Hyrule had started to settle down in the weeks following the defeat of the Great Calamity. And of course, everyone was overjoyed that they could begin to rebuild, no longer having to worry about monsters around every single corner that would be reborn under the Blood Moon, or the overhanging fear of Ganon ripping free and tearing through the land.
Sidon was one of the many relieved at the removal of the Great Evil. And yet he was not.
All of Zora's domain had waited anxiously after Link had announced that he was leaving for Hyrule Castle. The last remaining Champion returned for a brief bit of rest, having tamed his final Divine Beast, and prepared himself for the journey ahead by stocking up on supplies and making sure he was in the best health that he could manage, given the situation. Prince Sidon was more than happy to assist his dearest friend—He issued the order for his people to lend their aid to Link as well, although several were already more than willing to help. Even before his word was given, they had been eager to leap to Link's side and offer any service they could. After all, the small man had been a frequent visitor in their kingdom, one who was hell bent on giving his own assistance to even the smallest of tasks. It did not go unnoticed or unrewarded.
Upon leaving the Domain, Link was loaded with a satchel full of elixirs, hearty meals, and arrows of every type they could get their hands on. Even with the sacred blade, nobody wanted to leave any possibility of help unexplored. Repeating the Champions' sacrifice, Mipha's sacrifice—No Zora was too prideful to want for such an outcome, nor were they too spiteful to begrudge Link help now. Muzu had even given the Hylian a sincere word of gratitude and well wishing.
Recalling that memory without anything more than a twitch of his lips was impossible for Sidon. That old, grumpy guppy had been so opposed to Link's initial return.
But the second time the Hero of Hyrule had returned to the Domain after an epic clash, no one was snide or uppity towards him—He had been met with endless praise and cheer, shouts of gratitude, showers of gifts from Zora's Domain. The Zora prince was no exception either, sweeping Link up for a quick embrace and then throwing the Hylian up onto his shoulders to parade around.
Now he remembers this moment fondly. Sidon sighs softly to himself and smiles, gazing out past the expansive bridge into the city. He waited almost impatiently at the foot of the royal throne room, watching over Zora's Domain in an attempt to soothe himself. That celebratory night had been fantastic, surreal. Link's legs had pressed onto his shoulders and chest, one arm holding his dorsal fin to keep steady. The other was free to say his thanks for every bit of hero worship thrown his way. But Sidon for once did not care what his people were doing—Link was atop him, safe and very much alive, back where he clearly felt the most comfortable.
Unfortunately, despite the joy of the occasion, Sidon's gut was knotted with a seedling of anxiety. Upon the Hylian's return, he had a duty to fulfill. Even though no one would judge him, or chastise or berate him until he did his task, Sidon felt sure that he would benefit from completing his mission soon—before it became even more difficult.
In an effort to uphold his self imposed promise, Sidon had requested Link to set aside a handful of hours to leave the Domain a few days later. Of course the Hylian had accepted, there was no worry about that. Link was his dearest friend and he knew that as far as that feeling was concerned, it was a mutual engagement. The problem lied beyond that. Many nights had been spent wrestling himself internally, foolishly attempting to employ logic and reason towards his feelings. Clearly the effort had not paid off. In fact, Sidon could swear that all those hours he spent trying to manage himself and therefore dwelling on thoughts of the Hylian only further his predicament. It was impossible to think of Link and not linger on the image of his soft, sincere smile or the radiant blue of his eyes. His laugh, quiet most of the time but raspy and barking when genuinely amused as he so often was with Sidon. Warmth on his skin, smooth, textured, not a burning heat but comforting and soothing, akin to that of the famed Zora mineral pools.
A tap on his waist jarred Sidon out of his wandering thoughts. He knew immediately it was Link—No other Zora would need to resort to touch to get his attention, nor would they have to touch so low on his person.
"Ah, Link! My apologies, I seem to have fallen victim to a distraction. I hope you weren't waiting long?" Sidon quickly squeezed the Hylian's hand in greeting before letting it go, allowing Link to respond as he pleased.
"No, not long. It's fine," Link signed back. "I'm ready for whatever adventure you had planned for us." He grins, teasing—There isn't any cumbersome gear strapped to either of them. Sidon's rapier is at his hip as usual, simply out of habit, while Link retains his sacred sword on his back and little else. Zora don't usually outfit themselves in armor, and the Hylian has also forgone it today in favor of a simple green tunic and breeches.
