Chapter 19 time! I wish I had more to say in these intros and outtros, but... meh.
Link found himself at the archery grounds, holding a bow and arrow, alongside Ruto's bodyguard Zopem. The zora had given him a challenge to prove himself worthy of taking Ruto's hand in marriage.
"The first to three perfect bullseye shots wins!" Zopem stated with a bow and arrow set of his own.
"Not quite sure what this has to do with me proving myself to marry Ruto but..." Link sighed, getting into position.
"Go Link! Do it for sister Ruto!" cheered Aviel from the stands, along with Ruto Oton and Luva.
"Yes, do it for me!" cheered Ruto.
Zopem meanwhile narrowed his eyes, pulled back his arrow, aiming squarely at his target.
'Hmph, there's no way this boy can best me in archery, I've trained in this art since I was a chil-"
It was then that Zopem realized Link had already shot three perfect bullseye shots into his target.
"W-What?!" exclaimed Zopem with his jaw dropped to his waist, he let go of the string on his bow and the arrow just fell harmlessly to the ground.
"So, do I win then?" Link asked.
"...best two out of three!" Zopem stated.
"Next will be a battle of the mind! Flex your brain muscles to their maximum!" Zopem said, as he and Link sat a table with a chess board between the two at the town's chess tournament. Numerous Gerudo were participating in it, but they gave Link and Zopem permission to use one of the boards for their little duel.
"Okay...?" Link said.
"Think Link can handle chess?" Aviel asked.
"I haven't seen him play it myself, but he has a knack for strategy and puzzles, so maybe..." Ruto said.
"Good luck, Link!" shouted out Dr. Sarami with a wave, who was participating in the tournament itself.
"Thanks Sarami." Link waved.
Sarrami smiled and blew a kiss to him, causing him to blush bright red and Zopem to get even more angry.
The doctor then turned back to her opponent and moved a piece, saying 'Checkmate.", causing the opponent to fall off her chair and impact into the ground in a daze.
"How did she win in two moves?!" the opponent groaned out in exasperation.
"Very well, we begin." Zopem said to Link.
Zopem started by moving one piece, then Link moved one of his own. This continued until after some time, when Zopem's king had ended up in a bad situation. The zora had a cold sweat trickling down his head, he reached out at one piece, only to change his mind and take his remaining rook piece. He slowly moved it to another position, but while still holding the piece, he looked up at Link who was just sitting there calmly.
"Uh, Zopem?" Link asked.
"Hold on, my hand is still on it!" the zora shouted, before moving it back to where it was originally. He then took a close look at the board and saw an ideal move, and he scooted his bishop forward to knock out one of Link's knights.
"There you are, a simple-"
"Checkmate." Link said, scooting his queen piece into a position that trapped Zopem's king, leaving the Zora to fall over backwards off his seat.
"I'm not even sure why Zopem even did that challenge." Ruto said, absentmindedly stroking Aviel's hair, as the bird-girl was laying on her lap, having been bored to sleep "He's a crummy chess player."
"Congratulations Link!" Sarami said, strolling up and embracing Link right into her large chest, causing him to wiggle around like crazy to breathe.
"Sarami, you're going to suffocate him!" exclaimed Aviel.
"Jees, even I'm a little jealous of those things..." Ruto muttered.
"So would you like to have a chess match against me then?" Sarami asked, smiling to Link, who finally puled himself out of her grip, "If you win I'll give you a reward."
"Uh..." Link paused, looking over at all the Gerudo girls Sarami had defeated in the chess torunament, who were impacted to the ground from how quickly they were defeated by her. "I'll pass."
He then turned to Zopem who was forcing himself up onto his feet. "So do I win now then?" Link asked, hoping to put an end to their battle.
"...best five out of seven!" stated Zopem.
Everyone collectively sighed in reaction.
"Alright! Nice to have you two competing!" Togau said, speaking to Link and Zopem, "This game never really gets much attention during the festival."
The group had arrived at a canopy where Togau was hosting her own game. Besides her was her pet pig Oseg, and a large barrel of grease that her cucco Imra was busy stirring with a spoon.
"Okay, so what do we do exactly?" Link asked.
"Rules're simple," Togau stated, "I'm gonna get Oseg all greased up and turn him loose on the streets of Gerudo Town, and it's up to you two to try and catch my piggy boy!"
Oseg, standing beside Togau, simply let out a snort.
"I think I see why this game doesn't get much attention..." Aviel said, looking at the grease barrel.
"I will crush you in this battle of zora versus man versus swine." Zopem said, crackling his left knuckles.
"Uh, it's just a fun little game, Mr. Fish Guy." Togau said sweatdropping, she then looked to Ruto, "He seems like the friendly type."
"Don't get me started..." sighed Ruto.
"Alright then, time fer the greasing!" Togau said, taking the barrel and pouring it down on Oseg. The pig showed no reaction to being covered in the grease, while Imra worked with a cloth to make sure the pig was completely drenched in the stuff.
