A Hidden Kindness

1553 words



“Finn Herrington, you are here today for charges of treason against the crown, abuse of magic, consorting with a demon, and domestic abuse,” Zelda’s voice rang out over the congregation from where she sat on her throne. Finn was in chains, kneeling before her, with Link standing by his side. Several other guards flanked Zelda and guarded the perimeter of the room. “We have evidence, including the demon’s contract with your signature, a verified copy of your parents’ will, an enchanted sapphire necklace, Ms. Rabia Henderson, and the accounts of several eye witnesses. Do you deny these charges?”

“Yes,” Finn growled, as he struggled to his feet. “Who are these witnesses? How do you know they aren’t lying?!”

“They are protected under the law - I cannot give their names. You know this,” Zelda stated. “They have been questioned by myself, the captain of the guard, and several high members of court, and their stories remained consistent.” Finn scowled.

“How, exactly, does your evidence prove my guilt?”

“I’m glad you asked,” Zelda smiled. “First, King Dragmire and several of my court translators looked over this document,” she held out the contract. “A notary verified your signature at the bottom. This document states that Mr. Herrington would receive Ms. Henderson’s hand in marriage in return for his soul and eternal servitude to the demon, Gideon. This servitude would involve, but not be limited to, the termination of Princess Zelda of Hyrule, and that the agreement is matrimonially binding, meaning that once Mr. Herrington married Ms. Henderson, her soul and servitude would also be owed to the demon, Gideon,” Zelda stated.

“How do you know he wasn’t lying?!” Finn pointed at Ganondorf. “He’s always had it out for me, and he’s a notorious liar!”

“All four of my court translators agreed with King Dragmire’s translation,” Zelda stated, as she set the document aside. “Next, circumstantial evidence that may indicate why Mr. Herrington went to such lengths. His parents’ will states that Mr. Herrington will not receive his inheritance unless he marries Ms. Rabia Henderson. This document was reviewed by the notaries and is an official copy of the will as it stands today,” Zelda said. She set that paper aside also. “Just from these two documents alone, Mr. Herrington, there is enough evidence to convict you of treason against the crown, and consorting with demons.”

“Those papers were obtained from my residence illegally!” Finn accused. “There was no search warrant issued, that’s breaking and entering!”

“Rabia was living in your mansion at the time. She had the right to enter your mansion and retrieve her belongings,” Zelda said. “As she had the right to enter, there was no illegal activity involved in obtaining these documents. Now, court sorcerer, if you’d step forward, please,” Princess Zelda stated. A tall, lanky, elderly man stepped forward with a deep bow to Princess Zelda. He was holding a small pillow, on which held a delicate silver necklace with a deep sapphire stone. “Please describe the magic used on this necklace,” Zelda asked.

“I, and several others, have spent hours scouring our books and trying to discover what this spell was. It took some time, but we finally uncovered an ancient book that described the very spell we found within this stone. It’s very dark, very old magic, seen only once before in our court. The spell in this stone turns the wearer into a puppet for the caster. There was also a glamour charm, likely used to hide the physical effects of the original spell,” the sorcerer explained. “Horrible magic with vast consequences to the caster. Only a demon could cast it and come out unscathed.”

“This necklace was given to Ms. Henderson by Lord Vaati for her birthday. Lord Vaati was unaware of the magic imbued in it when he gifted it to her. In fact, he insisted that he purchased the necklace from Mr. Herrington the day before Ms. Henderson’s birthday party, at Mr. Herrington’s insistence. He provided financial records and several witnesses to attest to this fact,” Zelda stated. “We reviewed this evidence yesterday, and found that it is incriminating enough to charge Mr. Herrington with 20 years’ time for abuse of magic,” she said.

“Twenty years?!” Finn demanded. “I didn’t cast that spell! I’m no sorcerer!”

“If you had cast that spell it would have been enough to incarcerate you for life. Assuming you had survived it,” Zelda said coolly. “And for the domestic abuse,” she continued. “Rabia, will you please tell the court how you broke your arm?” she asked.

