"So why exactly did you have me get all dressed up?" Vaati crossed his arms and scowled as Link leisurely fit his cap over his messy blonde hair.
"You don't sound very excited," Link frowned. "Well, we're gonna go into Hyrule Town."
"But WHY?" Vaati growled. He ran his fingers through his lavender hair and flopped down on the bed he and Link shared mutually as friends as Link adjusted his green tunic in the mirror.
"Sorry Vah-teeee, it's a surprise."
Vaati scowled audibly, and after Link decided he had exasperated the wind sorcerer enough said, "Alright, let's go."
"You're acting very weird," Vaati stated bluntly, a touch of poison in his voice, as he stared up at the ceiling.
Link shrugged, grinning goofily. Vaati sighed, letting the Hylian's lightheartedness melt a few icicles in his demeanor. "You're terrible at this, Bunny*."
The blonde teenager's cheeks tinted pink. "I-I told you to never bring that up!"
Vaati sat up, scowling again. "Then why won't you just tell me?"
"You're just gonna have to find out!" Link threw his hands up in the air, sighing loudly. He glanced outside at the window, gauging the time of day; the sun had submerged itself one fourth of the way beneath the horizon, so he decided it was time.
"We're leaving now anyways."
The setting sun gave way to a cooler breeze, and though the stroll to Hyrule Town was pleasant, Vaati was confused as to why he didn't just teleport them to where they wanted to go.
"Two reasons," Link explained. "One, I said it's a surprise. Two, it's more personal this way, no?"
Vaati grudgingly nodded. "It is rather nice." He gazed at Link out of the corner of his eye; about a year ago, Link had defeated Vaati inside and atop the Dark Hyrule Castle, and afterwards Ezlo had confiscated the Wishing Cap from him to present to Zelda who fixed Hyrule's state of being and its civilians.
Vaati, at that point, had been reduced back to his original form as a Minish. However, after a sincere apology and a promise to return to being Ezlo's apprentice, Link and Zelda agreed to allowing Vaati to return to his Hylian form while retaining some of his powers as a sorcerer.
The memories of that day swam around in Vaati's mind, and they began to dampen his mood. Suddenly, the cool breeze was the cold shoulder of the entire country of Hyrule, and the rustling leaves were the hateful words of its people that he had wronged. He was sure whatever Link had planned he didn't deserve -
Oh, no...Vaati groaned inwardly. On autopilot, he listened to Link discuss his favorite oils for cleaning swords, but inwardly was facing the realization of the meaning of this secret surprise trip into Hyrule Town: today was the anniversary of the day Vaati had the corrupt power within him vanquished by Link, as well as the day Link had offered Vaati to live with him while he recovered from their battle.
A year had passed so swiftly, during which the wind sorcerer and Hylian had developed a strong, albeit strange, bond. They lived in the same house, slept in the same bed, and functioned as best friends, but Vaati couldn't argue that he loved watching Link fall asleep next to him, brushing his hair, or making food for him rather than unpassionately conjur it out of thin air (and a little bit of magic.)
But as the two made their way to the town, Vaati knew that not only did Link have something very special planned for the two of them, he knew that he didn't deserve whatever it was.
Twilight had consumed the usually busy and noisy town, but when Link and Vaati entered through the South Gate, they saw very few people going about their business; the Cuckoo lady had taken her Cuckoos inside, the shoe shop and cafe was closed, and the merchants who sold fresh fruits, vegetables and Picolyte had returned home.
"It's really pretty, isn't it?" Link murmured, eyes cast upwards at the golden and pink hues painted across the sky.
"It is," Vaati nodded. He wondered if the Wind Tribe that Link had told stories of saw the sky as beautifully as they did, but then decided what they saw was probably more beautiful than the people on the surface could ever hope to see.
"Well," Link's voice cut through Vaati's thoughts. "We're here."
Vaati glanced at the building with the red roof in front of them. "Wheaton and Pita's?"
Link blushed slightly. "I kind of wanted this to be sort of a, well...you know, um, a date."
Vaati's crimson eyes widened slightly, and his cheeks mimicked Link's by turning rosy.
"I mean only if you want it to be of course!" Link sputtered, scratching the back of his head nervously.
"I'd love it to be," Vaati said quietly. His heart had picked up speed significantly, and feared it might throb its way through his chest.
Link smiled, his uncertainty fading, and led the way inside the bakery.
Warm, tantilizing smells greeted their noses, and Vaati felt himself relax from the sheer softnessthat hung in the air.
A young woman approached them. "Hello Link, nice to see you again! It's been a while."
"Hi Pita. This is Vaati, we're kind of on a date."
"A date?" Pita smiled. "You want a table then, yes?"
"That would be nice," Link confirmed and Vaati twirled his hair nervously.
Pita nodded, still smiling, and showed Link and Vaati to one of the tables next to the window, giving them both a perfect view of the morphing sky.
"What do you two want?"
Vaati turned a confused look to Link, unsure of their menu. I mean, I know they have bread..., he thought, scowling at the utter obviousness.
"Can we have two slices of blackberry pie?"
Sweet Goddesses, Vaati purred. Link was certainly spoiling him with his favorite dessert. Pita scribbled down the order and undoubtedly went to inform Wheaton of the order.
Link turned his gaze to Vaati and let his cerulean eyes fall on the slightly blushing wind sorcerer; Vaati felt a series of cyclones circulating in his stomach as he continued to register that Link had asked him on a date.
I really don't deserve this, Vaati sighed inwardly.
"So Vaati, there's something I've been meaning for us to talk about..."
