#indravati

Indravati looked mad at the answer he was given. He had been at the castle for four months now, and nothing suspicious had happened. His injuries on his back had fully healed and scarred horribly, and he was given a tutor to teach him how to read and write. Everything was going well, except the part that he kept it a secret of what his master had planned for him. Sure, Indravati took it upon himself to train every day, but it was usually by himself since what Sybil did to him months ago. He would train with his fists mainly instead of using a sword, and when he was asked why he simply said he hated the hassle of it. Indravati even started to gain healthy weight and more muscle mass. He was living better! But he was still not satisfied with it. He wanted one thing, and that one thing was to get revenge on his master for what he did to his mother.

Without another word, Indravati left Ganondorf's office to go start his patrol shift of the day. He was suppose to just keep an eye out in the library today instead of the gardens like he normally did. It was a nice change of pace too, the quiet room simmered down his anger quite a bit. He watched people go in and out of the library as he walked around slowly, debating on how he wanted to train today, and how he wanted to hurt his master once he saw him again. His back ached just thinking about him, the injury was healed, but the phantom pain still flared up now and then. Maybe he could just beat him to death, or maybe he could stab him in a vital wound and watch him bleed out. A fitting death since that's how he killed his mother. He could feel the anger creep back onto his shoulders as he thought more and more of the plan. He needed a distraction before he snapped at someone from said anger.

Walking down tall shelves filled with books, he let his fingers graze over the spines, a small smile coming to his face. His first thought went to his mother, she always had a book in hand when he was a child. It was usually a history book or her own journal that she wrote on, having information on the places they went to. Soon enough he would be able to read all these books, his tutor said he was a quick learner and was already past children books and onto more advanced things. It was a good thing. Maybe he could soon find out why his mother always had her nose in those books.

Indravati was about to turn around to continue to walk around the library but stopped when he saw a large map on the wall. Stepping up to it, it seemed to be a map of Hyrule and the edge of some other lands. He stared at it long enough that he didn't even notice the small child that stepped up to him.

“Can you read the map?” When the child spoke he flinched hard and looked down to see that it was… Princess Orana? What was she doing in here? He didn't want to talk to her, he made it a point to avoid her and her siblings because what he was sent here to do. But there was no avoiding conversation now.

“...Yes, I can, why?”

“You were staring at it for so long I thought you needed help.” she gave a laugh when she said that, Indravati gave a smile chuckle.

“I think if I couldn't read it my mother would be mad at me, we went to so many places inside and outside of Hyrule that I was sort of forced to learn.”

“You have traveled outside of Hyrule?” The princess’s eyes lit up with curiosity when he said that and he smiled, lifting up the part of his helmet that covered his face. When it showed he was Gerudo, she became more interested. Maybe it wasn't a bad thing to talk to her.

“Yes. My mother was a nomad, so I've seen many places, would you like the hear about where I've been?” When he asked that she nodded quickly, taking another step forward, and he laughed. “Alright… where to start....” He tapped chin and hummed. “I have been all over Hyrule, Labrynna, Danjur, the Gerudo Desert, and sailed on some of the Oceans..” Indravati was going to continue, but Orana raised her hand and Indravati laughed a little, giving her a nod to ask her question.

“You said your mother was a nomad. That means she never settled in one place, right?”

“That's right.”

“Then where were you born, or grew up?”

Indravati let out a breath when she said that, he was thinking. “I don't… know where I was born, well I do, but it's been so long.. My mother always said uh… how do you translate?” He thought for a moment how to translate his mother's words from Gerudo to Hylian, then huffed, he ended up saying it in Gerudo. “When I asked her where I was born she would always say ‘Somewhere between chilling waters and the soft falling snow. Under silent trees and next to a warm fire, under the peaceful moon and stars. Where the air was thin and where the gods could see over the lands. You came to me screaming into the world, announcing that you were alive’.” When he finished speaking Princess Orana had a smile on her face, that made him smile back at her. Switching back to Hylian, he turned back to the map. “My mom had a way with words, but I think she meant I was born… here.” He pointed at Mount. Lanayru. “I'm guessing we stayed there until I was two and continued to roam after that. We always came back to the snow though since I liked it a lot.” He shrugged.

“What about the oceans? You said you have traveled them.”

“Well some, I remember being on a giant ship when I was around your age, didn't enjoy it too much. I was always humid and made my hair frizz up.” He motioned to his head and the two shared a laugh. “We were on trading ships for a while, just sailing from Danjur back to Hyrule. It was a fun trip.” He smiled at her gently.

The young Princess was about to ask another question about his adventures before her name was called. It was one of her teachers. He noticed the dread on the Princess’ face, and that she still had answers she wanted to ask...

“Go hide real fast.” He whispered to her and she smiled widely and did as she was told. Hiding on one of the bottom bookshelves, Indravati had to pull down the face of his helmet to hide his small laugh. It wasn't long before the teacher came by and walked up to Indravati.

