2) The Princess
Their ride through the canyon was wordless. Zelda knew Link's habits. Unprompted, he would rarely, if ever speak a word. This time she had no urge to encourage conversation with him, however. The silent ride through the walls of rock was preferable, she thought, than speaking her mind at current. The words were screaming at her.
"It shouldn't be me."
Zelda forced herself to look at the layers of rock with what little light they had left. She enjoyed riding to the Gerudo Village along this path. The layers of sediment and stone that had settled into the earth to form this canyon were mesmerising; little windows into the past. Zelda let her mind wander to the science of it all, asking herself questions. What was Hyrule like in each of these ages? Was it even Hyrule then? How different was the ecology of the realm? Of course, her brief stint as a divine being gave her some insight into these questions. A kingdom of sky, a kingdom of sea, a kingdom of darkness, and others that dotted the spaces between. It was all a little hazy though. She imagined that must be what Link constantly felt like now, not remembering the fine details of his life before the Shrine of Resurrection. Zelda felt guilty again.
She turned from the canyon walls in an attempt to catch a glimpse of Link riding ahead of her, but to her surprise he was already looking at her, his horse falling back in parallel with hers. Zelda tensed slightly, curious what he was doing. It seemed that every time that she was thinking of him lately, it felt like he knew. It was slightly unnerving to her, but she imagined had circumstances been different she would have found it endearing.
Zelda locked eyes with him, silently inquiring through her gaze what his intentions were. Link, having moved in close to her and her horse, reached down into her saddlebags and produced a cerulean blue scarf and held it out to her as an offering to wear. Zelda huffed out a small breath, relieving the tension that she had held in her chest. She reached out to take it from him, letting her hand linger on his for a moment, before withdrawing both her hand and her gaze to affix the scarf onto her neck.
"Thank you, Link, proactive as always."
Link nodded as he kept his eyes on her, then turned and ushered his horse forward to continue leading the way. Zelda looked up and saw that the sun had indeed disappeared, beckoning the constellations in the sky to come out and dance. The temperature would be sure to fall drastically in a short time. She rubbed her fingers across the scarf, feeling the material, her mind lingering on the small but tender gesture that had just occurred.
Zelda called out to him, "You always take care of those around you. I do suppose that has something to do with you being the legendary hero, but nevertheless it's a good quality to find in a man." she corrected herself quickly "In a knight, I mean."
Her correction came out sheepishly, and a great deal quieter, though he no doubt heard her with the echo of the canyon bouncing her voice back onto the traveling partners. Zelda waited to see any sign of body language from him as she stared at his back swaying back and forth with the motion of his horse's gait. There was none, but no answer came either. Even though their relationship had crossed into the realm of intimacy, she still wanted to maintain an air of professionalism, and kept herself at a safe emotional distance, but that distance was getting harder and harder to maintain. Perhaps things were easier when she hated him for his successes and her failures, but that's not where things stood, and that's not how she felt. Zelda had been growing more and more accustomed to their intimacy, and with it her distance had been closing. With that change came its own issues, like the event on the lift earlier, but it did have it's perks as well.
"Perhaps I shall have to reward those qualities later when we arrive at the oasis" Zelda flirted.
There was the shift in body language she had been looking for. His shoulders fell forward, his back arched slightly and he quickly glanced back at her, just long enough for Zelda to see the heat in his cheeks. She delighted in embarrassing him with such words, and let out a soft chuckle. Zelda took great pleasure in these moments, and felt deeply connected to Link in them, even if it was to her a guilty pleasure.
They emerged from the canyon walls, looking out over the desert, seeing the lights of the oasis in the distance, and the shrinking lights of Gerudo Village further beyond. The temperature had been dropping, and she saw Link pull a doublet out of his saddlebags, and she wrapped herself further into her scarf, and put on her riding gloves that she had tucked into her pants pocket. It was only a bit longer to the oasis, but those moments would get ever more bitter as the temperature dropped further.
Link and Zelda came upon the oasis just before the moon had reached a quarter of the way through the sky. Link noted the changes to the area. Kara Kara Bazaar had gained quite a bit of popularity since the defeat of the Calamity, and the subsequent relaxation of the gerudo borders. Rito and Gerudo had flocked to the area, leantus turned to shacks, shacks to buildings, and buildings to complexes, and now Kara Kara town stood where the bazaar once had. It was a popular last stop for a lot of merchants now, and all kinds of goods and services could be acquired here, including a bed for the night, thankfully. Link led Zelda through the streets, busy with the nightlife of the town, to the Inn at which they would be staying.
