AN: NEW CHAPTER! NEW ARC! NEW ADVENTURES IN THE LAND OF HYRULE! WELCOME back to the fic that I, Override, have been writing for far too long! This is the newest Arc, the Servant Arc! This Arc will have its own baddies, plots, and other things that will tie into other Arc, but is more focusing on life Post-Rhoam-Death in a new era of Hyrule with Zelda as the Princess, and Harry as many other things.
Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, Harry would have the same curse as Ranma 1/2. As he doesn't, it is clear I don't own it. You're welcome JKR!
Disclaimer 2: I don't own the indescribably greatest game series of all time that is The Legend of Zelda.
Disclaimer 3: I don't own any story or literature that features Percy Jackson. But I am Greek so that must mean I'm Percy's cousin. ΟΠΑ!
Key:
"Speaking in Mundane (when in front of a human) or speaking Hylian (when Humans are out of earshot)."
"Speaking Hylian in the presence of Human Characters (e.g., Percy, Malfoy etc.)"
/Parseltongue or snake talking/
'Thoughts/Mind Speak'
/Snake Thoughts/
"Singing in Mundane and Hylian"
"Spell"
Beginning of The Servant Arc
Chapter 12:
Of Knowledge, Emotion, and Willpower.
Noon, Throne Room, Main Wing, Hyrule Castle,
Hyrule Proper, Mortal Realm
Harry knew that the Dark was all encompassing, just as much as Light was. There was an old saying known among the people, something quite popular with philosophers and magic practitioners who were Dark aligned: No matter how powerful Light believes it is, it always finds that Darkness has passed it, and is waiting for it. All practitioners knew how potent the Dark Alignment was when it came to raw power, but such power often lacked finesse, subtlety. But each alignment had their strengths and their weaknesses, and the ability to recognise and work with those strengths and weaknesses was something all practitioners learned early on. And due to magic being so intertwined with the lives of the people, these teachings were multifaceted.
Harry, the now Lord-heir of House Hyrule, along with his sister, the now Princess of Hyrule, had just finished holding court for the nobles of the Empire. This particular kind of court was only held rarely, typically when there is a mass conglomeration of said nobles. Today's court was the first held in a year, the first held by the Hyrule siblings and while a few of those present were respectful, a majority were not. The death of Rhoam lining up with Harry become a Hylian resulted in conspiracy theories among those who believed what the dissidents where whispering about in the shadows; that Harry was responsible for the death, and he was attempting to grab power by killing the members of the royal family, leaving him as the only possible heir. News of Harry's natural Dark Alignment had only helped to reinforce these theories.
It made those in the royal household, which included the workers and servants who actively spent time around Harry, incredibly angry. To think someone raised by Rhoam and trained by Impa could possibly be guilty of the crimes he was being accused of, the thought was absolute stupidity. Yet it was stupidity that was running rampant through the empire.
Harry and Zelda stood from their thrones in the newly rebuilt throne room and made their way out through a side door in silence. The room was massive, the largest and most opulent room in the castle, and was built in the heart of the mountain. Five thrones stood opposite the main double door entrance, each of them made of intricately carved white marble that bore the sigils of the five most important positions in the Kingdom: The Heir to the centre right, the Consort to the centre left, the Court Sorcerer to the far right, and the Court Wizard on the far left. The throne in the centre was taller than the others and had a blue carpet leading towards the red upholstered seat. Attached to the back of the throne, at the top, was a massive sculpture of the Triforce, surrounded by the Golden Goddesses and the Loftwing wings of the House Hyrule coat of arms. The side doors on the left and right side of the room lead to the east and west wings, while the main door lead south and, after a walk through some of the of the halls, to the entrance hall, great hall, and citadel entrance.
Guardians followed behind Zelda and Harry as they walked through the halls of the east wing on their way to the royal wing's dining room for lunch.
"Will anyone be joining us?" Harry asked curiously, breaking the silence.
"No, it will just be us. I felt like we needed some time to relax," Zelda said tiredly.
"Oh, thank Nayru."
"We will be hosting dinner with the Sovereigns, though."
"All of the Sovereigns?" Harry replied incredulously.
"All of the Sovereigns. They have been invited to the trial of Hilda's father, so it made sense for us to have them stay in the palace tonight and then join us in going to Lorule," Zelda explained.
"I have no idea how father delt with all this bureaucratic crap," Harry said, rolling his eyes.
"You think you have it bad? I am the one who has to deal with all the grovelling and ladder climbing. Everyone keeps trying to get in my good graces and keeps talking to me as if father never taught me how to rule. Alaric has been a god-send at taking care of any of the really annoying or suspicious ones. Oh, and by the way, watch your language," Zelda smiled.
The two had finally arrived at the dining room in the royal wing and saw that some fruits and cheeses had already been laid out. Nicholas was already present, the dutiful person he was, along with two of Zelda's maidservants. There were no guards of any kind in the room, but Harry knew that there would be Shades stationed outside, hidden in the shadows.
Zelda sat at the head of the table while Harry sat on her right. Nicholas and the maidservants walked to the table, pitchers in hand.
"Sire, you're looking positively spiffing today," Nicholas said, filling Harry's goblet with ale.
"I swear if you make any quips about my looks today, you'll be cleaning the stables," Harry said in a deadpan voice, "As it is, I've got training with Impa later and I'm already mentally exhausted."
"And then the dinner with the sovereigns," Zelda reminded, picking up a grape with her fork. Nicholas winced.
"Yeah, I don't envy either of you," He responded.
"You must be there, Nick. Not in an official capacity, but if I must go through all this pompous formality, so do you," Harry responded, smirking evilly.
"Oh, uh, I won't be able to make it," Nicholas said far too quickly.
"Oh really?" Harry asked deadpanned.
"Yeah, Melanie asked me to take her out to see the town," Nicholas said weakly. Harry looked at him in complete deadpan.
/Melanie, did you tell Nick that you wanted to go out and see the town?/ Harry hissed. Melanie, in her customary place around Harry, poked her head out of his collar.
/I could tell him that I have a stomach problem and he wouldn't be able to understand me./ Melanie responded. She then saw some ham that Harry had on his plate. /Are you going to eat that?/ She asked, already moving over to eat it without waiting for a response.
"You're right Melanie, Nick doesn't speak Parseltongue," Harry said, staring directly into Nicholas' eyes, his own red eyes squinting, "So, I guess that means he will have to attend after all, isn't that right?"
/Oh, this is chef's double smoked honey and mint julep ham, isn't it!/ Melanie responded giddily, completely ignoring Harry's question.
"My thoughts exactly," Harry stated smugly, and at Nicholas distraught look, he heard Zelda snigger through her food.
"So, I expect to see you dressed nice and proper for the Sovereign's dinner tonight," He finished, going back to his food.
The lunch was a pleasant affair for Harry, who now had many more duties to preform and thus had less time for himself. He and Zelda spoke about things other than affairs of state, the first time in a while, and for a fleeting moment, Harry felt as if things were back to how they used to be when Rhoam was alive.
Nevertheless, the lunch ended, and the pair parted ways; Zelda to her chambers, the chambers that were once Rhoam's, and Harry to the training field. The people he walked past nodded to him in respect, some asked him how his day was, and some, the servants and guards who worked in the castle but lived in the town, gave him looks of scathe and mistrust, very barely hidden but easily seen by Harry's practiced eyes.
