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I stood under a tree, scanning the area with my Sheikah Slate. We were on the top of a high hill, Mount Lanayru to one side and the Hateno region to the other. I wore a blue blouse, it’s trim bearing a floral weave, and tiny earrings made of opal that glinted occasionally adorned my ears. Thunder crashed again as a bolt of lightning arced across the sky, lingering long enough to reflect in my eyes. I wore my normal satchel, a small leather bag with enough room for a stack of notes and a few samples, along with the slate. My black bell bottoms swished this way and that in the wind, which whistled as it passed.
“We’ll be trapped in this weather for another few hours,” I said, turning back to the tree’s base, where Link leaned casually. He turned to look at me, and smiled. He walked over to me, stepping over a red-checkered blanket spread under the tree, which was covered somewhat by a wicker basket and two plates. A pitcher of lemonade sat half empty next to a couple of glasses. His green, white, and blue striped shirt, a light short sleeved button down we had bought just a few days prior, was already beginning to get destroyed. He had told me when we bought it, he didn’t think that light Necludan fabrics would hold up to our lifestyle. He was right, but I had insisted.
He looked me up and down and grinned. “You know, Zels, I didn’t think anyone could make Necludan fashion look good, but you have a habit of proving me wrong, don’t you,” he said, and I pushed the Sheikah Slate at him.
“If you tell anyone about this, I’ll make sure that everyone back at base camp sees what you look like, and I don’t think everyone will share your sentiment.” I threatened, and he laughed. Link always had a habit of laughing at my threats, be they genuine or in jest, likely because he knew that I would never follow through. He put his hand on the slate and gently forced it down, taking another step closer. I liked the new Link, I’d decided. He was far looser when we’re alone, and it made ceremonial things so much easier to know that he was acting as much as I was. I giggled and reached up to tap him on the nose. “You’re a scoundrel, Link, you know that?”
“Absolutely, Zellie,” he said, and put his arms around me, pulling me close. I pushed off of the ground just as he did so, knocking him off balance and sending him tumbling into the grass with me on top. He rolled over on to me, and I him, and after a moment we ended up outside of the tree’s shelter, but by that point I was laughing so hard I didn’t even care. I flopped over on top of him and put my hands on his shoulders, all of my weight holding him down, or rather attempting to hold him down. His expression suddenly became very overly serious.
“Explain to me again, Zelda dear, how we are going to avoid discovery?” he asked, and I laughed again, collapsing down onto him. My messy bun fell out and covered his face almost entirely, and he laughed as I slithered my arms around his back to mirror his around mine.
“By seeming as though we were just going up here for research, of course,” I said into his ear.
He turned his head so that we were facing each other, under a mess of my hair, sheltered from the rain. “And do researchers roll around in the grass while it’s raining, getting their new clothes dirty?” he asked, maintaining his serious tone.
“It depends on what they’re looking for,” I responded, stretched my neck, and pecked him on the lips.
“And what is that?” he asked, our faces millimeters apart.
“How about a sorry excuse for a kiss, because that’s what I just found,” I shot back, and he obliged.
As I pulled back for air, he looked at me seriously, the fake stoicism gone and the actual, real, concerned guardian present. “Zels, how long do you think we have before your father figures out what’s going on? Or worse, Impa? Because I don’t think I’ll be stationed where I am anymore, sealing sword or not. Even if we do keep this hidden, and we stop the calamity, where do we go from there? I love you, but I can’t help but wonder if I’ll ever get to tell anyone else that, y’know?”
I nodded, and lay silent for a minute or two just looking into his eyes, fraught with concern and filled with love. “You’re right,” I started, tentatively. “We need to figure something out, and we will. Because that’s just what we do, isn’t it?”