"With all my breath,

With all my blood,

You haunt the mirror of my sleep, you are my night.

You are my light and the jailer of my day…"- Monica's Waltz

~~Zelda~~

Though my eyes are closed, I can hear the footsteps of my father just outside my door; the soft, heavy footing is as familiar to me as the sound of my own breath. Clutching at my blanket tightly, I scrunch up my nose and try my hardest not to breathe loudly as I hear my door open slightly. There's a pause, before my father closes the door quietly and continues onto his room. Quickly I sit up, listening carefully until I hear it; a door down the hallway shuts, my father finally heading to bed.

I can't stop the grin from spreading across my face as I throw my covers off. Jumping off my bed, I land lightly on my toes to prevent any noise. For a second I pause to make sure I wasn't heard, then race towards the door and open it softly. Checking the hallway, I look and see that the door marked "Headmaster Gaepora" is closed. With a grin I slip through a small crack in my door and close it softly behind me before tiptoeing past my father's room. As I reach the big doors that lead outside, I gear myself up for a slight jump and stick my hand out, hoping to catch the handle on the first try; tonight is a lucky night-instantly I grab the handle, pulling it down with my body weight and causing the big door to quietly open. Falling back down, I slip through the big doors and take a deep breath of the sweet, sweet night air that greets me.

Closing the door behind me, I race across the small bridge and come to a stop just at the edge of the wall that leads to the lower courtyard, where I know the outer gate is unlocked; it's the one way that leads out of the Academy grounds at night. Eagerly I scramble down the walls, not minding the dirt as I land in the grass, and bouncing back onto my feet I race towards the open gate.

As I race towards the plaza, I duck behind trees and peek out before continuing on my journey; if I'm caught by any of the Academy knights my father will lecture me from morning to night. Despite the dangerous animals that come out at night, I'm more worried about being caught outside right now. Luckily I make it to the plaza without running into anybody, and breathing a sigh of relief I gaze up at the Light Tower excitedly. Running up to the ladder attached to the tower, I stealthily make my way up the side of the tower before finally reaching the top. Crawling onto the tower's platform, I lay spread-eagled on my back, gasping for breath as I stare up at the night sky above me.

The stars as are beautiful as ever against the night sky, and for a moment loneliness sweeps over me; there isn't anyone I know who would want to come out here with me, or who wouldn't tell my father and get me in trouble. For as friendly as everyone at the Academy is, I've yet to find anyone who I feel like I can really, truly trust.

I stare at the clouds for a moment, watching the sky before my thoughts turn to Loftwings, the guardian birds given to us by the Goddess. Even though I'm only seven, I can't wait until the day I get my own Loftwing and can fly through the clouds.

Giggling at the idea of being able to reach out and touch the soft, fluffy looking clouds, I roll over onto my stomach and glance towards the Statue of the Goddess. My father is always telling me that I'll me that I'll meet my Loftwing soon, and that once I do I'll finally feel complete.

After all, Loftwings are supposed to be are other halves. Once I meet mine, everything will be right, and I'll never want for anything ever again.

"Zelda," my father's voice stops me early in the morning, and looking up I grin at him only to see him staring down at me with a stern, angry look on his face. "Where did you go last night?"

"G-go, F-father?" I mumble, feeling guilty instantly. "I…I just…"

"You went out again, didn't you?"

When I say nothing, my face turning red with embarrassment at having been caught, my father's expression grows even angrier. As I begin to grind my foot into the ground, wondering what to do, my father begins to lecture me.

"I've told you time and time again that you should not be running around outside in the dark! There are all sorts of monsters out there at night and if you get in trouble and one of the Academy knights isn't around how will you be safe? I can't go to sleep in peace anymore; ever since last month you've been sneaking out and now I have to check on you more than once in the middle of the night just to make sure that you're still safe in bed. This is the third time I've gone into your room and found you missing! What do you have to say for yourself?"

My eyes prick with tears, and as I start to sniffle my father sighs, his face softening. Looking down at me, he continues, "Zelda, I'm just worried that you'll run into danger. I know you're a good girl; you're the brightest student in your class and you never disobey me except for this one thing…why can't you just go to sleep at night, like all the other students here?"

