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raeynbowboi · 3 years

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Building an Embodiment of the Fairytale Princess (2.0)

This is nothing new. I’ve done this build before, which I’ll link right [here]. The post did really well, and people seemed to love the concept. However, since then, Mythic Odysseys of Theros and Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything have both come out, bringing with them not only new subclasses, but new features, spells, mechanics, and elements that I couldn’t take into consideration the first time around. So, I decided that rather than just adding a tag on post like I did before, I’d just remake the build with the new features being taken into consideration. Like before, the focus of the build is to create an embodiment of the generic fairytale princess and not any one particular character. So without further ado, let’s get into it.

Like before, we’ll be choosing Variant Human for our race of choice. We’ll channel Sleeping Beauty to be gifted by the fey with blessings of Beauty, Grace, and Song for +1 CHA, +1 DEX, and Performance proficiency. We also get a bonus feat, and thanks to Tasha’s, we can now take Fey Blessed for +1 CHA. However, if she doesn’t cast with Charisma, then substitute those CHA bonuses with Wisdom instead.

The generic fairytale princess is a maid of purest heart, so we’re Lawful Good. But for your more rebellious princesses, Neutral Good or Chaotic Good are also valid.

Background is obviously Noble for proficiency with History and Persuasion.

CLASSES & SUBCLASSES

BARD

This one seems pretty obvious. Bards love to sing and dance, like your stereotypical princess. Because Charisma is their top stat, and they have expertise, it can make them great negotiators, and allow them to excel in dialogue interactions.

GLAMOUR

This college is very fitting for a fairytale princess, as it is focused on making oneself as beautiful and charming as the Fairest of Them All.

LORE

Lore bards share information, whether they tell stories, recite plays, share philosophy, or spread juicy gossip, the Lore Bard gets more magical secrets, and added expertise to make your princess an even bigger Mary Sue. In actual medieval history, princesses often learned to play instruments and sing, recite prayers or poems, or tell stories to visiting guests, and it was considered a part of her education and duty to do so.

CLERIC

While not every princess is a devout religious girl, their stories tend to be set in the medieval period when a good princess would have been expected to be chaste and pious. So on that front, worshiping a good deity would be befitting of such a character.

LIFE

The fairytale princess raises up those they care about, and nothing is more supportive and helpful than keeping your friends on their feet. The Life Cleric turns your princess into a kind soul who weeps for her friends and patches them up after the battle, turning your princess into a useful ally against the wicked witches and dangerous dragons.

LIGHT

Not all Fairytale Princesses are passive or support players. Those who lean toward Light are the princesses who stand as the Big Good of their story and battle the forces of Darkness with the power of the Light. Of the three Cleric options that fit the archetype, this is the best option for being a powerhouse in combat.

PEACE

Don’t get me wrong, I still hate this domain for wearing the skin of the Love Domain we were supposed to get, and you can absolutely still play it that way. How this domain went from Love to Togetherness to Pacifism is beyond me, but it’s a fairly strong subclass. The classic princess archetype is supposed to be gentle and kind, fitting for one who worships a god of mercy and forgiveness. It’s a value often toted as the strongest characterization of the early Disney princesses.

DRUID

My first time building the fairytale princess, I ignored Druid as an option because the wildshaping didn’t really make sense for a fairytale princess, but a lot of the Bardic Magical Secrets were used to steal Druid spells. However, thanks to the optional rules from Tasha’s, Druids can now use their Wildshape to summon fey that take on the shapes of animals instead of turning into the animals themselves, which makes Druid far more viable, as summoning animals is very in-character for a fairytale princess.

DREAMS

The Circle of Dreams has heavy Fey associations with references to the Summer Court ruled by Titania. It also is strongly focused on healing, and has a very Fairy Tale flavor to it. It’s an especially great option if you want to invoke Sleeping Beauty, as you can cloak your party while you sleep and send messages to people through your dreams.

SHEPHERD

The fairytale princess is strongly associated with animal buddies, and nothing makes better use of that than the Shepherd Druid, which focuses on amassing an army of critters. What’s more, the Unicorn Totem is very fitting, not only because Unicorns only approach maidens with pure hearts, but Shepherds of the Unicorn Totem get empowered healing.

SORCERER

The sorcerer is born with a spark of something special in them, and a lot of fantasy royalty have magical powers that other people in their world lack.

DIVINE SOUL

The princess doesn’t literally have to be the descendant of the gods, as the original name for the subclass was more about being favored by the gods. Still, if you want to lean into the idea of the princess as the Big Good against the Big Bad, then having her be born with the spark of the gods inside her makes for a neat characterization.

WILD MAGIC

With the new Sorcerer Shards as I’ve come to call them, we were introduced to the Feywild Shard, which was heavily geared toward Wild Magic Sorcerers, which seems to be WoTC’s way of saying that Wild Magic Sorcerers are the fey-linked sorcerous origin, so I’m including it because of our fey connection.

WARLOCK

This is the only class where there’s exactly one good option, but it’s one that works surprisingly well.

ARCHFEY

As a Warlock with a Pact of the Chain, your fairytale princess can choose to Find Familiar any cute little animal companion, or a Sprite to be your Fairy Godmother. Or rather, you can sign a pact with your Fairy Godmother, and use your Chain Pact to summon one of her emissaries to help you. The Archfey patron themselves can act as your Fairygodther, granting you and your party boons and aid where they need it.

WARLOCK INVOCATIONS

Agonizing Blast Armor of Shadows Beast Speech Eldritch Mind Eldritch Sight Gift of the Ever-Living Ones Shroud of Shadow Voice of the Chain Master

CHARISMA vs WISDOM

The big split in how you build your princess falls down the line between these two camps. The wise princess works better as a Druid/Cleric, while a charming princess is more of a Bardlock. For me personally, as much as the Cleruid fits the fairytale princess, the stereotype of the princess is usually that she is gullible, naïve, and overly trusting. Insight is a wisdom check, and something the classic princess archetype is usually bad at. Granted, Animal Handling is also Wisdom, but the Bard’s expertise can overrule a low Wisdom score. Think of it like a clash between Princess Zelda from the Legend of Zelda vs Princess Peach from Mario. Princess Zelda is wise and is much more focused on leadership and protecting her kingdom. Peach is more about the pretty dresses and having servants help her. They’re two very different camps on the princess archetype. Ultimately, which one you choose will depend on the type of princess you wish to invoke. The Classic Damsel or the Wise Matriarch.

SIDEKICKS

A new feature added in Tasha’s, sidekicks are secondary characters that can help the party and are basically simplified character builds with fewer bells and whistles. There are three main camps:

Expert. Experts are clever and knowledgeable, be they minstrels, librarians, pickpockets, merchants, or assassins. They can pick proficiency with DEX, INT, or CHA saving throws, and can be proficient or an expert with any five skills of your choice, and humanoids also gain proficiency with light armor, simple weapons, and two tools of your choice.

Spellcaster. Trained in the secrets of the Arcane, be they a priest, a fortuneteller, or a magical creature. They can choose proficiency with INT, WIS, or CHA checks, and can be proficient in Arcana, History, Insight, Investigation, Medicine, Performance, Persuasion, or Religion. They choose a roll to determine their spell list: Mage (Wizard), Healer (Cleric, Druid) or Prodigy (Bard, Warlock). The sidekick has access to the spell list of the classes their role aligns with, as well as casting with that stat.

Warrior. trained fighters, be they a soldier, a city guard, a trained animal, or a hired sword. They can pick proficiency with STR, DEX, or CON saving throws, and their skill options are Acrobatics, Animal Handling, Athletics, Intimidation, Nature, Perception, and Survival. Warriors can pick a fighting style: either Offensive to add +2 to attack and damage rolls, or Defender to impose disadvantage on hitting creatures other than them while within 5 feet of the princess.

Generic Princess Sidekicks

Humanoid Guard Warrior (bodyguard) Humanoid Commoner Expert (handmaiden, governess, etc.) Humanoid Magewright Spellcaster (court mage, or advisor) Any Beast-type Warrior (animal companion)

Fairytale Inspired Sidekicks

Seven Dwarves - Dwarf Warrior Fairy Godmother - Sprite or Pixie Spellcaster Prince Charming - Humanoid Noble Warrior Wicked Witch - Barovian Witch Spellcaster Beast - Gnoll, Jackalwere, Orc, or Troglodyte Warrior Puss in Boots - Awakened Cat or Tabaxi Warrior The Frog Prince - Awakened Frog or Grung Warrior Three Little Pigs - Awakened Pig Expert, Spellcaster, & Warrior Big Bad Wolf - Wolf Warrior or Awakened Wolf Expert Robin Hood - Redbrand Ruffian or Bandit Expert Djinn of the Lamp - Dust, Ice, or Magma Mephit Spellcaster Pinocchio - Giant Stone Statue Warrior White Rabbit - Awakened Rabbit Expert Cheshire Cat - Awakened Cat Expert or Spellcaster

There is no actual limit to the number of sidekicks your character can have, so in theory, your fairytale princess could have an entire posse of talking animals hanging out and helping her.

Skills, Spells, and Features

As a Variant Human, we got Performance proficiency alongside our Fey Touched feat, and as a Noble, we have proficiency with Persuasion and History. For everything else, we’re just looking to be a standard Fairytale Princess. So we should look to be proficient with: Animal Handling, Arcana, Religion, Nature, or Medicine.

BASIC FAIRIES

Dancing Lights Faerie Fire Healing Spirits Spirit Guardians Summon Fey Conjure Woodland Beings Conjure Fey

BASIC PRINCESS THINGS

Animal Friendship Command Heroism Speak With Animals Animal Messenger Calm Emotions Find Steed Warding Bond Zone of Truth Conjure Animals Mord’s Magnificent Mansion

SNOW WHITE

Armor of Agathys Mirror Image Beacon of Hope Aura of Purity Heroes’ Feast

CINDERELLA

Fabricate Creation True Polymorph Wish

SLEEPING BEAUTY

Sleep Phantasmal Killer Dream Wall of Thorns Dream of the Blue Veil

THE LITTLE MERMAID

Charm Person Shatter Suggestion Tidal Wave Compulsion Control Water Dominate Person Maelstrom Control Weather Tsunami Storm of Vengeance

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

Charm Monster Unseen Servant Tiny Servant Animate Objects Awaken Hold Monster Summon Fiend

Last time I built the fairytale princess, I gave her exactly 1 build. 18 levels of glamour bard and 2 levels of Archfey Warlock. But recently I’ve begun to instead put more stock in leaving builds open, showing instead the options that a player has to choose from. So, for this update, I’m not pushing for a specific build. I’ve laid out the appropriate spells, and the types of princesses that a player can strive to emulate with their spell lists. Consider this more of a guide to help you decide how you want to play your fairytale princess.