“Have you seen Princess Orana?”

“Princess Orana? Shouldn't she be in class?”

“She should, but she ran off again.. have you seen her? I swear I heard her voice…”

“I haven't, sorry. I can tell you that when I see her next that I will tell her she will be needed in class.” The teacher let out a heavy breath when he said that. It was obvious that they had to deal with this often…

“Thank you, sir, I'll keep searching..” the teacher waved a hand goodbye before leaving. Indravati waiting a few moments before lifting up his helm again. Going to where the young Princess was hiding and knelt down.

“I think they're gone now, Princess.” he smiled at her gently and held out a hand, which she took when she crawled out from the bookshelf. He watched as she looked around just to double check if the teacher was truly gone and then smiled at him brightly. “Now.. what was that question you were about to ask me?”

The two had settled to sit down at one of the tables in the library. Indravati happily answering questions that the Princess had for him. He told her about the places he had been to, what they looked likes, even how the food and smells were like. He even introduced himself formally to her and laid his helmet on the table they sat at. Indravati was enjoying this small conversation he was having with the young Princess.. until her next question.

“You talk about your mother being with you on all these adventures, Indravati. But where is she? Does she live here with Hyrule since you're a knight here?” The princess raised a brow when she asked her question and Indravati could feel his heart sink.. the first thought that came to mind was the day his mother died and him screaming. He put his hands on the table and pulled off his gloves. Showing two golden rings on each ring finger.

“My mother.. died when I was fourteen..” He wasn't going to tell her she was murdered, it felt wrong. He took off one of the rings and handed it to her so she could have a better look. “These are what I have in memory of her. They're traditional wedding bands, but I think her wife died before I was born.” He spoke with a shaky breath. Princess Orana looked sympathetic as she looked at the ring for a moment before handing it back to Indravati.

“I’m sorry your mother died.” She didn't look him in the eye and Indravati waved a hand. In all honesty, he was trying not to tear up at the thought of her.

“It happened a long time ago, Princess Orana.” He smiled gently as he put back on the ring. “I think it's time for me to stop sharing stories today. Maybe another time I could tell you about the day my mother knocked out a pirate with a really cool move.” when he said that Orana's eyes lit up when he said that but before she could even say anything, he spoke. “If you stay here any longer, we'll both get in trouble, and I personally don't want to get in trouble.” He stood from his chair and put back on his gloves. “Come on, let's go find your siblings so you can catch up on the class work you've missed.”

Indravati had to hold back his laughter when she made a pouty face as she stood from her chair and started to walk towards the exit of the library. He followed by her side with his helmet under his arm but paused when he heard a book drop. He even saw the book on the floor.

“That's odd….” He mumbled and looked around. He couldn't see anyone besides the young Princess. He could tell the librarian on his way out about the book.. for now, he figured it was best to make sure Orana got back to her siblings before she could get in trouble. Even she noticed the book and went without a second thought to put it back on the shelves. He sighed when she did that and followed her. “Do books usually fall off the shelves randomly around here?”

“Maybe skull kid is trying to pull a prank on you.” She said and Indravati just looked confused as he stood by her. He shook his head and watched her put the book back up. The two turned to leave the aisle of books but at one end was a person dressed in all black... And a dagger in one hand. It was an assassin.

The assassin charged at the two and went for the young Princess, but Indravati made the choice of pushing her back behind him and throwing his helmet at the man. He could hear his heartbeat in his ears as the man didn't stop his charge and was met with Indravati. He was surprised that he caught the Assassin’s wrists and threw him back.

“You’ll give your petty life for a pig spawn?” the assassin asked and Indravati looked confused. But then he grew annoyed, he forgot that people still used that insult.

“Don't call her that.” he bent his legs slightly and prepared for the next attack for the Assassin. The Assassin tried to stab Indravati in his side with his dagger, he attempted to dodge but had his side grazed by the blade. The Assassin threw a punch at him and hit Indravati in the chin, making him stumble back. Another hit to him in the face, then another. He was starting to feel dizzy, but he somehow shoved the man back. He was on the defensive and currently trying to figure out how to fix this situation and not to scare the princess. Indravati kept avoiding the attacks as best as he could trying to think of how to counter attack this man. The man tried to charge again, but when Indravati caught him the man just headbutted him in the nose. He saw stars with that one and almost fell over, but the Princess gasping loudly made him stop himself from falling. Wiping his nose, he saw that his nose was bleeding heavily. It running down past his lips and dripping on his chin. He was starting to regret training by himself... All he ever knew how to do was the things his mother taught him as a kid, what he saw her do in fights, and how to hold a sword. How was he going to beat this man? Another punch across the face, now a cut cheek, and he growled. Indravati didn't take the punch so hard like the assassin planned him to, so he punched him in the chest, making him stumble back a few feet, knocking the air out of the man. He needed someone that would take this man down quickly... Then, he gained an idea.

