Okay everyone, here's the next chapter and it's filled with fluffiness! I hope you enjoy it!
Chapter Eight: Out on the Town
When they finally were ready to start their day of exploring Skyloft the sun was already high in the sky. Ghirahim followed closely behind Link as he took in the sights as they walked, he had insisted on them holding hands to ensure that they didn't get separated and besides he really wanted to. Link blushed but agreed with his logic though wasn't too thrilled with the idea. She had decided to continue wearing the dress; she rather enjoyed the way that it moved as she walked. As they traveled down the path leading away from the academy they ran into the Head Master, Gaepora. Gaepora was quiet surprised to see Link walking around in a dress and with a strange man holding on to her hand.
"H-headmaster! Um, let me introduce to you my fiancée, Ghirahim. I met him down on the surface during my journey; he saved my life twice while I was down there." Link quickly explained as she motioned to Ghirahim hurriedly. "It's a pleasure to meet you headmaster, as Link said: I am Ghirahim, Demon Lord of the Surface." Ghirahim swooped into a deep bow. "Ghira!" Link exclaimed at his bluntness. "Relax my love. He is one of the few people who knows your secret, correct?" Link nodded quietly. "Then it's alright for him to know mine." He smiled at Link before turning his attention back to Gaepora. "Please forgive me for all of the trouble I have caused all of you, and rest assured that I will aid Link in her quest to save Zelda from my ex-master." He bowed once more after his explanation. "Oh, my. I guess you have been quiet busy haven't you, Li…er…um" Gaepora paused realizing that they were still outside where anyone could hear them. "Lily." Ghirahim finished for him with a smirk. "Yes, yes, Lily…right." Gaepora glanced around to make sure no one had heard or noticed them. "I must say…Lily, that you look an awful lot like your mother. And Ghirahim please see to it that you watch over her, she's like a second daughter to me." He smiled at the two standing in front of him. "I'm so glad to see you so happy, Lily. And as long as the Goddess smiles on the two of you, then I see no reason to complain. She did condone this, correct?" Gaepora said in a very serious tone. Ghirahim smiled to him. "Of course, the Goddess condones our relationship; it was her idea after all." Ghirahim chuckled before continuing. "And you have my word that I will love and protect her, no matter what." He finished with a broad smile on his face as he pulled Link into a backwards hug causing her to blush profusely yet she didn't shy away much to Ghirahim's relief. "Well, I should let you two get on with your day. And welcome to Skyloft, Ghirahim." Gaepora smiled and waved goodbye as he left the two of them and headed back to the academy.
"So, who else knows your secret?" Ghirahim asked curiously as they watched the headmaster walk away, Link turned in his arms in order to look him in the face. "Including you, three. Zelda, her father Gaepora, and you. Though Zelda has tried multiple times to get me to break my silence, but I'm too afraid of how people will respond. I mean, I've been lying to them my whole life. How can I ever look them in the eyes when they realize that all this time it's been one huge lie? No, I decided a long time ago that if my secret ever gets out that I'll just leave, and never come back." Link frowned as she spoke quietly refusing to meet his eyes. Ghirahim sighed as he rested his head on top of hers. Unknown to the two of them, Pipit, while on his way back to the academy after returning home had stumbled upon them and quickly hid himself behind the nearest tree. His eyes widened as he listened to the pair talking quietly and embracing.
"Link, if you explain it to them I'm sure they will accept you for who you are. I mean, look at me," he paused and lifted her chin up with his finger so that she could look into his eyes, "I was your enemy, but I readily accepted you as you are. But if you have your heart set on leaving this beautiful paradise, then you are always welcome to live with me on the surface." Ghirahim slid his other hand behind her neck to cradle her head as he brought her in just close enough to brush his lips against hers as he spoke again. "Link, in the end it really doesn't matter what they think of you, because I will always be there to protect you." He closed the small distance and kissed her deeply and passionately, closing his eyes as he deepened the kiss. Ghirahim felt Link go rigid in his arms as he kissed her, with a sigh he pulled back only to be greeted with a brightly blushing Link. "S-sorry, I…I'm sorry. You keep telling me how much you love me, but I just don't know what I feel. I feel…strange…around you. I don't know what it means." Link stammered as she looked away from him, not realizing that she had her hands clenched in the front of Ghirahim's cloak. "I'm so sorry, Link. I just keep forcing my kisses on you." Ghirahim's face fell at the thought of making her uncomfortable. "I-I never said that." Link abruptly blurted out, her face turning an even darker shade of red. "Is that so?" He asked as he pulled her into a tight hug, to his surprise she nuzzled her face further into his chest giving him only the slightest of nods. Link found herself deep in thought as he continued to hug her, 'Ghirahim seems to really truly love me. Maybe I should give him a chance…get to know him better.' Meanwhile, Pipit struggled to remain silent and unseen as he watched in shock and horror at what was playing out in front of him.