"Gross." Ruto muttered.
"Least it's going to cool him off in this weather." Aviel said, after a pause she added, "Or maybe it'll just make him smell like bacon."
It was then at the mention of 'bacon' Oseg wigged out and squealed in horror, slipping out of Togau and Imra's work on him and he went charging off down the street.
"Oops, guess the contest already started!" Togau laughed, "Go get em boys!"
"Of course! I shall be victorious!" shouted Zopem, chasing off after Oseg.
"How did I get talked into this...?" Link sighed.
"Good luck, my husband." Ruto snickered.
"Thanks..." Link groaned as he charged off after Oseg.
Zopem had managed to catch up with the greased pig, who was expertly running and dodging through the streets around the carts and Gerudo women. The Zora leaped into the air and wrapped his arms around Oseg, only for the pig to slip out effortlessly and continue to run.
Link jumped into the air, bounced off Zopem's head and dived down at the pig, only for Oseg to dart right suddenly and Link instead impacted onto the ground, skidding across the street and into a fruit stand, knocking it over
Zopem charged past Link, who stuck his head out of the fruit with an apple lodged in his mouth. He spit out the fruit and continued chasing around the pig.
Meanwhile, going down one street was Reirousa, who was just out to get some snacks for later that day. She was about to round a corner when a greased Oseg came running and collided into her stomach. The pig staggered back in a daze, while Reirousa herself didn't even so much as move or flinch from the impact. Oseg looked up to see what the hard object was he had just ran into.
"Hey, you alright pig?" Reirousa asked.
Oseg's face paled white upon seeing Reirousa, who despite showing concern for the pig's well-being was unknowingly making a glare that outright terrified him. The pig squealed out in horror, before turning and running off in another direction..
"H-Hey, what's the big deal?!" Reirousa asked, following after him.
Oseg turned to see Reirousa running at him, her footsteps making loud stomping sounds, which only scared the pig worse.
The pig, in his hurry quickly turned a corner and right past Zopem's legs, causing him to trip over and collide right into Reirousa.
"Grr.. watch where you're going you idiotic woman!" shouted Zopem, before getting a good look at Reirousa.
"You tryin' to start a fight, buddy?" Reirousa asked with her eyes glaring down angerly at him, as she cracked her knuckles.
"Uh oh." Zopem muttered.
Oseg meanwhile charged down the street, but stopped when it came to a small pile of fruit in the middle of the street. Exhausted from it's running and terror, Oseg gladly started gobbling up the fruit, allowing Link to spring his trap. Using a towel, he quickly grabbed Oseg and held him in place, though the pig was too preoccupied with eating to care.
"I got him!" Link shouted out.
It wasn't long before the girls and Oton caught up with Link, and Togau held his arm up to declare him the victor.
"This game's winner is, Link!" cheered Togau.
Just at that moment, Zopem went flying backwards past them all and into the fruit stand that Link had crashed into earlier. Zopem muttered to himself, covered in fruit, while Oseg ran up to him and stated licking fruit goo off his head.
"Got anything to say to him now Zopem?" Ruto teased, walked up to Zopem, leaning over and poking the male Zora on the forehead with a grin on her face.
"...best seven out of twelve." Zopem simply said.
"Welcome everyone to this year's Hot Cucco Eating competition! We've gathered these brave Gerudo, as well as our beloved King Link, and sister Ruto's bodyguard Zopem, to see who can eat as many of these cucco wings, heavily heavily marinated in spicy pepper sauce, as possible!" shouted a Gerudo hosting the completion.
Link and Zopem sat at a bench table, a huge plate of cucco wings soaked in red sauce in front of both of them, and sitting beside them was five other Gerudo girls, and oddly enough even the mystic ice elementalist Korume was there as well.
"Is this still the field of battle?" Ruto asked.
"Oh Zopem... I hope he knows what he's doing..." sighed Ambassador Oton.
"So why aren't you competin' Kesuta?" Togau asked Kesuta, Korume's twin sister and fire expert, sitting alongside the group, "Aren't you resistant to fire?"
"Heat's one thing, spicy's another... trust me, I learned that the hard way..." muttered Kesuta, looking like she was reflecting on past trauma.
"This endurance competition shall be your downfall, Gerudo King." Zopem said.
"I'm still having a hard time seeing what this of all things is supposed to prov-" Link started, but was cut off.
"And BEGIN!" shouted the host.
With that, Link, Zopem, Korume and the five other Gerudo all started gobbling down cucco wings as fast as possible.
Seconds after the competition started, one Gerudo girl screamed out and breathed fire into the air.
"It's too damn hot!" she screamed, "What the hell is this stuff made from, the fires of Death Mountain?!" she got up and ran off to find a way to sooth her mouth.
"That's one down!" shouted the host, and it wasn't long before a second and third Gerudo girl gave up after that.
As Link ate cucco wing after cucco wing, he was gasping out from the spiciness of them, sweat rolled down his face, and the sauce smeared against his lips was intensifying the burning feeling he was enduring.