“Princess Orana-” he glanced back at the scared Princess who was watching this scene unfold. She looked up at him with fear in her eyes. “Do you wanna see how my mom knocked out that Pirate?” He asked raising a brow, watching the Princess nod as he heard the man coughing.

“You're going to regret that kid!” the assassin yelled and charged at him.

Indravati noticed the third time he charged, it was the same as the first and second. His mother always said fighting were just patterns, and everyone had a different one. Her words prove correctly in this moment. Throughout his childhood, he had witnessed his mother get into plenty of fights growing up, and he was lucky that the pirate in the past she fought was a very vivid memory. It played out the same way for him too. The man lunged forward with the dagger, trying to go for his neck. Everything slowed down for Indravati as he re-lived that memory in his head. Stepping to the side just like his mother did, reaching one arm out to push up the hand that had the weapon, kicking one leg out to trip them, and punching them up across the face with his free hand. With that final punch, the Assassin was knocked cold with blood gushing from the assassins nose. Even Indravati looked surprised when he successfully pulled that off. His arm was still hanging out from the punch when the assassin fell to the ground. He was shaking hard, his armor shifting from his trembling muscles. He just realized it was the first time he actually fought back against someone. But why? Why did he fight back..?

Indravati was breathing heavily and turned to the Princess who looked just shocked at the event that just happened in front of her. Then it hit him. He fought back because he wanted to protect her, one of the children he was originally sent to kill, him being here to protect someone who was innocent felt right to him… The adrenaline was pumping through his veins, he needed to calm down, calm her down. Indravati stood up straight and took in a deep breath, stepping towards her slowly.

“Are you alright…?” She nodded and Indravati could tell she was still scared. So, he knelt down to her and smiled gently. “How about we.. go find your parents instead, Princess Orana..”

“..and get you a band-aid..” she pointed at his bleeding nose and he laughed, nodding.

“And get me a band-aid.”

It took less than an hour before everything was spread around the castle about what happened in the library. The young Princess was in a safe place, Indravati received his medical attention that, and now was currently standing in front of the King and Queen with his head down, looking at the ground. They asked to see him, but haven't said anything since he came to them. It was eating him up inside. He could feel the tense air in the room and took in a breath to speak.

“I… pushed Princess Orana away from the assassin, is she alright?” He asked, still not looking at them.

“She is fine,” Ganondorf speaking in short words made Indravati stomach twist.

“That's good…” he kept his head down and Zelda let out a sigh, being the one to break the silence.

“Indravati what happened today isn't new to us.” She tried to talk to him calmly. “We have had constant threats towards ourselves and our children. We were lucky that you were there..” She tried to get the teenager to look at her but he simply kept his eyes glued to the ground like a guilty child. “You saved our daughter from an assassin, I would think you would be happy she didn't get hurt...”

Indravati was silent for a moment, lifting his head slowly only to look to the side. “It's my fault-” his voice squeaked out those words. “My fault that it happened. It was one of my master's servants, I looked at their face before I brought your daughter to you-” he had tears welling up in his eyes, the guilt was eating at him. “It's my fault that she almost got hurt, and I'm-” he opened his mouth for a moment before closing it. “I'm sorry. I'm so sorry- I didn't want anyone to get hurt.” He brought his hand to his eyes to wipe the tears away.

It was a hard reminder to the King and Queen how young Indravati was. It made sense on why he was so emotional at the moment, especially since he saw that the assassin came from his master. He probably blamed himself for this whole event...

“Indravati,” Ganondorf spoke in a stern voice, making him look up at him with his tears still o. His face. “No one got hurt unless you count yourself. You did a good job by fighting against the assassin. Only the Goddesses know what would have happened without you there. You shouldn't beat yourself up about this.”

“But-”

“He works for your master, yes, but that isn't your fault. Nothing is your fault.” when he said that Indravati looked surprised. “You're just a kid. None of this could be your fault and on top of it. You are trying to do your best to stop your master without him finding out. You should be proud, not upset.” Ganondorf looked down at him, waiting for his response.

Indravati just looked surprised to hear the King speak to him that way. He wiped his eyes again and nodded quickly. “Yessir-” his voice cracked but he tried to not let it. Ganondorf let out a breath of relief when he successfully calmed him down. He didn't want to think about how his kids were going to be when they were around his age.

“Now, you go rest. You still have to do patrols tomorrow even though you are beat up. Clean your wounds in the morning and reapply the medicine to them” He said and Indravati nodded, giving a quick bow and went to leave. He didn't have anything else to say to the two rulers. So he just left quietly.

Indravati was focusing on his breathing as he walked down the hallway to his room. He felt a huge weight come off his shoulders when Ganondorf told him it wasn't his fault. He didn't want to admit that he thought he was wrong though. He looked at the helmet he threw at the assassin and sighed. Today was just so much for Indravati, all he wanted to do was sleep the day's troubles away. Opening the door to his room, he was met with a hooded cloaked figure standing by his desk.