"Um, I need to go to the bazaar to have my uniform fixed." Link mumbled awkwardly. "You mean those rags can be salvaged?" Ghirahim asked in shock as he pulled back just ever so slightly to get a better look at her despite her continuing to cling to him. "Yeah, I need to take it to Pipit's mother. She fixed it the last time it got ripped up, though it wasn't as bad." Link finally pulled away to look up at Ghirahim's face making him smile. "All right, let's go then." He took her hand in his as he started to walk in the direction they had been heading before. "You know, I've never been to a bazaar, what's it like?" "You'll see soon enough." Link smiled as she guided him up the stairs that lead to the large structure that sat in the heart of Skyloft, oblivious to the fact that they were slowly being followed by a figure hiding in the shadows.
"My Goddess, what fresh hell is this?" Ghirahim looked around the area filled with stalls of various sorts, tons of people, and so much sound. He didn't know where to look first as it all assaulted his senses. "Told you." Link smiled and shrugged as she moved forward through the crowd causing Ghirahim to run to catch up to her. Her first stop was in the opposite corner from where they had entered, she moved swiftly and confidently through the crowded bazaar as if there was no one even there. Ghirahim was thankful that he had grabbed onto her hand otherwise he was uncertain if he would have been able to keep up with her quick pace and sudden turns. Link suddenly came to a halt in front of a small store front shoved between the booths of a tinkerer and a strange man who appeared to be attempting to heimlich himself.
The sweet looking woman looked up from her sewing to smile brightly at the two whom had just stopped in front of her. "May I help you?" She asked sweetly. "I hope so. My cousin, Link, managed to ruin his tunic again, can you fix it?" Link asked quickly hoping she wouldn't recognize her as she held out the sad remains of her tunic. "Link? Oh! Have you met my son, Pipit? He's good friends with your cousin Link. My name is Mallara. And what are your names?" Mallara exclaimed excitedly clapping her hands together. "Yes, we have, just this morning in fact. My name is Lily and this is Ghirahim, my fiancée." Link introduced herself and Ghirahim relieved that she hadn't been recognized. Pipit's mother took the raggedy tunic from her and looked it over, before sighing sadly. "I do wish he'd be just a little more careful down there. My poor, Pippy does nothing but worry about him all the time." She heaved another sigh. "I can fix it, but please let him know it'll take longer than last time, maybe a week. I know how he's always in such a rush to try and find poor Zelda, but that's the soonest I can get it done." Mallara finished, shaking her head sadly. "That's okay actually. Link's kinda banged up from his last trip so he's going to need some time to heal. Which is why we are here, to help him out." "Oh my Goddess! I hope he's okay. Does Pippy know? Has he gone to visit him yet?" Link flinched at the sudden barrage of questions and her refering to Pipit as 'Pippy', after all Link knew how much he hated it when she called him that. "He knows, but hasn't seen him yet. Link's in his room resting right now." Link answered quickly, before she suddenly realized that Ghirahim had wandered over to the next stall which was run by the large strange man named Gondo. Ghirahim seemed intrigued by what Gondo was working on and much to Link's surprise Ghirahim was invited to come into Gondo's work area and have a closer look at what he was doing. "Uh, I'm sorry but I should go and see what my fiancée is up to. Thanks again, Mallara, good bye." Link quickly bowed before heading over to see what Ghirahim was up to.