"Are... you... faltering, boy?" Zopem taunted.
Link look a glance at Zopem, only to see the Zora's whole body was now beet red with tears streaming down his eyes.
"Can Zoras even handle this sort of thing?!" Aviel exclaimed.
"This is so stupid..." sighed Ruto.
Eventually two of the other Gerudo left, and it was down to three competitors, Link, Zopem and Korume. Link was craving some milk and bread at that moment, but took a look up to see Ruto watching, and resolved himself to keep going.
'Gotta do this for our relationship...' Link paused in thought, 'Why this in particular I don't know, but...'
"This... is... nothing!" shouted Zopem.
Link then glanced over to Zopem who seemed to be actively swelling from the intensity of the spicy food.
"Just how much more can he take?" Togau asked.
"It looks like he's gonna explode..." Luva said.
The Zora looked back, to see Link was having some trouble with the spicy food but holding on, which only motivated Zopem to eat faster.
It was then at that moment Zopem, in his haste to win, grabbed one cucco wing that still had a sizable piece of pepper on it from when the sauce was made. He bit into the cucco wing without even noticing it, and froze as the slice of pepper touched his tongue.
Meanwhile, on the peak of Death Mountain, a large Goron named Biggoron was taking a break from his job as a craftsman. He was causally sipping a cup of dirt, enjoying the view of Hyrule from atop the peak. As he gazed out at the land, he could have sworn he saw a large fireball in the distance, and that it was in the direction of Gerudo Valley.
"Wow, those Gerudo sure know how to party." Biggoron said.
Back at Gerudo Town, everyone just saw Zopem laying on the side of the table outcold and his whole body smoldering as if he had been bathing in lava, with smoke rising up from his mouth.
Having seen his rival pass out, Link sighed with relief and held up his hand to request some bread, which the host as quick to provide.
"Zopem is out and King Link has surrendered, we have a winner!" the host then announced, "The victory for this year's Hot Cucco Eating competition goes to our returning champion from the last three years, sister Korume!"
Everyone turned to see Korume, who was calmly sitting back, wiping sauce off her face without even looking the slightest bit phased, in front of her was a plate of bones, indicating every wing having been eaten.
"Fufufu, too easy." Korume said.
"Is... your sister being an ice magic user make her immune to spicy food or something...?" Aviel asked Kesuta.
"No... she just really likes hot food." sighed Kesuta, "Needless to say, I don't let her cook for me... anymore."
"Zopem, I think it's time to call it quits." Ruto said to her bodyguard.
"Yeah, this is getting kind of dangerous." Link pointed out.
Zopem forced himself up and muttered, "Best... thirty one... our of... twenty three..."
"That's not even mathematically possible." Ruto said sweatdropping.
"Fine..." Zopem groaned, "Then one more to decide them all!" he shouted out. He paused for a second, before collapsing on the table.
"Want some bread?" the host of the competition asked.
"Yes please." Zopem muttered.
Link found himself holding a wooden sword, and across from him was Zopem holding a wooden battle staff, while a small crowd of Gerudo, along with Ruto, Aviel, Oton, Luva, Togau, Reirousa, Ketsuta, and Korume were all sitting in watch of what was going to happen.
"What's going on here?" piped up a new voice. Aviel turned to see Nabooru walking up to the stands, "I was just finishing my work when I heard Link was attacked by one of the guests sister Ruto brought with her, and something about a pig."
"It's... a long story..." sighed Ambassador Oton, "I apologize foe my companion's recklessness. He's always been the sort to... well..."
"It's alright either way, Link's a tough guy. I'd just like to see this for myself." Nabooru said, taking a seat beside Oton.
"This will be our final duel." Zopem said to Link, holding his staff, "We battle until one is at the other's mercy."
"Okay... very well." Link said, going into a battle stance.
"Good luck my husband!" Ruto called out.
"Pound that bastard into fish paste, Link!" shouted Reirousa, flexing her arm.
"Hey, watch your tongue." Ruto snapped at Reirousa.
"I wonder if Zopem knows what he's doing by fighting him..." Oton muttered, rubbing his chin.
"Don't worry Mr. Ambassador." grinned Aviel, "Link can handle this."
"Yeah he's been through worse then this." Togau nodded.
"Knock his lights out, King Link!" shouted Kesuta.
"I want to see him writhe and squirm again like during the cucco eating contest..." chuckled Korume darkly.
Zopem was a little annoyed at how everyone cheering for his defeat, but all that did was make him more determined to crush the new Gerudo King.
"Now face me, boy!" shouted Zopem, charging at Link with his staff.
Link brandished his wooden sword and the two clashed their weapons. Zopem pushed Link's sword back and swung it at his legs, but Link jumped over the staff and kicked Zopem in the chest, sending him staggering back. The Zora spun his staff and swiped it at Link, who ducked and rolled under Zopem's legs, before bringing up his sword and smacking him in the back, making the Zora shout out in anger.