Just as I hear him take a deep breath to continue lecturing me the downstairs hall opens and I hear one of the captain of the guards, Eagus, calling for my father.

"Gaepora! Headmaster Gaepora! Are you here?"

Glancing down at me, my father calls back, "I'm up here, Eagus. What is it?"

"You're not going to believe what we found on patrol today…"

"Trouble?" My father asks, a concerned look coming over his features. "Was someone hurt?"

As Eagus walks up the stairs, he says, "No, but he might have some injuries-"

"He?"

Curiously, my father and I look at each other before turning towards the captain as he reaches the top of the stairs. With a nod, Eagus turns around and says, "Come on up here, kid. You'll be in good hands here."

I look towards the stairs as a boy appears; he walks over next to Eagus, staring at the ground with a distant, serious look on his face. His brownish-blonde hair is a mess, twigs and leaves stick up out of it, his face is scratched and dirty, and his clothes are torn and ragged; despite all that, his eyes are a beautiful blue, just a tinge darker than the color of the sky.

As I stare at him curiously, he glances up and makes eye contact with me; instantly he blushes, his face turning a bright red as he quickly looks back down at his feet. I continue to stare at him, and for some reason there's a nagging feeling in my chest. It's almost as if he's familiar to me-like he's an old friend who I just haven't seen in a very long time. Still, I know I've never met this boy before in my life…so why do I feel this way?

While I stare at him and Eagus and my father talk, he begins to shuffle his feet before daring to glance up at me one more time. When he sees I'm still staring his face lights up once more; this time though, he continues to look at me, an expression of curiosity and something else I'm not sure of on his face.

The two of us are so busy staring at each other that I don't hear my father speaking to me.

"Zelda? Zelda?"

Tearing my eyes away from the boy's, I look up at my father and ask, "Yes? What is it, Father?"

"This boy will be staying with us at the Academy. I must discuss a few things with Eagus, but I'd like you to take him downstairs to the kitchen. Henya, the housekeeper, will find him some new clothes and fix him a bath. Show him around on the way, please."

"Okay, Father!" I'm pleased that I won't have to be lectured anymore, and as my father and Eagus walk off towards the headmaster's room I'm left alone with the boy. For a moment the two of us are quiet, before I ask, "What's your name?"

"Huh?" The boy jumps a bit, surprised that I'm talking to him. "My name? It's…It's Link. What's yours?"

"Zelda," I answer quickly. The two of us fall silent again, before I ask, "So…want to look around?"

He nods, and the two of us start to set off towards the kitchen. We're halfway down the hall when he finally speaks; clearing his throat, he asks, "Was that man your father?"

"The headmaster?" I reply. When he nods again, I continue, "Yes, that's my father. Why do you ask?"

"Well…I just thought it was strange…you don't look very much like him."

His statement makes me giggle; turning to look at him, I reply, "Yeah, everyone's always telling me that I look more like my mother than him."

Link hesitates before asking, "You mother?"

"Yeah," I smile gently. "I don't really remember her much, but my father always tells me stories about how he met her."

We're quiet for a moment, and just as I begin to think of something to say to interrupt the awkward silence, he clears his throat and says, "I bet you're wondering where I came from and why I'm all scratched up."

My mouth falls open, and as I blush in embarrassment Link stares at me with a confused expression on his face before asking, "What're you making that face for?! You're curious, aren't you?"

"Th-that's so rude though! I wasn't just going to ask you, we don't even know each other!"

We stare at each other for a moment before the corner of Link's mouth rises; suddenly he's snickering, grinning at me as he does so. As I watch, he begins to laugh harder and harder, the sound becoming so infectious that I can't help but begin to laugh along. Soon the two of us are laughing hard, holding our sides as we tear up and point at each other.

"You look…ridiculous!" I giggle, pointing at Link as his face scrunches up with laughter.

"You're…one to talk! You should've seen the look on your face earlier! I thought your mouth was gonna fall off and hit the floor!"

