So, here it is, by popular demand: the sequel to Vacation For Two! Man, I didn't think that my oneshot would be so popular. But pretty much every review was saying either it was fantastic, or I should definitely write a sequel (or both). And how many PMs did I get about the same topic? More than I can count! Well, I eventually thought up ideas for the story, so it got written. Now, tell me what you think, and if you like this one just as much as the first, then I could quite easily turn this into a series of oneshots. Truthfully, that idea really appeals to me. Anyway, review (or PM as some of you like to do) and tell me what you think! Enjoy!
Vacation For Two: Winter Fun
Alfonzo glanced up at the castle as he passed through its gates. As much as it impressed him, he wasn't here to sightsee. He had come here on business, though not the sort one might expect. Indeed, if someone had asked Alfonzo why he was at the castle, the answer only would've left them confused.
As it was though, no one was moving about yet. It was hardly sunrise, though Alfonzo had picked this time deliberately. He was less likely to be bothered, and his 'business' would go faster that way. If his plan had a flaw however, it would be that the ones he was looking for weren't up yet either. If that were the case… Well, he would wait. It wasn't like there was much else he could do.
As he rounded a corner though, his concerns were put to rest. Russell was walking his way, and Alfonzo greeted him with a smile as he approached. "Alfonzo, you're up early today. Here running errands?" the guard captain asked. Alfonzo shook his head. "I was looking for you, actually." Russell looked puzzled. "For me?" He then smiled as he realized what the man meant. "Ah, I see. Shall we go find Teacher?" Alfonzo nodded and they set off down the hall.
They didn't have to walk far. Teacher was heading to the kitchens for some breakfast, and they quickly came across his path. Seeing the two men and having an idea of what it was about, Teacher invited them to eat with him, and they made their way to the kitchens. After grabbing some food, they all sat down at a table and began to eat. After a couple of minutes, Russell turned to Alfonzo. "Alright, so what's happened now?"
"Nothing's 'happened', I was just listening to Link yesterday," Alfonzo told them. "He was saying that he was free today, and mentioned offhand that he hoped Zelda was as well. So, I'm wondering," Alfonzo turned to Teacher, "Is Zelda free today?"
Teacher thought for a moment, chewing slowly. "Well, there is that bill that came in a few days ago. She's been putting it off, but said last night that she'd review it today. However, ignoring it for one more day isn't exactly the worst thing that she could do," he answered. "Especially if it happens to go mysteriously missing today." Russell and Alfonzo grinned.
"That's good to hear, because Link will be here in an hour or two to see her," Alfonzo answered. "Once he wakes up and makes himself look presentable that is." Russell finished his breakfast before asking, "And what does Mr. We're-just-best-friends have planned for today?" Alfonzo shook his head. "I haven't a clue. He didn't say, and I didn't wish to ruin his plans by asking. But they're due for another date; it's been two weeks already since the last one." Russell looked at Alfonzo and asked, "Oh, we're allowed to call them dates now?" Alfonzo shrugged. "Might as well, that's pretty much what they are, right?"
"Well," Teacher said, standing up with his plate, "I should go 'misplace' that bill into my pocket before the princess wakes up. And then, I suggest we make ourselves scarce for the day. Any ideas?" Russell grinned mischievously. The other two quickly exchanged looks before asking, "Well?"
"How about this: we go to the armoury and borrow a few swords and bows, and we go to that Take 'Em All On game in the town," Russell proposed. Alfonzo and Teacher looked at each other and then Russell before cheering, "YES!" And with that, Teacher went to go take care of Zelda's bill, and then the three headed to the armoury to get weapons.
Link pulled up at Castle Town and jumped off his train. As he headed for the castle, he noticed that Alfonzo's train was parked off to the side. He simply shrugged; Alfonzo was probably just buying some stuff, and he was always up early. A trait he had tried and failed to pass onto Link, the latter noted with a smile.