"Stand still you weakling!" shouted Zopem swinging his staff around back and smacking Link backwards across the ground, but Link jumped back onto his feet and sprinted forward, leaped into the air and brought his sword down, but Zopem blocked it with his staff before repealing Link away. Zopem trusted the staff forward multiple times, as Link nimbly weaved left and right to dodge each thrust.
Link narrowed his eyes and swung his sword down at the staff, knocking it downward, while at the same time having the other end bash Zopem across the face, and then Link swung his sword and smacked Zopem across the chest.
"Grraaahh!" Zopem shouted in anger, "I'll make you pay Hylian!" He grabbed the staff again and started swing it like mad at Link, forcing the Hylian to back up. Zopem was swinging blindly, but his sheer strength was making it hard to counter.
Link soon found an opening and swung his sword in an overhead attack, smacking Zopem across the face, making him stagger, before Link shoulder bashed him backwards, then performing a spin attack to hit Zopem one last time, sending him flailing back to the ground, his staff fell and hit the ground, breaking it in half. He was about to get up when Link pointed his sword at Zopem's throat, forcing the Zora to lay back on the ground.
"Damnit..." Zopem muttered.
"Looks like it's over." Link said, spinning his sword in his hand and sheathing it.
The Gerudo all cheered out excitedly for Link's victory, as Ruto, Nabooru and the others all got up and ran over to congratulate him.
"Link, my beloved hero!" Ruto said, grabbing and squeezing him tightly.
"Way to stick it to him, like a true man!" Reirousa said flexing her arms, all fired up.
"You did quite well Link." Nabooru smirked.
"Thanks everyone." Link nodded, then turned to his opponent, "So Zopem, is that it then?"
"No... I can't accept this..." gasped Zopem, "I can't let Ruto... marry this... degenerate king..."
"What's your problem, you meanie?!" exclaimed Aviel, "Can't you just accept Link and Ruto's marriage and let them be happy?"
"You think I don't want my princess to be happy?" shouted Zopem, "I just..." he sighed and took a deep breath, "...owe Princess Ruto so much..."
"What do you mean?" Link asked.
"...when I was younger," Zopem started, "I was part of the army. I was aiding the Hylians in the war against the Gerudo. But I was too brass and hotblooded, and eventually got reprimanded and discharged by my superior officer... I went back to Zora's Domain in disgrace, and I had thought myself to be useless..."
He forced himself to sit up and turned his head to Ruto, "Just when I was at my lowest point though, the princess met me and helped me turn my life around. She inspired me to find my place in life..."
"I worked hard and eventually got the right to be her bodyguard... and over the past six years... She became like a little sister to me." he said, "That's why I needed to make sure that if you intend to marry Princess Ruto, that you weren't just trying to use her or hurt her... And if true, that you had what it took to look after her and keep her safe..."
It was that moment, when Ruto suddenly stepped up and slapped Zopem across the face.
"What the hell?!" exclaimed Ruto, "What kind of reasoning is that to treat Link like this?! I didn't just pick him as my husband because he has a cute butt!"
"No one brought that up..." Aviel pointed out sweatdropping.
"I picked him not just because he's handsome and strong, but kind and noble as well! He wants what's best not just for the Gerudo, or the Zora, but Hyrule and the people as a whole!" Ruto shouted, "He's the man I gave my mother's sapphire to as a wedding vow, and you won't question who I choose to love!"
"But-"
"Also, I may be a princess, but I'm not a weak or helpless child. I can defend myself, but for those times when I can't, I know Link will be there for me..."
Ruto then smiled lightly and held out her hand.
"...as well as you."
Zopem just paused looking to her. In that moment, an old memory went through his mind, of him as a lost ex-soldier, and Ruto as a child, who was smiling brightly and handing him a river lily flower.
"I... I'm sorry..." Zopem said, taking Ruto's hand and she helped him to his feet, "And I'm sorry to you too Gerudo King, I think I was wrong about you.." he said to Link.
"No biggie." Link said, waving his hand dismissively, "I promise I'll do everything I can to make Ruto happy. We'll work hard so someday the Gerudo and the Zora can unite as well."
"Yes," Nabooru agreed, "Link proved to you how serious he is about marrying Ruto, and as his adviser, we'll work together to form an alliance with you."
"I'm looking forward to that day myself." Oton said. "I've been watching everything around here since I arrived, and at this point I think I can safely tell King Zora that we should become allies with your people."
Ruto nodded, "It won't happen overnight, but we Zora will do what it takes to make the Hylian Parliament hear your desire for a peace treaty, and we'll seal our alliance the day Link and I wed."
"...very well." Zopem said, sticking out his hand, "Then I'll leave the princess in your capable hands... Gerudo King Link."
"Thank you, and please continue to watch over her as well, Zopem." Link nodded.
As the crowd cheered over Link's victory against Zopem, and the future alliance, Ruto herself couldn't help but smile to see her husband and her bodyguard shake hands.
