the girl under a mind control spell. I – "

"How could you possibly know that?" Matthias sputtered, cutting Link off.

The Hylian grinned enigmatically, declining to answer.

The archbishop rapidly reached his own conclusion, muttering, "Firstborn magic… of course."

Link tipped his head, "As I was saying, is there any risk of the girl waking up from this spell?"

"No…," the archbishop paused, and then shook his head, "no, perhaps there is. A sufficient shock to her mind would break the spell, if she were strong enough. Seeing you during the retrieval could most likely accomplish that."

Link tapped his chin, perhaps… Good mood restored, he sat up, "One last thing before I go."

The archbishop blinked at him, "Yes?"

"Where is the Founder's Holy Book?" Link asked bluntly.

Matthias' jaw dropped, a look of horror crossing his face, "H-how…?"

Link gave him an even look, "Does that matter?" He leaned forward, keeping eye contact with the archbishop. "So tell me, where is it?"

The other man swallowed hard as his gaze flinted nervously to his bed… no, the nightstand next to his bed. "I… y-you…" he sputtered incoherently.

Link grinned, standing up. "Over here then?" he asked, walking over to the nightstand. Link tugged at the drawer, finding it locked. He glanced over his shoulder at Matthias, who seemed frozen on the spot, "Key?"

The archbishop made no reply, nor did he attempt to move. He simply gazed off into space, transfixed and pale with horror by whatever he found there.

Link shrugged and walked over to the man. Carefully, he pat the archbishop down, locating several keys in one pocket and another on a golden chain around his neck, hidden beneath the priestly robes.

Keys in hand, Link strode back over to the nightstand and tried each. He found it amusing that the one that unlocked the drawer was a small, unassuming key he'd pulled from the man's pocket. Link slid open the drawer, eyeing the heavy and aged tome inside with pleasure. He quickly pocketed it in his pouch before turning back to the archbishop.

End Flashback

Link paused in his story.

Louise frowned up at him, "You stole a spell book belonging to the Founder?"

Link shrugged and nodded, "They were going to give it to you anyway," he reasoned, "I just thought it'd be easier to bring the book to you than you to the book."

Louise punched his shoulder, muttering, "Stupid dog with your stupid jokes."

Link grinned at her, "I try, little one."

Louise scoffed before looking away, "What happened then?"

"Well," Link mused, looking up at the sky, "after making sure that the archbishop couldn't interfere…"

Flashback

Link left the room, closing the door firmly shut behind himself. Going through the keys, Link located the one for the door and locked it. Hopefully, at this late hour, no one would come looking for the archbishop. And if so… hopefully they'd assume that the archbishop was deeply asleep when they knocked at the door.

Link sighed.

"Problem partner?" Derflinger asked.

Link shook his head, "I'm really not cut out for this sort of thing. It's more of a Sheikah thing – but, for my Queen's sake, I learned what I could from the Hidden Village." He explained ruefully. "Pity that there are no Sheikah available here."

"I dunno, Partner, it looks like you're doing well enough to me." Derf observed.

Link shook his head again, "Looks. Yes, it does." Too much was being left to chance for his own comfort but it wasn't as though he had many options.

"All that's left now are the dragons," he muttered and made his way up to the deck.

Exiting onto the deck, Link spotted the dragon he'd spoken with earlier. He approached the large dragon, who bent its head down, piercing him with a steady gaze.

"Did you do as I asked?" Link muttered softly.

'Yes.' The dragon rumbled as quietly as it could. 'The others will be here when the moons have passed their peek.'

"Good, good." Link stretched, yawning. "Until then, I will sleep. Wake me when they arrive."

The dragon rumbled in agreement, shuffling aside as Link lay against the coil of rope by the rail. He quickly drifted off.

When Link awakened, it was to the rude shove of a dragon's snout. He glared irritably at the dragon responsible, and then stood, brushing himself off.

Glancing around, Link noted the flight of dragons circling and swooping around the Lexington. He stretched, looking back up at the large dragon, "Everyone ready?"

The dragon nodded and lowered itself to the deck so that the Windalfr could mount.

Mounting the winged beast quickly, Link shuffled through his pouch, pulling out his bow and securing it to the saddle before kicking off, sending the dragon soaring through the air.

Link guided the dragon flight to the underside of the Lexington's hull. He pulled his Hawkeye mask out of his pouch and swiftly donned it. Scanning the underside of the hull, Link spotted the white rag flapping in the breeze. Grinning, the Hylian drew a bomb arrow, notching it and letting it fly.