By the time we finally calm down it's been a good few minutes, and as I wipe the last of my tears away I grin widely at Link. No longer shy, he grins back before saying, "Thank…I feel a lot better now."

I return the smile, before reaching out to punch him lightly on the shoulder. Looking up at the ceiling, I reply, "You're pretty weird…but I like you anyways."

Link turns pink, a pleased smile on his face as he replies, "You're weird too-in a good way."

It's my turn to blush, and the two of us stand in the hallway grinning at each other before I say, "Come on, let's go find Henya already so we can figure out which room is going to be yours!" Talking more now, the two of us start to head down the stairs, and we're so absorbed in our conversation that by the time we reach the kitchen I find that I'm reluctant to leave. Link too, hesitates, glancing between me and the kitchen entrance uncertainly.

"I guess I'll see you around?" Link asks, a hopeful look on his face.

"Of course!" I reply quickly. We exchange smiles for a moment, and I'm suddenly caught with the sudden urge to tell him something that I've never once considered telling anyone else; I want him to know about the Light tower at night.

Looking around, I signal him to come closer and he obliges, a curious look on his face. Leaning in, I whisper, "Do you want to see something cool?"

"Yeah…why are we whispering?" Link wants to know, tilting his head. Quickly I put a finger up to my lips and reply, "Cause it's a secret! Just meet me in my room tonight after my father checks on you. We'll figure something out from there!"

For a moment he looks confused, but before he can ask me what's going on the housekeeper walks out and nearly runs into the two of us.

"Zelda? Who's this?" Henya asks, raising one eyebrow. Giving Link a grin, I turn to her and say, "Father said to bring him down here. You see…"

I'm halfway out of bed when I hear it; a small knock on my door interrupts the quiet of my room, and a voice whispers hurriedly, "Zelda, let me in! Are you awake?"

Jumping out of bed I race towards the door, doing my best not to slip in my rush as I reach up to pull at the handle. Before I can really get a good look at him, Link comes tumbling through the doorway, knocking into me and sending us to the ground in a small, quiet crash. The door closes behind him softly, and rubbing my head I look up to see him staring down at me with a mortified and embarrassed look on his face. Trapped between his arms and the floor, I giggle a bit before saying, "Link you're so clumsy! Did you fall?"

As the two of us scramble to our feet, Link gives me a teasing smile before replying, "Well if you'd opened the door sooner it wouldn't have been a problem!" For a second the two of us grin at each other in the dark, before I realize something.

"Do you look different?" I wonder aloud in a whisper. "Your hair-"

"Henya cut it," Link cuts me off, a hand going up to his head in a self-conscious gesture. "She said it was too bushy and that I'd look good with bangs and something about framing my face…does it…does it look weird?"

I shake my head, replying, "No, it looks nice! I really like it!" For some reason my words make him blush, before he gives me a questioning look. His eyes glance around my room before he meets my gaze again and asks, "So why did you want me to meet you tonight anyways? What are you going to show me?"

For a moment I hesitate, before whispering, "I…I have a secret place that I like to go at night. Actually, I went last night but my father caught me and was lecturing me this morning when you arrived."

"A secret place?" His eyes light up with excitement. "And you're showing me?"

I nod, pleased with his reaction. Somehow, I doubt that any of the others here at the Academy would act the same way if they knew I left every night to go outside. Slowly I turn back towards my bed, staring at it pensively before muttering, "We can't go until I figure out how to fix my bed to look like I'm in it. I've tried stuffing pillows in there before but I guess I don't have enough because it still looks like I'm not there…"

Together we stare at the bed before Link's eyes light up and he turns to me. Before I can ask him what he's thought of he points towards my closet and I suddenly understand. Between the two of us we grab as many of my clothes as possible and rush towards my bed, stuffing the covers until we've made what appears to be a body. I stare at the lump in bed, proud of our handiwork before it occurs to me that Link may have not done the same. When I turn to look at him he grins before telling me, "I can't actually pretend I just made that up-I used all those new clothes in my closet to make something like this too."