Her blue eyes widened when she saw Ghirahim holding a piece of metal still as Gondo worked furiously on it. She watched in stunned silence as the two men worked. It was about ten minutes later that they realized that they were being watched. Gondo blushed profusely when he saw a beautiful young woman watching them so intently, while Ghirahim simply smiled at her warmly causing her to blush in return. "W-w-what are you doing, Ghirahim?" She stammered nervously. "Well, I was watching what he was doing while you spoke with your friend's mother and I noticed that he was having some difficulties, so I offered to help. So, I helped." He shrugged as he explained as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Link's jaw dropped at his statement. "You helped?" She questioned him dumbfounded by the sheer strangeness of it. Ghirahim's smile broadened at her look of surprise before moving to her side to give her a warm hug. "Of course, you would have done the same, right?" "Well, yeah but…" Link shifted nervously in his arms. "Oh, yeah! I need to get some more potions!" She suddenly exclaimed as she turned to head back over to the potion's stall.
She abruptly came to a halt to look over her shoulder at Ghirahim, a sheepish look on her face. "Um, Ghirahim." "Yes?" Ghirahim strode over to her, a light smile on his face. "Do you think you could get me my adventure pouch? I need my empty bottles to put the potions into." She blushed and looked away from Ghirahim as she kicked lightly at the ground. "Of course. Oh, your shield might need fixing while we're here," Ghirahim gestured over his shoulder to Gondo who was still staring at Link, "you did get pretty banged up when you hit the cliff." Ghirahim finished with a sad look on his face as he remembered just how badly 'banged up' she really was. Link silently gasped at the sudden depression that seemed to come over the usually composed Demon Lord's features. "Just how bad is my shield?" Link hesitantly inquired as she watched Ghirahim sigh and snap his fingers calling forth what she could only assume were the remains of her shield as well as her blood soaked adventure pouch. He held them in his hands as he looked away from both her and the items he held. Link gasped as she took in the sight before her. "H-how…how badly was I injured?" "You had severe head trauma and internal bleeding." Ghirahim whispered quietly, not fully trusting his voice. Link's eyes widened in shock, 'That's why he was so exhausted before, he healed my injuries completely…' blinking back tears she flung herself towards Ghirahim, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face into his chest, not caring that she had knocked the items out of his hands. Ghirahim's eyes widened in shock as he looked down at the young hero embracing him and crying into his chest. "You saved my life, Ghirahim. I had no idea just how badly I had been injured. I'm sorry." She cried into his chest as he put a hand on top of her head, petting her golden hair soothingly. "Shh, Link, it's okay. Honestly I didn't want you to know just how close a call it really was. I-I…" Ghirahim broke off, tightening his grip on her as he shook. "I almost lost you." He chocked out, as he buried his face in her golden locks. Link pulled back and lifted his face to hers with one hand and smiled at him. "You saved me, thank you." She leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead. Ghirahim visibly relaxed as he stood back up and smiled back at Link. "Thank you. So, we should probably get it fixed, yeah?" He asked as he bent down to retrieve the fallen items. Link shook her head sadly. "Sadly I don't think even Gondo can fix this thing. I'll have to buy a new one." She grimaced as she looked over to the strange shop keeper Ghirahim had noticed earlier. To his amusement the man would follow people in his shop while doing that strange heimlich type maneuver and promptly deflate when they walked away, 'What a strange man.'
Link begrudgingly trudged over to the gear shop. "Well, hello miss! Welcome to my shop, my name is Rupin, how may I assist you today?" Link suppressed her look of disgust and discomfort as best as she could as the man hovered over her as she walked around his shop. "I need a new shield for my cousin, Link. He smashed his recently and is in need of a new one." Link explained quickly and noticed the look of excitement on his face as he did his strange heimlich motions even faster. "Ah, yes I know Link well; he's my best customer after all!" He quickly guided an uncomfortable Link over to the three shields that he had on display, placing a hand on her lower back as they moved. He smiled even wider as he spoke again. "You know Link never mentioned having such a pretty cousin." Link stiffened in horror. "I'm sorry I took so long to get here, sweetie." Ghirahim swiftly pulled Link away from Rupin's grasp glaring coldly at the frightened shop keeper. Link shivered at the amount of venom that dripped from Ghirahim's words. "Where were you?" "I got separated from you and then some creepy psychic with huge eyes started talking to me. He really gave me the creeps." Ghirahim shivered at the thought of the bazaar man. "Oh, you mean, Sparrot? Yeah, he kinda creeps everyone out. I try to avoid him as much as possible." Link smiled up at him at she patted him on the back.
