-Present, Kanyou Dungeon-
Zelda listened to Reida's words patiently. It was a lengthy tale, much more detailed and long than described here, so Zelda took up a chair.
"Why did you tell me this?" Zelda inquired. "Why speak against your very rescuer? I do not believe it false to say we are rivals, so why throw your allies at the feet of your enemy? Do you think to save yourself?"
"Princess. I admit I am unsure what to believe. Impa, your ally, captured me. Her rival, Zant, rescued me. In light of this I cannot say to myself 'all Sheikah is this way' or 'all Sheikah are that way'. It may sound traitorous and scheming to tell you that your ally is in danger and my ally is your enemy when you had no knowledge and was left unaware... but I believe in the end it is because Zant is my ally that I want you to know all these things and because Impa has committed crimes against me that I want you to know."
Zelda turned her head to the side in thought. Reida continued, "Princess... I know how you must see me. Fiancé to Prince Kyou, the brother who tried to kill you, surely Lady Reida desires the throne and would scheme against you to become Queen. Is that not what you think?"
Zelda nodded. "You do stand to become Queen when Kyou comes of age if he holds the throne and marries you. You have everything to gain."
"And everything to lose," Reida explained. "I think, Princess, that being Queen is not all it is thought to be. I think of home and feel joy and people I know, people who smile when they see me, people who listen when I talk and hear my words. When I think of the throne I feel a cage, where men constrain me and label me and hold me to an entrapping ideal of perfection I have no desire to have. Princess, I am content to be what I am. What I gain I want to be by my hand, not by my birthright. It is partly why I argued vehemently with Kyou about his coup, for what would be gained from it? Would it make him a better person? Would it make me a better person?
"I tell you these things because without the information you would not know how to act. You would be caught in surprise by the politics that have entrapped the Sheikah, and I fear you would act rashly. I want Impa held accountable for involving me when I had tried to defend you in my way, but to do that she must live. I tell you of Zant because I want you to help him, princess. He is most loyal to the throne above all else, and in these recent days, he has lost sight of who sits on it. Something has inflicted his mind and if anyone can help him... it's you."
"You put a great deal of faith in me," Zelda whispered. She squeezed her hands together. It was a burden she did not want. She already had so much on her mind, and now she had this mess to clean. Perhaps Reida had the right mind of it, in saying she did not want to be Queen as much as Zelda thought she did.
"I think... perhaps. That putting faith in people is essential. You want to know why Kyou respects me and no other woman?"
"Now this is an answer I am curious about," Zelda smiled. "What is it?"
"Because people lack faith in him. They said they had faith, but faith in what? Faith in him sitting there? Faith in him being a figurehead or statue? They have faith in his inaction, in nothing more than his status. They do not have faith he will do anything or want anything of him or hold him accountable for his abilities. I have faith he can do things on his own without a silver spoon in his mouth. I hold him to standards and expectations, and when he fails them I hold him accountable for them. I tell him 'do not sit in your carriage to my home, but walk with your own feet.' or 'do not send out servants to find what you want, but seek it out yourself.' I have even begun to teach him to cook simple things, things no other has expected of him."
Zelda blinked in surprise. "I did not know he had ever stepped foot in a kitchen."
"Hates it, but has come to like me more than he dislikes being there. When no one is around he will allow it."
"I see..." Zelda murmured. Quickly returning to the subject, she said, "and so you will hold me accountable for what happens to the Sheikah because you have faith in me."
"My point is, princess, that what are we without faith? Would you prefer I have no faith in you?"
"No."
Reida smiled, "Then we are at an impasse. I am not saying you have to do as I want you to. You do not have to rescue Impa or rescue Zant. I merely have faith in you to do the wise thing, whatever you decide that is, because... I would guess all I truly want is for you to consider and decide rationally. That is all one should wish of a leader, no?"
Not sure what to say, Zelda politely left after giving her goodbye. Reida most likely knew it, but Zelda felt more burdened than ever since Reida's words struck a chord in Zelda. Zelda knew she was responsible, but to be held accountable? To whom? To her people? To her ministers and subjects? To her Goddesses? It was a great many eyes to be held accountable by, to be observed by, to be judged by. It was a burdening, entrapping feeling. A feeling that made Zelda feel she had to be perfect in everything lest she fails, but then was that not the price of being monarch? Zelda was in a place now to have the power to realize her ambition, but her power was based on how others judged her. She was also in a position to be judged by the Goddesses and by history.
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"Zelda?" Zelda's dress whispered nervously. "You are very tense."
"I am fine," Zelda replied. "Did you touch her?"
"I did, I entered her clothing."
"Was she lying?"
"She seemed to hold back on her opinion of some matters, but no... I think that is just part of politics."
"Of course, no one would dare say to my face what they think of me." Zelda scoffed.
"She did not lie about having faith in you."
"... regardless it is good to know my observations were astute. She did not lie. The Sheikah are in trouble."
