Chapter Text
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Sidon was ashamed. He was in a sorry mess of a situation, and he had only himself to blame.
When Sidon came of age, over 50 years ago now, his father had urged him to choose a partner quickly so that the royal line could get another heir. They both sorely missed Mipha, an everlasting hole in their hearts.
And Sidon did look for a partner, really, but no-one ever felt quite right. There weren’t any lack of candidates, with his looks and cheerful personality Sidon had always been quite popular, so he was approached by many hopeful zora. Some were exciting, brave warriors and fierce fighters, others were cute, petite intellectuals and charming conversationalists. None of them really left a mark on him. He would think about them in practical terms, but never with any romantic interest. After a while his efforts vaned and even though the king and Muzu kept reminding him to keep searching he had practically given up by the time he turned 100.
Then it all changed one one of those ever rainy days after Vah Ruta roused from her slumber. When Sidon was searching for a hylian warrior the gods choose to send him Link. And Sidon fell. Hard.
His self restraint that had always been so firm seemed to instantly weaken and he found himself showering the small hylian in compliments and attempts to impress from that very first meeting.
It was only later that he realised that this bold young man was the very same person that his sister had been so fond of when Sidon was only a child. He had spent the next few days, when Link prepared to enter Vah Ruta, in complete disarray.
Both compliments and physical touch were considered very explicit in zora culture and were only really appropriate between an established romantic couple. Still an urge to touch and praise had lit inside Sidon with a fervor that felt unrelenting and at times overwhelming.
Whenever they were apart Sidon would scold himself and vow to behave in a more princely manner. But as soon as Link was in front of him he found himself breaking all types of social etiquettes in his eagerness to win him over. It was only after his transgressions, like the time he grabbed Link’s hand, that he realized that Link probably had no idea of the significance of what Sidon had done.
He was put in front of the hard dilemma of if he should explain himself to Link. On one hand it would clearly be the proper and princely thing to do, he really shouldn’t be taking advantage of Link’s memory loss. But on the other hand if he explained himself to Link the hero probably wouldn’t be so fond of him, Sidon’s actions had been awfully grubby. Time and time again Sidon told himself to stop with it all, the touching, the compliments, the showy gestures and displays, but as soon as the hero were there with him he fell right back into it again. It was so unfair to Link.
When Link was finally heading up to Vah Ruta Sidon was in shambles. After freeing the divine beast Link would likely leave and Sidon would never see him again. That day Sidon did something he should never had done. He let Link ride on his back.
The feeling of having the small hylian so close was intoxicating, Sidon could feel his heart racing through the whole swim, but it left him with a hard stone of regret and shame in his belly. Thankfully no-one else found out about what Sidon had done, Muzu would bite of his fins if he knew, but Sidon still found his frequent dreams about the hylian singed by stinging shame.
Sidon could kick himself for falling into this situation. Now when he finally found someone that he wanted to court with every fiber of his being he had managed bungle it. By throwing his affection onto Link before explaining his culture he had created a situation where he could neither continue as he had nor explain himself to Link without losing him eventually. He had truly dug himself into a pit from which he could not get out.
Sidon didn’t see the extraordinary little hylian for a long time after he freed Vah Ruta and went on his way to sort out the other Divine Beasts. Watching him leave had left Sidon hollow and he had waited in vain for the small warrior to return. At times it felt like his heart was made of delicate glass that could shatter if he even thought of the chance he had wasted. He was sorely regretting his actions.
But then, after a harrowing battle against Calamity Ganon that Sidon had watched with his heart in his throat, Link came out victorious and suddenly started to visit the domain once again. Sidon was elated. Even though Sidon still couldn’t shake his bad behaviour, still praising and touching Link inappropriately, the hero’s visits grew more frequent until Sidon could be sure to run into him at least once every week. Now firmly stuck in the role of a friend to the hero Sidon had to fight himself at every turn so as to not go too far and ruin the relationship they had. He had already lost him once, the pain of losing him again would be too much. Just being friends would have to do.
Yes, Sidon was ashamed, for his inappropriate actions, for cowardly not explaining himself and for fumbling his chance with the only person he had ever wanted as a mate.
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Sidon was having a bad day. It hadn't started of as anything out of the ordinary, he had spent his morning in court listening in on an incredibly boring presentation of the statistics of last year's fish yield. The droning voice of the minister of fishing had almost put Sidon to sleep when the congregation suddenly broke into chaos.