The arrow struck the white rag, exploding on impact and setting off a far more powerful explosion that blasted nearly one fourth of the hull open. The Lexington tipped from the force of the explosion, the wind stones within, no longer secured, floated out through the hole and into the sky.

Link pressed his will upon the dragon flight, their eyes flaring briefly with emerald light before executing his unspoken command. The dragons built up speed and then rammed into the Lexington, tipping it further and freeing more wind stones. As they withdrew, clearing the area, the warship rocked back the other way as it sank lower in the sky.

Another command, and the dragons swooped down upon the Lexington, breathing flames as they passed the sails, portholes, and the undamaged side of the hull. Link notched another bomb arrow, releasing it to fly into the wheel, blasting it apart and injuring the first mate. He watched as soldiers attempted to ready the cannons to fire upon the flight, only to be thrown to the deck as the dragons circled back around and rammed the Lexington as it again rocked to the side; tipping it further to again release more wind stones as the flames engulfed the warship more quickly.

As the flaming ship began to plummet to the ground more rapidly, Link signaled the dragons away. He pulled off the Hawkeye, returning it and his bow to his pouch. He turned the flight towards Newcastle, just as his vision began to distort once more. Through Louise's eyes, he could see that she was in a chapel, a finely dressed blond man stood before her… marrying her to Wardes!

Link snarled and urged his dragon to fly faster. Soaring over the city walls and around it's rooftops, Link spotted the chapel. He signaled the flight to land. The dragons obediently followed his command, landing in the streets and on the buildings surrounding the chapel doors.

Link slid off his dragon, absently noting the rushing of soldiers. He ignored them, leaving the dragons to hold the soldiers off.

Link flung open the chapel doors, unmindful of the shocked looks of the occupants. He locked eyes with Wardes and glared at the magic knight before sharply glancing at Louise. He noted that his little one still looked out of it.

Link bared his teeth in a wolf-like fashion, knowing exactly what to say to snap Louise out of the spell, "I am here on behalf of the Reconquista to take the void mage!"

End Flashback

"So that's it then…" Louise muttered. She looked up at her familiar, "Do you really think that the Reconquista will be delayed by the loss of one ship?"

Link glanced away, thinking of the soldiers that had died on board… and those he'd spotted camped on the ground with his Hawkeye. The logic of camping underneath a warship escaped him… didn't they even consider that the ship might fall out of the sky?

He nodded, looking back at Louise, "Yes… they have sustained a heavy causality. Though they were ultimately victorious over Newcastle, they've lost too much to move swiftly against Tristain."

Louise lowered her eyes, studying the ground, "I… have much to report to Her Highness it seems." She fidgeted with the Wind Ruby.

Link tipped his head, "And are you alright, little one?"

Louise turned away, frowning, "I'm fine."

Before her familiar could say anything further, the ground rose up beneath her feet. Link sprang to his feet, drawing Derflinger and a furry brown head popped out of the ground, smashing against the stone bench. The creature, Verdandi, cried in pain and disappeared back underground.

Link sheathed his sword and nudged Louise out of the way as he peered down into the hole, "Verdandi?"

Louise peeked past her familiar and her eyebrows rose in surprise as, not Verdandi, but Guiche peeked back at them. The blond eyed the stone bench and carefully eased out of the hole to avoid hitting it like the mole had.

"Guiche! How did you get here?" Louise demanded.

Then, right behind Guiche, Kirche popped out, also taking care to avoid the bench as she replied on Guiche's behalf. "Tabitha's Sylphid." The red-haired girl blinked as she spotted Louise's familiar. "Is that…?" she trailed off, and then squealed, "My Beloved! The Founder has truly blessed us! That I might share my passion with such a beautiful elfin warrior!" Kirche latched onto Link's arm.

Link narrowed his eyes, and then looked pointedly away at Guiche.

Louise reddened, "Kirche!"

Guiche ignored the girls' antics as he explained, "We reached Albion successfully, but since it's a foreign country we didn't know where to go. But then, Verdandi started digging a hole all of sudden, so we followed her."

Meanwhile the huge mole had gingerly emerged from the ground and was pressing his nose to the 'Ruby of Water' that was shining on the oblivious Louise's finger.

Guiche nodded in satisfaction, continuing his explanation, "Indeed. She followed the smell of the ruby, and started digging a tunnel to here. My cute Verdandi, because of her love for jewels she was able to follow from La Rochelle and dug a hole to get here. "

"What?" Kirche looked up at Louise, then took in her surroundings, "Well I do not understand this at all, why are you in the middle of nowhere?" Kirche asked, eyeing Louise's shirt, "and why are you so poorly dressed Louise?"

