Royal Rebel 5 ~ Worlds Apart

Chapter 6-2: Breaking

"Rhoam?" You called as you wandered through the halls of Hyrule Castle in search of the king, and you checked in all of the dining and conference halls to see if you could find him. "Rhoam! Where are you?" You walked into one of the empty dining halls, stopping for a moment while you wondered where the king could've been.

You checked his room, his study, even Reeve's and Janelle's offices for him. But he wasn't anywhere, and neither was your niece.

"I think I saw him down at the stable," You heard Link's voice behind you, and you looked back at the hero, who was standing in the doorway slipping his gloves on. "He's entrusted me to take Zelda to the Spring of Courage today, so he's checking in for us to get our horses."

"Spring of Courage? How long are the two of you going to be gone for?"

"Just a couple of days. Impa might meet us there when we arrive tomorrow, and she wanted to show us some of her ideas for reconstructing our strategy against Ganon." He explained to you, and you nodded as you followed him out of the dining hall and down towards the doors leading outside. "Where are you off to?"

"I'm heading to the Coliseum to get some of my scroll training in before tomorrow's competition. Rhoam wants to make sure the Champions and I have our abilities nailed." You squeezed your hand into a fist, and fire burst from your palm and engulfed your hand in flames. "Wish me luck against Revali. He's been training overtime to make sure he'll come out on top."

"I'm sure you'll be able to take him down easily, _____. Revali may be strong, but sometimes it feels like his bark is bigger than his bite." Link shrugged, and you laughed and nodded your head in a more or less kind of way. "I wish I could be there to watch him get dominated."

"I'm sure he'll wish the very opposite," You chuckled, and as you both exited the castle hall and entered the outside, you peered over the wall and saw your niece hurrying down to the stable. "Zelda!"

You and Link hurried down the steps, and she whirled around with a smile as she saw you.

"_____! Link!" Link bowed his head to her, and you gave her a quick hug once you were close enough. "Are you ready to go?" She asked Link, and he nodded. "Father should have the horses ready by now, let's go." The three of you entered the stable, and you saw Rhoam speaking with the owners as he took the reigns of Zelda's horse.

"Oh! Zelda, Link!" He smiled, and Link bowed, but Zelda did not return her father's smile. "I have your horses ready." He handed the reigns to Zelda, and she took them, only managing a quiet thank you as she walked her steed towards the gate. Link and his horse followed her, and they walked outside and onto the grass. "Make sure you protect her."

"I will, your majesty." Link assured him as he helped the princess onto her horse, and then he mounted his own and patted his neck. "Make sure you save the scores of the competition tomorrow, _____, I wanna see them."

"I promise I will, Link." You laughed softly, and you waved to your niece as she smiled back to you. "Travel safely, you two."

"We will. Bye Aunt _____!" Zelda's smile faded as she turned back to her father, and she only dipped her head into a slight bow to him. "Farewell, father."

"Farewell, Zelda." The two teenagers left, riding off towards the Castletown. They would likely grab something to eat before crossing the field; or at least you hoped they would. You glanced up to your brother-in-law, who watched with a sigh as his daughter headed off. "She's still not over what happened a couple of days ago."

"You need to give her time. What you did wasn't right, Rhoam, she has every right to be upset with you. But she'll come back around if you try, just for once, to let her do so without forcing anything on her." You told him, and he didn't answer, he only exhaled deeply and balled his fists as he turned away. "Listen, I'm heading out to get in some training in before tomorrow. I shouldn't be back too late."