The sun was still half exposed behind the distant mountain range when Link and Zelda left the shrine that night. The evening sky was cast aglow in tones of golds and oranges, fading to purple as the sky stretched away from the setting sun. They walked side by side down the narrow road leading away from the shrine and to the road. Branches stretched above them from the trees that lined either side, a canopy of deep green where the sun sparkled through. They rounded the corner, just out of sight of the shrine and the road, hidden by the cover of the trees, where they paused for a moment.

"You're not... giving up, right?" Zelda asked slowly. "Not to beat a dead horse, but I can't do this without you. We're the only ones who can save Hyrule."

"No," Link said, avoiding her gaze. "I'm not."

Zelda hesitated. "Because it seems like you are." She paused and looked away. "It seems like you don't have any faith in yourself."

"Do you?"

"Of course," Zelda said, her brows furrowed. She met his gaze and smiled softly. "I have faith in us."

"Oh." Link shrugged. "Well, at least someone does."

Zelda sighed and turned her gaze down the drive. "Why do you have to be like this?"

"I'm not being like anything," Link said. "I'm being realistic. Things are just going to get harder, and we are not prepared in the slightest."

Zelda pinched her lips and looked down at her feet. "I'm scared, too."

Link glanced at her as she continued.

"After what happened Friday... I know we're in over our heads. And the worst part is, we don't have a choice. We have no one to rely on but ourselves." She turned to Link. "How can the fate of Hyrule rely on us?"

Link shrugged. "It's not ideal," he said. "We give it our all or die trying."

"You say that like it's so easy to do." Her eyes narrowed on him. "You don't think we're going to survive this, do you?"

"I'm sure you will," he said.

"You're an idiot," Zelda hissed. "You've given up already."

"I haven't given up," Link said. His brows knit together. "I've just accepted the fact that we might very well die."

"Well, I haven't," Zelda said. Her voice softened. "I won't let us die. Maybe you're not afraid of death, but..."

"You're right," Link said. "I'm not afraid of death. I'm afraid of failing."

"Well," Zelda said, meeting his gaze. "Don't fail."

"Sure," Link said. "That won't be hard at all."

Zelda smiled. "I think we make a pretty good team," she said. "You don't give yourself enough credit."

"The scoreboard isn't exactly ideal," he said. "I've already been gutted once."

Zelda frowned. "Then don't let it happen again," she whispered.

"It's not like I want to be gutted," Link said.

Zelda offered him a smile. "Then get good."

"Sure," Link said. "Anything for you, Princess."

Zelda hesitated, turning her gaze away for a moment. She moved closer to him, met his gaze once more, then pressed her lips against him softly. When he didn't pull away, Zelda let her hands move to his face, pulling him in even closer, fiercely, deepening the kiss. She let her hands move to the back of his neck, then down his chest, tugging at his shirt as he moved as close as he could against her. Zelda stepped backwards, pulling Link with her as they left the road, her back pressed against a tree, where Link paused for a moment. He moved away slightly, his gaze moving back to hers.

But their passion did not go unnoticed. Mipha stood on the road, having emerged just around the corner, just where the trees began to line the road. She froze where she stood, suddenly noticing Zelda and Link, and her heart dropped to the pit of her stomach. She watched them for a moment before she finally managed to tear her eyes away and turn around quickly, running back towards the shrine.

"What's wrong?" Zelda breathed.

Link hesitated, looking away. "Nothing," he said after a moment.

"Nothing?" Zelda narrowed her eyes at him. "You know, you could be kissing a princess right now." She grinned playfully.

"Uh-huh."

"What? No sarcastic comment?" Her face softened when he did not respond. "Guess I misjudged this," she muttered.

"No," Link started. "Sorry. I just... Sorry."

"That's a first," Zelda said, crossing her arms.

"What?"

"You always have something stupid to say."

Link forced a crooked smile. "Sorry."

"It's Mipha, isn't it?"

Link hesitated and turned his gaze away. He looked up the road towards the shrine, but there was no sign that anyone was around to over hear their conversation.

"How long are you going to pretend you're not in love with her?"

"I'm not."

Zelda snorted. "Please. That's a lie."

"What do you care?" Link sneered.

