AN – Here's the third story! This should hopefully make up for the angst last story. lol

A Not-So-Silent Princess

There were many things Link admired about Zelda.

For starters, she was beautiful. He hesitated to admit this out loud as he was unclear if it would be considered improper, but her thick blonde hair and how she could look great in whatever attire she wore that day, whether that'd be a dress or a tunic, always made her look so lovely.

In fact, he wasn't the only one to notice how stunning she looked. He could remember overhearing a conversation between two aristocrats not long ago at the Hylian Ball…

"Goodness, the princess looks positively radiant today, doesn't she?"

"Mm, yes she does."

"It's a shame that the Calamity is hanging over our heads. I'm sure she would have potential suitors lining up to marry her were to not for that!"

"Agreed!"

Both women giggled before the first one sighed and continued with, "Regardless, I feel a little sorry for her. She should be enjoying herself with her studies and finding true love, not being holed up in a castle and having to pray day in and day out for her divine powers to awaken…"

"Yes, I quite agree…"

Unfortunately, those were probably the nicest words he'd overheard being said about Zelda.

He had lost count of how many times she had been told that she was "useless", "weak", "not trying hard enough" or some other ridiculous word or phrase that showed how ignorant the other party was.

They had no idea how hard she had been trying…

How she'd kneel in the scared springs until she was shivering from the cold water. How she had been wallowing in self-pity, thinking that something must've been wrong with her as a result of not understanding how her powers worked.

And they especially didn't know how she'd cried herself to sleep in his arms, having no one else to rely on in that moment… not even herself.

But regardless, she was still an amazing young woman and she had the compassionate and caring personality to match her beauty.

She was an incredibly dedicated scholar and princess, determined to prove the doubters wrong. Yes, it was her sacred duty to do so but most people thought that that was all she saw it as. But that certainly wasn't the case.

"…and I've heard that some monster sightings have occurred around Hateno Village. I can't go and despite being such an amazing fighter, you can't either. However, what you can do is bring this up with your captain and see what he thinks."

"Alright, Princess." He nodded. "Do you think that it will work?"

She sighed. "I hope so… I'd hate for the villagers to be put in harms way because no one was defending them."

"I agree, Princess."

"Excellent!" She smiled. "Now, on that subject, I have some robots to test in the field and I believe that once they're at full working capacity, they shall be of great assistance in keeping everyone safe!"

He couldn't help but smile at the memory, pleased that Zelda cared so much about her people, even if they didn't fully know it yet.

And last, but certainly not least, her intelligence.

She was incredibly smart; fascinated by things like history and the Sheikah technology they were trying to figure out how to use.

This annoyed her father and many others to no end but Link honestly didn't care about this. She was a brilliant scholar! And he wanted nothing more than for her to be happy doing what she loved.

And in spite of her royal duties and the heavy burden she carried around, Zelda still allowed herself to let go of her worries and be free every once in a while.

Case in point, what they were doing right now.

"All of these flowers are so beautiful, aren't they Link?"

"Yes." He answered with a slight smile on his face as he admired them with her. He didn't know much about flowers, but Zelda's enthusiasm made it hard to overlook them.

"Oh, I can't wait until they all bloom!" She excitedly said. "Then they'll look even more incredible!"

He softly chuckled, watching her as she picked up the Sheikah Slate and began taking pictures of the field.

"Just so we'll have a before and after comparison to make." She explained to him.

He smiled, silently watching as she continued.

Once she was done, she suddenly gasped.

"Hm? Is everything alright, Princess?"

Thankfully, however, Zelda was grinning happily instead of looking afraid, so he relaxed.

"What is it?"

"Oh Link! Look!"

He followed where she was pointing and it took a few moments for him to notice what she was excited about.

"Is that…?"

"A Silent Princess!" Zelda exclaimed. "Oh, this is wonderful!"

Link smiled, feeling relieved that her favorite flower was still there, as it had been some weeks since they'd last seen one.

They were a very rare and very vulnerable flower, being an endangered species that for some reason could only survive in the wild. This made attempts at helping them thrive very difficult, but Zelda knew that the best thing for the flower was for it to grow on its own.

"I'm glad that they're still out there." Link answered her.

Zelda beamed at him, clearly feeling the same way.

"They're so lovely, aren't they? It's absolutely incredible that the species is still around, seeing as how we have both humans and monsters wreaking their habitats."

She looked a little sad at the thought, but then smiled again before he could get worried. "I'm just so glad they're alright!"

Link nodded, pleased as well, as she took out her slate and tried to focus the camera to take a picture.

It was clear that it wasn't easy though, as she grumbled to herself, "Oh, I wish I could get a better view…"

Link nodded, staying silent as she figured it out. He knew she could as she was smart enough. And even if it didn't work, Purah could help them out later.

"Got it!" She exclaimed only a few moments later, smiling with pride as she showed him the picture.

It was indeed a decent shot, clear enough to show the Silent Princess growing in a field of flowers.

"I can't wait to show the gardeners and Purah this!" She giggled, making Link smile as he admired her.

"Why don't you tell me more about them?"

"Hm? I thought I told you already?" Zelda looked confused.

He stifled a smile before answering her with, "I don't mind being told again. I'm not much of a gardener after all."

Zelda then smiled. "Alright, if you insist!"

He got comfortable as Zelda began listing off many of the facts and statistics of the Silent Princess, almost as though she were giving a demonstration.

All the while, Link just listened to her gush about her favorite flower with a soft smile on his face.

Yes… Link admired his princess greatly.

AN – I hope you enjoyed! See you tomorrow!