Din waited patiently for Lucien to return to their meeting place. It had only been two days, and just one night, since that horrible event. The first day she had missed him terribly because of the heartache and loneliness. During the second day, those feelings slowly subsided, and all she wanted was to bring peace to the fighting, and return life to the way it was. Even though she had not been loved by a boy, her family had been happy, and her way of life perfect. Her ingenious plan played out flawlessly in her mind, but the first person she needed to convince was Lucien.
He returned at last to their tree, and they immediately hugged. Din felt such relief at knowing he was well, but she had to remember her purpose for being there.
"I am so glad you're safe," Lucien said, squeezing her shoulders after several minutes of simply holding her. "I was afraid I would never see you again. Are you safe?"
"Yes, I'm more than fine, actually."
"Are you ready to explore the world with me?"
Din was glad to feel his strong arms around her again, and she wanted it to last forever. "That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about," she confessed, taking a short step back. "I've already seen the world, and I love it the way it is. My mom took me out when I was younger, I just forgot how close we used to be."
"Then you already know why I must fulfill my destiny," Lucien told her.
"I disagree. The world is beautiful."
"Din, I can't let Ganondorf continue his evil reign. He hunts for me this minute, and has slaughtered innocent people in the process," Lucien said persuasively.
She took his leather-gloved hands, and looked from them up to his gorgeous blue eyes. "Lucien, I just want to be happy, and I'm happy with you. I want to ask you to give the Triforce of Courage to Dad, and you and I can run away together."
"I can't do that," he responded, sweeping her red hair behind her ear. "I would never escape the guilt at leaving these poor people to suffer. I need to bring them peace, and I'm the only one who can."
"The world is at peace!"
"The world is full of darkness and corruption. Monsters roam the earth, fueled by Ganondorf's evil. Your father is a killer, and has slaughtered hundreds of people in his life. I must bring his tyranny to an end, once and for all."
"My father has only ever done what was necessary for his people, people like me."
"You mean the Gerudo?" Lucien asked, trying to remain neutral.
"Yes, and do you have any idea what happened to them?" Din questioned harshly.
Lucien turned his apologetic gaze to the ground. "I do. I have seen it in my dreams. That was over a hundred years ago, and he has no right to be king here. He stole that throne by killing the true princess."
Din's anger flared in her eyes. "Do you expect me to stand idle while you kill my family?"
His expression was of hurt, and he had no idea what to say.
"You're just as bad as my father, ready to throw everything away, throw me away, for some supposed foretold destiny," Din said with ridicule. "What you should be thinking about is what is right for Hyrule, and that is ceasing this cycle of hate."
"I won't surrender," Lucien said sternly. "I won't let the people of Hyrule endure Ganondorf's evil any longer. Most of all, I won't let him hurt you again."
"As much as it hurts me to say this, Lucien, you and I obviously have different perspectives on how Hyrule should be governed. I cannot choose your side any longer. It would be regrettable to see you die, but you are forcing me to choose, and I will choose my family."
He quickly placed his finger against her lips. His tall ears perked at the delicate sound of shifting leaves, accented by the sharp crack of snapping branches. The footsteps were heavy and approached slowly. "Moblins," he breathed softly.
"They must have found I was gone from the castle," Din whispered.
"I have to go," Lucien said in melancholy.
"Good bye, Lucien. For your sake, I hope I never see you again," Din said, tears leaking from her eyes.
He kissed her soft cheek one last time, before ejecting his hook shot to disappear from sight. The moment he was gone, Dora broke through the tree line and into the clearing, to find her daughter standing there with her hand on her face. They locked their identical yellow eyes.
"Lucien was here," Dora stated.
Din only nodded, and then she broke down to tears again. Her mother rushed forward to hold her in her arms protectively. Between her sobs, Din explained, "I thought I could convince him to give up the Triforce of Courage to end all this fighting. He won't though. He thinks he can protect Hyrule, but I'm afraid he will only end up dead."
Dora glared at the moblins that finally caught up to her and ordered, "Return to the castle. Inform Ganondorf that Lucien is bound to his destiny and will return to the castle soon, and that Din is safe." They obediently turned around and left. Dora placed her hand on the back of Din's head and held her until she stopped crying.
"I'm so sorry. Dad was right. I hate when he's right."
Dora chuckled, trying to stay strong for her heartbroken daughter. "I hate when he's right too. But hey, listen to me. Lucien might have been attractive, courageous, and kind," she said, and tried not to gag, "and those traits might have made him perfect, but not perfect for you. Next time, you'll judge a man with your mind and soul, not just your gullible heart."
