Her 24th birthday was around the corner and Zelda was nervous. The previous year she had a subdued celebration due to the death of her family. This year, despite the ominous future, or perhaps because of it, there was an expectation. Zelda almost wanted to extend her mourning period. That would lose her too much time. It'd lost her precious time as it was.
She'd said these woes to both Paya and Reba. Paya was more understanding, but Reba had lamented the fact there would be two birthdays uncelebrated, but ultimately understood as well.
Link had wanted to know what she wanted as a gift, but said nothing about the party. He probably didn't want to go to a part, so if she didn't have one he would have no obligation. She wasn't sure what he would say if she asked.
It was Impa who had convinced her. Impa, who disliked partied as much as Link– and was much more vocal about it. She reminded Zelda that as the representative of the royal family, her affairs were no longer purely her own, not that they ever had been.
A mood lifter, a symbol of the future, just like the hit her 17th birthday had been. While she wasn't sure she could capture the spectacle of that one, she could prove that she believed in Hyrule.
With only a month to plan, she focused mainly on food and drink. There would be no extravagant decorations or dress.
"On to the drink menu," Paua announced, "Kakariko is offering some rice wine."
Zelda tried to remember if she'd even had any rice wine. Though she'd been of age for a while now, she had yet to develop a taste for alcohol. Beyond that, she had a small concern that her despairs would come to surface if she over indulged, as she'd seen with others.
"Do you like rice wine?" Zeda asked.
Pay made a face. "It is the traditional drink of Kakariko," she finally said, ever so diplomatically. Though it was odd that anything should get past her stoic mask.
Zelda nodded, "Accept the amount they offer, but don't spend any coin on it. I want all my guests to feel welcome, but too much of something only a few will really enjoy beyond novelty would be a mistake"
"A wise choice," Paya noted.
"I know there was some drink from Gerudo valley that I've had a few times with Reba. it was quite good from what I remember… some sort of fruit drink, I think."
"Gerudo sunset?" Paya asked.
Zelda snapped her fingers. "Yes! Would it be too much of a problem to have that?"
Paya checked her notes from before. "I don't think so. With Gerudo coming for the party we can request they bring it, though they may ask for us to pay for it." She flipped a few pages, and was about to continue when they were interrupted.
"Princess," Link's voice called. She looked up to see his red hair. He was bowing.
"Yes?" she asked.
"I was wondering if I could steal you for a moment." Zelda wondered briefly what it was about. He lifted his head. "I thought I could give Paya a break too."
Paya and Zelda shared a look. Zelda hadn't noticed her guard's tired eyes or the slight slouch in her usual ramrod straight posture.
With a tight smile, she said, "I think a break would be prudent." To Paya she said, "Go rest, my friend." She walked towards Link.
He hesitated for a moment, and then abstained from whatever it was he wanted to do. Zelda made no comment on it, and let him lead away. His gait was confident, however winding their path felt to her.
"Where are we going?" she asked.
"Nowhere special."
"Was this just to give Paya a rest?" Zelda asked, "I feel sort of foolish to not have noticed how tired she was. I forget she's just as stubborn as you."
"And you as well."
She glanced at him to see he was still focused straight ahead.
"I thank you for the break either way. I just hope I'm not placing a burden on you."
"You think spending time with you is a burden?" he asked, "And here I was sure you possessed the triforce of wisdom."
In mock haughtiness, she asked, "Was that a barb at your princess?"
Still without looking at her, he smiled then said, "Perish the thought."
When they got to a set of spiraling stairs, Zelda knew where they were going. "I thought you were letting me take a rest?"
"I said break from your duties," he clarified, more embarrassed than she thought he would be. "I can carry you if you want."
She couldn't tell how much he was joking, as he started ascending the stairs ahead of her, not letting her see his expression. She found her eyes drawn to his shoulders. They were broad. He was pretty much the same size as her, though she would guess he had more muscle due to his training.
Finally, he glanced back. "You taking me up on my offer?" he asked. His hair obscured much of his face, as he had it down and loose.
Slowly she shook her head. His hair was rather pretty too, she'd always thought it a nice color, but now that he'd grown it out it looked soft. "Some exercise would be nice," she decided.
His pace was a bit faster than hers, but she endeavored to keep up. Her travels those five years had given her more endurance than she had before, and apparently she had yet to lose it. The walk still made her out of breath.
"So…" she started when her legs started to burn and she wanted a distraction. "Why exactly do you like high places so much?"
His pace slowed slightly, as he drew deeper in thought. "I don't know," he answered eventually. "I guess I like the views."
"I should send you to help out with the towers then… I don't care for working on those."
"I don't know if I have the technical knowhow for that."
"It's not hard, believe me."
"You think planning isn't hard though."
"Perhaps not as much as you do."
They made it to the top of the tower and Link went to open the shutters on the window. Zelda followed his gaze out, though she was a few steps back.
