Link woke to the light hiss of a midnight breeze and furrowed his brow, confused as to where he was. He reached out sluggishly with his senses and mulled over each detail: it was dark, but the natural and open darkness of a clear outdoor night. He heard water lapping idly and crickets chirping from somewhere distant. He felt plush grass beneath him and…

Link smiled as his sleepy mind put the pieces together. Hena was drooped against his shoulder, snoring softly. Her warmth and the springy breeze made the night comfortable, even outside. After she'd kissed him—finally, foolishly—they had made no move to break the peace of each other's company out here by the pond. Instead, Link had pulled her close and there they simply dozed side by side until the moon rose.

Now Link wrapped his arm more snugly around her and leaned his head against her hair. She smelled of airy comfort and the white blossoms that fringed the pond's trees. He felt his smile widen as she shifted against him and her arm fell across his chest.

For once, Link did not think of the consequences. He did not think of all that might go wrong later. He did not think of tomorrow at all. He certainly did not think about Zelda and Midna and the Twili. No; right now he just thought of Hena.

Whatever came with the sunrise, he knew that Hena would be there and he would be close by to protect her. And, he knew that in himself something was different. A good sort of different.

…

When Link opened his eyes again, he had to raise his arm immediately to shield them from the sun. The golden orb had already risen from behind the trees and was on its way toward his peak. He groaned in bewilderment. Had Link ever slept so late before?

When he pushed himself up on his elbows and rose into a sitting position, his joints creaked and his tunic was damp with dew. Somehow, though, it was a good sort of discomfort. It meant that he hadn't tossed and turned all night under the abuse of constant nightmares. It meant that he'd been calm with Hena beside him.

Looking down at the place she'd lain, Link registered that she was gone. No panic sparked to life in him, though, as he was too sleepy to assume the worst. Instead he lifted his head and squinted across the dewy, sun-gilded grass toward the pond. The water was catching the midmorning rays of the sun on its gentle crests, throwing back blinding sparkles like the reflection of diamonds. The cliffs and blossoming trees were mirrored serenely in its surface. And there, on the center of the pond, Hena drifted in her small craft.

As Link watched, she turned and noticed him sitting, and her face broke into a beautiful grin. One hand she raised to secure her floppy hat against a light gust of wind, and the other she raised to wave at Link. "Hey, Lincoln," she called, her voice carrying across the water. "You slept long enough!"

Link felt a smile of his own tug at his lips but did not reply. Instead he stood and stretched, rubbing a knot out of his neck with one hand. Once his limbs felt loose he relaxed and padded across the grass toward the dock. The worn wood was warm under his feet, already lightly baked by the rising sun. There he stood and watched as Hena piloted her canoe languidly back toward him, fishing pole leaning against the bench beside her.

As she drifted in to the dock, Link reached out a hand for her and helped her hop to dry land. "Why, thank you." Hena blushed, smiling shyly. She turned and the two of them secured the craft to the dock together.

"Fish already?" Link noticed in wonderment, eyes scanning the bow of the canoe where a healthy amount of Hylian bass were gleaming in the sunlight.

"A girl's got to start early if she wants the best catch of the day, yeah?" Hena replied teasingly.

"But you're the only one here."

Hena leaned back into his arms, and Link found himself hugging her around the waist. "I'm talking about the fish, not the fishermen," she giggled.

Link didn't know why that was funny, but he enjoyed the feeling of her in his arms. He leaned in and rested his chin on her shoulder. Hena turned her head and brushed their noses together affectionately. "You okay, pretty boy?" she murmured.

Link hummed an affirmative. "Should we unload your fish?"

"They can dry for a while." Hena gently untangled herself from him and instead bent to work on removing her galoshes. When she noticed him still standing there she smiled and tilted her head toward the edge of the dock. "Want to sit with me?"

Link complied agreeably, moving to lower himself to the lip of the dock and hang his feet over the water while Hena got free of her shoes and did the same. Looking down, the fisherwoman began to trail her big toes in the water. After a moment she grimaced and withdrew them, instead pulling her knees up to her chest and hugging them to her. When Link gave her a querying look she explained, "Still cold."

He chuckled and dipped his own toes in to test her judgment. The water was indeed chilly, but Link thought it was refreshing. He kicked his feet beneath the surface idly. As he leaned his weight back on his arms, he looked over at Hena and found her staring out at the pond, an odd expression on her face. She seemed confused. Frustrated, perhaps.

Link nudged her with his shoulder. When she turned to him as if startled from a dream, he gave her another questioning look.