"An adventure!" Sidon laughs, shaking his head. "I do hope my real plans are not disappointing, were you expecting us to 'adventure' together. I had thought you would enjoy a…favorite spot of mine. It is quite a relaxing area, I assure you! And of course you deserve a rest after your accomplishments. Shall we head there now?" Link nods. He doesn't seem at all put out that they won't be hunting or exploring areas. "Splendid! Then stick close, and I will show you the way."
Their journey is a leisurely one, filled with light chatter between the two of them, teasing jokes and talk of future plans for Hyrule. Sidon has managed to keep his nerves at bay, he thinks, and is fairly certain that Link has not suspected an ulterior motive to their outing. After all, going out together for a walk or a swim wasn't anything out of the ordinary. But the moment of peace is quickly coming to a close as the duo approaches a cave, tucked away in the luminous rock of the mountainside.
"Ah, here we are," Sidon hummed with some amount of forced enthusiasm. "Please, after you." A clawed hand gestured for Link to proceed ahead, trusting the Zora and his idea for a relaxing spot.
It wasn't a surprise that a Zora would find a waterfall within a softly luminescent cave to be a relaxing spot. Link would have to agree. The pool of water near the back of the cave seemed warm as he approached, dipping his fingers across the surface. He was correct—The heat was pleasant, not overwhelming but enough to ease any tension in the muscles it washed over. Link threw a quick smile over his shoulder, not lingering long enough to notice the strain in Sidon's returned grin. He righted himself and started unbuckling straps and belts before a large hand gripped him.
"Wait—Hold a moment, if you please," the prince requested softly. "I… I had wished to speak with you. I apologize for leading you here without informing you of that intention." Sidon slowly retracted his hand, instead reaching for the Hylian's as he took a deep breath. "Now that the Great Evil has been tamed, I had thought that it would be best to tell you now. I know that Mipha passed with some regrets—I shouldn't like to make the same mistake."
The large Zora towered over Link, forcing him to look up towards him. His gaze was curious, eyes flickering back and forth, presumably trying to discern what was troubling him so much. Sidon tried not to focus on that, instead forcing the words out of his mouth, dredging them up from deep crevice in his heart that he'd locked them away in for many weeks.
"I did not wish to burden you when you had enough to weigh on your shoulders. But now that you are, relatively speaking, free… I must confess, Link. You are my dearest friend. And I of course treasure your friendship, but I hope that perhaps you might…also wish that it were something more?" Sidon paused, hoping to gauge any sort of reaction from the Hylian. His nose had scrunched up in distaste, furrow creasing his brow as he looked up towards his friend. A pit of dread formed in Sidon's stomach, but he persevered, clearing his throat to continue on with this damned confession. "I…realize that we are different, I had worried that it might offput you that I am not a Hylian like yourself, but Zora—"
Link abruptly snatched his hands back and signed.
"I want to leave. Now." Whatever Sidon had expected, it hadn't been such a vexed response. He scrambled to try and fix things, taking a step towards Link.
"My friend, please, I did not mean to make you uncomfortable, I simply—"
"I hate fish. I want to leave," Link insisted hurriedly. He made a swift exit out of the cave, leaving Sidon behind.
It felt horrible to be abandoned there, for their friendship to be over. He wondered briefly if their friendship had been one of mere convenience, considering that Link had now admitted his contempt towards fish. Had it all been an act, Link just simply playing the role of the Hero? The thought soured Sidon's mouth. He knew Link. The Zoras in the Domain knew Link. It wasn't possible that he hated them all so much, surely this was just his way of making it clear to Sidon that he was not interested in furthering their relationship. After finally realizing he had frozen and failed to react, Sidon followed the Hylian out of the cave.
The Link that stood on the outskirts of the cavern seemed different. That hatred dissipated, his posture more relaxed—Which only served to further confuse the Zora approaching him. He knelt down before the Champion, refraining from taking his hand as he felt inclined to, and began to beg his forgiveness.
"Link, my friend, please allow me to rectify the situation—" A poke on his shoulder. Another interruption. Sidon hesitantly looked up at Link, who mirrored his expression of confusion.
"What are you doing? What are you talking about?" He tugged gently at Sidon's distal fins, urging him to stand up at his full height again. "There's no situation. Are you alright?" Seeing the cheerful and enthusiastic Zora look so completely downtrodden and riddle with anxiety was more than a little unsettling. He helped Sidon right himself and stared up at him worriedly, expression clearly waiting for a response.
