Drake thumped two
mugs of frothing ale onto the oaken table at which Griffin was say at, before taking a seat of
his own. Griffin nodded in silent appreciation to the
knight, before taking one mug and drawing it to his lips. Drake only sat and watched the young man
before him, his own ale untouched, and slowly shook his head.
“If someone had
told me this morning I would be talking to my 20 odd year old son, I would have
laughed in their face,” admitted the knight.
Griffin
set down his ale and met Drake’s gaze with eyes like blue ice.
“Believe me, sir,
it is not the way I would have liked to have engineered our first meeting,” he
murmured, wiping his lips. Drake leaned
back in his seat a little, his eyes turning to the cobweb ridden ceiling of the
ale house.
“I have many
regrets. Not knowing of your existence
for so long is one of the biggest I can recall,” admitted Drake quietly. Griffin
watched the knight in fascination, then took another
sip of his ale.
“I half expected
you to deny your paternity,” he murmured, his eyes half averted as he
spoke. Drake looked to Griffin and shrugged.
“Your mother told
you that I was your father?” he inquired, his eyes settling back on Griffin. Griffin
nodded slowly.
“Rose was a good
woman. Too good for
the likes of me. We parted ways
the year my family were killed...4529.
That would make you...23?” Griffin nodded.
“Yes,” he
confirmed.
“I never
knew. By the goddesses, I wish I had
known. But I did not know,” said Drake
apologetically, taking his first sip of ale.
Griffin
let out a sigh and shrugged.
“But now you do
know...” he began. Drake nodded.
“Yes. And now that I know of you, I would know
about you too,” said the knight. Griffin smiled a little,
moving to drink more of his ale.
“There is little
to tell. I spent my early years in Catalia, then the rest of them growing up in Latonia. When I turned 16 I travelled to Nabooru to live with my grandfather and there I trained as
a trainer. My grandfather died 2 years
ago, but I still did not visit home enough...I only knew of my mother’s illness
when it was too late.” Griffin bowed his head quietly as he finished, his chest expanding as he let out another
sigh. Drake leaned across the table and
laid one hand on Griffin’s
shoulder.
“I’m sorry. I truly am,” he said sincerely. Griffin
looked to him.
“Thank you,” he
murmured.
Zelda said nothing
the entire journey back to North
Castle. As they walked
through the gates, Link could finally bear it no longer.
“Zelda... I’m
sorry,” he attempted.
“I don’t want to
hear it Link!” Zelda snapped, storming off towards the Northeast tower. He
quickly followed her, grabbing her arm as she rushed up the stairs. “Let me go!
Leave me alone, I mean it!” she exclaimed in a wavering voice.
“I’m not leaving
until we’ve talked about this!” Link retorted, striding purposely up the rest
of the stairs and opening the door at the top. Zelda walked through into their
room and he closed the door behind them for privacy.
“How could you...”
Zelda said in a low tone, her expression a mixture of fury and pain.
“It wasn’t... it
wasn’t how it looked! Zel, I’m begging you, believe
me!” Link replied, beginning to feel frustrated.
“The one time I
actually believed you, you lied to me!” the princess cried, turning away from
him to wipe her eyes.
“Don’t you think I
hate myself enough for that? I just... Zel, you’ve
got it all wrong!” he
exclaimed. She spun back round to face him, looking furious.
“You just couldn’t
keep away from her, could you? The minute you thought I wasn’t looking...”
“That isn’t true!
Zelda, Fayzie is... was... my friend! I made a
mistake, I’ll admit it! And the Goddesses know, I
should never be forgiven for what I did! But do you really think, do you really
believe I would do it all again?” he pleaded, interrupting her.
“I don’t know what
to believe!” Zelda snapped.
“It was just a
hug, it meant nothing more than friendship,” Link reasoned. “I don’t love
her... I don’t love her the way I love you. I could never love anyone the way I
love you. Believe me Zel!” he begged, stepping across
to put his hands on her shoulders. “You’re my everything,
I would never, ever hurt you again. I wouldn’t... I couldn’t... Zel, please...” She pushed him away, and folded her arms
angrily.
“Link I’ve tried
to believe you, I forgave you... but... but... you and her... I don’t want
you... I don’t want you to ever speak to her again!”
“You can’t say
that! She’s my friend!” the hero argued, running a hand through his hair
agitatedly. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, attempting to calm
down.