Louise worked her jaw, pointing at the red-haired girl. "T-that's none of your concern!"

Kirche gasped, putting one hand over her mouth and staring at Louise with wide eyes before turning them on Link.

Guiche looked equally startled, bringing his rose to his lips and averting his eyes as his cheeks flushed.

Louise went bright red, glaring at the other two nobles before turning her angry and tearing red eyes on her familiar.

Link straightened, disengaging from Kirche, "Why don't you go get dressed, little one? I'll… speak with these two in the mean time."

Louise huffed, sniffled and turned heel. She crossed the clearing and pulled her clothes off the line that Link had draped them over. Bundling them in her arms, she headed into the tent, and making sure that the flap was firmly closed, she dressed and stuffed her letters into her pocket.

Emerging, and feeling a small bit calmer, Louise eyed Kirche and Guiche who where looking thoroughly chastened.

Approaching, Louise asked the pair, "How where you planning on getting off Albion?"

Guiche looked up, "Verdandi was to dig right down to the bottom of Albion… Tabitha and her familiar are waiting down there to catch us and fly back home."

Link shrugged, "If it's all the same… I'd rather just use my dragons." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder at said beasts.

Kirche nodded, "Of course, darling. It is a better plan after all."

Link exhaled and then drew his cloak from his pouch and donned it, covering his features once more.

"Beloved!" Kirche reprimanded, "There is no need to hide such beauty! You –"

"Enough!" Louise barked, giving the other girl a stern look. "We don't want to cause any panics… anyway, now's a good time to go." She turned to Link who was already signaling down two of the dragons – the large leader dragon and the smaller packdragon.

Louise and Link mounted up on the leader dragon, same as before but with Kirche clinging to Link's back. Guiche mounted the packdragon, who lifted the large mole in its forearms as it spread its wings in preparation for takeoff.

The mole let out a protesting cry at this.

"Please try to be patient, my cute Verdandi." Guiche called down to his familiar, "Bear with it until we land in Tristain."

With powerful wing strokes, the dragons soared across the island, and as they flew into the white mist, another dragon – Sylphid joined them, matching strides with the leader dragon. From her familiar's back, Tabitha raised her hand in acknowledgement and Louise waved back. Shortly, the trio had broken through the surrounding clouds and changed their flight direction towards the Royal Palace of Tristain.

Louise glanced behind them, over the shoulder of her familiar as the Albion continent disappeared. She sighed, wondering how she was going to explain the mission's events to her princess.

Omake by Master of Squirrel-Fu

Omake 14

Lousie was happy. It was only natural since she was about to achieve sweet vengence on her rebelious Familiar. Oh he kept calling her a little sister she would give him one. Sure it was degrading to borrow the outfit she was wearing from the maid but it would be worth it and she would have nothing less than perfection on her endevour. And so she aproucher her sleeping familiar, looks like he forgot to change into wolf form how convenient. She gave him a gentle nudge.

"!" Link was none to gently brought back to the world of the living by a human missle he only just relized was his master. Wait what was she wearing? Were those bloomers?

"Big brother, it's time to wake up! Mou, if you don't hurry, you're going to be late!" she leaned forward sternly, shaking a finger at him as she scolded him for his imaginary transgression. "You won't have time for breakfast if you keep lying about! Tee hee!"

Louise was a bit surprised by the amount of blood that had exited her familiars nose.

Omake 15

On the ship to Albion

Louise: Oh god pirates!
Link: ...
Louise: What are ninja and why are they better than pirates?
*Elsewhere*
Tabitha: Dread Pirate Roberts.
Kirche: *Fireballs bad guy* What was that Tabitha? I couldn't hear you.
Tabitha: Pirate-Ninja.
Guiche: Now that's just silly.
*back at the plot*
Wardes: We're going to be boarded. Drat and so close to our goal that we can see it.
Link: !
Louise: Link how would a chicken help us in this situation?

Omake 16

Rescue after Wales dies

Tabitha: *pops out of ground*
Louise: Gah! Oh, Tabitha you surprised me, what are you doing here?
Tabihta: The Galian Inquisition.
Kirche: Nobody expects the Galian Inquisition, our cheif weapon is surprise!
Tabitha: Surprise and fear.

Omake 17

Wild WARDES has apeared
Louise sent out LINK
WARDES used slash
LINK used Counter
Foe WARDES has fainted.