“Excuse me? I think you have the wrong room, sir…” He stepped towards the man slowly.

“No, I think it's the right one.” the man turned around to face Indravati who froze on the spoke. He recognized that voice, that low voice... The man removed his hood, showing his short black hair and the burn scar on his cheek. He had tan skin and black eyes. Long ears that had golden earrings, and a slow smile forming on his face. “Did you miss me, my little pet?” The man took a step forward and Indravati stumbled back quickly. Almost falling over.

“Master Grimol-” his face grew pale at the sight of him. The man who he had been going against for the past few months. Standing right here in his room.

“Aw, don't act like that pet!” Grimol laughed. Opening his arms as he stepped closer to Indravati who kept moving away from him. “You look like you've seen a ghost! Give your master a hug!” He kept walking closer to Indravati, forcing him to walk back into one the dresser in his room and fall to the ground. Staring up at Grimol with fear deep in his eyes. Grimol just sighed heavily.

“You break my heart acting like this, you know you're not supposed to.” He frowned heavily and reached under his cloak to pull out a whip that had small spikes on it. “Now… my dear pet, I came up here early because things were going so well. But you hurt one of my dear old men! You know what that means.” He stretched out the whip and Indravati had tears forming in his eyes again.

“I'm sorry!” he held out his hands. “I- I didn’t them to- to think I'm against them! I'm sorry!!” he came up with the lie as tears fell on his cheeks. Not this, anything but this. He didn't want to be scared again, he was just starting to sleep well at night. He didn't want to be hurt again.

“Shit.” He looked down at his body to see it wrapped in bandages. Breaking out into a cold sweat he went to sit up quickly but had extreme pain shoot through his body from his back. He whimpered and caught the attention of one of the nurses who he ran into.

“You don't need to be getting up yet, you need to lay back down,” she said walking over to him, moving her hand to his shoulder to help him lay back down. But he grabbed her hand.

“I need a shirt-” Indravati said quickly. “King Ganondorf and Queen Zelda cannot…” he breathed heavily, he didn't realize how weak he was. “Can't.. know about my injuries..” He swallowed hard, looking up at the nurse. She looked annoyed at him, was she one of his master's pawns? He didn't know, but he knew he needed to hide his injuries.

The nurse let out a heavy sigh. “Fine. But you need to stay here until I can get you some medicine for your fever and for your infection,” she said and removed her hand.

“infection..?”

“Yes, infection. Those injuries on your back are infected. Not badly, but just enough to start making you sick. It's not my business to ask how you received them, but you should have received medical attention soon after.” she said and walked off to do as she told him.

Indravati simply sat there, watching the nurse who helped him write something then leave to another room. He hated to admit that he was in a lot of pain, he had easily gone through worse under his master's watch.. But someone else knowing about it was terrifying to him. He didn't want anyone to know because he thought it would make them suspicious. Seeing a young Gerudo male showing up to Hyrule castle, with large slashes on his back? He was sure people would start to question why he was there, and if he was just sent there to do harm. Indravati let out a heavy breath, slouching as he looked at the I.V in his hand. It wasn't long before the nurse came back with some medication for him, she had two bottles in one hand, and the shirt he came within another. It was stained with lines of blood.

“Take each of these pills once in the morning, and one before you go to bed. This one helps with the swelling, and the other helps with the infection, which will help your fever.” she said and handed him the bottles, then the shirt. “we couldn't get the stain out of your shirt. I also need a name so when you ask for refills they won't question why.” she said and Indravati raised a brow.

“You don't know my name?”

“If I did I wouldn't be asking you for it. Now, give me your name..”

“Indravati.” He looked around with his eyes when he said that.

“No last name?”

“Oh uh… Indravati Leiho…” he spoke quieter when he said his last name. It had been years since he even thought about his last name. It was odd saying aloud again.

When the nurse got what she needed from him, she took the I.V out of his hand, put a band-aid over it, and sent him out. With strict orders to take it easy and to rest. Of course, Indravati didn't listen to that, he needed to act like everything was fine. That he just went to the nurse for a check-up, or for some medication for a headache.

When he left Indravati found out shortly that he had been asleep for about two hours, and only had a few minutes to get ready for his patrol shift through the gardens. He went to his room to get changed into new clothes when he remembered the black box from earlier, remembering what Ganondorf said. Dump out the poison and fill it with water. Half dressed, Indravati went to the place where he hid the box and took it to the small bathroom in his room. He opened the box, taking out the small bottles and started to dump them in the sink. Luckily for him, it was a clear colored poison, and it didn't smell anything either. So filling it with water wasn't too hard, the hard part would be to get it to the person who he was told to give it to.. What was her name again? Sarah something. He had the first name, the last would come later. He finished getting dressed and hid the box again. Indravati was about to finish getting dressed but seeing the bandages on his back made him stop. He walked to the mirror to get a better look and frowned heavily. The bandages had tints of blood in them, it showed how bad his injuries were. Indravati put on his shirt shortly after and went to find his armor from earlier.