Nabooru meanwhile beamed with pride at the sight of Link and his resolve.
'He's growing more by the day...' she thought.
As the sun was starting to set over Gerudo Valley, Link and Ruto were enjoying dinner at a restaurant,a different one then the diner where Sovan worked, but a fancier and more refined one. It was clearly built for evenings, as the windows showed off a beautiful view of the sunset.
"Aaah...!" Ruto opened her mouth, motioning for Link to get a taste of the food he had ordered for himself. Before the meal arrived, she had a strict talk with him about taking his time eating so he could savor his meal, though he was pretty sure the main reason was so she could do this. He didn't really mind though, as he lifted a fork of his meal and fed it to her.
"Mmm, very nice." Ruto swooned, "I've always wanted to do this with you!"
"I'm glad you're enjoying it." Link smiled, he didn't really get her desire to be fed by him, but she seemed to enjoy it so much he just went along with it.
"Yes, but I need to be careful with the quality of the food here." Ruto said, cutting a piece of meat from her plate and eating it."If I get carried away I could end up as big as my daddy!" she joked.
"Considering that overly vain attitude of yours, I doubt you'd let something that ever happen." teased Link, "But even if it did, I'd still love you the same."
"T-Thank you..." Ruto said with a light blush, then a second later realized what he said, "Hey, who are you calling overly vain?!" Link just laughed in response, causing her to huff out in annoyance.
"Well this won't help humble you at all, but I got something for you." Link said, he reached into one of the bag Ruto had him carrying and took out a small box, which he opened for her, causing her to gaps out.
"Oh... oh my!" Ruto exclaimed. It was a jeweled necklace, the chain made of silver and lined with blue sapphires hanging down the front of it. He stood up and went around back of her, putting the necklace on her.
"Link, this is beautiful!" Ruto said marveling at it, "Where did you find this?"
"Got it at a stand in the marketplace." Link said, "I figured it would go well with your outfit."
"It's perfect..." she whispered, stroking one of the sapphires with her finger, "Thank you..."
Meanwhile, the other Gerudo in the restaurant, even the waitresses, were watching the two, seething in jealousy over seeing the zora princess and their king so close. In the back, Aviel and Luva had come to the same restaurant for dinner as well, and their friends didn't go unnoticed by them.
"Awww, they're, like, so cute together..." Luva said smiling, "But I'm so jealous of Ruto!"
"I'm just happy to see Link like this." said Aviel, "He's gone through a lot since he came here, and I love seeing him relax and smile."
"So is he gonna marry you too?" Luva asked. "Ruto mentioned the king can marry a lot of girls at once here."
"M-Me? Marry Link?" Aviel asked, blushing bright red. "H-He's a great friend but... I... um... I... don't think I'm ready for something like... that..."
Aviel paused and looked over to see Ruto open her mouth to motion for Link to feed her again, only to find out he had just cleared his plate, causing her to scold him, but Link just laughed wholeheartedly.
'But maybe some day...' Aviel thought to herself with a light smile.
Later that night, everyone had gathered at the main square of Gerudo Town, where a large stage had been set up. Everyone was siting back, waiting for the big surprise that was going to happen that night.
"Hello everyone!" shouted a familiar looking Gerudo stepping up onto the stage, "Thank you all for gathering here this beautiful desert night, blessed to us by the great Desert Goddess Aifet!"
"Hey, isn't that the host of the night club?" Link pointed out.
"Sure looks like her." Aviel said.
"Night club?" Togau asked, rubbing the back of her head, "Didn't even know we had one of those."
"We have a special treat on this night. To honor the goddess of the desert, we present to you the red goddess of the dance! That's right, for this one-night only occasion, the lovely Madame Scarlet will be dancing for you all tonight!" the host declared.
This came as a shock to everyone there. While many cheered out, quite a number of the Gerudo were baffled at this announcement.
"Madame who?"
"She's supposed to be a legendary dancer!"
"What?! But Madame Scarlet never leaves the club!"
"I've heard she's an actual goddess who came down to Hyrule to bless our people with her skills!"
"I can't wait to see what dance she does tonight!"
Link and Aviel were pretty surprised to hear about this.
"Is Nemisa really going to dance out here like this?." Aviel whispered to Link.
"Yeah, she's pretty cautious about keeping her identity a secret, I wonder what made her decide on this?" Link whispered back. "It must be what she was doing all day, practicing for this show."
"Well, it seems we can finally see the great Madame Scarlet out in the open." smirked Nabooru, then added under her breath, 'It's about time she finally showed herself like this.'
It was then that two Gerudo lit some torches to the left and right of the stage, then threw some dust onto the fire, causing the stage to engulf in smoke, surprising everyone.
What was even more surprising was when the smoke blew away, in the place of the two girls was a single woman, clad in a red silk dancer's garb, it was 'Madame Scarlet', also known by Link and Aviel to be Nemisa.
The crowd cheered wildly at the sight of the exotic dancer, who greeted the audience with a bow.
