Fan Fiction ❯ The Mirror Tells All ❯ Fourth ( Chapter 4 )

You Wish! Productions presents...

The Mirror Tells All

A Legend of Zelda Fan Fiction

By: Blue Taboo

Proud member of Darkscibes.org

Link, in all his life abroad, had been used to some rude awakenings, but those usually came from various monsters that shoved him out of the mud he slept in while attempting to kill him, or at least take his leg off for a bite to eat, however, the thought of a little girl being able to get into his room and not alert him until she shook the living daylights out of him, was indeed disturbing.

"Time to get up, Master Link!" the little thing shouted as she shook.

Link bolted upright in bed, and she managed to withdraw quickly enough not to be thrown by the force of the startled young man. He then shook his head, clearing it, and rubbed his eyes, which were confronted with a room that was all too bright.

"Princess Zelda said there was a change of plans and that I should give you this note," the girl announced, pulling a small envelope out of her pocket.

Still sandy-eyed with sleep, Link took the note and thanked the girl. He opened the envelope and read it silently, suddenly questioning why Zelda even had to write a note. She could've just told the girl that had shaken him awake.

Dear Link,

I'm truly sorry, but I have to attend to a few other things early this morning and we can only meet for a little more than an hour today, but it will have to suffice. In the meantime, I've arranged for some things that will make you look more presentable, shall we say. I really do regret having to do this, but as you can obviously see, I never have little to do around here, and there are matters of importance that I have to see to, even if I'm not technically ruling the country. I'll have someone fetch you around mid-morning.

Sincerely,

Princess Zelda

"I suppose you're still here to tell me what I'm supposed to be doing?" Link asked of the girl as he saw her still standing as she was when he had taken the letter from her.

"Yup. You can call me Vesta, Your Honor," said the girl, who couldn't have been much older than twelve. "And my boss said I was to bring you a change of clothes from the tailor and have a bath ready for you to use. Once you're done, I have to take you to the tailor's quarters to be measured for some new good clothes."

Link suddenly felt ashamed of his own appearance, seeing as he had never thought to own more than a few changes of clothes, and he had never been terribly worried about bathing regularly before. It just wasn't necessary. Oh well, it was just another change. He had to learn to accept all of them, somehow. Only then did he notice the steam rising from the great copper tub filled with water and the folded pieces of cloth that were arranged neatly next to it. How could that little thing drag that big tub up and fill it without waking him. It simply astounded Link, and he almost wanted to ask the little girl to teach him how to sneak around so well.

"Thank you," he replied simply.

"You're welcome, Master Link. I'll leave you to your privacy...but hey! I'm going to go get breakfast while I wait, you want me to bring you something?" she inquired after a thought.

Only then did it occur to Link that he hadn't eaten since breakfast of the previous day. "Yes, I'd like that." It was a strange idea, though, people bringing him food. His meals usually consisted of whatever game he could trap along with some hard travel biscuits and water from the nearest place it was deemed to be drinkable. Good food was the kind he bought at inns, or was given to him by his many friends along the way.

"Okay, got any requests?"

Link wasn't exactly sure what she meant for a moment, but the he realized that in a place like the castle, one could have pretty much anything one wanted for breakfast. Again, this was strange to him and made him uneasy. He could only think to respond with, "Whatever you're having is fine with me." He wasn't too picky in the first place.

"If you say so, Master Link." With that, she took off into the maze of stone walls and staircases, shutting the plank door behind her.

"I suppose I could use a bath..." Link thought out loud, still eyeing the tub suspiciously.

Once he had washed the dirt of travel and battle off of himself, Link dried off and changed into the clothes Vesta had brought for him, consisting of a black tunic, which was made of a fine, light material, and white trousers. His boots, he decided, must've been acceptable enough. He was reluctant to change, having gotten used to his usual garb, and especially his hat. He just looked...strange...without it, at least he thought. He left it reluctantly sitting on the now occupied shelves, with the rest of his old green outfit.

A knock came at the door then.

"Uh...come in."

Vesta entered, carrying a simple tray with an assortment of food on it. She put it down on the little table in the corner and then scurried over to the shelves where Link still stood.

"The boss said I'm supposed to take your old clothes to the laundry and to tell you not to worry about it because you'll get them back," she told him and began to fold the green cloth.

