Chapter 9 - After party
Hands pressed up against the front windshield, Zelda stared out at the expanse before her. Somewhere in the back of her mind she had expected an array of blues and violets entwined to create a blanket for the stars, but darkness was all that she was greeted with. It felt cold, and more of a void than the sky she was so used to gazing after, but none the less this was what she had craved her entire life.
Samus, now stripped to her Zero suit in the assurance that they weren't being watched, abandoned the control pad to come up behind the stargazing princess; she watched idly for a while as Zelda's eyes darted back and forth, completely absorbed in each and every speck of debris that crossed their path.
"So, what d'ya think?" She asked quietly, and Zelda barely stirred.
"It is..." Zelda hesitated, finally tearing her eyes away to look over her shoulder at Samus, "So free." Answering slowly, she returned her gaze to the wide open plains of asteroids now tumbling into view as they crossed the ship's path. Zelda hummed dreamily, drinking in every detail that drifted past the window as she pressed closer.
Samus sighed. It felt like every thought that passed out of Zelda's mouth had something to do with this desperation for freedom. She couldn't imagine being restricted to one planet her entire life; never mind one area, or even one building! She pursed her lips into a thin line; perhaps Zelda wasn't so blissfully unaware of loneliness as she'd once thought. It had been apparent for a while; she had seen the gleam in Zelda's eyes when they'd taken the duck hunters out for their walk. Zelda had acted as though most elements of the outside world were completely foreign to her, and the blonde struggled to grasp the concept of such a secluded life. What was the point of ruling a kingdom if you weren't free from the palace gates to explore every last inch of it?
Then, ever so softly,
"Could we stay up here for a while?"
Samus was startled at first, but as she went to back up she became very suddenly aware of Zelda's hands on her forearms; she must have been adrift in thought longer than she had first thought. Wide eyes were pleading for an answer, and Samus felt her gut wrench.
"I don't see why not."
Samus' voice was impassive, but her eyes betrayed the blank expression. Zelda, in that moment, had lost her bearings. She felt dizzy, and the idea of heading back down to Earth was one she couldn't bear to think about. The serenity was one she'd never experienced before; a complete absence of life except for the soft hums and burbles of the ship, the woman in front of her, and herself. It was heavenly compared to her normal lifestyle, which seemed to alternate between all eyes on her and no eyes on her. Moments of privacy were few and far between, but then they arrived they were far from blissful; heavy workloads and decisions with countless lives weighing on her shoulders often became too much, and she'd wish that she were up floating amongst the stars where no troubles could reach her.
In that moment, as Samus' sceptical gaze locked onto hers, Zelda realised that she was living it.
"Samus," She began slowly, "Do you ever crave company whilst you are alone up here?"
Samus felt a cold sweat begin to crawl up her back. Uh oh, feelings.
Fox's words echoed in her head, and she exhaled heavily.
'What you're feeling isn't supposed to be bad'
Alright, this was fine.
Zelda closed some distance between them, and the cold sweat washed over her body like a tidal wave.
This was... fine.
Their eyes met steadily this time, and when Samus tried to avert her eyes she felt the silk of Zelda's gloved fingers move skittishly against her forearms to regain her attention.
This... was fine...
"Samus?"
Cerulean eyes drew her in closer, and Samus found her train of thought melting between the cracks of her worries. The room felt hot, very hot, and it were only as she felt Zelda's fingertips brush against her cheek that she gasped – jerking back to put a painfully large distance between them.
Too much.
Zelda felt smooth skin tear away from her hand, and as she realised just what she was doing panic began to surge through her veins. She took a step back herself, and when met with azure eyes she could not read them.
"My apologies!" She squeaked, voice hardly managing to force its way through her lips, and Samus appeared to be struggling to form any words herself. Anxiety had reared its ugly head, and the Princess was feeling it full force.
Samus' jaw clenched, and for a brief moment fear flickered in her eyes.
'Yes.'
The answer had been on the tip of her tongue the moment the question had been spoken, but she had instinctively swallowed it. She closed the distance this time,
"No, no, I just... zoned out and you startled me." She lied, swallowing thickly, and her lips refused to crack a smile.
Zelda was clearly unconvinced, but she loosened up partially none the less. She didn't break eye contact, and Samus felt uneasy once more. She repeated Fox's words, and tried again.
"But, um, yeah. I guess it gets kinda lonely."
Zelda's smile seemed partly forced as she nodded, but Samus didn't blame her after that train wreck. Perhaps she could do a little better.
"It's nice to have you here." She added much clearer than she had anticipated, and breathed an internal sigh of relief as Zelda's face seemed to light up with pleasant surprise. What a save! 10 points to Aran. Chest swelling with new found pride, it was no wonder she decided to push her luck a little more; much to the princess' delight.
