Yay! An update! This is probably a teensy bit shorter than other chapters, yet it seems quite nice and a good little filler. If anything, it'll stop the emails I keep getting from a certain 'Daniel Rodriguez' (yes, you there, in the corner).

This is a romance set just as link returns to Hyrule after adventuring in Termina, and what he does (or more importantly who with) after that.

Email: (charleshillsw@hotmail.com) If you read this, please review. I won't beg but it's nice to know that work doesn't go un-noticed.

Disclaimer (what's the point? If anyone is reading this and they seriously think I own Nintendo, they are a few sandwiches short of a rather tasty picnic): I don't own Zelda. That's for the bigwigs at Nintendo to have. I only own this story. You can be sure if The Legend Zelda were mine then not only would I be rich but also romance would feature much more heavily. I do so love Zelda.

---

          Link trotted out of the ranch, light wind whipping some wayward hair into his eyes. He breathed in deeply, filling his lungs with crisp fresh air. He gently dug his heel into Epona's rump, telling the fine horse to speed up. She complied and burst into a full gallop. Link looked over Hyrule field, taking in its subtle green pastures as best he could while being rocked up and down by the rhythmic thudding of Epona. He soon came to a deep scar in the landscape, rolling meadow giving way to the rocky path up to the Gerudo fortress. Epona sped up at Link's command, thundering over the small stream and galloping towards the broken bridge. Link shouted out as he flew over the great gorge, feeling slightly sick just looking down. Epona whinnied as she landed with a majestic edge, although the tanned, lean female standing infront of her forced a quick stop. Link looked up when he felt himself being hurled out of his saddle and landing with an unceremonious thud at the feet of the lithe woman, quickly going unconscious from the blow to his head.

Link opened his eyes and saw nothing. He blinked again, this time with a quick shake of his head as if that would clear any problems, and was surprised when his sight was restored although slightly disappointed when he realised it was only a cloth covering his eyes that was now pooling a wet patch on his bed. His bed?! Link sat up against the soft cushions behind him, admiring the feel of the blankets, although he admired even more the feel of that silky smooth skin next to him.

What?!

Link span round to come face to face with the twinkling eyes of Nabooru. She batted her eyelashes, hoping they tickled his nose, and sidled closer to him, his hand still clutching her stomach. He gaped and stumbled backwards and fell onto the hard stone floor, taking the blankets with him. The Gerudo Queen slid off the bed and tiptoed over to the writhing mass of blankets and Link on the floor and offered him her hand.

"So kind of you to join me. I was wondering what had taken you so long," Nabooru whispered, full red lips pouting.

Link stumbled for words until he finally settled on a simple,

"Uhm," although this lack of speech wasn't out of thinking up an excuse, it was from the sight of the exquisite Gerudo in front of him. He drew in a breath through gritted teeth as he passed his enquiring gaze up and down the length of her body, taking in every taut muscle and every tasty piece of exposed flesh while silently cursing those trousers and that top that hid more of the delicious looking skin.

"You like what you see, no?" She laughed, trying to hide the steadily growing voice inside of her taunting, "Pounce on him! Devour him! That athletic frame! That hard flesh! Those rippling muscles!" Nabooru licked her lips, hoping in vain to quell the thirst for the Hero of Time. A heavy silence settled down on the pair and the group of guards clustered with their ears to the door held their breath, hoping to hear even the quietest exchange of words between their Queen and that Link she had spent so much time cooing over while he was unconscious. One young female even envied him; she would have given her right arm just to get as much time in that room as the Hylian. She sighed to herself but couldn't finish as a hand was clamped vicelike over her lips.

"Shut up fool! They're talking again!"

"Excuse me one moment, darling," Nabooru purred. She gracefully tiptoed across the room, pausing at the door. She drew both hands up against the frame and pushed with some considerable strength, forcing the door back into the amassed crowd of guards. They lay scattered about the floor, confused. Nabooru took them all in with arched eyebrows balancing on slitted eyes. They knew fast enough to get out of there. All Link heard was the clatter of metal on stone and the light pitter-patter of a mass of guards rushing to busy themselves.

