Late that evening, King Rhoam sat in his study, watching Mt. Lanayru in the distance.
There had been a column of light from atop the mountain and it had lit up the evening skies for nearly a minute.
Finally, she had finally unlocked her powers.
"Took long enough," he sighed and drank from his brandy. He glanced over at Sir Arn the captain of his personal guard. The older gentleman was still looking out in the distance, surely the lights had him in awe.
Tomorrow night was the Nayru's Day ball, fitting that his daughter would unlock her powers on such an auspicious day for wisdom and intellect. It was a defining characteristic of Zelda's personality.
He'd make a note to ask her about it when they return.
"Are all the preparations ready for tomorrow?"
The captain turned to face him. "Yes, Your Majesty, the Councilman has left your speech on your office desk for you to review."
"Good." The councilmen always did a fine job relaying back the goings-on inside the castle to him. They were ever so diligent in their law making and creating order within their citizens. "Do send him a small gift for me."
"Yes sir."
He didn't care what was sent, he just wanted to show his appreciation to people who were loyal to him.
Loyalty, eh… That was a heavy word with so many connotations, so many ifs, so many uncertainties. How easy it would be for one's allegiance to switch on the drop of a coin, be it money-wise or newfound friendships. It was a game everyone had to play whether they wanted to or not.
Rhoam kept thinking about his daughter and that knight of hers. They were awfully close as of recent, more so than usual. That wouldn't do, too many of his daughter's suitors were pulling away due to his presence.
Link no longer seemed to keep his mandatory three steps back, it was rather one or two at most. Sir Link seemed far more protective? No, guarded perhaps.
Yes, that was more accurate. Guarded. There should be no reason he feels overprotective of his daughter when he's already got a bird on his side.
"Arn."
"Yes sir?"
"You're close with the boy? Sir Link?"
He was a bit hesitant to answer. "I wouldn't say I am particularly close to Sir Link, but I would say I know him well."
That wasn't good enough. Rhoam knows they're close through the ex-captain of the Queen's guard. Close enough for the two to have cohabitated for almost two years. He remembered their closeness between Sir Arn and Sir Fredrick from his time courting the princess of his time, and that closeness seemed to have translated well into the current day.
"Have you noticed anything different with the lad?"
He knows something has happened in the last three weeks. The boy has been far too attentive to Zelda, way more than need be. He's not a servant, he's not a chef with the exception of cooking on their excursions, he shouldn't be waiting hand and foot on Zelda. True, Rhoam was glad the boy knew how to treat his betters, but it was just a step too far of late.
The maids had told him of Sir Link sneaking the Princess extra food during their meals, of him making her tea on the occasion and dismissing them on some mornings.
Rhoam thought maybe it was one of Zelda's common hunger strikes, she pulls those often enough when she wants to refuse to do her duties, but the maids note that she's still eating her meals.
If Arn knew anything, he hid it well.
But not well enough.
Rhoam noticed the shift of his eyes to the left, even if only for a fraction of a second.
"I haven't noticed anything different apart from his happier occasional mood, Your Majesty."
Liar. This is the second time this has happened in the last three weeks.
Rhoam remembered he sent the boy home in order to make the suitors more comfortable.
"What did the boy do on his vacation?" He then asked, gauging for a reaction.
"He went home and spent time with his family, they live on a small farm east of Kakariko."
Rhoam had no doubts about that. He's seen the boy's father's correspondences come through the mail to Arn. They're still evidently close.
Just thinking about Sir Fredrick made his blood boil. Back in the day, he couldn't do anything without being watched by the captain like a hawk. Impudent, cocky, showy, he was just a typical alpha.
It was no secret the man had been well liked by King Daphnes. Rhoam has heard the words himself; loyal, strong, well-behaved and charming. Rhoam would disagree with most of those qualities but who was he to say that out loud.
Sir Fredrick was less a thorn in Rhoam side and more akin to a constant arrow aimed at his head at point-blank range.
It was among one of the only reliefs of his wife passing away when the man retired immediately and moved with his family. He was no longer watched so closely.
The behaviour similarities were strikingly similar. Like father like son , he supposed.