Seeing these looks always tore him up inside. He did not blame himself for his father's death, but he was vehemently disappointed that the people could not accept the truth and instead believed the lies about him that were spreading fast throughout the Kingdom and to some parts of the Empire. He had realised that this hatred stemmed mainly from two peoples: the Humans who believed that he was attempting to usurp the throne or was attempting to steal Hylia's divine bloodline, and the Hylians who believed that, as he was born Human, it was sacrilege that he was ascended to become Hylian. Some Hylian's also believed the story that Cadmus Peverell had told him an age ago, that he was a spy from the Dark World sent by the current Demon King to usurp the throne and end Hylia's bloodline, thereby sending the Mortal Realm into the Dark World.
"They are fools, Skyling. I have never known someone to be as noble and pure hearted as you. One day, they will see what I see and they will know," Ghirahim said, interrupting Harry's thoughts.
'But you are with me all the time, you get to see me at my best and at my worst. The people do not get that privilege. They only see what they want to see and believe what they want to believe.' Harry said sullenly.
"But the people who are important to you know exactly what kind of person you are. They know your character. Let the riffraff make assumptions about your character by creating your reputation, but the opinion of the people closest to you are the only people that matter," Ghirahim said, causing Harry to smile.
Harry arrived at the training field soon after and saw Impa drilling some of the new recruits into the ground. As he walked closer to the group and Impa saw him, she called out for the cadets to halt and stand at attention. She then turned to him.
"Good afternoon, Sire. Today you will be practicing your archery," She said, walking over to a table with Harry's archery gear laid out on it, "Every Blood of Hylia is exceedingly capable with a bow and with you becoming a member of that particular group of people, we will need to step up your training in that skill set."
Harry nodded and grabbed the bow. He then ran is finger of the rune on his sleeve, changing his outfit to black leather archer's armor. While the default form of his Shimmer Silk is fantastic for fighting, with it being very light and unrestrictive, and elegant enough for consorting with high society, Harry always had the belief that he should be adept in all fighting conditions, including wearing a more restrictive armor. Knowing he would need to gain more skill in this form of martial fighting, he spoke with the bowyer that the castle had on retainer for tips on making his own bow. He then used those tips, combined with the woodworking skills he had developed through the Salesman's and Krosis' training, to create his own bow. It was a simple creation, one he was proud of. It did not have any of the typical runes he would put in his weapons to enhance it as he only made this one as a training bow. When he was older and had need of a stronger bow, he would create a masterpiece of it. He would also have to practice with one of House Hyrule's artifacts, the Bow of Light, as part of his new duties.
As Harry stepped up to the mark, Nicholas approached from the doors leading to the training field and ran over to Harry and picked up the quiver of arrows.
"Sorry I'm late, Sire. Problems in the kitchen," He spoke. Harry nodded in acceptance and then took aim.
Before he could lose, he heard the sound of metal hitting the stone pavement. He looked over towards the training recruits and saw that a couple of them had thrown their swords down and where in the process of removing their armor. Impa also noticed this.
"Cadet, what do you think you are doing?" She asked forcefully. Harry saw the recruit look towards him before answering.
"With respect Lady Impa, I refuse to train while he is here," The recruit answered, look of disgust still on his face. Impa's face became rageful.
"And pray tell, why do you refuse your training while your prince is here?" The cadet swallowed nervously but stood steadfast.
"He is not my prince. He is a bloodline thief, everyone knows it," The foolish cadet stated resolutely.
"I see. Does anyone else have the same beliefs? Step forward if you do," Impa asked the remaining recruits.
Harry watched as nineteen of the twenty-five recruits stepped forward. The remaining six peered at the others with looks of hostile disappointment. Impa simply snapped her fingers. In a blink, nineteen Shades were holding down the nineteen recruits.
"The lot of you are traitors to the Kingdom and to the Empire. Harrison is your prince and the heir to Zelda by High King Rhoam's decree. You sully his memory and his legacy by refusing to see Harrison as his son. My Shades will escort you to your homes, you are hereby dishonourably discharged from Hyrule's Soldier Corp. and its armed forces," Impa declared and in an instant, the Shades had disappeared along with the nineteen cadets.
"You six. You do not share the views of the others?" Impa asked curiously. This particular set of recruits were part of the same unit and it was not uncommon for people within the same unit to have known each other before joining. A female cadet stepped forward.
"Milady, while I cannot speak for the others, I was raised to judge people based on their merits alone, not rumour. Lord-heir Hyrule has only ever shown kindness to the people. If the rumours about him were true then we would have to assume that the once High King Rhoam was a bad judge of character, or that he was possessed by a Dark World demon for the last ten years and these are impossible situations. His majesty's personality never changed in the last ten years, and everyone knew he was a brilliant judge of character. Logically, that leads to only one result," The cadet looked towards Harry, "The Lord-heir was a Human child, adopted into House Hyrule, and using some kind of familial magic, was turned into a Hylian. He is a good person, someone deserving, or else whatever magics that was used would have killed him," She finished, bowing her head towards her prince.
Harry smiled and blushed at the compliment. The other five stepped forward and bowed towards Harry. They were clearly of the same mind as the cadet that spoke.
"You all show loyalty to the empire and to your prince," Impa stated, "This is the kind of loyalty that is expected in the Soldier Corp., but it's a necessity for the Guardian Corp. Continue to show such loyalty, and you may end up a member of that elite branch."
"Yes sir!" Saluted the cadets.
"Return to your training," Impa said, walking over to where Harry was standing with Nicholas, "What is your excuse for not continuing your training?"
Harry smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Impa."
"No thanks needed. They will learn, one day," The Sheikah replied. "Now, get back to your training. You are expected to see Lord Antioch for some training in runes before dinner."
Same Time, Royal Chambers, Royal Wing, Hyrule Castle
Hyrule Proper, Mortal Realm
Zelda was taught that surrounding herself with wise people was always smart, but surrounding herself with people wiser than her was smarter. As such, she had decided to keep her fathers' appointments as they were, but with one change.
The Grey Lord Alaric Angevin, Court Wizard of the Kingdom of Hyrule, was considered a wise and unbiased man. He was considered incredibly powerful both magically, for a Human, and politically. He had obtained the title of Grey Lord after the previous Lord, his mentor, died. He successfully passed the trials and the accompanying ritual, the final test for someone to become a Magic Lord, did not kill him and thus he was made the Grey Lord, the most powerful Grey magic alignment practitioner alive, and would hold the title until his death.
Grey magic was considered the pinnacle of neutrality. While the Light and the Dark fought with their naturally repelling attributes, Grey was sat perfectly in the middle, not being swayed to the divine justice and peace mongering ways of the Light or the divine vengeance and offensive tactics of the Dark. Naturally, this unbiased neutrality led to him being the mediator and negotiator of all kinds of deals and summits.
For these reasons, Zelda had asked Lord Angevin to join her in the office attached to her chambers.