"Right," she said softly, then shrugged. "Well, if there's no spark, there's no spark."

Link stole a glance at her. "Sorry." He felt stupid for apologizing to her over and over, but he wasn't sure what else to say. "For what it's worth, I thought there would be."

"So," Zelda started. "Our kiss only made you realize that you're in love with someone else?"

"Well, when you put it that way," he muttered.

Zelda forced a smile, then laughed lightly. "Whatever. It's not a big deal. Can't force something that isn't there, right?" She took advantage of his hesitance and made her way down the road, waving over her shoulder. "See ya later." She quickened her pace and didn't turn around until she had rounded the corner and she was sure she was out of sight. She looked back up the road for a moment, doing her best to ignore the pain in her chest that suggested her heart had broken. How foolish she felt. Her face reddened and in a huff, she turned around and hurried out of the protection of the trees, away from the shrine, and towards home.

Mipha was already around the corner, and neither Zelda nor Link were aware of her earlier presence. She hurried briskly down the city sidewalks, her vision slightly blurred as she made home. Her phone was in her hand, and she was tapping on Urbosa's name to dial her number. She answered almost immediately.

"Wassuppp?" she said playfully. "Was that weird? That was weird. Please don't judge me; it'll never happen again. - Riju! Knock it off! Give me my hairspray back! Riju!" There was a scuffle and Riju whined in the background. Urbosa returned. "You're so lucky you don't have a sister," she muttered. Urbosa shifted the phone to her other ear and held it in place with her shoulder. "Anyway – what's up?"

Mipha burst into tears, unable to hold them back any longer.

"What? Mipha – no, no. What's going on? What happened? Talk to me."

Mipha shook her head and wiped the back of her hand across her eyes. "Goddess, I'm so stupid."

"Why? Are you okay? Who do I need to kill?"

Mipha sighed and sniffed. "No. I mean. It's just." She sighed again, exasperated. "I saw Link... and Zelda... kissing."

"Oh, no," Urbosa said sincerely. Mipha could hear the deep frown in her voice. "Really? Goddesses. He's an idiot, you know that."

"Why?" Mipha sniffed. "Because he likes someone else?" Her voice started to sob towards the end of her sentence, and she erupted into tears once more. "I mean, I knew he didn't like me like that," she continued. "But I just thought... I don't know."

"Mipha, it was just a kiss," Urbosa reminded her friend.

"Please," Mipha muttered. "That's how it starts. And then tomorrow I'll have to see them making out on top of the lockers all day long. I won't be able to escape it."

"Mipha -"

"What was I thinking?" Mipha went on. "The two Heroes of Hyrule. Of course they're going to get together. Isn't that how it goes? The Princess and the Hero. I should have known I didn't stand a damn chance."

"It doesn't always have to be like that," Urbosa said. "I mean, this is Link we're talking about. He doesn't exactly fit the mold."

"But he's still a stupid guy who will do anything to get laid. Especially by a princess." She was less upset now and instead growing more and more angry with him, and herself for that matter. "Ugh! I knew this would happen. I'm such an idiot."

"You're not an idiot, Mipha." Urbosa sighed. "He's a stupid guy. He's not worth it, alright?"

"He is to me," Mipha muttered, quieter now. Her wild range of emotions made her feel suddenly tired. Her head hurt from her crying. To her relief, without even realizing it, she was almost home. She could see her house just down the road.

"I know," Urbosa said softly. "I think you need to just get away from the world for a while. What do you think? You can come over. We'll like, do all those girly things. Eat some ice cream, watch movies, do our nails. Oh! We could go shopping! Pick out some super sexy outfit and make all the boys jealous!"

Mipha sighed. She slowed her pace as she continued down the quiet road. "I dunno. Maybe."

"Think about it, alright? You know I'm here for you."

"I know," she said softly. "Thanks, Urbosa. I think I just want to go to bed and sleep the rest of the week away."

"Okay," Urbosa said. "Call me if you need anything, alright?"

"Mhm." She ended the call and slipped the phone into her pocket. She turned her gaze to her house a quarter of a mile away down the road. It was just around the corner, but she could still see it through the trees that marked one side of the property. Exhausted, she walked the rest of the way down her road, all too eager to hide in the comfort of her blankets.