Dawn had just broken gently over the land when Mipha stepped out of the Dueling Peaks Inn. Yawning, she spared a glance upwards; the thick, dark layers of the sky were beginning to let some light through, one colorful band at a time it seemed like. She let her gaze trace over the lines of bold scarlet and palest seashell pink that would soon banish the heavy blue that hung over everything, before continuing on her way.

Link had left the breakfast table ahead of her to go load up the carriage; it was a long way from Castle Town to Hateno, so they'd had no choice but to rest here overnight. Knowing she had to rise early the next day tended to disturb her sleep, but having him to snuggle up to helped. They'd both been too tired to do anything but kiss, but that in itself was a sweet comfort that she loved. Link was always so tender and affectionate with her, and she reciprocated in full, warming his heart with the same happiness he brought her. He still hadn't spoken of loving her, but she was confident it would come in time. To her mind now it was a matter of when, not if. And that gave her a deep contentment the likes of which she didn't think she'd ever had before. That once had seemed impossible, honestly. Yet here she was, growing in surety day by day. It was a strange and unfamiliar feeling, but so very welcome nevertheless.

Link was standing by the carriage when she rounded the corner of the inn; Mipha took a moment to pause and admire his gorgeous profile before walking up behind him and slipping her arms around his waist. She pressed her face to his shoulder as he laid his hands atop hers, breathing in the scent of his hair and skin. "Is everything ready, then?"

"Yeah." Link squeezed her hands. "And you? I hope you didn't rush to finish."

"Yes, I am ready. And no, I did not." Mipha lifted her head and nuzzled him. "Shall we be off, then?"

"Yeah, sounds good."

She let go of him, and he took her hand so he could help her up into the carriage. Mipha's heart fluttered as she watched him follow her, his lovely face bathed for a fleeting instant in the rosy light of the sunrise. Link settled in beside her, offering her a soft smile that she mirrored back to him, and a familiar thought floated into her mind: he was hers. This kind, wonderful, beautiful man was her husband, and had chosen to be. Somehow she'd been blessed to have his friendship as a child, and now as an adult to have a loving marriage with him. What luck. What joy.

As the carriage rattled away, Mipha took his chin in her hand and gently turned his face towards her; there was only a half-second to see the surprised, curious look on Link's face before she kissed him. She saw his eyes close just as hers drifted shut, felt him lean forward so he could more fully return her kiss. He touched her arm, his fingertips trailing over the long fin that extended from her forearm just below the elbow. It sent shivers through her, as did the little oh that he whispered against her lips when she touched his neck. Link laid his other hand on her leg, sliding it up towards her caudal fins even as she twined one of her feet around his leg. Air was in short supply, but neither cared, maintaining the kiss until they had no choice but to break apart and breathe.

"Mmm." Link made a little humming noise, his eyes still half-lidded. "What was that for?"

"I wanted to." Mipha cupped his face and pressed a breathless little kiss to the corner of his mouth. "I think that is a good enough reason to kiss my dear husband."

"I can't argue with that." He laughed softly. "After all, I'm guilty myself of taking every opportunity to kiss my lovely wife."

"A fact that she deeply appreciates." She gave his forehead a gentle bump with hers.

"The feeling is mutual," Link murmured; Mipha's pulse quickened at the expression on his face. "Do you remember what I said to you at the ball?" he asked, stroking her cheek.

"You said many things." Mipha leaned into his touch, savoring the warmth of his hand. Oh, the things those fingers could do; Link's touch was nothing short of magical, even now shortening her breath at the memories stirred by each gentle brush. "I remember them all, but beg specificity from you nevertheless."

"So I did." He took her hand with his other one and kissed it, letting his lips linger on her scales before he spoke again. "Recall, then, that I told you that simple statements of affection from you send my heart soaring. And what holds true for word, goes also for deed." Link smiled, his eyes brimming over with tender feeling. "Your actions do more good for me than I can express."

"I can tell." She brought his hand to her mouth to kiss it in return, letting her teeth ghost over his palm so that his breath hitched. "And rest assured that you do the same for me."

"I'm glad." A sigh of what seemed like relief escaped him. "I recall you saying you feared you were unworthy of my attentions, and ever since then I've been trying to assuage those fears for you. I hope you're losing your doubts."

"I am." Mipha smiled, a giddy feeling rising in her chest. "I share a similar hope: that you too are freed from the pain of fearing yourself unwanted or disappointing, when you are anything but."

Link nodded. "I am." His voice sounded slightly raspy; the glint in his eyes made it crystal clear why. "You've done so much for me, the way you always have. It's hard not to be afraid that I might not be good enough for you, but the fact that you want me at your side means so much that I'm usually able to quiet those thoughts."

Mipha had to take a moment to swallow the lump in her throat, and when she spoke her own voice sounded nearly as scratchy as his. "I have long known that Hylian society values different things than we Zora do, but never has it upset me the way this does." She kissed his hand again. "It breaks my heart to see that you have taken to your heart their views on nobility and class, when none of us in the Domain have ever seen you as lesser because of where you come from. It is what lies within you that matters to me, to my father, and all those with sense." She paused. "Is this... fresh in your mind because we are going to Hateno?"

Link nodded again. "It's... I know you would never be unkind about it, but I've had to listen to it be insulted over and over, even now when I've been granted a title. And some of the gossip about us is because I'm a commoner married to a princess." He sighed. "That's the whole reason Rhoam was initially going to offer up Astor, because his title is higher and inherited. Part of the case I made was that you and your father, and everyone else, would care more about the fact that you knew me and liked me than about anyone's rank, especially cause Astor had never even been to the Domain."

"And you were very right." Mipha kissed his cheek. "Still, it saddens me to see you pained by their attitudes. You never worried about whether or not you were good enough to be my friend as a child, I hate that you now fear you are not good enough to be my husband. Especially when there is no one better. Not in my eyes, anyway, and I care not for the opinion of anyone who feels otherwise."

Link held her gaze for a long time, his eyes full of an emotion she couldn't begin to decipher. Then he tugged her close and into another kiss. It wasn't hungry like the ones they shared during their moments of passion, but neither was it unhurried. There was an underlying fierceness to it, a depth that left her breathless and trembling. Link was shaking too, the little gasps of air he took between presses of his lips to hers textured with a feeling that made her heart quake in her chest. If she'd needed further confirmation that he felt more strongly for her than he was letting on, then this would have been it. Her words could not have stirred such a reaction in him otherwise.

They held each other afterwards, heads resting on shoulders, in a silence as charged as the air before the breaking of a storm. A feeling she couldn't put a name to flooded her, setting her eyes aflame with barely restrained tears. Disbelief seeped in, that she should be experiencing this now with Link, that the wishes she'd once thought so foolish and hopeless should be coming true, granted by the grace of Jabu only knew who. That she'd ever feared this marriage before meeting him again, that she'd believed it doomed to be loveless even after they reunited, seemed so distant now. Almost laughably silly in hindsight. Yet she could summon no mirth, only this nameless sensation that overwhelmed her with its power. The temptation to reveal her own feelings to him roared to life, but she tamped it down, not wanting to speak too soon before he'd sorted himself out. Patience. This needed patience.

After a while they settled into a new position; Link reclined against the seat, his arm around Mipha and her head against his shoulder. The day was growing ever brighter outside the window of the carriage, enough that Link briefly let go of her and closed the curtains as the carriage turned at a fork in the road. Not before he'd nudged her, though, and pointed out the other window. "That's Kakariko Bridge up there... if you take that and head through the mountain pass beyond, you'll reach Kakariko Village. A lot of Sheikah live there, or were originally from there."

"Oh?" Mipha leaned forward, getting a small glimpse of the bridge in question just before the carriage rounded the curve. "Have you ever been there?"

"Once, yeah—we were already in the area to see Blatchery Plain when we got a report that a Hinox had been sighted in the Phalian Highlands, so we passed through Kakariko to get there." Link rubbed his forehead. "That was... interesting."