Luckily he made it in time to his shift, introducing himself to the knights as they left so they knew who he was. The last thing he would want was someone to try to hurt him when he was trying to fit into his new role. Indravati did not listen to what the knights said to him as he walked away. All he heard was “kids running around”, all he had to do was avoid them. Wouldn't be too hard, right?

Indravati was walking around for a while, going through the gardens slowly. He was surprised by all healthy plants around here when he was a child he was only used to seeing plants when he went to the marketplace... He was admiring the roses when he heard running footsteps around. Indravati blinked a few times behind his helmet and walked around to find it. When he heard a child scream he flinched and picked up his pace to find it. But stopped when two red-headed children ran past him. A young girl and a young boy. They paid no attention to him, but he stared at them mainly because they weren't Hylian children, they were Gerudo. He turned his body fully towards them and watched as they turned another corner out of his view. Never in his life had he seen Gerudo younger than him, Indravati thought he was the youngest generation of Gerudo, but looks like he was wrong. When his master said they had children, for some reason he expected that they would adopt children, not actually have their own... He took another moment lost in his head before he continued to walk around the gardens.

Indravati patrolled around the gardens for another hour, watching the young children hang around the gardens with Queen Zelda. There were five young Gerudo children from what he could see, and it made him so happy to see that. He would watch them as he walked around the gardens. Indravati wanted to end his shift early since the injuries on his back started to burn and throb with pain, but he endured for the rest of the time. Throughout his time in the gardens, he did as he was told to do. Keep on the lookout for anything suspicious, make sure everything was in order, and he himself looked at the plants with curiosity every now and then. When he was about to leave someone spoke up to him.

“You walk as if you are in pain.” It was Queen Zelda, who spoke. She had stepped up to him after her children already rushed inside for their next lesson of the day, leaving Zelda and Indravati to have their own conversation. “Are you alright?” When she asked that Indravati laughed nervously behind his helmet.

“I'm just fine! It's just uh-” he tried to come up with a lie, but Zelda only had to raise a brow to make rush his words. “- I feel a little hot from being outside.. maybe I'm just getting sick?” it wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the whole truth either. Zelda continued to give him that looked and he could feel himself break out into a cold sweat.

“You should learn how to lie better, Indravati.” When she said that Indravati cursed under his breath, looking around and lowered his head.

“I apologize your majesty… I just..” He shrugged his shoulders and let out a heavy breath. “I'm embarrassed, and I don't want you or King Ganondorf to know, especially King Ganondorf..” saying this made Zelda curious, but she could read into the situation that it was one needed to be spoken of in private.

“Walk with me, and we'll discuss it.” She said and started to walk, Indravati was already stumbling on his feet to walk with her. He was a nervous wreck. He had heard rumors of the wrath of the King, but the Queen could make people fear her easily. What would she say? That he was pathetic? That he was a fool to keep secrets? There were just so many thoughts going through his head as he followed the Queen to the… library? Why were they in the library?

Zelda led him to one of the back shelves and pulled a book. She handed it to him and he looked confused at the title.

“I can't… read this, your Majesty..” He said quietly and Zelda nodded.

“I know, but the book you hold is one that will teach you Hylian text and proper speech. Ganondorf told me that you do not know how to write, and by your accent, you have only spoken it for a few years.” She said and Indravati nodded.

“I.. I've only known it for about three years.. because of well.. my master forced me to learn, and my mother only taught me some…” Indravati frowned hard behind his helmet at the thought of his mother. “She taught me basic sayings.. Like how to ask for food, how to ask for a place to stay for the night, please and thank you.. those... sort of things..” He looked at the book and opened it hesitantly.

“I see, well you'll learn how to properly read, write, and speak it before your time here is over.” She moved to sit in one of the chairs. “for now, we need to talk about why you are hiding your injury.” Zelda gave him a look and Indravati flinched, she figured it out so fast, it was scary. “You mentioned that you had “friends” here, did one of them hurt you?”

“no! No- it's from.. an..” Indravati put the book down. “It's from…. My master did it to me..” He slowly took off his helmet and sat down. “He.. wanted to send me off with a reminder to stay in line..” He spoke quietly to the Queen, keeping his head down. Zelda was hesitant on how to approach this situation, she did not want to make him upset, but it seemed that he was already upset just talking about it.

“I'm sorry that he hurt you.” She took in a slow breath. “But remember that here under our watch, that you are safe, Indravati. So do not hesitate to come talk about your struggles, and to go to the doctors for some medical attention. I won't force you to talk about it, but if you wish to talk about it, you can.” She gave him a gentle smile and Indravati looked up at her. He opened his mouth to speak, but he had tears in his eyes. Quickly wiping them away, he nodded.