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bexterbex · 4 years

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A Soul to Mend His Own | Ch. 74

Warning, PLEASE CHECK TAGS IF YOU SEE SOMETHING YOU DON’T WANT TO READ THEN DON’T READ. Tag lists are closed

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Will tag as I go along, Will update tags, Slow Burn, Influenced by Star Trek and other Sci-Fi themes, References to We Happy Few, Tons of References and quotes to George Orwells 1984 see if you can find them all, The First Order is the new Big Brother, but who is really surprised, Blatant Nazi Symbolism, Interrogation Themes, Eventual Smut, Eventual Romance, Really just drawn out Slow Burn, Don’t repost without permission, Torture themes, Suggestive Themes, Execution themes, Disturbing Themes, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Verbal Abuse, Controlling Kylo Ren, Physical Abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Kylo Ren is Not Nice, Kylo Ren Has Issues, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, Possessive Kylo Ren, A character shamelessly based on Zelda

A Kylo Ren x Modern! Reader in a soulmate au with canon divergence. —————————————SLOWBURN————————————–

He is already the Supreme leader, searching the universe to find you, his Empress. Your name on his wrist has been the only constant in his life, while you have doubts about his existence and his acceptance of you. He isn’t in the database and why did the name Kylo Ren cover Ben Solo?

MASTERLIST

Chapter 74: False Freedom

*****So this chapter contains Dub/Con so you have been warned.******

Ten days. Ten days you were without conscious thought. It’s been ten days since you were able to see out of the windows of your eyes. Ten days of pure blackness, of being confined with the creature. Only the dying embers keeping you company, but they were slowly receding around you, your territory shrinking, the monster creeping closer. On Earth, you weren’t free.

But now you were face to face with him, with your own personal demon. His eyes peering into your soul, knowing that he was controlling you. Seeing you struggling to hold on. Watching you behind the glass.

For once his helmet was off, but his voice was void of emotion. “You will come with me to Exegol. He has requested your presence.” You wondered who he was. And why he needed you to be there.

You wanted to respond, but you couldn’t. Kylo still having control over you. You know he was watching you internally scream and beg him to let you go. You were lashing against the grip of the black creature that held you back, that held you down. You were powerless to him.

But your body betrayed you as he took your arm and escorted you to the shuttle that would take you to the Supremacy. You could feel the darkness taking over as you were strapped in. When you gained consciousness you were finishing dinner, you felt yourself regain control of your voice.

“You will join me in bed tonight, Kitten.” It wasn’t a question, it was a command. You watched as his eyes watched you, knowing there was little you could do to resist him. He was a beast that had already captured its prey, now was no time to fight.

You tried to move your body, but you only had control of voice. “Why are you doing this?” The sound of your own voice seemed foreign on your own ears. You hadn’t had control over yourself in over two weeks.

He was agitated now, something about your question was angering him. “As I said before, this is for your protection. I do not know his full strength and the only way to protect you now is by occupying your mind, putting up a wall you can not do yourself.” But who was this man that threatened you, that asked for you?

“And killing my family? Was that putting up a wall too? Or was that so you could have me all to yourself?” You knew that there was nothing you could do now to stop him from doing whatever he wanted to. You were completely at his mercy.

He scoffed, he was acting like the villain in this story. “We gave them a merciful death. Our enemies would have watched them tortured, to try to get to you. I did you a favor.” His face sneered at you, there was no remorse for what he had done. You felt the tears fall down your face, seeming to have control over the windows now. Allowing you to show some emotion. “Making me watch the first order murder them was a favor?” You wondered just how far he was willing to go to ‘protect’ you. Your family was dead, your friends brainwashed, your planet seized. He was a monster.

His eyes narrowed at you, one twitching with anger. “Remember, you are the First Order now.” Yes, you were the face of it now. The Empress.

You tried to remember back to when he told you that he wanted you to rule for him, but the memory was becoming murky like it had been tainted. “You’re right and I have control over nothing, not even my own body.”

His eyes grew dark as he leaned forward, his body language as threatening as it could be. You felt the internal hold on your body release, and then you felt the Force wrap around you, holding you now from the outside of your body. “You want control, here you have control.”

You struggled against the invisible grip. “You know that’s not what I meant.” “But this is what you are going to get.” He then commanded you up with the Force, your feet levitating off the ground. No control over anything as the tendrils wrapped themselves tightly around you. You were being taken to the bedroom and put on the bed.

You were afraid, this was not the same man who left you weeks ago. “Please don’t do this.” You felt the bed dip with his weight as he crawled up over you. You wanted to push him off, wanted him to get away from you.

His eyes feasted upon your flesh, seeming to mark exactly where he was going to bite into you, like his last meal. “What am I not supposed to do? You are my wife are you not?” His eyes focus on your chest and crotch, taking you in like an object to be defiled.

Your voice broke as you pleaded to him “I am, but I don’t want this, not like this. I want you freely, no Force to hold me down, no Force inside my mind.” For some stupid reason, your love for him was still fighting the fear and terror you felt for him. Trying to remind you that you love him with every fiber of your helpless being.

His demeanor shifted for a moment, it softened. “Promise you won’t run away?” He seemed vulnerable in that moment, and it made your heart yearn for him. Your voice was quiet, your crying calmed. “I promise.”

You felt the tendrils release you, the black entity inside your mind leave you. You were yourself again, but for how long? You weren’t really even able to enjoy this freedom as Kylo began attacking you with kisses, biting love marks into your skin. You heard fabric ripping as your dress came off of you. The Force wasn’t holding you down but his hands were.

You felt conflicted at the situation. Should you be letting him do this? After all he’s done? But your body betrayed you, giving in to his touches and kisses. Every fiber of your being overcome with joy knowing that he was next to you, that he was loving you. It didn’t take him long to get his clothes off. He wasn’t fully erect yet, but that wasn’t unusual.

You struggled against his hold. He was still resisting giving you freedom. “May I please have my arms back?”

His voice was harsh, “Why?” His grip tightening, you were sure that you were going to bruise.

“You haven’t let me touch you when we’ve made love. You’ve always just held my arms down.” You wanted to be able to touch him, but that never seemed to be an option. You wanted to hold him, maybe that would help this broken man.

He complied, but then a hand wrapped itself around your neck. “I need control,” was his explanation. He used his free hand to stroke himself hard.

You were being choked. His hard pounding thrust caused you to force yourself harder into his hand. Cutting off blood flow to your brain, but not oxygen. Your hips rolled upward as you struggled. He wasn’t going to kill you, but that didn’t mean you didn’t need to be afraid. But again your body was betraying you, your slick was pooling between your legs.

Once he was done making himself hard, his hand found its way to your hot core, plunging a finger in without any warning. He was pissed, and so it seemed that you were not going to get any more warm-up than absolutely necessary. After a couple of thrusts, a second finger was added and then a third. When he thought you were prepped just enough he forcefully split you in two. His pace rough and quick, unrelenting as he pounded into you. You lacked the ability to speak for a different reason, his hand still clamped tightly around your throat. He was vocalizing groans, snarls, the occasional fuck. His lips and teeth covering you in deep dark bruises. This was the first time that he seemed to break skin, you had a bloody bite mark on your breast. The man fucking you was truly a monstrous savage.

Unlike before he climaxed before you, but he left you feeling empty as he pulled out. You were flipped over, your face shoved down into the mattress as he took you from behind. Yes, you might have had your arms free, your mind free, but you were far from freedom. There were tears in your eyes as you finally reached your orgasm, he was close to his second. Gone was the loving man you once thought you knew, now he was a creature that haunted you, something born of nightmares. A demon trapping you to your own personal hell, but you could help but feel pleasure at your release. Your body still overjoyed at the things he was doing to you. Your body and you slowly becoming two separate entities as he occupied you, both in body and mind. Your tears staining the mattress.

When he pulled out he released all over your cunt, covering your crotch in his hot cum. His grip on your head holding you face down on the mattress released. His hands now attached themselves to your thighs. A long hard swipe fo his tongue changed your tune entirely. Lapping you up, now this was a delicious pleasure. His enthusiasm for your combined juices seemed to return. He hooked a finger inside you to try to scoop out as much mixed cum as he could, after a while the finger just seemed to massage your walls as you produced more and more arousal. His tongue occasionally thrusting in and out of you, before you came to your climax. Your legs collapsed under you as Kylo’s touch left your body, and his weight left the bed.

He went into the bathroom where you heard the shower run, for the first time since you’ve been married he had abandoned you on the bed. He wasn’t returning to clean you up. When he came back, there was no good-night kiss, no real acknowledgment of your existence. He turned off his light and seemed to fall asleep. You tested your own strength as you tried to get off the bed. You limped into the bathroom, the woman in the reflection haunted you, the love bites no longer reminded you of sweetness, but pain. They were marks of ownership, pure ownership over your existence. You turned on the shower and let the scalding water try and wash away the pain in your heart, but it couldn’t. Not before you lost control over your mind once more. The black creature invading your sanctuary. You wondered when the next time you would be guaranteed moments of freedom.

When you came to you were stuck behind the glass. No control over yourself. You were now wearing different clothes. You wondered how many days had passed by, how many days he had stolen from you. For some reason some stupid part of you was still in love with him, believing that he was actually protecting you. But now you were descending to the surface of Exegol from what you could observe. You were going to meet him, whoever he was. You were surrounded by the knights and Kylo, a blaster placed on your hip. You could sense the nervousness from the knights. If they were afraid, you should be too. You weren’t sure if you were being led to your death or not, but you were afraid either way.

Kylo wore his helmet, his lightsaber in his hand, ready to jump out of the craft when you landed. The knights assumed similar positions. You were the only one strapped down, but you could feel Kylo’s Force around you, like some sort of protective bubble. When the exit ramp lowered, it looked like you were released directly into the gates of hell. Chanting was heard in the distance. You felt yourself lose full consciousness once more.

#kylo ren #kylo ren x reader #kylo ren smut #kylo ren imagine #a soul to mend his own #kylo x reader #kylo x you #star wars #first order #star wars imagine #Star wars soulmate au #sw first order imagine #star wars first order

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ashleyswrittenwords · 4 years

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Helloo Just read your Modern Au zelink where link is zeldas bodyguard and boiii is so sexy. Could you write more about this fic?? Like how Link and Zelda started their affair??