"Ahem." Link and Ghirahim both turned their attention back to the shop keeper. "Did you still want a shield for your cousin, miss?" His annoyance was made quite clear as he narrowed his eyes at Ghirahim for interrupting. "Yes, I'll take…that one." Link pointed to the sacred shield after look over the other two; even though she already knew which one she wanted but wanted to make it appear as if she was unsure. Rupin looked at her in shock. "Miss, are you sure? That shield is 500 rupees! It's very expensive." "And I have the money, sir. Besides, this is the type of shield he likes using." Link interrupted him quickly, clearly annoyed by the shop keeper. She turned to Ghirahim with a smile, "My pouch, please?" Ghirahim held out her stained pouch as she quickly dipped her hand in, located her wallet and swiftly removed it. A look of disgust crossed her face briefly as she felt the moisture that still clung to the bag. "Here, 500 rupees." Link plopped the rupees into the startled shop keepers hands, she then turned and grabbed the newly acquired shield and was about to sling it on to her back only to have it snatched away by Ghirahim who smiled and placed it on his back instead. Link stared in surprise at Ghirahim, 'Just how many times is he going to surprise me like this?' she shook her head before smiling at him. "Well, aren't we the gentle man?" Link smirked at Ghirahim who blushed a light pink. "No one's ever called me that before. I think I like it."
Ghirahim smiled as he followed Link over to the next shop, the potion's shop run by Luv and her husband, Bertie. Link immediately went over to Luv to ask her about the various potions; meanwhile Ghirahim went over to the small man standing over a large cauldron while attempting to calm his squalling baby on his back. Ghirahim watched the child with interest. "May I help?" Ghirahim motioned to the child with a smile. Bertie gave him a startled look before smiling and handing him the baby. Ghirahim adjusted the baby in his arms before smiling down at her as she grabbed on to his finger as he wiggled it at her. She smiled and squealed happily.
As Link spoke to Luv she could hear a babies squeal and turned to see where it came from and gasped in shock as she beheld the most unlikely of sights: Ghirahim cradling a baby. "Well, I've never seen her take to anyone so quickly." Luv smiled as she laughed at the look of pure wonder on Ghirahim's face. Link walked slowly over to Ghirahim, her eyes wide as she watched him smiling and making faces at the baby. "Ghira…?" Ghirahim's head shot up when he heard Link's confused voice, he smiled brightly to her. "Isn't she cute?" Ghirahim spoke softly as his brown eyes watched the squirming baby in his arms. "Yes, she is very cute." Link said with a sigh as she brushed the hair out of the babies face. She looked back up at Ghirahim's face with a smile. "Hey Ghirahim." "Yeah?" "We should get going if you want to see more of Skyloft today." Ghirahim gave her a sad look before giving the infant back to Bertie. "Please stop by whenever you two want!" Luv shouted as the two of them smiled and waved good-bye as they left.
Once outside Link lead Ghirahim to one of her favorite spots that now was much easier to reach thanks to her longshot. As she neared the waterfall in Skyloft Ghirahim got distracted by something hidden amongst the flowers. To his surprise the lump greeted him with a trilling mew. The cat like creature walked up to him and started rubbing on his legs as he watched in shock. Link turned around and laughed at the look on Ghirahim's face. Before he could react she pulled out Zelda's harp and started to play the Ballad of the Goddess. The remlit's ears perked up at the sound of the beautiful song as it drifted through the air. Ghirahim turned and his eyes widened as he saw the remlit swaying its head to the music as Link began to sing, her eyes closed as she raised her voice to the sky.
