A/N: Hello people! Welcome to my new short story series! In this series, I'll be writing short stories based on the many different games and situations in the Zelda series. Theres no continuity in this series which means that you can read the stories in any order you like and it'll still make sense.
Anyways, I haven't written anything in ages. I feel rusty so I apologize in advance if the characters seem well, out of character, or if the writing is wonky at times. I try my best to go through the stories and fix up any mistakes but I don't have a beta reader. Therefore, I'm bound to slip up at times. I apologize if this causes you any inconveniences. Anyways, please be sure to favorite this story and review it if you can! :) I love to hear your thoughts on my stories! Hope you enjoy, guys!
Title: He.
Timeline Placement: Child Link timeline. Takes place seven years after the events of Majora's Mask. Link is in his "adult" form like he is seen in Ocarina of Time.
Description: Princess Zelda and Link share a seven year long tradition of meeting up with each other at night in Zelda's courtyard. However, tonight is slightly different. Tonight is Link's seventeenth birthday.
It wasn't always easy meeting him at nights… but to Zelda, he was worth it.
Zelda crossed an archway and tipped toed down a hallway. There were more than five guards stationed in the hallway but they were, well, all snoring. The stench of beer was apparent on them. They were all drunk. Of course, she couldn't blame them for being sozzled. The last time Hyrule was in a serious threat was seven years ago when the King of Thieves, Ganondorf swore his allegiance to her father, the King.
However, that issue was quickly solved when she had that prophetic dream and when he showed up to prove her right. He was such a strange boy when she first met him. His eyes were hardened and he was mature beyond his years. Seven years ago, he was exactly seven but his maturity was lightyears ahead of his age.
He had no interest in toys, he barely spoke a word, he would jump in fear if someone tried to touch him, and… he was so stoic. Nothing fazed him, nothing was able to hurt him. The cruelty he received for claiming he defeated Ganondorf seven years into the future was enough to even make Zelda upset.
But it didn't faze him in the least.
Then again—being the diplomatic princess she was raised to be—she understood why the people of Hyrule laughed at him. His story was absurd to the average person. He claimed that Zelda had given him the Ocarina of Time and told him to collect the Three Spiritual Stones so he could get to the Master Sword and defeat the Man with the Evil Eyes.
Then this was where his story got messy.
He claimed that he traveled seven years into the future because he was not yet of age to wield the Sword that Seals Darkness. He recovered the Sages' Medallions and restored their powers to them. Then, he went into Hyrule Castle and defeated Ganondorf.
Finally, his story concluded with her sending him back to his own time. Back to regain the years he lost due to the fate of the Goddesses.
She wholeheartedly believed him when he told this story. She saw the good in him even though he was shrouded in mystery. She knew he was the boy in her dream.
He was her hero.
Eventually, after much convincing from both her and her attendant, Impa, her father gave in and banished Ganondorf. To this day she still does not know where exactly Ganondorf is at but he hasn't been an issue for seven years ago so he must be gone for good.
Seven years…
Seven long years…
It's been seven years since that dangerous time in Hyrule. Over the past seven years, she occasionally met up with him like how she was doing at the moment. Her father and her royal council did not agree with her spending time with him because he wasn't of royal descent. His heroic deeds towards the Kingdom of Hyrule were not even publicly acknowledged. His heroism was only known to her father and the higher-ups of the council.
It disgusted her how they treated him.
So, because of the council's nonsense she took up the habit of visiting the boy from the forest late at night. He would sneak past the royal guards and she would sneak past all of nobility into her private courtyard.
She knew that this deviousness was imprudent. But had she any other choice? They were both cut from the same page. They both shared the same burdens of the Triforce. She needed him just as much as he needed her. She vowed to Hylia and to all the deities she knew that nothing was going to stop her from seeing him.
After successfully evading a potentially dangerous situation with the royal guards, she opened the door to her courtyard.