"Come here." He motioned her closer, and when she hesitated, he said, "I won't let you fall."
She reached for his hand and looked out. They were very high up. She'd known that, but now she knew that.
"How many times do you think we've done this?" he asked quietly, but close to her ear.
"Only a few, I told you about that material quest up in one of these towers," she responded absentmindedly.
"No, I mean." He squeezed her hand. "This. Being together. Fighting Ganon."
She glanced down at their hands. A slight glow came from their triforces. "If the legends are to be believed, since the dawn of the royal family."
"And how old is your family?"
She looked back up to his eyes. "Ancient."
"And everytime Ganon breaks free we get the responsibility to deal with him and seal him. Part of me hates that it's always under such circumstances that it happens… but another part of me knows that if we didn't have this destiny I would never have met you."
"Oh, I'm sure you'd have done something else heroic that would warrant us meeting," Zelda said confidently.
"In that case." Link grabbed her other hand and pulled her to face him. Her heart leapt like a race horse's in her chest. "Why can't we just kill Ganon?" Link wondered aloud, "You've said the Master Sword is like, super powerful, and that way you wouldn't have to be in danger."
"It's not that simple," she explained, equally upset, "Even if you could, it would probably just cause more problems later. We're supposed to be a team, you and I."
She squeezed his hands once and then let go. He deflated at the loss of contact.
"I get that," he said, slouching. "It would just be nice to get it all done and over with."
"You're not wrong." She stared at her hands. "The waiting is… hard."
"Yeah… it is."
They were both quiet, trying to think of something more to say. Trying to say something they hadn't tread before ad nauseum. Link finally smiled slightly, though he schooled his features quickly.
"What?" she asked, a small smile on her face appearing.
"It's nothing really," he denied, though his smile returned.
"It's something!" she insisted, "Now out with it!"
He leaned closer to her. "Is that an order?"
"It's a request," she said, "Though you should know it's rude to laugh out of nowhere and not explain why."
"Is it?"
"Why of course!"
"Don't be disappointed then when it really is nothing," he said. He glanced around the room, and finally gazed out into the distance out the window. "I was wondering if the Temple of Time could be a wedding venue."
"Temple of Time?" she asked, not wanting to acknowledge the marriage part yet.
"Yes, it is one of the grander temples, the grandest, in my opinion. I know all a wedding really needs is a goddess statue, which the Temple of Time has, but I wasn't sure if it was a duty beneath it."
"I guess it depends who you are," she answered coolly.
"So you could throw your weight around for me is what you're saying."
"If it was what you truly wanted."
"And what of you?" he asked, "Do you have a place you'd like to be married?"
"Not particularly." she was starting to enjoy their conversation. To imagine what would come after. It couldn't last long, but perhaps it was safe enough to hope at this point. "My parents were married in the castle."
"The castle is grand," he agreed.
"Yes it is," she said, "But now that you mention the Temple of Time it has me thinking… Do you remember the Forgotten Temple?"
"I do. Though the Forgotten Temple is a bit dark. Not a very festive place."
"I believe it's where my ancestors were married," she said, "It was thousands upon thousands of years ago, and that temple wasn't underground yet."
"We could use candles and fairies, that could make it look nice."
"With some dusting and even Impa's sheikah lanterns!"
"Do they only come in blue?" he asked.
"That, or red, but both of those colors look so good on you, it hardly matters." They were getting into dangerous territory.
"As with you," he said, "blue is the royal color, but you wear it so well." She found her face heating, and he was emboldened by that. "Though it may just be that you make any color look good."
"Really?" she asked, finding her voice, "Even pink? It doesn't wash me out?"
"No no, pink is… nostalgic."
She withdrew into herself. His eyes were too kind, too clear, she couldn't handle it. He seemed to realize it too, his eyes widened and he leaned back. He coughed awkwardly. "I guess there will be time later for talk like this."
"Yes." She glanced up to peek at his profile. "But it is fun to think about every once in a while."
He peeked out of the corner of his eyes to meet hers. "Has this been enough of a break?" he asked.
"Probably, though Paya knows I'm with you, it would be best for us to be around others as well."
He closed the window, and made his way down. Zelda followed again. Her time alone with him was growing swiftly to a halt, even though she was the one who had agreed it'd been enough. She tripped on the last couple steps and fell into his arms. He was strong.
He set her down, but his hands lingered on her waist. The way his face blushed, she figured out the real reason he'd wanted to spend time with her. Really it had been obvious from early on. Despite figuring it out, she couldn't find it in herself to be upset, even though it almost flew in direct conflict with her wishes.
It wasn't like he was pushing any boundaries she wasn't pushing as well. If anything she needed to be more in control of herself before she had any right to being mad. It was fine for a break. It wouldn't become a problem unless it distracted from their duties.
He let her go quickly once he realized what he was doing.