So this is going to be six chapters long. Each chapter is going to be one of the short stories I wrote for Zelink Week on tumblr, each one completely disconnected from the others.
This one in particular was based on the prompt 'Promise', and is Hyrule Warriors and features Fem! Sheik. Enjoy!
Sheik had to address the elephant in the room.
"…did you see my face?" She asked quietly, sliding her cowl back over her face.
The cot beneath her creaked as she imagined Link pulled himself to prop on his elbow. She must have looked strange to him, her bare back turned his way, wearing nothing but this silly mask and a blanket draped over her slender body. This whole thing had been foolish of her. She convinced herself it was okay to take off her mask because it had been too dark for him to see her, too dark for him to figure out who she was. She'd promised herself she'd remember to put her mask back on after they were finished, and head back to her own tent just to be safe. But she hadn't done either. Instead, she'd fallen right asleep, maskless and nestled in his arms.
She sighed. And what of sleeping with her Hero? Her ancestors would be ashamed of her lack of self-control.
"…I won't lie." Link finally started.
Those words frightened Sheik. She cast a worried, crimson glance over her shoulder, her mask safely concealing her identity once more. As predicted, he was propped up on his elbow, his blankets swathed over his hips. He was beautiful, as always, his lightly tanned skin glowing in the morning light. Blue eyes gleaming like chips of sapphire met her own artificially red eyes, as he watched her with an unreadable expression.
"I thought about looking at you," He finally admitted. "This morning, when I woke up around dawn to find you still in bed with me."
Sheik's hands clenched around the sheets, her heartbeat picking up. He knows. He has to know who I am.
"But I didn't." Link said, shifting his eyes away and running his free hand through his straw-coloured locks. "I was curious, I admit that… but I didn't want to betray your trust, so I just went back to sleep and hoped you would wake up before me next time."
Sheik's eyes were wide. "…Betray my trust?"
Link met her eyes again, skimming light fingers across her spine, eliciting a shiver. "You kept asking me last night if I could see you." He murmured.
She remembered badgering him so many times through the night; can you see me? Can you see? Can you see in this dark? He's always replied no, in a lusty growl, before continuing exactly where they left off.
"And you're never without that mask. You don't want people to see your face; I don't know the reason, and I won't bother you for it, but that much is clear to me."
It filled her heart with ease to hear him say that. She wanted to tell him the truth… really, she did. But there would always be the possibility her secret could leak out accidentally if she told him, or anyone… not to mention, she just didn't want to make Link lie for her. It was too big a gamble on her life. She couldn't risk it getting out who she really was—not when the enemy was hell-bent on getting rid of Princess Zelda.
"…thank you for not looking." Sheik finally said softly, finally turning her body back around to look at him.
He reached up and caught some of her sunny blonde hair spilling out of the bottom of her cowl and kissed it, eyes not leaving hers. "I… even though Impa doesn't trust you, Sheik, I want you to know that I do." He said. "And that I… care for you. A lot."
Sheik caught his hand, intertwining her slender, taped fingers with his much larger ones. She cared for him as well… too much, almost. It was strange of her to grow so attached to someone in only a couple months, but being with Link seemed as natural as breathing. He seemed to understand her better than anyone else, detecting her emotions when she thought she concealed them away so well. She remembered how one night, he'd grabbed her hand and rubbed them between his own without a word, just to ease pre-battle jitters she'd purposely been hiding. It was a peculiar phenomenon, but they seemed to be able communicate without words. They would always know what the other is thinking through nothing more than a look, whether it be on the battlefield or elsewhere.
She was glad to hear him say he cared for her—she'd been worried that the previous night had just been a lust-fuelled impulse realized.
"I care for you greatly as well." Sheik told him earnestly, scooting herself closer to him without releasing his hand.
Link sat up, reaching under the blankets to stroke a thumb across her knee. "Sheik, if you hide your face because of a scar or something of the sort on your face…" He met her eyes. "I… I'll understand if you're uncomfortable showing me, but I want you to know I won't ever be repulsed or repelled by it, whatever the case is."
Sheik stared at their hands laced together. "It's not… it's not that, Link." She didn't want him to feel as if she didn't trust him or that she worried he would judge her. She knew he wouldn't; that wasn't who Link was. "I just… I can't let you see me right now."
He kissed her knuckles as if she were a princess. "That's fine, I won't ask about it anymore. You are already beautiful to me, even though I cannot see all of you."
She felt her cheeks fill with colour. He was so sweet to her, so wonderful. She scooted even closer, but decided she wanted to be closer still. She crawled onto his lap and wrapped an arm around his neck. Much better.
"Close your eyes, please." She whispered, touching their noses together.
He obeyed, his eyelids sliding closed. It was a shame, really, to hides such beautiful blue orbs from view. Sheik mourned their absence as she tugged the bottom of her cowl down to reveal her lips. She leaned toward him and pressed her lips to his, cupping his jaw with her other hand. His arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss.
One day. She decided, sliding her own eyes closed—she trusted him not to look while she was distracted. One day I'll tell you the truth. One day I'll tell you who I really am, Link, I promise.