Approaching the castle, Link nodded to the guards and passed by. He made a path straight for Zelda's chamber and was there within the minute. He was about to knock on her door when he heard loud noises coming from the other side. It sounds like she's tearing her office apart, Link thought, and slowly opened her door.
Indeed, that's what she appeared to be doing. Zelda was taking drawers out of her desk and emptying their contents on the floor, and desperately looking through the piles. Link cleared his throat and she looked up, her face frantic. She ran to him and threw her arms around his neck as he tried not to lose his balance. "I lost it," she almost screamed, hugging him tighter. "I can't believe it, I've never lost anything, and now I go and lose the most important thing I could have!" Link tried prying her arms off of him, as he was starting to choke. "Lost what?" he managed to say.
"The bill! The one from the Gorons that I'm supposed to be reviewing! I just had it last night, I set it on my desk before I went to bed, and now it's not here!" she explained quickly. "What am I going to do? I'm the princess, I can't just start losing documents like that, it would look so bad, and my reputation would be shot and-" Link silenced her by placing his hand over her mouth.
"Zelda, relax, it'll turn up. Don't worry, this isn't going to ruin your reputation," Link told her reassuringly. "Does anyone besides us know it's gone?" The princess shook her head, and Link smiled. "Then there's no need to freak out! We'll find it, it has to be here somewhere." Link took a look around the almost destroyed office and sighed inwardly. It probably would have been easier to find if there weren't papers and furniture all over the floor, but they'd deal with that. Hopefully later. "C'mon, let's clean up your office a bit," he said, looking down at her and realizing that the girl was wearing a simple nightgown. "And maybe get dressed?" he added, and Zelda looked down at herself before blushing furiously. "Alright, I'll go grab a robe while you start sorting the mess," she told him, quickly heading for the door. "The piles are more or less the same as what they fell out from." With that, she left.
Link quickly cleaned up the piles and set each of the contents into a discarded drawer, and was finished by the time the princess returned with a robe. Seeing the room was almost clean, she raised an eyebrow. "That was fast," she said, a little surprised. Link shrugged. "I'm just fast," he replied. Zelda stepped forward to pick up the drawers and put them back where they belonged. "And now that you're done," she said, "maybe now you can tell me why you're here so early?"
Link hesitated. Was it right to bring up his plans when this document was missing? Might as well, no sense coming all this way to lie, he decided. "Well, I'm not busy today, and I was wondering if you wanted to take another day off to do whatever," he explained. Zelda, having just finished putting the drawers back, looked at Link. "Yes, of course I do!" she replied enthusiastically. "Especially since last time was so much fun!" Link smiled. "Yeah, it really was," he said, thinking back to their day at the beach two weeks ago. Glancing at the princess, he noted that she still had the remains of her tan from that day. "So what did you have in mind for today?" she asked, interrupting his thoughts.
"Remember last time, you suggested sledding?" he asked with a growing smile. Zelda's eyes lit up. "We get to go sledding?" she asked, silently cheering. Link nodded, "If you want to, yeah." Zelda nodded eagerly. "Yes, let's go!" She ran for the door, but Link stopped her. "Okay, the only snow in New Hyrule is in the Snow Realm. Now, call me crazy, but to me, snow is cold. I think you're going to need a bit more than a nightgown and a robe," he said with a teasing smirk. Zelda looked at herself. "You might be right. Just this once, anyway," she said, sticking her tongue out at the boy while the latter smiled. "Just go change," he said, and she went off to her room. As she did that, Link went to the kitchens to see if he could sweet-talk the cooks into packing them a lunch.
A few minutes later, Zelda was at the kitchens with a long-sleeved shirt and heavy pants, with a jacket in her arms. As Link took the basket the cook handed him and thanked her, Zelda asked, "You have something heavier to wear, right?" Link looked down at his tunic and smiled. "Yeah, I do, everything's in the Spirit Train already," he told her. As the two left the castle, Zelda's insides were jumping. She got to spend another full day with her best friend! She turned to look at him, and smiled. Maybe today would lead to them being more, if she was lucky. Unbeknownst to her, Link was, at that moment, thinking the same thing. They reached the train, and both jumped into the control car as Link set a path for the Snow Realm.
