Zelda released her hair from its ponytail as she made her way down the towards the river, exhausted from today's events. The Bokoblin really taunted her! And to top it off, Link's advice could have been much better. Don't converse with it he said!

Zelda sighed as she took the Sheikah Slate off her hip. After a few rather irritable taps, the wood and flint came appearing out of blue lights. Zelda squatted next to the river and started the fire. She sat down and took a look up at the sky. The twilight was coming to an end, the darkness almost completely covering at the point. Link had already taken down the Stalkoblins, so Zelda had nothing to worry about.

What a day it had been. She had actually beat a Bokoblin! Yes, granted, it was a low breed one, but a Bokoblin nonetheless. Zelda smiled to herself. She was getting stronger, though she was sore in some areas. The blow to her stomach and her shoulders had hurt more than she had expected them too. She would have to check on those in a second.

Zelda leaned down and started undoing her boots. Her feet were killing her, these Hylian trousers and boots were not the same as her Royal Travelling Gear. How does Link wear these on a daily basis? She slipped off her boots and massaged the arches of her feet.

She looked back to see if Link was watching. She knew he wasn't, but part of her hoped that he would. Nothing over the hill. Zelda sighed. She had been trying to get closer the last few weeks, acting on her feelings but she just couldn't tell where Links mind was at. Sometimes she could make out his embarrassment, but was he embarrassed because he felt the same way or was it just a natural reaction?

Zelda frowned as she started to remove the leather protection from her Hylian tunic. Did he simply just not have feelings for her? Back then she could have sworn she felt... Something. She continued to undress, taking casual looks just to ensure anyone (other than Link) had not seen her. She folded her clothes neatly before slid into the surprisingly warm waters.

Zelda examined the sore areas of her body, two bruises on her shoulders from the swinging attack and from landing, and one bruise to her stomach from the jab. Zelda sighed. That was gonna hurt for awhile... Unless...

Zelda reached her arm out of the waters and grabbed the Sheikah Slate from its position only a few inches away from her. With a few taps and a bit of searching, she found it. Fairy Tonic! She had remembered Link mentioning this too her right after their battle with the Calamity. She had always wondered why Link chose to drink the tonic instead of eat food... Some food granted healing benefits if cooked properly. Maybe there was a reason... Zelda shrugged. The only way to find out was to test it, correct?

Zelda drank the surprisingly sweet tonic. Instantly she felt better. She looked down at her shoulders and her stomach. The bruises were not just healed, but had completely vanished. Zelda exhaled a relieving sigh. While she didn't mind it too much, she really would prefer not to have scars on her body. She had smooth and pale skin from the extensive care of living in the castle all those years. While unlikely living like Link, it would be nice to keep her body with as little scarring as possible.

With Link in mind, it was no wonder he preferred the Tonic. Maybe the Tonic heals the person who drinks it differently? Food benefits usually speed up the healing process, however fairies and fairy tonic effectively make it so the wound never existed depending on the damage. No one has taken the time to truly understand the anatomy of a fairy and why it benefits Hylians and other races the way it does. Maybe a research project?

Zelda nodded to herself. Yes, a future research project... However while that sounded exciting, She could not seem to remove her focus from her true thoughts at the moment: What Link had said about Mipha and her father...

"That's... a touchy subject... More for me than him really..."

Why was Mipha a touchy subject for him...? Zelda had known the two had known each other since they were little. They had met during Link's younger training days. How close were they? Did Mipha have feelings towards Link? Zelda always saw it as more of a sibling thing... Was she wrong? But more importantly... How did Link feel about her?

Zelda felt a heavy weight in her chest. Was she wrong to be thinking this? Her and Mipha... While not the closest still considered each other friends. Was it wrong to be thinking this after her death? Zelda still felt as if the death of the Champions were still on her shoulders...

Zelda sank deeper into the river water. What did Link think...? How did Mipha feel...? Was this... Wrong?

Link stumbled getting the tent together, the wooden rods not wanting to stay tied together. Link cursed to himself. He hadn't needed to build a tent ever since he woke up, preferring to just sleep in the grass. Though as much as he knew Zelda wanted to learn to be more like him, a normal Hylian... Well even he knew he wasn't the best example. Normal Hylians didn't prefer to sleep in the grass without cover.

