The Battered Princess

The Unthinkable

Link was so dead. 

He'd just committed holy treason. 

He knew what he had done was right, that Hylia would eventually bless him for doing so, but that didn't remedy his broken knight's oath or change his treason to honor. 

He brought his hand up to soothe Epona, reminding himself of the blood spilled on him. Normal blood, monster blood specifically, belonged there. However, the way this blood carried a shimmering gold outline no matter the lighting... This was no normal blood. 

The one it belonged to, equally as gold, lay still in a quickly-fashioned sling. The finest craftwork in the land covered her frozen figure. 

He had to get her out of Hyrule. He just had to. 

Should I have done this? 

Was this really the right thing to do?

Will she see it that way?

Link fought to keep his mind filled with thoughts, whatever thoughts he could, in order to drown out these doubts. But they just kept coming. Link knew what could shut them up, and he finally allowed himself to think the thoughts that would. The thoughts about where this all started. 

"Oh, Link!" His princess greeted him with a newly-found warmth. "Profound timing, look!" She turned all her divine energy towards the courtyard, where Sheikah researchers were doing experiments with Guardians. "We can almost control them..." She settled her upper body on the bridge's rim, he looked gently at her before focusing entirely on the Guardians. 

One had attacked her once. He wasn't about to let anything, ancient technology or not, get close enough to threaten her. To show he supported her in this interest, he grunted warmly. 

"Come on!" She yanked on his arm, he moved only because he hadn't expected the pull. "This is part of our destiny! These Guardians will defend us in the fight against the Calamity!" 

The emphasis on 'our destiny' made him a bit uncomfortable. She was beautiful, sure, but she was the Princess. It would be the highest treason to pursue any romantic involvement with her. They were destined to fight together, and had found each other throughout time, and maybe that implied that they were supposed to be together, but it also didn't change the current laws. 

Link found the head-spinning entertaining, but he found his eyes trailing to the gleeful woman beside him more often than not. 

If only that moment could have lasted. 

"What are you doing, Zelda?" 

Zelda tensed. Even if Link had never known who the voice was, he'd know Zelda was frightened. He dropped to his knees and faced the oncomer.