"Woah, is that her?" Reirousa asked.
"She's beautiful!" Ketsuta said with a gasp.
"Does she... kinda look familiar to anyone?" Togau asked tilting her head.
"D-Don't think so!" Aviel said, in the hope of trying to protect her friend's identity.
"Either way, I'm looking forward to this show." Link smiled, "I think you're going to like this, Ruto."
"I look forward to it..." Ruto said as she looked up at Madame Scarlet. She took Togau's question from a second ago into account and stared intently at Scarlet.
The music started to play, and Madame Scarlet started her dance, her legs rose and fell slowly with each high note, her arms rose up and her hands delicately stretched out and tickled the air She swung her leg around and did a spun, to the left, then to the right.
"Oh my, she's such a great dancer!" Sarami exclaimed.
"Togau's right, she... kinda reminds me of someone..." Reirousa muttered, scratching her head.
"Hm, could it be...?" Sovan asked herself, narrowing her eyes.
"She dances beautifully." Ruto said, putting her hand to her chest in shock, whispering to herself, "Could it really be... her?"
Korume just watched the dance herself, without a word. She took a took over at the other girls, and especially at Link, seeing him in awe of Madame Scarlet's dance, she lowered her gaze and a small, faint smile graced her lips.
Meanwhile the dance continued on, as Madame Scarlet moved off the stage and started dancing down the aisles of the crowd, they all cheered and squealed as she went by. Link watched her carefully, turning a little red when she took a second to shake her hips, which gave him a good view of her round but firm rear end. Scarlet then at that moment look a glance behind her, looking right at him, which he responded by turning his head away. He was stricken with embarrassment, as well as fear about her retaliating by punching him or something.
Instead, Scarlet danced over to Link, gripped him by his chin, and turned his head to wards her. He was astonished to see Madame Scarlet looking right at him as he looked back into her golden eyes, and she smiled lightly. Knowing this was his bodyguard Nemisa was so strange, even after all this time he had seen her dances, but what surprised him more was seeing how serene she was in that moment, a stark contrast to her usual attitude. She took one of her silk sashes and wrapped it around Link's head, bringing him closer to her, and they just gazed into each other's eyes for a while. It was then the music suddenly changed to a more upbeat tune and she leaped back, continuing on her way back to the stage.
Link was at a loss of what to say or do in that moment, but he then heard a light giggle, and he turned to see Ruto in amusement.
"She's pretty good at more then dancing I see." Ruto said grinning.
"Ah heh heh..." Link just chuckled nervously.
Soon the music was on it's way to ending. Madame Scarlet's hips swayed left and right as her arms waved in sync with them. Two Gerudo came up to the torches they had lit earlier, they pulled out some pouches. Scarlet then knelt down and did an impressive flip high into the air, landing down on the ground in front of the stage, just as the Gerudo threw some dust into the torches, causing large bursts of flames shooting into the air, illuminating Scarlet's landing poise.
Needless to say, the crowd cheered out wildly and excitedly, some standing and whistling.
"That... was... awesome!" Reirousa exclaimed, slamming her fist to the ground in excitement, causing a small dent in the stone.
"Shes as great as I've heard!" Sarami said, putting a hand to her cheek, "And it seems she fancies Link as well."
"Very good." Nabooru said, nodding to herself with a smile.
Link watched as Madame Scarlet did a polite bow and leave. He paused to himself, took a glance over at Ruto who was still clapping excitedly and put a hand on her shoulder to get her attention.
"Hey Ruto, I got something quick to do, we'll meet over at the palace." he said.
"Very well." Ruto said, "Don't keep me waiting." she winked.
Ruto watched as Link got himself up and took off, and she couldn't help but notice he was walking in the direction she saw Madame Scarlet leave in, and she smiled lightly.
"Great dance tonight, Madame Scarlet!" said a Gerudo complimented Scarlet as she walked to a building where she was to dress.
"You did extraordinarily!" said another.
"Thank you so much." she replied with a soft smile, causing the two Gerudo to swoon, as she continued on her way.
In Madame Scarlet's dressing room she took a long drink of water to hydrate herself, before starting to remove her veil and hood. Her thoughts wandered to when she glanced at Link during her performance, and how he and Princess Ruto were siting beside each other... holding hands. She paused and looked down at her own hand, and then removed the sash from the arm, showing a red scar on her wrist. She stared at it and closed her eyes, lost in thoughts of the past. Her other hand reached into her pocket and clutched at the small green jewel she commonly carried...
"Hey Nemisa, nice work out there." a voice said, causing her to snap out of her trance and look over to see Link poking his head in and then walking into the room. She couldn't help but notice he had his hands behind his back for some reason.
"I-It was nothing, your highness." she said, taking another drink of water.
"No I'm serious, your dancing's gotten even better then before." Link said, "Have you been inspired by something lately?"
"...maybe." Nemisa said distantly.
"Hey... so uh..." Link looked down a bit, "I wanted you to have something..."