There was a contortionist dancing around in Vaati's stomach. "What about, Bunny*?"
Link gave him a friendly glare. "Well, it's about what today is."
"You mean the anniversary of when the power of the Light Force was driven out of me by you?"
Link looked fairly surprised, but nodded. "It was also the day I offered you to come live with me to begin the process of overcoming your traumas and addiction to power."
Shame washed over Vaati momentarily, as he remembered how the first few months had been excruciating and almost fruitless, as he and Link had constantly fought with each other and couldn't manage to efficiently help counsel Vaati or redirect his obsession with power through coping methods such as sword duels or adventuring.
"I say we've come a long way," Vaati said quietly.
"We have." Link's eyes cast downwards as he stared at the edge of the table. He extended his hand across the table, still without looking at the wind sorcerer, and grabbed Vaati's within his own; Vaati's heart accelerated.
"And that's why," Link continued, his voice low and eyes focused on his lap, "I wanted to take you out today. To congratulate you, us, on how good we've done this past year. And," anxiety constricted his tone, "I wanted to ask you - "
"Alrighty dears, here is your blackberry pie!" exclaimed Pita, intervening in the tense moment and effectively cutting Link off from what he was about to say. She laid two slices of blackberry pie in front of the boys, bowed, and returned back to the register at the front counter.
Link immediately took a bite of the warm and oozing pie, reluctant to finish his sentence and thankful of any excuse not to. He glanced up at Vaati and could see the waves of elation spiraling off of him, right before his teeth sunk into something hard and metal with a CLANG, and the purple haired Minish-turned-Hylian winced.
"What the...?"
He pried gently into the berry filling and pulled out a red fragmented disc with strange engravings and shapes.
"...?" Vaati looked up, bewildered, at Link.
Link laughed. "Wheaton sometimes sneaks Kinstone pieces into their food. You must know what they are? You are, technically, a Minish."
A look of realization dawned on Vaati's face, and his scarlet eyes opened wider. "Oh, yes I remember these. The Minish hide them all throughout Hyrule. Fusing them with someone is supposed to bring immense happiness."
Link nodded, and glanced down at his slice of pie. "I wonder..." he took a bite, and instantly regretted letting his teeth come down so hard, as they clamped shut on something cold and solid as well. The berry filling stained his fingers as he pulled out his own Kinstone piece, and noticed with surprise that his was red, too. He glanced up at Vaati's quickly, and decided right then and there to ask what he had intended to when Pita had interrupted and brought them their pie.
"Vaati, hold up your Kinstone piece."
"Are you sure they're a match, Link - ?"
"Have I ever led you wrong?"
Vaati, trusting Link, slowly held up his piece, as Link let his own fuse and fill the fragmented spaces with Vaati's - the two red discs made a perfect match.
Link turned his eyes up to the wind sorcerer, willing to finally ask him the question that had been burning his tongue all night.
"Vaati, will you be with me?"
The purple haired boy almost replied with a bewildered, But I already am, when he realized the intent behind the Hylian's question.
The two sat at the table inside Wheaton and Pita's, the aroma of blackberry pie and freshly baked bread consuming them like a luscious ocean, both still holding up the fused red Kinstone piece. It had glowed momentarily, as if thanking them for uniting its missing part, and began to work its magic.
For a few seconds, Vaati grappled with his guilt and frustration, unable to feel worthy of the Hero's affection, and knew that so long as he hated and refused to forgive himself, he could never accept Link's offer; as the Kinstone blinked with magic for a few times, though, Vaati's resentment and wrath upon himself began to dissipate, and for a few seconds the Kinstone showed him an image of himself and Link, standing happily outside Link's home together and holding hands.
This will be yours, a disembodied voice that had no connotative gender or age said in his ear, as his internal anguish was washed away, leaving Vaati reeling at how relieved he was to be rid of those feelings, and how intense his attraction to Link was.
He took in the eyes that were as blue as the Water Element, expressing anxiety and slight heartache, and the slightly messy blonde locks that framed his pale, perfectly shaped face.
Swallowing once, throat suddenly dry, Vaati murmured, "Yes."
"Come on, Bunny*, aren't you coming to bed?" Vaati whined, flopping in mock anger onto the pillow. "You're driving me...batty." He waited for Link to understand the punchline (which was blatantly obvious as it was a direct reference to Vaati's bat-form and bat minions.)
"If that was your an attempt at a joke, I'm really gonna have to teach you," Link sighed, smiling and shaking his head. "Because that was awful."
He slipped into bed next to Vaati, and for the second time that night kissed his lavender haired lover. (The first time being inside Wheaton and Pita's.)
"So I think those Kinstone pieces being placed in our pie tonight was very convenient," Link said, but not voicing that without them he wouldn't have been able to muster up the courage to ask Vaati something so nervewracking.
"It was," Vaati agreed, not yet ready to tell Link that without the magic of the fused Kinstone, he wouldn't have been able to say 'yes,' and that his own self-blame would have prevented them from being together.
Wrapped tightly in each other's arms, they dozed off, thanking the Goddesses for their amazing luck in getting two matching Kinstone pieces.
"Wheaton, you made sure to give them two Kinstone pieces that would match together, didn't you?"
Wheaton leaned over and kissed his wife. "Now why would I do something like that?" he asked, and winked.
A/N: Bunny*: This was a reference to A Link to the Past when Link is transformed into a bunny when he is in the Dark World.
So to take a break from some of my more dark and mature fanfics, I decided to write something lighter and full of fluff~