"My father had many people around him that he could trust, people that he could rely on to give him sound advice. You have a reputation of being very good with words, but also the ability to stay quite neutral," She paused for a moment before continuing, "I need people to give me advice, and with your status as Grey Lord, I am offering you the position of Lord Chamberlin of Hyrule Castle. Along with your current duties, you are to use this new position to listen to the people and offer me relevant advice in matters of the state."
Alaric's eyes widened in surprise. "I see! You honour me, milady! I will of course accept the position. I would often times give some advice to your father, but he seldom listen to me, preferring the advice of the Sovereigns. But nevertheless, I shall strive to give you whatever you may require," He said with a bow of his head.
Zelda smiled, "I am sure you will, my Lord. Your first priority for the time being is to find out who is spreading the rumours and conspiracies about my brother. I have had enough of the vicious lies being spread and I wish for it to end promptly. We accomplish nothing by being a divided people."
"I agree, milady. We are stronger united," Alaric said with a smile. He then stood up, bowed, and left the room.
Zelda sighed as she slouched over the desk. Finally, she was alone and did not have to act all primp and proper. She stretched while staying seated before reaching over to a scroll that she had laid out. She opened it and read the title:
The Holy Ascension and Royal Coronation of Her Royal Highness Princess Zelda of House Hyrule, Fourth of her name.
The scroll was a glorified to-do list of things that needed to be done before her formal coronation that would make her the Princess, and her Holy Communion that would officially make her the High Priestess of the Threefold. She had expected that the events would have happened sooner, however protocols needed to be observed. In this case, time was given to allow any other claimants a chance to object to Zelda's ascension but considering the royal family rarely had more than one child, this waiting time was more of a formality if anything and a tradition of a bygone age at most.
Nevertheless, Zelda had a lot of organising to do for the coronation which was only two weeks away. She also had to organise the trip to Lorule for the trial and subsequent execution of the Lolian Emperor which was scheduled for a week from now. She knew that the trial that was happening was merely a formality as the emperor's crimes were extensive and well known, so a trial of this magnitude, which would normally take weeks, would only take an afternoon.
'The benefits of ruling a Kingdom instead of a democracy.' Zelda thought.
Putting down the scroll, she picked up a document that had a report detailing Harry's teachings as a Hylian. Naturally, he had excelled in the music lessons Zelda had set for him, as all Hylians have a natural proclivity for music and find it easy to learn instruments, and was well on his way to be a master at playing the ocarina. He would also be expected, as a Blood of Hylia, to learn how to play the Lyre, a handheld harp that the Goddess Hylia once owned and played. Harry had also expressed interest in learning how to play the violin, having a love for the soothing tones of the stringed instrument.
Harry was also progressing well in his Hylian magic training. Zelda had assigned Antioch to find a Hylian teacher that would teach Harry advanced magics, and he had begrudgingly come through. Harry's new teacher was a veteran of the Lolian war and really knew what he was doing. He would teach Harry when Zelda was not able to, due to her new duties. Regardless, Zelda was in split minds to know that Harry was not just rushing in and learning as much as possible as fast as possible, learning to master the magic he was being taught before moving on. This mentality slightly worried Zelda, as it seemed to be a carryover from when Harry was learning medical magic in an attempt to heal their father. Although it did not appear to be harmful, as it was always a good idea to learn before learn a spell thoroughly before moving on, the level of mastery Harry was striving for was uncommon for people his age.
Zelda sighed. She had better get ready for the dinner, and that meant having all the servants in place, the guest chambers prepped, and the food cooked. Foreign dignitaries deserved the best, and that meant lots of work.
Early Evening, Training Yard, Castle Barracks, Hyrule Castle,
Hyrule Proper, Silent Realm
Harry stood unmoving, glow-pulsing arm outreached towards a boulder, concentrating. The boulder was covered a spiderweb of cracks and as time went on, more cracks formed.
Ghirahim's shadowy form watched on, waiting. After Harry's lessons ended for the day, he had begun to feel the heat of his core and, after prepping for the dinner, decided to spend some time training in the Silent Realm. Harry had told Ghirahim that he wanted to practice his earth elemental manipulation. Ghirahim, having spent many, many, years ruling the Surface before Hylians settled it, was an expert in magics involving the offensive manipulation of earth. So, he had decided to teach Harry some of the more destructive spells that he knew.
The particular spell Harry was practicing was not really a spell pre say and was more akin to controlling the element of earth itself, similar in the way Harry practiced his water forms.
Harry gasped loudly as he dropped his hand, concentration being replaced with exhaustion.
"Keep going, Skyling. You will not master these skills if you stop when you get tired," He sighed, "The earth is stubborn, unyielding, and unmoving. You must endure and overcome the resistance earth magic will give you. There is no goddess you can pray to for power over this elemental aspect. No shortcuts."
Harry nodded while breathing heavily, "I know, it's just exhausting, Ghirahim!" He said petulantly.
Ghirahim laughed in response, "You just have to keep trying. Stop trying to control earth as if it was fire, I know that is what you are trying to do," The Demon Lord said with a knowing silhouette-y look, "Fire requires you to shape and warp the heat within the flame to intensify the heat or focus it into different forms, water requires you to flow with it, to manipulate its currents, while air has you embrace it fully, to give in to its power. You have always found fire easy, air simple, and water difficult, but earth seems to be exhausting you more than any Hylian magic that you have been practicing," Ghirahim paused in thought, moving to another wall. He started mumbling to himself, thinking out loud.
Harry's brow furrowed as he watched his friend think to himself, trying to follow the mumbling. Eventually, he got impatient, "I might have vastly superior hearing now but could you speak up please?"
"My apologies, I think I know what's wrong. You have not been taught the mind arts, have you? Occlumency and Legilimency?" Ghirahim asked.
"Not yet, Antioch pushed back me learning it until after the coronation," Harry responded.
"Well, there we go! You are struggling with earth manipulation because you cannot focus enough! Unless you overpower the spells, you will not be able to do earth manipulation efficiently, and efficiency is very much needed in your case, my dear Skyling. I do not want to die in a magical core explosion," Ghirahim finished with a pompous sniff, nose turned up.
Harry rolled his eyes in response, before taking a deep breath and then focusing on the boulder again, but this time, he decided to pump as much magic into the manipulation as possible. Almost instantly, the boulder fractured and imploded, becoming the size of a large stone. The unfortunate side effect of expelling that much magic into stubborn stone was the magical recoil that blew Harry off his feet and a few meters away. He landed on his back with a gasp. There were a few moments of silence before Ghirahim started laughing loudly while Harry just groaned.
"That was BEAUTIFUL, Skyling! S-So magnificent! I dare say y-you have no ne-haha need to improve!" He said between laughs.
"Ugh, shut up Ghirahim, it hurts!" Harry bemoaned. He stood up and walked over to the stone. He attempted to pick it up, but found it to be impossibly heavy. He looked towards Ghirahim in question, who had finally stopped laughing.
"You changed the density of the boulder. It might look like a rock now but it still weighs the same as the boulder. You would have to enhance your strength in order to lift it," Ghirahim informed, but before Harry could attempt to life the rock, it started to glow and revert back to its original size, "You may want to attempt it in the Mortal Realm, where damage doesn't magically reset itself."
Harry glared at the boulder, "Yeah, I'll give that a pass until I learn Occlumency, I don't want to end up on my ass again."