UHHH YEAH! I love that AU too. I’ll write a little prequel that I’m sure will end up being so much longer than intended.

Okay, so I made it much longer than intended. You asked where they started and this is it! It’s not M rated yet because their romance sparks a little more innocently before there’s a real fire.

I’m saying there’s a sequel to the prequel lmao.

If you want to read: The Queen and Her Bodyguard

—

It started with her most dreadful day of the year.

“My Queen! Your signature is required for the balloons.”

She feigned a polite smile.

“Your Majesty, please consider these final touches. It’s imperativethat the kitchen runs infallibly.”

“Queen Zelda, the press needs a statement regarding-”

Her cheeks held a pain only people who have been faking smilesall day could own. Hands massaged her jaw in a way that said, “Rest now, itwill surely be worse tomorrow.” With the weight of her head sinking down heavieronto her hands, the base of her elbows grew sore from biting into the mahogany desk.Vaguely she could hear Impa rattling off the press releases for this evening andtomorrow morning, but her eyes kept drawing to the corner of the room –continuously finding it empty. The idea of pulling off a disappearing act soundedmore and more handsome by the hour, although her fingers found the weighted penwaiting idly by her side and scribbled down shorthanded notes.

Impa was smiling in that motherly way of hers as she set downa copy of papers and a tumbler of hot tea. “If any of my words found their way toyou, then we are better off tomorrow than I thought.”

“What a relief.”

The woman bid her goodnight and left the door open as she spokehushed words to someone outside. They didn’t reach the queen and she didn’t care.The papers towering on her desk could may as well be an assassination attemptat this point. Without thinking, she grabbed the tumbler and took a sip of thetea inside, promptly burning her tongue. A sound that was between a his and acurse cut through.

“Are you alright, Your Majesty?” a voice came from the headof the room, leaving her to look up with panic.

Much to her relief, it wasn’t another advisor nor Impa. Linkstood at the door and closed it with hesitation. She nodded at his concern, helda hand to her mouth and held up the tumbler with the other for emphasis. “Yes,thank you,” she finally said, albeit numbly.

Zelda sank evermore into her hands and poured over the documentsfor some sense of organization. Daylight had long died in Castle Town, but thatdid not stop the nightlife that followed. Hylians found any excuse to party andthe eve of their queen’s birthday was far from an exception. There was plentyof sounds outside that drew her away from focusing.

“It’s just one thing after another today, isn’t it?” shemurmured to herself, looking up at her bodyguard who was taking turns about theroom. He hummed in agreement as he looked at the trinkets he has seen a thousandtimes before. Relenting to her distractions, she looked from her pile of papers,“How was the security briefing? I’m sorry I couldn’t be there.”

Tiredness had sunk into her words and along with it her bodyto the chair. It caught his attention. She could pretend everything was fine,that the late hours these last two weeks weren’t affecting her. It was somethingshe was good at, but even her best fronts were saw through by him. Link pulledaway from a picture from a charity event a year ago and caught his worn old notebookbetween the crook of his arm and his elbow. Inside it were her own plans for theweek alongside his, but he rarely deviated from her own.

He shrugged, shoving his hands into the pockets of his graydress pants. “It went smoothly. Everything is accounted for,” he offered a weaksmile, “Most of it technicalities you shouldn’t need to worry about.”

It made her roll her eyes. They both knew it was a five-hourmeeting discussing all possible security threats to herself and any of the nobility.He headed it himself, going over all sectors of defense and assuring protocolswere being adhered to. As he stepped closer, she could see the circles underhis eyes had darkened.

Zelda felt guilty.

“Have you considered my offer for the Gala?” she questioned,wondering if that suit were one she’s seen before. Drawing in the warmth of hertumbler and her knees into the seat, the woman attempted to look innocent.

He pursed his lips, looking from her to the window behind her.“Yes, and my answer is the same,” he paused on her curled form. Sleep deprivationsurely did not stifle the shocking blue of his eyes. Somehow without shame, itmade her want him to look at him more. He took another step across the room,fingers trailing the surface of her desk as he peered over, “Are those sweatpants?”

Like a gunshot, she dropped her legs from the chair and aflush crept up her neck, “Tell no one!”

Intrigue forced his lips to quirk upward as he rounded the desk,“Did you stuff them in your briefcase? What would Lady Impa think?”

“Yes, and she’llnever have to think because she won’t know,” she said indignantly up at him, “I’min this damned office all day. It makes no difference!” Although, changing underthe desk midday was a bit of a feat.

He snorted and she sat straighter, bracing the side of thechair to speak demandingly. “What if I double your pay? Come on, Link. I’masking you not to come to work!”

At this, the man grasped the back of her chair and smiledlazily down at her, “What kind of lousy bodyguard isn’t there during his charge’sbusiest days in public? Not to mention being a horrible friend for missing yourbirthday.”

It didn’t matter how valid his points were, she glowered atthe man. “You look exhausted.”

“And you,” he pulled the chair out despite her protests, “looklike you’re about to fall asleep.”

“I’m fine!”

“You almost started crying because you burned your tongue.”

“But-!”

Link reached around her for her tumbler and briefcase,stopping only to look her in the eyes, “Zelda, please. For your own wellbeing.”His face was stern and made her look away. Zelda stiffly nodded and followed himto the door where she took the lead. Her guard rarely said her name like that. Asthey began the long walk to the east wing, she turned slightly.

“Would you stay home if I threw in-”

“No,” he said before remembering where they were beforeadding, “Your Grace.”

She knew he was only worried, but that didn’t stop her fromdrawing her arms to her chest and feeling like a fool for arguing. “You know,”she started, “I wish you’d say my name more.”

He did his habitual scan of the halls and came to her with alook of confusion, “What do you mean?”

Their usual walk of comfortable silence felt tainted. “Youonly say it like that when you want me to do something,” Zelda frowned. She wasused to people using her for things. Only developing relationships for personalgain, and although she knew it wasn’t Link’s intention… it did bother her.

Link didn’t respond right away. He fell in behind her stepsas he usually did and it only churned the anxiety in her stomach. Nothing butone thing could go wrong tomorrow. The queen had three speeches prepared and theentire guest list in her back pocket.

“You’re not telling me something,are you?” he said it more like a statement than a question. They were coming upon her quarters now. Zelda thought about going through those doors and leavinghim without his answers. Instead, she stopped and turned to find him carefullywatching her.

“I have reason… to believe thatPrince Harrington will propose at the Gala,” the words spoken aloud made her nauseous.The only other person who had an inkling of what was going on was Impa, who wasalready writing up press statements for every possible scenario. Lady Midna hadcalled her last night to warn her and Zelda knew her sources were credible.

Link was carefully trying to readher. They’ve had many conversations about the man, mostly about his annoyinghabit of letting the media know his whereabouts whenever he visited the castle.He had proposed before in private and every time she let him down gently. But hewas also amongst her most viable suitors and a marriage like that would be verystrategic for Hyrule.

“Are you ready for something likethat?” his voice was calm, which differed greatly to her amassed concerns. Linkwatched her hand tighten around the other.

“It’s not the most ideal birthdaypresent,” Zelda tried to laugh.

He took her hand in his to stop itfrom prying the other off her wrist. The days felt like they were getting longerand summer brought along its own complications. They both knew that if she didget married there was no telling how different things would be. Zelda didn’tlike the thought of Link leaving her side and she entertained the thought thathe felt the same.

She stared down at their shoes, findinghim closer than she previously realized. Zelda wore fuzzy black slippers and hewore dark leather dress shoes.

He cracked into a smile, “How didI miss the slippers?”

“I have a charming disposition,”she jested, putting her hand on the door handle. “It’s distracting.”

“You do,” Link said in a tonethat drew her in all over again. “Makes it rather difficult to do my job.”

She smiled and felt her cheeksgrow warm.

“You deserve to be happy,” he suddenlyasserted, turning her hand over in his.

She expected him to pull away andleave her with a goodnight, but he didn’t. They stood together and she didn’t wantto leave quite yet. “I want you to be happy, Zelda,” Link’s grasp on her tightenedjust so she would notice. His eyes were gentle and genuine as he looked at her.If she weren’t what she was born into, she would let herself fall into that bluecolor. If that were true, she would give into whatever she was feeling rightnow and ask him to run away with her. If that were right, she would let him makeher happy.

But it wasn’t.

Even so, she let him pull herinto a hug. His arms encircled her and she met the collar of his gray jacket. Hesmelled like the musky scent of his cologne and something that was distinctlyLink. She wondered if his whole apartment smelled like this or if there was anyonewaiting for him. “Thank you,” she muttered against him, “but whatever decisionI make won’t be for myself.”

At that, his arms tightenedaround her and she wondered if she asked him to hold her like this every nighthe would do it. One night would be fine, she thought. One night would mean theworld. The thought made her chest tighten and her lip to tremble in a way a queen’slip should never. Zelda bit down on her lip and sniffed, burying her head deeperinto his chest.

“I’m sorry I’m keeping you up,”she said, pulling away despite her screaming want.

“Don’t be.” Blue eyes. All shecould see was blue. He brushed a tear from her cheek.

She couldn’t make sense of it.Link was already so close and when she leaned onto the tips of her slippers, hemet her halfway. His lips moved against her and his hand found her shoulder. Hebreathed her in and her heart pounded in her chest. Link pulled back after acouple long moments, wide eyed and confounded.

Zelda’s lips stumbled in betweenan apology and a goodnight as she fumbled for the door. Not even bothering tograb her things at the door, she closed it behind her.

#ily anon #the queen and her bodyguard #ashleyswrittenwords #zelink #loz

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frizz22 · 5 years

Note

Hi, can you write part 2 of "Rebuked" in which Edward have a fight with his sister about her night out? The next day when Edward is not at home, she invite Faustus and it all ends up with hot make out session in the kitchen; then Edward walks on them with Diana. Zelda is furious and she leaves Greendale, going to Europe. A few weeks later Faustus joins her.

Very specific but I like it, haha. I did change one detail for the sake of timeline—you’ll see that when I get to it. Hope you still enjoy! Part 1 here Read on ao3

Edward was happily making himself a cup of tea when he realized that the only reason he’d gained this insight on Faustus was because his sister had been going behind his back for Satan knew how long. Setting the kettle down with exaggerated care, he stormed up the stairs and threw Zelda’s bedroom door open with a bang.

