Welcome to the chapter that was responsible for my YouTube recommended becoming saturated by gymnastics videos.

The Magic Awakens

Chapter 27

No Expectations

Link had never imagined that their first kiss would be like this.

For the longest time, he could only picture such a moment with Midna in an alternate universe where father and sister would not be at odds with their relationship. It would have been short and sweet after a heartfelt little confession. That was how it went with Ilia.

But now that he knew Midna, their moment was uniquely theirs. Of course Midna would kiss him passionately on his motorcycle at the crack of dawn. Of course Midna would relish in the scandal of sitting in the lap of the boy her father hated most. Link, a known lover of danger, couldn't help but relish in it as well as he dared to draw her in closer, dared to run his hands over her, and she dared to do the same.

When she drew away, her hair fluttered like fire against the wash of pink clouds, and Link was utterly convinced that he had never witnessed true beauty until that moment. Then, as she cradled his face and caressed his cheek, she murmured words that stung.

"No one can know about this."

She slipped away, until his fingertips tingled from the ghost of her waist. The shadow of the tree fell over her like a veil. Twirling a lock of hair around her finger, she offered him one last smile. If he wasn't so captivated by her, he would have remembered to return it, but he was speechless. Unmoving. What does one do after sharing such a moment with Midna Ozul?

She vanished before he knew the answer.

The ravine was a buzz of activity by midmorning. The redeads that had forced the police to abandon the crime scene had all collapsed. Dozens of bodies had been arranged on a tarp by the graveyard, along with the gruesome remains of a many-handed monster. Police marched out of the secret entrance with cuffed Yiga members that were thrown into a seated line up. Captain Ozul's forces had uncovered labs yet no records of what they were for, nor what happened the previous night.

Ghirahim watched from the branches of a distant tree, unbothered by the apparent defeat. Temporarily sacrificing a handful of soldiers to close a police case meant he and the rest of the Yiga Clan could go back to operating undetected.

Behind him, the shadows rose, but Ghirahim did not abandon his view. "I didn't realise it was Take Your Child to Work Day."

"Did you recruit her?" Zant asked, hopeful. "If you did, she's already doing a great job."

Now that was worth turning around for. "How so?"

Zant pulled up a pictograph on his slate. Link and Midna. Awash in pink light. Lips locked. "Was that part of the plan? Convert her, and then have her romance the Harkinian boy?"

Ghirahim wrinkled his nose. "That disgusting human custom proves exactly why we couldn't convert her."

Zant's face fell. "You're going to turn her into a Shadowblight after all."

"No. She couldn't be converted that way either."

An odd mix of relief, betrayal, and fear gurgled like a thick sludge in Zant's gut. "Then what's the plan?"

"Finally, a useful question," Ghirahim exasperated. "Your new assignment is to keep her out of the way without blowing your cover."

Zant fidgeted nervously. "And then what?"

"Why do you care? I thought you wanted her gone."

"I do!"

"Then you'll have no qualms about whatever fate we decide is best."

The boy lowered his head. "Of course not," he mumbled.

"Good boy." Ghirahim waved his hand. "Run along now." With a bow, Zant sank into the shadows. "Oh, and one more thing." Zant rose up again. "Mr Vaati will be hosting us from now on. I expect you'll show hospitality."

Zant stiffened. Yet another villain whose precise coffee order he'd need to fetch on the regular. "Yes, my lord."

Link honoured Midna's parting words throughout Sunday which was easy enough as he slept through most of it. His dreams replayed every vision and every moment that almost ended in tragedy. His best friend, dead. His sister, alone. Midna, claimed by malice. Hyrule, burning. Observing him through it all was that mysterious Gerudo warlord.

In the evening, Zelda and Impa elected to have a movie night and have Link choose the film and what to order in. As Midna was still very much top of mind, he chose to go with a movie she recommended so he might have something to talk about on Monday. It was an art house film about a Twili carving a place for herself in the underground music scene. All three members of the Harkinian household fawned over the lead actress, while Zelda was the only one to bite her lip at the male love interest. (His rugged attitude reminded her of Ganon somewhat.)