"A Hinox?" Mipha shuddered. "How terrifying!"

"Yeah, they're a lot rarer than they used to be, thankfully, but you still don't want to let one get near a town if you can help it. So we teamed up to take it down, and got treated like heroes when we got back into town."

"You were heroes." She squeezed his hand. "I only hope you did not get injured."

"I wish I could tell you no, but I can't." Link sighed at her look of dismay. "Don't look so surprised," he said, sounding uncomfortable. "You've seen all my scars, you know they didn't come from nowhere."

"I suppose." She sighed too. "Which one, then, did that Hinox leave upon you?"

Link took her hand and laid it on his side. "Got me with one of its nails when I didn't dodge fast enough. Wasn't too deep, but I was terrified it'd get infected; luckily the Sheikah know a lot about medicine, and they fixed me up pretty fast. And hey, the Hinox came out worse in the end." He smiled crookedly. "I still managed to get it in the eye with my last arrow. Finally got a little respect for that one."

"Oh, Link." Mipha pulled him into an embrace, burying her face in the crook of his neck. "You are so brave and strong, I am always proud of you, but... I hate to think of you getting hurt and being in pain. Especially when I could not be there to heal you."

"I know. I'm sorry." He stroked her tail. "I liked seeing Kakariko, though. It was spring at the time, so the plum trees were in full blossom. It's beautiful up there... maybe we'll go sometime."

"I would like that." Mipha sighed again, and then pulled back to look at him. "What were you in Blatchery Plain to see? Is that lovely too?" She glanced at the curtained window. "I heard some people at the inn last night talking about being there for a tour today..."

"Uh, no." Link shuddered. "It's an old battlefield. Hundreds of years ago, a civil war broke out in Hyrule Kingdom, and the battle of Blatchery Plain was the bloodiest one of the whole thing. We were brought there to see it for ourselves and pay our respects to the dead. That's what the tours are for, too." He cast an uneasy glance at the window. "They don't start until full daylight, though, and are never done on the anniversary of the battle. It's... not a place you want to be after dark. It's why the road makes such a wide berth around most of it."

"Oh." Mipha swallowed. "I... take it you've had some sort of experience there yourself?"

"Not really." Link shook his head. "We were there in the morning during that trip, and after the battle with the Hinox we stayed in Kakariko overnight to let me and the others who got injured recover, and when I rode through on my last visit to Hateno I made sure it was daytime. Still, there's... a feeling of wrongness you get when you're there. Like you really shouldn't be there. The soldiers at Fort Hateno told me some pretty creepy stories, too." He shuddered again. "It's a spooky place, I didn't like going there. Even riding by was kinda weird."

"I can imagine," she said quietly. "I have never cared for such places myself. There is one I have been to, Cephla Lake... it technically is a part of Eldin, but it also borders Akkala and Zora's Domain, and was the site of a terrible battle in the last war between the Domain and Hyrule Kingdom over control of Akkala. I was taken there once, on the anniversary of the battle, and it was deeply disturbing. I found myself overcome with anxiety every moment I was there, and more than once was on the verge of tears for reasons I could not fully understand. Sometimes I think such places should be left to the dead, and ought not to be trespassed upon by the living, as a show of respect to those who fell there."

"I can see that." Link put his arm around her again. "We'll be past Blatchery Plain soon, at least. Fort Hateno isn't too far from here."

"That is good to know." She leaned her head against his shoulder. "What lies beyond that point?"

"Well, just past the fort is a weird little valley full of creepy statues." Link laughed. "People say that if you're there at a certain time of night, you'll see the eyes of one of them start glowing, but I don't know if that's true or not. After that, well, I wish I had a map to show you how strangely the road was laid out. It loops around in circles, and depending on which loop you take you can get to Hateno or Loshlo, or take a detour and get to an equestrian riding course the army maintains by Lake Jarrah. We went there a few times to practice riding and horseback archery. Pretty fun, actually."

Mipha shifted slightly. "You take training very seriously, I've noticed. I think it is admirable."

"Yeah, well..." He brushed some loose hair out of his eyes. "It's something I'm actually good at, and it's whatever talent I had even as a kid that got me the opportunity to be fostered by the king, which usually doesn't happen to people outside the nobility. I had to prove I deserved it, so I couldn't afford to slack off. In a way I'm still kind of proving myself to them."

"... Oh." She looked down. "That is why you insist on being in that tournament, isn't it? I do recall you saying something about it when you said you'd signed up..."

"Yeah." Link sighed. "Trust me, I hate feeling this way too. I hate that I let them get to me like this. You're right, it's not something I ever thought about before I left the Domain. But there's not much I can do about it now except try to do what I can to show them that I really did earn what I have—the position, my title. Which is ironic because the rest of them didn't earn shit, they were born into it and most didn't work as hard in training as I did. Doesn't stop them from seeing me as an upstart who got handed something he didn't deserve, more than ever now that I've married you."

"Oh, Link." Mipha put her arm around him and hugged him. "You deserve all that you have, because of your hard work and and skill. You have accomplished so much, and I am truly proud of you... it is your own efforts that truly matter, not the place of your birth or whose blood you share. I have never looked down on you or seen you as beneath me...you are more worthy than any other to be my husband, because of all that you are in here." She laid her hand over his heart. "That is the only thing that really matters, and I hope you will come to realize that and stop listening to their snobbery."

"Thank you" Link said, in a voice that sounded a little choked with emotion. She started to move her hand away, but he laid hers over it, clasping it to himself. "I'll try."

"That is all I can ask for, then." Mipha snuggled closer to him and closed her eyes.

I'm sorry, Link. I'm sorry that I was not able to protect you from so much cruelty, putting insecurities into you that weren't present when we knew each other as children. Forgotten or not, I know you wouldn't have proposed to me that day if you'd thought you were unworthy of marrying me. Thank the Goddesses and Lord Jabu that your desire to protect me overrode that and spurred you into action when you heard of Astor being chosen... but this also does explain your guilt over it, if you subconsciously felt you didn't have the right to be my husband because of your status. Which is so wrong. I want no other, I never have. If ever I gain the courage to do so, perhaps I will eventually bare my soul about my memory of our promise, if only to reassure you of my devotion to you.

Because in my eyes, you deserve the world.

Mipha was asleep by the time they reached Fort Hateno; she stirred a little as they passed through, but otherwise remained lost in slumber's hold. Link sympathized. They'd arrived at Dueling Peaks Inn at a somewhat late hour, after all, and had risen before dawn to continue their journey. She'd resisted getting up and so had he, reluctant to either leave the surprisingly comfortable bed or let go of her. The smaller beds that the inn furnished for their guests meant she'd been practically on top of him as they slept, a fact neither had minded at all. Really, it wasn't that different from how they normally positioned themselves at home.

The road curved upwards around the river after the fort, bringing them close to the mouth of the valley he'd told her about with the statues. Link spared a glance for it before closing his eyes again. He'd been there only in daylight, both as a kid and more recently as an adult, to see if the place was still untouched. The only difference had been that a man named Dr. Calip had settled in nearby in a small cabin, spending his days studying the strange little statues. It was an odd place, for sure, and probably eerie at night, but it lacked the same unsettling quality that the battlefield on Blatchery Plain had. So he hadn't minded making a return visit.

Last time, there'd been a road blockage just past the land bridge that crossed the Fir River, forcing him to backtrack a bit and take the longer route through Marblod Plain. Luckily, no such obstruction awaited them this time, so they rode unhindered past Ovli Plain and Camphor Pond, as Mipha continued to sleep. Link let himself doze too, just holding her, his drowsy mind replaying some of their earlier conversation.