Meanwhile, hiding in the shadows of the nearby bridge stood Pipit, anger evident on his face. He knew that voice, he remembered the last time he had ever heard his best friend sing, which was shortly after her father died. He clenched his hands in fists of rage. 'All this time Link has been lying to me all a long! All those years of putting up with people calling me names! All a long Link was a … a girl.' He continued to watch as Link finally finished playing and smiled up at Ghirahim and it nearly broke Pipit's heart. 'Why would Link choose to be with him? Can't she tell that I love her?' He watched as the two headed over to the waterfall, and working their way up to the top of it, Link using some strange device and Ghirahim somehow teleporting to the top of each floating boulder. When the two finally made it to the top they sat down and watched as the sunset over Skyloft together. To Pipit's shock, as soon as the sun had set the two of them simply teleported away leaving Pipit alone with his thoughts.
When they returned to the academy they bumped into one of Link's fellow students, Karane. "Hey, there! You two don't look familiar, what's yer names?" She asked them in a light friendly tone. "I'm Lily, Link's cousin. And this is Ghirahim, my fiancée." Link ran through the introductions quickly. "Ah, I don't suppose you know where Pipit is, do ya?" Karane smiled at Link and Ghirahim as she tilted her head to the side slightly. "No, I'm afraid I don't. Why are you looking for him this late at night?" Link also tilted her head, she couldn't think of any reason she would be looking for him. "Oh, no one told you?! The Harvest Festival Dance is tonight, and I wanted to ask him to the dance." She blushed brightly. "Maybe you two should go to the dance! It's the one time of the year that we all kick back and have a good time. All though, I've never once seen Link at one of these dances. Maybe he can't dance." She shrugged her shoulders before turning to leave. "If you see him, please let him know I'm looking for him. Bye now!" Karane waved over her shoulder as she headed out of the academy doors.
"I'm going to get changed." Link muttered as she turned and walked away from Ghirahim. Ghirahim watched as she made a speedy escape to her dorm room. He sighed sadly before following her and stopping at her door and knocked quietly. "Who is it?" Link's voice was muffled by the clothes she was pulling on over her head. "It's me, Ghirahim." He answered hesitantly, not wanting to anger the blonde girl who seemed to suddenly be in an odd mood. "What do you want?" She asked quietly. "Can I come in?" Ghirahim nervously glanced around as he noticed the students of Skyloft preparing to leave for the dance. "Hang on." Link opened the door to let Ghirahim in but stopped when she saw the look of shock on his face. Link stood in front of Ghirahim wearing her everyday village clothes and her hat, effectively hiding any and all femininity. Ghirahim stood there staring at Link for several minutes before Link decided to break the silence. "I'm guessing you want to go to the dance, correct?" Link frowned when she saw the look of excitement cross his face. "Well, I'm not going to risk people putting two and two together so you'll have to deal with my old clothes. People will start to worry if they don't see or hear from me, and might decide to barge into my room. Next you know the remlit's out of the bag." She sighed as she finished her explanation while fidgeting with her heart container trying to keep it hidden from sight. "Oh. Then shall we?" Ghirahim gave her a sad smile as he motioned for Link to lead the way to the dance.
The Harvest Festival dance was being held in the bazaar seen as it was the largest space and in the center of Skyloft. Inside of the bazaar Link and Ghirahim were greeted with a brightly decorated area filled with carved pumpkins and the smell of various pumpkin preparations being cooked. Link shifted nervously before taking a seat by the wall and trying her best to ignore the throng of happy Skyloftians as they chatted, sang, and danced without a care. Ghirahim had managed to get separated from Link and desperately searched the crowd for any signs of her. Much to his surprise he saw Link off to the side against the wall with her arms crossed as two girls tried to convince her to dance with one of them. As he made his way over to where she was sitting he noticed one of the girls trying to pull Link from her seat. Ghirahim managed to make it over to where she was struggling to escape the overly pushy brunet and placing his hand on her shoulder. "I believe my friend Link here is not interested in a dance." Ghirahim said smoothly causing the girl to blush. "Oh, sorry." She quickly scampered away. Ghirahim turned back to Link only to find that she had bolted for the door.