The Inn was wonderfully crafted by a Gerudo artisan. The stucco walls gave a wonderful backdrop to the wild colors of blue, green and purple fabrics, and the soft glow of lanterns lit by Sunset Fireflies made for a deeply comfortable atmosphere in an otherwise stifling environment. Link spotted the stables adjacent to the inn at which they were staying, and led them both inside to hitch their horses before checking in.
"You finish up here, and I'll check in while you do so." Zelda offered. Link nodded, still focusing on knotting the leads to the posts. He heard her grab her bag, and proceed inside. The quiet hum of her conversation with the innkeeper filled his ears as Link was finishing his work. Her words from earlier came back to him as he did. Why did she correct herself? It always felt like she was holding something back with him. It didn't annoy him, of course, he just wished he knew what it was.
Link's mind again wandered to her following statement. He knew she enjoyed teasing him. Lustful statements like that were fine when it was just the two of them, but when they were in public it was a bit embarrassing, even if no one was around. As he grabbed his bag from his horse, Link smirked in anticipation of the night ahead of him. But as soon as the smirk came it left, as he reflected on the armor was in his bag. New questions came to mind as he did. Had he ever been intimate like this with Mipha? All he knew is that they were close. But how close was that? Best friends? Or maybe something more. He suddenly found himself hoping it was indeed more. And again he was unsure why. Link furrowed his brow in frustration. Yet another thing he wished he knew, that must still be rattling around in his brain somewhere. If he could recall the events preceding the Calamity, maybe eventually he could remember this too.
And then he recalled where he was, what his duty was, and felt slightly ashamed. If he did know, would that really help? He had Zelda, and Zelda was purpose itself. It was all very confusing, the past mingling with the present. Zelda let him anchor himself to the present now, and for that he was very thankful. The present was peaceful, the past, not so much. Link turned to head, inside settling the chaos in his mind. He took a few steps, but then stopped abruptly, the sound of a waterfall in his ears. Link whirled around, looking for the source, confused. They were in the middle of a desert, where in the goddess' name would that have come from? The sound of rushing water was getting louder. He scanned the street, looking for someone dumping liquid. Nothing. Louder still. He looked toward the small pond in the center of town. Nothing. Louder still. He ran into the street and looked out into the desert, maybe a rogue Molduga was charging? No, nothing. The sound of a waterfall sounded like it was almost on top of him now, and just beyond the veil, Link heard the roar of an eleph-
"We are all set and checked in. Have you completed stabling the horses?"
Silence. Link turned to Zelda, who had a concerned look on her face as she noted he was in the middle of the street.
"Horses are all set." Link said simply as he gathered himself and his belongings and headed inside.
Zelda followed him, concerned. She picked up her pace to catch up to him and lead him to their room, looking to him as she did. Link did not return her gaze. Instead he kept looking forward as they ascended the steps to the second floor.
Zelda interjected into the uncomfortable silence: "Here we are!" She inserted the key into the lock, and turned, opening the door to their room. It was simple, but enough for their needs; something that Zelda had come to appreciate in her travels. Link headed inside, silently offering to take Zelda's bag and start unpacking their belongings into the small drawers that were provided to them, still attempting to look anywhere but at her. Zelda obliged, handing him her pack as she followed him inside the room, closing the door behind them. She let her hand linger on the frame for a moment before walking in.
"Is everything alright?" She asked. It was unlike him to avoid looking at her, he hadn't done so since before the Calamity.
"Yeah." Link affirmed as he folded clothes, inserting them into drawers. He left out Zelda's sleepwear on the top of the drawers. He knew she was particular about what she slept in.
Zelda walked up next to him, laying a hand on her garments, but not quite taking them yet. She again looked at him, this time her gaze was stern and persistent. She wanted him to at least look at her if he was indeed lying, like she thought he was.
Link relented. He caught her gaze for a moment, then cast his eyes downward to her sleepwear, then left to the empty portion of the top of the drawer. He sighed, then grabbed the collar of his doublet before he looked back to her, meeting her persistent eyes.
"Thought I heard something." His eyes searched her face. Zelda's gaze softened. She wasn't sure if he meant a threat in the area, or something else entirely, but she was glad at least that he came forward. She turned her head to look at her clothes as Link pulled the doublet and his shirt off in one fell swoop. Zelda took her hand off her sleepwear and placed it on his bare chest, closing her eyes as she did so. The past year had been hard on him. Too hard. If he was going to continue to care for her, she felt the least she could do, aside from freeing him from a century of cosmic imprisonment, is return the favor of kindness.