Whoever she wanted to marry, that she talked about in Goponga... he really must be out of her mind, if she could say those things to me and mean them. And I don't doubt she does. True, she did lie about that night, but I think I understand why, now that I know what I do about her feelings for me: she didn't want me to think she was truly interested in that stranger, even if she was afraid to reveal her interest in me. Which is honestly kind of funny, in a way, considering it was me under that mask. If it weren't for the whole thing with the opal, I'd just go ahead and tell her. It'd be great to have that weight off my shoulders, honestly. But I still can't bear to. I don't know how to tell her that the opal she trusted me with is probably at the bottom of a canal. To think I held onto it for years, keeping it safe and hidden even from the other squires and my superiors, all through those eight years of training until I could have it made into the brooch, only to lose it the night I finally saw her again... it's sickening. It might be better to let that promise we made stay forgotten for her. Even though it hurts that she doesn't remember it.

But... even without that memory, she still looks at me with boundless affection. She kisses me with so much depth of feeling that it's overwhelming at times, touches me with such softness or passion depending on the situation. Says such sweet and sincere things, and keeps her promise to court me. And it's been so incredible, being courted by her. I never imagined anyone would do that for me until she expressed her desire to. Now that she's actually doing it, I love it. Before we consummated our marriage my heart was aching so badly, wanting to be loved and wanted by her... and now she's doing everything she can to make me feel cherished. That I've managed to banish at least some of her doubts about herself in return is worth every rupee in the royal treasury and more.

Because it still haunts me: that pain in her eyes the night of the garden party, when she thought she saw me kissing Zelda. We've never spoken directly of that night, but I can still see it differently now, in light of my changed knowledge of her. That night, she spoke of it as something that would humiliate her, that she felt guilty about keeping me from someone I cared for, but... well, I know it would be humiliating, true, but she was also just as jealous and miserable as I was in Lurelin when we ran into Gildan, I can see that when I look back on it. Feeling like I wasn't enough for her broke my heart, and thinking that I loved someone else broke hers. I don't ever want her to feel that way again.

They'd seen just one more issue of Rumor Mill after the masquerade ball, handed to them while walking through the marketplace together. The gossip then had been about their early exit from the ball, with some claiming it was embarrassment over Piero's poem that had "laid bare the cold truth about their loveless marriage", a phrase he found impossible to forget purely because of the blinding rage it stirred in him. Others, though, claimed it was for more salacious reasons, citing the way the two of them had been dancing with each other. As mortifying as it was to have strangers speculating about his sex life, that was still preferable to having them think he was being unfaithful to Mipha with Zelda or anyone else. Either way, they'd made a point to avoid looking at any other editions of that rag, no matter how morbidly curious they admitted to being about its contents. In the end it was better for their peace of mind to stay away from it.

I do kind of want to see what'll be said after the tournament, though. We've gone out of our way to show more affection in public than we'd normally be comfortable with, and if we can be particularly blatant during that, it might just turn the gossip in our favor. That'd be nice. I would tell her how I really feel if I was sure she was ready, but I don't know if she is, so I'll give her the time she needs. I hate not being able to reassure her with it, but I'd also hate to rush her before she's ready. So I'll wait.

His thoughts drifted into near incoherence after that as he began to doze; only when they started up the hill near the entrance to Hateno Village did he jolt awake. Link blinked, and rubbed at his bleary eyes with one hand. Beside him Mipha stirred, lifting her head to look dazedly at him. "Are we here?" she asked, her voice thick with the dregs of sleep.

"I think so, yeah." He glanced out the window, and found himself greeted with the familiar sight of crop fields. Not far away, a cow mooed. "Welcome to Hateno." Link took her hand and squeezed it. "I'll show you around after we get to the inn."

Mipha smiled. "I would love that."

On his last visit, Link had stayed with his father; it'd been so long, after all, and he'd been curious about his old room, as well as wanting to keep his father company out of guilt for having been separated from him for the bulk of the past eight years. It hadn't been the most comfortable stay in the end, though—the bed he'd left behind at four years old was too short even for him, and the mattress wasn't great either. Certainly not something he could reasonably ask Mipha to share with him, even if he wanted to sleep there again, so they were opting for the Ton Pu Inn. According to his father, the innkeeper was a nice woman who managed the place well, and was even kind enough to help look after his house when he was away at the fort. Which was where he was right now, and wouldn't get back from until late in the afternoon. Another reason to go to the inn, even if he did feel a twinge of guilt at not staying with his father. It couldn't be helped, though, especially since his father stubbornly refused to let him pay for a new house, citing his emotional attachment to the place. That was something that couldn't be argued with, so he'd dropped it and changed the subject.

With her help, he carried the suitcases inside once the carriage had been stowed away and the horses seen to. No one was at the front desk, but at the sound of the bell mounted over the front door a tall, full-figured Hylian woman with red hair coiled into tight braids hurried in. She was older and somewhat matronly, with a broad, friendly face.

"Goodness, sorry to keep you waiting, I..." Her voice trailed off as her eyes fell on Mipha. "Oh? A Zora? Forgive me if I sound rude, but we don't often have guests from the Domain here. Are you two..." She glanced at Link. "Together? Or do I need to arrange rooms for you separately?"

"No, just one room for the both of us," Link said. "Single bed, please."

"Sure, sure." She rummaged behind the counter for something. "And your names?"

"Link." He reached for Mipha's hand. "And my wife is Mipha."

The clipboard she'd picked up dropped back onto the counter with a loud clatter. "Link? Oh, you're Rusl's boy!" She laughed heartily. "I should've known! He said you were coming into town soon, I almost forgot."

"Oh, I think he mentioned you." Link nodded. "Telma, right? He said you two are friends?"

"Ah, did he now?" Something odd flickered in her eyes before she laughed again. "Friends, yes, I—I suppose you could say that." She cleared her throat. "He's a good man, your father, I'm happy to be able to help him out any way I can. He works so hard keeping us all safe, it's the least I or anyone else can do." Telma eyed him, a smirk growing on her face. "Sure talked all our ears off about his son marrying the Zora princess, though. All he could say for weeks!"

His face burned, and it didn't help that Mipha giggled. "He—he did?"

"Certainly. Beaming with pride, he was." Telma's smile became fond. "We've all heard it a thousand times or more, how proud of you he is for being a knight, and happy that you made a good match with the princess here. Congratulations, by the way."

"Thanks," Link mumbled. Mipha squeezed his hand.

Telma laughed again. "Ah, sorry, don't mean to embarrass you—it's just that we're all fond of your father, and you too of course. Not every day someone from our little hamlet goes so far, you know?" Her gaze went back to Mipha. "He treating you right, honey? Hate to see a pretty girl like you unhappy."

"I—yes!" Now it was Mipha's turn to be flustered, her lovely face coloring with a bright blush. "He is wonderful, he truly is... I understand why you are all so proud of him, I am too."

"Good, good." She clapped her hands together. "Now then, let's get you two settled, as I know you've come a long way... "

She got them checked into their room, and after depositing the suitcases there they thanked her and headed out so he could give Mipha the promised tour. It was well into the morning by now, and everyone in town was awake and going about their daily tasks. Children ran through laughing, and adults passed by on their way to or from the shops or fields. Some gave them odd looks as they went by, but most were friendly, and a few people he recalled meeting the last time he'd been here stopped them to congratulate him on his marriage.

"As you can see, there isn't much to see." Link scratched the back of his head as they wandered through. "Just farms, mostly, and a few businesses, and that research facility... nothing really exciting."

"It is lovely, though." Mipha squeezed his arm. "I am happy to see where you came from."

"I was..." Link glanced around. "I was born here, yeah. We lived here for the first few years of my life... me, my father, and my mother until she died. It wasn't long after her death that my dad got transferred to the ambassador's personal guard and sent to Zora's Domain. So I can't say I'm really attached to this place. Don't get me wrong, I'm fond of it," he added. "And I'm not ashamed of being from here, no matter what anyone says about it. But I didn't have time to build up any real affection for it like I did for the Domain."