"Who is this boss of yours anyway?" Link asked, watching her out of the corner of his eye as he eagerly approached the food that was laid out for him.

"The head maid. She's really old, and she can be nasty sometimes, but she really is nice."

Link just hummed a reply as he pulled out a chair and sat down, observing the contents of the simple meal. The tray was occupied by a small bowl of hot oatmeal, a plate with two fried eggs and four thick pieces of bacon, and another plate that held two slices of bread, as well as a small pot of honey. Link couldn't ask for more, especially since he wasn't paying for it, and he dug in immediately. Needless to say, since his hunger seemed to grow with every bite, breakfast was quickly defeated.

"Hungry, weren't we?" Vesta asked, startling Link once again as she appeared beside him, his clothes in her arms.

"Yes...uh...Thank you for bringing this up for me."

"What's with all the thank you's? It's my job! Guess the word going around is true..." she muttered.

"Word going around?"

Vesta shrugged. "I supposed there's no harm in letting you know. It's just kitchen talk, so don't get all offended or anything. They say you come from Hassentern, even though you're obviously a Hylian, and you are some so-and-so's son, but when your family kicked the bucket, you were shipped off to some forest manor where they raised you by giving you a pony and telling you to go rid their woodlands of monsters, so you don't know anything about being what you were born to be. They say you're pretty slow too, that you don't know how to do anything but ride and fight."

"It's mostly true..." Link decided to go with it, since he had no other choice. Apparently, word spreads fast, even in such a large and intimidating place as the castle. He meant to take note of that.

"You're not dumb, though, I can see it. You just don't know better, kinda like a little kid...Uh, but I'm sorry, Your Honor! I've said too much!" she apologized fervently, evening bowing a little.

For Link, it was just awkward. "Please, uh, Vesta," he addressed her, "It doesn't matter to me. I don't care what people say about me. I...uh...can out fight any of them, so it doesn't matter what they say."

She looked up at him again, confused. "You really are strange, but I like you, Master Link. It's good to work for someone that's not so stuck up and stuffy like all the other nobles around here."

"Work for?"

"Yes! Can't you tell? I've been assigned to you! Oh wait! I bet you've never had your own servant before, have you?" she demanded excitedly.

"No, but--"

Vesta cut Link off. "Well them I'm glad to be the first! Always at your service, Master Link," she then did a little curtsey, her arms still full, "But I'm afraid we have to go to the tailor's rooms now. You have an appointment to keep, and I have to get your old clothes to the laundry once I drop you off."

And before he even knew it, Link was whipping around through the vastly confusing stone corridors of the castle once again, still trying to get an idea of even the general layout of the enormous and complex structure. It then dawned on him that it would be a while before he could even comprehend the twisting halls and narrow staircases, no less where they were supposed to lead.

After what Link thought was going up two floors and a little east, then north, then going down another floor, they reached the tailor's quarters.

Vesta pointed this out to him and left saying she'd return again and wishing him good luck. Link wasn't too sure why she said the last part about good luck, but he did find out.

When he entered that room, all decency and dignity was left behind, and the thin, mustached tailor threw him up onto a platform, measuring and mumbling all the while, and before Link knew it, he had lost his tunic and boots, and was very grateful for the fact that he didn't have to do the same with the trousers.

"My aren't we broad-chested for our age?" the tailor finally spoke up. "You're going to be hell to fit, boy, but not impossible. Big shoulders too, probably swinging a sword around a little too much, eh?"

Link could only manage to laugh nervously. He'd been fitted for clothes before, simply because in the past five years, he outgrew them by the month, but never with such mindless, and mannerless efficiency.

"All right then," the tailor said, putting away his measuring tape and pulling a small pad of paper out of his front pocket. "Take that red tunic over on that chair there, it should fit you better. Your boots and belt are over by the door," he reported with a few gestures of the quill he then pulled out of his other shirt pocket.

"Uh...Thank you..." Link blurted out, anxiously picking up the said items of clothing. He re-dressed himself quickly, noting the tailor's lack of a reply, as well as a large mirror that sat over in a corner. The red tunic actually did fit him well, but his shaggy blonde hair looked...just silly...without a hat.