"Wait here." Zelda instructed simply, opening her eyes to meet his. Link watched her as she walked to the washroom that they had passed by upon entering the room. She returned briefly with a towel.
"You've had a long journey. Please, you go first."
Zelda offered him the towel and a simultaneous look of seriousness and compassion.
"And you?" Link asked in protest.
"I will follow you, rest assured." A soft smile rested on Zelda's face as she gingerly brought her hands to meet his. "Please. Go relax. You deserve it."
Link nodded in appreciation, and headed to the washroom, closing the door behind him. The washroom was no doubt the most extravagant portion of the inn. The bath that had been drawn was warm, and considering that they had only just a moment ago entered, Link surmised that the basin was always filled as such. A Goron invention, no doubt. To his left, a counter filled with aromatic soaps made its home, a bucket filled with water, and several foot stools underneath it. On his right, a closed cabinet which must have held towels and washcloths sat next to a row of hooks.
Link removed his pants and undergarments and set them aside by the towels. He then pulled out a stool and observed the various soaps on the counter, smelling each one. If they were meeting Riju and her retinue tomorrow, he felt it would be appropriate to wash with the most pleasant smelling of them all, as a gesture of appreciation. He picked out the soap infused with wildflowers from the Faron rainforests, gave himself an initial rinse with the bucket, and set to work on washing himself, reflecting on the combined efforts of the races that built this room. Hylian fixtures, Goron technology and ingenuity, and Gerudo artisanship. No doubt the Rito had woven the towels, as they were as soft as they were ornate. Link appreciated that the tribes of Hyrule were once again beginning to work together after a century of isolation, even if it were on this small a scale. The only ones missing were…
Link heard the washroom door close, and whipped his head around. He thought he had closed it, and he had only just begun lathering himself. He did not expect what he did see, however.
Zelda stood in the doorway, bare, her arms crossed behind her as her long blonde hair silhouetted her naked form.
"I said I would follow you." She said, in a deep, breathy voice, "Not that I would go in after you."
Link suddenly felt that the room temperature had spiked. He watched helplessly as Zelda sauntered slowly over to him. He watched her hips sway as she moved, her arms still tucked behind her as a mischievous smile crept onto her face. Link sat on his stool, half turned, and barely moving when she stopped in front of him leaning down, her hair cascading along her back downward before resting at her side. She had arched her back ever so slightly, so that when she leaned over, her breasts rested right in front of his face. Just as she planned, his eyes became transfixed on them, and she removed one of her hands from her back and placed it in front of his gaze, palm up, blocking his view.
Breaking his mesmerization, she looked at him through half-lidded eyes and asked, "May I?"
Link looked down at the soap and washcloth he had chosen, then back up at his seductress, and the back to the soap before handing it to her sheepishly before turning back around, heat and desire spreading throughout his body.
"Thank you." She breathed into his ear, as she knelt down and took the soap against his back. Zelda placed a hand on his inner thigh from behind him, partially for support as she knelt, partially to tease him as she softly lathered his back, every now and then feigning to unintentionally exhale huskily into his ear. She ran the soap along his back, taking inventory of the scars that marred the skin that covered the sinewy muscle resting beneath. Zelda watched as his back heaved and fell with his breath; deep and slow. It seemed she was indeed having a great deal of an impact on him.
As she finished with his back, she scootched herself up, settling his waist within her bare legs, and pressing her breasts to his back as she slowly brought the soap around to his chest, and felt him immediately tense, bringing a smirk to her mischievous lips. Zelda tucked her head into the crook of his neck, and continued her slow breathing into his ear, this time softly planting kisses as she went.
Link's breath was quickening, and he felt Zelda's hands slowly wander as they lathered down his chest and to his waist. She dipped further and further down, getting closer and closer until abruptly moving her hands left and right respectively onto his thighs. He knew when she was teasing him, but right now he didn't care. It felt good to be teased. Link felt her breasts rubbing up and down his back, lubricated by the lather and water that she had just applied. He leaned into her as she kissed his neck. Had been stiff for a while by this point, and her hands were making their way back along his inner thighs, making him twitch in anticipation as he closed his eyes, enjoying the sensation. The sound of the soap being dropped to the floor wrang in his ears.