"That is more than understandable." There was some seating beside a communal cooking area, and she sank down onto a bench; Link joined her, his back to the table while she faced it. "My own memories before that age are scattered and hazy, I cannot imagine it is any different for you. The time we spent together is much more clear in my mind."

"It's the same for me, yeah." A soft breeze ruffled his hair, and brought a sweet scent to his nose: the perfume of violets that Mipha had put on today before heading to breakfast. It drew his eye to her, and for a moment he was struck, not for the first time, by how stunning she really was. Her scales sparkled in the warm, buttery Hateno sunlight, brilliant red and pearlescent white, with touches of rose below her forehead and of course on those soft, sweet lips he was privileged enough to be able to kiss. Her eyes were on the children playing games just across the street, but she glanced over as she sensed his gaze. Link smiled. "You look beautiful."

"Oh... I..." Mipha blushed. "Thank you, but... I have not done anything unusual today, so..."

"You don't need to." He touched her cheek with the back of his hand, sliding it down towards her chin. "You're always beautiful, no matter what you do or don't do."

"Th-thank you, I..." Mipha hid part of her face with her hand. "Forgive me, I... sometimes it is still surprising that you think such things of me..."

"It's only because I have working eyes." Link took her hand and kissed her knuckles. "And good taste. Anyone with both those things can appreciate you the way you are... the way you should and deserve to be."

"Perhaps you're right," she conceded. "But they must all content themselves with others, for there is only one man I seek to keep close to my heart." Mipha twined her fingers with his. "My affections are quite occupied, unfortunately for them."

"Most fortunate for me, though." Link held her gaze for a long time, content to stare into those gorgeous amber eyes that had always captivated him so. Mipha leaned closer, and they rested their foreheads together. It was tempting to kiss her, but there were so many people around that it would've felt awkward. So he simply kept holding her hand.

In the grand scheme of things, it hadn't been all that long since that was all he'd dared to do. When physical affection between them had been rarer, more shy. How thoroughly things had changed in the space of one magical night. Much had led up to it, of course, but it'd still been explosive in its breakdown of the walls between them. It had been an evening of endings and beginnings, precious and beautiful. Just like she was.

Eventually he broke the silence, though in a voice that was still hushed. "Can you see that?" Link touched her shoulder, and pointed up at a spot on the distant horizon, far above the village. "That's Mount Lanayru."

Mipha followed his gaze, turning her head away from him to look where he was pointing. "Why, so it is... I did not realize it would be visible from here."

"It was pointed out to me last time I was here." He twined his fingers with hers; the webbing between them was so cute he couldn't resist kissing it. "Little did I know I'd be going up there myself a few months later."

"A most memorable journey." Mipha turned back to him, her eyes alight with faint amusement. "Marred only by the fact that you failed to kiss me when you should have."

"It's not my fault we got interrupted," Link protested, laughing. "If they'd just taken a little longer to bring our food, I definitely would've kissed you."

Mipha's expression grew serious. "You seem very sure of that," she breathed.

"That's because I know I almost did." He ran his hand down over her arm. "I'd been on the verge of it, thinking I saw something in your eyes that encouraged me to go for it, when that knock came and ruined the moment. If the timing of anything had been even a little bit different..." Link sighed.

Mipha laid her hand on his shoulder, her palm brushing his collarbone. "It wasn't your imagination," she said softly. "I did want you to. If you had, I don't think I would've heard the knock on the door."

"I dreamed of you that night." Link lowered his voice, leaning closer to her. "About kissing you, and all the things I wanted to do with you afterwards in that bed. I wanted to keep you warm in a different way."

"I wish you had. And that I had had some courage myself, to try and continue that moment that got so tragically cut short." Mipha sighed too. "But at least we have this now. And we can always revisit the places where we should've taken those chances, and do things properly."

"Yeah." Except for Goponga. "We can." He glanced away from her, at the cooking pots and utensils. "For now, though, how about lunch? I can cook us something here, if we just go get ingredients."

"Please do." Mipha let out another sigh, this one of relief. "I am sure the food at the inn is good, but after all this traveling I miss your cooking. And I would also like very much to taste something unique to this village." She tilted her head. "What are the local specialties?"

"Well, as you might expect, a lot of vegetables and rice; people are really fond of making risottos with what they grow in their fields." Link tapped his fingers on the bench. "People do some fishing in the rivers and even down at the shore, but meat's more popular, especially cucco. I'd say the dishes that Hateno is most known for are meat pies and mushroom rice balls. There's a lot of good wild mushrooms in the woods, and some people cultivate them too."

"Those both sound delicious." Mipha cast a longing look at the cook pots. "Especially the meat pies."

"Dad and I will make those for dinner, then." Link rose. "There's no oven here to bake them in, and the rice balls will be quicker anyway. I'll go get the stuff for it, and I can fry some fish, too, if you want."

"I'd love that." She stood too. "I will catch some for us—where should I go?"

Link shrugged. "Anywhere's good, there's always some armored carp swimming around."

"Oh, I love those." Mipha's eyes lit up. "I will meet you back here, then, once I have gotten the fish for us!"

She kissed his cheek, and then they went their separate ways. Mipha headed for the water, while Link returned down the sloping path to East Wind, the local general store. He bought what he knew he needed, and then went back to the cooking area. Mipha was still off fishing, so he set to work preparing his ingredients and getting the rice going. The people of Hateno kept this area stocked with basic necessities for seasoning food, so that was nice. Making this dish for them would be pretty easy.

Mipha returned as he was chopping the mushrooms, a large carp in her hands that she laid on the counter beside him. Its neck was already broken, of course, but no teeth marks had punctured its flesh; she must've caught it by hand. "Thanks," Link said, giving her a quick smile before returning his attention to the mushrooms.

"Of course." Mipha kissed his cheek again, filling his chest with a warmth that radiated outward from his swelling heart. Every little touch, every little kiss that she gave him, they were precious gifts that never failed to affect him deeply. He'd craved it for so long, after all. "Is there anything else I can do?"

"No, not unless you feel like gutting the fish." Zora didn't tend to bother with such things, but she'd wanted to learn how anyway, so she could help him in the kitchen when he cooked for them. Bit by bit he was teaching her things like that, at her insistence, and it'd become something fun for them to share, rather than him always working alone to prepare their meals. "I'll do it if you'd rather sit, though."

"I would prefer to help you." Mipha reached for a knife and got to work. "I do not mind at all."

"Thanks." They worked in silence for a few minutes before he spoke. "You know... this is something I actually do remember from being a kid here." Link cut thin slices from the hearty truffle he'd decided to splurge on; Mipha had liked them so much when he put them on her scrambled eggs the first time he made breakfast for her that he used them as often as he could. "My mom would make these for us a lot, and my dad told me they were one of my favorites. Later, when I started learning how to cook during training, I asked him for her recipe in a letter I wrote home, and he brought it with him next time he was able to visit." A familiar ache nestled itself at the base of his throat. "It was... hard being away from him so much, but we tried to make every visit count."

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Mipha start to reach for him, and then change her mind when she realized she still had raw fish all over her hands. "I can only imagine how awful that would be," she said quietly. "To be separated from your only parent like that... I am so sorry."

"It was... it was horribly lonely." He dumped the rice into the now-boiling water. "I was so far away from the people I cared about most and alone in a city I didn't like, among people that looked down on me and mocked everything about me they could. And Rhoam is... I don't know how he treats Zelda, but he was never warm or fatherly with me or any of the other foster sons, as far as I know. I had to wait for those rare visits whenever Dad got some leave to get anything like that." Link smiled sadly, half to himself. "I treasured whatever time we got together, and I know he did too. It wasn't easy for him either, since he was alone back here after leaving the Domain."

"I can't imagine it would be." Having finished cleaning the fish, Mipha washed her hands. "To be separated from his only son for so long, while being widowed as well... it must have been quite the hardship on him."