Impa kept stealing glances at the twins the whole time. Four medallions had been collected in only five weeks. She had hoped it would take them months to get this far, but the annoying thing about living in a modern world was that it made completing this quest far too efficient. She wasn't ready for them to be so close.

Just as the climactic song crescendoed, Impa hit pause. "Hey!" the twins protested.

"We need to halt your quest for the time-being," she said. Link made a face. "Just until end of term, okay? Saving Hyrule is important, but so are your grades." Zelda hung her head in shame. Her A pluses had dropped to a string of straight As. Even a minus for one of them!

"Our enemies don't give a damn about our education," Link said.

"I do," Impa asserted. "Rest is important. The two of you should spend time being normal teenagers for a bit."

Zelda sighed wistfully. "That does sound wonderful."

Link crossed his arms. "Fine." He agreed not for his own sake, but for Zelda's.

Much to Link's annoyance, he was already starting to feel the benefits of not having to worry about the quest by Monday morning. His sleep was (mostly) dreamless, and he arrived at school well-rested for the first time in weeks.

Entering campus struck him with a strong sense of loneliness, more powerful than the previous week. Ganondorf was still recovering (though Zelda reported that he was doing better) and anyone else Link might have considered a friend proved to be anything but after the debate scandal. His breaks were either spent at his secret nap spot or on the fringe of Zelda's lunch group.

There was one person other than Zelda, other than Ganondorf, that Link yearned to spend his time with. Midna was reduced to glimpses throughout the day, like the mythical Lord of the Mountain. When the bell rang, he walked Zelda to her homeroom. As he passed the door, Midna was already at her desk. They locked eyes before she vanished behind a wall. Then there was LLS. Another brief stare as he passed her in the front row.

From his old desk, he was drawn to every swish of her ponytail. It had been a while since she wore her hair that way on days when she didn't have PE or gymnastics. Foundation covered her scar, and though Link thought her beautiful regardless, he couldn't shake the feeling that things were going back to the way they were before.

"Ms Ozul," Mrs Twinrova shrilled. "I do hope your bra isn't showing through your top."

Midna groaned. "It isn't. I checked." She wore a teal, ribbed top that barely showed the bumps of her adjustable straps.

"Then why else would Mr Harkinian be so distracted?"

Shit! Link ducked his head and frantically scribbled whatever random words came to mind. Midna stole a look over her shoulder. "I dunno. Maybe it has something to do with how dress codes fetishize the bodies of teenage girls?" Link pressed a fist into his mouth, holding back a laugh. Another firework moment: that hadn't changed.

"Principal's office!" the teacher barked.

With a huff, Midna slipped her tablet into her bag and swung it over her shoulder. In three strides, she crossed the room, sharing a brief glance with Link just before she disappeared beyond the door frame.

Link next caught a glimpse of Midna during their first break. She wasn't wearing one of the school's oversized logo tees, which meant she hadn't been dress-coded. That was a relief. She sat with her usual group of friends on the opposite side of the cafeteria, but every smile or laugh was forced. Most of the time, she swiped through a virtual textbook on her tablet as she popped the odd grape into her mouth. Her body was angled towards him, and he had no clue if it was deliberate or not.

Zelda briefly excused herself from a riveting debate with Saria about vegan leather. "Did you get rejected?" she whispered.

Link snapped out of his trance. "What?"

"Did Midna reject you?"

"No?"

"Then why do you keep staring at her like a lovesick puppy?"

Shit! Was that how he looked? "I'm not."

Zelda frowned. "It's nothing to be ashamed of, you know."

His sister was making this very difficult. Midna had asked him not to tell anyone about the kiss, and he was doing his very best to honour that, but it left him completely stumped about what was supposed to happen next. He needed advice, but he needed to respect Midna's wishes, but he needed advice. The wheel rolled on and on, and Link saw no way to stop it without a bump in the road. Midna trusted him, and a good boyfriend wouldn't betray that trust.

Oh gods, what if she didn't even want that?! Maybe the kiss was just some reward for rescuing her, or it was a pity kiss because who would dare reject the Chosen Hero? Maybe he had so much influence that no matter how much he emphasised the importance of Midna's boundaries, she would always be afraid to assert them. That seemed very unlike her, but what did he know? He hadn't lived the female experience. If he could just talk to someone about this.