"Um, Master tailor?" Link asked on a thought, "Would it be possible for you to make me a hat as well? One that's--"

"Like your old one, right?" the tailor questioned, his back still turned to Link as he wrote.

"Yes, but how did--"

"Never you mind that, Master Link. You'll have what you ask for, but I will ask that you leave shortly, since my time is very valuable and very scheduled," he told the young man.

"Oh, sorry. Thanks again..." With that, Link chose to slip quietly out, only receiving a grunt from the busy tailor.

Link closed the large plank door behind him slowly and quietly. Something about the tailor unnerved him, and he didn't want to upset the lithe man. He found Vesta waiting for him, her arms no longer loaded down, their burden having been dropped off.

"Good!" she exclaimed, looking him over, "You look better in red!"

"Uh..." Link wasn't one that was used to having his appearance so scrutinized. Sure, he'd had more than his fair share of female...followers...but they had been the type to watch from a distance, not tell him about every little nuance about his looks. He didn't bother with his appearance much at all. He cut his hair when it started to fall in his eyes too much, and he knew when he'd outgrown his clothes then set about correcting that. His only real pet peeve was his hat, or the current lack there of.

"Well, come on! I met up with the Princess' lady, Calandra, on my way to the laundry. She said she was looking for you for her Highness. I sent her back and told her you'd be there, so we better hurry," Vesta reported.

"Right," Link nodded and prepared to dive into the twisting corridors of the castle once again.

As they rushed about, they now encountered more people. Servants bustling about, all looking busy and imposed upon, and most loaded down with various armfuls of things. There were a few people who were in no hurry, and had no burden. They were also dressed a lot nicer, and laughed frivolously as they strolled about together. It didn't take much genius for Link to figure out that these must've been the nobles of the realm, the people who had money, titles, and not much else to their overly glorified name. Just as he thought on his own, pretty low opinion of them, another idea came to mind with a few more moments of observation.

"Vesta?" he queried.

"Yes?" she responded over her shoulder, leading him down another staircase.

"I know that I don't know a lot about what goes on in a place like this, but don't men usually have, well, other men for servants, and women get, uh, other women?" Link couldn't think of where or when he'd come across the fact, but it stuck out in his mind, and watching those who attended the strolling nobles only provided further proof.

"Well, yeah, that's usually the case," Vesta replied, "But up here in the castle, we're really short on men, just in general. Normally, we'd have a few that could drop their duties and attend to any male guests we might have, but they've all been working for his Imperial Highness since he came with all his armies. He took a lot of our people out of their normal duties, so everyone's got to do more now than we ever have. I'm not too fond of it personally, but that's the way it's got to be..."

"But why would he need so many servants?" Link couldn't understand why a person should even need one, especially if they could get around the castle by themselves.

"Beats me, but those poor people are up there in his quarters day and night, and when they're not, they're sleeping like babies. He must do something to drive them to exhaustion like that..."

Warnings fired in Links mind, and his growing suspicion of Terinae's intent grew to a worrisome issue.

Once again, they were up in the crossing of corridors that held the nobility's rooms. Vesta walked with Link until they reached the very first stone of the royal wing, then she stopped suddenly.

"What's the matter?" he asked, even though she looked perfectly normal and was even slightly smiling.

"Only servants with orders to go here can enter the royal wing. Just an old rule. Zelda's door if the third on the right. Just knock and her lady should let you in."

Link was confused. There were so many rules, and he knew that he was probably coming to the Princess to learn even more. "That's a very dumb rule, if you ask me," he told her.

Vesta shrugged. "It's a rule," she repeated simply.

Link just tried to shake the feelings off as he turned and started down the hall towards Zelda's rooms.

He reached the door, made of a fine cherry wood and engraved with intricate designs, many incorporating the Triforce in one way or another, and knocked, just loud enough to be heard. The same girl that had accompanied Zelda the night before answered and showed him into the richly decorated apartments.

"Her Highness will be with you shortly, Master Link," Calandra said and slipped away into another room. She seemed like a quiet girl and even when she spoke, her voice was barely above a whisper.