"So, uh, if you ever decide you wanna look at the stars or something, that'd be okay." She said, steadily gaining confidence in her abilities, and Zelda was beaming. She struggled to get Samus to talk often, so to hear her stringing them together at last without the need for coaxing was a little overwhelming at first.
"I would love nothing more, Samus." She said, voice so soft it was barely audible over the hum of the engine, but her face was glowing with hope once more. Samus sighed inwardly with relief; that expression suited Zelda much better. Her body relaxed, and Zelda picked up on it immediately, cautiously reaching out to take her hands once more whilst searching Samus' eyes for permission.
Samus nodded silently, steadying her breathing. She reminded herself that they were alone, and as safe as they were probably every going to be for a long time at least. She allowed herself to indulge, finally accepting the warmth of Zelda's hands in her own. She reflected back on the first time she had taken Zelda's hand in the hallway no more than a couple of weeks beforehand, and the memories of days since flashed through her mind. She had been in contact with Zelda more in that amount of time than she had been with most people for a significant chunk of her life, and it was somewhat terrifying of a concept to realise; but once more the soft squeeze of Zelda's hands drew her out from the dark, and she met the Hylian's concerned stare with a long awaited, reassuring squeeze in response.
Zelda's heart fluttered. At last, a sign of progress! They had travelled up here in silence for the most part, but in such a short amount of time she had already come to realise how different Samus acted when she wasn't influenced by crowds, danger or business. It was heart warming to say the very least, and she was struggling to suppress another wide smile as a furious blush took over her cheeks.
The brilliant pink on Zelda's face brought a whole new wave of pride through Samus' body and the corner of her lips quirked upwards into a fleeting smile. It was a power she hadn't felt before, far different from that of battle. There was no adrenaline or rush of reflex; it was a hot gurgle in her belly that caressed her ego with a teasing smile and intoxicating self confidence. Seeing every twitch of Zelda's expression, every knee buckle and hitched breath that was released as a stolen sigh... It was a power she did not dislike.
"That smile suits you." She murmured, smirking to herself as Zelda's face grew distinctly redder.
Zelda's mind was racing.
"Oh goddesses... If I did not know better, I would say that you were enjoying yourself." She retorted, bringing a hand to her face to try and cover up what she could. She could feel her heart hammering against her ribcage as Samus' hand came up to coax it away, and for a fleeting moment she felt hot breath pass across her face.
"Don't chase outlaws if you want a hero." Samus replied, a little more devoid than Zelda had expected, but her fingers still betrayed her words by entwining with those of her passenger.
"And what if I had grown tired of heroes?" Zelda threw back playfully, turning to hide her reddening cheeks.
"I would ravage you where you stand." Samus answered without skipping a beat, and it knocked the smugness out of Zelda's body in an instant.
She opened her mouth to fire back, but when met with an impassive stare the room suddenly felt very hot. Samus was serious.
"But you don't want sex." The huntress added, never breaking the eye contact between them.
Zelda bit her tongue; indignant. This had escalated. Daring to press further, she stood with chin tilted; returning a burning stare.
"Who are you to tell me what I do or do not want?"
"You don't want sex." Samus repeated, and Zelda suddenly felt very much like she had been shot down – even if she hadn't planned on pursuing this in the first place. How could this woman be so sure?
"You want tender caresses and kisses that mean something. You want your body worshipped, and you want words that aren't passed in the heat of the moment. That isn't sex, Zelda. That's making love."
Zelda's stomach dropped, and none of the remarks drowning her consciousness would push past the lump in her throat. That was perhaps the most profound thing she had heard Samus say so far, and every word was true. Perhaps Samus had been paying attention more than she thought, and it seemed that every word Samus had not said that day were all spilling out now.
"If you wanted sex, I could have you against that wall in a snap. I may be awkward, but I have needs too, and they aren't foreign. That isn't what you want. You want arms around your waist and words in your ear and for every moment to mean something, you-"
"What if sex is enough?" Zelda blurted, quickly smacking a hand over her mouth. Heat was ablaze in her face. How scandalous! She was sure that such a taboo term had never so much as been mentioned in her presence, never mind been spoken from her own lips!
Samus' eyes widened, and Zelda cursed internally. She inhaled sharply, readying an excuse or an apology to try and justify herself, but as Samus' cheeks radiated a brilliant pink she simply could not restrain herself.
She closed the distance between them, and when Samus did not move she dared to bring one hand up to her cheek. Samus was unresponsive, but her impassive expression was betrayed by wide eyes.
Samus swallowed hard. She hadn't expected her to actually argue, never mind this sort of response. What the hell was she supposed to say? She'd set herself up for this, and heaviness weighed in her chest – was Zelda implying that she actually wanted to...? All pride dropped to her feet, and Samus was left with a choice she hadn't bargained for when she'd revved up the engine.
"...Well?"