"Oh, I—" Hena seemed to realize for the first time that she'd been making a face. She shrugged and shook her head as if it weren't anything worth mentioning, but then explained anyway, "I was just thinking. I come out here every day and do the same thing every day and I know this place like the back of my hand, but…" She shrugged again. "I don't actually. Like, look at the pond. I know its twists and turns and secret coves and where the water's warmer and where the fish like to gather, but there's so much below the surface that no one's ever seen before. It's a secret. Like…" She looked up to face him squarely, a realization in her eyes. "like you, pretty boy."

Link smiled softly. "It doesn't have to stay a secret."

Her caramel gaze flickered between his two eyes, searchingly. When she seemed unable to find her answer there, she asked, "Do you mean you, or the pond?"

"Both." Link's smile went crooked and he pushed himself to his feet. Hena made as if to rise as well, lips parted to ask him what he was doing, but Link caught her shoulder and pressed her back gently. "Wait here."

…

"Are you sure this thing is going to work?" Hena stretched the woven black mask between her hands and twisted it appraisingly. When she looked up at Link, her eyes were unconvinced.

Link nodded and reached for the Zora's mask. She passed it to him, and he brought it to his face. "Just hook these around your ears," he said, demonstrating. His voice sounded muffled behind the slick, shimmering material. "Once you're underwater there's suction."

Hena was torn between her desire to uncover the secrets of the pond floor and her fear that the odd mask would trick her into a watery doom. She continued to eye the contraption distrustfully, even as Link took it from his face and handed it back to her. When she switched her gaze to his eyes, they were sparkling with humor.

"What's so funny?" Hena snapped indignantly.

"Scared?" Link teased.

She scowled and crossed her arms, pushing her lower lip out in defiance. "Of course not!"

Link shrugged his concession. Then he reached into the satchel he'd retrieved from the cabin and brought out a pair of boots. Or, at least at first they looked like boots. Upon closer inspection, Hena realized that they were made of metal. She gave Link an alarmed look, wondering if he was joking.

He just smiled. "How about now?"

"I— I—" Hena looked between him and the metal boots several times, gaping in disbelief. "You're supposed to wear these? Underwater?" She reached out and ran her fingers over one of the iron shoes, confirming that they were indeed made of metal, and appropriately heavy.

"How else will you walk on the bottom?" Link asked innocently, that little smile still tugging at his lips.

Was he serious? "I'll drown!" she protested.

"That's what the mask is for."

Hena was speechless, still struggling with the idea. She couldn't rightly tell Link no and have him think her a lily-liver, but those boots—! She grimaced, prodding at the iron shoes once again. They looked like death traps. Was possibly drowning a fair trade for a little underwater exploration?

"You don't have to if you don't want to." Link's gentle voice broke into her thoughts.

Link could clearly see her consternation. He was trying to give her an out, a chance to admit she was a coward in a more dignified way. That made Hena's determination flare. He wasn't allowed to think she couldn't do it! "No!" Hena declared. She hopped to her feet and stood her ground. "I'll do it. Pa always said I have an adventurer's heart. I think I ought to prove it."

Link met her glare with kind amusement and held the mask out to her. Hena balked slightly and then rushed to cover it up with, "Just let me—I just have to, uh, get out of these waders. Turn around."

While Link's back was turned, Hena gripped her head between her hands and forced herself to take deep breaths. This was fine! She could do this. Link promised it would work. And if it didn't, he would be there to help her. Plus she was a strong swimmer anyway. This would be fine. It would be fine. She dropped her hands and then actually began to change clothes.

Once stripped to her blouse and undershorts, she said to Link, "All right." Her fists were planted firmly on her hips as he turned around and met her eyes. "Let's do this."

This time when he extended the Zora mask to her, Hena took it and began to secure it over her face like he'd shown her. The material was loosely woven enough to allow air through, which concerned her. Maybe the slick, iridescent strands were magically waterproof. She hoped so. There was no way the thing could functionally allow her to breathe beneath the surface. She felt her breath coming quicker with anxiety as the mask clamped over her mouth.

This is fine, she told herself. It will be fine.

Link had been watching her the whole time. She was sure he could see the fear flickering in her eyes.

It was still unexpected when he stepped forward and laid a brief kiss on her forehead. She blinked as he moved away again, twirling a few of her soft stray hairs around his fingers. "Trust me," he said, leaning down slightly to hold her gaze. "It works." Then he scooted the iron boots toward her with his foot.

She took a deep, steadying breath. "All right, then," she said, more to herself than Link. She made herself bend down and slide her feet into the death trap shoes, wiggling them to make sure there was enough room to get free if need be. Then she straightened with a brave face. "Let's go."