Link simply stood where he had been standing since he'd stepped in and tried his best to wait patiently. After a while, he went to take his hat off and fidget with it, but only to realize that he wasn't wearing a hat. Something about that just really did not sit right with him. Maybe it was because all the Kokiri boys wore hats and he'd always followed suit, though was never told to do so. It just...made him uncomfortable...and it made him look stupid.

A door hinge creaked and marked Zelda's entrance, shaking Link from his musings. It was almost a relief to see her wearing a pale purple dress. For some reason, the sight of her in dark colors was another thing that set Link ill at ease. It just seemed, wrong. It was silly, though, because he barely knew her, and it was just his idea of her...

"Good morning, Link," she said, and then smiled. "You look different without the green clothes."

He tried to keep the disappointment from showing on his face. He knew he looked stupid.

"Actually, I think it's a good change for you," Zelda confirmed otherwise. "You're starting to look the part, at least."

"Uh...Good morning to you as well, Princess," he managed to say in remembrance and even bowed his head.

"Actually, if you're going to be a Squire, you have to address me like the other Knights do, and say Milady when you speak to me, but that's why I summoned you here..."

"I thought so."

Zelda smiled again. "But for now, don't worry about it. There's no one here but Calandra and myself, and you're just learning."

Link nodded, still afraid to say much.

"So where to begin..." she asked no one in particular, her eyes firmly set on the nervous swordsman. Then she turned an looked at the small cherry table, with it's two chairs, that sat up against the wall in-between two very tall windows that showed a magnificent view of a garden and the morning sun. "Why don't we sit down?"

She started over slowly, allowing Link to catch up to her, and watching him intently. She hovered over one chair, waiting, then, satisfied that Link wasn't daring to move a muscle, Zelda sat down, and he then quickly followed suit.

She grinned again. "So you already know to sit down after royalty, or in tonight's case, the Emperor."

"Or the master of the house, or the innkeeper, or a lady..." he explained.

"I guess a formal dinner isn't too different from a feast on a ranch, is it? Well, that makes it easier then. I'll just have to see what else you know then..."

So began the interrogation. Whatever question Link couldn't answer, she answered for him, in a thorough explanation, and even when he could answer, she pertained it exactly to what was going to happen that evening. All Link had to was remember it, but that in itself was a feat for the hero. A lot of it was really trivial and pointless. It didn't make sense to him why he had to eat at the same pace as the Emperor, and set a dish aside when the Emperor did. Why couldn't he just eat what he liked, how he liked? Of course, he never asked that, because all of Zelda's grilling on his knowledge of manners only served to make him more nervous and quiet, but it just didn't make proper sense, like most of the rules he'd heard of already.

Eventually, it drew close to noon , and Zelda finally felt that she had adequately prepared her mystified pupil enough so that he wouldn't completely embarrass himself at dinner. She sat back in her chair, letting the sunlight from the picture windows dance on her face. "This must be strange for you," she mused, "All these new rules and ideas, not to mention this place itself."

"It is, but I've been to a lot of strange places, most of them a lot worse than this big stone castle where people keep trying to do everything for me," he informed her.

She laughed a little, closing her eyes. "I just can't imagine what it would be like, anywhere outside of this castle," she explained. "I almost wish you could show me all those strange places. A little change would be nice."

"I can't imagine what it would be like for you, Princess, just staying inside here all day. Even when I lived in the forest, I never stayed in the same place. I was always out exploring. You never do that, just go out and look around, get to know new things and places?" he inquired, looking intently at her, struck by the words she was saying and also by her sunlit face.

"I can't, Link. That's not the sort of thing that a Princess does. But...maybe one day, when all of this nonsense is over, you could show me around Hyrule. I'm sure you know it better than I do, and I'm supposed to be its leader..."

"I'd like that," Link said sincerely, smiling.

Zelda opened her eyes and leaned forward, joining in with his smile, only to break it as she came to a realization. "Oh the time!" she suddenly exclaimed. "Link, it was nice talking to you, but I'm afraid I'll be late for my meeting if you don't leave now. You understand, right?"

Link nodded, looking a little dejected, but not enough for her to notice. "I'll see you at dinner, then, Milady?" he asked as he rose and walked to the door.

"Yes, at dinner, Master Link," she replied, giving him one more smile to leave with.

/_\ /_\

/_\ /_\ Blue Taboo /_\ /_\