His sister bolted up, hair a mess and blinking in confusion, though there was a spell in her hand in preparation for self-defense. If Edward hadn’t been so furious, he might have been proud at her reaction time and instincts.

When Zelda realized it was him, the spell dissipated, and she flopped back onto her mattress. “What do you want, Edward?” She groaned; an arm thrown over her face. “And why can’t it wait until later?”

Stomping over, Edward snatched the comforter off the bed and threw it onto the ground.

Zelda shot back up, fire in her eyes where annoyance had been moments before. “What the fuck?” She demanded, swinging her legs off the bed and standing; preparing for a fight.

“Faustus Blackwood?!” He exclaimed, his face already going red.

Brow furrowing, Zelda stared at him, baffled. “What about him?”

Her reaction gave Edward pause, made him doubt for a second, because there was no trace of guilt… of anything. But Faustus hadn’t turned up out of nowhere with a marriage proposition. Shaking off his doubt, Edward plunged ahead. “Out of all the men in the coven, you had to sleep with him.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Edward. Faustus and I—” She continued to deny, and it angered him even further.

Stalking closer, Edward only stopped when he was towering over her. “Thought you could get away with it.” He interrupted with a growl. “But you didn’t. Faustus missed the memo, gave it away. He was just here.”

Excitement sparked in his sister’s eyes at the news, though the rest of her face remained neutral. “Was he now?” When he didn’t elaborate, Zelda shrugged a shoulder. “I can see who I please. You have no say in the matter.” She raised a brow in challenge.

“I have plenty to say in the matter,” Edward retorted; and though he badly wanted to throw the rejected proposal in her face as evidence, he held back. Knowing if he revealed this to Zelda she would do something rash. “You will not date him. You will not sleep with him. Heaven, you won’t even see him again.” Edward emphasized each order with a slash of his hand. “Faustus Blackwood isn’t appropriate for you to have a relationship with. He—”

Zelda was already rolling her eyes and turning away from him to pick up her blanket, likely to go back to bed.

Infuriated, he grabbed her arm and yanked Zelda back round so she faced him once more. “You will not dishonor the Spellman name by being Blackwood’s slut.” Edward ground out; his face close to Zelda’s.

Jaw set, Zelda pointedly looked at his bruising grip on her arm and then back at him. “Let. Go.” She ordered, voice hard.

“You won’t see him again.” He commanded, releasing her with a little shove. One that tangled her feet in the blanket still on the ground and sent her crashing into her vanity. “Be a whore if you must—Satan knows your reputation has already suffered—but you won’t be Blackwood’s whore.”

Rage contorted his sister’s features as she leveraged herself up slowly, rolling her shoulder painfully. “You’re mistaken, brother,” she spat the title and continued to roll her shoulder by made no move to heal it. “I was a slut or a whore, whichever adjective you prefer. I happily enjoyed the company of numerous witches and warlocks since my dark baptism.” Edward did his best not to flinch at the news, though gossip did reach his ears now and then, he’d always done his best to ignore the rumors that went around about Zelda; because they were normally true. But Zelda didn’t miss the action and smiled maliciously at him before continuing. “But for the first time in years I’m a one partner witch. Faustus and I have a faithful relationship, we—”

A harsh laugh escaped Edward’s lips and he paced away before rounding on Zelda. “Faithful?!” He repeated incredulously, “faithful? Faustus Blackwood is an insatiable whore and would never be committed to a single person; let alone you.”

Sneering at him, Zelda shook her head. “You know nothing about what is between Faustus and I. And even if he was a whore, never to be faithful to me, it’d still be my decision to make whether I wanted to be involved with him. Or involved with anyone, for that matter. You can’t control me, Edward,” she ran a hand through her hair agitatedly. “You’re not father and even if you were, you’d still have no right—”

He slapped her then, hard enough to split her lower lip and it stunned him.

Though clearly stunned as well, Zelda regained herself quickly and slapped him back with just as much strength. “Get out of this room, now,” she snarled, “before I set you on fire.” Her fists clenched at her sides and magic pulsed in the air.

Edward stepped away from her and blindly reached for the door until his hand connected with the knob. Though he’d come in her to confront Zelda about her behavior, he certainly hadn’t intended for it to be so physical. Opening the door, he hesitated, taking in his sister’s split lip, the finger-shaped bruises on her arm and how she was still unconsciously rolling her shoulder.

For a moment, he felt a twinge of guilt, but he buried it. He was the head of the Spellman house, and he had to uphold the family name not only by advancing as much as he could in terms of becoming high priest, but also by ensuring his siblings didn’t do anything to besmirch the name. And that included messing with his plans by sleeping with people he deemed a threat to his advancement. “Zelda—”

She hurled the first thing she could grab at him, a hairbrush, and she must have added some speed with a spell because when he shut the door to block the object it dented the wood a bit.

Sniffing and straightening his shirt, Edward walked down the hall to his room. He healed his cheek as he went; he had plans to meet a woman he’d been seeing later and it wouldn’t do to have a red handprint blazing against his skin.

~~~~~~~~~

Zelda stood, seething, staring at the door for some time after her brother left. Though he’d become more controlling since taking over the family, she’d never expected this of him. Well, she could have anticipated his reaction to Faustus, to an extent…. But she wouldn’t have guessed he’d become violent with her.

Picking up her blanket and throwing it onto the bed, Zelda waved a hand to fix the displaced objects on her vanity. That was when she caught her reflection in the mirror; her lip was swollen and bleeding a bit, there were finger-shaped bruises on her forearm and her shoulder still throbbed.

Carefully tracing a finger over her lip, the injury healed itself. Zelda left the other injuries, wanting to leave them as a reminder to Edward; though she did dull the aching in her shoulder. As she made to climb back into bed, still wanting a few hours of sleep, the wards shimmering distracting her; Edward had left.

Sleep forgotten and in a clear act of defiance, also in part wanting to be comforted by the man she spent most of her time with, Zelda messaged Faustus and invited him over to the house. He arrived quickly enough, much to her pleasure; though she was careful not to show it.

“I take it your plans for my brother didn’t go well.” She remarked, opening the front door for him and then walking away, heading for the kitchen.

Faustus scowled, pride still wounded from the very recent rejection. Even if he had a new plan, it did nothing to soothe the deep burning he felt at how smug Edward had been, how superior when he rebuked Faustus. He had no intention of telling Zelda about the proposal, he couldn’t give her that much power over him. Right now, they seesawed, first he had the upper hand, then her; back and forth, it was a game. One they both enjoyed. If he revealed he wanted to marry her, even if Zelda felt as he suspected, it would give her the upper hand indefinitely.

So, avoiding the question, Faustus stepped inside and closed the door behind him. “What makes you say that?” He asked, trailing after her.

Glancing over her shoulder, Zelda cocked an eyebrow. “Because he just lectured me on dating ‘inappropriate’ men, rather heatedly,” she muttered the last part under her breath and Faustus frowned. Before he could question it, Zelda spun to let her eyes sweep over him as she continued into the kitchen; walking backwards. “Which is rich, coming from him. Edward only chases inappropriate women, and not just women, but mortal ones at that. At least mine’s a warlock.”

Eyes widening, Faustus stared at her. He was hers, was he? A tiny flicker of his fingers had Zelda’s feet freezing to the floor, halting her next to the table.

She looked to her feet and then brought her eyes back to his, a spark there. “Faustus,” she murmured, tone equally a warning and an invitation.

He smiled wickedly at her, “yours?” Faustus repeated, taking long, measured steps towards her and it was Zelda’s turn for her eyes to widen.

“Just a figure of sp—”

Faustus grabbed her by the hips then and deposited her onto the table, lips capturing hers. One hand trailed up her body to tangle in her hair while the other remained locked on her hip. She gasped into his mouth and pulled him closer, opening her legs and wrapping them around his waist.

A groan rumbled in his throat at the contact and he unashamedly ground against her, his hand slipping around her back to press her closer to him. Not one to be passive, Zelda slipped her tongue into his mouth as she locked her heels behind his thighs to keep him close so she could meet his grinds in turn. The table started to creak ominously underneath them, but neither of them paused to consider that the piece of furniture might not hold.

Zelda had just slipped her hands under his shirt, having untucked and unbuttoned it, and he was looking to return the favor when a small feminine gasp sounded that was nothing like the glorious noises Zelda usually made.

Reluctantly breaking their kiss, Zelda turned towards the door where she knew her sister must be standing. It was only when she realized that it wasn’t Hilda, that the order to go away died in her throat. Faustus didn’t notice, his mouth now preoccupied with leaving a trail of sucking kisses along her neck—he’d assumed it was Hilda too. And, well, given how this wouldn’t have been the first time Hilda caught them, Zelda couldn’t blame Faustus for not even turning his head at the interruption; his hips still rutting deliciously into hers.

It took her a moment to overcome her lust fogged brain to register that Edward was standing next to the strange girl in the doorway, his face thunderous. Losing that time to come to her senses meant Zelda couldn’t warn Faustus before Edward was striding towards them.

“Blackwood!” Her brother roared, yanking Faustus back by the collar of his shirt; the action almost pulled Zelda off the table as well; her legs had still been hooked around the warlock. “I made myself clear,” Edward added as Faustus stumbled back, and before he could collect himself—still surprised the intruder wasn’t Hilda, Edward punched him in the jaw.

“Edward!” Zelda launched herself off the table and shoved her brother back; her fury matching his, if not greater.

Her brother whirled around to face her, a vein pulsing in his neck. “I told you to stay away from him. And I told you,” he jabbed a finger into Faustus’ chest where he stood massaging his jaw, “there was no way in Heaven.”

Blood boiling, Zelda clenched her fists to prevent a spell from flying. “Yes, because he’s such an inappropriate man?” Her eyes traveled over to the woman still standing the doorway, apparently too stunned to leave. “How old are you?” She demanded.

Clearly startled at being addressed, the woman jumped. “I’m sorry?”

“Your age. How old are you?”

Licking her lips, the woman fidgeting with the end of her sweater. “Twenty-six. What does that—”

Zelda slowly spun to face her brother, lips curling in disgust. “Another one? When will you learn, big brother?” She asked slowly, shaking her head. “What’s your name?” Zelda turned her attention back to the woman.

“Meg—, Megan.” She stuttered, unsure why she was being interrogated in such a manner.

Closing the distance between the mortal and herself, Zelda tilted her head slightly. “Don’t expect to be around long, Megan. You’re the third one in as many months that my brother has brought home.” She glanced over at Edward who was fuming, “and he calls me the slut.” With that, Zelda marched from the room, leaving a horrified mortal in her wake.

Huffing in amusement, Faustus made to follow the fiery witch, only for Edward to catch his arm.

“Stay. Away.” The younger man growled, a muscle in his cheek twitching.

Faustus smirked. “I will when she tells me to,” he remarked, both of them knowing Zelda’s stance on the matter and who she would side with. When he made to leave again, Edward redoubled his hold and Faustus knew he’d have bruises; the thought bringing some of Zelda’s words from earlier to mind—that Edward had gotten ‘heated’ with her. “Is this what you did to force Zelda to listen to your lecture?” Faustus looked pointedly at his arm and back at Edward, anger building up inside him quickly.

“What happens between my sister and I is of no concern of yours.” Edward muttered, though his cheeks turned red, giving him away.

That was evidence enough for Faustus, he sent a spell through his arm to shock Edward, who released him with a yelp of surprise and pain as he shook his hand. “If you touch her in such a way again…” Faustus let the threat trail off, a snarl tugging his lips. He then turned to follow Zelda once more, wanting to know why she hadn’t been more forthcoming about Edward’s confrontation.

Before Faustus could get more than a few steps, though, a spell bodily lifted him up and expelled him from the house and then proceeded to drag across the grounds until his was off Spellman property. When he tried to reenter, Faustus found himself blocked. Grumbling, Faustus teleported away, figuring he’d message Zelda later about why he hadn’t gone after her.