Link grumbled to himself as he kept fumbling with the fabric and leather tent, though every now and then he would take a second to listen out for any sort of danger. As much as he wanted to protect Zelda from any harm, Link chose to rely on his hearing instead of watching over her. Having her in such a defenseless state would drive him mad, her smooth skin exposed, her slender legs being cleansed in the water, her figure absolutely-

Link smacked himself with one of the wooden poles he was failing to build with. What was he thinking? She is the Princess of Hyrule and he was a Knight thinking about her in that sort of way! Sure she wasn't the princess anymore... technically speaking, but still!

Link sighed as he quit on the tent, dropping the tent pieces. He stood, stretched, and made his way closer to the campfire where he sat in front of one of the forest trees. Link put his fingers to the bridge of his nose. What was going on with him? Why was he so... flustered? He was a trained elite knight, he never would have let his feelings get the better of him before... On most occasions. Link thought back to his time as a Knight back a hundred years ago. Were his feelings always like this? If anything he had more... Conflicting feelings right? What about Mipha? Did he even like Mipha?

Link specifically remembered wanted to spend time with Zelda more and more as the days went on. He knew Zelda had been wanting to get closer too him way back when. He remembered the day she had allowed him into her room. She had invited him under the pretenses of listening to her theories on the power output of the Guardians, but the longer he stayed, the less the conversation became about Guardians and more about other things. If only King Rhoam hadn't interrupted their time...

Link's head shot up, his eyes furrowing in confusion. Thinking back... King Rhoam didn't say ANYTHING about Link being in the Princesses private quarters... King Rhoam was one to take the duties of King very seriously. It's one of the reasons he had worked Zelda so hard... Link took a second to think about this. There could have only been three explanations.

First, he wanted Link to protect her at all times, prioritizing her safety along with combining the powers of the Sealing power and the Master Sword. Maybe the Master Sword would have helped unlock Zelda's powers so King Rhoam allowed it.

The second could be that King Rhoam, under stress, didn't even acknowledge that Link was in the room. Her bodyguard being with her at all times... He probably didn't think twice about Link being there, too absorbed in Zelda unlocking her powers and the protection of the Kingdom. Though Link thoroughly remembered the initial looks of the guards that followed Rhoam. Jealous and envy plaguing their faces. Link shuttered, remembering those piercing gazes.

Link pursed his lips. Maybe he had gotten a little... lenient... the longer he had been Zelda's knight back then.

The final thing... and possibly the most unlikely... was maybe Rhoam accepting to the idea of them getting closer? Link thought back to when he had first encountered Rhoam after waking up. Rhoam seemed genuine in his care for Link. But was that due to a hundred years of humbling? And after reading Rhoams diary, Rhoam had a soft spot. He was human, despite what he acted like leading up to the events of the Calamity.

Link scratched his head with both of his hands vigorously. Why did this even matter!? There's no way Zelda would like a half annoying half silent Knight like him. He was again, her best friend. Not a love interest. Plus she had so much adventuring to do now that she wasn't confined to the castle with the Calamity. She was so excited to just... Be free. Love had to be the last thing on her mind right?

Link leaned back on a tree behind him and sank a bit down the tree. He took a glance at the Silent Sword on his back.

"You wouldn't happen to want to comment on whether or not Zelda liked me back then or not... Or if King Rhoam accepted me getting closer to her back then... Right? I mean you were there. You didn't lose your memories. Any answers?"

Silence. Link snorted. A Silent Sword for a Silent Knight. The irony. Was this what Zelda felt like all those years ago? Link sighed, facing forward yet again.

'Why would Zelda like a simple knight love me anyway...?' Link thought to himself, closing his eyes to once again listen out for any danger or threat to Zelda as she bathed.

Little did he know Zelda too, was having her own little turmoil.

'Why would Link like a failure of a Ex-Princess love me anyway...?'

...

Kenlair Here!

How are we feeling about this story so far!? Including the Prologue we are about 20 chapters in! That's insane! Any constructive criticism or comments on the story so far? That's insane yet again! Thank you guys for reading this far and I hope you guys stay until the end! (Whenever that may be!)

Kenny Boi