A guard had come in and interrupted the presentation. He proclaimed that a group of young zora had been caught trespassing in other families’ caves down at the circles. What they had done in there was still unknown. People were understandably upset, the circles were the sacred ancestral mating grounds of the zora people and everyone had a very personal connection to them.
The elders were appalled that the youngsters might have damaged the circles in the sand that documented the lineage of every zora of the domain. Others were offended over their disrespect towards the family only rule and disgusted that they had peeped upon the very private testaments to the love between parents that the circles represented. One expecting parent broke down crying while his partner ran to go check on their eggs that were supposed to be safe down in their family cave. A sacred trust had been broken. The room was filled with loud voices and calls for punishment. Utter chaos.
It was only when King Dorephan raised his voice above the cacophony with a stern demand for order that the room finally calmed down enough for some semblance of discussion to occur. The guard recounted what had happened. One of the other guards stationed with him had heard laughter coming from the caves. As this was highly unusual they had gone to investigate. The group of youngsters had been caught red-handed as they came out of a cave that neither of them belonged to. “Which cave?!” was instantly demanded from the crowd.
This was followed by a long and heated discussion of what to do and how. Many wanted harsh punishments to be delivered. Others were amandant that the group of young zora got a fair trial.
By the end of the day Sidon was exhausted from hours of arguments, hearings and investigations. Even as he left court to finally get something to eat one guard intercepted him outside to argue over the order of actions the king had set out for the investigation. Sidon felt a headache blooming inside his head.
He just wanted a break but the guard seemed determined to get his way through sheer persistence. Just as Sidon was about to chastise him for not respecting the authority of the king the guard, by some miracle, fell quiet. His eyes were fixed on something behind Sidon.
Turning around Sidon was met with the wonderful sight of Link, who was dressed in a quite revealing outfit with plentiful gold embellishments. Getting to see the small warrior after a day like this felt like diving into clean cool water on an especially sweltering and dusty day. The lower half of Link's face was covered but Sidon could see that his smile was returned from the joyful glint in those breathtaking blue eyes.
“Link! How wonderful to see you! I was hoping you would visit us again soon!” Sidon had to force his eyes not to stray down onto Link's exposed midsection, that outfit was really something. The sight of an especially attractive scar peeking out from under the line of his pants burned itself into Sidon's memory, sure to come back to visit him again in his dreams. As if on instinct Sidon moved to take Link in his arms, but at the first step he realised what he was about to do and halted himself before he did something he might regret.
Instead he turned to the guard to end the unnecessary argument once and for all. Sidon was thoroughly done with it and it must have been visible from his stance. The guard looked apprehensive.
“Actually, it does not matter in what order we proceed. What is important is that this will not be allowed to happen again. For now we should send down a few guards to show that we are taking this seriously.” Sidon didn't care about the exact order anymore, let him have his way. The guard looked pleased and left with a nod. Sidon knew he shouldn't have let the guard sway him, but really how much harm could it do? Surely sometimes a ruler did best with some leniency....
“What’s going on?” Link pulled the prince out of his pondering. As his eyes fell on the hero he noticed that he had taken of the fabric that had been covering his face. As always that face filled Sidon with a weightless feeling of joy.
“The low tide is coming up and some of the younger zoras seem to have been misbehaving at the circles. People are quite upset. Sadly we are not entirely sure who has done what. None of them are talking.” Sidon explained. This mess had taken all day and was sure to consume many days to come. The elders of the court especially had a hard time letting matters go. It wasn’t the first time Sidon had wished that he could just leave with Link. But Sidon had duties here.
“Sidon? I don’t think I know what the circles are.” Sidon felt a pang of guilt. Link didn’t even know about the circles and Sidon had been practically courting him. Moments like these made Sidon feel like the worst kind of exploiter of the hero’s trust. Link looked curious.
“Could you show me?” Sidon all but had a heart attack. The innocent look in Link’s eyes stood in stark contrast to the blunt words he spoke. Asking to be taken to the circles! He might as well just ask for Sidon to mate with him right then and there. Those were words that were only uttered in the most intimate of relationships, and Link had stumbled onto them by accident.