Their jobs were to watch their charges and ensure physical safety, not take care of everything else. Why were they constantly just making things harder for him? It was almost like their entire bloodline had something against him.
The only difference was that Link wasn't doing it on purpose as far as he knew, the other man took a strange kind of pleasure in frustrating him to no end.
While Sir Fredrick was easier to read in a way and his goals were clear as day, Sir Link was a far different beast.
He didn't talk very much. He didn't smile. He didn't cry. He didn't show an ounce of emotion where he should. Link almost never said the words "no" or "I think", and that was something Rhoam both liked and disliked. Thoughts said aloud he could quell, but those kept private could grow into problems, unseen.
He was obedient and he'd do almost anything asked of him, but he'd do *only* what he was asked. He did his own strange activities on the side and it was starting to catch the eye of some interesting people like the General. Rhoam certainly noticed that.
Over the last few years, Rhoam didn't bother to really pay too much attention to the boy hero. He was, after all, only a knight and a captain who kept a low profile despite how well-known he was. But he did also regret not noticing how gradual Sir Link's change was. He'd gone from obedient to a fault to obedient out of duty.
No, if it came down to it, Link was loyal to his oath, and would do as commanded, but his loyalty to Zelda was beyond words and orders.
Maybe he needed to do something about that before the boy got any ideas.
Rhoam looked at the bookshelf near the fireplace for a moment. There were far too many ways the boy could gain influence quickly.
Those two were 'biologically well suited to one another' his councilmen had told him multiple times since Zelda had her 'moment' three months before.
A few have even dared suggest the hero as a suitable consort for the Princess when she'd be due to claim the throne in two years. He's shot down the idea too many times to count, now even the nobles whisper of Link's suitability and proximity to Zelda being good.
He hasn't figured out who's been saying these things, but it's loud enough for Rhoam to hear and that in itself is not good.
It makes him think back to a similar incident nearly 30 years ago. King Daphnes, the one before him, had had many favourites for his daughter and playing the long game had been difficult. "Alpha this" and "Alpha that" had been thrown around his head so many times but in the end, he won, didn't he? In the end, *he* was chosen over the others.
He won't deny it, the match drew a wedge in court. No matter what Rhoam did, nobles claimed the throne belonged to another, the one who'd 'bonded' with his wife. Many names were thrown around—including that of the thorn in his side— but they never did find the person.
When Queen Zelda passed away, he made sure to burn their third copy of their Royal Bond Laws. Only two copies now remained, all inside the Royal Family and castle, and Rhoam kept his copy for safe-keeping. The second copy, his wife's, had gone missing the same day of her funeral among other small items of unimportance.
It wouldn't hurt to check to see if his copy was still in its place.
He got out of his chair with a grunt and let his brandy sit on the table before moving to the bookshelf. He made sure to hide part of the shelf with his wide frame, he didn't need Arn seeing anything, and began perusing his collection, pulling out a few at a time to reveal the back of the shelf with a deliberate bigger space behind.
Then he stopped.
It wasn't there anymore. His last copy of the Royal Bond Laws was gone. No one on the council knew of the laws themselves, it was something the royal family pulled out when needed. It was for their eyes only.
There were many people who could have a need for that book. Just the fact that a reciprocated bite was all that was needed for a claim on the throne was terrifying in and of itself.
But realistically, there was only one person who had a true need for that book.
Rhoam placed the books back in their usual order and turned to look at Captain Arn, who was standing in front of the window looking out at the fields darkened by night.
Good, he saw nothing.
"You are dismissed Captain, go home to your family for the evening."
He turned and bowed his head crisply. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I bid you a good evening."
"Same to you."
Link was the first to wake up the next day, arms wrapped tightly around Zelda's waist, his chest to her back.
Before he could even open his eyes, he felt different. While not physically, it was more on the emotional level; He felt at ease, a weight lifted off his shoulder simultaneously. There was an unfamiliar warmth in his chest; foreign, but intimately recognised at the same time?
I want to bond with you .
That's right. He and Zelda had bonded last night, reciprocated it . Bonded for life.
