A/N: And so! with two crashy weak computers, no spellcheck, no dinner, an argument with my parents and 5+ hours of work, I FINALLY got around to writing! This will be a two/three part fic, from the looks of it. I have the rest planned out, and I just have to continue writing. I'm very excited to be back, especially with a couple so very different. I'm glad everyone reading this is giving it a try! (Oh, and P.S. - sorry for the cheesy breaks. Only way to keep formatting.)

My love for him was so misplaced; it was so wrong, it was so insatiable, I felt it burning inside my body with every step, tingling inside my fingertips like magic, a horrible ecstatic fire, a delicious pain...

And it made me feel so damn alive.

My fingers clenched my skin as a thwarted memory washed over me. Heaving a sigh, I let it sink through me, seeming to catch on my heart and anchor it in the sea of emotions, the brutal, crushing pain of the rejecting waves, the sting of the saltiness in the sea foam...

"Zelda...Zelda..."

Gasping, I quickly released the tension in my hands before opening my eyes. And lo and behold, did I see quite the sight.

Samus Aran was standing over me, hair tickling my nose as she scrunched hers. "Wake up, sleepy," she chimed prettily, sounding quite merrier than usual, which I mentioned to her as I stretched and wrenched myself from the loveseat.

"Well, you know," she said in that quiet, calm voice of hers, "I didn't think I would actually enjoy something like this, but I've decided to keep an open mind."

She chatted on as I followed her through the room, my mind wrestling with my heart to understand her words. When she turned to rifle through a closet, I lifted the hem of my dress. With a sinking suspicion, I ran my fingers across the smooth skin until I came across a ripped nick that came from a pinch. Sighing, I checked to see if my knuckles were still white. Not again.

This was getting absolutely absurd.

"...don't you think so? Zelda?" I whipped my head up just to catch her slightly amused, slightly frustrated eyeroll. "Pay attention for a second, doll. Come on, I depend on you to explain to me the strange and terrifying world of fashion!"

I smiled slyly at her, the last remnants of fatigue fleeing my mind. "Coming from the fearless bounty hunter, to the medieval princess?"

Sticking out her tongue, Samus' embarrassment seemed to fade. "So is this dress pretty? Do you think it's appropriate?"

Leaning against the wall, staring at her in mock exasperation, I said, "Samus, you're the kind of woman who could wear a burlap sack and make it look beautiful."

She looked at me in bemusement. "And...that doesn't answer my question."

Breaking into giggles, I grabbed her hand and led her through the closet, my silent torment nothing now but a glimmering pool from which I had emerged.

~Araceli L~

I wasn't the one who started this.

His eyes, burning eyes, staring at me from across the room, biting into me until the breath left my lungs.

Those eyes, eyes on fire, eyes the color of dull embers, of sparks ready to jump...those eyes stopped me on the spot, put me on a pedestal, caught me in a trance...

And then, in the next second, I was back to being myself. His eyes were surveying other things, shrewd and calculating...

Turn them back on me. Look over here again.

Feeling the breath flooding back into my lungs, I looked around nervously, bewildered and slightly shaken at the thoughts flying through my head. I tucked a few stray hairs behind my pointed ears, as if this would soothe me.

Instead, it was a gentle touch on my arm by my companion.

I know that when I met his eyes, my wild and worried expression didn't escape his attention, regardless of how fast I composed myself.

"Are you alright, Princess?" His voice was politely concerned, with a special care to not cross any boundaries. Maybe he thought I couldn't tell, but I think he knew I knew.

Struggling to free my mind from all these entangling thoughts, I nodded, trying my best to look dignified. "Yes, yes, thanks for asking. I'm just fine. Let's continue on."

I saw a brief flash of distrust in his blue eyes. He saw that I saw, and hid it quickly by brushing his ash blond bangs from his forehead.

And then we both went on, pretending neither of us knew the innermost secrets and emotions of the other.

~Araceli L~

The wind blew softly onto my skin, drawing its wispy fingers along my hair, pulling it into the air as if it wanted me to come and play, lingering at the tips like a final plea.

"Zelda?" That same polite, quiet voice raised me out of my meditations. I glanced up, and met those same honest blue eyes.

"Link..." I murmured softly, my heart racing. "You're here. What are you doing here?"

He stopped in front of me, his hair and face shining like the sun setting in front of us. I don't know whether it was excitement, nervousness, or courage, but he put the sun to shame.

He was wringing his hands, and between his white knuckles I saw glimpses of gold. Biting his lip, he would look at me briefly, then back up, then open his mouth to speak, then close it with a frustrated sigh.

I stood, dress billowing around me in the wind, hair nearly obscuring my face. I walked to him, smiling slightly, and put a finger to his gnawed lips.

"You don't have to find the right words. Whatever you say will be right." And I felt that this was true, and believed it with all my pounding heart.

He looked up from underneath his eyelashes, seemingly suddenly calm. He raised his chin, and met my eyes bravely, as though having reached a decision. I awaited earnestly.

He searched my face, and then, as though finding what he was looking for, he lunged forward and, wrapping his arms tight around me, kissed me deeply.

"Link," I sighed, my lips still between his, "you know this isn't right..."

He nodded, pressing his forehead into mine. "Yes. But I might as well have you while I can," he said huskily, pressing into another kiss before I could protest.

And though I could feel the guilt, all the shame and morals bubbling up into my throat, I swallowed them down and allowed myself to melt into him.

~Araceli L~

Samus twirled in her robin's-egg blue ball gown, the light catching it attractively as her green eyes gleamed.

"Zelda, you did great! Thank you!" She completed another spin, her smile seeming to widen with every step.