“If you loved me
so much... you wouldn’t go anywhere near her!” Zelda retorted unreasonably. He
turned away, feeling even more frustrated.
“I thought we
promised to trust each other, to not fight anymore,” he said quietly. Zelda
didn’t answer, the entire tower enshrined in silence.
Neither of them
spoke for a while, but eventually Zelda let out a massive sob and rushed across
to the bed, burying her face in her hands. Link walked over and sat down next
to her, putting a tentative arm around her shoulders. Then he brushed her hair
aside, leaning in to plant a gentle kiss on the side of her neck. She moved
away a little, looking up to face him.
“Link... don’t...”
“Why
not?” he challenged. “If I didn’t love you, would I want to?”
“You certainly had
no trouble loving both of us a few weeks ago!” Zelda retorted accusingly. Link
bit his lip nervously and looked down at the floor.
“A few weeks ago,
I was a fool,” he muttered. “Don’t you think that every day, I hate myself for
what I did to you?”
“So why did you
speak to her again?” Zelda questioned.
“Because she is my
friend... I couldn’t just walk by like she didn’t exist!” he replied.
“You should have done.
You should have done to respect me,” Zelda said, her green eyes swimming with
tears as she spoke.
“I didn’t mean to
hurt you... it was just an impulse...” he said softly.
“You wanted to
kiss her,” Zelda accused, her slight frame shaking with emotion as she spoke.
“I want to kiss
you,” Link replied, leaning across to her, brushing his lips gently across
hers. “I don’t feel like that about a friend... only about you,” he murmured.
“She was more than
just your friend,” Zelda pointed out, moving away from him again. He sighed and
leaned back, shaking his head.
“She was a
mistake. Zel, if we don’t get past this, we’ll never
have a successful marriage,” he replied. Zelda just looked down at the floor,
not meeting his gaze. “Ever since I met you, I never wanted to be with anyone
else. I dreamt of being married to you, but none of those dreams came close to
reality. You make me so happy and I adore you. I adore you and our beautiful
children and I would do anything to make you happy. But Catalia...
it changed me, and I don’t know.. for
a while I didn’t know who I was anymore. It’s no excuse,
I can’t even begin to explain why I did what I did. But I would never do it
again, never. I don’t want my marriage to fail, I want us to be together
always,” he said softly, putting a hand beneath her chin to tilt it upwards so
that they could look at each other. “You have to trust me. I know it’s hard,
but I swear by the Goddesses, I’ll never ever hurt you again. I wouldn’t... and
I couldn’t.”
“Link... we’re just
going round in circles,” Zelda sighed, running a hand across her forehead.
“Let’s not talk
then,” he replied, reaching up to take her hand in his own
“Link...
please...” she protested lightly.
“I love you,” he
said simply. “Only you Zel, only ever
you.”
“You would have
kissed her,” she accused again. She got up from the bed, and walked off towards
the other end of the room. Link sighed.
“This stupid
jealousy, it will tear us apart in the end if you don’t stop it!” he exclaimed
angrily. “If I didn’t want to be with you Zelda, would I be here now? Think
about it!”
“Maybe you’re just
thinking about your children!” Zelda retorted in a shaky tone.
“I’m thinking about all of us! Of you,
of me, of Ewan and Brianna!” Link answered,
hurt and frustration evident on his face.
“If you don’t love
me anymore, then maybe we should just go our separate ways,” the princess
murmured.
“We’ve already
been through this,” Link sighed. “I don’t want us to separate. But if that’s
what you want...” Zelda shook her head,
her eyes brimming with tears once again.
“No but I
obviously made you so unhappy that you turned to someone else,” she cried.
“It wasn’t you...
it was me! It was nothing you did, nothing you said, nothing at all to do with
you. It was just me in a moment of selfish, weak-willed and wrongful lust and I
wouldn’t blame you for ever forgiving me for that. But Zel,
you have to remember, it wasn’t just you I hurt... but Fayzie
too,” he pointed out. She glared at him, furious.
“I’m sure she knew
what she was getting in to!”
“She didn’t do
anything. It was all me,” the hero admitted. “I don’t deserve you. I didn’t
deserve either of you. But you have to believe me when I say that today was
nothing. Why would I throw everything away, everything we’ve worked so hard
on?”
“You should have
thought of that today!” Zelda snapped.
“You know what?”
Link asked, finally losing his temper. “I don’t know why I even bother trying
to even talk to you. You’re just as unreasonable as ever.”