Half an hour later, Link pulled the train up to Snowdrift Station, the most Northwestern point in New Hyrule, and a perfect place for mountains. The pair disembarked, and Link set the picnic basket in the passenger car before heading to the freight car and unloading two wooden toboggans. He and Zelda put on their coats, toques, gloves and snow pants before they began their trek away from the train and up the nearest mountain.
As they reached the top, Link turned around and paled slightly. The mountain was a bit higher than he had anticipated. Zelda gave him a weak smile, showing that she felt the same. "What do you say we go together for the first ride?" she asked. Link nodded, relieved that she'd suggested it. He set a toboggan off to the side, and readied the other one. Turning to Zelda and offering his hand, she grinned and shook her head. "Nice try, but you're in the front," she told him. Link grinned and sat down, and Zelda took her place behind him.
As they stared down the mountain, Link gulped. It still looked high, even with Zelda with him. The princess leaned forward and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, surprising him. "It'll be fine," she said with a smile, and Link nodded, smiling in return. Then, before he could say anything, Zelda quickly kicked off and they were suddenly flying down the mountain.
They went along, picking up more and more speed, before the trip finally ended twenty seconds later, the two of them screaming the entire way. As they finally skidded to a stop, Zelda looked at Link sheepishly. "Okay, I sort of regret doing that," she said, as he playfully pushed her into the snow. "At least give me some sort of a warning next time you launch us off a mountain," he replied, grinning. She smiled back, and he helped her up before they ran back to the top of the mountain.
When they reached the top, Link handed her the toboggan before grabbing the other one. "Let's race now, and see which of us learned more from that first ride," the princess said challengingly. Link glanced at her, smirking. "Obviously me, I was in the front," he replied arrogantly as she laughed and tripped him into a snow bank. "Oh, and now we're even," she added as she pulled him back up. Link replied with a grin and a snowball. And so the race was postponed by a quick snowball fight.
Five minutes later, the two were ready to go, though both were soaked. On Zelda's mark they both kicked off and sped down the mountain. As they neared the bottom, Zelda cheered as she finished first. They then ran back up to race again, and they did for an hour, finally agreeing to tie at seven wins apiece.
As they picked up the toboggans, Zelda shivered. Link glanced at her in amusement. "Cold?" She nodded before shivering again, and Link put his arm around her and drew her in close as he led her back to the Spirit Train. When they arrived, Link opened the door to the passenger car and they both climbed in. Zelda sat in a chair and relaxed. The car was well insulated, and it was quite warm.
Link sat down beside her and took his jacket off, revealing his wet tunic. Zelda laughed, and Link just reached for the basket, grinning but saying nothing. He took out two cups and a container of hot tea, and poured them both a drink. Zelda took her cup with a "Thanks," and brought her legs up to her chest to warm herself up quicker. Link snuggled in beside her and she playfully swatted at him. "We'll warm up faster if we're closer," he simply stated, and she finally nodded. They sat together for a while, occasionally drinking their tea, before Link's stomach growled loudly. Zelda snorted and almost let go of the tea in her mouth, quickly slapping a hand across her face. Link turned red slightly and reached for the basket to see what there was to eat. "What, I didn't eat breakfast this morning," he explained as she finally swallowed and continued to laugh. "I know, neither did I, I'm hungry too," she said finally, as he pulled out a plate of sandwiches.
When they were done eating an hour later, Zelda nestled herself against the window and stared out at the snow just beyond. As Link packed up the plates, Zelda gasped. He turned to face her, and she pointed out the window.
She had spotted a small pond that was frozen over. It was the perfect spot for skating, and Zelda sighed. How she wished she had brought skates. As if he could read her mind though, Link poked her lightly. "Wish granted," he said as she turned to him. When she blinked in confusion, Link explained, "I found your skates in your office when I was cleaning up, and when you left to get changed, I sort of brought them with me."
