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How ridiculous it was to be followed–and by a boy who looked so absurd in his uniform at that. The dark blue tunic clung to his toned form, and long, silky blond hair poked out from beneath his beret, just begging to be combed into place by her gloved fingers. Hadn’t the castle’s seamstress fitted him appropriately before they’d plucked him from the streets and tugged this new outfit on? Had they not left any kind of allowance for the hem before they’d sewed, or had his training these past few weeks merely built up new muscle? What shampoo were they supplying in the barracks, anyway?
It was ridiculous, she thought, but what was more ridiculous was the fact that he hadn’t said a word to her all day.
No, instead, he’d been silently following her through the castle hallways, on her trail with his painfully-blank stare and quiet demeanor. When she’d prayed to Hylia, he’d stood soundlessly in the corner, his sky blue eyes burning holes through her skin. When she’d sped up later, heels clacking against the floor as she’d darted through the maze of hallways to test him, she hadn’t even heard his haste behind her. It was slowly driving her insane–the silence, the intensity of him–and it hadn’t even been a full twenty-four hours yet. He’d only been assigned to her this morning. She didn’t even know his name yet, for Hylia’s sake!
Well… If he wouldn’t make the first move, then she certainly would.
“Walk beside me,” she said suddenly, spinning on her heel to face him. Admittedly, it was the first that she’d spoken to him herself, and yet his face revealed no such surprise at her command. He merely stood with his spine straight, at attention, those grating eyes meeting hers. “I have questions for you.”
He didn’t move. He didn’t even twitch.
“Didn’t you hear me?” she scoffed. “It’s no crime to walk beside me, you know.”
“I cannot, Your Highness.” His voice was as quiet as the rest of him, soft and breathy and pretty–yet stern and utterly infuriating. It fit him well, Zelda thought.
She stared at him blankly, leveling his gaze. “You cannot?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I cannot.”
She clicked her tongue. In her short time as Hyrule’s princess, she had grown used to the long list of do’s and don’t’s, and yet, something about this knight’s refusal to follow her command irked her. She sighed, “And is there any particular reason for this?”
“I’m under strict orders from His Majesty, Your Highness.”
Ah. Of course he was. That made sense. She wondered briefly what that discussion had been like–what sort of rules had her father laid out for him?–before deciding that she didn’t want to know. Instead, Zelda tilted her head to the side curiously, her long hair swaying with the motion. Her eyes looked him up, then down, taking in the sight of him before she took several steps forward, falling into place at his side.
He took five steps back. She followed him, a wide smile breaking out onto her face.
“You cannot walk beside me, but perhaps I can walk beside you,” she explained simply. For the first time all day, she watched his careful facade falter. His blue eyes widened in disbelief, then fear, before he managed to collect himself, forcing that expressionless look on his face once more. Somehow, it felt better this way–his discomfort, rather than her own.
He hesitated, “No, Your Highness. I must stay five paces behind.”
Zelda crossed her arms over her chest, rolling her eyes dramatically. Maybe it was his need to uphold duty–or maybe his discussion with her father really had gone poorly. Regardless, she would have her fun with him. If he was to be her appointed knight, she would get to know him, even if it meant breaking the rules her father had prudently laid out.
“What is your name, knight?”
“L-Link, Your Highness.”
Link. It was a silly name, she thought, but she’d certainly heard sillier names from throughout the kingdom. She tested it on her tongue, “Link. Link, tell me about yourself.”
He thought for a moment before answering simply, “I am Link, your appointed knight.”
She blinked. “Yes.”
“And I wield the Master Sword, Your Highness.”
She yawned, feigning boredom. Link, her appointed knight, and wielding the Master Sword. Those were all things that she already knew. When she’d asked him to tell her about himself, she’d wanted to know something more exciting than any of that. How he came to wield the Sword of Evil’s Bane, maybe, or a big secret that he was hiding from the rest of the world. Not basic, well-known facts.
“Where are you from, Link?” she asked him, leaning forward. Maybe, she thought, he was from somewhere interesting, like Lurelin Village to the East. Or, perhaps, he was born and raised in the Korok Forest by some mystical creature–the Great Deku Tree, maybe. That would be exciting.
“Hyrule,” he said, blinking. Zelda blinked back once, twice.
“ Hyrule?! ” Was he dull? Was this truly the boy destined to fight the Calamity by her side, or was he some kind of fraud? Had her father been deceived by his charmingly good looks? Zelda couldn’t believe him.
“Y-Yes, Your Highness.” She didn’t miss the way he swallowed nervously, his Adam’s apple bobbing beneath the collar of his uniform. She inhaled deeply, fighting to compose herself.
“Perhaps I am asking the wrong questions, then. Where in Hyrule do you hail from, Link?”
“Hateno Village, Your Highness.”
Zelda pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. Hateno Village? No, her father had most certainly been deceived. This Link was no hero–and certainly no friend of hers. He was… the most painfully bland person she’d ever had the displeasure of meeting. She’d almost liked him better before he’d spoken to her.
“Link, my appointed knight, hailing from Hateno Village and wielding the fabled Master Sword. That’s it?” Maybe if he heard it for himself, he would understand her frustration. She was assigned a knight to follow her always, to intrude on any semblance of privacy that she had, and he wasn’t even interesting. Instead, Link just nodded, a small smile tugging at his lips.
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Zelda stared blankly at him for a second before turning on her heel and rushing off, bunching her skirts in her fists.
–
What Princess Zelda didn’t know was that her father had laid out a strict set of rules for her knight. He’d explained to Link a slew of things, lecturing him on the importance of her awakening her sacred powers. In that lecture, he’d expressed to Link what his role in the matter was–aside from what had already been prophesied, of course. Protection, he’d said, which did not include distractions. Link was not to befriend the Princess of Hyrule, or to even be well-liked by her. He wasn’t to tell her about himself, or to open up to her in any capacity. Instead, Link was simply to be there hiding in the shadows, watching her and protecting at all hours of the day.
He was already finding that difficult.
I’m from Hateno Village, but I traveled a lot growing up, he wanted to tell her. I’ve been to every inch of Hyrule with my father, and my favorite place is Zora’s Domain. I can tell you about any place you’d like to know–the people, what food they like to eat, the prettiest spots to watch the sun rise or set. Ask me.
I have a little sister, Aryll, he wanted to say, and she’s very sweet and kind and she wants to be friends with you. Before I left home, I promised her that you would have tea together one afternoon.
You’re very smart. I saw you tinkering with those guardian parts earlier. How did you do that? Can you show me some time?
Instead, he said none of it. Instead, he told her that he was Link, wielder of the Master Sword, hailing from Hyrule. Maybe in another life they could be friends.