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Wind gently brushes through Zelda’s hair as she and her appointed knight make their way through the Crenel hills. It’s a beautiful day in late Summer, with the first signs of fall just beginning to show themselves on the leaves. The Harvest festival would be coming soon, a day when the people of Hyrule gave thanks for the many blessings given to them. And this year, there was much to be grateful for.
“Six months,” The Princess murmurs for about the hundredth time that day. “Can you believe it, Link? Six months since we defeated Ganon.” No matter how many times she said it, it never felt true. But it was. They had emerged from the battle victorious with the help of the champions from the future, and the little guardian Terrako. The Kingdom rebuilt what had been destroyed, the people recovered, and for the first time, Zelda felt fully at peace. She was safe from Ganon, safe from evil, safe from herself. Her power had awoken, she had reconciled with her father, and all was well with the world.
Even so, Link had refused to leave his post. When the other champions had returned to their respective homelands, and the majority of monsters in Hyrule had disappeared, he still remained by her side. When her father had asked him if he wanted to be re-stationed, Link vehemently refused. Something about his duty to the crown; though Zelda couldn’t understand what he meant by it. What duty did he have to her, now that Ganon was gone?
Whatever his reasons were were unimportant. What mattered was that he was still here, by her side, no matter what. She smiles at the thought.
“I am quite glad to have you here, Sir Knight,” She calls over her shoulder. Her eyes linger just long enough to see the quizzical look on his face. She bites back a laugh.
“What I mean is,” She continues, “I’ve grown quite... fond of your presence. It’s good to have a friend nearby.”
When she turns back to him, he had stopped following her. His cheeks are dusted with a rosy pink, and his eyes are wide. She opens her mouth, then closes it. Had she revealed too much? Did she make him uncomfortable?
But then, he smiles.
Something flutters in her heart when she sees it. His smile is small, but sweet, and so very him. Her silent knight, with hard blue eyes and a quiet yet dignified compassion. How she wishes to hear him speak more. How she wishes to-
She takes a shaky breath, tearing her eyes from his face. No. He’s a knight, and I, a Princess. We’re just friends.
They continue up the hill, stopping under an apple tree to rest their legs and sip some water. From here they have a full view of the Castle, still partially under construction from the damage caused by Ganon. The sun beats down harshly, but there is plenty of cooling shade provided by the tree. It truly is a perfect day.
They spent the rest of the afternoon on the hill; Zelda blabbing on about plants and technology and frogs, and Link listening and asking the occasional question. He starts a fire and cooks some mushroom skewers for an early dinner, telling her about where to find the best hearty truffles. He tells a joke, and she laughs, gently touching his arm. Then he looks at her, gives her that same soft smile, and returns to his skewer.
The sun is just beginning to set when they begin to walk back down the hill. Link scatters their ashes, and Zelda packs up some plants that she wishes to study later. The sky is smeared with orange and gold, and the wind begins to pick up.
Walking ahead of her appointed knight, Zelda sighs. “It’s good to hear you speaking, Link,” He doesn’t respond, but she knows that he’s listening. “You used to be so quiet, so stiff. I like seeing your true self.” She tucks a loose hair nervously behind her ear.
A moment passes. Then, Link responds. “I like speaking with you as well, Princess.” His voice is quiet. Almost too quiet. Confused, she turns around to face him.
His face is still, his hands loose at his sides. The wind stirs at his hair and tunic. And his eyes… They’re locked onto hers. Deep, searching blue, with something dark sparkling behind them. He’s no longer blushing. He’s no longer smiling.
And suddenly she knows. She knows that look. She’s seen it in her own reflection. Felt it in her heart, in her soul. It’s the same feeling she had when she tore out of Impa’s grasp, screaming his name. It’s the same feeling she had when he smiled at her for the first time, after Ganon’s defeat. She had felt it and known it and seen it, but never dared to name it. Only in dreams, She had sworn to herself. You will only imagine this in dreams, for that’s the only way it will be possible. He’s your friend. That’s it. Nothing more. As long as he never knows in real life, then all will be well.
But he knows. Oh, he knows. And so does she. For it’s there, painted on his face.
Shock, delight, confusion; all dance within her. But then, panic.
“No,” She breathes. She feels herself step away from him. “No.”
“Zelda.” He says. It’s the first time he’s said her name. Shock, delight and confusion all spin around again, before the panic returns, stronger than before.
“No!” She barks, harsher than she had meant it. “No, Link! No, we can’t-”
“Zelda, we have to!” His voice carries on the wind, strong and loud. She begins walking, faster now, down the hill. And as always, he pursues her. She wants to scream.
“Why?” She wails. “We don’t have to do anything.”