"Yeah." Link stared down at the pot he was heating for the mushrooms. "He always put on a cheerful face for me, but I know it had to be rough on him. Especially when he had to come back here to that empty house." He rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand. "It must be so painful to be there all by himself, without me or Mom, just all his memories of those days, but he insists on staying there. Won't let me buy him a new, bigger house. I can afford it now, and I want to provide things for him like he did for me, but he refuses to let me."

"It is probably his pride." Now she did lay her hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps some sentimentality too, but I would wager there is pride there at work too."

"The sentimentality I kinda get, he's even said he's attached to the place, but pride?" Link grimaced. "That's ridiculous, honestly. If it's more about that than being sentimental, then it's just stupid, and he should let go of it. There's no reason to stay somewhere with painful memories if you don't have to."

"I am sure he has complicated emotional feelings about it." Mipha shook her head. "But you are not so different from him, are you? You work so hard, and insist on being in that tournament, because of your own pride, your desire to prove yourself. Do you not?"

"I... I guess, but..." Link sighed. "It does feel different somehow. I've had to fight for every ounce of respect I've gotten, which isn't much, and to prove that I deserved to be fostered and granted knighthood. To have a title given to me, and now to be married to a princess. He, on the other hand, is just being stubborn about letting his son give him nice things because of... whatever dumb ideas he's gotten in his head." He rolled his eyes.

"It is not entirely the same, no," Mipha admitted. "Yet still, I begin to see where you get your stubborn pride."

"I'm not that bad," Link mumbled; Mipha laughed.

The rest of the cooking went without a hitch. Link showed her how to form the rice balls once they were ready to assemble, allowing her to take over for him while he prepared the fish for frying. Her inexperience meant she didn't get the shape of them quite right, but that didn't matter. What mattered was sharing this with her, the unique touch she gave the food they'd soon be eating. That they'd worked together to make this meal from his early childhood made it taste all the better when they sat down at last, as did Mipha's clear enjoyment of his cooking. Despite his own hunger, it was hard not to simply smile and watch her.

Just let me have this. Just this. Her and I, for the rest of our lives, sharing these little things. It's all I need, all I ever wanted. Just let me keep making her happy. That's all I can ask for.

After a lazy afternoon whiled away at Hateno Beach—which was much colder than the shores of Lurelin, due to its proximity to the icy peaks of the Lanayru Range—they returned to the village as sunset neared. The twilit sky to the east was painted in various shades of violet and lavender, bathing the town in its serene hues as they rode back to the inn. Link stabled the horse they'd taken down to the beach, and then hand in hand with Mipha walked to the house on the outskirts of Hateno where his father waited for them.

Lights had been lit already when they got there, smoke curling up from the crooked chimney in the almost dreamy purple dusk that laid like a translucent blanket over the sloping roof and tall trees that swayed in the faint breeze. The lumpy cliffs of Ebon Mountain loomed up at the rear of the house, and in front wildflowers bloomed in uneven clumps between little saplings he'd helped his father plant months ago.

They'd only just stepped off the bridge that separated the area from the rest of Hateno when the door opened and his father came striding out. "Link!" Rusl quickened his pace, and threw his arms around Link as they met between the bridge and the house. "My son... it's so good to see you."

"It's good to see you too." Link returned the hug, closing his eyes. Guilt pricked at him, not for the first time. He couldn't move here, and his father would refuse to leave even if he decided to retire tomorrow, but all the same it was hard not to regret not seeing him more often despite that it was such a long distance between their homes. "How have you been?"

"Good, good." He pulled back and inspected him. "You're looking healthy... married life must agree with you." Rusl winked.

Link blushed, but nodded all the same. "Yeah... it does."

"I'm glad to hear it." Rusl looked over at Mipha. "And equally glad to see you again, Lady Mipha." He bowed.

"Oh no, no, do not call me that..." Mipha shook her head. "We are family now, are we not? And have been ever since I married your wonderful son."

Rusl laughed, even as Link's heart fluttered wildly at her words. "True, we are! And he's obviously treating you right, I see... not that I expected anything less from him."

"He makes me more happy than I ever imagined I could be," Mipha said, her voice bursting with warmth and affection. "You are right to be proud of him, and should reserve some pride for yourself as well, for I do not doubt your role in raising him to be the man he is today."

It helped, somewhat, to see his father become flustered now too. "Oh, now, it's not all just me... he takes after his mother too, you know. I see a lot of her in him."

Mipha shook her head. "And I would never diminish her, but I urge you not to diminish yourself either. Your influence matters too, and I daresay he learned much from you."

"You're still too kind, La—Mipha." Link almost laughed at how embarrassed his father looked. "In any case..." He cleared his throat. "I know you two are probably hungry—especially Link—but first let me give you the grand tour while we still have enough light. Don't worry, it won't take long," he added with another wink.

He led them around the side of the house to the small stable, where his own horse flicked its tail before returning to the more pressing matter of eating its own dinner. Just past it was a tiny pond under a towering tree; Link's eyes lingered on Mipha as he waited expectantly for the delighted gasp that soon came. "Oh! These flowers, they're..." Her fingers slipped through his as she took several steps forward, her gaze locked on the lotuses growing on one side of the water. "But... however did you grow them here? I have not seen any others in the waterways of this town..."

"Ah, I wondered if you'd notice! Link had quite the reaction too when he saw 'em last time he was here." He laughed. "Story behind that is, when I left Zora's Domain I took some seeds with me. Wanted something to remember the place by, you know?" Rusl scratched his ear. "Planted 'em here, and a friend of mine helps me tend them when I'm away at the fort. She—"

"She?" Link smirked; a rare opportunity had come his way, and he wasn't going to squander it. "This friend's name wouldn't happen to be Telma, would it?"

Just as he'd suspected it would, his father's face turned bright red. "What? Y-yeah, she—she's a nice lady, helps me out around here along with some others... why are you looking at me like that?"

"Oh, no reason," Link said lightly. Beside the water, Mipha had turned to look back at them, and when he caught her eye she looked on the verge of laughter. "She spoke highly of you when we checked in, so I figured you two are pretty... close."

"I—that's—yeah, she—she's a good friend," Rusl sputtered. "It's thanks to her this place is still standing and those flowers are blooming, out of the goodness of her heart. Now, let's get inside so I can show your wife the house and get dinner on the table at a decent hour."

"Of course, yeah." Link waited for Mipha to catch up, and then followed him. He glanced at Mipha again, and she smothered a giggle behind her hand; he couldn't help but grin back at her.

"You are incorrigible," she whispered, gently elbowing him.

"Hey, it's not every day I get to turn the tables on him." Link elbowed her back, and she laughed. Out of the corner of his eye he saw his father glance back at them, but he was too focused on smiling at Mipha to pay it any mind.

It was nice and warm inside the house, and brightly lit; Link trailed after Mipha as his father showed her around. A strange feeling he didn't really know how to describe occupied his mind, causing him to miss some of their conversation.

I was born in this house, and I spent the first four years of my life here. Shouldn't I feel more nostalgic for it than I do? There's warm feeling, yeah, but I think that's more cause my dad's here and we had a nice visit when I came back here before the wedding. Without him here, this house would mean almost nothing to me. I only have a few scattered memories of it, most of my really strong memories from before I got fostered are from our time in the Domain. That's where he started really teaching me things when he could, like swordsmanship and archery, because I was finally old enough to learn. We were really happy there. Both of us, not just me. Maybe someday I can get him to retire and move back there. That'd be nice.

"... which concludes the little tour. Emphasis on little." Rusl laughed. "Sorry to be entertaining you in this hovel, Princess, it's nothing like what I'm sure you're used to."

"No, do not say things like that." Mipha frowned. "It is a lovely home, if you are comfortable here then that is all that matters. I am sure there are many memories attached to it as well, which increases its value beyond that which can be measured in rupees."

"That's very kind of you to say." He smiled. "My son wants me to move into something bigger, but I'm not ready to give up on this old place just yet."

