"You couldn't have been!" Zelda said with a soft laugh. "There's no way I believe you right now."
Link chuckled with her. "Well, I find that offensive. Do you doubt me, or you doubt my talents?"
She crinkled her nose, not wanting to answer that. It made Link's eyebrows raise up before he balked. "Well fine then. Doubt me."
Zelda walked over to the stale bread they'd been given and tore off a piece of mold, flicking it out of the cell. "I will doubt you. There's no way you were on that mountain with a goat in the rain. It's not possible." After taking a bite, she held it out for Link.
He took his share and she put it back, saving it for later.
"Next time," he said while chewing, "don't ask me what the weirdest thing I've ever done was. You'll get a far less interesting story, like yours was."
She scoffed and stood against the bars of the cell so she could have a good look at him. "Mine was interesting! How many people eat a living cricket on a dare?"
"A lot of people."
"Have you?"
He snorted. "Not a cricket, but I've eaten a decent sized beetle."
She couldn't help but make a face. "I hate that that's not the weirdest thing you've ever done."
"Oh Zelda," he cooed playfully, "The stories I could tell you!"
"You'd think that after two days of talking, you might start to run low on stories."
But Link grinned. "You doubt me again. I'm feeling quite hurt."
"You'll survive," she laughed.
He nodded, but she could see him wince as he moved his arm slightly. "Can I do anything?" she asked.
He cleared his throat and hung his head almost pathetically towards her. "Yes, actually, but I'm hesitant to ask."
"Now I'm too curious," she said, crossing her arms.
He nodded and looked away. "I have an itch on my nose that's been bothering me forever."
She made an exasperated face and rolled her eyes. "Why didn't you just say so? Pride again?"
"Isn't it strange to ask someone you only recently met to scratch your nose?"
Thinking about it, she realized it was. But she looked pointedly at his bound hands. "You're an exception, I think. Extenuating circumstances and all. Where?"
He motioned with his eyes to the left side. "Did you ever have to do this for the wounded you treated?"
"Admittedly, no. This is a first."
She let her fingernail scratch his skin, but she couldn't help but laugh. "Stop staring at me. You're right, this is strange and you're making it worse."
His lips tipped up, and he looked awkwardly off to the side.
Then, she heard him suck in air, like he was in pain.
She backed away, holding her hands up. "Did I just hurt you?" she looked to see if her nails had cut his skin, but there was nothing there.
"No," he said, letting out a harsh laugh. "No. You'll think I'm insane though."
She dropped her hands, far less concerned. "Well, I already think that, so go ahead."
She watched his neck redden, her curiosity growing with every passing moment.
He made a face, deciding to just go for it. "I've been in here for a while. And I didn't realize it until just now, but I haven't felt anything but these chains for a while now. Your hand just leaned against me and I swear I forgot what someone else felt like."
Curiously, Zelda found herself taking a step forward. "I've been beaten, dragged, thrown around… but I think…" she held out her hand, asking for silent permission. He nodded, and she put her hand against his cheek. She couldn't help the soft laugh that came from her mouth. "I think I know what you mean. How long have we been here?"
Link started to relax under her still touch. "I have no idea.
She was careful not to brush up against his bare chest. There came a point where her instincts from years of proper etiquette and propriety took over, keeping her a respectable distance away.
But she had no problem indulging in a harmless moment. She let her fingers run along the light scruff on his jaw. "I always wondered if this was something that made you itchy. Does it?"
He bit his lip and turned into her hand. "It does now, Zelda."
"Sorry," she said with an unapologetic smile.
"I'm sure, you are," he chuckled sarcastically, feeling her fingers move up to his hair. "You're not even being kind anymore; you're just having fun."
She grinned lightheartedly. "There's nothing else to do."
"Oh, I can think of some things that are pretty fun," he laughed, his eyes playful and mischievous.
Pulling her hand away, Zelda shook her head, smiling. "Nice try."
He looked her over for a minute, noting how she took a deliberate step away from him before he adjusted his arms. "If I ever actually say something that makes you uncomfortable, just let me know. I'll stop."
She spun on her heels to look back at him, crossing her arms with a laugh. "There are far worse things in this world than having an attractive man attempt to seduce me in a dark and dank dungeon."
"Did it work?" he asked with a wriggle of his eyebrows.
That got a full-on laugh from her, one that he joined in on just because of how contagious hers was.
"No, it didn't."
She wouldn't admit it, but she was growing attached to Link. He had a way about him that was defiant and spirited, but also kind and charming. And he spoke to her in a way no one ever had. When people know you're the princess, they become a lot more formal and reserved. His unabashed comments over the past few days, his easy charm, despite being chained to a wall, the easy way they talked about anything, the looks he'd sometimes give her… she realized that in this short time, she had feelings for him.
Perhaps it was because they spent every single moment together, or their shared traumatic experiences, but she was closer to this soldier than to some of the people she'd lived with in the palace.
She was sure he'd figured out she was hiding something. That wasn't in doubt. She would answer very few questions about home, and fewer about what her family was like. She'd describe her life at the castle while leaving out all the important details that would give her away, but it was those details that he'd notice and latch onto.
She had a terrible feeling that if she stayed with Link much longer, she'd most certainly slip and reveal who she was.
And that slip would cost him his life.