Several years later, the long-awaited day in which Link and Zelda would meet had finally come. Mido, one of the castle servants, was very excited.

"Oh, here they come, hee!" he said, as he danced with glee and slid down the roof. Meanwhile, King Daphnes, with the young princess on his horse, came riding through the gate. Mido then tried to blow the horn, but it was choked up and wouldn't sound. He blew harder, and a robin holding on to her nest came flying out.

"Dear Ambi, as lovely as ever," said Daphnes, and the queen bowed to him. Just then, the nest which had flown out earlier landed on her head, and she glanced up towards Mido, who gulped and ducked away.

"Oh, a nest," chuckled Ambi as the robin picked it up.

"And who might this strapping young man be? Young Link, no doubt. He may not really be your son, but he's still good-looking," said the king, winking.

"Welcome to our fair kingdom, dear Daphnes. And to you, young princess," said Ambi, as Daphnes hoisted her off the horse and urged her on. "Go on, Link. Dear, go on…" she said, but Link refused to move, so she prodded him.

"Mother!" whispered Link. He didn't want to have anything to do with Zelda.

"Link!" Ambi whispered back.

"Oh, all right. Hello, Princess Zelda. I'm very pleased to meet you," he said unenthusiastically.

"Pleased to meet you, Link." said Zelda, just as unenthusiastically. No sooner than she finished her sentence, Link tried to walk off, but Ambi wouldn't let him.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah!" she countered, and he walked back towards Zelda, letting out a frustrated sigh. Afterwards, he took her hand and looked at it disgustedly. She glared at him as if to say "I'm waiting." He kissed her hand, and cringed. "Yuck!" he cried.

I can't believe this, he thought. I have to spend my summer with *her*? 50 rupees says she doesn't wrestle, hunt or box. As he was thinking this, Zelda wiped her hand on her dress and raised her fists at him, and he cringed slightly.

Both looked away defiantly, but Ambi and Daphnes urged them on still.

"So happy you could come." said Link.

"So happy to be here." replied Zelda. They looked happy, but both really wanted to run away, and turned their backs.

A few minutes later, they were on the stairs, playing with wooden swords. Just as she'd gotten to the bottom, Link ran towards her, and she tripped him.

"Hey, no fair!" he shouted as he got up. "You stuck your foot out, Your Royal Shortness!"

"Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me!" she sang back, and jumped on him.

Ambi and Daphnes, however, took no notice. "The children seem be to getting along quite nicely." she said.

"Yes," added Daphnes. "And if all goes well, our lands will join."

"My point entirely," replied Ambi as she elbowed him.

"It's also very good parenting," he said.

"And politics," added Ambi. "It's good that we agree."

"Yes," Daphnes said. "I think we have a deal."

At that moment, Link and Zelda, still sword fighting, finally caught up to them.

"Play nice, you two," said Ambi, as she and Daphnes grabbed them.

Several more years passed, and Daphnes was preparing to take Zelda to meet Link once again.

"Good heavens, child, don't dawdle!" he called to Zelda. "After all, we mustn't keep Link waiting."

"I haven't packed or washed my hair, and father, I get seasick." protested Zelda. Seeing Link again was clearly the last thing she wanted to do.

Meanwhile, Link was in his room shooting arrows at a crude drawing of Zelda as Ambi walked in.

"They'll soon be arriving. Is that respect you're showing?" she asked after seeing what he was doing.

"If I have to kiss her hand again, I'm gonna throw up," he said. He still hadn't gotten over their first meeting.

A couple of hours later, they arrived at the docks of Ambi's kingdom. Zelda stood on the deck of her father's ship, pouting. A girl (Saria), about the same age as Link, took a tomato from a nearby cart and flung it towards Zelda. The tomato missed, but it splattered on her face after hitting the ship. The two friends laughed as Zelda glared at them.

Several months later, Link and his best friend Saria slid down the stair railing, frantically trying to escape the girl his mother insisted he spend time with. When Saria and Link reached the bottom, they took off running out the castle and towards the tree house. Link yelled to his friend, "We've tried all summer but we just can't lose her."

Zelda picked up her skirt and ran down the stairs after them yelling, "Wait up!"

"Quick, pick up some speed," Saria squawked as she raced up the ladder. Link followed her and they quickly pulled up the ladder and held up a sign saying, "No Royals!"

When Zelda finally caught up and saw the sign she crossed her arms and mumbled, "This really isn't fair."

The pair in the tree house mocked back, "We really couldn't care."

"Guys, it's all or none," Zelda shouted, kicking the tree house's support beam. "Uh-oh." she said as the tree house fell on top of her with Link and Saria in it. She ended up with a black eye and a broken arm, and the two friends with broken legs.

"An unfortunate mishap, Ambi." said Daphnes as he and Zelda left. "I trust that this will not happen again?"

