Ravio and Hilda watched as the portal to Hyrule closed for the last time, cutting them off from Link and Zelda forever. Ravio sighed deeply and turned to Hilda, whom he was surprised to find crying.
"Princess Hilda?!" He exclaimed, nearly dropping his bag of rupees. Hilda smiled sadly, and attempted to give Ravio a reassuring look.
"Ravio… You truly are wonderful." She said sadly, staring deeply into his eyes, tears threatening to overflow once more. Ravio was alarmed and confused, but unable to articulate anything.
"How can you possibly look at me the same as before, knowing what I have done? It amazes me how easily you forgave me" Hilda looked away in shame, trying to maintain some dignity by crying out of sight of Ravio's gaze. He set his rupee bag on the floor beside him, and turned Hilda to face him. He looked intensely at her, though she did not return the eye contact. He pulled her into a firm and meaningful hug. Unprepared, she was motionless and rigid for a moment before relaxing. She exhaled and returned the hug. When he finally pulled away, he smiled at her genuinely.
"It's okay. You did what you could for your kingdom and your people. It's all anybody could ask for. Besides, it turned out pretty damn well in the end for us, didn't it?"
"Thanks to you. You were the hero, despite what you always say about not being brave enough. You may not be the strong silent and fearless type like Link, but you are a hero."
"HA. Whatever you say, princess." Ravio smirked and shook his head as he scooped up back his rupee bag. As he began to leave, Hilda put her hand on his shoulder.
"What happens now?" She asked anxiously, "In the tales of old, the story ends when the hero saves the day… but they never say what happened next… for the princess and hero that is."
"I suppose we move on. Seek our fortune, live until we die. Hopefully rich" Ravio chuckles, the laughter not quite reaching his eyes.
This time Hilda turned him to face her.
"But I don't want it to end here… I'd miss you…." She said almost defiantly. He stared back, neither of them speaking for what felt like a ages. Hilda lowered her hand shakily and reached for his, holding it tight. Ravio stared at their entwined fingers, blushing. Hilda waited nervously and stony faced, preparing for rejection. Ravio looked back at her and pulled his hand gently away.
"You don't mean that. You're just scared of what will happen if things changed." He said, trying not to make his voice sound bitter. She was bewildered at first, but soon found herself.
"And you just want to leave because you're scared of people's expectations of you!" She snapped back.
"Maybe I am!" He fumed "So what if I don't want expectations to control me?!"
"Then don't!" She yelled, her voice cracking, "Do what you want! And if you want to leave then leave! But don't come back when you're out of rupees and friends!" Tears threatened to spill from Ravio's eyes as he glared at her defiantly. She took a deep and shaky breath.
"But if you want to stay… don't let expectations scare you away. That's still letting them control you." she said tartly. He opened his mouth angrily to speak, but stopped and sighed.
"I'd stay if I thought you really wanted me to." He said miserably as he turned to walk away.
Hilda stood there, infuriated and disbelieving. She stormed after him, grabbed him and pulled him into a deep kiss. Ravio squealed in surprise and barely had the chance to kiss back as she pulled away and slapped him in the face. He was in a daze, lips still puckering out stupidly, his reaction time not working correctly. He looked dumbfounded as Hilda stormed back into the castle, leaving him there to make a choice.