Harry then felt a sense of coolness and knew his body's magic was healed to its maximum ability, so he made his way back to his room. As he was walking, he began to hear a muffled voice, as if someone distant was trying to talk to him. The closer he got to his chambers, the same chambers that were once Zelda's, the clearer the voice got. As he entered his rooms, the voice cleared up and he was able to understand it.
"Harry, you're going to be late, wake up!" The voice, now identified as Zelda, said.
Harry quickly ran to the flower circle that was overlapping his bed, sat down, and closed his eyes.
Evening, Harry's Chambers, Royal Wing, Hyrule Castle,
Hyrule Proper, Mortal Realm
The blue-silver metallic substance receded from Harry, revealing the prince himself. He opened his eyes and saw, standing at the foot of his four-poster bed, Zelda waiting with her arms crossed.
"Sorry Zelda, I overexerted myself," Harry said, quickly getting off his bed and moving towards one of his shelves where he had his Zora dagger and strapped it to his belt. It was expected that nobles of his stature would be armed, even among friends. He then activated the rune on his sleeve, changing his outfit to a casual ensemble of a black leather jerkin and trousers that is perfect for a more intimate diner among friends and those of a similar nobility. He then went to an ornate pillow that held his circlet, an ornate gold band with leaf patterns engraved on it, and put it on. "Ready to go!" Harry exclaimed.
"Right, let's get this over with," Zelda sighed, walking towards the door. Harry stepped behind her and followed.
As they left the antechamber, Ignotus fell in line beside Harry and Impa walked beside Zelda.
"Evening Sire. Excited for tonight?" He asked.
"Oh yes, very much so," Harry said in a deadpan tone.
Ignotus smiled mirthfully, "Don't worry sire, its not a state dinner so it should be fairly informal."
"They are still monarchs of their sovereign states, it might be informal but it's still formal," Harry argued.
"And you hate formalities."
"It's not that I hate them, it's just that I don't like having to be formal. I just want to be myself around people, regardless of the rank. Hell, I am the prince! Why can't I order people to treat me casually!" Harry bemoaned.
"Anyone that must say, or in your case whine, 'I am the prince' is no true prince, Harry," Impa interrupted, "Besides, its required as part of your station that you maintain an air of superiority when dealing people of a lower standing."
"I know, but-" Harry said before Zelda spoke up.
"Impa is right, as always," Zelda said, "We are Royal Hylians, direct descendants of the goddess that created the entire Hylian race. We can be kind, we can put charitable, but in the end, we are superior to all others and should the need arise, we will need to become formal and martial, just as father and Impa as taught us," Zelda finished, giving Harry a small smile as they walked in now-silent contemplation.
This is probably the most serious conversation that Harry had gotten about this topic. Deep down, he knew that Zelda spoke the truth but it did not make it any better. Maybe it was because of how the people treated him that he was hesitant to embrace the role he was cast to play upon the world's stage, thinking that if he was humble and kind, then the people would treat him better. But no matter how hard he tried, nothing had changed. The people still thought ill of him, and it was grating on his divine-like patience, a patience that was being whittled away by his growing Hylian emotions and ego. He considered himself lucky that he had Melanie and Ghirahim to help keep him grounded, the two longest links to his Human past outside of Zelda, Impa, and Ignotus.
'My Human past,' Harry thought neutrally. He knew that the adoption ritual was still working, changing his mentality towards things. He knew that eventually, he would lose his Human perspective of things as his mind shifted to a Hylian way of thinking, and oddly enough, while he did not mind it, he felt like he should morn it. It was a part of him, a part of his past that he would never be able to wash away, and even if he was now counted as a member of a superior walk of life, he did not want to lose the lessons he learned as a Human and the morals he built up during that time. He was also curious as to how those past morals would mix with his future Hylian perspective.
The emotional aspect was also something Harry would eventually have to deal with. He knew that a Hylian felt emotions, not stronger, but more passionately than Humans did. He also knew that through his duties as Prince of the Sword and Duke of Holodrum, he would be forced to make hard decisions by his own volition, or after being ordered to by Zelda. As much as the royal siblings loved and cared for each other, Zelda was the ruling monarch of the Empire as well as the head of House Hyrule and Harry was dutybound to obey her every order. He feared that one day, his emotions would slip out of control and cause him to clash with one of Zelda's orders.
Harry's silent contemplations came to an end as the group arrived at the great hall. Zelda had arranged for the hall to be decorated with the banners of each sovereign, deciding that while they would normally have state visitors dine in the royal wing's dining room, the great hall's opulence would be more deserving for the monarch of each kingdom of the empire.
Servants were rushing around with last minute preparations, placing cutlery and crockery on the table, and prepping the first course of the meal. As the royal party got closer, the servants all bowed and went to stand at their stations. Nicholas, dressed in the finery befitting a royal manservant instead of his lord-heir's attire, bowed from his position behind Harry's seat.
"Your Majesty, your Highness, Chieftain, Sir Peverell," Nicholas said in highly formal greeting, "Everything is just about finished. The Sovereigns have settled into their usual chambers and are on their way here."
"Thank you, Nicholas. Please take your station," Harry instructed, giving Nicholas a small smirk as he gave Harry a look of suppressed pain, knowing that the lord-heir had no want to be present.
The three representatives of three Kingdoms sat down in their seats with Zelda at the head of the table, Harry on Zelda's immediate right and Impa to Zelda's immediate left; the same seating that Zelda had for her war council. She had decided to move the seat for Holodrum to her right to reflect Harry's personal statuses outside of his control of Holodrum.
Nicholas came up from behind Harry and filled his goblet with some water. Leaning forward, he whispered, "Did you really have to make me wear this? Its bloody uncomfortable!" He complained quietly.
Harry hid a smile behind his now held goblet, "Of course, it's only proper that the royal servants wear the servant's finery."
"Ugh, I hate you."
"No, you don't," Harry said with a smile, "I'll make it up to you later," He said as Nicholas walked back to his place behind Harry. As he did, the doors to the hall opened and the herald spoke.
"Presenting, the Sovereigns! King Oshus, Queen Ambi, Prophet Rose, Chieftain Nabiri, King Tuft, and King Ragnuk the Second!" Sounded the herald. The announced sovereigns all walked in to the hall, all dressed in finery, and followed by their own personal servants or in Nabiri's case, personal guards. Both Impa and Harry stood up and Impa bowed towards her fellow Sovereigns. Harry, who was the Prince of the Empire, stood to show respect, but did not bow as he held a higher rank than the others. Zelda simply smiled to the group, who all bowed towards their Princess.
"Welcome my Lords and Ladies. Please, sit," Zelda welcomed. All the Sovereigns, including Harry and Impa, bowed towards Zelda and sat down in their assigned seats, the same seats that they held within the High Council chambers.
Ragnuk, being the eldest of the assembled Sovereigns, spoke, "Princess Zelda, we are honoured by your invitation for dinner, and for allowing us to enter Lorule and witness the end of this civil war. I believe I can speak for all of us when I say that your father would be proud of what you have accomplished in your short time as Princess of Hyrule."
"Hear, hear!" The others said, raising their filled goblets in toast.