When the bell rang for the second recess, Link was desperate. He flew through the hall, counter to the current that flowed to the library and cafeteria. From the river of students, Midna emerged and he was transfixed by the cadence of her walk and the sway of her hips and the bounce of her hair and vibrancy of her eyes and the way their arms brushed past each other.

She vanished again.

Link nestled his head on his bag, lying on the racks behind the old gardening shed. The screen of his slate displayed his favourited contacts, one name popping out from the rest. Okay, he could talk around this, honour Midna's wishes, while getting what he needed.

He tapped the call button.

"Damn, Link. School hours? You must be lonely."

Link snorted. "Hey, Ganon. How are you?"

"Better," he said.

"Great. Uh, mind if I unload a bit?"

"Sure."

The unloading never came, because the words simply weren't there. Actually, they were there, but they were illegal. Link really should have figured out how to vague about the situation. Written and polished an entire script. "So, you know what girls are like."

"Pretty sure any voe who isn't living with his head up his arse knows what vai are like."

Link sighed. "You live with fifty of them. I live with two. Safe to say you know a lot more."

A pause. "Okay, what happened on the mission?"

That escalated quickly. "I can't say."

"Can it be described by that wonderful euphemism Zelda dropped at the debate?"

Link flushed. "What? No!"

"Just a make-out then. Got it."

Curse Ganondorf and his spectacular people skills. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone."

"Mate, if she actually cares about you, she'll let it go. Your needs matter too."

Bless his spectacular people skills. Link explained only what he had to. Midna's mental struggles were her business, after all. The knot in his stomach that had been winding up all day slowly relaxed. "Then she said, 'No one can know about this' and left. Now she's acting all aloof. Did I screw something up? Am I a bad kisser? What does this mean?"

"Wow. You're a fucking dumbass."

"Thanks, mate," Link deadpanned.

"Radical idea, but it's 99% effective. Talk. To. Her."

"What if she needs time?"

"To reiterate, you're a dumbass." Ganondorf said it with the assertiveness of a lawyer in court. "Think of it like a game of catch. You confessed, thus serving the ball. Midna gave you the best kiss of your life, and that was like kicking the ball at you so hard, you fell flat on your ass. Now you're lying there, waiting for her to throw the ball, but you're still holding it."

"So, she wants me to throw it back?"

Ganondorf gasped. "Oh sweet Nayru, he really does have a brain cell!"

Link laughed. "Thanks. I'm gonna use it now."

"Good luck! And remember, sometimes words speak louder than actions," Ganondorf said suggestively. Link could see him wiggling his brows.

"Yeah yeah. Thanks for the advice, oh Great and Mighty Ganondorf." After their goodbyes, Link hung up.

His favourites list stared at him again, and this time a different name shone from the rest. For a moment he hesitated, but he was pulled over by his yearning. A tap. The text chat opened. When can I see you again? He briefly considered adding a heart emoji. Too forward. Send.

He waited. Three dots appeared. He waited some more. Her response popped in. Meet me in the gym at 4:15 *heart*

Along a balance beam, a figure pranced through pillars of sunlight, revealing a shimmery garnet leotard. Midna folded herself back, and her exposed legs sailed over. They were still bruised and scabbed from their Saturday night hardships, but that didn't make them any less magnificent as they arched and swung and stretched.

Link approached the blue mats as Midna landed her final flip. She posed with her arms stretched behind her, head tilted back, and one leg pointed forwards. The sun had blessed her with the perfect spotlight. If time stopped, Link would gladly spend eternity in that moment. His slow, awestruck clap cut through the silence. Midna smiled and took a bow.

"I thought gymnastics was on Thursdays," he said.

"It is." She sank into a seated position, one leg crossed over the other. "But I got the equipment out myself for a little practice." Midna made no move to leave the balance beam. Like a mermaid basking on the mast of a shipwreck, it would be foolish to expect her to come to shore.

Link kicked off his shoes. "What about your escort?"

"You haven't heard? Dad's squad raided the temple yesterday. As far as he's concerned, the case is solved."