"I can assure you it won't," replied Ambi. Then, she turned and waved a finger at Link and Saria, who fell over. "I'm glad you're both OK, but let this be a lesson to you both."

"Yes...mother," groaned Link.

The townspeople, however, knew even before Link & Zelda's first meeting that they were destined to be wed. Unfortunately, the only thing they agreed on was how little they looked forward to spending the summer with each other.

After about two more years, Link and Zelda were brought together again.

"It's crazy, Saria." said Link. "Not only does she try to talk me into playing dress-up, she's always flirting with the castle guards."

"And the pig says to the horse, why the long face?" said Zelda, and the guard laughed.

"Crazy, huh?" asked Saria, elbowing him. "I'll tell you what's crazy: I think you really sorta do like her, so fess-up."

"If she'd lose in poker, I'd like her a lot better," he replied, not noticing Zelda walking up to him.

"Is that a challenge?" she said with a sly smile on her face.

"You bet!" he said, and they went to a table to play.

"She's got an Ace, a King, a Queen, and a Jack," whispered Saria. "How's your hand?"

"Don't worry, Saria," said Link. "I've got this. I have four Sevens and a Ten. What do you got?" he asked Zelda.

"A royal flush," said Zelda triumphantly. "Looks like I win again."

"She wins every time!" they said together. "It's just not fair!"

Several hours later, Link and Zelda were riding through town in a carriage. It was time for Zelda to return home. As they passed by, the townspeople watched, for they looked forward to the day when they would be wed, a day where they would get a day off from their work. But they were also hopeful that the marriage would result in fairer taxes.

As Zelda departed, a tomato sailed towards Link and splattered on him. "Let's see how you like it!" she said, chuckling, for she had thrown it.

Several more years had passed, and one winter's night in January, Daphnes was getting worried. He sent a letter, which read simply:

Dear Ambi,

What if Zelda doesn't go for the merger?

Sincerely,

Daphnes

Upon receiving it, she sent another one which read just as simply:

Dear Daphnes,

Urge her!

Sincerely,

Ambi

Later that same year, she and Daphnes came knocking on the bedrooms of the now-adult Link & Zelda. As they held their doors, they reflected on how they were brought together from June until September in the hopes that they would be affianced. As they were escorted to Ambi's ballroom, Link thought about how he was tired of Ambi's pushing and urging, while Zelda complained about her bruises with Daphnes' fingerprints.

I'm sure I could do a lot better, thought Link.

He is so immature, thought Zelda at that same moment.

But as they turned towards each other, Zelda began to smile. It was as if she could see inside him and her doubts faded away. At this, Daphnes and Ambi, who were watching from behind the doors, couldn't believe their eyes.

Link, however, saw inside Zelda too and was amazed at how beautiful she had grown up to be. At that moment, they bowed to each other admiringly. Then Ambi and Daphnes burst in with excitement. Their dreams were being realized at last! Also bursting in came the castle servants carrying flowerpots, serving carts, and candelabras. The band, led by the castle counselor, Rauru, began to play. Everything was almost ready.

"Arrange the marriage!" said Link with confidence, and the crowd cheered. He now knew why he had spent all those summers with Zelda.

"Wait!" she called, as there was still one thing wrong. No sooner than she said it, the band's violinist lost his bow. It sailed through Ambi's crown, as she & Daphnes turned with shocked looks. Afterward, one of the cooks dropped a turkey on a smaller cook's head. Finally, a guest's mustache burned up in one of the candles.

"What?" said Link. "You're all I ever wanted. You're beautiful!"

"Well, thank you," replied Zelda. "But what else?"

"What else?" asked Link, confused as to why Zelda was asking such a question.

"Is beauty all that matters to you?" she asked back, causing Daphnes to clear his throat and glare at her.

"Link… What else?" asked Ambi, but the only thing he could say was "I, uh… What else is there?"

And that was it, the proposal was ruined. Later that day, Daphnes and Zelda were preparing to leave, most likely for good.

"We tried, Ambi," said Daphnes in defeat, and to a terribly disappointed Ambi, who was fighting back tears. "No one can say we didn't try. Say goodbye, Zelda."

"Goodbye."

"Goodbye…?"

"Link."

And for the first time in years, Ambi prodded Link again. "Mother."

"Link!"

"Goodbye, Princess," he said as his so-called bride to be rode away, leaving him feeling guilty.

"All these years of planning… WASTED!" shouted Ambi as she walked back into the castle.


Aw, I had such high hopes for their marriage.

Zelda: You tried script format?

Me: I've only done one-shots, so I'm new at this, OK?!

Zelda: No need to snap.

Me: Sorry. With Christmas (as well as my next spring semester at school) coming up in about a few days, it might be a very long time before I update again.