~~~~~~~~~~

Faustus hadn’t followed her. Though somewhat surprised, Zelda brushed it off. She had more important matters to attend to; such as packing. Though she’d considered leaving before, it’d never been a truly serious option for her. The academy was here, her family… Faustus. But Edward, Edward was no longer the brother she’d known all her life. If Zelda were to be honest, he hadn’t been the same since their father died. He’d become beyond controlling and while there were occasions where they got physical with one another, used the Cain pit, this morning had been different.

Dark thoughts swirled in Zelda’s head as she packed, wondering if her plans to get away without Edward following would truly work. If she was quick enough, they just might. Her clothes had just finished folding and shrinking themselves so they all fit into one suitcase when a knock sounded on the door and it was cracking open.

Panic seized Zelda and she launched herself at the door to slam it shut again; sure it was Edward. An affronted, “Zelda!” Sounded from the other side and she sighed in relief before admitting her sister into the room.

Casting her an odd look, Hilda walked in warily. It was only when she saw the suitcase, noticed Zelda’s vanity was packing itself that her eyes went round with realization. “You’re leaving?” She whispered, glancing at the door behind her as if to check for Edward.

Sniffing, Zelda made to shrug nonchalantly but winced, her shoulder still tender. “Yes,” she stated primly, trying to play off the pain, “it’s high time I went out on my own. Can’t live here forever.”

Brow furrowing, Hilda took a step closer to her and poked her shoulder experimentally. Zelda couldn’t help the small yelp that escaped her and she swatted Hilda’s hand away. Pressing her lips together, Hilda took Zelda’s arm and started to probe it, carefully sending healing spells into her as she worked. “Did Eddie do this?” She asked softly, though from her tone it seemed she already knew.

“Perhaps,” she muttered, though her body relaxed as the pain eased in her shoulder.

Frowning, Hilda finished her exam and sat on the edge of Zelda’s bed. “Why not heal it yourself?” Zelda turned away from her sister, not wanting to admit it’d been for petty reasons, an attempt to make Edward feel guilty later. But Hilda knew both her and Edward too well and a long, exasperated sigh left her as she shook her head. “That’s not why you’re leaving though, is it? It’s because of Faustus.”

Shocked by her sister’s perception, Zelda saw no reason to deny that Faustus was a big part of her decision; not that she expected him to follow her. “I’m leaving because Edward keeps trying to control me and I refuse to be. I can see who I want, whether that is Faustus or someone else.” She came and sat next to Hilda on the bed, bumping her shoulder against her sister’s. “Edward and I cannot live in the same house anymore, Hildie. It’s too volatile between us,” Zelda gestured vaguely with her hands, unsure how to convey her relationship with their brother. “And I won’t be controlled.” She repeated firmly, standing and moving to pack up some photos.

To her surprise, Hilda stood and started to help her, folding some of the quilts she’d made Zelda over the years and shrinking them to fit in the suitcase as well. Together they finished packing in a matter of fifteen minutes, magic speeding up the process.

She paused and spun slowly, taking in the room she’d lived in most her life; making sure she hadn’t missed anything. When she stopped, she was facing Hilda who had tears in her eyes. An affectionate smile touched her lips and she pulled her little sister into a hug.

“I can’t tell you where I’m going,” Zelda murmured sadly, “Edward is sure to go through your memories so he can follow me and bring his wayward sister home. I can’t risk that.” She pulled back and framed Hilda’s face, brushing away some of the tears that had fallen. “But I’ll send postcards,” Zelda promised, tone brighter to try and raise Hilda’s spirits. “I’ll send them as I’m leaving a place, so by the time you get them I’ll be long gone and Edward can’t find me.” Stepping away, Zelda picked up her suitcase and slung her purse over her shoulder. “I’ll call you on the mirror when I can. Take care of yourself, Hilda.”

A watery smile spread across her sister’s face and she pulled Zelda into another hug. “Me? I’ll be here, as always. You’re the one that needs to be safe.”

Shaking her head, Zelda broke the hug and took Hilda’s chin in her free hand. “If he comes after you, you contact me immediately. Immediately. You hear me? Use the witching board, the mirror—I’ll have my pocket one on me at all times, alright?”

Hilda took Zelda’s hand in hers and squeezed, “he won’t. We don’t fight like you two do.”

It wasn’t good enough, Zelda knew that, in time, Hilda would do something Edward found less than fitting for the Spellman name and without her there to run interference or to draw his ire with her more inappropriate behavior, he would turn on Hilda. It was almost enough for her to unpack her suitcase right then.

As if sensing this, Hilda tucked a stray lock of hair behind Zelda’s ear. “He won’t. But if, and I mean if, he does… I promise to contact you, okay?”

A shaky exhale of relief left Zelda, and though she still felt guilt at leaving Hilda behind she knew she couldn’t stay. Pulling a letter from her pocket, Zelda handed it to Hilda with a whispered spell, hiding it from Edward’s probing should he go this far into Hilda’s memory. “You know who this is for,” she murmured, releasing the envelope a little reluctantly. Leaving it here made her feel vulnerable, as if she were admitting something better left unsaid. “You’ll only be able to give it to him if he asks.” She added, it was her only concession, the only reason she felt she could leave it in the first place. Because if he asked, then technically he was taking the first step, not her.

With one final goodbye, Zelda teleported away; Marseille, France her first destination.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He hadn’t seen Zelda in over a week. She hadn’t responded to any of his messages and he was turned away at the perimeter of the Spellman property every time he tried to visit. It was possible Edward had bound her to the house, punishing her as though she were a child and not a witch nearing her first half century.

It wasn’t the first time Edward isolated his sister in an attempt to rein Zelda in, but it was the first she hadn’t immediately defied him in some way. Perhaps it truly had turned physical during the siblings’ last altercation, and that was why Zelda was keeping her distance. Faustus had intended to determine if Edward had hurt her for certain the next time he saw Zelda, but he couldn’t seem to find the chance.

Which was what led to him cornering the youngest Spellman sister at the academy. Taking her elbow and hurriedly leading her into an empty classroom as the rest of their classmates made for the dining hall. “Where is she?” He implored, not wasting any time once the door was shut behind them.

Hilda smiled widely at him, and much to his confusion, she handed him a letter. “I knew you’d ask,” she breathed, eyes twinkling. “Give her my love.” The blonde squeezed his forearm and departed, leaving him bewildered.

Unable to wait, Faustus sealed the room and ripped the letter open, recognizing Zelda’s handwriting at once.

Faustus,

If you’re reading this, well, you’ve already surprised me.

He scoffed at the words but was thrilled she’d taken the effort to write a letter. Edward must be monitoring all other forms of communication, forcing her to resort to this mortal means. Turning back to the letter, Faustus read on.

I cannot remain in Greendale any longer. Living with my brother, he, he has become superior; intolerably so. I refuse to allow him to try and dictate my life and I refuse to endure his tantrums when I do not follow his commands.

So, I left. I suppose there are some who would call it running away. I considered it running towards something. And though I do not expect you to leave Greendale, do not expect you to leave the life you’ve built, have been working towards for years… I leave you this.

A small charm appeared in his hand, a tingling sensation shooting through his skin when it made contact. Images flashed through Faustus’ mind and suddenly he knew exactly where Zelda was in Europe. She’d left him a map. A map that would lead straight to her no matter how often she picked up and traveled. Marveling at the charm, turning it over between his fingers, Faustus drug his gaze back to the letter.

Though I know it is foolish, I hope to see you. Satan knows why I’ve put my faith in us. In whatever it was we were building. But our time together meant something to me. If it meant anything to you, anything… please find me. At least once. At least to say goodbye.

If I do not hear from you, I will assume you’ve moved on. Found some other willing witch or warlock, maybe both, and took them to bed. I won’t begrudge you that. Heaven knows there are easier partners within the coven; ones without Edward as a sibling.

Should this be the case, I wish you well, Faustus.

Zels

P.S. If you need a reference when you become high priest, should Edward truly grow the balls needed to challenge you, I am more than happy to provide one.

Faustus slumped heavily against one of the tables in the room. She was gone. Left without a word. Well, some words, he amended, scanning the letter once more. But she hadn’t anticipated him asking after her, had enchanted the letter so Hilda could only give it to him if he broached the topic first.

Had she really doubted him that much? Truly thought she meant so little to him? Maybe, but maybe not. She’d left him a way to find her; one that she hadn’t even given to her sister based on how the youngest Spellman asked him to relay her love. Zelda wouldn’t have done that if she thought he would reject her invitation.

It was then he realized Hilda had anticipated his approach. That him pulling her aside was only a matter of time in her mind, and her words conveyed that she expected him to chase after Zelda as well. Faustus should be upset. That he was so easy to read, to predict; though to be fair he and Zelda once had a lengthy discussion as to whether Hilda was an empath or not—her actions today only evidenced their suspicions further.

