Blinding Darkness - Zelda X Ganondorf

Chapter 18

     Aria deliberately chose a time where she could be alone, unbothered by painfully false people who suddenly was interested in her when they've never been before, to try and relearn how to use a sword.

     These past few weeks had been agony. 

     She avoided everyone's eyes lest they saw the raging monster tearing her apart piece by piece, barely hidden behind her mask of a face. She dodged every strange glance in her direction, deflected every question with a noncommittal shrug, and refused to even react if any word of her "illness" was brought up.

     It was a good thing she wasn't training yet because she was still recovering. She would be shamed off the mock battlefield if they found out that she had forgotten how to use her weapon.

     Maybe her isolation was why she turned her back on the drama that had happened within the castle walls.

     But Aria being who she was, naturally she was the first to deduce the exact truth of what had happened, beyond the frustratingly vague, out-of-the-blue declaration of war that had shook the entire kingdom on its foundation a few days ago. 

     It was all because of the stupid, idiotic, self-righteous, egoistic, senseless, selfish Hylians, wasn't it? 

     They were obviously at fault, Ganondorf having already proved time and time again that he meant no harm. And she wasn't even surprised that her own people were more antagonistic than her enemy since time immemorial.

     So she picked up a sword, and cringing away from it, stiffly wrapped her fingers around the hilt.

     It felt so right. But it was wrong.

     Unwelcome memories were flooding back, both of her own life and past Links, and she pushed them away, taking a breath and closing her eyes, trying to regain her bearing.

     Don't think about blood, clinging to skin. Don't think about the feeling of bone scraping on metal. Don't think about blade piercing through flesh.

     Without opening her eyes, she let her instincts take over, the dull, unevenly balanced training sword suddenly deadly in her hands. When she finally let herself look at what she had done, the dummy was in tiny shreds at her feet, straw littering the floor and settling on her hair and shirt.

     Aria sighed and crouched down to stare at the torn burlap.

     Well. That just happened then.

     She carelessly threw aside the sword and sat down, cross legged, and thought about everything and nothing at the same time.

     Aria sensed Zelda's arrival before she heard the door actually creak. Mechanically she brushed off some of the straw from her short hair and stood up, mentally preparing herself. 

     "...Aria?"

     "Yup." She replied.

     Zelda entered, her gaze raking through the empty room.

     "We're alone." Aria rested one of her feet on a bench, and let the other dangle idly. "You can talk about whatever you want." Although she already knew what she was about to hear. Or so she thought.

     "Good." She relaxed slightly, yet Aria noted the tension in her stance.

     "So we're at war, again." The child prompted. 

     "Yes." Zelda bowed her head. "I had failed."

     "Eh. Wasn't your fault." Aria rolled a piece of straw between her fingers, her heart pulsing in her throat. "If people are going to be stupid, they are going to be stupid. Though I wish a few idiots wouldn't have to inflict all of this on the rest of the innocent people."