"I can more than afford it," Link began, but Rusl shook his head.

"It's not the money, it's the memories. I'm grateful you want to be so generous with your old man, but I don't need it." He glanced around at the house, a fond expression on his face. "It's humble, but I like it."

"I know, I just..." Link looked down at the floor. "I wish we lived closer, so we could see each other more often."

"Now that I understand." His tone softened. "Get back to me when I decide it's time to retire, and then maybe we can negotiate something." He clapped him on the back. "In the meantime, that food isn't going to cook itself. Let's get started, eh?"

"Then I will leave you two be," Mipha interjected, a winsome smile on her face. "I will be in that pretty pond outside, call me when the food is ready."

"Of course." Link kissed her cheek. "Have fun."

"You too."

He watched her as she left the house, and then followed his father to the kitchen. Link started preparing the dough, while Rusl got started on making the filling. Earlier in the day Mipha had banished him so she could buy him a surprise gift, and he'd taken the opportunity to deliver ingredients to the house with a note about what he wanted to cook for dinner. As it was one of his father's favorites, he'd known he wouldn't mind.

They worked quietly at first, until Rusl broke the silence. "You know... I really am glad to see you, and to see you so happy. I know the past several years haven't been easy for you, so it's good to see you in a better place."

"It's good to be in a better place." He'd always tried to hide his unhappiness during their visits, so as not to worry his father and mar their time together, but he'd always been seen through. To be able to let him see the bliss he'd found with Mipha was another thing to be grateful for. "What about you? I know it's been rough on you too, with us being apart so much and having to come back here to this empty house."

"Ehhh..." Rusl let out a sigh and shrugged his shoulders. "It's got its low points, I'll admit to that. But I manage. I make do. What else is there to do? It's not like I have any other choice."

Link's hands went still as he kneaded the dough. "Dad, you..." That ache in his throat was back. "Did you ever... resent the king? For taking me away from you?"

"Ahhh, that's... you had to ask that, didn't you?" A wearied, nervous laugh escaped him as he chopped the cucco meat. "That's a question with a complicated answer..."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." Link sprinkled some more flour on the board.

"No, I'm not gonna do that to you." Rusl sighed again. "The thing is, I... yeah. I guess sometimes I did, when the loneliness got real bad. Usually when I'd be on watch duty at night. There's a certain point where you get to thinking about things, in those dark hours well before dawn, even if just to distract yourself from what might be out there on Blatchery Plain. So my mind would wander, and I'd wish more than anything that I was at home with you, that nothing had had to change. Which meant that yeah, I'd get a little angry at the man who sent my son away from me. And then I'd feel real guilty about that."

"Why?" Link turned. "I don't blame you for feeling that way. It's only natural."

"Sure, maybe, but..." He shifted, looking uncomfortable. "At the same time, I knew Rhoam's a good man, a wise king, who wants the best for Hyrule, and who chose you to foster because he saw something promising in you. Not many people get that opportunity, and most of 'em are usually nobles, right?" When Link nodded, Rusl went on. "So it felt unfair to you both to be angry about it. Especially cause I was so proud of you. Still am. I'm just a mediocre country knight, but you... you're something really special, or the king wouldn't have chosen you for such an honor. Don't know where you got it from, but I couldn't be prouder you have it."

"Hey, don't say that." Link frowned. "You're the one who first taught me how to use a sword and shoot a bow. I couldn't have done any of what I've done without you."

"I just got you started." Rusl tossed the chopped meat and vegetables into a bowl and started mixing them with the herbs and spices he'd already measured out. "Nothing more. You took your natural gift and ran with it."

"I still needed that starting point." The ache grew sharper. "You were my first teacher, and that's so important. In general, and to me. Like Mipha said, you shouldn't diminish that."

"You're right. I'm sorry." He went over to wash his hands, having finished mixing everything. "You know... speaking of that sweet wife of yours... have you told her how you feel about her yet?"

Link froze, but forced himself to recover as quickly as he could. "I—I don't know what you mean," he said, his eyes fixed on the dough he continued to cut. "She—she knows I care about her, she always has, and..."

"I'm sure she does, you've always been good about that. But..." He shook his head. "Have you told her that you love her, though?"

Link's heart banged against his ribs. "I—what—what makes you think I'm in love with her?"

"Because I know my son better than he apparently thinks I do." Having finished drying his hands, Rusl laid one on Link's shoulder. "You're not as open as you used to be before you got whisked off to that castle, but I can still tell what you're feeling for her. I see how you look at her, and I remember how you were sweet on her from the day you two met. She was all you talked about that night, and when I took you to the capital you sobbed like your heart was breaking until you fell asleep in the carriage. And then you cried some more when you woke up, saying her name over and over. You were inconsolable."

A lump rose in Link's throat. "I remember." His heart really had been broken; he'd known it then, had been beyond devastated at their separation. Especially because he hadn't known when he'd get to see her again, when he could come back and marry her and be with her forever. The relief of having that behind his back, of being able to look forward at a happy present and future with her, eased the sting of that memory a little.

And it's true, I... I had to learn how to shut things off, hide them deep inside. It was the only way to survive those years. But I think I'm starting to unlearn that now. I want to, anyway. Mipha, and Dad, deserve someone more open and free, who doesn't smother all his feelings under a mask. That's who I want to try to be, even if it's slow going.

"You never stopped missing her, either." Rusl shook his head. "When I first visited you after that—do you remember? You came to me in tears, saying you loved Mipha and wanted to marry her someday, but you were scared that you wouldn't be allowed to because you were a commoner and she was a princess."

"I..." His hands shook as he spooned filling onto the dough. "I think I remember that..."

"I'll never forget it." His hand still didn't budge. "I told you it was okay, that the Zora don't think that way, and you were too young to be thinking about getting married anyway. That you should just focus on your training and see if you still wanted to marry her when you'd grown up and finished that." Rusl's gaze, when Link risked looking up, was so piercing he wished he'd kept his eyes on the pastry. "You hung onto that, didn't you? All these years? You wouldn't talk about it when you were here last, but I could tell you were stressed about something. It was the marriage, wasn't it? You didn't know if you were going to be chosen to be her husband and you were afraid someone else would be."

"... Yeah." Link looked down. And someone else was, at first. "I..." He swallowed. "I was terrified that someone else would be picked, and I didn't know what I'd do if that happened, because... yeah. I did still want to marry her. I..." He closed his eyes, his heart hammering. If he was going to be more open with his father, then he needed to start now, no matter how scary it was to say the words out loud. "You're right... I love her. I always have."

"Does she know?"

Link shook his head. "I don't think so."

He raised an eyebrow. "You don't think so? Link, that girl is smart, but she's not a mind reader. She can't just magically know your feelings and she's not gonna assume what they are either, unless you let her know."

"I'm not a mind reader either," Link countered as he brushed a beaten egg onto the sealed pies. "I don't know what her feelings are. Besides, if you can tell what mine are, why wouldn't she be able to tell too?"

Rusl sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm not a gambling man, but if I were, I'd bet this house that her eyes are clouded with the same insecurities that've got you dithering about. Which is all the more reason to speak up, so she has an idea of what's going on in here." He tapped Link's chest, right over his heart. "I know you're shy, but so is she, and one of you needs to overcome that and speak up so things can move forward. Otherwise you're gonna be dancing around each other for the rest of your lives, and that's a torture neither of you ought to go through longer than I suspect you already have. You think you'd be standing here if I hadn't risked it all with your mother?" He chuckled.

"I..." Link looked down at his flour-covered hands, at the wedding ring that still shone despite the dusting on it. He'd been the one to take initiative all those years ago, hadn't he? The first one to speak of his feelings, his desire to marry her, that day at Veiled Falls. She might've forgotten it, but that didn't change the leap of courage he'd made. And he'd also fought his fears the night of the masquerade, flirting with her and leading to them finally making love to each other when they got home. So much of their current happiness was owed to him battling his nerves and winning. "... You're right." He swallowed. "I'll... I'll try to think about how to say it to her. Thank you."