Even though Sidon knew Link didn’t mean anything by it, it was awfully tempting to accept. His gills fluttered with excitement and he had to hold his fins back from displaying. Ah, he really shouldn’t go along with this though.... It would only make things worse.
“I’m sorry. Was it inappropriate of me to ask?” Sidon was alarmed by the troubled look on Link’s face. He had done nothing wrong! It was indeed a very inappropriate question, but that was all Sidon’s fault for not explaining his culture sooner. Sidon had to set this right.
“No no no! It’s perfectly fine! I’m sorry! It’s just… You said… But of course I can tell you about the circles. It was thoughtless of me to assume you knew.” The excited look on the small hylian’s face lit a possessive flame inside Sidon and he had to rein in his traitorous hands that reached out to touch Link.
“How about we go somewhere else to talk? Have you had dinner?” Sidon said, tucking his hands away safely behind his back, and was rewarded with a smile that sent his heart racing.
“No, not as of jet. We could eat together.” At that invitation Sidon couldn’t stop himself from flexing his arm in triumph as he smiled brightly at the hylian warrior. Having dinner with Link would make this horrible day worth it all.
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Sidon loved watching Link eat. Or rather, Sidon just loved watching Link, no matter what he was doing.
Now as they sat facing each other over a small table in the royal dining hall, Link still eating while the prince had pushed his bowl to the side after ravenously devouring his food, Sidon fixated on the small hylian's skin. Zora skin was much less interesting. Not nearly as thin or elastic and with a much rougher texture. Link's skin was almost translucent at times and it clung snugly to every muscle and dimple. It had an intoxicating silky texture that Sidon really shouldn't know about, but which drove him mad.
This outfit showed of Link's midsection, which Sidon had never seen before. It wasn't that visible now, hidden behind the table and bowl from which the hero was eating, but Sidon knew he would see it again in his fantasies. His abs, the distinctive v-lines that disappeared down under his pants, that scar. Sidon had always liked a good battle scar, he considered the one he himself had on the fin next to his face to be one of his best features. Link had many.
Sidon mapped out the ones he knew about in his head. Oh, why did hylians have to cover themselves up so much? Piecing together the memories of toned arms, legs covered with golden hairs and this new revelation of a midsection Sidon felt a strong urge to capture the hero in his arms. He wanted to touch. To run his tongue over his skin and taste him.
Sidon thought about chasing him, how the small warrior would play along, evading him, before finally letting himself be caught. The prince could feel excitement coursing through his blood at the thought. He was tethering on the edge of his seat, the muscles in his legs taunt and ready to strike.
“So.. The circles?” Link's voice broke the spell. Oh gods, what was Sidon doing? He must have been making Link awfully uncomfortable with his shameless leering. Sidon sat up straight and ran embarrassed hands over his flared out gills to flatten them down.
“Ah, yes. The circles.” he answered. How would he explain this to Link? Casting his eyes back onto him Sidon's mind flooded with the images of his fantasies. Really, talking about the circles was going to be a tightrope walk. He would have to be careful if he wanted to get through this without exposing himself. Better start at the basics.
“What do you know about zora mating?” The question must have surprised Link because his eyes grew huge. He could see his confusion before a surprising red colour blossomed onto his face. It was rather fetching. Sidon didn't know hylians could change colour like that. He wanted to know what it meant, but before he could ask Link spoke up.
“Eggs! Zoras lay eggs, right?” Sidon wondered if that was something he learned before or after his 100 year sleep. This was a good place to start though.
“Yes, yes you are right. We lay eggs.” Sidon agreed, dropping the matter of that interesting colour on Link's face. He'd probably have to explain zora genders, as they differed from hylians. That Link could have the shapes of a male but still be so small was an enticing combination. Sidon gestured towards him as he spoke.
“Link. Correct me if I’m wrong, but you are male, right?” Surprisingly Sidon's comment seemed to make Link embarrassed. The small Hylian regarded himself before bringing a hand to his head with a shamefaced grimace.
“Yeah, I might not look that manly though.” Oh no, Sidon didn't like this one bit! He slammed his palms on the table. Who put such a thought in Link's head?
“You are incredibly manly! The greatest warrior I have ever met! A force of nature! And your looks are most exquisite.” Sidon could hear his heart beating frantically. These were compliments of a highly inappropriate level of intimacy, but at the moment Sidon couldn't find it in himself to care. Link needed to know he was attractive. Very much so.