Of course, he was there, waiting for her.
When he heard the courtyard door click closed, he turned around. His eyes flashed into fear and then quickly settled back to that neutral, stoic look he had on his face so often. However, Zelda was making progress because there was a small hint of a (forced?) smile on his face. Hmm… maybe she was reading too much into his expression.
She ran up to him and embraced him. He returned the gesture.
Zelda pulled back and gazed upon his face. He was tired. There were bags under his eyes. But only his eyes held his true feelings because the rest of his face did not show a single sign of weakness.
"You must be exhausted, Link. Come, lets rest for a while." Zelda lead him next to a bed of flowers and sat down on the grass. She motioned for him to follow.
Link plopped down next to Zelda and he sighed. "Thank you, Zelda. It's been… difficult these past few days."
Zelda mindlessly picked at the grass. "Hm, do you want to talk about it?"
He paused. "I turned seventeen years of age today."
She let go of the grass she was twirling in her hand. "Today was your birthday? Good Hylia, Link, why did you not tell me? You are already very much aware of my obliviousness to keeping track of time."
"Time is something I have grown to despise."
Zelda turned and faced Link. "Do you still think of that…that awful version of Hyrule?"
Taking off his green cap, Link nodded and ran a hand through his hair, sighing again while he did it.
"Everyone you knew was dead in that future."
Silence.
"My old friend from the Kokiri Forest, Saria, was dead. Darunia, Ruto, Impa, Nobooru— they were all dead. Hyrule was a mess. The Market was in a decayed state. A former shell of what it used to be."
Zelda just stared.
Silence.
"But there was hope. People strived and made ends meet somehow. Yes, they were living through chaotic times but that didn't hold them back. They prospered in the face of adversity."
Closing her eyes, Zelda tried to hold back oncoming tears. "I'm… sorry you had to go through that misery, Link." She stared at him. His gaze was fixated on the grass—no emotions were on his face. A blank stare, an empty page, a cold cave. She couldn't read his mind at all yet she understood everything he wasn't saying.
The tears surfaced.
She couldn't hold them back.
"This is my fault. I ruined your life," Zelda said. Link snapped out of his trance, and whipped his head towards Zelda. She continued, "If only I never gave you that cursed Ocarina, if only I told my father about you sooner—ah, curse it!" She clutched a handful her dress's skirt.
Immediately, she felt a pair of arms wrap around her frame.
He was so warm.
"Stop it." Link said. "I'm not going to have you blame yourself for protecting your kingdom." He tightened his embrace and laid his head in the crook of her neck. She inhaled his scent. He smelled of hay and milk. Link did tell her once that he worked in Lon Lon Ranch from time to time to make a living.
Zelda scoffed. "How did I protect my kingdom if I couldn't protect you?"
Silence, yet again.
"You did protect me, Zelda." Link pulled back and pushed a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. "You sent me back seven years so I could regain all the time I lost with you." he embraced her again. "I don't even know how to show my thanks to you for your wisdom"
Zelda pulled back and in return, ran her hand through his hair.
So soft.
"Well," she wiped the tears from her eyes. A mischievous grin curled up. "you can start by kissing me."
Wait.
What did she just say?
Link's eyes widened and his lips were slightly parted. The disbelief was apparent in his face. To be honest, Zelda couldn't believe she said it herself.
Then, what he did next astonished her.
She saw him smile for real. It wasn't just some forced grin or courteous gesture. His empty eyes were filled with joy. She never realized it, but Link had the cutest dimples on his cheeks when he smiled.
He began to close the distance between them and Zelda fluttered her eyes shut.
Then, they kissed. It's funny, she never would've guessed that the crumbled war hero of Hyrule would have such soft lips.
But that was the nature of them—of him.
There was always something new to discover about him. Sometimes, he's the most frustrating soul in all of Hyrule and other times, he's as perfect as an angel.
He was worth it.
He was worth every second of it.