“Please! You said you wanted me to talk, so let me talk! Just stop!” She doesn’t, shaking her head vehemently and continuing down the hill. He speeds up, now standing just before her, moving frantically to keep up with her pace. His voice is breathless, and she thinks she sees tears in his eyes.
“Zelda- Zelda, listen to me. I have admired you ever since I met you, more than any other girl, any other person!” He reaches out to touch her shoulder, but she slaps his hand away.
“Link, please don’t!” Now tears were beginning to form in her eyes. But if he saw them, he didn’t seem to care, as he kept talking.
“You were- you are so amazing. Brilliant, determined, compassionate, beautiful… Gods, Zelda, you’re so beautiful.” He smiles now, open mouthed and full of laughter, though there is no happiness behind it.
They stand still now, only an arms length apart. Zelda keeps willing herself to run, but her feet won’t budge. He meets her eyes, that look that she knows so well still there on his face. It makes her want to cry. It makes her want to kiss him.
“And I-” His voice breaks, tears running down his face. “I have loved you since that day in the forest, when we were attacked. I thought you were going to die. I thought I failed you. But then I got the sword…” He trails off, his eyes wandering to some point in the distance.
“It showed me… everything. Us. From before this life. I’ve known you for centuries, Zelda. I’ve loved you for centuries. And I- I can’t just stop, now. I’ve tried. I’ve tried to push it all down, and cling to propriety, and just stay quiet, but I can’t do it anymore. And I… I don’t think you can, either.” His eyes meet hers once more. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Zelda realizes this is the most she’s ever heard him say.
He takes a step towards her, then another. Slowly, the distance closes between them, and Zelda is left defenseless. His voice is calm when he speaks again. “I don’t know if I’m completely mad… But I think you love me too.”
Then his hand is on her cheek, and his head is moving down, and their lips are pressed together. He’s warm and gentle and everything she dreamed he’d be. She feels herself reach around his neck, feels him cradling her waist. Feels how wonderful it is, how right it is. And there it is again; that look, that feeling, that thing that she daren’t name that had been reflected in his eyes.
And the panic returns.
“We- we can’t!” She gasps, pulling away from him. Link’s hands hover in the air where he had just been holding her. Unable to look at him, she buries her face in her hands, muttering old Gerudo curses.
“Why?” He hisses. He’s moving towards her again. “Why can’t we?”
“There are laws that forbid it.” She steps away.
“We’ll change them.” He steps towards her.
“It’s not that simple, Link. I-” Her voice falters, and she feels as though she’s caught in a losing battle. His eyes burn into her skin. “Our families would forbid it. We can’t change them.”
“We could run.” The words send a shiver down her spine. Now his eyes are feral, though his face is calm. “Ganon’s gone. Your Father is still on the throne. You could research and study and travel for the rest of your days. We can go anywhere you want.”
Anywhere I want. She’d be free. Forever. With him.
No!
“You’re not… You’re not thinking clearly, Link. This isn’t what you want.”
He laughs then; a choked, exasperated sound. “I want you! You, and only you! How can you not see that, for how clever you are?” His accusation stings far more than it was meant to, and Link can see the pain in her face. Something in him softens then, and he backs away, taking a long breath. “I am thinking clearly. I’ve been thinking clearly for a long time. I’ll never leave you, Zelda.”
Shock, confusion, delight. Panic. In one swift motion, Zelda rushes forward, shoving Link in the chest. He stumbles back, but doesn’t fall.
“Stop it!” She wails, choking on frantic sobs. He’s clearly shocked by her sudden action, but doesn’t say anything. “Stop… Giving up your life for me! You’re so- so brilliant, and brave, and beautiful and I just- Link, I’m a failure!”
His face twists in what Zelda can only describe as fury. “How could you- how could you say that?! How could you even think it? Zelda, you- you saved all of our lives! You defeated Ganon, you-”
“Not quickly enough!” She screams, probably loud enough for the people in Castle Town to hear. “People still died, I thought my father died… All because of me! And- and I’m never good enough, no matter what I do! I’m a lousy Princess, and I’ll be a lousy Queen, and a lousy daughter- I’m barely even a poor excuse for a scholar! But you… Link, you’re too good, and It’s not right for you to just throw your life away to serve mine. It’s just… wrong.”
She turns away from him once more, marching back down the hill. And he follows her, resuming their game of cat and mouse.
“Zelda,” He’s beside her now, voice full of worry and anger and that feeling that she daren’t name. “You are not a failure. You are not a lousy Princess, or daughter, or scholar. And if anything, you’re too good for me. But it’s not wrong for us to be together. We’ve known each other for centuries. I know that you feel it too. Zelda!”