“I was playing flute in the theater of Finn’s house. He got angry because I was too loud and broke my arm,” Rabia said.

“That’s a lie!” Finn said. “I never laid a hand on her!”

“And your bruises, what about those?”

“Some were from Finn, some were from Gideon,” Rabia said. “The spell messed up my memory so I don’t remember specifics, but they weren’t accidents.”

“Would you relate any other instances of him causing you physical harm?” Zelda asked.

“There was the day Lord Vaati visited me. Finn showed up out of the blue and threatened me, and left a bruise on my arm. On New Year's Eve, he rescued me from a runaway horse, but refused to let me dismount his horse. He bruised my wrists and my ribs. I went on a date with him on Nayru’s Blessing Day and went home with half a dozen more bruises,” she said. “One around my throat, and another around my upper arm.”

“Is this why you left him the first time?” Zelda asked.

“Yes. After we got engaged he started with small things, like occasionally shoving me out of the way or grabbing me a little too hard. It got worse from there. The day I left him, he had nearly knocked me out. It took two weeks for that bruise to heal,” Rabia stated.

“Very well,” Zelda stood from the throne and turned to her court members. “We will adjourn while the court reviews the evidence presented today. We will return in an hour for sentencing.” The court members rose and left for a nearby conference hall to review the evidence. Link and several guards forced Finn back towards the dungeons.

Once the court members had emptied out, Zelda slumped back into her throne with a sigh. The community members that had come to watch the trial were still in their seats, muttering indistinctly amongst themselves. Zelda offered Rabia a small smile.

“Don’t worry, Rabia. There’s no way that evidence won’t get Finn incarcerated for life,” she said. Rabia sat down on the dais by her friend’s feet.

“At least I won’t have to worry about him showing up at my house anymore.”

“Rabia!” Saul’s voice rang out over the rest in the hall as he hurried forward.

“Oh no…” Rabia groaned. “No, no no…” Saul skidded to a halt in front of her and pulled her into a tight embrace.

“I’m so sorry, I had no idea…” he babbled as he hugged Rabia tight. “If I’d known he was hurting you, I’d never have let him near you…”

“Y’know, hugging isn’t conducive to bruise healing,” Rabia grumbled as she struggled out of his grip. “And you would’ve known if you had taken two seconds to just listen to me,” she snapped. Saul took a step back, shame-faced.

“Your mother and I only wanted to do what we thought was best for you,” Saul said.

“She’s not my mother,” Rabia snapped. “And if you wanted to do what was best for me, you should’ve just asked.”

Before Saul could reply, the members of the court re-entered the room, so he had to go back to his seat. Finn was dragged back into the room while Princess Zelda listened to what her court members decided. As she approached the dais, a hush fell over the crowd.

“Finn Herrington. You have been sentenced with treason against the crown, consorting with a demon, abuse of magic, and domestic abuse. You will be henceforth stripped of your title and incarcerated for life,” Zelda said.

“No! Please!” Finn screamed as he was dragged away to the dungeons. The doors closed with a heavy sort of finality behind him. The community members started murmuring to themselves as they began to make their way out the door. Ganondorf pushed his way through the crowds towards Rabia, who was still sitting on the dais staring at the door dumbfounded.

“He’s gone,” she said. She grinned widely and jumped up off the floor excitedly. “He’s gone!” she laughed as Ganondorf swept her up into a hug, then kissed her deeply. The sound of a throat clearing got her attention as she released Ganondorf.

“Rabia… this… is what you want?” Saul asked as he looked from her to Ganondorf. Rabia nodded, tangling her fingers with Ganondorf’s. “I can’t say I approve of him,” Saul started, “but he saved you from Finn and from that demon. It’s clear that he cares about you and if he makes you happy…” Rabia smiled brightly.

“Good! I was going to keep dating him anyway, but now we won’t have to fight about it,” she said to him. Saul rolled his eyes.

“Just… do me a favor and be careful this time, okay?”

“Yeah, sure, dad.”