“Do you blame me?
After what you did?!” she exclaimed shrilly.
“You just can’t
lay it to rest, can you? Are you going to keep bringing this up every time we
have a disagreement? What is it Zelda, can you not bring yourself to forgive
and forget?” the hero demanded.
“How can I
possibly forget you in the arms of another woman?” she questioned.
“Because it’s your
arms I want to be in, that’s how you can forget,” he answered, gazing at her
hopefully.
“Well you can
forget it! I can’t ever trust you again Link, why don’t you just leave me
alone?” she exclaimed. He stared at her,
hurt passing across his handsome face at her words, but eventually, he nodded.
“Fine... if that’s
what you want so much...” he murmured, looking down at his boots.
“Just go,” she
said. He walked to the door and opened it, pausing to turn back to look at her
one last time. However she had turned her back, obviously not wishing to see
him. Closing it behind him he sank down on the top tower step. It was beginning
to feel like a long day.
***
Some hours later,
Zelda sat alone in the tower room, trying to collect her thoughts. She wished
that she hadn’t argued with Link again, but the entire scene at Mido
Cemetery had just brought
all her anger and jealousy against Fayzie back again.
Perhaps Link had been telling the truth, and in hindsight, he probably was, but
as Fayette had gleefully led her towards the couple, she hadn’t been able to
fight her volatile emotions. Seeing Link and Fayzie
so close had hurt, like a dagger being twisted right into her heart and then
pulled out again for all to see. She was terrified that one day, Link might
decide that he had made a mistake in letting Fayzie
go. She was terrified that today could have pushed him towards such a decision.
Sighing, she reached across to the bedside table, finding the old
velvet-covered poetry book. She and Link had read a little of it together, but
she hadn’t had a good chance to really browse it properly. She leafed through
the pages thoughtfully, tears coming to her eyes as she read some of the
heartfelt lines. For a moment she wished that Link was here so that she could
share them with him, but she had no idea where he might have gone. She would be
lucky if she saw him before the evening came to pass; already the sky was growing
dark and the time for dinner was approaching. However she did not feel hungry,
nor did she want to face a gloating Fayette who would
no doubt have some insidious remark to make about the day’s events. With a sigh
she realised that without Fayette’s cunning ploy, she might never have
witnessed Link embracing Fayzie, and that this
argument might never have come to pass. Fayette thrived on seeing both she and
Link unhappy, and she had handed it to her step-sister on a plate. Still
flicking through the book, she noticed a loose page towards the end. She opened
the book at the back to try and fix it, but as she did, she noticed several leafs of yellowed paper sticking under a band of ribbon
inside the back cover. Curious, she opened one out, realising that it was some
kind of letter. With a start she immediately recognised the neat, ornate
writing inscribed on the page. It was in many ways, similar to
her own. The letter was written by her father.
***
Link padded
around the Great Hall feeling frustrated. Aaron had gone out with Aimée to her parent’s farm after the memorial, and Drake
was nowhere to be seen. He had spent some time with Ewan
after the evening meal, but Impa had earlier chased
him out while she prepared their children for bed. Zelda had not turned up for
dinner, and Fayette had sat looking extremely smug. Harkinian
had questioned him, and he’d had to lie, saying that she wasn’t feeling so
well. Fayette had raised an eyebrow in disbelief but had ,
thankfully, said nothing. Now he was debating on whether to attempt to go back
upstairs to their room, or to keep away. Zelda probably would have calmed down
by now, but since she hadn’t come looking for him, he wondered if she was
feeling sorry about their argument at all. A clank of the heavy oak doors made
him look up, and Drake entered the hall, looking considerably troubled.
“Still up, lad?”
he asked gruffly, noting Link stood over by the inglenook fireplace. The hero
nodded glumly.
“Nothing else to
do,” he admitted.
“Where’s Zelda?”
the knight questioned, looking around the considerably empty Great Hall. Link
shrugged.
“Up in our room,”
he replied.
“Why aren’t you
with her, instead of standing around here by yourself?” Drake asked, scratching
his chin thoughtfully.
“We had a row,” Link
answered despondently. Drake’s brow furrowed and he frowned at his friend.
“Another one?” he
asked in disbelief. “Can’t you two ever get on?” he added.
“She just
overreacts about everything!” Link finally exclaimed, glad to have someone to
talk to. But Drake turned his back, striding over to the staircase.