Ghirahim chased after her, concerned that she was upset with him. Once out in the cold night air he looked around once more searching for Link. As he glanced in the direction of the docks he saw a figure curled up on one of the benches. He approached slowly and found that the figure was in fact the one he was looking for. She had her knees pulled up to her chest and her head buried in her arms. "Link? Are you okay?" He asked slowly as he reached out to put his hand on her shoulder but stopped when she suddenly shifted and looked up at him with her head still resting on her arms. "I'm not gonna bite you." She smiled at him slightly; Ghirahim smiled back and placed his hand on her shoulder. Link sighed as she relaxed under his hand that rubbed small soothing circles on her shoulder. "I just hate it when they won't listen to me. I didn't want to dance with her, but she just wouldn't take no for an answer."
Ghirahim gave her a gentle smile again as he offered her his other hand. "Will you dance with me?" He asked softly, Link gave him a frown. "You wouldn't want to dance with someone who can't dance." She replied bluntly as she looked away from him. "Then I can teach you." Ghirahim's smile broadened as sharp blue eyes meet soft brown ones, before slowly taking his hand and letting him pull her to her feet. He led her a few feet away from the bench that she had been sitting on. Ghirahim took her right hand in his left and her left on his shoulder before resting his right hand on her left shoulder. Link looked up at him confused as Ghirahim listened intently to the music that floated through the air. He slowly led her through the steps one at a time until she got the hang of it. "This is called a waltz." Ghirahim whispered in her ear as they moved fluidly to the music, completely unaware that they were being watched by a figure crouching in the bushes not too far away.
Pipit glared at the two as they continued to dance. The moon was high in the sky and shone brightly down on the pair as they moved. Ghirahim looked down to Link as she looked up at him, and he slowly leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips. Just as he was about to pull back he felt Link kiss him back, their dance momentarily forgotten as the two deepened the kiss while clinging to each other. Pipit's eyes narrowed dangerously as he watched his best friend kissing another man, he was absolutely livid. Ghirahim and Link broke apart in need of air. Link rested her head on his shoulder as they began to dance once more, both looking completely content. After a while Ghirahim realized that he was now holding Link up instead of her lightly leaning on him, he looked down at her face and smiled when he discovered that she had fallen asleep in his arms. Careful not to wake her he shifted her in his arms and scooping her up into his arms. Ghirahim paused a moment to take in the image of the young hero sleep in his arms with the moonlight dancing off her face, he smiled as he nuzzled her check with his nose. With a snap of his fingers they were gone, leaving Pipit alone as the music continued to play on in the bazaar.
Unable to take it any more Pipit ran home, tears in his eyes. He shoved the door of his home open with such force that the windows in the home rattled angrily. Mallara looked up at her son in shock, he rarely if ever lost his temper and the look on his face worried her. "What's wrong, Pippy?" Pipit turned to his mother. "I saw Link kissing another man." He spat out as if the words themselves were poison. "Oh, Pippy. I'm so sorry." Mallara had known for quite some time that her son had a major crush on his childhood friend and that he had suffered at the hands of his fellow classmates for being gay. Pipit looked away from his mother as he walked to his bed, "I'm going to bed." Mallara sighed as her son shut her out and went to sulk in his bed before eventually falling asleep.
The next morning came far too soon for Pipit's taste today, he had only managed to get a few hours of sleep. But, he didn't want to neglect his training, besides he was sure he'd be able to work out his aggressions as he trained. It was still early; the sun had only just began to rise as he made his way into the sparring hall. As he opened the doors to the sparring hall he stopped dead in his tracks as he was greeted with sounds of steel on steel and two combatants grunting as they clashed. His jaw dropped when he saw Ghirahim holding a deadly looking black saber and Link holding a beautiful blue and silver sword that gleamed in the light. The intensity of their bout left Pipit speechless, he had never seen Link move like that, or any one for that matter. Link's sharp eyes watched Ghirahim's every movement calculating his every move. They spun and clashed again in an intricate dance. Without warning Link knocked Ghirahim off balance, in his surprise he grabbed Link's wrist and accidentally pulled her down on top of him as he fell down on the floor. The two of them blinked as they suddenly found the other's face much closer than before. Without warning they both burst out laughing, completely ignoring the fact that Pipit was there they playfully rolled on the ground pretending to continue their fight as they play punched each other.