I grin back, before finally telling him, "Well come on then, let's go!" Grabbing his hand, I pull him through my bedroom door and towards the exit, somehow more excited than usual when I think about my secret place. Once we're out the door, I turn to see that Link has already shimmied down to the lower court area. As I run up to the edge of the wall, he holds his arms out and says, "I'll catch you if you jump!" Although it's tempting to tell him that I can climb down the wall on my own without any help, something about the way he's looking at me has me wanting to listen to him.

Jumping will be faster anyways.

I fly towards him, not even considering that he may not be strong enough to catch me the same way I see some of the older male students at the Academy hold girls when they jump. As it is, my landing is smooth and easy; I crash into Link, his body taking the brunt of my fall as he's literally thrown onto the grass. Quickly I stand up, gasping, "Are you okay, Link?"

He sits up and makes a face before replying, "Yeah…don't worry, I have a hard head. Let's hurry up and get to this place you keep telling me about!"

Together we run through the grass and out the door, heading towards the plaza. Once we're at the top of the light tower I find that I'm out of breath, but looking over at Link I realize instantly that it was totally worth it to risk coming out here two nights in a row; wonder fills his eyes, and he looks up at the stars with an expression that makes me want to blush.

When he looks back at me I have to look away for a moment; his face is so full of happiness and awe that this time I do blush, the heat creeping into my cheeks in the still of the night. We're silent for a few moments before Link breaks the silent with a breathless voice full of wonder.

"Zelda…" he trails off, and I venture a peek at him only to see that he's staring at the sky again. "This is…this is awesome! It's really, really awesome!" Awesome seems to be the only word that he can come up with, and at his amazement I laugh a little, loosening up.

Inching closer to him, I point up in the sky and take a deep breath before saying, "See those stars over there? If you put them together, they kind of look like a loftwing, don't they?"

By now the two of us are too absorbed in looking at the sky to notice how close we're really standing. As we look up at the stars together, he squints before exclaiming, "You're right! It does look like a loftwing!"

For the next half hour we sit on top of the light tower, pointing and laughing and just having a good time together. It isn't until I ask Link where he came from that he really looks at me again. For a minute the two of us are silent, staring at each other before he turns red again and looks away.

Curling his knees to his chest, the boy next to me avoids my gaze as he coughs, "I…I don't really remember what happened before Eagus found me. I just kind of…woke up on one of those floating islands out there. I was all by myself, and when I looked around I didn't see anything. When Eagus found me he asked all sorts of questions, but I couldn't answer any of them besides my name and that I knew where I was. But I still remember stuff…well, some stuff."

When Link goes quiet again, a strange feeling comes over me as I stare at my new friend; it's a sorrowful feeling, yet there's something inside of me that makes me feel warm and at peace when I look at Link.

It's a feeling I can't explain, especially since I've just begun to know this boy.

Going with my feelings, I scoot closer to Link until our shoulders touch. Leaning against him lightly, I avoid his gaze as I feel the beginnings of a blush in my cheeks. I stare up at the stars before telling Link, "Well no matter what happens, we'll be friends- we'll be best friends. I just feel it...I'll be there for you Link! Always!"

When I dare to peek at him out of the corner of my eyes, I'm pleased to see that he's smiling at me, and I see that I'm not the only one blushing. As he leans back against me, Link turns his face towards the sky and replies, "I'll always be there for you too, Zelda. No matter what!"

Hey! Look! LISTEN!

Okay, sorry. I just couldn't resist doing that in a LoZ fanfic note XD. So, here's the deal: This is the first new story I've written in awhile. And by that I mean like...forever. Just ask the people who read my Fire Emblem fic. They know lol. All that being said, please be gentle with me on this story! It is my first EVER Legend of Zelda fic. I've played just about every game in the series and binge watched E3 for news about Breath of the Wild, and until now I've never really felt like I could do a fic worthy of the series. I'm typically a romance writer, so there will be LOTS OF FLUFF-be prepared for it! Now, onto the next chapter! And don't forget to read the author's note at the end of the next chapter either if you want some more clarification on things! :D