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Zelda was on her fourth attempt to make what was supposed to be a simple apple pie.
The first one was soggy
The second one was too salty
The third was rubbery
And now the fourth was an unrecognizable black lump.
Zelda was amazed that she hadn't burned the house down yet when half of her baking attempts end up as a burnt crisp.
In her youth, she was never allowed to cook much, and when she did, it was always with the royal chefs doing most of the work for her.
The King insisted that the princess should focus on her studies. There was no time for frivolous hobbies. Zelda was born to be a queen, not a homemaker.
Zelda sighed deeply as she tossed the lump in the bin. Back to the drawing board. The princess reviewed her notes as she cleaned the work area of the kitchen.
The temperature was the culprit this time, well more so her impatience to finally get it baked before sundown. The pie was almost perfect! She followed the steps correctly, she didn't over work the dough, and she did not mix up the salt for the sugar.
"Oh, I'll just raise the temp a bit that will make the pie finish sooner!" Zelda muttered to herself. "You look away for a few minutes, then FOOSH! You have charcoal...."
With the countertop cleaned and the ingredients back in place, zelda sat down for the first time since morning. All the weight pulling on her lower back and her feet slightly swollen for standing in one place for so long. Looking out the window, zelda could see the sun low on the horizon.
"Link will be home soon..."
It's been a few months since the calamity ended. Life will never be as it was, but she was happy about it in a way. She moved in with Link to his home in Hateno village and started working on plans for the Hyrule Reconstruction project.
The project is mostly on rebuilding connections between the races and fixing infrastructure to increase trade between communities. The people of Hyrule got on pretty well without a large centralized government. Now, with no monsters running about, these smaller scattered communities can grow.
Realistically, as Zelda saw it, the Hylians didn't need a monarchy. They would function much better in a democratic system with elected officials from the community. Why force a monarchy on people who have been relatively free for a hundred years.
At most, Zelda would be a civil servant for the Hylian people, but otherwise, she doesn't have to be a queen. For the first time in her life, she has options to be whatever she wants and the free time to do what she wants. So on her free days, she would try different things, mostly cooking and baking.
The thing Zelda has wanted most in recent days is to make something for Link to enjoy as a thanks for all he has done for her and Hyrule as a whole.
Today she just wanted to make him a nice apple pie for when he got home.
Zelda laid her head on table, the multiple failed pies left her feeling frustrated and burnt out. No pun intended. It was best to start again fresh tomorrow morning. Zelda was so excited at the idea of having a nice big hot pie ready for Link when he came home for dinner. Seeing his face as he bit into the flakey crust and into the steaming hot sweet juicy caramelized apples inside. She couldn't help but feel a little disappointed in herself.
Link does a lot of odd jobs around Hyrule, he helped farmers in fields, he worked on missions for the reconstruction project, he hunts game, he literally does almost anything people ask of him. Zelda lamented the fact that Link has never allowed himself to be selfish and do things for himself, but this is what he loves to do. She respected and admired that about him.
A hot meal and a good pie is the least she could do on her day off.
Zelda sat up and stretched, deciding that making a nice dinner for Link is better use of her time than mopping about a pie.
Some time later, as the princess was finishing up a decent mushroom risotto, she heard the door open, the jangling of metal and heavy boots as Link walked in, setting down his weapons with a thump on the wooden floor.
"Ah, link, impeccable timing as always...Today I.."
Zelda felt Link wrapping his arms around her waist from behind, his face resting on the crook of her neck. He smelled of sweat and freshly tilled soil. The weight of his chest against her back sent her stomach into tiny flips, she could feel heat flowing into her cheeks.
Link has always been a man of few words, but his actions spoke for him. Zelda smiled
"had a long day today?" He nodded, not lifting his face from the embrace.
"Was it a good day?" He nodded again, his face hidden behind a curtian of dirty blonde hair. She felt his lips lightly brush her skin sending tingles down her spine.
Zelda still wasn't used to the close contact but she didn't object to it.
"You want to wash up before you eat or do you want to eat first?"
"eat first, then shower." He said in his quiet husky voice
Zelda lifted a spoonfull of risotto to him "want to give it a taste test... I'm worried about the salt"
Link lifted his face and leaned foward slightly, taking the spoon.
Zeldas heart raced a bit as his chest pressed against her.
"You've gotten better, its good. Perfect amount of salt"
Link beamed at her, his eyes were as blue as a glacial lake and a dazzling smile that she rarely saw, if ever, in their old life at the castle. It made her melt every time she saw its brilliance.
The princess turned around and gave her knight a proper hug. She loved that smile and wanted to see it every day.
Tomorrow she'll make that apple pie and hope to see his radient smile, that smile is what she wanted most in the world.