“I won't hesitate now that you've told me… Thank you..” He wiped his face with his hands a few more times. “I don't mean to get upset- I just-”

“It's hard, I can imagine.”

“Yeah…. And it hasn't been the first time since he's hurt me like that..” when he said that Zelda raised a brow in a way for him to continue talking. Indravati looked to the side. “I don't.. want to.. talk about it.. I’ll just say that I have many scars on my back to from him...” Indravati had tears coming to his face again but he just wiped them away. When Zelda saw the tears she had to remember that he was barely an adult yet. He was just a kid, and he had probably endured so much in a short. She decided it was best to distract him.

“How about you take a deep breath?” When she said that he nodded and took in a shaky breath, letting out slowly. “Alright. Now, let's see if I can help you read and write.” She pulled the book and opened it.

Indravati didn't expect this from the Queen, but he accepted the help. Zelda sat with him for about an hour, showing him the alphabet, making him write it, and even write his own name a few times. By the time she finished their lesson, Indravati had a wide smile on his face. He kept the papers the two had written on, and folded them in half so they could fit in the book she gave him earlier.

“Now, I want you to write the sentences I wrote down for you on that paper at least four times before we move on, understood?” Zelda asked him and they were leaving the library. Indravati nodded at her instructions and put his helmet back on with one hand. “And rest, we have a while before that plan you told us is carried out. You should be healed and well rested.” She said and he gave another nod.

When Indravati parted from her, he gave a bow and was on his way back to his quarters when he met a woman at his door. He looked confused and stepped up to her.

“Do you need help with something ma'am?” He asked raising a brow and the woman looked up at him.

“Yeah, I need those vials Sybil gave you.” when she said that Indravati widened his eyes behind his helmet.

“You're Sarah..?”

“Yes, now are you going to keep me waiting? They're going to start prepping the royal family's dinner soon.” this woman looked impatient. She had short light brown hair and blue eyes. Her left ear had a piece missing from what looked like a fight of some sort. Indravati hated to admit that she scared him a bit...

Fumbling his hands to open the door he walked into his room. Putting the book on the desk as Sarah followed. He went to grab the box of vials when Sarah spoke up.

“They're seriously teaching you how to write?” She had the book in her hand, looking at the paper he had written on earlier. “What a waste of time..” She tossed the book and paper back onto the desk. Indravati already walking back with the box.

“Wh...why do you say that, Ms. Sarah..?” He asked as he held out the box, her snatching it away from him.

“Because master Grimol doesn't have a use for you after this. He's probably going to sell you to some slavers, or put you in a gladiator ring to kill you. Or, pin the death of the Royal family on you.” She said without a care, but Indravati looked horrified of this information. He was going to be sold? Or worse, killed? He didn't do anything, he didn't do anything! This wasn't fair. Sarah laughed at the expression on his face.”You seriously didn't think he was going to keep you around after this, did you?” she laughed a bit more and went to leave the room. “Oh, forgot to tell you. Three of the seven of us here chickened out and skipped town. Guess they're still scared of the demon king.” She shrugged and was gone.

It was nearing the end of the day for the King and Queen. They had already dealt with the meeting with the council, already listened to the people, and received an update that everything else was fine. Ganondorf let out a heavy breath as he walked with Zelda down one of the long halls in the castle.

“We should take a break. We might burn out one of these days.” He spoke in a blank tone, looking down at Zelda who only scoffed at his words.

“You know Hyrule would fall apart without one of us watching it. Especially with our children getting close to their teenage years.” Zelda gave a side glance to Ganondorf who only huffed out another breath from his nose. She had a point. Their eldest son recently turned thirteen, the start of the teenage years. It wouldn’t be long before their other children would be in the same years as them. Thinking about his children as adults was a thought Ganondorf did not want to dwell on, not at the moment. It made him feel old.

“True, but one afternoon out wouldn’t hurt anyone. Take the kids to Lake Hylia, then come back before supper is served.”

“It sounds like a nice idea, but we would have to place someone in charge for the afternoon, cancel meetings, take our children out of classes, among other things.”

Before Ganondorf could respond to her comment, a servant was making their way towards them. She seemed in a hurry, and out of breath. Which made the two look at each other with a bit of concern on their faces. Stepping up to the servant, she stood taller before their King and Queen.

“Your Majesties, there is a man dressed in knights armor and demands to speak with you as soon as possible…. In private…” The servant looked to the side at the last comment she made, unsure if they should have mentioned that fact to them. Zelda had a frown on her face when the servant said that.

“And where is this night now?” She asked with a stern look, making the servant flinch.

The servant couldn’t look Zelda in the eye when they spoke. “He is in a conference room now, your majesty.”