He padded over the mats. Midna lounged on her front across the beam, chin resting on her folded hands. Her face was at perfect height with his. "Where does he think you are now?" His breath nudged her loose hairs.

"The student council meeting. I told him it's going overtime."

"And he believed you?"

"Oh yes, he's in a great mood, and I'm going to exploit it for all I can." That breathy voice extended a tempting offer, but Link didn't feel right taking it just yet. They needed to talk first, and talking to Midna was usually so easy, but she sheer weight of what he needed to ask snared his tongue.

Midna, figuring Link couldn't take a hint, inched herself closer and promptly lost her balance with a squeal. Thwack. Link burst out laughing, leaning against the beam for support. She rolled onto her back, crossed her arms, and pouted. It only sent him further. After a bit, Midna cracked up as well.

Once they had calmed, she sat up. "So, Mr Important Hero. Know any gymnastics yourself?"

"Some parkour."

"So you can outrun the cops?" she teased.

Link grimaced as he rubbed his neck. "I mean, it's come in handy."

Midna rose and gestured at the set up. "Do show."

It had been a while since he'd had a good practice. What he knew was rusty muscle memory now. Still, he wandered off the mat, stuffed his hat in his pocket, and faced the length of the beam with a running stance. Midna leaned against it, safely out of his path. She folded her arms, eyebrows raised expectantly.

He didn't let the performance anxiety hold him back long. His feet smacked against the varnished wood, then the safety mats, until he vaulted over the beam and kept on running until he was three metres up a wall. He pushed off and flipped as he fell. On the landing, he stumbled, arms flailing. Midna giggled. "Not the most graceful, but you'd be a hard catch."

Link chuckled as he sauntered over. "What about you?" He rested his forearm on the beam, fingertips just shy of hers. "Are you a hard catch?" With a coy smirk, Midna flicked her wrist. The mattress beneath him jerked. He fell on his rear as it floated higher. She rose into view on a mattress of her own, hair loose and veins aglow. "Stop," he laughed.

"Make me."

Yet again, she was the spark to ignite his daring spirit. He shakily stood and lunged for her. She twirled away and another mattress collected her. Link chased her to the next one and the next. They leapt and danced like a bird chasing catch a leaf on the wind. The challenge was skewed in Midna's favour, as the arena bent to her will, but Link didn't care. Every tease and close call she orchestrated would only make victory sweeter.

Midna pranced from one mattress to the next, but when she turned back around, he was gone. With a flourish of her arms, all the mattresses floated towards her level and swirled around. Still gone. Had he fallen? She would've heard! Just to be sure, she peered over the side, unaware of the fingertips gripping the opposite edge of her mattress and Link hauling himself up.

The moment noise registered, she whipped around. Link pounced. One arm flung around her waist and the other cradled her head. They soared across a gap, high above the wooden floor, andhit another mattress. Everything landed with a resounding slap.

Their laughter became as tangled as their bodies. Link raised himself to enjoy the sight of her beautiful face resting in a nest of sprawled out hair. The elusive Midna Ozul had returned to where she was meant to be; in his arms, and hers were wound around him as well. They could feel every ticking heartbeat and every panting breath. To relive the magic of their first kiss would be the most natural thing in the world, and Midna knew it when her fingers threaded through his shaggy locks to guide him down.

Just before their lips brushed, Link whispered. "What are we?"

If the scene was a glassy surface, the question was the drop that disturbed it. "Can't we just have this moment?" she asked. With a groan, Link rolled off her. His arm was still pinned under her waist, and Midna wanted to keep it there. She should've known better than to avoid this conversation. "I fucked up."

"Me too."

Perplexed, Midna rolled onto her side. To her delight, Link's arm curled with her. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"Ganon knows," Link confessed. "I was confused. I had to talk to someone. I'm sorry."

Midna shook her head. "It's fine. I get it, and if you need to talk about us, then I'll do it."

"You sure?"

She bit her lip. "No, but I wanna do it anyway."

"Okay," he said. "If you ever need to stop though, just say it. I won't get mad."

"I know."

They shared a brief, trusting smile before Link's arm twitched. "It's going numb."

"Oh." She really didn't want it to leave yet, so she nestled herself into his chest. He stiffened a little at the bold action. "Is this okay?"

