When Zelda first awoke, the world around her came into focus in slow degrees. The warmth behind her eyes, golden sunlight streaming through the window to caress her face. The softness of the mattress beneath her, the pillow cradling her head. The woolen blanked pulled up over her shoulders.
The presence of another person at her back, an arm thrown lightly over her waist, soft breaths tickling the nape of her neck.
She sighed, and leaned back into the heat behind her, and in his sleep Link muttered something unintelligible and pulled her flush against him. She reveled in the way muscles beneath his skin tensed as he tightened the hold of his arm around her, he steady pounding of heartbeat again her back, the way his legs tangled with hers so easily it was hard to imagine a time when this had not been natural.
Zelda had used to despise mornings, and the hours spent on morning devotionals before breaking her fast, but now - when she got to wake up like this - they had suddenly become her favourite part of her all around blissful days. She didn't think she'd ever truly get used to this, yet at the same time it was impossible to imagine what things had been like beforehand.
Careful not to make any sudden movements, Zelda shifted around in Link's arms to face him. He looked so peaceful when he slept that it was easy to forget that this man - the one who shared her bed, who slept with his lips curled into a soft frown, who had a light dusting of freckles decorating his nose - was the same one who had defeated the Calamity. She reached up, and gently traced her thumb over his lips, down his cheek, and he shuddered softly, murmuring to himself.
Judging by the angle that the sunlight was hitting the windows it was already long past the time that she should have been getting up, but Zelda did not want to disturb her sleeping partner by attempting to climb over him. He always insisted on lying on the outside of their tiny bed - we could get Bolson to install a double, but then I wouldn't have to sleep as close to you - claiming that the only way he could make her get enough rest was by physically preventing her from rising with the sun evey morning. Zelda suspected that it was because of something more deep rooted, stemming from his need to know she was there - safe - at all times, even if that meant using his own body as a barrier between her and the rest of the world when they slept. To her surprise, this bothered her less than it might have, before. The door was locked and bolted, anyway.
She brushed her hand lightly across his shoulder, fingers absently tracing a path along one of the many scars that tore across his skin, and sighed contentedly. Outside, the birds sang their morning praise to the warm sun overhead.
Eventually, Link stirred beneath her touch, groaning into the pillow. He cracked a bleary eye open to take her in, and she smiled at him. "Good morning," she murmured, reaching up to caress his face again.
He smiled back, sleepily, and the hand that was thrown over her hip spread out to envelope the entirety of the small of her back, fingers drumming lightly against the old tunic of his she wore to sleep in. "You watching me sleep?" he mumbled, shifting closer, enough to bury his face against her hair.
Zelda shuddered as she felt him breath her in. Even after everything they'd done together, it was still the quiet moments like these - with Link's hand trailing lazily down her back to slip under her (his) tunic, twisting the waistband of her undergarments absently around his fingers - that truly excited her the most.
"Yes," she responded, a little breathless. "You're a right sleeping beauty, you know. And you do certainly sleep like one, too. Next thing I know, I'll be needing a convenient princess to ride by and break the spell."
Eyes still half-lidded with sleep, he brought his face down to rest beside hers, so close that their noses brushed. "I've already got one of those," he murmured, breath hot against her lips. "And she's definitely the only one I need." And he closed the distance between them and gently pressed his lips against her own.
Zelda loved all of Link's kisses, but she held - and probably always would hold - a special place in her heart for those that came first thing in the morning, when he had yet to fully awaken. His lips were soft and thorough, movements unhurried - like he was savouring every taste he could - and still a little clumsy with sleep. Link always kissed her like he was a starved man enjoying his first meal in months, but there was something about these kisses that felt so intimate, so special, and it made a pleasant, familiar heat begin pool in her stomach.
She reached up to thread her fingers through his unbound hair and leisurely comb them through the silky strands, humming into his mouth. He responded with a soft groan, using his legs to drag her even closer.
"It's already late enough," she told him, when they'd pulled apart, eventually. "We really need to get up."
Link moaned stubbornly, face curled into a pout that made him look more like an upset child than the Chosen Hero. His thumb brushed along the bare skin at the base of her spine - making her shudder - and he closed his eyes and leaned forward the bury his face in the crook of her neck. "You're ridiculous," he muttered into her collarbone. "The sun has barely risen."
She tutted, sliding a hand down to his bare shoulder, the other still holding him at the back of his head. "I don't know how you can stand to sleep in so late. The day is wasting away as it is."
She felt his lips curl against her neck, and he tiled his head up to meet her gaze. "It's your fault I'm so tired," he said, grinning wickedly. "You're the one that kept me up so late last night."
Zelda flushed red, and Link's laughs tickled the sensitive skin at the base of her throat. "We've already saved Hyrule," he murmured against her skin, when he'd stilled again. "We deserve a day off."
"That's what you said yesterday," she muttered, but made no move to push him away.
Link planted his forearm into the mattress beside her head, and used it to push it up so that he was leaning over her, looking down. His eyes were dark, almost hungry as he dragged his gaze over her, gnawing at his bottom lip with his teeth. It was still amazing how quickly he seemed to be able to go from zero to one hundred; a side effect of his impossibly fast reflexes, she guessed. Despite herself, Zelda shivered at the deliberate way his eyes moved down her body, over her collar, her chest, the exposed skin of her stomach where her tunic had ridden up. He was definitely wide awake, now.
"How about we compromise, then?" he murmured, the lightness in his tone juxtaposed by the ravenous look he was giving her. "We can stay in bed, but we have to so something... productive with our time."
Suddenly, the feeling of his right hand against her hip did not feel at all innocent, oh no. His fingers were digging into her skin like knives, holding her there, and his jaw was set as he searched her face, waiting for her response.
In her chest, her heart swelled so much that she thought it might burst. Even now, he still waited for her affirmation before moving ahead, still always seemed to put her wishes well above his own, and she loved him all the more for it.
Still, she lay back and pretended to contemplate his suggestion, digging her teeth into her bottom lip and privately reveling in the way the muscles in his neck and shoulders strained in reaction. Two could play his game, after all. "I suppose I could take you up on your offer," she drawled, deliberately dragging a finger down his chest. "Provided we don't waste another second of time." And she grinned.
Above her, Link released the breath he had been holding, and Zelda positively melted as he crashed forward and pinned her to the mattress.