Omake 18

Link: !
Wardes: Yes, how very perceptive of you to relize, your master is under my control now, nothing can break her out of it.
Link: ... ! *Pushs vase of table*
*Crash*
Louise: Damn it Link I do you know how much money that's gonna cost!

Omake 19

Louise: Link, you told me you could win this easy and quick.

Link: ...

Louise: No excuses! TEll me why none of your arrows go more than 5 feet before hitting the ground!

Link: ... *blush*

Louise: What do you mean 'charging your smash attack"! What kind of archer needs to charge to fire? Hell why aren't you doing that?

Link: ... *pout* !

*BOOM*

Louise: Oh, don't look so smug.

(a smash bros. refference if you don't get it)

Omake 20

Louise: So take the ring.

Link: ...

Louise: I don't care if you're eating! Take the ring you idiot!

Link: !

Louise: *lungs at link and tries to force ring on his hand* Take it! Take it and answer me dammit!

Kirche: Oh my! Louise I didn't know you were so forceful, though isn't it the man who proposes?

Tabitha: ...Trap?

Omake 21

Louise: You made me do this!

Link: ?

Louise: Nii-chan~ please tell Louise Louise what it does Louise asks trying to butter you up.

Link: !

Louise: Meany! Nii-chan why won't you show Louise what your ring does, Mou~ *eyes water*

Link: ! *grips heart*

Louise: *pout* Fine, i-it's not link i want to know what baka Nii-chans ring does, I was just curious is all baka, tsuuun~

Link: ! *nose explodes* *drops to ground*

Louise: Maybe that last one was a little over kill.

Kirche: *holding Tabithas limp body* I would agree.

Tabitha: *blood dripping from her smiling face* Moe...

Omake 22

Louise: N-no… he, um, mistook my suggestion to sleep for … something else

Link: ...

*in wardes room*

Wardes: *reading Lolita* Oh Nobokov, how I love your work...

Link: *burst through door* !

Wardes: Wah! F-Familiar, no, this isn't what it looks like! I was just scratching an itch I swear!

Link: ... *pulls derf and closes door*

*downstares*

Wardes[off screen]: *muffled* No! I need that fro the Honeymoon!

Kirche: So Louise, between a bearded old lolicon and an overprotective siscon which would you perfer.

Tabitha: *puts arm over Louise* Nee-chan.

Louise: *banging head against table* Why couldn't have gotten a more normal familiar, like an Alien, robot, or shapeshifter.

Omake 23

Faster than a ryhm dragon, more powerful than a jormungand, able to leap to Albion in a single bound. It's Super Wardes!

Omake 24

Forquette: I got you now!

Link: ... *pulls out staff of doink*

Doink!

Forquette: Curses! Who could have guessed that using the exact same plan again would fail!

Omake 25

Fouquet: Hello down there!

Louise: What are you doing here, how did you get out of jail!

Forquet: With the help of this gentleman...

Masked man: I will demolish the present world and build a new and better one in its place. I. AM. Zero!

Link: ... *smirk*

Louise: Don't you dare say a word Link...

Omake 26

Louise: Wardes where are we going the ship is that way!

Wardes: Forgive me but we must make a detour to that unmarked carrage over yonder that just so happens to be filled with candy.

Omake 27

Wales: Oh, I am sorry. As a noble I should properly introduce myself as well. The name is Tudor, Captain Wales Tudor.

*Later*

Wardes: Hya! *stabes at Wales*

Wales: Aha! Nice try, you will forever remember this day as the day you almost killed Wales Tudor.

Omake 28

Wardes: Now tht you are under my control there is something I've been wanting to do for quite a while!

Louise: *thinking* no, I know that look, he can't possibly be thinking... Oh god he is!

Wardes: *pulls out swimesuit, cat ears, and sailor top* Put this on, and remember to call me onii-chan~3

Omake 29

Beldandy: Ara... *smile*

Link: ?

Louise: Guiche... Who is that?

Guiche: Why it's my beautiful familiar Belldandy of course!

Louise: First, you summoned a mole, second I thought the name was Verdandi

Kirche: Yeah, I asked that too but Tabitha just said 'Subs are superior" and somthing about cannons.

Omake 30

Forquett: I've got you now Louise!

Beldandy: That's no good, could you please let her down miss Matilda. *smile*

Louise: What makes you think that will w-

Forquet: Yes, of couse! *releases Louise & Link*

Louise: WTF! what just happened.

Link: ...

Tabitha: *nods*

Forquet: I am no t a bigsiscon!