Zelda beamed. "I can't believe you did, that's perfect!" she said excitedly. "But did you bring yours?" Link nodded. "Of course, I didn't know what would happen today, so I came prepared." Zelda stared at her friend in amazement. "You really put a lot of thought into these things, don't you?" she asked. The boy shrugged and replied, "I just make sure I'm covered."
They put their jackets back on and exited the car as Link pulled out two pairs of skates from the freight car. Handing Zelda hers, they tromped through the snow before finally arriving at the pond. Then, putting on their skates, they stepped out onto the ice and began to move.
They raced around the pond a couple of times before slowing down to a softer speed. As they just went around, they took each others' hand and drew in close. After skating like this for a few moments, Zelda stopped and turned to Link. Without saying anything, she placed her free arm around his shoulder. "Want to dance?" she asked, and Link smiled in reply before wrapping his own arm around her waist. They began to skate around slowly, pretending they were at a ball. Though their dance was slightly improvised because of the blades under their feet, it was rather graceful. They danced for half an hour before going back to just holding hands. Zelda rested her head on Link's arm as they continued to skate. We are so beyond friends, she thought happily.
After a while, they began to get cold again, so they removed their skates and trudged back to the train. As they entered the passenger car once again, Zelda turned to Link and hugged him. After the surprise wore off and he hugged her back, he asked, "What's this for?"
"For making this such a great day," she answered softly, and remained like that for a moment. Finally, they parted and, with both of them feeling warm enough, they climbed into the control car and started their way back to the castle.
A half hour later, they arrived at Castle Town. Link had shed his coat and accessories upon crossing back into the Forest Realm; despite living in New Hyrule his entire life, he still wasn't quite used to the immediate climate changes of each realm. As they both walked onto the platform, Link grabbed Zelda's skates and the basket before they began their walk to the castle. The sun was already low in the sky, surprising both of them; it had been difficult to tell how late it was in the Snow Realm, where it was constantly cloudy. They stopped before the castle, and Zelda took the basket and her skates from Link.
"Today was really fun," she told him. "We have to do this more often." Link nodded and said, "Well, we just need a reason to, and we can." Zelda glanced around, and then back at Link. She leaned in and kissed Link quickly, holding her lips against his for a couple of seconds before backing away. "Does that work for a reason?" she asked with a playful smile. Link grinned. "Yeah, I think that'll be good enough," he said. As he began to walk away, he added, "Don't worry about that bill; I have a feeling it'll turn up tomorrow." Zelda nodded and waved at him before turning into the castle. Deep down, she had a feeling that he was entirely right.
She quickly stopped and turned around. "Link!" she yelled. The boy turned at hearing his name. "Do me a favour and clear your schedule this weekend!" she called to him. "Come see me on Saturday, alright?" Link smiled and called back, "For sure! I'll see you then!" With that, he turned away and headed for the train again, and Zelda grinned before heading into the castle.
A short distance away, three men were leaving the Take 'Em All On game shop. Alfonzo had two swords across his back, Russell had a sword and shield on his, and Teacher carried a bow, a quiver of arrows and a sword on his own. "All three levels cleared in one day," Alfonzo said with a grin. "Do we rock, or what?"
"Indeed we do," Teacher replied. "Possibly in more ways than one." As the other two looked at him, Teacher grabbed their arms and ducked behind a building. As they all watched, Link and Zelda yelled to each other from across the town. The three heard Zelda telling Link to clear his weekend schedule before high-fiving. "Yes, that totally means they're together!" Russell cheered. Alfonzo nodded. "Yeah, I have to admit, that tone sounds like there's more to the weekend planned than just friendship stuff," he added.
Teacher sighed. "Well then, that means we're done helping them." They all looked at each other and grinned. "Time to start being nosy about their relationship!" they all cheered simultaneously. As both children disappeared from view, the three men withdrew from their hiding place and headed for the castle as they discussed how Teacher should sneak the bill back into Zelda's office. But all three were thinking the same thing; if the two were now being open about their feelings... Well, their next date was certainly going to be interesting.