Noble by Nature

Chapter 11

Zelda let out a scream and quickly jumped back around the corner, grappling for her weapon.
Link was instantly alert and jumped out from behind her, his sword already in hand. But then he started to laugh.
Zelda came up next to him again, looking up in confusion.
'Hardly worth the scream, this, don't you think?' He chuckled, pointing his sword at the teensy tiny blue Chuchu, still quite some distance away.
She felt a flush rise to her cheeks, and meekly dropped her arm. 'It startled me, okay?' She said defensively. 'It fell from the ceiling all of a sudden. After all this time I didn't really expect any monsters, did you?'
Link quirked his head at her. 'Always.'
Her flush deepened and she looked away, unable to look him in the eye. 'Right... Yeah, exactly.'
The knight chuckled, patting her softly on the shoulder. 'Don't worry. It's my job, not yours.'
She nodded, but still felt rather stupid. He was right of course. She was a fool for not expecting any dangers down here, just because they hadn't encountered anything in days.
It was obvious that they had reached a more important part of the vast network of tunnels, and that could only mean there was something around here. And anything of any worth always attracted monsters.
They continued past the Chuchu, not bothering to try and kill the poor little creature.
Zelda kept a better eye out for any dangers lurking around the next corners, which was a good thing, for they encountered more and more of the smaller monsters.
With relative ease they disposed of the ones that attacked them, but they left the rest alone.
Eventually they reached a crossing where one of the directions was clearly different.
The rough, exposed rocks were replaced by handmade brick walls, perfectly straight. It was as if they had stepped into one of the castle hallways.
'I suppose this is the way to go,' Zelda murmured.
She walked in, dragging her feet slightly in exhaustion. She had no idea how long they had actually been walking, but it must have been at least a full day since they woke in the illuminated cave.
Her stomach rumbled and everything ached, so a few steps into the corridor she stopped to look at Link.
'Shall we set up camp here?'
He glanced around, before nodding. 'Seems as good a place as any.'
With a sigh of relief Zelda dropped her bags and sank to the floor.
Instead of making the usual fire, Link simply came to sit beside her and grabbed her hand in his.
She glanced over at him as he rested his head back against the wall, closing his eyes.
'Are you alright?' She asked.
'Mmhmm.' He opened one eye to look at her. 'Just tired. I believe we carried on a bit longer than usual.'
Zelda nodded. 'This darkness is horrible. I hate not knowing what time it is.'
'Just a few more days,' Link muttered. 'We really have to turn back after tomorrow.'
'I know.' She sighed. 'But we must be heading somewhere. I won't believe these walls were made for nothing.' She patted the bricks behind her.
'Let's just hope we get there before we starve,' Link chuckled dryly, his eyes still closed.
It was quiet for a while, both of them regaining some of their energy.
Then Zelda looked over at him again. 'Do you remember the battle of last year? The Battle of Castle Town?'
He raised his eyebrows at her. 'Unfortunately. Hard to forget isn't it?'
She nodded absentmindedly, her thoughts already somewhere else.
'There is something that has been bothering me about it,' she then said. 'Two things actually.'
'What is it?' Link asked, shifting so he was looking at her more directly.
'When we had our ceasefire, and General Shihin came forward to discuss his terms, I made a promise,' she said, fidgeting her fingers nervously. She had never talked about it since. She had tried to push those thoughts away, not letting on just how much they were nagging at her.
'I remember,' he said with an understanding smile. 'He wanted your word that they would be safe from attack behind our lines.'
'Exactly. I gave him my word. I promised.' She shot a pleading look at the knight. 'I broke that promise.'
Link nodded slowly. 'But Zelda... he attacked us.' He shrugged. 'No one would have expected you not to defend yourself. What else should you have done?' He smiled sympatethically. 'You couldn't just let them kill you, could you? Then you would have broken another promise. One that I personally would value highly above one made to that traitorous scumbag of an enemy.'
She shot him a confused look. She didn't know which promise he was refering to.
He seemed to notice and gently patted her hand. 'You may not have said the exact words, but as our princess, as the last of the Royal bloodline, you have basically made a vow to protect your people. I have heard you say it many times before, and again not even 24 hours ago.' He grinned. 'You want to be there for them. You feel responsible for the kingdom. To me that is as good as any promise that you will fight for its safety, and therefore for your own safety.'
She slowly nodded. He did have a point. Although she had never made a solemn promise, she felt obligated to protect her people. And how could she keep that promise if she let herself be killed, solely based on the promise she had made to the enemy. Surely the kingdom came first.
'Besides,' Link continued with a smile, 'I have made a vow myself. I will protect you with my life, against any threat. Even if you had to break your word, I kept mine.'
Zelda chuckled, cheered by his positive attitude.
'You can't expect to be able to keep every single promise you make,' he said, turning more serious. 'But as long as you remember the important ones and stick to what you believe is right, you will be fine.' He nudged her playfully with his shoulder. 'But it's good to know how serious you are about making a promise.'
She laughed at his mischievous grin and squeezed his hand. It felt good to get it off her chest, and she silently scolded herself for waiting so long to talk about it. She had told herself time and time again that she had done the right thing, but hearing Link say it made it actually believable.
'What was the second thing?' He then asked.
She shrugged. 'It might be stupid, but I've been wondering...' She felt a blush rise to her cheeks. 'Something Lady Maud said has stuck with me.'
At the mention of her name Zelda could clearly see him clench his jaw. His body tensed up ever so slightly and the tips of his ears turned red, but he nodded for her to continue.
Not wanting to see him so upset, she quickly carried on. 'Well, she said that they had gotten those monsters to join them willingly, just by talking to them. Do you think that was true?'
Link's body slowly relaxed as he thought about it. 'I know it's possible to control them...' he muttered. 'Ganon did that with his Malice of course, but with him gone they have mostly kept to themselves.' He rubbed his chin, staring blindly at the opposite wall. 'Maybe, when not controlled, they do possess enough brains to choose for themselves.'
'But why then did they still attack?' Zelda questioned. 'I mean, every monster I've ever encountered always tried to kill me. If they could make such decisions, you'd think they would hold back a bit more, right?'
'I think it's instinct for them. They fight anyone who enters their territory.'
'So you think they could be persuaded not to fight us?'
He bit his lip, his face full of concentration. 'They do seem to be able to work together. When there is a stronger, smarter monster present they follow it, like with the Lynel on the Crenel Hills.' He then looked at Zelda. 'I suppose, if you can convince them someway to see you as their leader, they will fight for you, instead of against you.'
She nodded. 'Do you think they really managed to do that?'
'I don't believe it was as simple as she said it was. I can hardly imagine them as the types of people to simply negotiate with those monsters.' He shrugged. 'They must have found a way to control them, like Ganon did.'
'What if we found a peaceful way to do it?' Zelda asked hopefully. She imagined a future where they wouldn't have to beware of any monsters lying about, where they would simply coexist.
Link nodded. 'We can certainly try. But I'd prefer not to die in the attempt.'
She laughed. 'We start small. Like one of those adorable little Chuchu's. They can't do much harm can they?'
'You'd survive an attack or two,' Link nodded.
'Wonderful,' Zelda said, feeling rather cheerful after their chat. Those two things had played through her head for months now, and it felt good to hear his opinion on them.
They finally got up then, spreading out their gear for the night.