Kingdom of Power, of Courage, and of Wisdom

Kyou's War - Moment of Rest

-Fae Grove, Western Qin-

Zelda sat on the edge of the earth at the top of the Fae city. She let her feet drift into the water. The water was warm to the touch, and seeped into her body, unwinding her muscles and relaxing her bones. She found herself becoming so relaxed, so comforted here, that she had to make a conscious effort to stay cautious. She had to fight to stay awake at some points and not curl up and sleep on the grass under the sun.

She was always thinking, always considering, always observing, but here she found entire hours went by without so much as a thought. Despite the drug-like state the place put her in, she knew deep in her gut something was wrong. Impa should have been there by now. Impa was punctual. Impa was late. Impa had failed. Why?

A daunting thought. One that horrified Zelda deep down, like a snake curling in her gut that wrapped itself around her heart.

Whether Impa was dead, captured, or just late, she had failed in her mission to be here before Zelda in the case that Prince Kyou makes a move on the capital and kills her body double. It hurt Zelda to think she couldn't rely on Impa as much in the future as she had hoped, but she did trust in Impa's loyalty, so she held no grudge.

Zelda was at an impasse.

Zelda, not wanting to be isolated at this moment with the idea of her potentially dead ally lingering in the back of her mind, rose and walked to the other side of the miniature island where the others were. The Fae were no longer fearful of Link wanting to kidnap them. Instead, the atmosphere seemed to have put him back a few years in maturity. His bottomless energy drew the forest children out, and they played in the water.

It was a sight that offered her a glimpse into another life. Was this what it was like to be innocent? To be free of burden, of responsibility, of power, of the countless lives weighing on her every word and action? Was this what it was like to be simple? No. Zelda had been unburdened from a country once. She had been simple. It was nothing like this, and so she had thrown it aside for the life she had now- that she was losing now.

Shaking herself of her negative thoughts, Zelda watched as Link got tackled by several children, and his response was to laugh. It was fascinating how alien it was to her.

The way it happened was Link and the children were talking about their respective homes. Link's story of village life fascinated them, and he stood and said proudly, "I'm the son of a great general! And one day with the blade I will become one as well!"

"Oooohhhh!" The children breathed in wide-eyed enraptured awe. They asked, "What's a general?"

"Uh..." Link stopped. "You don't know?" The children shook their head 'no'. Link smiled proudly and declared, "It's the biggest man on the hill who can lead entire armies to glory, and can fight everyone and win!"

"Like you?" One of them asked.

"Yeah! Like m-"

"GET THE GENERAL!" The kids yelled. They tackled him together.

"Care to join them, daughter of Nayru?" A rickety voice said by her. Zelda looked to see the Fae had claimed the wooden flesh again.

She shook her head, "I would never participate in such unsightly behavior. I am content here."

"It is the nature of young ones to need and want. A king most of all, as their desires is the desire of a nation. A content king is a waxing kingdom. Besides, even King Shorlin played."

Zelda doubted it and allowed her disbelief to show.

"He did." The Fae stressed. "He loved it here, because it represented the world he desired against the one he had to live in, and gave a clear separation between innocence and guilt, peace and war, love and hate."