The two eventually stopped fighting to try catching their breath, it was then that Link looked up at Pipit and smiled at him. "Hey, Pip!" Link grinned as Pipit offered her a hand, which Link gladly accepted. Link turned to Ghirahim who was still spread eagle on the ground and with a poorly concealed smirk pulled him to his feet. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?" She asked, her eyes narrowing in mock anger. "Maybe." Ghirahim replied with a slight lilt to his voice as he grinned broadly. Link laughed a playfully punched his arm. "Baka." She muttered under her breath. Ghirahim took notice of the light streaming in through the still open door that Pipit in his shock had neglected to close. "We should go, Link." Ghirahim announced sadly, Link nodded miserably as she followed him to the door. Before the pair departed they waved good-bye to Pipit.
After they left Pipit followed them at a distance as they made their way to the dock nearest the Goddess Statue. Link paused giving Ghirahim a sad smile before stepping back and whistling loudly. Ghirahim's eyes widened when her large red loftwing flew over head and landed next to Link. She gave her bird a pat on the head. Pipit had settled in behind one of the ancient stone statues that littered the area and was close enough that he could see and hear everything that they said. "Ghirahim, I wish you would let me go with you." Link mumbled as she stroked her loftwing's feathers, refusing to meet eyes with him. "I'm sorry, Link. I'd love nothing more than to have you at my side always, but the Goddess insisted that I do this alone . I can't even tell you what I'm doing and it kills me." Ghirahim frowned as he reached out a hand for her loftwing to inspect. "Are you sure it's okay for me to ride your loftwing? I was under the impression that loftwings only let their master's significant other ride them." He quirked an eyebrow as the loftwing nuzzled his hand gently. "Well, he seems to like you so it should be fine…and…" Link trailed off as she hesitantly lifted her eyes up to meet with his, biting her lower lip softly and fidgeting slightly. "…you are my fiancée, right?" She finished quietly as she glanced away from him. "Yes, Link, of course! That is, if you'll have me?" Ghirahim smiled to her, hope shining in his soft brown eyes hints of violet glinting in the sunlight. Without warning, Link flung herself into his arms hugging him tightly. Ghirahim took a few seconds to recover from the unexpected attack of affection. With a smile he tipped her head back with the crook of his finger before locking lips with Link, who shyly kissed back. His eyes shut as he held on to her tighter, kissing her passionately before reluctantly pulling back giving both of them a chance to breath. Ghirahim rested his head on her shoulder as he pulled her as close as he possibly could and whispered in her ear, "I love you, Link." Link blushed brightly and was about to respond when Ghirahim placed his gloved finger on her lips. "While I'm gone, I want you to think about what you want. Don't worry about what I'll think. Don't worry about what Zelda will think, or anyone for that matter. Just what you want. And when I get back you can tell me what you've decided. Okay?" Ghirahim smiled as he moved his hand from her mouth and instead stroked her check lovingly. Link smiled and nodded. "I will. Good luck on your mission, Ghirahim. Make sure you come back in one piece." Link waved to him as he mounted her loftwing. Ghirahim looked over his shoulder and gave her a toothy grin. "Of course I will! And thanks again for the sail cloth, this should be fun." He laughed as he urged the loftwing to take off. Link watched him slowly disappear through the green pillar before finally turning away and heading back to her dorm room, unknowing that Pipit wasn't far behind her.
Link finally reaches her door and is about to open it when Pipit called out to her, startling her. "Hey Pipit. What's wrong? Do you want to talk about it?" Link offered sweetly as she opened her door gesturing for him to go in. "Yeah, I need to talk to you, Link." Pipit said glumly as he entered Link's room slowly. Link followed behind closing the door and walking over to her wardrobe not noticing that Pipit hung back by Link's door. Pipit glared down at the handle before flipping the small knob on the door with a soft click. "Pipit? Why did you lock the door?"
Oh my, what's this? A cliffhanger? I'm so mean aren't I. I really would love to hear from everyone! I want to know what you think, any mistakes, questions, comments, concerns, etc. Please read and review! Oh, and by the way the next chapter is going to be very traumatic, and may take awhile for me to write, I'm so mean to my characters. T_T Just remember this is a hurt/comfort, so the fluffiness was not going to last forever.