Hearing this Zelda let out a heavy sigh, Ganondorf looked down at the servant with a frown. “Could you lead us to said, conference room?” He asked and the servant nodded quickly, doing as she was told and lead the King and Queen where they were needed. Which ended up being a conference room. The servant spoke up again before she opened the door. “The knight has handed over all his weapons on his request. He's in this room waiting for you now….” and with that statement, that made the King and Queen even more concerned about this meeting, the servant opened the door.

In the conference room stood a fairly tall man. He was still shorter than Ganondorf, but much taller than the average Hylian. His armor was rusted and old, having dent marks in it and scratches, the knight also had his helmet on still. Ganondorf didn't think much of it, but Zelda found it a little rude for this man to demand a meeting and not even show his face. But she didn't say anything. The two stepped up to the man who looked to actually flinch in their presence.. the knight took a deep bow.

“It is an honor to meet you- your majesties-” he spoke with a shaky voice, and … a familiar accent. Where has Zelda heard an accent this accent before? He rose after a few seconds and looked them head on behind his helmet. “I- I have some… some..” His hands were shaking, this man was obviously scared to speak. This made Ganondorf laugh lightly.

“Don't be scared, I won't bite your head off. Just speak your mind.” He said crossing his arms. Ganon assumed he was scared of him like most Hylians were. So it filled his pride greatly.

“What made you seek our audience so late in the afternoon? Could this matter have been spoken of when we speak to the people here in our home?” Zelda asked raising a brow, the knight only looked down to the ground when she said that. Behind the helmet he bit his lip hard, almost hard enough to make it bleed.

“No, it's too important for others to here. Your majesties I have come- come here to tell you that-” he swallowed hard, raising his head to look at them straight. “Let me just.. get straight to the point. I was sent here to kill you and your children. But i-!!!” before he could even get out his next sentence, Ganondorf had taken rash actions. Grabbing the knight to push him against the wall. His hand on his chest, denting in a hand print on the old armor. The knight yelped and trembling under his hand. He was so strong, it was hard to believe that the stories about the King’s strength and anger were true. Ganon was about to speak to him before the man cried out panicked words in a familiar tongue..

“Please don't kill me!!” He wailed his words in Gerudo. The language that Ganon had spoken, one that he believed that only him and his family could speak. “I don't want to die! Please- I only want to help- please-” he was speaking quickly in Gerudo, and this made Ganondorf stare at him for a moment, and let go of him out of pure shock. The knight was breathing heavily, still holding himself close against the wall in fear of the great King. Even though his face was hidden, it was obvious this man was terrified, and held no ill intent. This explained a little to Zelda, as the accent he had when he spoke Hylian sounded similar to her husband's.

Ganon stood in shock at the knight who hid his face. He spoke his language. One that was almost dead if not for his children. He was stuck staring at this man with wide eyes... He didn't know how to approach this situation, so Zelda stepped up. She elbowed him hard, making his hand grab the spot on his arm that stung. He knew by her action that it was wrong of him to attack the man this way. But what was he supposed the do? The man said he was sent here to kill his family. He'd be insane if he didn't try to kill him on the spot. Ganondorf only grumbled at his wife's elbow struck on him as a response.

“I apologize for his actions. I know you mean no harm since you gave up your weapons before you met with us.” Zelda gave Ganon a sharp glare when she said that, him blinking a few times. It seemed he already forgot about that small detail. “But I must ask a few things. If you were sent to kill us and our family, why tell us? Why go against what your master has told you to do? And how do you know the language of the Gerudo?” She raised a brow at the Knight who kept his body to the wall. The knight was still trembling from head to toe. He was still shocked about Ganon's attacking him so, that he almost lost his life. It took him a moment to process the questions that he was asked. But eventually he collected himself.

“I-…” his head dropped slightly. “I don’t want to kill a King and Queen for doing what was right for their people… it’s not fair for you both.” he spoke hesitantly and Zelda nodded. That made sense. “Going against my master is- it’s terrifying… but I was hoping that if I told you i'd finally be free from his hands again…” the knight stepped away from the wall, his head down. Ganon and Zelda couldn't help but to feel sympathy for this man. “I’ve been here in Hyrule for a day or two.. and i’ve been trying to figure out how to ask you for help and to warn you about the dangers my master brings… and i hope that who I am will… give you more reason to help..” Their sympathetic expression soon turned confused. The two watched as his hands reached the side of his helmet and slowly took it off. Ganon widened his eyes when he saw how this man looked. The familiar dark skin, his hair bright red, short on the sides, with the length on the top tied back in a small tail to keep out of his face. When he looked up, he met them with bright golden eyes. But his face showed he wasn't a man at all.. He looked very young. “My name is Indravati… I..” He swallowed hard. “I am a gerudo.. it's how I know the language.. they thought because of that that I could be.. be used against you, King Ganondorf…” the knight frowned hard. “That's why they sent me here to kill you.. But I refuse to do his wishes.. I don’t want to kill my King or my Queen of this land… you two did nothing wrong..”