"I… You aren't mad?" the Zora started, tilting his head. "You said you hated fish, and I thought you would want to be rid of the company of a Zora…" Sidon trailed off quietly, gesturing at his own form to indicate the fishy likeness. The silence that extended between them seemed endless, Sidon anxiously awaiting a reaction—A movement, a sign, anything. However, he didn't expect that quiet to dissolve into chuckles.
Link folded in on himself, unable to support the raucous laughter tearing from his throat. Tears formed in his eyes as the strain started to make a burn in his stomach and lungs.
"I—What's amusing? Link?" Sidon spluttered, perplexed. "I'm afraid I don't understand." Watching Link continue to laugh to himself, the Zora folded his arms over his wide chest and began to pout slightly in his confusion. "I truly do not see what is so funny."
The Hylian finally righted himself, although his shoulders still shook with contained snickers. When he was able to speak again he looked up at Sidon, eyes glimmering and a smile bright on his face.
"You're a fool."
"Wh—Well, I-!" Sidon started, mortified, before Link cut him off again by waving his hands.
"You're a fool," the Hylian signed again. "I hate fish. Real fish. It's the eyes. They're…dead and cold and bleak, somehow more evil and dark than the Malice. I'm not saving the world now so I don't force myself to be around them if I don't have to," he started to explain. Sidon still didn't fully understand what the relevance of his fish hatred had to do with the timing of his confession.
"Alright… But if you weren't—put off with me, then why did you bring that up?" he asked tentatively. Link pointed back towards the cave.
"The stones on the ceiling reflected the fish in the pond. I didn't see them before. Looking up at you made me see."
Oh.
Oh.
"So you…simply didn't want to look at the fish any longer?" Link nodded an affirmation. "Goddess, what a fool I am!" Another emphatic head nod followed a chuckle, as if to say 'didn't I tell you?'
"You have my sincerest apologies, Link. I had not known of your aversion."
"It's fine. Don't worry. Zora eyes aren't as dead and lifeless so it isn't a big deal to me." A pause. "Actually, your eyes are very pretty." And just like that, Sidon's laugh was back, tension long forgotten. The worst case scenario had already played itself out, what more did he have left to lose?
"Why thank you, friend! That is very flattering of you to say." After a moment of thought, Sidon knelt to even the height distance between them, hoping to look into Link's eyes in a more straightforward angle. His larger hand curled gently around the Hylian's. "I…do hope I am still allowed to address you as 'friend'? I know I did not…say all the words I had meant to, but you are impossibly clever, and… I am sure you know what I had intended." Link's grinning expression softened as he processed the question, looking down at both of his hands sandwiched between one of Sidon's. The Zora knew he couldn't speak like this. It was likely his way of allowing Link to take all the time he needed to mull over the answer and how he would deliver it.
But he didn't need that time. Link gently pulled his hands away and stared pointedly at Sidon.
"Of course we're friends."
The Zora's fretful expression finally relaxed into that cheerful and optimistic look of his. He remained at an even height with Link, sighing out his relief and smiling warmly.
"Thank you! As I said you are my most treasured friend, and I would hate for this to come between us—Oh!" Link interrupted, again, by swooping in and pressing his lips against the white skin of Sidon's cheek. A large, red hand found its way to that same spot, hovering over it, feeling as if that part of him were no longer innervated with nerves, just numb with the exception of a searing heat. Link pulled back a little further to nudge him with his nose and pull up his hands to sign.
"I would also like to hear those words you had prepared. But maybe in a more appropriate location. I'm sure you'd be disappointed if you didn't get to confess to me with a grand romantic gesture—And I don't expect any less from you." It took a moment for Sidon to fully comprehend the words that had been signed, instead focused on those preciously soft lips and smile. But once he had understood, his once white cheeks were rosy with excitement. Sidon grabbed the Hylian's hands between his once more, this time with much more intent.
"Oh, my pearl, of course! I will give you my heart with all the romance you deserve, as you've so kindly allowed me a second chance after my fumbling," Sidon chuckled. The Zora pulled Link flush against him, cradling the back of his soft haired head with a large hand. "You will have my heart and all that you desire, my pearl…," he sighed fondly.
Link squeezed his arms around the large Zora as far as he could (which wasn't far at all). Sidon had never been the subtle sort, and Link wasn't completely obtuse—This confession had been a long time coming.
In fact, waiting, hoping for this moment… Link cherished the thought and fueled his drive to defeat the Calamity with it. But that would be another confession, for another time. First, Sidon had to properly ask to court him. Link couldn't wait to see what completely overboard and genuine romantic gesture the Zora prince would dream up for the two of them. That sweet sparkle in his eyes was what he absolutely lived for.