"Of course." Rusl slipped an arm around his shoulders and hugged him. "You may be all grown up and a married man, but you still need your father from time to time, and I'm glad to be able to help you out in any way I can."

Link's eyes prickled with tears. "Thanks, Dad." He leaned his head against his father's shoulder. "I'll always need you, okay? It really is good to see you."

"Aw, come on, don't make an old man cry." Rusl gave him a squeeze, and then moved away so he could start chopping the potatoes for frying. "Let's get these into the oven so we don't all starve."

"Right." Link laughed.

Fireflies lit the way as they walked back to the inn much later; Mipha let her eyes stray to them as she strolled along, Link's hand clasped in hers. Her stomach was pleasantly full with the delicious food he and his father had made for them all, her heart brimming with quiet contentment. They'd laughed and talked and reminisced during the meal and well afterwards, until finally Rusl pleaded weariness and sent them both off so he could get some sleep. In a good-natured way, of course, and they'd agreed that they needed rest as well. Their stay would be lasting a few more days, after all, so there would be plenty more time to spend together.

Just behind the Ton Pu Inn was a small pool of water, its origin in Zelkoa Pond on the hill above, with a small waterfall that carried it into the creek below. Their path took them to the edge, beneath a tall tree, and Link slipped his arm around her as they watched the moonlight play over the surface of the swift current.

A few stray leaves from the tree dropped onto the water and drifted past, sparking a thought in her mind. "Link?" Mipha turned to look at him. "I meant to ask you earlier, but I forgot in everything else... what did your father mean when he said you had quite the reaction to the lotuses?"

"Oh, that... I..." A shadow seemed to pass over his eyes. "Well... you remember how I told you that I found out about Rhoam choosing Astor when I got back from visiting my father?" Mipha nodded, and he continued. "During that whole trip, I was preoccupied with worrying about who was going to get picked, because I didn't want it to be someone horrible, I couldn't bear to see that happen to you. It was all I could think about on the ride here So when I walked up to the house and saw those flowers... it..." Link closed his eyes. "For Dad, they're just a reminder of a beautiful place he enjoyed living and working in, with a lot of fond memories of the two of us. For me, they were a reminder of you, and how much I missed you, and how afraid I was that you were going to be trapped in marriage to someone awful. So yeah. It was a shock to see them, and a very emotional one at that."

"I understand." Mipha leaned her head against his shoulder again. A firefly glided through the air in front of them, and she stayed still so as not to scare it away. "Remember when we would catch fireflies in the Domain? Muzu would get mad at me for being out late, but I never cared, because I had so much fun with you."

"Yeah, I remember." Link tossed a small rock onto the water, and they watched it skip away over the surface. "I wanted to put some in a jar at first, so you could keep them, but then you told me that they don't live long and should be free. I couldn't bear to do that to them after you said that."

"You have always had a very soft heart." Mipha squeezed his arm. "I like that about you."

"Th-thanks..."

Even in the silvery glow of the moon and stars, his blush was clearly visible; Mipha had to restrain herself from kissing him. Goddesses, he is so cute when he does that. Yet I haven't the heart to tease him and further fluster him. Instead she studied his profile for a moment, the way the drops of starlight splashed over his face, pooling in his azure eyes and woven through his golden hair. What she wanted to ask next was rather delicate, so she took a moment to collect her thoughts and words and arrange them how she felt best. "Link, you... how do you truly feel? About your father possibly being involved with this Telma woman?"

Link laughed. "At this point I don't think it's a possibility, I think it's an inevitability. Or it's already happened, and he's just not ready to talk about it." He shrugged. "Either way, though, I'm fine with it."

"You are?" She tilted her head. "It does not bother you at all?"

"No. I mean..." He looked down. "I... I do wish my mother was still here. You know? I've always felt that absence in my life, even if I barely remember her. I want more memories of her. I wish I could've had more time with her, that she could've seen me grow up and become a knight, that she could've met you and been at our wedding. But... none of that will ever happen." His voice shook. "She's been gone for so long. And for six years it was just the two of us, me and Dad, with him taking care of me in the Domain and getting to spend more time with me than he had when he was at the fort. But then I got sent off to do my training, and he's been alone all that time. Missing her, missing me. So if he's found someone here that he's happy with, if he's got companionship and isn't so lonely anymore... how could I ever begrudge him that? He deserves to be happy, especially after everything he's been through and sacrificed for me."

"Oh, Link." Mipha gently turned him so she could hug him, stroking his hair as he pressed his face to the side of her head. "I understand, and I think you are wonderfully kind to feel that way. Not everyone would be so open to it."

"Well, everyone's different, I guess." His hand came up to cup the back of her tail. "With different situations. I love my dad and I want him to be happy, whatever form that takes. Even if it's not what I would want for myself."

"What do you mean?" Mipha frowned. "You do not want her to become a part of your life, should they become more serious?"

"No, I'm fine with that, that's not what I'm saying. I..." Link paused, and when he spoke again he sounded choked up. "If... if I ever lost you... I don't think I could ever move past that and want anyone else."

A fleeting memory struck her, of the way he'd cried over the thought of losing her the night Astor had attacked her; in light of how things had changed between them, all that she now suspected about his true feelings for her, it looked almost entirely different in hindsight. Particularly with what he'd just said. "... Link?" she asked tentatively.

"Mipha, I..." An undercurrent of fear rippled through his voice. "There's something I need to tell you..."

"What is it?" Mipha pulled back, trying to see his expression. "Whatever is troubling you? I assure you, you can tell me anything."

The nervous look in his eyes was visible for half a second before he closed them, wrapping his arms around her in a tight yet gentle embrace. She could feel his heart beating, a wild thrumming in his chest where she was pressed close to him, and her own pulse spiked in response. Whatever he was going to say to her had him trembling in fear, and she had no desire to rush him into it. Let him take his time, so he didn't lose his nerve and then have to go through this all over again at some later date. Mipha closed her eyes too, and simply held him as she waited for him to speak.

When his words finally came, they arrived in the softest of whispers, delivered into her ear as he carefully moved her fin aside. "I'm in love with you." Mipha's eyes flew wide open, her lungs struggling to function and her mind whirling with thoughts too rapid to control. "I think I have been ever since I saw you again, and every day we spend together I'm in a little deeper. I..." Link's voice quivered. "I've never felt this way before, and it's overwhelming. Especially because I'm feeling it for my best friend." He pulled back, and she could see tears in his starlit eyes as he touched her face with fingers that fluttered like leaves in the wind. "I love you, Mipha. I do. I've fallen so hard for you, and it scares me, but..."

Link trailed off, drawing a shaky breath, but before he could gather himself enough to continue talking Mipha leaned up and kissed him. There was a moment of stillness, just a small one borne from his surprise, but then he began to return the kiss, making a tiny whimpering noise against her lips. His tears slipped out, mingling with the ones that leaked from her eyes as she feverishly kissed him, clinging to him with all her strength. Link clung tightly to her in return, kissing her with a desperation she could taste. Here it was: direct confirmation that his romantic feelings for her went far deeper than mere attraction. She'd suspected it ever since Lurelin, but to actually hear him say it was something she'd been unprepared for all the same. Love ignited in her heart, love and need and staggering joy, that her adoration wasn't unrequited. Link let out a keening moan into her mouth, seemingly breaking off the kiss only to press smaller ones to each of her lips before sucking on the bottom one and then kissing her more deeply. Mipha shuddered in his arms, pressing herself closer; every ounce of the love he'd just revealed to her was pouring off him in waves, and she wanted to stay like this as long as she could to bask in it.

"I love you too," she gasped as they broke apart; Link's eyes lit up with ecstatic relief. "And it has terrified me as well, for the same reasons it has frightened you... I have feared to say it, not knowing how you would react. Not wanting to scare you away or make things awkward for you if I said how I truly feel about you."