“Look Link, I’m
sick of hearing about you two and your bickering.
Don’t you think there are worse problems in the world at the current moment?
The world just doesn’t evolve around you two and your petty spats, you know!”
he snapped. Link stared at his friend in surprise.
“I...” he started,
suddenly at a loss for words, not for the first time that day.
“I don’t get
either of you. You’re supposed to be in love, you’re married, don’t you realise
how damn well lucky you are?” the knight demanded. “You have everything Link,
everything. You have a beautiful wife, beautiful children who you’ve watched
growing up. I’ve none of that! None of it. And it
makes me bloody angry to see you two throwing it aside like it doesn’t count
for nothing!”
“Drake...”
“Why’d you marry
her?” Drake asked. Link stared at him for a moment.
“Because I love
her,” he finally, sticking his hands in his pockets.
“Well if you love
her, why don’t you damn well go and tell her that instead of mooching about
down here all night?” Drake shook his head and started to walk off up the
stairs. “Just don’t understand you sometimes Link,” he muttered, before
disappearing from view.
Link stood there
for a moment in shock, wondering if Drake was still feeling hurt about Byron.
As he thought about the knight’s words, he didn’t notice Fayette daintily
descending the main staircase. As her heels touched the flagstone floor he
glanced up, his face contorting in anger as he saw her.
“How could you?”
he growled in a low tone.
“What?” the
red-haired Sosarian asked innocently.
“I saw you with
Zelda at the cemetery, you told her I was speaking to Fayzie
didn’t you?” he accused. Fayette shrugged.
“I just thought
she ought to know, that’s all,” she replied. “Anyway why wasn’t she at dinner
tonight?”
“You know fine
well why not,” Link retorted, folding his arms and frowning. Fayette raised an
eyebrow.
“Not feeling well?
A likely story, she looked well enough to me earlier on today,” she sneered.
“Of course it must have been quite a shock for her to see you so passionately
entwined with your lover. I think if it were me, I’d feel quite sick about it
too.”
“What do you know
about it anyway Faye? Nothing! Absolutely nothing!” Link
interrupted angrily.
“I know enough to
know that if I were Zelda, I wouldn’t have taken you back,” she remarked
languidly. “You just can’t help yourself can you? Of course a noble wouldn’t do
something quite so uncouth... after all, you’d never
get someone like King Nicolas doing such a thing. Us
nobles have standards... unlike you paltry peasants.” Link just stared at her
in intense loathing, not able to speak for the moment. “Mind you Link, I
suppose you have one thing in your favour,” she added.
“Oh, and what’s
that?” he asked.
“Being so handsome
and all, I suppose you’ll never be short of offers to keep your bed warm once
Zelda finally has the sense to get rid of you.” Link narrowed his eyes and shot
his sister in law a furious glare.
“I can only feel
relieved that you wouldn’t be one of them!” he snapped. This
time it Fayette’s turn to look furious.
“As if I would!”
she screeched. “You ought to have more respect for me. I am, after all, a lady.
Unlike most of your conquests, who most surely belong in the gutters from which
they were born!”
“Maybe that’s
where I belong, but you certainly won’t refer to any women I’ve known in that
way Fayette. They are worth a million of me, and more than certainly worth a
million of you!” he retorted bitterly.
“How dare you, you
uneducated, ill-mannered disgrace of a peasant! Face it Link, you’ll always be
low-born serf. No matter what heroics you perform, no matter that you somehow
managed to marry a princess, you’ll never amount to being anyone important. And
someday, my stupid stepsister will get over her stupid infatuation with you and
come to her senses!” Fayette exclaimed hurtfully. Link shook his head, his face
pale at Fayette’s words.
“I never wanted to
be important Faye. That’s the difference. And I love Zelda... and she loves
me,” he said slowly.
“As long as I’ve
known Zelda, she never wanted to do the right thing. What were you, her bit of
rough, her way to rebel against everything that is
correct etiquette in royal society? I think she’s finally realised that now,
that she made a mistake marrying you. And if today isn’t enough, I’m sure it
won’t take too much more to send your mockery of a marriage crashing down
around you both,” Fayette sneered. Link
took a deep breath and faced the Sosarian squarely.
“That’s where
you’re wrong Faye,” he said resolutely. “Nothing will ever come between Zel and I, least of all you!” Then
he turned and walked off towards the courtyard before she could say anything
else to hurt him.