Chapter Text
The young zora prince was up early in the morning, climbing from his family's sleeping pool to play. He picked up a zora shield and ran around pretending he had the courage of the legendary hero.
He imagined Muzu, his dad's advisor, standing in front of him. It was so real to him his knees shook with fear that Muzu would take his shield away and scold him. Then he closed his eyes and pretended to summon the force of the triforce of courage and did an epic shield bash into a backflip, landing in his mother's arms.
He looked up at his mother and gulped. "What an epic battle. We're you fighting off your morning crankiness?" She teased. He scrunched up his face.
"Come now little prince," she said. "We've got to get you dressed. Today will be exciting!"
Sidon squirmed as his mother took him back to their quarters, dangling the heavy shield from his arm draped over hers where she held him. "What's exciting?"
She flashes him a bright smile, eager to get him excited for his princely duty today. "There will be a delegation from the hylian kingdom visiting today. The King's head knight will be there, and he's bringing his young son. He's about your size."
Sidon was excited. "Really? Will I get to play?"
She nodded, gleeful at her son's reaction. "Mhm! Your sister will supervise you."
"Will I get to play with the princess?" He asked, never having actually met her.
"No, she's still in Hyrule castle with her mother, the queen. But I'm sure you two boys can get up to enough mischief on your own."
He giggled.
She set him down and dressed him, though he was too excited to sit still. They woke up king Dorephan and Princess Mipha, who were sleepy before their staminoka bass breakfast. Dorephan took Mipha with him to meet with Muzu, and Sidon was very jealous that his sister got to spend so much time with their dad.
In the throne room, Muzu explained to the king that the Hylians we're preparing for Ganon's return and that they had surely come to request help, though for what he wasn't sure. Mipha wondered what they would request, but her father told her that she wouldn't be present for the meeting.
"Why not?!" She said, puffing her cheeks out angrily.
Her father could not help but smile at her adorable expression. "I'm putting you in charge of watching your brother."
"Again? Am I my brother's keeper?"
"No, but your mother and I will be very busy, and there will be a hylian boy as well. I want to make sure his temper won't scare the hylian, and I trust you to keep him calm."
She sighed. "At least it will be interesting to see how hylian children play."
Her father smiled warmly and told her to go find her Mother and bring her there.
Mipha found her mother and brother and they took their places in the throne room, watching the Hylians approach. They entered and king Rhoam bowed, Dorephan dipping his head to match.
A tall broad knight stood behind the king, his eyes looking very observant and peircing. Behind his leg peeked out a small blond boy, just as small as Sidon himself. Sidon caught his eye and flashed him a toothy grin. The boy seemed startled and ducked behind his father's leg. As young as the hylian was, he was dressed much like his father, in the royal guard's uniform, not looking off balance from his shield or sword sheathed behind him. The zoran prince was in awe of him, especially as the Knight's father noticed him hiding and nudged him to stand openly next to him. He looked like a proud toy soldier next to his father.
Once formal introductions were complete between the two kings, Mipha escorted her brother and the hylian out of the throne room. Sidon stuck his hand out, puffing his chest out to try to look as impressive as the hylian, but really looking more froglike than sharky. "Hi! I'm Prince Sidon of the zora." He said to the hylian.
The boy fidgeted his hands a bit before shaking the prince's hand. Then he reached up to his throat and grasped it, before putting his fingers together in an X over his mouth.
"Woah, did you take a knightly vow of silence?" Sidon asked, fully impressed. Link looked amused before shaking his head. He looked up to Mipha and signed, but it was Sidon to respond first.
"Oh, you're mute! Well why didn't you just say so?" Link looked at him like he was stupid. "Oh wait, duh." Link finger spelled his name, then showed the hand symbol he'd come up with to refer to himself.
"Link! What an enchanting name. It's nice to meet you!" Sidon said with excitement, eliciting a chuckle from his older sister. Link smiled brightly and Sidon decided he liked that expression very much.
"I'm princess Mipha. I'll be taking care of you today while your father is busy." She said. Link nodded respectfully.
Sidon was bouncing with the excitement of meeting a new friend. "Hey Link, do you wanna play?"
Link nodded. Sidon jumped up in the air with a fist pump and then grabbed Link's arm, dragging him off to the pond across the way. Link's eyes were wide but he had no trouble keeping up with Sidon's short stride.
"Slow down!" Mipha called, chasing after them. Once they reached the pond Sidon let go of Link's hand. "Can you show me your sword?!" Sidon said enthusiastically. Link pulled out the small sword and showed it to Sidon.
"Woah, cool! It's a real sword! My mom doesn't let me play with those."
Link shook his head and sheathed the sword, signing 'it's not a toy'.
"Oh. But it's fun, right?"
Link shrugged. 'I'm good at it.'
Sidon's eyes sparkled. "Do you wanna swim?"
'Sure.' he said, then taking off his hat and boots and tunic.
Sidon dove into the water, strong legs kicking up water as Link waded in.
"I want to be the fastest swimmer in the domain one day." He told link.
'I believe in you' he signed. Sidon was so moved he felt like he could cry.
"Yeah! I'm going to do it, and then I'm going to invite you over and show you!"
Mipha giggled. "I don't think you can do that Sidon."
He pouted. "Why not?"
"Link lives very far away."
Sidon sunk below the water, sulking. "But I'm the prince." He muttered. Link was eager to interject.
'I'll come visit you!'
"You promise?"
Link nodded. Sidon was so happy he swam laps around the hylian.