Nabooru turned and with a wry grin pushed the door shut again. Link lay against the wall, the wet from the cloth still bothering him. "Can I help you out of that top that is so obviously bothering you, darling?" She didn't wait for an answer. Besides, what was he going to say? No?! Laughable. Link's breath quickened as the Queen straddled herself upon his lap, smile tugging at her lips. Link couldn't help but gaze at the beautiful contours of her body, those hands working so expertly to tug that wet tunic off his body… he thought he should be resisting, taking the moral high ground, but he just couldn't. She radiated warmth and affection, instilling a raging fire inside Link's stomach. He just didn't care right now, all he wanted to do was to lay back and enjoy the moment. With one swift movement, the tunic was up and over his head and discarded. Soon a pair of green boots joined them, followed by Nabooru's hair clasp. Link picked her up, nearly dropping her when she wrapped her legs round his back, and placed her softly on the generous bed. He lay down next to her, puzzled why a shadow was playing alongside them. He looked up and saw the deep orange sun disappearing behind a rocky outcropping, dipping the valley into night. He was puzzled.

"Nabooru," Link said, "how long have I been out cold?"

"Oh… for 9 hours. I feared you wouldn't wake up, leaving this poor Gerudo with unfulfilled desires…"

That comment alone nearly made Link choke, although the incredibly calming influence of the Gerudo served to lull him into a trancelike state. They simply lay there, each in the arms of the other. Nabooru wondered how she had pleased the Gods so much for this reward. Link simply wished that he never had to eat again and could lie like this forever.

"Link… how long do you plan to stay here?" she said, beaming with a full set of white teeth. This, however, wasn't an erotic smile. She rather was just grinning because she was happy. Link smiled back. Nabooru could sense his spirit, his mood, and knew that he was just being playful. While she couldn't think of anything that she wanted more than for Link to stay forever, she knew he wasn't ready for this kind of commitment. For now she'd just have fun as a friend, not as a partner. Hopefully he'd stay long enough to fall victim to her feminine charms.

"A week?" He said, hopefully. Nabooru giggled (quickly cut off from an odd look by Link) and told him he could stay as long as he wanted.

After a few more long minutes, Nabooru opened her eyes with much effort from the comforting rest she had been pooling in. Glancing over at the form next to her, she saw that Link was sleeping lightly, his ribcage rhythmically moving up and down and his face set in a contented grin. She smiled and kissed his forehead, drawing a sigh from the resting Hylian. She scampered over to the jewel on the floor, picked it up, and tied it back into her hair with one practiced motion. She tiptoed over to the door and opened it as quietly as possible.

"I'll be back soon," she said, almost pointlessly, to Link. And with that she was off down the corridor, letting the door click back into pace.

Link opened his eyes and burst into a full grin, like that of an excited yet confused child receiving a cute puppy. In many ways he felt like that child too, happy with the puppy yet also worried with these new responsibilities he would have to learn. Just as the child couldn't play with a puppy when he so wished and then neglect it in favour of doing other things, he couldn't keep so many people who cared about him deeply in trouble and turmoil simply because he couldn't get his head round things. It just wasn't fair.

Link sat up and cursed the air, slamming a fist into the bedclothes. He sulked. In many ways, he still was a child. He had been forced into this position of great importance and power, and, while he was only too willing to accept, it seems his childhood had passed him by. While other children were targeting the postman with their slingshots, Link had his sights trained on a mutant spider. While teenagers splashed in the river with their friends, Link splashed in the Water Temple with clams who wanted to eat him. It just didn't add up. So how could he be entrusted with such important things as a woman's heart? He would sooner take on Ganondorf and every single tyrant that would arise for the next millennia rather than holding the power to break someone's desires.

Ugh. Too much thinking. He flopped back onto the bed and allowed himself to forget all these major troubles for a short while, and simply concentrate on living in the here and now for the short time he would be with Nabooru.

---

Well, there we go. My first update in… oh, too long. I am deeply sorry to those who still checked this page for updates but I thank you all very much and I hope this chapter is as fulfilling as the others to you all. Sorry for that little descent into 'A dog is for life, not just for Christmas' bit, I honestly didn't expect that to come from my twisted noggin. But seriously, do be nice to whatever pets you have because they deserve it too.

*Pets Ossie, Sparky, Crystal, Whisper, Rusty, Sam, Beano and Bronte*

Merry Christmas – or whatever other holiday you celebrate! Don't eat too much, can't have you getting ill now. I'll be getting a PlayStation 2 and much fun games for that (Final Fantasy 4-10 namely) so don't count on another update any time soon.

Oh, must also point out my love of The Lord of the Rings! Could those films be any more fantastic? Gollum is simply perfect, the battle at Helm's Deep is genius and Legolas still has all you ladies (and some men) creaming themselves over him (and why not? He is a bloody sexy elf). Honourable mention to Gimli, too. He's a fantastic little dwarf.