Din could only nod. "I still wish he would not have to give his life. If he just ran away, at least I would know he was alive and well, living his own life happily."
"The Triforce can only be taken in one of two ways, forfeiting it willingly, or death. Without the Triforce, Ganondorf can't make his wish to prevent the hero from returning. Lucien has chosen, so his fate is sealed," Dora confirmed.
"I understand," Din sniffed. "Until this whole argument, I had forgotten how close we were. I mean, I was always closer to Dad, but we always had fun too."
"I also gave you your beauty and ruthless nature, you just haven't matured into the latter yet."
"Oh, but we have glimpsed it during our almost hour long trainings," she countered, and they laughed. In the following silence, Din said, "Look at this." She moved to the trunk of the large tree, and pointed out the carving.
In the light of the moon, Dora could only just make out the names inscribed within the heart. She unsheathed her sword and held out the hilt to her daughter. "I want you to scratch it out, as a symbol that you will never go back to him."
She accepted the sword hesitantly. Her fingers flexed around the hilt while she mentally prepared to eradicate her emotions. Din raised the sword high, and hacked the tree twice to cross out the heart. It felt so good to let our her frustration, she kept slicing until Dora grabbed her arm to stop her and took her sword back. "Thank you, I feel much better," Din admitted, surprised.
"Good. Now, since you were locked up in your room, and I'm only telling you this so you don't get a shock when we arrive home, your father blamed me for everything and removed my title of queen."
"What?" Din shrieked.
"He even took the Triforce of Wisdom. I was heartbroken at first, of course. In a way, I believe this was a necessary wake up call. I am not the warrior I was, so I can understand why he feels the way he does. Motherhood consumes you, from conception until the moment your child spreads her wings to fly on her own. I enjoyed every moment, even this one. The last two days of training so many groups of soldiers and monsters, I rediscovered a part of myself that I lost. I believe all of this happened for a reason, intended by the goddesses to tear us apart, but we will be stronger in the end. In discovering myself, Ganondorf will rediscover why we fell in love."
Din shuddered. "I love you, Mom, and I hope that is the case, but that's gross."
"And you think trying to pretend like I believe Lucien is handsome was easy? Not a bit, I did it because I love you."
"I think I'm beginning to understand."
Dora led Din away from the tree to traverse the forest. Their journey back would lead them to the sacred grove, instead of through town. "Your father allowed his heart to blind him once," Dora stated with a distant voice.
Din was surprised. "Really? I couldn't even imagine."
"Oh, yes, but you can't tell him I told you, or that you even know, understand?" Her daughter nodded acknowledgement. "If you recall her from your dreams, her name was Nabooru. He valued her so highly she was made second in command. We all saw how she whispered lies in his ear and seduced him. I saw what he could not, and that was that she actually hated him for being a power hungry killer. Like any crafty Gerudo at the time, she used deception and sex to get exactly what she wanted. I reported to your father time and time again of her true intentions, but he always kept going back to her. It wasn't until he invaded the sacred realm that he realized she was a traitor. The call of the sage beckoned her, so she leapt at the chance to kill him, and failed."
"Oh, wow," Din said sadly. "That's awful."
"It would be wise to take his advice, since it's from experience," Dora said, leading her up the hill toward the sacred grove.
"I had no idea."
"It was almost two hundred years ago. I'm sure he hasn't forgotten, but I bet he likes to pretend it never happened."
"If he thought he loved her, then how did he marry you?" Din asked curiously, trying to keep up the pace with her mom.
Dora approached the sacred grove. The gate was gone, and it was just a small overgrown yard, but she easily found the remains of the stone that once imprisoned her and Ganondorf. A tear rolled from her eye, and her throat tightened. She recalled the tender moment they were entombed together as if it happened yesterday. "Well, once he learned Nabooru had betrayed him, he must have evaluated his situation. I have always been the general for his army, being the best warrior and thief in the Gerudo at the time. I was always at his side, because he kept me there and I didn't want to be anywhere else. Any task or mission he needed completed in secret, or when failure was not an option, I was summoned. He could always trust and rely on me. We plotted the siege of Hyrule together, and executed our plan perfectly. For his intellect, I have action. For my emotional irrationality, he has shown me wisdom. For every weakness, we can find strength in each other. For that reason he believed I was an important asset to obtaining the Triforce. He doesn't possess it yet, therefore he doubts his decision to marry."
"Mom, are you crying?" Din asked, trying not to laugh.
"Hey, I just listened to you cry for ten minutes. I'm just sniffling."
Din laughed and kindly hugged her mom. "This will be just between you and me."
Dora returned the hug and smiled. "I know I talk a lot, but I hope you understand my point."
"I do. Thank you."