"You don't. You couldn't." Link shook his head. "Oh, Mipha, you... you have no idea how badly I've wanted to hear you say that." He took a gulping breath, more tears running down his face from eyes bright with the same incandescent joy that he'd been drawn with in their portrait. "You asked me once what I would have you do as my wife, and that's the only thing I could think to ask for." He pressed his forehead to hers. "For you to say you love me."

"I do, oh, I do." She cupped his face in her hands, wiping away his tears with her thumbs. "I love you, Link. With all my heart. I'll say it as many times as you need to hear it. I..." Her own vision was badly blurring, her cheeks soaked and her breathing loud and unsteady. "For... for so long, I thought... I never imagined you would want that from me, that you would see me this way."

"I do, though." Link smiled through his tears, and lifted a hand to brush at hers. "I love you so much it's scared me sometimes. But not anymore." He let out a shuddering sigh. "We've found something so amazing with each other, and I don't want to run away from it. I don't want to waste any more time being afraid. Will..." His breath hitched. "Will you stay with me, Mipha? Be with me like this, for the rest of our lives?"

Fresh tears streamed down her face as she nodded. "There is... nothing else I want more. You..." She hiccuped. "You are my true love, and we are united now and forever. I..." Mipha let out a sob. "I need you. I always have. In one way or another, I have needed you since before I even met you. I needed a friend like you, and now I need you as my husband. I could never run from you, or this, not when it is everything I have craved so much it hurt, back when I thought it impossible to have this with you."

"It was never impossible." Link kissed her forehead, so firmly that it gave a little. "We just thought it was." He smiled again, and she couldn't help but smile back. "But now we know better, don't we?"

Mipha nodded, the words lodged in her throat; Link leaned in to kiss her again, but she stopped him, touching his lips with her fingers. "Let us finish that thought in our room," she murmured. The surprise that had flared in his eyes transformed into understanding, and he nodded back at her.

Turning as one, they walked hand in hand into the inn. The front desk was being watched by a sleepy-looking young woman, who yawned and glanced briefly at them before returning to her book, and the common room was empty but for one man nursing a drink at the bar that Telma tended. All was quiet, lending a sort of magic to the air that Mipha suspected only she and Link felt.

Even the door to their room seemed not to make a sound as he closed it behind them. A few candles had been lit, casting a warm glow over the rustic furniture and their own faces as they turned to each other. Link reached for her as she moved towards him, less pulling her in than receiving her as they came together in each other's arms. She held him close, his arms secure around her, and gazed longingly up at his dear, sweet face. Candlelight flickered over his features, sparkled in his eyes, and her breath was an elusive thing, so hard to catch. Mipha touched his cheek, unable to tell if her hand was shaking or if he was; Link closed his eyes, leaning into her hand and sighing. She let her fingers roam over his face, tracing his cheekbone, his forehead, brushing aside some of his hair and ghosting over his eyelids before grazing his lower lip. Not for the first time, she reflected on how nice it was that she didn't have to stretch far to reach him. See how perfectly we fit together, she'd told him after that night in Lurelin. Thanks to things like that he was coming to accept his height, now that he knew she appreciated it. It did her heart good to know that her love was healing his inner hurts, the way her magic did for outer ones.

Link's hands skimmed up her back as she continued to touch him, running her fingertips over his ears and neck; he unclasped her necklace with a practiced ease, and then moved to the brooch at her shoulder. Mipha's breath caught twice, first as the sash pooled around her waist, and then when he opened his eyes and smiled at her before unwrapping it and tossing it aside. "So beautiful," he whispered reverently, making her eyes sting. "Oh, Mipha..."

"My dearest Link..." She bent her head and kissed the hollow at the base of his neck, drawing a shaky moan from him, and another when she nuzzled him. His skin was warm under her touch, already growing flushed with arousal; what sort of magic was this, that so little attention from her could provoke such reactions in him so quickly? Everything he felt for her was so intense, and it floored her. It wasn't a frightening intensity, though, but a flattering one. And it melted her own insecurities away, making her almost forget she'd ever worried that he wouldn't be attracted to her. That he couldn't love her. How wonderful to be so wrong.

She untied his hair when she lifted her head again, carding her fingers through it and letting her claws tease his scalp before stroking his ears once more. Link's eyelids fluttered, a quavering moan escaping him, and Mipha almost paused, fascinated by his long lashes all over again. He had so many things like that that Zoras didn't, and she found them all alluring. Temptation rose in her, and she curled her hand around the nape of his neck so she could pull him close and kiss those delicate eyelids. Link breathed her name again as she did, almost stopping her heart at the sound of it.

He opened his eyes as she started to pull back, freezing her in place with the look that shone out from them. Mesmerized, her pulse racing, Mipha could only stare back at him as he let his gaze travel over her. Her knees went weak as Link then tenderly explored her face with kisses—her cheeks, her forehead, her temples, the corners of both eyes. So soft and sweet and brimming over with affection that it made her almost want to cry from the joy of it. Standing before him now, in this moment, was like seeing him through new eyes. Eyes that gave her a fuller, more complete understanding, of the love that had burned in him all along, that she'd been too blind to see until now. When his mouth finally covered hers again she sighed into it, melting in his loving embrace. The bliss of being in love, of being loved—her spirit soared with it, as it wrapped itself around both of them and quieted everything but their pounding hearts. Nothing beyond the two of them mattered for this moment in time, only each other.

"I need you too," Link said raggedly as they broke off the kiss, his voice raspy with desire. "I love you more than I can say... I can't imagine my life without you, and I don't want to."

"Shh," Mipha said gently. "You don't have to, for I am here to stay. I adore you. My life would be incomplete without you in it." She kissed the corner of his mouth, one of her hands sliding under his shirt to touch his chest, making him tremble again. "I want to shower you in my love tonight."

"So do I." He drew a shuddering breath, leaning his forehead on hers. "I want to show you what I've been feeling for you all this time." Link slid his hand up her side to cup her, his thumb pressing into the softness he found there. "Will you let me?"

"Yes." Mipha nodded breathlessly; speaking was always difficult when he touched her like that, but somehow she managed it. "We will both express ourselves more freely tonight."

With eager, quivering hands she helped him remove his clothes, and he took the rest of her jewelry off; from there he carried her to the bed, laying her down with infinite care on the sheets before joining her. Weariness had completely fallen away, leaving behind only desire and need borne from the rush of their confessions. They took their time with each other, letting wandering hands and heated kisses speak for them, spoiling each other with avalanches of sensation and pleasure. And when the time was right and they couldn't stand it any longer, they united themselves as they had so many times before. Words of love were whispered into each other's ears before it began, and when it ended they clung to one another still, trembling and gasping in the aftermath.

This time, though, Mipha didn't bother to hold back the tears brought forth from the emotional overload of her release, burying her face in Link's chest as he held her and shed a few of his own. That he would share that vulnerability with her made her feel even closer to him, especially when they laid quietly side by side, staring into each other's eyes as they wiped every stray tear away. Finally, when they found themselves on the verge of falling asleep, they snuffed out the candles and then rejoined each other in bed, huddling in each other's arms in the dark.

It didn't take long for her to begin drifting off, but Link's soft whisper roused her again, not so much breaking the silence as gently easing it aside. "I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered back, snuggling even closer to him and not caring that her voice was so wobbly. His heart beat steadily under her cheek, his arms wrapped firmly around her; Mipha closed her eyes and sighed, and Link kissed the top of her head before letting out a contented sigh of his own. Cloaked in darkness, held in her husband's tender embrace, she was lost in a feeling of warmth and safety unlike anything she'd ever felt before, and it lulled her without resistance into sleep as she listened to Link's breathing even out.

What more can I ask for than this? What else could I possibly want? There is nothing.

For I already have everything.