Though it irked him slightly that Hilda could guess his next move, Faustus couldn’t find it in himself to care that much. Instead, he pocketed the letter and the charm, running his fingers over the trinket as he left the classroom and headed for home, joy flowing through him.

Yes, he’d follow the trail Zelda left for him. While he may be the one chasing after her, she’d been the one to lay the path first; offering him the chance, holding out her hand and asking him to jump. Faustus was more than willing to do just that.

But first, he had matters to attend to here in Greendale.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Three weeks had passed since Zelda had left. In that time, she’d spoken with Hilda often… far more frequently than when they lived together. They were careful, only talking with one another when Hilda was away from the house and only using secure mirrors or witching boards.

Hilda told her Edward had been wroth; that his magical outburst destroyed most of Zelda’s bedroom when he’d discovered it empty later the night she’d fled. Their brother had gone on and on, calling Zelda an ingrate, disrespectful, a whore. But he hadn’t made a move towards Hilda, even when he discovered her part in Zelda’s flight. He’d stopped speaking to her for several days, but aside from that, hadn’t taken Zelda’s actions out against her sister—for which she was immensely relieved.

In all their discussions, Zelda dared not ask after Faustus. Not wanting to know the answer one way or the other. Either he’d forgotten her or he’d asked Hilda about her, read the letter and run; wanting nothing to do with the clingy witch she’d come across as. Whichever it was… she’d yet to hear a single thing from him.

It shouldn’t have surprised her. The silence, the absence… and if she was honest, it didn’t, not really. But that didn’t stop it from hurting. From the ache that developed and settled deep in her chest, one that throbbed whenever she thought of Faustus, whenever she thought she caught sight of his profile in a crowded square, whenever she thought she heard his silky voice.

Her first month passed with little fanfare, she’d moved often, just in case her spells didn’t hold against Edward; though she’d only felt the telltale buzzing in the back of her mind a few times, alerting her that Edward was searching for her. Other than that, he brother was either content to leave Zelda be, which she doubted, or more likely he thought she’d return after cooling down… how wrong he was. Which meant she was currently residing in a little flat she’d rented from an elderly woman who owned a seamstress and tailoring shop with her husband. It’d taken some convincing, not many young women lived on their own in Spain at this time; but a little spell had the woman giving Zelda a fair rent and fewer glares for her chosen lifestyle than others would have.

The day passed swiftly, Zelda spending her time touring the lesser known parts of town and testing out her Spanish on native speaker for the first time in ages. She was returning home when movement caught her eye from one of the dark side alleys.

A spell leapt to her hand immediately, ready to take on whatever dense male saw her as potential prey, ready to show that she was, in fact, the predator in this situation. Only, only when the man stepped from the shadows, Zelda’s hand fell to her side, useless. “Faustus?”

“Zels,” he breathed, closing the distance between them and crashing his lips to hers.

When they broke, Zelda ran a hand lightly over his face, trying to recommit Faustus’ features to memory. “You, you…” She smiled and scoffed quietly in disbelief before kissing him again.

Grinning against her lips, Faustus answered her unspoken question. “Of course.” He lifted her and carried her up into her flat, lips alternating between consuming hers and smiling. Faustus pushed into the flat with a whispered spell and took Zelda to bed.

As they laid together after, Zelda pressed against his side despite the heat and Faustus’ arm wrapped around her tightly as though afraid she’d disappear again, Zelda couldn’t help but voice her amazement at his presence.

“I can’t believe you’re here.” She admitted in a whisper, tracing his tattoos and keeping her eyes on his chest. While she was ecstatic he was, a small part of her wondered if this was just him coming to say goodbye—like she’d requested in her letter.

Faustus’ free hand gently tilted her chin up so she was forced to look him in the eye. “Why wouldn’t I be? You asked—”

Sighing, Zelda rolled away from him and wrapped the sheet around her before sitting up, much to Faustus’ protest. “I did,” she conceded, picking at the fabric. “But I wasn’t sure you’d even receive the letter, let alone come.” She shrugged, trying to play off how much of herself she’d bared in that damned letter. And despite how pleased she was that he was there, Zelda knew she’d tipped the scales heavily in Faustus’ favor and she was unlikely to ever regain the ground she’d given up.

Stunned, Faustus pushed himself up as well and leaned against the headboard. “You didn’t think I’d even ask after you?” The hurt in his voice had Zelda looking up from her lap and into his eyes, and what she saw there took her breath away. “Of course, I asked after you. Of course, I came. I—” Faustus speared a hand through his disheveled hair in frustration. “This,” he gestured between them, “us, it means something to me. A lot.” He reached over and cupped her cheek, brushing his thumb along her skin.

“So,” Zelda swallowed, knowing she was laying it all on the table, holding nothing back now. “You didn’t just come to say goodbye?” And oh, how she hated how her voice trembled at the question, but she had to know. Had to know if he was just going to leave after sleeping with her one last time.

“No!” Faustus exclaimed, startling her in his volume and he smiled ruefully. “No,” he repeated, much softer this time. “I came to stay. I’m sorry it took so long, but there were matters to attend to in Greendale that I had to get in order before leaving.”

Blinking, Zelda could only stare at him for a moment. “You’re here to stay?” She breathed, not daring to trust her own ears.

Faustus smiled crookedly at her, “yes.”

“But, you’re, you’re training to become the next high priest in Greendale. Your entire life—”

He cut her off with a light kiss. “Is easily transferred to another location, as you’ve found in the process of moving your own.” Faustus lifted a brow. “And you’d be amazed how many Churches of Darkness there are that are in need of a high priest over here.” He quipped, sounding rather pleased with himself and his planning.

Still stunned, Zelda shook her head. “You’d really move here? With me?” There was a pause, though Zelda thought it was more from an internal debate than him reconsidering his actions to uproot his life.

Sighing, Faustus shrugged. “Of course. I mean, I did ask Edward for your hand. I’d already committed to the idea of my life changing because of you; perhaps not in this way, but—”

Zelda reared back, “you what?!” She demanded, gripping his forearm tightly.

A smile quirked the corner of Faustus’ lips. “I asked Edward for permission to marry you. An archaic tradition even by witching standards, but I saw no reason to spurn it when it was supposed to be a mere formality. Not an actual chance for Edward to rebuke me; which he did.” Faustus added in a grumble.

“You wanted to marry me?” And Zelda wanted to curse Edward for making this decision for her, for not even consulting her about it.

Tucking some of her hair back, Faustus leaned in and kissed her slowly. “I want to marry you.” He corrected, leaning his forehead against hers. “Will you do me the honor?”

Laughing a little in disbelief, Zelda closed the limited distance between them and kissed him again. “Yes.” She murmured, her lips brushing his at the word.

Faustus pulled back, eyes bright and smile brilliant. “Truly?” When she nodded eagerly in return, his smile widened in delight and he rolled away from her, hanging half off the bed to grab something. As he sat back up, he produced a ring and slid it onto her finger. “There, perfect.”

She couldn’t help but admire the ring, it was gorgeous. Bringing her eyes back to Faustus, she realized something. “This was your plan, with Edward. This was why he was so furious with me. Because not only had you revealed our relationship, but you asked for this.” She gestured to the ring now snug on her hand.

“To be honest, I didn’t anticipate him reacting so poorly.” Faustus admitted, leaning against the headboard once more, only this time he pulled her into his side as he did.

A slight scoff escaped her, “well, a few things make sense now.” She murmured, hand coming up unconsciously to touch the lip her brother had split with his slap several weeks ago.

Her movement didn’t go unnoticed and Faustus carefully took her hand in his and kissed the back of it. “Did he hurt you?” Zelda huffed and averted her eyes, not wanting to ruin the euphoria radiating through her with thoughts of that day. “Is that why you left? Why didn’t you tell me?” He looked at her imploringly, and when she didn’t answer, he wrapped both arms around her. “You could’ve come and lived with me… in Greendale.”

The words had her pulling back so she could see his face. “I—, Faustus,” she touched his cheek sweetly, “Edward would never have allowed it.” Zelda stated, a sad smile on her face for what could have been their life in Greendale, with her family, if only Edward hadn’t forced them to leave.

Rolling his eyes, Faustus kissed her palm. “I’m sure we could have convinced him, probably still could. Edward brought a mortal into your home, for Satan’s sake. Surely, we—”

“No, we couldn’t have. That wasn’t the first time Edward brought a mortal woman home, certain he’s in love.” She informed him, resting her head back on his shoulder, cuddling further into his side. “Only, so far, every time he reveals the truth to the mortal of the month they panic; forcing Edward to adjust their memories and sever the relationship.” Zelda exhaled slowly and then continued. “Then, then he starts again. If he’s to live what he plans to preach should he become high priest, then he needs to find a mortal mate. That, and he’s desperate to find that love he’s so jealous mortals possess.”

Faustus scoffed and shook his head. “Why? Why envy the mortals so much? Witches have a version of love, do we not?” His arms tightened around her and it set her heart racing.

Carefully, Zelda ran her fingers along one of the arms around her, keeping her eyes down. “Do we?” She asked softly, hoping she was reading the situation properly.

A quiet chuckle emanated from Faustus and he dipped his head to kiss her, bringing up a hand to keep her chin raised when he broke the kiss, making her meet his eyes. “I love you, Zelda. It is strong… it may not match what the mortals have, but—”

Zelda cut him off with a searing kiss, nipping his lip when she pulled back. “I don’t want what the mortals have.” She muttered, pressing closer against him. “I want you, and this, and whatever the future may bring. Because—” and even though Faustus said it first, Zelda found the words still stuck in her throat despite the truth in them. She’d always been told love wasn’t possible for witches, not romantic love, at least. But she found this was one thing about their kind, about their history that she was more than happy to ignore. “I love you too.”

Beaming at one another like idiots, they shuffled further under the blankets and spent the night exchanging kisses and planning their future—Edward and his rebuke be damned.

Notes: I made it some random mortal instead of Diana because this is somewhat Academy Spellwood and Diana wouldn’t be around yet. Though I think how I wrote it fits well with this version of Edward.

#caos #Chilling Adventures of Sabrina #Zelda Spellman #faustus blackwood #zelda x faustus #spellwood #academyspellwood #hilda spellman #edward spellman #netflix #fanfiction #fanfic #AO3 fanfic #ao3fic #writing prompt

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moonah-rose · 5 years

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I finally saw the new Lion King...

Oh boy. Here we go.

