Selfish

Responsibilities

“On behalf of all the Zoran people, I, King Dorephan, thank you for protecting our people from harm once again, Master Link!”

Link stood on the platform in the throne room once again, but this time he was surrounded by a crowd of Zorans. For the first time, Sidon stood on the platform with him. News spread quickly that Link and Sidon rescued Finley and Sasan from the lynel atop Polymus Mountain and that Link slayed the beast for good.

The crowd cheered and hollered for Link and Sidon. Thanking them for protecting Finley and Sasan.

“For such a heroic feat, Master Link and Prince Sidon will be rewarded!” King Dorephan excitedly proclaimed. “The Royal Ball will be held sooner than originally planned! Preparations will triple!”

The crowd went ballistic. People were already ecstatic for the royal ball, and knowing it would be approaching sooner was music to their ears.

“And one more time, for good measure!”

Everyone shouted together, “Thank you Master Link and Prince Sidon!”

The throne room was bursting with cheers and congratulations. Link and Sidon stepped down off the platform, feeling proud of their accomplishment.

Sidon leaned into Link and whispered in his ear, “Wanna finish what we started?”

Link grinned as the chill shivered down his spin and the goosebumps popped up again. He nodded his head and gave Sidon a seductive look. Sidon placed his hand on the lower portion of Link’s back.

Just as they were about to thread through the crowd, King Dorephan called for them, “Sidon and Link, could you stay for a moment?”

They stopped in their tracks. Link could feel Sidon’s hand fall off his lower back. The crowd trickled away, and eventually, no one was left except for Link, Sidon, King Dorephan, and Muzu.

"Muzu, please forgive me, but I would like to speak with these two alone." King Dorephan told Muzu.

"Of course, you're majesty." Muzu bowed his old man bow and exited the room.

The room was strangely tense. Link had never felt nervous around King Dorephan before. He felt like a little kid again, doing something naughty and being scared of getting caught, but this time, he was especially naughty…

"I wanted to leave you two with a bit of advice." King Dorephan looked at Link and Sidon, studying their faces.

"Sometimes… Life taunts you. It gives you a taste of what you want, but what you want, might not necessarily be the best for you." He stared at Sidon for a few moments and then turned to Link.

"Master Link, you are the Hero of Hyrule. You are also the swordsman who protects Princess Zelda. Or perhaps, even, Queen Zelda now. Your priority is to do what she needs of you, is it not?"

Link could feel the tension. He was tense. Sidon was tense. King Dorephan was tense. It was so intense that he couldn't speak. King Dorephan expected Link to reply to him, so Link nodded in agreeance.

King Dorephan turned to Sidon. "Son, I will always love you. No matter who you are, but… You are a prince. You are the heir of the Zora Domain. The future king. Ever since you were born, life has taunted you. It gave and took so many things from you, but you persevered because you knew how important you were to our people."

"Of course, father." Sidon replied.

"Both of you are important people in this world. With that importance comes responsibilities that will follow you for the rest of your lives. Do not be tempted by Life's temptations. Do the things you were supposed to do…" King Dorephan sunk back into his throne. Out of the corner of Link's eyes, he could see Sidon's head facing the ground. It seemed as though the tension disappeared and was replaced with despair.

"That is all I wanted to speak to you about... You both are dismissed." King Dorephan said with sadness in his voice.

He knew what he had just done, and he felt guilty for it. But as the king of Zora's Domain, he was not permitted to regret it.