His voice cuts her like a knife, halting her steps. He seizes her by the shoulders, and she doesn’t slap him away. Tears drip off his chin as he presses his forehead to hers. “Please, just say you feel it… Just say you love me, and let’s be happy together.”
Oh, how she wants to. The words are there, so simple, so easy, sitting on her tongue. I love you. The emotion she daren’t name, reflected in his eyes. I love you.
But he was too good. Too good for this world, too good for anyone, and far too good for her. And he didn’t even know it. He wants her… and by the Gods, did she want him. But how could she live with herself if she took his life from him? If she shut him up in a castle, forcing him to be her King? Even if they did run away, how could she force him to follow in her shadow for the rest of their lives? He would grow to resent her, and then she’d be truly alone. Even with her power awakened, even with her father alive, she was still a failure. She always would be.
And she couldn’t bring herself to drag him down with her.
“I… I can’t. I can’t love you. I don’t.” The lie burns her, inside and out, and she prays that he believes it.
He doesn’t move, head frozen on hers. His eyes are open, though they’re glassy and unseeing. “Link?...” She slowly pulls away from him, watching as his shoulders drop and his eyes roll up to hers.
“But- but you…” He looks so lost, so small; torn somewhere between rage and infinite sorrow. Zelda bites back the urge to kiss him, hold him, take him away from everything. No. He deserves better. He’ll thank her one day for this. She needs to be strong for his sake.
“It’s not that I… I don’t love you as a friend.” Her voice shakes with the effort of trying to sound convincing. “I do. And I’ve… I’ve tried to love you in a deeper way, but I failed. And I would be better with you, and lucky to have you, because I don’t deserve you. But I can’t do that to you, Link. I can’t trap you in something that I… I won’t be able to reciprocate.” Her voice hitches on the last sentence, and she believes that she can slowly feel her heart breaking.
And Link just stands there, emotionless, eyes on the ground. The wind brushes his hair to the side, and Zelda can’t help but think about how truly perfect he is.
“Can you…” Her voice is weak from crying. “Can you accept that?”
He laughs again. Small, weak, full of contempt. “I would rather hang myself than accept that.” Then he looks at her. “I would rather be dead,” He spits.
Gods, help her. “Don’t say that, Link… Link!” Now it’s him who’s walking away, and her who’s chasing him. “Please, listen to me! You have so much ahead of you. You’ll find some… Some lovely girl who will be a fine wife and a fine mistress and a fine mother, and she will simply adore you because-” Because how could she not. How could anyone not love you. Zelda takes a deep breath. “Because she’s the one for you.”
She stands in front of him now. His eyes are still emotionless, locked on the ground.
“I love you, Zelda.” He states.
“You shouldn’t. You-”
“I love you, Zelda.” He looks at her in a way that tells her it’s no longer up for debate. He loves her. That is a fact, and always will be. She bites back a wordless cry, bites back the urge to embrace him.
“One day…” She steps towards him now, gripping onto his shoulders as he did to her before. “One day, we’ll sit together as old friends, and you’ll thank me for this.” She nods, more to reassure herself than him. “You’ll bring your lovely wife and children, and I’ll… I’ll be there, watching. And you’ll thank me for this.”
He looks up, and his eyes bore straight into her soul. It takes all her effort not to cry out. And suddenly, with a start, she feels that he knows she was lying, and she frantically begins to try and explain.
“Link, I- I don’t believe I will ever marry. I couldn’t… I couldn’t do that to anyone.” She wanders away from him, looking anywhere but those deep blue eyes. “I have far too many burdens, far too many concerns. I couldn’t bear to… to ruin someone by burdening them with it. And I don’t believe anyone would want to be with me anyway.” She lets out a soft chuckle, letting it die in the wind. Then, silence. All she can hear is the breeze and the birds and the beating of her own heart.
“No.” Link breathes. It’s so quiet she almost misses it. “No, Zelda.” She forces herself to meet his eyes, and she sees that same sadness, emptiness, and love. That was its name. Love.
“You will fall in love,” He whispers. “You will marry. You will have children. Some man is going to come into your life and he will live and die just to be near you and you will live and die just to be near him and you will love him with all your being, because that’s your way... And I’ll watch.”
He works his jaw for a moment, looking at her. Then something in him snaps, or deflates, and he walks past her down the hill.
She doesn’t watch him go. She stands like that, frozen, empty, for what feels like a century. Slowly, she turns, only to find Hyrule drenched in twilight. It was cold. Fall really was coming.
She sinks to the cold, hard ground, and watches as the last rays of daylight leave her Kingdom. Unable to contain it any longer, she lets out a long and weary cry. She stays like that until the dawn, head buried in her arms, tears staining her face, love burning like a fire.
And I’ll watch.