Nemisa looked to see him pull something out from behind his back. It was a modest sized plush doll of a green and yellow Deku Scrub with little button eyes.
"W-What is that for...?" Nemisa asked curiously.
"Just a gift I thought you'd like..." Link said, "I won it at one of the competitions I beat Ruto's bodyguard in..."
"I.. um... don't really need... I..." Nemisa stammered, until Link spoke up.
"Come on, just take it as a gift to congratulate you on your performance tonight." Link said with a small grin, he took her hand, causing her to freeze up for a second, before he put the plush doll in her hands.
"Li-..." Nemisa paused, before sighing and finally accepting the plush doll, "Well I suppose if it's a gift, I have no choice... t-thank you, your highness..."
Link couldn't help but smile as he could see the bit of happiness in her eyes at that moment, holding the plush doll, even if she was trying her hardest not to show it.
"Well I gotta get going," Link said, "Nabooru said she wanted to show me and Ruto something at the palace. I'll see you tomorrow." and with that he turned and walked out.
"Very well L-... your highness." When Nemisa was convinced Link was long gone, she looked down at the plush doll, her normally stern face then changed to smile warmly. She gave it a firm hug, it was quite soft, and it reminded her of another plush doll she once hugged some time ago...
It when was than through her comfort, she felt small faint tears going down her face. She then looked down at her hand, the one that Link had held for just a moment. She lingered on the thought, before wiping her face clean of tears, and then going back to changing.
"Oh my, it's exquisite!" Ruto exclaimed, taking a took over the place that Nabooru had called them over to show off.
Link, Ruto, Nabooru and Aviel all stood in the new room Nabooru had added to the palace using the power of the Sand Rod, a sizable one with a large swimming pool built into it.
It was a lot more impressive then everyone expected. It was pretty glamorous in many ways, there were fountains with statues pouring water into the pool, palm branches decorated the room to contrast with the mostly yellow and brown interior, and the water was quite pure and inviting, with no dirt or sand littering it.
"You crafted this Lady Nabooru?" the zora princess asked.
"Yes, its the result of my mastery of the Sand Rod over the past six years. While I had to prioritize fortifying the defenses of our town against the slavers and rebels, I knew I needed to find time to make this for our beloved Zora sister." Nabooru said.
"I'm... honored for that, Nabooru." Ruto said smiling, giving her a small hug. Nabooru was taken back a little by it, but returned the hug soon after.
Link couldn't help but smile himself to see the two get along so well, he thought about how he and Zopem buried the hatchet, and could only hope all the Zoras and Gerudo could be just as welcome to each other someday...
"Alright! Time for swimming!" Aviel declared, yanking off her clothes, showing off she was wearing her swimsuit underneath it.
"How... long were you wearing that for?" Nabooru asked.
Aviel ignored Nabooru's question and just dived into the water.
"Yahoo! It's great! Come on in everyone!" Aviel shouted.
"In just a second." Ruto said, before playfully shoving Link into the water and then jumping in herself.
'Hey, at least let me change out of my clothes first!" Link exclaimed to Ruto when he came up for air.
"Oh by all means change out of your clothes then." giggled Ruto, swimming up and gripping onto his vest, "We're not going to complain."
"Yeah, want us to help?" Aviel chirped.
"I can do it just fine, thanks." Link said annoyed.
Nabooru just smirked at the three of them in the pool and turned away, walking off to see to other tasks.
"Oh, Lady Nabooru! You come in too!" shouted Aviel, causing Nabooru to stop in her tracks.
"Yeah, come on Nabooru! You made this thing after all, you should join us!" Link called out..
"I... well.. I have some things to-" Nabooru muttered, before a large splash of water hit her, "Hey!"
"Ohohoho," laughed Ruto, "I'm afraid you let your guard down, Lady Nabootu."
"...Okay, now you asked for it!" Nabooru then grinned, quickly removing her clothes and jumping into the pool herself.
The four of them spent the next hour playing in the pool. Link was happy to see Nabooru enjoying herself, especially after she had been working so hard lately.
It was a great feeling for Link to be with everyone, he was more comfortable then ever with the life he had now, and he could only imagine what future held for him and his friends...
"You enjoying the water alright?" Link asked Ruto, walking up to the edge of the pool. It was much later in the night, Aviel had gone to bed, while Nabooru had gone to her study to do some late minute work.
"It's not the cool waters of Zora's Domain, but it'll do in a pinch." Ruto said with a smile, "Nabooru did good work."
"Yeah, she's worked really hard to make this town so great." Link nodded, "I have a lot of admiration for her..."
"I think we really need to do something good for her as well sometime..." Ruto said, putting a finger to her mouth, "I'm glad we were able to coax her into joining us tonight, but we need to help her get a little more relief in her life..." she grinned lightly, "You know, besides you pleasuring her so many nights."
"Ah ha ha," Link laughed sheepishly, "Um, you're still okay with that sort of thing?"
