Link ran a hand through his unruly hair as he sat in the slowly darkening forest. Zelda was nearby; at least that's what Fi had been saying. As much as he wanted to move, he couldn't, to venture into the darkness would be dangerous, irresponsible, and most importantly could endanger Zelda's life further. With a deep sigh he slid both his sword and shield from his shoulders before leaning against a nearby tree, his head hit the rough bark and he rested his chin on his palm. He could barely fathom the surreal feeling of staring up at the clouds instead of down, he'd often imagined coming down to the surface, but not like this, never like this. Part of him thought that if he looked hard enough he'd be able to see Skyloft hovering above the cloudbank, but that part was very small. He wasn't the smartest where he came from, but he knew that was just a coping mechanism, he missed Skyloft.
He noticed that the end of his sword was glowing, a bright blue, Link pushed his hair from his face and closed his eyes.
"Fi, what is it?"
He didn't have to open his eyes to know she had appeared before him, she made a strange humming sound whenever she did.
"Master." Fi began, her voice was always so void of emotion, too perfect, the words fell from her lips the way musical notes were played by an instrument, "I detect a 73% chance that you are doubting your abilities. Can I provide any assistance?"
Link laughed under his breath and his eyes locked with Fi's, "I'm not doubtful. I'm just sad."
Fi didn't reply for a brief period, Link knew what she was doing, she was searching her knowledge for insight on what 'sad' was.
"You are feeling unhappy, miserable, depressed, dejected. Is this the correct definition?"
Link nodded slowly, "mhmm"
Fi's head cocked to the side and she blinked several times, "My knowledge of this emotion implies that it is not something I can fix. I am sorry, Master."
"I didn't expect you to be able to, Fi. You can't do everything, no one can." Link said with a shrug, his eyes locked on the ground.
The spirit nodded and turned to return to her home within the sword, but Link stopped her.
"Fi…" He murmured.
"Yes, Master?"
Link squeezed his eyes shut, fearing that he might cry without knowing exactly why. He was supposed to be the hero and he was fighting back tears, it was shameful, "Please, don't leave."
Fi nodded and continued to hover over him, without saying a word. Her coldness only made Link feel worse, he couldn't blame Fi for being the way she was, this is how she was created, but it still hurt.
"Talk to me, Fi."
"Would you like me to perform an analysis of the area, Master?"
"No, Fi. Just talk to me."
The spirit blinked, "I do not understand your request."
Link sighed and repositioned himself so he was kneeling in front of Fi, "What is your favourite colour?"
"I cannot possess favourites."
"C'mon, Fi." Link encouraged, there had to be something in there, "You've been trapped in a sword for so long and now that you're out and surrounded by all this colour, which one do you appreciate the most?"
There was a silence that went on for what felt like an age, Fi simply stared into Link's eyes and for a while he thought she'd never speak again.
"Green." She almost whispered, it was the first time her voice had ever lost its songlike perfection; a smile emerged on Link's face.
"Tell me why, Fi."
"I cannot." She replied and Link shuffled closer to her.
"Yes you can. Just try, please."
The spirit's expression flickered, her usual blank face contorted with confusion and slight pain before returning to its default state.
"It was one of the first I saw. You were wearing it, Master. Not as much as you do now though. I think" She paused, her brow furrowing, "I think I prefer what you wear now. The green is" another pause, "nice."
"Thank you." Link said, looking up at the spirit hovering before him, her blue skin shimmered slightly in the moonlight.
"No need to thank me, it is my duty to assist you, Master." Her voice had returned to its musical state and Link almost wanted to groan in annoyance, but held it back.
"Why do you insist on calling me master, Fi?"
"Because you are my master, Master."
Link scoffed, "No I'm not, and I am not in control of you, Fi. You are your own person, or… your own sword spirit if you will. You are free to do whatever you want."
"I…" Fi started, the word didn't so much flow from her lips as it did clatter, "I want to serve you, as your…" The next paused was filled with an electrical humming as she looked for the right word, Link couldn't see what she was thinking, but within her mind thousands of pictures flashed past her eyes in rapid succession. The flood of images stopped on one that she quickly identified as love, she knew that she must have miscalculated, she couldn't feel love. So instead she quickly conjured up the closest thing to love she could find, "Friend. I want to serve as your friend, Master."
Link grinned and stood to reach Fi's eye level, "If you want to be my friend, you'll have to stop calling me master."
"What do you wish for me to call you?"
"You pick."
The electrical humming returned and Link knew that Fi was confused and thinking hard, even though there was no evidence on her face, "Link…" She whispered, almost testing it out, deciding if she liked it, "may I call you Link?"
Link smiled and placed a hand on Fi's shoulder, she pulled back slightly at the contact, but didn't run away, "Of course you can."
From that day forth Fi became much more inquisitive, asking more questions than before, not only about the world around them, sometimes even about Link himself.
"Link?" She asked, he was leaning against the cool wall in his bedroom at the Knight's Academy and she was floating above him.
"Yeah?" He replied, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand. They'd just returned from the volcano, his shield needed a repair and he needed a sleep. He felt guilty about making Zelda wait even a second longer than she had to, but he was exhausted and swore he'd make his way back first thing the next morning.
"What does love feel like?"
Link blinked and stared at Fi's emotionless face, "What type of love…?" He asked slowly, not sure what Fi meant by asking this question.
"There is more than one type?"
"Yeah." Link started while pushing himself up from the wall, he sat on his bed cross-legged and gazed up at the spirit before him, "I love my Loftwing, I love Skyloft, I love adventure and I love…Zelda. But all in different ways."
Fi stared at him blankly, trying to figure out what to say next, "How do you love Zelda, Link?"
Link shrugged, not quite sure how to reply. He didn't know how he loved Zelda, he wanted to save her and he enjoyed being with her, but he wasn't sure he loved her in the general sense of the word, he used to, of course he did, but lately that had changed. He wasn't sure why.
"I love her as a friend, Fi. I enjoy spending time with her and our friendship is what has driven me to save her."
Fi cocked her head to the side, "Do you love me as a friend?"
Link didn't know what to say to that. He wasn't sure he did, he knew he loved Fi, but he wasn't sure how, it was a mixture of things. He loved her because she took care of him, he loved her because it was cute when she didn't understand, he loved her because she was his friend. He was confused.
"Link, I detect a rise in your blood pressure. Have I offended you?" Link shook his head, "Are you ill, Link? Did you sustain injury? If you have if would be advisable for you to locate a healing potion-"
Fi would have continued talking for a while longer, but she found it was difficult to speak with Link's lips pressed against hers. Link wasn't sure what drove him to kiss her, but he liked it, her skin was smooth and cold, but her lips were soft. She didn't move at all, she was rooted to her spot in the air, she was calculating, what did this mean? Nothing in her head told her what to do in this situation, she should have panicked, but she didn't, part of her relaxed. She quickly realised that she had wanted this; the spirit willed a hand to materialise under her cloak, solely for the purpose of resting it on Link's cheek.
The kiss only lasted a brief few seconds, but that was all they needed.