The feast began in fervour with relief being the general feeling permeating through the hall. The end to the needless war that had taken the lives of so many was coming to a peaceful and satisfying end. It did not escape the minds of the Sovereigns, all of whom understood politics intrinsically, that the end of this war would be the start of the first Cross-Dimensional Alliance between the Empire of Hyrule and its shadow, the Empire of Lorule. The possibilities that could come out of such an alliance were immense and every person within the room understood that.
Harry, who was sat beside Oshus, was surprisingly enjoying his time. While it was indeed an informally formal setting, it seemed that the Sovereigns were all comfortable letting their hair down around each other. He was in a deep conversation with Oshus about spell creation, going over the semantics of incorporating Goron based runes into a Zora based Arithmancy array.
"I understand that they wouldn't naturally work together, but there has to be way!" Harry said passionately.
Oshus looked at Harry with a small smile, "There simply isn't, dear boy. Goron fire runes would burn away a Zora array before they could even meld to form whatever spell you wanted to create; it has been tried many times before to no avail."
"Ok, but what about using a third form, something more neutral, as a bridge between the two?"
"The same thing would happen, the runes or the array would overwhelm the bridge and cause an explosion," Oshus paused for a second in thought, "Although, there was that one lad who attempted to use some prototype Sheikah runes as a bridge back in the Era of the Sky."
Harry's eyes widened in interest, "Prototype Sheikah runes from the Sky Era? There is almost nothing left from the Sheikah from that time! Did the array work?"
"Now that I recall, the bridge worked for a moment before overloading. But in the man's defence, it was the closest anyone has ever come to mixing contesting magic forms together," Oshus revealed.
Harry furrowed his brow for a second before looking across the table, "Impa, are there any records about prototype Sheikah Runes left in the Sheikah archives?"
Impa, who was talking to Tuft about creating a more fashionable yet practical formal outfit for the officers in the army, responded, "Not that I know of, a lot of the prototype runes were discarded in favour of the ones we use today back in the Era of the Light Force because they were considered far too volatile. The Tyrant's War also had the Sheikah lose quite a lot of our archives. We had to move bases to avoid attacks and the like."
"Damn," Harry responded, "thanks anyway"
"You know, my boy," Oshus said, openly smiling, "you have a fire in your eyes when you talk about these things."
"I do?" Harry said in confusion.
"Indeed! I saw it when you were working with Healer Radook, and I saw it just now. You have a passion for magic. By Din herself, I would not be surprised if, when you are older, you pull off some amazing and revolutionary things!" Oshus finished.
"Thank you. It really means a lot coming from someone like you," Harry said sincerely, blushing under the praise.
The dinner continued on until the sun had set deep and the moon had risen high. Melanie, having gotten bored, had slithered over to where Nicholas stood dutifully in his outrageously large ruff and had been sleeping on his shoulders for a little while. Once desert had been served and everyone had finished, Zelda stood, causing all others to stand also.
"Well, my Sovereigns, I believe it is time for me to retire. We have a busy day tomorrow and personally I would like to get some sleep in."
With that, everyone bowed as Zelda stepped away from the table. Harry stood straight and began to walk behind Zelda, fulfilling his duty to safeguard his Princess, with Nicholas and the sleeping Melanie in tow.
When they had entered the Royal wing, Nicholas passed Melanie to Harry and left for his chambers, having been dismissed for the night by Harry.
"I did say it wouldn't be too bad, didn't I?" Zelda said with a satisfied smirk.
Harry rolled his eyes, "Fine, you were right. I think I can get used to being in these formal settings. Doesn't mean I have to like it though," He huffed.
"Exactly, you're finally getting it," Zelda said happily, "Duty above all, but not always. We are the highest-ranking and the most important people in the entire world, we get to have a little fun here and there," She said with a wink, "Now, get to bed. We have to be in Lorule before noon. It is time to keep our side of the bargain."
Late Morning, Citadel Courtyard, Hyrule Castle
Hyrule Proper, Mortal Realm
The Courtyard outside the entrance hall was populated with more people of rank than it had ever been in recent times. The Sovereigns and two of their elite guard along with Harry, Zelda, and Ignotus, were waiting for Hilda Lorule's arrival. Lords Antioch and Alaric were also present as they had been invited to join the party to Lorule due to their status as Court Sorcerer and Grey Lord respectively, with Alaric also being the one that would open the portal to return the party back to Hyrule, as Impa would be too exhausted after opening the portal to Lorule.
This would be a day to remember, Harry thought. He had enjoyed speaking to Hilda in the past, finding her very similar to Zelda but still different in ways. He was also excited to see what would happen when the Temple of Time in Lorule was restored. Both Zelda and Hilda had asked him to be the one to restore access to Lorule's Sacred Realm once the Door of Time was unblocked. Being the inquisitive person he was, he was curious about comparing the Silent Realm he knows to the one that lay in wait for him. He knew this duty was to restore the Forgotten Realm to its former glory, but he could not help but be giddy. To help with the duty, the he and Master Krosis had worked together to forge a sword, which was now strapped at his side.
The House of Hyrule was intimately familiar with how the Sacred Realm was channelled through the Mortal Realm in the past. When Haronlink placed the Master Sword into the first pedestal at the ancient Temple of Hylia, a link was forged between the Silent Realm and the Mortal Realm, one much stronger than the Trials that Hylia had set up for her Hero. As such, Zelda had commissioned a sword made of the purest Hylian Steel, and enchanted with every possible magic-enhancement enchantment known to either race. It was also encrusted with small fragments of Timeshift Stone in order to replicate the Master Sword's self-healing abilities, as well as egg-shaped rubies for decoration. While it would not be the divine blade's equal, with Hylian Steel being far too mundane to be compared to Master Ore, its ability to channel the divine magics from the Sacred Realm would be second to none in Lorule.
"You are very excited about this, aren't you Skyling?" Ghirahim asked.
'Of course I am! It's not every day you get to casually jump through three realms of existence and back!'
"Well, I'm glad you are excited. Personally, I do not like Lorule," Ghirahim replied. Harry noticed the disgusted tone was mixed with anxiousness, and immediately knew why.
'The Dark World. It calls out to you, doesn't it?' Harry said kindly.
Ghirahim sighed. "I have only been there a handful of times," He revealed. "My… Creator forged me here, in this realm. Demise had no need for weapons within the Dark World, he reigned supreme there, but once he saw Hylia's creation, he decided that he needed to match the Goddess' blade with another," Ghirahim scoffed, "That man was arrogant and prideful. He believed that, if he used the Dark World's Master Ore equivalent, he could craft a weapon even more powerful than Hylia's Sword. He wished for a sword to rend the heavens and to crack the earth. And it did, the Breach and Gateway at Azah Kah-bin are proof of that. That sword was used for so many heretical and horrible crimes. I was used for those crimes, and I will never be able to forgive myself for what I allowed Demise to do with me," He was silent for a moment, and Harry dared not to speak up. While Ghirahim was happy to speak about his time as the Demon Lord of the Surface, he was hesitant to speak about his past as the Demon King's blade; a time where he was not in control of himself.
