Their trek across the big people road was quiet. Link didn't know what Sidon was thinking about, but his own head was filled with hope, want, regret, and guilt. Hope that maybe his feelings would be returned or at least not outright rejected. Or that maybe he would get to continue being affectionate with Sidon without negative consequences or a change in the status quo if he simply kept quiet. Want for Sidon; to get to do what they did just now and maybe even more, as much as he would be allowed to. Regret for the moment being cut short, and for the choices that had led to it in the first place. Guilt for almost getting Sidon killed just because of his impatience and inability to listen to other peoples' advice.
Oh, and a dash of shame for the way he had once more frozen up because of his trauma of Vah Naboris. That was twice since they shrunk down. Had Sidon not gotten him to move, he may have ended up a small stain on the bottom of someone's boot. That was frankly unacceptable for the hero who defeated Calamity Ganon. He was supposed to be tougher than that. Yes, Zelda had repeatedly told him that being traumatized by the things he went through was perfectly normal and didn't make him weak, but in his opinion it still wasn't acceptable to freeze in the middle of action because of it. He could be traumatized on his own time when lives weren't at stake, thank you very much.
He sighed to himself, which apparently caught Sidon's attention.
"For the record, I don't blame you for what happened", he said, and Link looked at him quizzically. "Us getting into trouble for crossing the road at daytime, despite being told not to. You may have been the one to suggest it, but I agreed to it. That makes me just as thoughtless and irresponsible. I should have tried harder to talk us both out of it."
Sidon really was too good for him. Such a pure and innocent soul. Such a responsible prince. What had Link done to deserve his friendship?
Well, other than saved his home and people, and then the whole nation. But those details were irrelevant, nobody owed their friendship to him for those. Maybe just a few favours and possibly some money if they felt like being fair about it, which most didn't; they usually just asked him to do more things for them. So ungrateful.
'Okay, we both get a share of blame for that one', Link signed with a smile, 'But I get the bigger half because at least you gave a token effort to not be completely stupid.'
Sidon laughed heartily, which lifted most of the guilt and shame from Link's shoulders.
They arrived to the edge of the road shortly after that, much to the relief of them both. They didn't relax completely yet, though, as people didn't necessarily stick to the road and as such it wasn't quite safe yet. Scavenri had told them to camp in bushes, between large rocks, or underneath trees; anywhere the big people weren't likely to step into or were unable to do so. There should be rocks on this side of the road, too, they just had to find them.
Sidon, being the taller one, scouted ahead as they kept on walking, and eventually they found the safety of the rocks. There was even a rudimentary camp available, likely due to a lot of Minish using the place when traveling to the Stable Town for a visit to the exotic inn. The camp consisted of a couple of long logs to sit on, a spot for campfire, and even a small teepee-like structure, presumably to keep rain in. It was really rather cozy.
"It's so nice to see people extending each other helpful hands like this", Sidon said with a bright smile as he took a seat on one of the logs, "They could easily just make themselves temporary camps during their travel, but that structure there is a sign of someone going out of their way to create something safe and comfortable for any passing person to use. Such a kind act."
Link could have pointed out that the person building it may have had their own comfort in mind if they traveled this route often, but opted not to; he didn't want to ruin Sidon's joy. Instead he dropped his bag next to the Zora and went to check out the teepee. Turned out there was a bundle of firewood stashed in, which he immediately gathered in his arms and brought to the spot for campfire.
'Light it?' he signed to Sidon, and upon receiving an affirmative he went to explore the nearby area in hopes of gathering replacement wood and to see if there was anything edible around. His search rewarded him with a tree branch that he chopped into firewood with his sword, but he couldn't find any food. He considered one plant that he thought looked like Hyrule herb, just the size of a tree, but he already had a stash of dried herbs to spice his foods with, so it would have been too much trouble for little reward. In the end he returned to the camp with just the firewood.
"Did you find anything?" Sidon asked upon his return.
Link shook his head, before depositing the wood into the teepee. He joined Sidon by the campfire.
'The grass is so tall that it's difficult to see very far', he elaborated now that his hands were free. 'The distances are long, too.'
Sidon nodded thoughtfully and dug out a packet of jerky from his bag. Link followed the example and rummaged his own bag for something to eat. As he looked at an apple, he suddenly realized that he wasn't likely to get more of them anytime soon, considering their current size versus how big apples actually were. Not to even mention them being up impossibly tall trees. It was an alien thought as usually he could have all the apples he could possibly want just by walking into the woods and finding an apple tree to pick them from; they were absurdly common. He hummed to himself, set the apple down next to Sidon, and decided to eat something bought from the Minish instead. He should have bought more. Heck, he should have hunted down one of the bugs they saw earlier and tried if it was edible, and if it tasted as good as the grasshopper legs he bought from Scavenri.
This was Great Plateau all over again, wasn't it? He had to learn how to survive in the wilderness the hard way, again. Except this time he also had to look after Sidon, whose diet was stricter and who had a much more dire need for water than Link did. He really had to step up his game.
Speaking of Sidon.
"Link?" Sidon asked, apparently done eating. Link looked up at him questioningly. Sidon looked a combination of bashful and curious, which was decidedly odd and put Link on edge, not knowing what to expect.
"About earlier", Sidon continued, "I have to say that… you nibbling my neck was surprisingly pleasant. We Zora don't typically do things like that, as our teeth are too sharp to not hurt each other. But you doing that felt very nice."
He paused to consider how to continue, while Link felt like his face caught on fire. He had thought that he would be spared from discussing this, yet now it seemed that Sidon wasn't done with the subject. Admittedly, he was simultaneously very flattered about Sidon's confession.
"You have never done that before with me, despite our steadfast friendship", Sidon said, looking at Link contemplatively and making him feel extremely self-conscious. "Is it a common custom among Hylians? A… display of affection?"