His spare arm circled around her head and drew her closer so his nose could experience the joy of her lilac-scented shampoo. "It's perfect."

She wrestled back the impulse to squeal, and sombreness replaced it. "So, things suck for us."

"Mm-hm."

"We can't go on dates. We can't do PDA. Even being alone together is a logistical issue."

"Hasn't stopped us." Midna giggled and Link savoured her vibrations against him.

"Seriously, though. We'd be making out in the odd broom closet. You deserve better."

To her surprise, Link laughed as passionately and uncontrollably as she did when Groose mistook what "green" meant. She was half-joking, but this was a Very Serious Concern. "Sorry," he managed to say after quite some time. "Ever since that stupid news report, I've been hounded by media and more. What you just said, it sounds like a dream."

"Oh, right. I forgot I was with Hyrule's Hottest Heart-throb: The Allegedly Chosen Hero."

Link raised a palm to his face with a groan. "Everyone's gonna think I'm still single. I've been slipped enough numbers to paper my room."

Midna's hair guided Link's hand back to her crown. "Out of curiosity, what do you do with them?"

He combed her soft locks. "Zelda's compost bin."

Midna was thoroughly satisfied knowing that all her competition was rotting with food scraps and worms, though the same unpinnable pattern of insecurity crept back. There were other girls who didn't have restrictive parents, or a controversial reputation, or even a fraction of her emotional baggage.

"Something wrong?" Link asked.

Something was always wrong. That was how her stupid brain worked. Another moment threatened by her trauma, and the only way to overcome it was by being honest. But not brutally honest, like Midna was used to. No, this was a brand of honesty completely foreign to her.

She drew away just enough to see him clearly and was struck with intimidation. Not for his position as a chosen hero, or their rather bullshit circumstances, or even the fact that he was one of the most amazing people she knew. It was the intensity of her own feelings that terrified her, because they were vulnerable and unfamiliar and so hard to articulate.

"This is really new for me," she began tentatively. "I've never felt this way about- Gods, that sounds so cheesy." He left the silence for her. "Okay, uh, I've never been allowed to experience what we have, and it's weird and scary, but also? I really like it, and I really like you, and I want this to work out so badly, but I don't know if it can. This feels like one of those right person, wrong time scenarios. Everything about this is a risk, and I feel so selfish for not caring about it as much as I should."

He was selfish too. In the grand scheme of things, falling for Midna was the most selfish thing Link had ever done, but he too didn't care about it as much as he should. Zelda told him to consider all the risks, and he considered Midna to be more than worth it, but it would help them to be cautious.

"We could take this one moment at a time."

"What do you mean?"

"You know how relationships come with so many expectations and rituals? We could… not do that. Just enjoy the moments as they come. It doesn't have to guarantee the next one."

That actually sounded quite appealing. Midna didn't have to struggle to envision their relationship if there was nothing to envision. "But we'd still be exclusive, right?"

"Yeah."

She smiled. "I like it. It's mysterious, and it sounds a lot like what I tried to pull on you earlier."

Link was puzzled for a moment, then his eyebrows shot up. "It does."

"So, am I the true mastermind behind the idea?"

"We can share the credit."

Just like how they could share the present moment. No gossiping students or nosy media or disapproving family members plagued them here.

Link tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "No expectations?"

"No expectations."

They sealed their arrangement with a kiss. It didn't have the same fervency as their first, but it was comfortable and rhythmic, like something that was meant to be rather than a moment of passion given into. Their lips met once, twice, and halfway through the third, Midna's eyes flew open with a panicked gasp. Link sprung away. "Shit! Did I do something wrong?"

"If you had, you probably wouldn't have your eyebrows right now," she joked. "No. It's something else. If we want this to work out, there's something I have to take care of."

His face lit up. "You're ready?"

"No, but I'm gonna do it anyway."

The tips of Zelda's oxfords traced the dirt as she swayed on the swings of her local park. It was twilight, and the last child had been coaxed away, the final food truck had packed up shop, and the breeze rustled the branches of the deku tree behind her. Zelda closed her eyes and breathed in the first peaceful moment she'd had with herself in weeks. Dangers were still brewing out there, but they weren't present in the present, and that was a rare gift.