Zelda's delicate hands found their way to his shaft, and Link moved his hands from his thighs around his back to hers, pulling her in closer to him. Zelda moved her hands, one down to his testicles, the other working its way up to his head, and back down slowly along his shaft. She massaged as she stroked, listening to Link's quickened breathing, and kissing his neck as she looked over his shoulder to admire her handiwork. Her movements were slow and deliberate, for she knew that frantic movement would come later when she had finished this task. Zelda continued, reveling in the moans she was goading from her lover. Link tightened his grip on her thighs, which in turn caused an erotic gasp to escape into his hear. He opened his eyes, and looked into hers before glancing at her lips and taking them into his. Zelda returned his kiss deeply and fervently, quickening her pace. Their kiss stopped, but they held their lips open close to each other in moans of please, looking into each other's eyes, Link as a form of defiance, and Zelda, teasing as the corners of her mouth turned into a smile before diving back in to meet their lips again. When she ended her kiss, she glided her hand quickly up and away from him, earning a pleasured grimace as she stood, grabbing the water bucket and pouring the warm water on him slowly, rinsing him off.
Link turned around, missing her proximity and saw her walking toward the counter. Her hair had curled slightly with the moisture of the steam in the washroom, resting in the small of her back, inadvertently calling attention to the movement of her cheeks as she walked. Link stood up, sensing what came next as Zelda hoisted herself onto the stone counter, slinking her waist to the very edge, propping herself up on her elbows. She let the lids of her eyes droop seductively as she watched Link stand from the stool, still erect, and walk over to her in a slow and determined gait. His shoulders heaved from his heavy breathing as he arrived in front of her thanks to her previous efforts. Link placed his hands on her knees, and effortlessly pulled them apart, revealing her in her entirety. He looked her up and down before moving, and Zelda bit her bottom lip as she looked him deep into his eyes. He removed one of his hands from her knees, and grasped himself with it, the other sliding down to the middle of her thigh and squeezed. Link guided himself into her, and Zelda let out another gasp. He started slowly, matching Zelda's slow breaths as he went, and quickened the pace once he felt her wetness encompass him. Zelda's back slid slowly down the counter, moving further into him as it did, and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he quickened the pace. Link moved his hands from her thighs to her waist to brace himself as he thrusted, and Zelda in turn, grasped his wrists, elbows still supporting her. She moved with him, bucking her hips as he came in, and backwards as he left.
They locked eyes all the while, enjoying the pleasure of each other.
A drop of sweat dripped into Link's eye. He tried to blink it away. A flash of crimson. He blinked again, trying to whisk the pesky drop away, but he was unable to. He lifted one of his hands away from Zelda's hips, to wipe it away, this time, for sure getting the pest. When he looked back, there wasn't a Hyrulian princess beneath him, but a Zoran one.
MiphaShe had her eyes closed. And head tilted to the side, lax in pleasure, bouncing as Link moved. One of her arms held her up as an anchor on the counter, the other extended as she wrapped her hand tightly around his bicep.
Link slowed his pace to a near stop in the confusion. He looked at her quizzically, pondering her bizarre appearance. Why here? Why this? But in response to his slowed pace, the Zora champion turned her head to look at him, opening her yellow eyes to search him for a reason why they had stopped.
Suddenly, Link didn't care. If this was a dream then it was a good dream; the only good dream he'd had in a long time. He smiled, and moved his arm, tucking it under her knee and wrapping his arm around her thigh, pulling her further down the counter, turning her onto her side closer to him so he could thrust deeper and more forcefully. Mipha's soft moans from before turned to frantic shouts in rhythm with his thrusts. Link picked up the pace and kept it there for as long as he could. He watched her breasts bounce with his aggressive movements, and he reached out to grope one tightly as he approached climax. Link slowed his thrusts to deliberate, deep movements, before he ripped himself out of her and grasped himself, stroking rapidly to finish on her stomach. He looked up to catch a loving gaze from yellow eyes as she moved her hand up and down his arm. Link closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as he did. He was met with green eyes and blonde hair when he opened them again. Same smile, different hand. Link reached out his hand to touch hers to be sure, feeling the unmistakable sensation of skin as he took Zelda's hand into his.
Link paused for a brief moment before releasing her hand and stepping away from her.
"Let me get you a towel." He said, turning away. Zelda's smile widened as he did.
If anything, she could make him feel good for a little while. If that was an obligation she had to fulfill, then she would, gladly. He had done so much, sacrificed so much in the name of a thankless divinity that she hoped that he enjoyed himself in this small moment.
She was right.