Well… It certainly wasn't uncommon and it was definitely a display of affection, but Link really didn't want to explain the actual nature of the gesture. He may yet have to, sooner or later, but for now he vaguely agreed with Sidon's guess, feeling only slightly guilty.
Sidon stared at him silently for way longer than Link would have liked, then smiled. "Alright. Do you suppose you could do it again tonight, as we settle down to sleep? I rather think the earlier session ended prematurely and I would love to pick up from where it was left."
Link couldn't believe his pointy ears and was completely convinced that the donkey from earlier had, in fact, hit his head after all. He was not this lucky. He simply wasn't. Earlier, when Sidon had allowed his touch, had already been pushing it. This? Simply unreal. A figment of his imagination. Sidon would soon shake him awake and he would find himself in the middle of the road with a concussion.
In the meantime, he nodded vigorously and hoped there wasn't smoke coming out of his ears. His face was a lost cause; it would likely be red for the rest of his life. Regardless, he sent Hylia a silent thank you and mentally promised to leave her a heap of apples at the statue back in Hateno at his earliest convenience once he was big again.
"Excellent!" Sidon said happily, and grabbed his water canteen for a long drink. Link eyed it distractedly, silently thankful that the next town was supposedly only a few hours' walk away so they could restock tomorrow. He might have to invest in an additional canteen and leave something else behind unless another solution presented itself; Sidon was drinking a lot more now that he wasn't spending half of the trip swimming in the rivers, and one canteen wasn't going to last him for more than two days at best. This wouldn't have been an issue when they were big, as Link knew all the water spots by heart. Here? He had no clue.
Link finished eating and dug out his bedroll. He saw Sidon do the same and waited for him to find an acceptable spot before carrying his roll over. Their agreed system was that unless there was a relatively calm body of water for Sidon to sleep in, he would choose a spot by their campfire and then Link would sleep between him and the fire for maximum warmth and to keep the heat of the flames from directly reaching the Zora. After the effects of the night in the hot inn, the arrangement seemed exceedingly reasonable.
Link removed his weapons, the Minish leaf robe and his shoes before sitting down and watching Sidon do much the same. Once Sidon was down to his usual jewelry, he sat down with a thoughtful frown. Link was about to ask him about it when Sidon snapped his fingers with a smile, and then reached under his tail to unclasp and remove the silver neck piece. Link's face reached new levels of red.
"This should make things easier for you, right?" Sidon asked with a bright smile and Link was certain his heart would burst any moment now.
Hylia would receive all the apples. He would bake her an apple pie. With all the apples.
He nodded vigorously, which made Sidon chuckle.
"I should lay down, then? Or is the tackle an inherent part of the process?"
No, but kissing your lips and licking your abs are absolutely necessary parts of the process, is what Link didn't say. Instead he motioned for Sidon to lay down, cool as a cucumber. The kind of cucumber that occasionally self-combusted and was glad of his selective muteness because it meant the possible lacking filter between his brain and mouth typically wasn't an issue for him. Which was cool enough.
Actually, now that he thought about it, it wasn't even necessary for Sidon to lay down. Link could have just sat on his lap- Wait, yes, it was absolutely necessary for Sidon to lay down if Link wanted to survive this. Never mind. This was fine.
Link resolutely pushed any distracting thoughts to the back of his mind and instead eased himself into Sidon's waiting arms, which closed themselves tightly around him. Sidon sighed contentedly and rubbed his crest against Link's hair, which made his heart beat faster.
Yes, he rather believed he belonged right here.
Link glanced up and found Sidon's eyes on him. Naturally, since rubbing his head with the crest on Sidon's forehead obviously meant his beautiful topaz eyes (Link would later vehemently deny that he used gemstones as a descriptor of another person's eyes, like a lovesick teen girl) and perfectly kissable lips would be lowered. Sidon smiled warmly and Link tried not to stare at his lips and get any funny ideas. He managed a smile that he hoped didn't look too nervous or lovelorn, and then Sidon lifted his chin to give Link access to his now very naked neck. Link didn't think he had ever actually seen it not adorned with silver. And it was his to touch.
Something something apples and Hylia.
Link pulled himself higher on Sidon's chest, pressed a tentative kiss on his neck, and got an approving hum in return. Emboldened, he nibbled on the spot, and when Sidon still seemed to be into it and nothing bad happened, he started to give enthusiastic but gentle love bites all over. The neck piece not being there most definitely made the whole process easier and more enjoyable for everyone involved. Sidon's sharp claws dug lightly into Link's undershirt, which Link took as a good sign as he gave a bold lick from the hollow of Sidon's neck to the underside of his chin.
"Did you just lick my neck?" Sidon asked, sounding breathy but distinctly amused. Link couldn't help the euphoric chuckle he gave in return, and he lifted himself to his elbows so he could look at Sidon properly.
Hylia, Sidon was beautiful. His eyes were half-lidded, he had a warm smile, and a few scales at the edges of his jaw were sticking up adorably. It took all of Link's self-control to not dive in for a kiss.
"You look very happy", Sidon said, and one of his hands left Link's back in order to cradle his face. Sidon's thumb traced Link's bottom lip and that was frankly the best thing to have ever happened to Link. "Had I known about this before… We should do this again. Every evening, if you're so inclined."
Link gave a small nod, not wanting to dislodge Sidon's thumb. His brain and heart were mushy enough that he didn't feel the need to over think anything, didn't have it in him to dredge up any guilt for taking advantage of Sidon's lack of knowledge, and didn't bother with considering any consequences any of this might have. What truly mattered was here and now, and with that in mind he buried his face into Sidon's neck happily, and snuggled close for the rest of the night. Sidon simply held him tightly in return.