"The first time I went to the Dark World was at the behest of Demise's second, a lieutenant called Malladus. He wished to add me to his collection of tools so he could begin a takeover of the Dark World, believing that Demise was gone. I quickly set the record straight and denied him, he never tried again. The next few times were to gather forces to defend my territory on the Surface. But every time I went to that place, it felt like home! As if I was meant to be there. And I hate it. I hate feeling as if I am meant to be in that dark pit of evil, as if I have no control over the life I wish to live! And Lorule makes me feel the same. That realm is so close to falling into the Dark World that to me, a Demon Lord, it feels like home. To be completely honest Skyling, if I did not know that the way to the Sacred Realm was being reopened soon after our arrival, I would have demanded that you leave me here," Ghirahim stated resolutely.
'Oh Ghirahim, I had no idea. I cannot even begin to understand what you had to go through.' Harry said after a moment.
"I…I didn't want to burden you with this. You have enough to worry about without my petty issues!" Ghirahim said lightly, attempting to sound like he normally did.
'No, Ghirahim you are my best friend and as my friend, it's my job to make sure you are all right, to help you through things when you need help. Plus, you are the literal core of my Human magic focus. We will be together for a very long time, and I do not want you suffering through that with thoughts on your past.'
Unbeknownst to Harry, within the room he had made in his crystals, Ghirahim smiled a true smile. Not one of malice or of satisfaction or of condescension, but one of happiness, as if someone had lifted a weight off of him. "I do not deserve you, Skyling. Truly."
Harry smiled and nodded. 'Of course, I am simply the best!' he said happily.
As the mental conversation drew to a close, Harry saw a shimmer appear on a wall. He saw as a crack in the wall began to glow slightly, and a painting form out of it. A moment passed, and the painting turned into Hilda Lorule as she stepped out of the wall. The rest of the assembled party noticed the arrival of the Lolian Sovereign, and Zelda approached her.
"Greetings Princess Hilda, we welcome you to Hyrule," Zelda said formally.
"We thank you for your welcome, and are grateful for the duty you are preforming for both us, and the people of the Forgotten Realm," Hilda said, using the formality of the royal 'we' in her words. Harry stepped forward and offered his own greeting, "Lord-heir Prince Harrison, we are pleased to see you once again, and we thank you especially for what you will be doing for us today."
Harry tipped his head lightly, showing the correct amount of respect for someone above his rank, "You are welcome, my lady. You personally have assisted both me and the House of Hyrule. The least I can do to return my gratitude is help you."
Hilda smiled, "Your help is most welcome," She then gestured to the sword, asking about it. Harry drew the sword and held it for Hilda to inspect, "It is beautiful! A masterpiece!"
"Goblin Craftmaster Krosis Firebrand and myself worked tirelessly on it. The enchantments that we wove through the metal are strong, they will be able to do the job we require, for as long as its required. Once the sword is within the pedestal and the doorway to the Sacred Realm is open, the sword will need to stay there until your realm is fully healed. After that moment, you may use the sword as you like," Harry explained, proud of his work.
"Thank you, Harrison. You should be very proud of the skills you have obtained," Hilda complemented.
"You are welcome, princess. It was an honour," Harry said, walking back to the group.
Hilda looked to the assembled group, "It is time. Most of you have never walked the Link Between Worlds, so I shall tell you this: once the portal is opened, do not stop walking. If you remain too long within the Link and the portals close, you will become lost and be forced out in a random realm. Needless to say, we will not be able to save you if that happens."
Hilda then nodded to Impa, who walked to the water in the fountain. She stood and focused for a moment and in a pulse of magic, the customary black portal of the Link Between Worlds formed in the water.
Harry, not being one to shy away from potential danger, offered his arm to Zelda and walked towards the portal, leading the way through the Link Between Worlds.
Late Morning, Viewing Pools, Temple of Time, Castle Town,
Lorule Proper, Forgotten Realm
A formless cloud of dark mist appeared on the surface of the northern viewing pool in the Temple of Time's courtyard. The builders and tradesmen who were working on the site stopped at the sight of the mist, and the people who formed from it. In a few moments, the party from Hyrule had arrived and were walking from the pool onto the path.
Harry noticed that Zelda had begun to shiver mildly from the feeling of wrongness that emanated from the Realm's magic. He also noticed that, after a moment, the Triforce symbol on the back of Zelda's hand pulsed for a moment before settling dim again, and that Zelda had adopted a look of relief.
"Are you alright?" Harry whispered.
"I'm ok. This realm just feels…" Zelda said, trailing off.
"I know," Harry nodded, "Once the Sacred Realm has its connection restored, everything will be fine."
"My lords and ladies, welcome to Lorule and the Temple of Time," Hilda said, gesturing to the partially restored building.
Harry, who had not been able to see the Temple the previous time he was here, and knowing that Hyrule's original Temple was within Ordon Provence, was curious about this difference between the Forgotten and Mortal Realms.
Voicing his question, Hilda responded, "I thought you might notice that. While Lorule did have a Great Restructure like Hyrule did, we never had a fully-fledged link to our Sacred Realm. The pre-existing link was tenuous and weak, but strong enough to keep our realm healthy. Instead of a divine blade forging the connection and locking it to that one location, like how Hyrule's Sacred Realm entrance is in the original Temple of Time in Ordon Provence, our connection was forged by a ward stone that we were able to move during the Great Restructure. Unfortunately, it was destroyed when the temple collapsed during the beginning of the war from an attack, and you know the rest of the story," Harry nodded in understanding. Hilda continued, "With your sword taking place in a pedestal, and you connecting the Sacred Realm to that sword, we hope to forge a Doorway as strong as the one Hyrule has," She finished with a smile.
One of the builders, dressed in cleaner clothes and equipped with nicer tools, approached the party. He bowed towards the party and to Hilda. "My lady, we are ready. The Door of Time has been revealed and opened. It is time," He said with a nod.
"Thank you, foreman. You and your teams may have the rest of the day off. Celebrate as you wish, this is your accomplishment," Hilda said, smiling.
The foreman went and spoke to his team, leading them all from the site and into town. Hilda led the party into the Temple.
Harry saw that the Temple cathedral was not yet fully rebuilt, with scaffolding still set up, building supplies laying around everywhere, and rubble still scattered around from the old building. Ahead of him was the alter and behind that, the grand Door of Time that led to Lorule's newly created Chamber of the Sword, which once properly connected, would permanently link the Forgotten Realm to its Sacred Realm.
The group stepped into the Chamber and gathered around the pedestal that stood on a raised dais. Zelda nodded to Harry, who walked up to the pedestal and drew the sword. He raised it above the pedestal and started to focus and concentrate. He knew that in order for the connection to be made permanent, he needed to shift into the Silent Realm just as the sword was placed within the pedestal.
"I am the prince of Hyrule," He whispered.
As the cool feeling of not-metal begun to overtake his skin, he thrust downward, embedding the sword within the pedestal.
Late Morning, Chamber of the Sword, Temple of Time, Castle Town,
Lorule Proper, Forgotten Silent Realm
Harry quickly opened his eyes and looked around. He quickly noted that the Silent Realm looked almost identical to his own with the only changes being in the architecture. With a sigh of disappointment, he let go of the sword, and looked around. He knew that in order to link this Sacred Realm to the Forgotten Realm, he needed to locate the source of the realm itself, the Lolian Triforce, and tie its magic to the pedestal. He had discussed the process at length with Zelda, even going over some old notes written by the original Sheikah Guard of Zelda-Hylia, who was also named Impa. Harry was confident that he would be able to do what needs to be done.