When she heard Link's motorcycle, nerves crept in to disturb the peace. She stared down at her shoes, not daring to look up as someone eased into the empty swing beside her. Zelda stopped swinging. "Hello, Midna."

"Hey." It was quiet and reserved. Nothing like the sassy, explosive attitude Midna was known for. She was hunched over clenched hands between spread knees. "So… Link and I are… a thing."

That was mildly surprising, and it hurt. "He didn't tell me."

"That's kinda my fault. I panicked and said something dumb. I didn't actually want him to keep it from you."

"Well, thank-you for telling me."

Midna nodded mutely. Her throat was closing up, just as it had every other time. "I wanted to check in with you because of our past and…" It was just two words. Two measly little words. If she could fight monsters and cultists and more on a weekly basis, she could do this too. "I'm sorry." Saying that was like unlatching reinforced doors to a room stuffed full; it all came tumbling out. "I'm so sorry for what I said back then, and I'm sorry it took this long to apologise." Tears fell into the dirt. "What I did was so fucked up. If you can stand to be around me, say it. Say it, and I'll leave him, because neither of us want this if it's too much for you to bear."

Sometimes victims of bullying had fantasies of revenge, punishment, or divine justice, and when Zelda was younger, she had hoped for the same. As she grew, however, she desired something different from those who wronged her. Self-reflection. Transformation. It was all she could do for herself when she was the instigator, after all.

"If you don't mind me asking, why'd you do it?"

Midna screwed her eyes as those those hurtful memories haunted her. "My parents pitted me against you. Like, all the time. But Zelda," for the first time in their conversation, their eyes met, "it doesn't absolve me of anything, okay?"

"Thank-you for telling me." Zelda's gaze returned to the dirt. "I never understood how someone could be so cruel out of nowhere. Then I said that stupid thing at the debate, and I understood you."

"You handled it better than I did."

Zelda raised a finger. "I'm stopping you right there," she quipped. "For nine years, we've been forced to compete. No more, I say!"

Midna blinked. "What."

Zelda elegantly slipped from her swing and hopped to Midna's front. "It means that I forgive you, but I also, and forgive me if this is out of line, want to work with you."

"With me?"

"Yes. You intend to still help out with the quest, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then I want you to be more than my brother's girlfriend to me," Zelda said. "But only if that's what you want as well."

"You… actually want to try being friends." To Midna, that sounded so strange to say out loud.

"Well, I'd certainly like to do more than tolerate you, and lately I've been quite disturbed by how easy you are to like."

It took Midna some time to process Zelda's offer. The whole concept was so absurd that it made her relationship with Link seem like a conservative high school romance in comparison. Zelda Harkinian, who was triggered in public by Midna, Zelda Harkinian, who was the darling of the school, Zelda Harkinian, who was Midna's long-time rival, was extending the hand of friendship.

"You know what? Fuck it." Midna stood up. "Why stop at dating a so-called bad boy? Imagine how pissed my dad will be when he finds out about our dead rivalry."

"Oh, the scandal it would cause!"

Their laughter danced on the breeze. They flung an arm around each other and marched across the park, cracking a few more jokes on the way. Link raised a brow as they approached. "Seems like it went well."

"It did," said Zelda. "I'll try not to steal her away from you."

"Thanks." He handed Midna her helmet. She pecked him on the lips and seated herself behind him.

Zelda smiled as the couple rolled away. For the longest time, she had pitied the future partner of her reckless brother, but when she saw the blooming relationship between him and Midna, she could think of no one more qualified to handle the stress. Thank Nayru they worked out.

Once Link's bike had curved out of sight, Zelda pulled out her slate and made a call. "Ganon, we're going to have to cancel Operation Heartbreak."

"Ah, so you finally learned the truth."

Her jaw fell open. "You knew? Why in Din's name have you been helping me curate cat videos all afternoon?"

Impa, who watched the events unfold from the window, now has to frantically disassemble a pillow fort.

I had to edit so many feminist buzzwords out of that final scene. I'm just really proud of our girls for killing off internalised misogyny.

Now that our lovebirds are together-together, what else do you think is in store for them? What about Midna and Zelda's budding friendship?