"It was a strange for a while, but I've warmed up to it. After all, she's a part of our weird family as well." Ruto nodded. She thought on that note a little more, then glanced to Link and sported a small mischievous grin.
"Say..." Ruto started, swimming up to the edge of the pool and taking a good look at Link, "You have a little something on your face there..."
"I do?" Link asked, rubbing at his face, "Did I get food on it or something?"
"You keep missing it, allow me." Ruto said in a fussy manner, reaching out her hand.
"Oh, alright." Link said, kneeling down to her.
That was when the opportunity came and Ruto grabbed Link by his arm, yanking him into the pool.
"Gack!" Link exclaimed falling right into the water, he came up to the surface, only to see Ruto staring right at him with that mischievous grin.
"Now I got you right where I want you!" Ruto said, suddenly hugging him tightly.
"...I think you're wrong about that..." Link muttered, his wet hair covering his facial feature.
"Hm?"
"I'm the one who has you!" Link exclaimed, grabbing Ruto's sides and started tickling her.
"Ahahahahaha! Oh you little- aahhaahaha!" Ruto couldn't hold back as the two of them thrashed around in the water.
Eventually their wrestling led them over to the shallow end of the pool, where it was sloped to allow the swimmers to just walk out from the water. They instead found themselves laying on the floor of the pool, with the water slowly drifting around them..
The two of them just stared into each other's eyes for what seemed like forever. Link sometimes contemplated to himself what exactly it was that made him go from being weirded out about being in a marriage with Ruto to truly loving her. But as he laid there looking into her eyes, all he knew was that he just loved her now, simple as that.
Link leaned downwards and pressed his lips against hers. Ruto wrapped her arms around Link's neck, and he in turn wrapped his own arms around her waist, the water from the pool splashed against them as the two held each other. Link was about to break the kiss, but Ruto held him down and continued it. Link soon found himself having a hard time breathing from how long they held the kiss, it was kind of dangerous, but at the same time exciting. Eventually the two finally did broke the kiss and Link panted heavily, while Ruto just smirked lightly.
"No fair, you were breathing water through your gills." Link muttered.
"All's fair in love and war, my dear husband." Ruto smiled while tickling his chin.
"Well in that case..." Link said, as he leaned down and started kissing at her neck where her gills were, causing her to moan out.
"Oh you bastard!" she shouted, "How'd you know how sensitive I would... ooh! Oooh..."
Link was taking what Sarami had taught him before about the way of a Zora's body into practice at that moment, as well as what Nabooru taught him about pleasuring a woman. Ruto found her legs squirming at the feeling of Link going all-out on her, until he eventually stopped , moving slowly away from her neck, but releasing some cool breath into the opening of her gills, causing Ruto to shudder. He looked down to see her now gasping out with her face flushed.
"I... think we need... to take this elsewhere..." Ruto whispered, "Please, if you could... carry me?"
Link simply nodded and lifted her up bridal style and Ruto wrapped her arms around his neck as he carried her off t his bedroom, He was relieved to see Nabooru wasn't there at the moment, as he probably wouldn't have wanted to have to talk her out of the room. He laid the Zora princess down on the bed pillows and laid over her.
"Are... you sure you're ready for this? I figured you would have wanted to save yourself for after we marry." Link inquired.
"It's fine, I'm more then ready." Ruto said, "Plus I'm not in my mating period right now, so we don't have to worry quite yet about having kids..." she then blushed lightly and stroked his face, "Though I look forward to the day we do..."
"...yeah, same here." Link smiled, and the two kissed again.
Eventually Link's shorts found themselves being flung to the ground away from them.
And the two of them shared a wonderful night together...
Meanwhile, in the home of the mystic twins, Kesuta and Korume, the two of them were kneeling before a crystal ball, their hands held out over it, as they studied the mysterious aura it was giving off.
"It seems that it's almost time..." Kesuta told her twin sister.
"Y-Yes..." Korume nodded, "A few hours from now..."
"You've been pretty nervous lately, you sure you're up to this?" Kesuta said.
"...it doesn't matter either way, is there?"
"It's fine, I've already made up my mind. We both know this is the only way, so there's no use worrying about it."
"I know that... but..."
"Look at it this way, if you manage to pull it off, then King Link can take you as his wife and bless you with his children. Think of that as a motivator!"
"Yes... I suppose so..." Korume said lowering her gaze.
"Well then, we should probably prepare for this." Kesuta said.
"..you go on ahead, I have other things to do first..." Korume muttered.
Korume just watched her sister until she had left to get ready, then she herself went off out of tent...
And she headed straight towards the palace...
And so ends the festival, and despite all the conflict that went on, our main characters seem to have thoroughly enjoy themselves. But now it looks like Link is in for something else now...
I will say I had a lot of fun incorporating the other main characters into this chapter, especially with Reirousa's small cameo. It was also jst nice to write a more comedic story after Reirousa's backstory.
Well stay tuned for the next chapter, leave a like, follow or review if you enjoyed it!