Behind him, opposite the Door of Time, he saw an archway that led outside, which was not present in the normal realm. Looking at Ghirahim's ever-shadowy form and receiving a nod of encouragement, Harry walked through the arch.
Outside the rear of the Temple was a magnificent garden beautiful topiaries and bushes of exotic flowers grew in perfect form, as if someone had been tending to them. Looking at the sky, he saw that the Silent Realm did not reflect Lorule's dilapidated and degraded state, most likely the result of the Triforce's presence within the realm, he thought. He kept walking length of this mysterious garden towards a building in the distance which looked very out of place, reminding him of Hyrule's architecture. As he got closer, he saw that the doors of the temple were decorated with an image of an upside down Triforce symbol. Hesitantly, he opened the door and walked in.
The room was cavernous and decorated in Sky Era Hylian architecture with floor to ceiling pillars. And while Harry would normally spend more time admiring the ancient and historically significant architecture, his eyes were instantly drawn to the altar in the centre of the room. Up a set of stairs, hovering and lazily spinning above a round stone altar, were three coal-black triangles.
"The Lolian Triforce," Ghirahim whispered in reverence, "Mirror images of our own. Skyling, what do they represent?"
"While Hyrule's Triforce represents the forces of Power, Wisdom, and Courage, Lorule's Triforce represents the forces Of Knowledge, Emotion, and Willpower," Harry answered, also in reverence. These simple triangles were proof of the divine, that there were true Creators. For a Hylian, it was an honour to even be in the same room of such raw divinity.
"What piece reflects what?" Ghirahim asked.
"Power and Knowledge, as Knowledge is Power. Wisdom and Emotion, as Wisdom unhampered by Emotion is foolishness. Courage and Willpower, as even the most Courageous requires the Willpower to persevere," Harry explained. He then began to walk up the stairs towards the altar and as he did, the individual pieces began to come together to form the tarnished, upside-down sigil that was Lorule's Triforce. As he reached the top, he felt the biggest compulsion to lay his hand upon the divine triangles and make a wish. The power of such a wish could grant him immeasurable power, but he knew that doing so would damn the Forgotten Realm to the Dark World. He resisted the pull, and instead began to channel his magic. As his veins lit up, he spoke in Hylian.
"Slivers of the Divine, Fragments of Reality, hear me. By my rights as the son of Hylia, keeper of the Triforce, I command you! Grant me a tether so I may return your realm to the glory it once was!"
As soon as he finished his chant, he saw a black ethereal tether fall off of the Triforce and attach itself to his outstretched right hand. Harry's eyes widened as he felt the influx of raw divinity rush through him. The red glow of his veins began to shift and change. Instead of pulsing from his heart to his limbs, the golden glow of the sacred power channelled from his birthmark-scared hand and back to his heart. The skin on his arm began to crack and leak a gold light, the same way that Zelda's arm had glowed gold and cracked when her piece of Wisdom had activated when she gave her prophesy years ago. But this was not prophesy forcing itself through a mortal coil. This was true Divinity; a sliver of the Golden Goddesses power being channelled through the son of their daughter.
Harry felt euphoric, he felt powerful, immortal, unstoppable. He felt as if a part of him, that he did not know was missing, had returned. He knew in that moment that he could do anything he wished without consequence. A single wish on the Triforce? That was a pittance to the power he was channelling now! He could use this power to protect Hyrule in ways he never thought! He could show the mortals that dared speak out against him what true power was! He would show them the error of their ways, and no one would be able to stop him, not even the accursed princess!
'No, that is not what I want. I would never sacrifice a Realm of people for the sake of power.' Harry thought, shaking his head clear. He took a deep breath and stood resolute. With the dark thoughts gone and forgotten to him, he started down the stairs and back towards the Chamber of the Sword, all the while dragging the Triforce's tether with him.
Ghirahim, who had begun to follow him, looked on in worry. Harry had just stood there, oddly, for a few minutes after his chant. To Ghirahim's perspective, it almost seemed similar to when Harry would have the dark thoughts that Majora pushed on him. He decided that he would watch Harry's behaviour, hoping that the old Moon God had not broken out of the Salesman's binding spell so soon.
As Harry walked up the last step of the dais, he grasped the hilt of the sword, and completed his chant.
"May the power of this realm be forever bound at this point. May this sword channel this realms power between Realms forevermore!"
At the same time that Harry returned to the Forgotten Realm, the sword flashed a magnificent blue. The power of Lorule's Triforce was once again attached.
Morning, Chamber of the Sword, Temple of Time, Castle Town,
Lorule Proper, Forgotten Realm
The assembled lords all watched on in silence as the Hylian prince was covered in an ethereal blue metal. The silence persisted as the minutes passed, waiting for Harry to finish his job. Without warning, the pedestal glowed blue for just a moment, as the sword itself started channelling energy from the pedestal up its blade and out of its hilt. Almost immediately, both Zelda and Hilda felt as the once oily magic started to feel clean and pure. The not-metal receded from Harry's form, and the boy himself stepped down from the dais towards the two royals. Hilda, in a moment of either carelessness to her surroundings, or simply not caring, launched herself at Harry and engulfed him in a tight hug.
"You have no idea what you have done, Brother of my Light," Hilda said, clearly crying in joy, "There is nothing my people or I could ever do to repay what you have done for us today."
"I only want you and your people to live in the light once more. You owe me nothing, I simply did what was right," Harry stated with a smile. From where he stood, he could see Zelda's proud smile.
"Come," Hilda said, stepping back and wiping her tears away, "There shall be a feast in celebration of this occasion. The Forgotten Realm is whole once again!"
The group all followed as Hilda lead them towards Lorule Castle. Harry looked back at the sword one last time before catching up with the party. Unknown to anyone, the ley-lines beneath the Temple of Time pulsed as the Door of Time closed, sending out the Sacred Realm's healing energy throughout the once-damned world. The first time in almost fifty years.
A/N: This was a hard chapter to write. Its not my favourite by any means. As a matter of fact, I hate this chapter, simply for how long it took me to write. It feels rushed and unclean, but it's as good as I'm going to get. Still, I hope you all enjoyed the FIRST chapter of The Servant Arc! For some perspective, when this Arc ends, Twilight Princess era begins. We are TWO arcs away from the beginning of the Harry Potter era. I've got a LOT to get though with this arc, but it's a good one!
Glossary:
Dark and Light – A Basic explanation on the whole Dark vs Light debate. The idea of "no matter how fast light travels, it always finds the Dark was there first" is from The Neverending Story by Michael Ende. I highly recommend reading it, its DARK!
Throne Room – As explained in a previous chapter,I only found out that the Castle from BotW had a throne room after playing Hyrule Warriors! And because I'm basing Hyrule Castle on BOTW, I was able to actually add the Throne Room from Twilight Princess into the fic naturally, and with this scene!
Thrones – In Twilight Princess, there are five thrones. One was for Zelda, and the other four had symbols of four of the seven sages. Not sure why this was a thing, but it is, so as is the norm, I made it mine by giving the thrones to important people in my fic.
Harry drinking Ale – Pretty easy explanation here, kids in Medieval times drank alcohol and this fic is a mix of Zelda fantasy and my Medieval history knowledge, so it only makes sense to make this a thing.