I grinned, satisfied with the look of joy on her face. "Of course. I would never not help you." She returned my look, then caught my eyes in the mirror.

"When are you getting dressed?" she asked casually, pushing her hair this way and that.

I fell down onto my bed, rather ungracefully, and sighed. She knew exactly what she was doing. "You know I'm not going. I've had enough of balls to last me the rest of my life. Especially masquerades."

Samus' mouth curled into a pout.

"And," I continued, smirking slightly at ignoring her, "they are ever so overrated. Everyone speaks of romance and the thrill of the mystery of the mask, but really, it's not much different than the masks humans wear everyday. And it will be obvious how is behind the mask!" I exclaimed, sitting up and pounding my fists on the bed. It squeaked in protest.

"Oh Zelda," Samus turned to me with an annoyed expression on her features, "aren't I supposed to be the one who hates dressing up in any shape or form?"

I gave a reluctant smile. "So?"

She didn't budge. "So, it's not about the 'mystery', as you think. Yes, it's cliche, slightly silly and overrated, but I think it's supposed to be about having fun."

"And you know how to have fun?" As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I felt the sarcastic sting they carried. Still, even as Samus glanced at me with a bit of a hurt look, I kept my chin high, avoiding eye contact.

"Well - I mean, I just thought..." Samus trailed off, and I broke my haughtiness to look at her. Instantly regret at her crestfallen embarrassment flooded through me.

"Oh, Samus," I said, standing up. I went to her and took her hand. "I'm sorry. I suppose I'm just a little...there's a lot on my mind."

"Yeah, I noticed," she answered, slightly dryly. I looked away in shame, and she squeezed my hand.

"Come on. Come with me. Allow yourself one cheesy, cliche night of fun."

~Araceli L~

His eyes, burning me. Burning me.

And I loved the pain.

Why was I sitting here, my eyes skimming over pages I wasn't reading? Why did my eyes keep jumping upward, only to crouch back down with a flush? Why was I so afraid? Why was-

"Excuse me." A gruff voice, sharp and deep, cut through my cloud of confusion, and instantly I stopped dead.

And I met his eyes.

Amber eyes, alive with fire. Jumping coals, twirling sparks flitted about, burning those who got too close, their lives extinguished in a furious burst. His eyes, so dangerous, so barred, so tempting...

All these thoughts rushed through me in a split second, and my natural instincts whipped me back to reality. Raising my chin, and meeting his gaze politely yet slightly haughtily, I nodded. "Yes?"

"Could you stop staring at me? Making it rather hard to concentrate," he said blatantly, halting me in my tracks, blood rushing to my cheeks like a volcano. I opened my mouth to stammer, then shut it, then looked down ashamedly.

Then I heard a rough chuckle issuing from his throat, and I peeked up curiously to see if he was teasing. Indeed, he had a taunting, kind of snarky smile on his face, and when I met his eyes quickly, he opened his mouth and laughed.

And his whole face seemed to open, and his eyes didn't seem so cold. It wasn't a loud, long, or full-fledged laugh, but it trickled through me like a brook, the sound filling me.

As his laughter faded, he took the chair next to me. "Ah," he said, still chuckling, "I'm just playing, kid. But am I really that interesting?"

I bit my lip, feeling my whole body stiffen as he looked at me. I glanced up from under my eyelashes and attempted to regain some of my dignity.

"I don't usually see such modern humans," I said loftily, turning my attention back to my book.

"Hmmph," he mused, still studying me curiously. "And why's that?"

"Because I'm the princess of kingdom from the past," I snapped. "Now, if you don't mind, sir, I'd like to get back to my reading."

"Didn't seem like you were paying much attention in the first place."

I glared at him, only to see a boyish smirk that irritated me so. "Was too," was all I could think to say. I felt my heart begin to pound excitedly as he raised his eyebrows sarcastically.

"Then what's the title of that book?"

I gaped at him, then finally felt my walls drop. I tossed the book aside in defeat. "You win. What do you want?" It sounded frustrated, but if he was as intuitive as he seemed, he would hear the hint of playfulness.

"I was just curious as to why you were observing me like you were. Most people have ignored me here." He turned his gaze down the aisle in front of him, and ruffled his short brown hair thoughtfully. I watched as he sighed. "Most people not friendly here?"

I shrugged, then instantly berated myself for the graceless action. "It depends, I suppose. Most seemed to think you were not the talking type."

His lips curled into an accepting smile. "Usually, I'm not. Wait, people were talking about me?"

"We love to judge the newcomers," I said mockingly, having been a victim of hypocrisy myself.

He seemed to catch my sarcasm, and laughed coldly. "Doesn't everybody?" And then he turned his eyes on me.

I wasn't ready for the deepest anger I saw burning there, the distrust and pain there. And he let it be. He didn't conceal it. He let his eyes smolder into mine.

I nodded, trying to fix myself from his gaze, but I felt them hypnotizing me even as I looked away. "I don't," I stated defiantly, feeling that even if it wasn't true, I attempted.

His eyes were still burning me. "I can tell."

Surprised, I allowed myself to feel the fire. "How?" I blurted out. I shut my eyes in embarrassment, then blinked them open, only to find his burning even more intently than before.

"You're not like everyone else."

I smiled slowly, then threw myself into that fathomless fire.

A/n: I literally had so many problems trying to upload this fic. I texted Messenger of Dreams in a frantic stress, probably freaking him out, but at least it finally went up! Please remember to review, because I've been doing this since I was thirteen now. I'm an oldie. I DESERVE REVIEWS

*cough* Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed!

~Araceli L