croftmanor | (no subject)

[ There is so much she should be doing, and yet so little she truly has her heart in.

They're traveling and have been for days now, going from point A to point B to point C and staying in the smallest of towns along the way; for safety reasons, the king says, with a smile that is both distant and yet too far. That distance is necessary and easily filled with things that keep her happier and more fulfilled.

They're in a small settlement outside Kakariko, a day's travel that they'll start in the morning as soon as possible so they might arrive by dinner time. The arrangements are being made and Zelda is asked to explore the local streets for a bit. She takes her knight with her as she always does— an unsuspecting and smart decision, advisors and ladies in waiting alike smiling and turning back to their work.

So they walk in the opposite direction, to hide among the trees at Zelda's behest, a smile on her lips.

At the destination, she walks close enough to him that their shoulders touch. ]

I prefer the quiet of the wilds. The bustle of royalty can be necessary communication, but you need room to think. I can do that out here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ if it's a bad idea, he has zero intention of expressing as much. he drifts as he always does, pulled along the tides of fate — whatever she or their king had decided, rather. that was fate now, for someone like him.

it isn't something he quite minds. he finds freedom in isolation, in floating about the wilderness. it's much easier when he isn't tethered to royalty, but she's a bit different — when she puts distance she puts between herself and the castle, she breaks character.

or maybe this was simply who she was undeneath the front. at least, that's what he deigns to think.

at the brush of her shoulder, he does little more than continue walking alongside her. if his eyes rove towards her, merely watching for a moment, she won't see it. ]

I don't know how you manage. [ he admits, a little carefreely. more than he should, frankly. ] It seems complicated. ...Really complicated.

[ but there are trees that erect all around them, a telltale sign they're entering more natural territory. ]

There's a pond up ahead. [ a cant of the head, as though he's waiting for her jurisdiction. he won't prod but he will give her an option, need be. ]

A lot of fish. [ a beat. ] Pretty fish.

[ He always knows how to turn her frown upside down. She turns to him, fingers laced over her abdomen, a smile playing at her lips. Nodding, she stops in her tracks. ]

It is very complicated. Perhaps more than it needs to be... sometimes it rather impedes the growth of the country, in fact.

[ That's neither here nor there. As someone who rose to his rank, she imagines he knows even better than her what the effects of a tedious court are like. Her expression turns soft, thoughtful, perhaps a bit apologetic. ]

I would like to see the fish. I'm quite interested in what this region's fauna and flora are like. Perhaps there is something yet to be discovered.

[ So she continues, walking to the pond with her head held high. Thankfully, no one had kicked up a fuss about her decision to wear pants today. ] I have heard of something the locals call a salmon— apparently they believe it improves one's defenses, augmenting them to be stronger. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Oh, it'd be wonderful to study it.