I know I’m late to the party on this and there have been so many bad reviews of this film already that have mentioned the major problems. They’re all true. Every single one. So at least in that regard I got what I was expecting! Nothing better but nothing worse. I was expecting dead eyed animals with no emotion matching the voice acting and that’s exactly what it was. It was distracting and annoying but I did get over it to a point. So I’ll try not to make this review just another long rant about the lack of expressions. However I will mention that my best friend who I went to see this with is from South Africa and used to work over there at a nature reserve; she said she found the animals creepy as hell. She compared to how disturbing the uncanny valley in films like Final Fantasy (the movie) and Mars Needs Moms were.

In short; the technology is incredible and hopefully will get used in a better and ORIGINAL film, but it really didn’t fit a story this epic and personal where you need to see the fear, the sadness, the joy etc in these characters faces. It especially hit me at the end of I Just Can’t Wait To Be King where Simba and Nala are supposed to look so happy and giddy but there’s just...nothing there.

Eyes are the window to the soul in animation. And it’s not impossible to make realistic cg animals look emotional - Jungle Book and Narnia are proof of that. But this movie was definitely, in a word, soulless.

That’s the animation rant out of the way, what else can I add?

I’ll admit that I am biased. Lion King is my all time favourite Disney movie. I saw it when I was three, I still to this day have the Simba plushy I took to the first screening and held aloft, haggard and dog-eared as he is in my closet. I danced to I Just Can’t Wait To Be King at my Brownie talent show. I’ve watched the film enough times I know it beat for beat. However, saying that, I know it’s not perfect. When I went back a few years ago and watched all the old Disney films I did notice more flaws in Lion King and actually gained more appreciation for films like Hunchback and Beauty & the Beast that had slipped under my radar as a kid. Practically I do think B&TB is the stronger movie of that time. But, damnit, Lion King will always be my favourite at heart, just like Ocarina of Time will always be my favourite Zelda even though I think other games like Majora’s Mask or Breath of the Wild are technically better. Lion King was my first love and, given how meh most of the Disney remakes have been so far, I knew this wasn’t going to come close to how great the original was. But still I thought I’d give it a try and see what new things they could bring, same as I liked at least some of the new twists in Cinderella, Maleficent and Aladdin.

Sadly this movie brings nothing new aside from a different style which even that doesn’t really work. It’s a shot-for-shot remake except with certain parts slightly changed or flat out cut and it feels so off. I could tell what I was in for from the very first scene and it basically summed up the rest of the movie. First shot, same as before, the sun rises as the Circle of Life plays. Except in this one, the sun rises....and there’s like a three second gap before the music starts. I know that sounds like such a tiny thing but it happens so much! The soundtrack is EXACTLY the same, except it no longer flows with the animation the same as the old one. The first Lion King was almost on par with Fantasia with how perfect every movement and beat of the scene matched the notes of the music - like with Simba’s roar at the end, he starts roaring before the music has its big climax and it’s so distracting. That’s when I realised what this movie felt like; as though I was listening to the original Lion King soundtrack while watching National Geographic. Like the odd random bit happens to work but most of it just feels slapped on because it’s Lion King and they had to.

And when this movie does do things new, sometimes they get a laugh or can be interesting, but it’s so short and we go back to just quoting the original word for word without the same energy. James Earl Jones sounds tired recycling lines he said thirty years ago. The rest of the cast however are actually really good and we know these are great actors. When they’re saying something new it’s great but when they say words from the original it’s like they’re just quoting a different movie everyone knows.

Timon and Pumbaa, for example, are the best new addition to the movie, along with some moments from Zazu and definitely a more intimidating Scar. This is because a lot of their routine and dialogue is changed up instead of just reusing old jokes. A scene with them from the original which was the funniest for me, the hula distraction, is replaced with the start of Be Our Guest - and it’s hilarious. I was expecting to be annoyed they took it out but no, it was something new and clever even if slightly meta but I guess same as The Lion Sleeps Tonight is which was in the original (and is redone here, also pretty funny).

Moments like that worked but also in a way annoyed me more because they showed the potential of how this film could have been so much better. The same story but a new script, why was that so hard? Aladdin, Cinderella and Jungle Book had a few lines here and there similar to the original but still took risks - with JB even going as far to change the ending. I have problems with those movies, sure, but I at least respect them for trying to be creative.

Other tiny ‘new’ things that are added are Shenzi being a much stronger villain, which is kinda cool but they try to set up this rivalry between her and Nala in the final act and I was like; “...did I miss something? Was there a deleted scene were there was a bigger conflict with you two?” But then the other hyenas are no where near as funny as before, Benzai and not-Edd just do this “no homo” routine and then they don’t even speak again in the third act. Nala, Sarabi and the other lionesses get a bit more screen time but again it feels so rushed and actually makes it seem more confusing when Nala is like “if you want Simba you’ll have to come through us!” and then they all just watch again as Scar nearly pushes him off pride rock.

It also tried to fill in a plot hole with the original which, in my opinion, just created a worse one. So in the original Scar knocks out Zazu and there’s always questions afterwards of why Zazu didn’t tell the other lionesses - I always just assumed he couldn’t remember why he lost consciousness. In this one Scar sends Zazu back to ‘get the pride’ at the gorge. However, he THEN claims he wasn’t able to get to the gorge before Mufasa was killed....Except Zazu knows he was there! Yet he never tells the other lionesses! He doesn’t even say anything to Simba! It also had me questioning why Simba didn’t throw it back at Scar for sending him down there to roar and then being blamed when Scar explicitly told him to practice his roar as loud as he could - in the original Scar just hints to ‘work on that little roar’.

They did the same thing in Beauty and the Beast with that magical teleporting book. And in Cinderella where she’s more independent because she goes outside the manor and yet never just leaves. Don’t pick at something if you’re just going to create more questions.

So to sum up, is the film garbage? I wouldn’t go that far. I’m looking at it from the mind of a cynical adult who was always going to be comparing it to the original, which I think is fair if you’re doing a shot for shot remake. But for little kids who this is aimed for...I wasn’t sure watching it, some scenes I thought a bit too dark for them (like literally it’s hard to tell the lions apart in the fight scenes) but after it was done I was in the toilets waiting for my friend and I saw a little four year old girl with her mum and she was holding a Simba plushy in her arms, just like the one I had as a kid, and she was saying how much she loved it. The sight almost made me tear up with nostalgia. And it made me realise, despite all my criticism, this movie is more so for little girls like that than me. If this movie somehow made her feel the same wonder and excitement than the original did then it definitely can’t be worthless. I just hope she has or will get around to seeing the original. Maybe she’d like it more, maybe not. Maybe they will remake this movie again in thirty years and she’ll be writing a lengthy blog post about how the remake of the remake butchered her childhood memory of the remake...So long as she has those memories and those timeless feelings, it’s what matters most.

Okay I got surprisingly sappy at the end there but that really Lion King does hold such a special place in my heart I can’t not get emotional from it, even when ranting.

One last thing, my theatre was dead silent for most of the film aside from a couple of laughs at Timon and Pumbaa. However, I kid you not, when the lightning struck the tree and caused the fire around Pride Rock at the end, someone in the audience shouted out; “DRACARYS!” and I nearly doubled over laughing!

Speaking of which, Simba finding Mufasa’s body? Game of Thrones already did that scene better with Drogon and Dany. No contest.

#also wtf was up with that fur journey scene #the lion king 2019 #tlk #disney remakes #simba #mufasa #nala

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botwriter · 6 years

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Desert Sun, Chapter 11

The days leading up to when Ganon would supposedly return were horribly slow. One by one, the Champions had brought their divine beasts to the desert in preparation. Sword training came last, and it was brutally tough. The days were spent sweating and practicing, complete with morning and evening patrols, and the nights were spent breathlessly with Link. But the stress was beginning to wear on everyone, and tensions were running high.

To make things worse, Yiga and monsters were becoming more common in the desert, wreaking havoc on travelers and merchants. The Gerudo were kept busy just trying to keep the town free of them, since they continually tried to get in. Ganon was obviously getting ready.

When the townspeople did manage to catch a young Yiga - who was actually a deserter from Kakariko, and who turned himself in - the young man admitted to having placed the You Have One Month notes. He apparently regretted joining the clan, and requested to be sent back to Kakariko so he could own up to his crimes, but the Gerudo didn’t even have the resources to escort him out of the desert. They kept him for questioning instead, and today, Link and Zelda were finally going to meet him.

The dungeons beneath the city weren’t used much, and the guards had had to begrudgingly clean out a cell before keeping the ex-Yiga there. When Link and Zelda headed downstairs to meet with him, the man looked mostly disinterested in their presence.

“This is Link, Hyrule’s chosen hero, and I am Princess Zelda of the Gerudo,” she introduced herself. The man - who really looked more like a teenager, now that Zelda looked at him - let out a sigh.

“Kita,” he replied, brushing brown hair from his eyes.

“First off, I wanted to say thank-you for the notes,” Zelda began, noting the surprise that lit up in Kita’s hazel eyes as soon as she spoke. “It has given us the foresight we needed to prepare for Ganon’s return. And thank-you for handing yourself in to us,” she added.

Kita looked like he knew there was more than just gratitude coming, and hugged his knees in tight towards himself. Zelda glanced sideways at Link, and the knight stepped forward.

“We wanted to know what exactly Ganon is planning,” Link said, and Kita let out a light laugh.

“I wish I could tell you,” he replied, looking up at them honestly. “But even the high-ranking Yiga don’t know. Just that he’s moving on the solstice.”

“Moving?” Link and Zelda spoke in unison. Kita nodded.

“Yeah. He’s not in the desert right now. He’s been storing monsters, like he had been in the valley of the heroines, in various spots around Hyrule. He’s bringing them all to attack Gerudo town. That’s - that’s pretty much all I know.”

“Pretty much?” Link asked. Kita shuffled, looking uncomfortable.

“There was a rumor that… that he’d attack the divine beasts. To keep them occupied, so they wouldn’t be on him. And that he would use them somehow, too. But, I don’t know, that seems… I don’t know how even Ganon could do that.”

Kita trailed off, shuddering a little and resting his chin in his hands. Zelda couldn’t hide the look of horror on her face. There were monsters all over Hyrule? And the Divine Beasts - he wanted to use them somehow? But only the Champions could pilot them. How on earth could he gain control?

“Are you going to send me back to Kakariko?” Kita asked suddenly, looking hopeful. Zelda was snapped out of her stupor, and shook her head.

“No, I’m sorry. We don’t have a single hand on deck that’s free. There are other priorities.”