Room Change – Explained in a previous chapter, Zelda's original room was the Heir's suite and Harry's original room was the Prince Consort's suite for him to use during courtship. Now that Zelda is High Princess, she takes the Royal Suite, and Harry, as Zelda's heir, takes the Heir's suite. At least, until Zelda has kids, in which case Harry will move to his estate in Holodrum, but still retain an opulent suite in the Royal Wing of Hyrule Castle.
Citizen Hate – Throughout this story, I have attempted to show that not everyone likes Harry simply because he is viewed as unworthy of his title of Prince of the Empire due to him being human. With the adoption ritual now done and gone, people have started to suspect that Harry is much worse than what they originally believed. How could a Human child achieve Hylian divinity? In their minds, they cant. And so, around 90% of the population believe Cadmus Peverell's story of Harry being a Dark World usurper and the current incarnation of the Curse of Demise.
Character and Reputation – Based on the words of Lord Oxford from the movie "The King's man" staring Ralph Fiennes (Who also played Voldemort). Reputation is what people think of you. Character is what you are. Ghirahim explains to Harry that the people will create his reputation for him, while he will create his character for himself. Only the people closest to him will see his Character, while the masses will only see what his Reputation portrays him as.
Cadet Hate – Same as the Citizens, quite a few members of the armed forces still have the mindset of Harry's Reputation, however they know that they need to stay silent in order to keep their positions in the army. The cadets however, have no such discipline.
Lord Chamberlin – This position in the royal household is very administrative. He is in charge of maintaining the Citadel and the wings, ensuring household workers are paid for correctly, keeping food and supply stocks high, and when Harry and Zelda are not present, acting in their place in maintaining Hyrule Proper. He does not have the same authority as Regent or as High Princess, but he does have SOME power.
Harry's progress and Training – At this point in time, Harry is very competent in several martial weapons and fighting styles, as well as a multitude of magical disciplines. While my beta disagrees with how fast I'm progressing Harry's abilities, I beg to differ. Harry has been training constantly for six years with no time off at all except on the day where he isn't training, schooled, or at the forge. On top of that, he is being trained by people who are at the bleeding edge of their skills, who have been hand picked by the leader of a world-spanning empire. I think that can explain why Harry is so skilled at such a young age. The only skills he has yet to build on at this point is Archery, some musical instruments, and a multitude of magical disciplines. With the sword and daggers being his weapon of choice, he only has basic skills in other marital weapons. With the elemental manipulation, I cannot stress this enough, it is NOT Avatar element bending. It is a series of magic pulses which allows Harry to FORCE the elements to obey him.
Silent Realm's invulnerability – The Silent Realm is perfection. No matter how much damage that is imparted on it, it will ALWAYS revert to how it was before. It is in a perfect level of stasis, which makes it the best place for Harry to attempt to cast dangerous magics, such as elemental manipulation, any damage to the environment will be reversed, and due to the Realm's acceptance of him, he cannot die while in the Realm.
Servant Nicholas – The outfit is based on the BBC's Merlin TV show. The specific episode, The Poisoned Chalice (S1Ep4) has Merlin being forced to wear Ceremonial Servant's garb at an important state dinner. As said previously, Nicholas' and Harry's friendship is based on Merlin and Arthur's, but less violent, and so I thought having Harry force Nicholas into using the outfit as punishment for attempting to get out of Servant duty for the dinner would be fitting. And funny!
Discussion on Runes and Arrays – Harry is always trying to grow his skills and improve his mastery on a discipline before moving on. He is the Quality in the Quality vs Quantity argument. On top of that, Harry has an interest in creating spells and magic and whatnot, which will be shown two chapters from now. This scene is simply Harry debating two unique and incompatible magic systems and questioning how they could potentially be used together. Also, as said in a previous chapter, Zora don't have magic and are unable to power runes or arrays. As such, Zora magic runes and arithmancy arrays are powered by ley-lines that run under the ocean. Also, only a scant handful of Zora actually know Runes as it's a dying art in Zora society as they shift fully away from magic usage and into marital warfare. They still buy enchanted armor and weapons and the like, but self-made runes and the like are becoming less popular among the population.
The Sword – I gave the Master Ore in Lorule to Hyrule for a reason, but I had a brain flash that got me thinking! How could I introduce an important plot point from the HP era into my fic? This is how! Anyone who knows Harry Potter will know what this sword is.
Ghirahim's Past – Finally, the Demon Lord of the Surface has opened up about his true past to Harry! I felt it was time for Ghirahim to have a "Redeemed Kratos" moment and get shit off his chest, and who better to vent to than his best friend!
Malladus – Current Leader of the Dark World after Demise disappeared from it. He won't ever be in this fic.
Temple of Time – Imagine the Sacred Grove from TP. Now imagine it fully repaired and sitting in the middle of Lorule Castle Town.
Chamber of the Sword – As above
Garden Behind the Temple – This is my way of explaining some unused/modded content that showed up years ago in relation to Ocarina of Time and the Temple of Light. There was a garden in front of the entrance, and this is my explanation of that. Not canon in Zelda, but canon in the fic. Also, the archway that Harry walks through to get to the garden doesn't exist in the Forgotten Realm, only in the Silent Realm.
Temple of Light – The legendary and elusive resting place of the Triforce. The design is based on the Chamber of the Triforce from the short film "Game of Hyrule – Unofficial Legend of Zelda / Game of Thrones FAN-FILM" by Megasteakman. The timestamp is 1 minute 40 seconds, just after the Zelda/Link Sex scene or much clearer at 5 minutes 27 seconds. The Triforce spinning is also based on that same scene.
Lorule's Triforce – Based on A Link Between Worlds, this is the Lolian Triforce. HOWEVER, the ASPECTS that this Triforce represents belongs to Jkalenad's Skyrim Mod RELICS OF HYRULE! He has been one of my main inspirations for this fic, especially in the artistic representation department. If you have Skyrim, or just want to support a BRILLIANT creator, check him out on Nexus Mods and Twitch!
Binding Chant – Just a generic spell/chant/ritual. The Triforce is sentient, and will listen to the words of the Blood of Hylia. Essentially, Harry requested that the Triforce allow a tendril of its power to be bound to where the Chamber of the Sword is, so its healing energy can be channelled through Lorule. Harry essentially created a Sacred Realm doorway similar to the one in Ocarina of Time. When the Sword is removed, the doorway opens. However, it can ONLY be removed by a member of the Lorule Royal Family.
Harry's Power Lust – Hello Chekhov, my old friend. How's your gun? In all seriousness, there is something going on in this scene and it won't make proper sense until much later. I GUESS if the real astute of you reread the fic and connect the dots, you COULD work it out, but itll be a hard one. At me on twitter and let me know what you think, or leave a review and tell me what you think!
Let me know what yall think! Remember, I stream two days a week on DaYoutubes where I answer any questions and sometimes do previews, and my Twitter at FoolOverride sometimes has more frequent updates and teasers to the POSSIBLE game that MAY be made for this fic! Make sure to subscribe and follow both of them, and leave a review for the chapter! See yall next time!
The Next Chapter
Chapter 13:
An Incarnation of my Hatred