That fetching red hue returned to Link's face. Sidon took it as approval.
“I'm also male” he continued, sitting back down when he realised he had sprung out of his chair in his eagerness to set Link straight about the level of his masculinity.
“But being male or female means something different to zora. Actually all of us can lay eggs or fertilize them. The gender of a zora has more to do with appearance and behaviour. Male zora are the ones who will make and guard the circle.” Oh how Sidon had been itching to make a circle for Link, but if would be a foolish endeavour.
“The circles are something you make?” Link cocked his head to the side adorably. How do you explain something as significant as the circles? They were basically what their entire society was built around.
“Well, I'd say the closest comparison would be a nest. You make a circle and then you keep the eggs in it until they hatch. The circles play an integral part in zora culture.” It was a gross oversimplification but Sidon feared that going into more detail would be too revealing. Even now had to brush down his gills to hide his affectionate feelings. To much of what he was explaining to Link had already featured prominently in Sidon's fantasies about him. Link looked slightly overwhelmed.
“What do the females do then?” Sidon was thankful for the question. Females were a less personal subject and far less likely to have the prince make a fool out of himself.
“An apt question indeed! The females provide for the male while he guards the circle. She will bring him food, armor and weaponry.” In Sidon's dreams this was the role Link would take, as it was when a Zora mated with someone from outside the kingdom. As Link didn't have a family cave Sidon would be the one to make the circle. Ahh, this was a dangerous question after all.
“Armor?” Sidon could see from the haunted look in Link's eyes that he had made the connection to Mipha. Sidon got a cold lump in his throat. Was he tarnishing the memory of his sister by falling for the very same man as her? Probably not, but the way he had gone about it would definitely earn him a disappointed look if she was still here.
This conversation about the circles was something Link probably had gone through once before, with Mipha. But Mipha had been so much more thoughtful than Sidon. She would have explained all his before falling head over heels for the hero. With both of them at the same turn their relationship could have developed naturally. Not at all like the mess Sidon had placed himself in.
What would she had said if she saw him now?
Sidon cleared his throat of the heavy sense of loss he felt for his sister and pushed to move the conversation forward.
“Well, anyway, the circles are all located on the bottom of the lake, in the caves below the Ploymus Mountain. A zora will always make his circle in the same cave he was hatched in. That is why any matter relating to the circles is a family matter and very personal.” Link's mood seemed to quickly pick up at the mention of the caves. His eyes shone with interest and the tips of his ears twitched avidly. It was a powerful feeling to be the focus of that attention.
“I'd love to see the caves. Maybe you could show me?” Link asked, face open and inviting. Holy shit. A frenzied heat was pooling at the base of Sidon's spine. Link didn't mean anything by it, he wanted to go there as friends. You could right? No, you really really couldn't. Sidon knew that. When he opened his mouth to explain that to Link nothing came out.
…
What if he accepted anyway? It was so tempting. Maybe it would be his only chance to go there with Link? How could he refuse? When he finally spoke his voice was quivering with nervousness.
“Yes… I can. I'll take you to see the… circles.” Oh dear, what had he done? This was nothing short of a disaster. Sidon's drumming heartbeat was echoing in his ears. Link suddenly got a thoughtful look in his eyes and he bit his lip. Those lips. The thoughtfulness was gone as soon as it came, replaced by an impressively sharp look of dedication. Sidon held his breath.
“Thank you. I'll look forward to it.” Link accepted the offer with a charming smile that had Sidon's heart soaring. If it made them both happy could it really be bad? Well, it could, but Sidon was too elated to care about that now.
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It was later at night that the reality of the situation came crashing down on Sidon. This was a disaster of unprecedented proportions. And had walked right into it.
The only sensible thing was to call back the invitation and explain exactly what such a thing would mean. The chance was slim that Link would forgive him. Who would really? But at least it would be better than to keep taking advantage of the hero.
Oh, he was such a coward sometimes. If he just had been more forthcoming with Link he wouldn't be in this mess.
At the same time something inside Sidon was violently opposed to calling it off. Sidon really wanted to take Link to the circles. He had been thinking about it almost every day since they met again after Link awoke. Now he could, even if it was within a less romantic circumstance. How could he ever give up this chance?
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