The Wilted Flower | Zelink BoTW AU [COMPLETE]

gold

"Thank you all for joining us today," the King began, bowing slightly. "Friends, family. Today we will knight the men of Hyrule to join the Hylian Royal Guard."

As her father continued, Zelda stared off in the crowd of soon-to-be knights. She sat in a raised seat above the crowd, along with Prince Philip. Numerous others sat among them, those bearing high status.

Where is he? Zelda frantically searched. He has to be here. He seemed like the best in his class. There's no way he isn't going to become a knight.

"Something worrying you, Zelda?" Philip asked, placing his hand atop hers.

Zelda pulled her hand out from under his. "Excuse you!" She dusted off her lap after he pulled his hand away. "Nothing is worrying me, thank you very much."

"Are you sure?" Philip nudged Zelda's arm, and she turned to look at him. "You look as if you're looking for someone."

Zelda shook her head. "I'm not."

Philip shrugged his shoulders, and his light armor clanked together. "If you say so, your highness."

Zelda turned her attention back to her father. Soon after, she zoned out, thinking about her knight once more. He has to be. Where is he? Oh, please, mysterious knight, show your face.

"...I'm sure she would like to say a few words."

All eyes turned to Zelda.

Prince Philip snapped his fingers in front of Zelda, then began to wave his hand obnoxiously. "Princess. The stage is yours."

"What?" Zelda looked around, snapping out of her little trance. She turned toward her father, who was gawking at her.

"Excuse me," the King chuckled lightheartedly. "Maybe now Zelda can practice her magic and put herself in the spot I am now."

Zelda's eyes widened. Deep down, she knew she hadn't perfected her teleportation magic, and maybe, if she couldn't find her way to the stage, she'd wind up in some ungodly corner of Hyrule. It would be the most embarrassing thing to have ever happened to the princess of Hyrule. It would be a joke told for many generations to come. Her head was spinning with worries. Zelda closed her eyes, her hands shaking. "A-Alright, I'm coming..." She opened her eyes anxiously, and they began to dart every which way, searching for the place she needed to go.

Prince Philip flashed Zelda a quick smile, and for the first time, seeing his smile put Zelda's mind at ease.

For the first time, she smiled back.

Concentrating on the spot beside her father, Zelda closed her eyes again, but this time, her heartbeat was even. Her shaking had stopped. She stood, quickly twirling her body. She felt her body go light, and soon enough, her feet were back on the ground. She clenched her teeth, waiting for someone to make a noise. Waiting for someone to let her know she had made it. To tell her that her magic had worked.

Applause sounded.

"Woah! Mommy, I want to learn magic!"

"That was incredible!"

"Princess Zelda, that was amazing!"

Zelda's eyes opened. She stared at the crowd before her, and a grin appeared on her lips. Her magic had worked. She was on the stage beside her beloved father.

"Now, Zelda," the King smiled. "A few words for our new knights, please."

Zelda nodded her head, taking a step forward. She took a deep breath. "Thank you all for taking time out of your day to make it here. Today, we celebrate courage, strength, and compassion." While she spoke, she looked closely in the crowd of trainees.

Where are you? Zelda thought.

"Where is who, my dear?"

Zelda froze. "Did I just..."

"Yes, you did," the King eyed her embarrassingly.

Zelda frowned. "Oh, I'm sorry. My thoughts became mixed with my words. Forget what I had said."

The crowd erupted with giggles and small talk.

"Please, my people," the King smiled gently. "Settle down. Zelda only made a mistake."

Zelda cleared her throat. "Yes, as I was saying, I-I would like to thank our trainees for being so brave. I would also like to thank the families and friends of our trainees, for supporting them and giving them all of the love in the world." Zelda continued to search, regardless of her previous screwup. "We cannot thank you all enough. I cannot thank you all enough."

Zelda halted her speech. A patch of gold appeared in the trainee crowd.

"Zelda?" The King began, tilting his head slightly.

Zelda shook her head. "I'm sorry. I didn't sleep well last night."

"Gee, even our princess has sleeping problems," someone mused in the crowd, and laughter broke out like a disease.

Zelda smiled. "Sorry about that, everyone. At the end of the day, I am grateful and forever thankful for all of you. Now, my father will knight each trainee."

The King nodded his head. "First row, come on up and receive your official Hylian Knight crests."

The trainees in the front row stood, and one by one moved to the King. The King handed out golden crests to each new knight.

Zelda stood off to the side, staring at the stage floor. Her hair blew in a calm breeze. She closed her eyes for a moment, taking in a deep breath.

"Meet me in the castle gardens at dusk," a husky voice said. Zelda's eyes opened, and she spun around toward the steps where the new knights exited. The last thing Zelda saw was a head of golden blonde hair, turning away from the stage and into the crowd. There was a group in the back that already began to mingle, far away to preserve the peace and quiet during the ceremony.

Was that...?

"Thank you all for joining us," the King finalized. "There is food and refreshments in the back for all to have."

Zelda looked out at the crowd. She searched for the electric blue eyes. Silky golden hair. She listened for his voice.

Nothing.

"Princess Zelda!" A low voice said, and for a moment, Zelda swore it was her knight. Instead, it was Prince Philip, jogging onto the stage.

"Ah, my dear boy," the King chuckled. "Good to see you. What is it you wish?"

The prince looked at Zelda with a bright smile. "Oh, your highness, I was wondering if I could borrow your daughter for the night, and take her out to East Reservoir Lake for dinner." Philip looked at the stage floor nervously. "I requested dinner be made and sent out there. There's supposed to be a meteor shower tonight, and I figured we could go watch it while eating a good dinner."

The King beamed. "Well, my boy! That sounds wonderful!"

Zelda cringed. "I'm actually very busy tonight."

The King frowned. "Nonsense! You will go out and enjoy yourself tonight, my daughter."

Zelda shook her head. "No, really. I can't tonight. Maybe tomorrow?"

Philip's smile faded. "It's alright, really. Tomorrow night is fine too, I guess."

Zelda sighed a breath of relief. "Oh, thank you. I'm so sorry. I promise I'll go out to East Reservoir Lake with you tomorrow. I'll cast some magic in the sky to make it look like a meteor shower, okay?" Zelda smiled.

Philip smiled back. "That sounds lovely."

Zelda nodded her head. After the thought of eating dinner with Philip faded from Zelda's mind, she thought back to tonight, and how quickly she wished for the day to go by.