Even though he explained this situation. The King and Queen still couldn't believe their eyes. One of Ganondorf's people stood right in front of him, he thought everyone of them died… but no.. One stood here, in the flesh, and was sent to kill him. There was some relief that Indravati was brave enough to go against his master's wishes. But there was one more question Ganon needed to know about the young man in front of him.

“Indravati… Just how old are you?”

“I'm seventeen, your Majesty..” He said and somehow Ganon's eyes went wider. Seventeen? He wasn't even a man in the Gerudo's eyes yet.. He was just a kid..and he was sent here for a horrible task. He didn't have the words for it, this sort of situation was something he wasn't good at. Sure, it was a Gerudo in front of him, but a male one at that. There had been past occurrences like this before, his first thought went to the only other male Gerudo he knew, Klinge. Technically he was dead, but he was sort of alive. Sort of. A male Gerudo being born in the same lifetime was usually a bad omen, but that proved wrong when his first son was born. There was a million thoughts going through the King's mind when Zelda spoke up.

“Indravati, I thank you for telling us this information. You are very brave to go against the man you call your master.” she said and Indravati nodded. “If I may, is there anymore information you can give us? I don't mean to doubt your skills, but your master had to know that sending one man alone wouldn't do the job..” she said and Indravati nodded again.

“I have all the information you need.. I don't really know how to write in Hylian.. But I can tell you everything you need to know.” Indravati walked to the table in the room and sat across of Ganondorf and Zelda. Ganondorf still had no words, and Zelda didn't question him on this. She just continued to try to gain the information. She handed him a piece of paper, along with ink and a quill. “We can talk about this, but if there are things you’d like to write down you can.” she said cautiously and he nodded as he looked at the paper in front of him. Zelda wanted to approach this situation carefully. Usually this man would be dead, but because he admitted what he was supposed to do, he wasn't… plus he was Gerudo. That was a major factor in the situation.

Indravati sat staring at the paper for a moment before looking to them. “there are.. a few people in this castle hidden and watching for my master.” He said with a frown. “I know you two would have killed them by now if you knew. If I knew their names, I would tell you, but I don't.. I only know that they are around to check up on me. To make sure I'm… that I'm going to eventually do the job I was assigned..” Indravati was about to go on but the look of disappointment for lack of information on the King and Queen’s faces made him hesitant.

“I know there is at least one knight who works for you. He is supposed to sneak me in as a lost Gerudo looking for help.” He explained.

Ganondorf raised a brow. “And that's where your masters trap would be in place.” He said and Indravati nodded. Ganon couldn't help but laugh. “That master of yours is smart.. He knew to take advantage of me not being to find anymore of my people. Because how could I say no to you?” He said and Indravati widened his eyes. The King was nothing like his master described him to be. “Do you know your master's name?” Ganon asked and Indravati blinked a few times. Quickly grabbing the paper and wrote in very, very sloppy Hylian. It looked like a child wrote it. When he handed It to Ganon he read it aloud. “Terrence Grimol… I can't think of any noble to mind with that name, Zelda do you know any?” He asked as he handed her the paper. She shook her head.

“if it helps, he isn't a noble.. He is just a man who has a lot of followers that like his plan to bring him down.” Indravati sighed heavily at that. “there isn't much I know about him personally.. i… I'm sorry.. He never allowed me to be around him unless he needed me to do his dirty work.” He looked down at the table, feeling guilty that he couldn't be of much help. “But I did manage to learn a very important piece of information.” He spoke slowly. Gaining the attention of the King and Queen again. “They plan to attack on your eldests next name day. That is, if I tell them that I can't… kill you all on my own..” He kept his eyes down when he said that.

Ganon blinked a few times at this fact. “On Covarog’s name day…? That's in a little less than a year.. why wait so long to attack?”

“To gain all the information they need of the castle. The staff.. patrol routes for our guards.” Zelda made a good assumption, and Indravati nodded his head to confirm her assumption. “We can't wait that long for something bad to happen. We need to track these people down.” She said calmly And Indravati shot his head up.

“No!” His outburst caught her off guard, she wasn't expecting to defend them so quickly. One raise of her brow made him continue speaking. “i- I'm saying no because that will make them attack sooner… again, I have no idea who is on what side in this castle… I'm sure if you start to track them down. Word will get out to my master and make them randomly strike.” He said quickly.

Ganon groaned in annoyance. “He’s got a point, Zelda..” He said and Zelda frowned.

“Then what do you suggest we do?” She asked, a heavy frown still on her face.

Indravati thought for a long moment. “we wait… my master told me that they will slowly reveal themselves to me. That there are seven people who work under him here… so when the seventh person reveals themselves..” He took in a deep breath. “then we can… we can take them out…” he looked hesitant on his plan and Ganon nodded .