"Do you wanna catch frogs?" Sidon asked after he had calmed down. Link nodded vigorously. They hunted frogs until lunch when Mipha called them out of the lake.
"What do Hylians eat for lunch?" She asked Link.
'I'm not picky.' he signed.
They went to the market and Mipha bought some fish and rice and made link some rice balls while the two zora ate the fish more or less whole. It was kind of gross to Link but that just made him laugh.
'What should we do now?' Link asked.
Sidon had an idea. "Can you teach me how to use a shield?" He asked.
'sure, do you have one?'
Sidon nodded and brought Link and Mipha to the zora shield he liked to play with. Link shook his head. 'That shield is too big for you. I'll let you use mine.'
Sidon clasped Link's hands. "Thank you so much!"
Link taught him a variety of techniques to use with the shield, and Sidon picked up on the skill much better than if it were one of his tutors because of how much attention he paid to the other boy. His favorite thing he learned was shield surfing, sliding down the stair rails of the kingdom with Mipha shouting after him. After that Sidon had to give the shield back.
"Thank you for helping me." He said, fiddling with the handle before handing it over. Link smiled warmly at him, and he felt his face heat up and his heart beat fast, not knowing why. "I wish you could stay longer."
'I'll come back' he signed, strapping the shield to his back. But he wasn't really sure if he would and his eyes looked sad.
"Mipha, can you and Link stay right there? I want to go get something."
Sidon said before running off to his room. He had a small vanity and in the small drawer was a blue gemstone he'd found while sifting in the river. He ran back and found them.
"Link. Open your palm." Sidon said, completely serious. Link did so and Sidon placed the gem in his hands. "Will you take this with you and promise you'll bring it back?" He said, knowing the significance of the gesture. Link closed his palm around the jagged blue stone. He closed his eyes and breathed a calm breath, then opened his eyes and looked into golden eyes with his own piercing blue ones. He closed his fist around the stone and then put his hand around Sidon's.
"I promise." He spoke quietly. Sidon smiled brightly and hugged Link.
"Thank you! You are truly wonderful, Link. I will wait for you."
Mipha was sad for her brother, because she knew that Hylians aged much faster than Zora, and that such a promise could not be kept. "Come on you two." She said, taking their hands and leading them back up to the throne room. Sidon gave Link a very tearful goodbye, but Link put on a brave face and promised to come back once more.
Sidon would look back on this as the first time he realized he was gay, though he didn't know he would be expected to be any different than that.
Link came over to the domain a few different times over the years but most of those times Sidon had been busy with his family and so he watched Link and the other children play from the Throne room.
Sidon talked about Link all the time, and his parents just assumed he was lonely. He was so excited to see him again that his parents almost invited Link over for a play date.
The next time Link came to the domain he was a lot older. Sidon couldn't catch his attention because of all the meetings he wasn't privy to, but he managed to speak to him while Link was with his sister.
"Hi Link!"
Mipha spun around in the water. "Oh hello Sidon! Link, you remember my brother." Link waved.
"I like your tunic, it matches your eyes!" He said.
'Thank you.' Link signed before turning his attention back to Mipha. Sidon pouted.
At dinner that night he told his parents about how Link had focused so hard on Mipha.
"Every time I tried to talk with him he brushed me off. He was so busy with Mipha that he forgot to show me the sapphire I gave him!"
His parents looked at him wide-eyed. Mipha held her breath.
"What's this about a Sapphire?" His dad asked.
"Last time he was here I gave him my Sapphire I found in the river! He took a real… shining to it." He said, smiling cheekily. The smile dropped when nobody laughed at his pun.
"Son, you can't give out gifts like that. It sends the wrong message."
"Nuh-uh! I'm going to marry Link some day so it sends the right message!" He said confidently. His mother coughed.
"Sidon, Hylians grow much faster than us." Mipha told him. "By the time you're old enough to marry, Link will be gone."
Sidon felt his eyes water. "Gone? Gone where?"
His mother sighed softly. "Oh dear… I'm sorry. You can't marry Link."
Sidon frowned. "Why not?"
"You just can't, sweetie."
Sidon looked very angry. "It's not fair!" He began jumping on the table. "It's not fair it's not fair it's not fair!"
"Sidon! Get off the table." His father said looking very cross. Sidon sat back down at his seat and began to weep. "I'll hear no more of you wanting to marry until you're at least a hundred years old."
Sidon put his head down on the table and had the biggest sobbing fit of his young life. His mother had to carry him away after dinner and put him to bed while he passed out from emotional exhaustion. "I'm sorry sweetie. I know it's not fair." She whispered, kissing his head. "you'll be okay." She said, but she was really worried having never seen her son so heartbroken.
When Mipha became the champion he began to see Link a lot, often with princess Zelda. One day, Mipha called Sidon into her room where she had a hylian bust form.
"Sidon, I want you to be brave when I tell you this" she began. Sidon puffed out his chest, he was always brave. "That's it. Sidon, I know how much you like Link, but, I love him too. I love him a lot." She looked down at her arm fins. "Will you be okay if I marry him instead of you?"
Sidon was shocked. "So… you get to marry him and I don't?"
"He hasn't even said yes yet, or well I haven't even asked, but I wanted to make sure it's okay with you before I make him a gift." She fumbled with her claws. "I know you want me to be happy. Will you let me have this happiness?"
He came close to her and rested his hands on her knees, looking up into her face. "If anyone is worthy of my sister's love it's Link. I wouldn't ever stop you." He said.
His sister teared up. "Okay. Dear boy, will you help me make this gift?"
"Of course!" Sidon said. She pulled him into her lap and hugged him tightly.