“Kakariko is going to punish you anyways,” Link interjected then, “why do you want to go back so badly?”

Kita looked like he was wondering for a moment whether or not to tell them, and then finally the boy sighed.

“So I won’t be here when Ganon attacks.”

As Link and Zelda left back up the stairs to go meet with the Champions once more, Link took hold of her wrist, stopping her in one of the narrow dungeon hallways. She stopped, but didn’t look at him. She knew what he was going to say. She knew it, and because of that, she couldn’t look him in the eyes.

“Zelda.”

Voices from Gerudo chatting outside were muffled through the thick sandstone walls, and she stared hard towards the floor, shuffling one foot forwards a little.

“Zel. You heard what he said. We have to ask for volunteers.”

She turned abruptly to look at Link, sunlight filtering in through slotted windows onto his face. She didn’t know what to say, but knew that she didn’t necessarily have to speak, either. Link understood, she knew he did. She knew he hated asking for help or even admitting that he needed help at all, even if the situation was futile.

“We’re spread so thin,” Link urged.

“But the royal guard, the Sheikah, they - they have their own homes to protect,” Zelda protested.

“There’ll be nothing left to protect if we don’t win,” the blond replied quietly, and Zelda knew there was nothing she could say back. If she at least had her sealing power and her triforce, then perhaps they would stand a chance, but as it was they barely had any warriors to fight. Gerudo had never had a huge population. But the image in Zelda’s mind of her, Link, and the four champions against Ganon… well, that clearly wasn’t going to be the reality of it. Now, it was a numbers game.

“We need a proper army,” Link said sternly. “I can get the royal guard. And the Sheikah I’m sure, too. Mipha, Revali, and Daruk, can go to fetch their best and bring them back. Hateno and East Post also have some formidable fighters,” the blond added, and Zelda was suddenly incredibly grateful for his knowledge on the settlements around Hyrule. She wouldn’t have known where to look first, besides the castle. Still, she didn’t know what to say; Ganon’s words from the earlier night weighing heavily on her shoulders.

Link must have noticed, because his hand slid from her wrist to grasp at her fingers.

“There’s something else?”

“Well -” she thought about saying, no, nevermind, but knew that Link wouldn’t let her leave anything like that unspoken. It was a little annoying, but kept her accountable to her thoughts.

“That night that… that Ganon came in,” she began, looking up at Link cautiously, “he said something to me about how Hylia had chosen you to string along. You know, with us reincarnating, and all. And that it was characteristic of me to use those around me, like I did with Revali and the sword.”

“Zelda-” Link’s lips dropped open, and he reached for her, but she shook her head.

“No,” she replied, smiling weakly, “if you hug me, I’ll just cry. I’m okay, really,” she assured him, giving him one last look with as much confidence as she could possibly muster. He didn’t seem happy to hear her mention crying, but dropped his arm nonetheless.

“None of us see you that way,” Link assured her, and she nodded, swallowing. “The Champions want to help. Revali included, even if he doesn’t act like it,” he added bitterly, and Zelda stifled a laugh.

“It doesn’t make asking people to risk their lives any easier.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” Link said then as they began to walk back up and out of the long hallway, “but they’re not just doing it for you. They know that Hyrule depends on it. If someone can, I think they generally want to contribute,” he added thoughtfully, and she glanced back over her shoulder to look at him gratefully.

“Thank-you, Link.”

The sun greeted them as they walked up the steps and found themselves once again at the city walls. Zelda let herself stall briefly, enjoying the hot rays for a minute before finally heading into the war tent after Link had gone in. Explaining the plan to the Champions went over relatively well, although she hated to see the looks on their faces when she told them of what Kita had said about the monsters.

“No time to waste,” Revali sighed, getting to his feet and stretching one wing out, then the other. “I’ll be back the fastest, no doubt, so I can go now.”

“There’s one more thing,” Zelda interrupted suddenly, though she was not at all impatient to relay the other warning Kita had given them.

“There was a rumor that Ganon… will try to take control of the Divine Beasts, somehow. So I need to warn you to be on your guard as the solstice nears.”

“You don’t need to tell us that,” Urbosa replied after a moment of silence. “Of course, that isn’t good news,” the chieftain continued, standing with a sigh from the table, “but we knew what we were signing up for. Revali, as soon as you’re back, Mipha and Daruk can head out. I’m going to go now to visit King Rhoam.”

Zelda’s shoulders dropped.

“When will you be back?”

“Right on time, probably,” Urbosa guessed. “Don’t worry, little bird. Naboris and I will be here to help. You know I want to play my part in beating Ganon to a pulp,” she reassured her, seeing the worry in Zelda’s eyes. The older woman planted a light kiss on Zelda’s forehead and then left the tent. Revali passed by her other side, and rested a wing briefly on her shoulder reassuringly before disappearing through the tent flaps behind Urbosa. The wind whipped up a moment later as the Rito took of, shaking the tent fabric.

Having the Champions away from town was not ideal. It had been bad enough when they were gone one at a time to get the Divine Beasts. Now, it was likely that by tomorrow, her, Revali, and Link would be the only ones at home. Urbosa, Mipha, and Daruk wouldn’t be there until the day of the solstice.

“Princess… how far away exactly is the solstice, now?” Daruk asked, sounding like he was already nervous to hear the answer.

“Two days.”

That night, Mipha and Link helped the evening patrol while Daruk and Zelda went over some of the controls for Vah Rudania. When the Princess finally left for bed, relieved that Link at least didn’t have to sneak away from Revali tonight, she was surprised when the knight didn’t show up at the usual time. She suspected that the evening patrol had been somewhat eventful with Yiga and monsters, but stopped herself from worrying as much as she could have. Zelda ended up dozing off early, candle still lit on the bedside table.

She stirred when Link finally arrived. The candle had nearly burnt out when the voe carefully swept a hand over her cheek.

“Zel. Sorry I’m late.”

“Mm,” she replied tiredly, rolling over and stretching. “Everything okay?”

“...yeah,” Link replied, looking away from her as he stood and began to undress. Zelda sniffed, looking up at the ceiling while she tried to will herself to wake up a little bit.

“Are you sure?” she asked, a bit late at realising his tone of voice. He looked at her over his shoulder as he stepped out of his pants.

“You’re getting too good at reading me,” he sighed, and Zelda smiled to herself as she propped her cheek up on one hand.

“You could read me from day one, so it’s only fair,” she said back, and Link laughed a little in response. He sunk into bed with a sigh, pulling Zelda close as she wrapped one arm over his stomach and rested her head on his chest.

“Mipha, tonight… I think she proposed to me.”

“Mmm. Wait, what?”

Zelda had been almost falling back asleep by the time Link spoke, but now she had no trouble staying awake.

“She proposed?”

“I think so,” Link said, still concentrating on the ceiling. Zelda rolled to her front, looking at him in disbelief.

“You think so.”

“Well she… said she had something to give me back home. And that she wanted to spend more time together with me, when all of this is done. A lot more.”

His blue eyes flicked down to her briefly.

“...and?” Zelda replied, “what did you say?”

“I told her I was seeing someone,” Link replied, eyebrows raised as he looked back at the ceiling. “I didn’t know what else to say.”

“You knew that she liked you all this time, right?” Zelda asked, and Link tilted his head back and forth.

“Kind of. I just assumed she was just really sweet.”

“She is really sweet,” Zelda admitted, “but she was always smitten for you. Was she okay when you told her?”

“I think I broke her heart a little,” Link admitted, frowning, and Zelda dipped her head into his neck in a half hug. “She looked really sad. But she told me she wants me to be with whoever makes me happiest.”

Zelda blinked her eyes open, looking down at the fabric behind Link’s head. Her heart ached a bit. If it had been the other way, would she be able to be truly happy for Link, knowing he was happier with someone else? Maybe, eventually, but it would still be heartbreaking. Obviously he hadn’t told Mipha he was seeing her, and it would be awkward when it all came about. She’d never been particularly close with Mipha, but the two were at least friends, and she didn’t want anything to get in the way of that. But the Zora had always been nothing if not kind, so surely, it wouldn’t cause too much drama…

“She asked me if I thought I was,” Link continued then, pulling Zelda a little closer. “And I said I was sure of it.”

“Sorry, what?” Zelda replied, shaking herself from her thoughts and looking back up to meet Link’s eyes.

“If I was with the person that made me the happiest,” he said, pushing some of her hair away from her face. Zelda felt like her heart was melting, but couldn’t help the sadness that suddenly plagued her heart. Out of everyone, why did she have to fall for him? The one that would be throwing himself headfirst at Ganon? The one that was, probably, the most likely to not make it out of battle? He meant more to her than she could possibly say now.

But there was something else at hand.

“On the solstice, Link, you have to promise me something,” Zelda asked, wondering if now really was the best time to bring it up. They had one more day to prepare, so she hoped that at least her words might have time to sink in.

“Your job is to defeat Ganon. I know you’re my chosen hero, but I’m… not the Princess with the triforce and the sealing power like I was supposed to be,” she added, and Link looked increasingly upset with each word she said. “You can’t prioritize protecting me. You have to put Hyrule first. If it comes down to it, Link, you have to leave me.”

Link looked suddenly broken. She couldn’t stand to look at his eyes anymore, and bent down to wrap her arms around him instead, pulling him close.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want it to be like this, really. But you have to promise me that.”

“Seriously?” he asked, his voice breaking as he held her close, one hand resting on the back of her head. “I can’t promise you that.”

“You have to,” she said quietly, “please, Link. I couldn’t forgive you if you saved me at the cost of Ganon succeeding. And he might spare me, he said he would, but he wouldn’t spare you,” she argued, holding him tight. The idea of being Ganon’s plaything for the rest of her lifetime, if he won, wasn’t exciting. She knew that Link was too much of a risk to leave alive - and she knew Ganon would feel the same.

“I-” he broke off, his whole body tense as he held her. “I’m not going to let it come to that. I promise.”

You might not have a choice, she thought to herself as she buried her face into his neck, but didn’t want to say anything more on the subject. It wasn’t pleasant. Nothing had been pleasant lately, except him, but now Ganon was threatening to take that away. Hyrule was important, of course. Gerudo was her first priority. But Link was becoming more than all of that. She felt too responsible for him, felt too close to him, too attached. Coming to terms with her feelings for him now, as much as she was tempted to do so, would just make it hurt more if anything happened; so she suppressed them.

Behind Link’s head, a triangle of light flickered faintly on Zelda’s hand, but faded all too fast.

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