The Sheikah had fallen into a small civil war of their own, and Impa was missing and being hunted down. Impa could very well be wounded or dead too. It made Zelda's gut squirm in fear and guilt, for she wanted to have less than polite words with the woman before... how could she consider it now with the thought that she was in mortal danger?
Zelda's head pounded painfully. Now Zelda had to consider what to do with Reida, with Zant, with Impa. She already had discussed with the ministers what to do with Ketsu, but Reida's... willingness and faith in her was... a surprise. Also, Reida was daughter to a powerful noble, someone Zelda could not afford to make an enemy. Also if Reida's words were true, then she was, in her way, seeking to support both Zelda and Kyou peacefully. She wanted Kyou to have self-respect and did not mind Zelda holding the throne. Was she playing them? No, her methods were of peace and making a person better and stronger within. Zelda did not understand. Reida was purely baffling. Zelda had never met a person like her before... except in some ways it reminded her of how Impa was. Impa too was doting at moments and had faith in Zelda, held her to expectations and standards and gently reprimanded her when she failed.
"Next matter." Zelda sighed.
-Later again-
Meeting after meeting Zelda held with one person or another.
The chief architect to repair damage to the palace, gates, and check the integrity of the walls.
The chief of staff to personally inspect the remaining servants, the new servants, the guards, the cooks, the slaves, the servants for her ministers, and so on almost endlessly.
She was scheduled to have a meeting with Chancellor Ryo about economic affairs, but he was absent still, believed to be handling matters of his own to disband the rebel army he had formed against Prince Kyou as well as helping make sure the stability of the kingdom in the alarming transitions. Despite how much Zelda knew he would come to be her enemy, she still respected and honored his professionalism. He was very proactive, focused, and self-efficient. Perhaps too self-efficient, if his not-so-secret wish for the throne said anything of him.
She met with her ministers to discuss how to repay the Majora, as well as diplomatic matters with them and how to proceed. As expected they were fearful, alarmed, and saw the tribesmen as savages. Their solution was racist at best and genocidal and traitorous at worst. It took three painful hours of arguing, yelling, and her headache spiking painfully high to refute them and get them focused on the original subject. The Majora would only accept land and Zelda would not turn on them or betray them despite the minister's insistence that it wasn't 'really' betrayal... not if the Majora are barely human.
The one to say that a particular sentence was sent out of the room.
Finally, some options were created, and Zelda sent one to arrange a meeting with Ganondorf Dragmire.
Zelda had to meet with the former commander Kagura briefly to go over his side of the events Reida mentioned, and anything he might know. Then she had to discuss with her ministers the events Reida conveyed of the politics within the Sheikah clan (with a few unnecessary details left out), and how to go ahead with finding them and reuniting them within Qin. In addition to finding and rescuing Impa and arresting Zant. However with nothing to go on, and no shadow agents besides the Sheikah to look for them... it left them with few options. What agents are you supposed to send to look for your agents when you have no agents? The only option they could see at the moment was to spread the word of Zelda's reclamation as far as possible, to every corner of Qin, and let the Sheikah return on their own when they see there is a monarch on the throne. It was, however, much too passive an option for Zelda. She wanted a proactive one, so the discussion would be brought up again in the future when someone has more information or a different idea.
The final affairs were what to do with Reida, Ketsu, and Kyou. The sun had long past and exhausted to the point of delusion with pain spiking through her ears, Zelda put them off. She had enough. So far as she was concerned, Reida would be released from the dungeon and be sent home with letters of apology to her father, Kyou would be put under house arrest until Zelda could decide what else to do with him, and Ketsu would be executed publicly by being torn apart by horses. Namely by having ropes tied to his arms and legs, tying those ropes to horses, and telling the horses to do what horses do best...and that's not roll on the ground playfully like dogs. (Though Zelda had seen them do that at the farm.)
Zelda groaned painfully. Thinking about farms made her think of Link's village... she needed to check on the villages to the west, check on Link's village to be sure they were well... as well as find a way to pay them back without revealing the plot with Midna... and give Link a plot of land. Better yet just tell the mayor to do it! She was a princess! She could do that!
"There is too much!" Zelda exclaimed suddenly. The guards and servants in the hall jumped in alarm. Even the Fae hidden in Zelda's dress squealed in surprise.
"Princess?"
"I'm done! I'm done for today! I have not seen my bed in three -no- four days! My last order is to let me sleep!" Zelda shoved her doors open and froze in shock and disbelief.
A woman was sitting on her bed. At first, this was odd and a breach of security in its own right, but to add layers to the shock was the dress or rather lack of. She was naked and beautiful. Mostly. There was a thin veil over her, but it did no good to cover anything.
"What the..." The Fae whispered.
Zelda screamed. Her scream shocked everyone, most of all the woman in her bed. Zelda grabbed her sword. "Get out! Out!"
The woman fled terrified, and Zelda was left shaking and panting, looking as if she had seen a ghost. Her door was wide open, the guards looked in unsure what to do.
(edited 3/5/2020)