Why wasn't he cold? Weren't they on Mt. Lanayru?
His eyes snapped open, remembering his surroundings. He remembered being on the mountain and on top of his cloak with spicy elixirs flowing through their systems. They should have lost their effects by now, the sun was rising to the east.
A roar echoed through the mountain, causing him to look around. Legends spoke of Naydra the ice dragon who flew around the mountain as the guardian of the Spring of Wisdom, but he's never seen her.
But he did see a dragon, flying into the clouds.
A white-scaled body covered with gold accents and blue scales.
Ah the Light Dragon is making her once-in-a-decade visit. Didn't know she came this far out.
He had heard legends from the Duelling Peaks concerning her, the only times she's ever seen is over there. Stories told that she was the one who separated the peaks thousands of years ago and her legend only really extended to the general area of the Duelling Peaks.
Guess she goes around Mt. Lanayru too . He shrugged and pushed his attention to his surroundings.
Rather than white snow and ice, it was green. Very, very green.
They were laying on grass. There were flowers. Naked too, but where in the world were they?
He sat up with a groan, looking around. He could see snow further away. He could see the Spring of Wisdom, and he could see the columns of ice and stone that decorated the mountains. Not too far away, in any direction he looked, there were thick layers of snow, but around his cloak was there grass and flowers and different types of flora.
Snow was falling softly around them, unlike the howling blizzard that usually plagued the mountain, but it didn't seem to stay for very long on their patch of green.
"Zelda, wake up." He tapped her arm as he grabbed his clothes, throwing on his tunic and getting into his pants. That was cold, but not freezing as he expected it to be.
"Mhm?" She cuddled further into his cloak adorably, apparently still trying to rouse from her slumber. Wind blew around them and she shivered visibly, wrapping the cloak around herself. "Did we fall asleep… outside?"
Just as he did upon waking, her eyes went wide and frantic, seeing the green on the snowy mountain. She turned wildly, looking around and only seemed to calm down upon seeing the spring.
"What happened?"
He shrugged. If he had even an inkling of an idea, he'd have told her. "I couldn't tell you." He said, bending to pick up her prayer dress they'd thrown aside. He passed it to her and let her get dressed, but his eyes stayed glued to the princess as she instinctively turned to slip the dress on.
A small red ring on her shoulder, just above her scent gland in the neck and shoulder. They'd really done it, it wasn't a dream. He actually bonded with Zelda.
It's permanent. There's no undoing it.
The night before, he remembered how reserved he'd been about it, but he felt immensely grateful, completed, some strange sense of innermost satisfaction. Had he ever felt like that before? He didn't think so, but it was warm, it was comforting, and he didn't want to let it go.
"We need to get going soon," She turned and flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "My father will surely not want us to be late for this evening."
Right, Nayru's Day was today. The Ball was today, yet another social event. There were a few more events he knew were coming up, but most were personal events hosted by dukes and duchesses, counts and other lords wanting to boost their standings.
"Wait," he told her.. He crawled into the tent and reached into his bag and pulled out a small tub of cream. It was a healing salve, the kind he used on all the marks Zelda was leaving on him as of recent. He came back out and opened it before her. "As much as I'd love to show you off to Castletown and Kakariko…" he drifted off.
"We can't right now," she finished for him, a deep sigh. He dipped his fingers over the firm surface and scooped up a bit onto his fingers and got to work on her neck. He rubbed it on gently, the scent gland was such a sensitive spot, he didn't want to hurt her by accident.
She moaned.
His fingers stopped and he looked at her curiously.
"Sorry," She whispered, flushing red. "It usually feels nice but that… It's better somehow." She shrugged, trying to be nonchalant about it.
Has bonding made it more sensitive ? Oh he could have fun with that.
Link continued rubbing the salve on, really focusing on getting it deeper into her skin without rubbing her skin painfully. She seemed to melt in his hands the more he did it.
"Are you alright?" He asked, a hint of teasing in his voice.
She nodded and swallowed thickly. "Yeah," She told him through half lidded eyes.
You look hungry. He thought, finishing the job and pulling his hand away.
Being new to the feeling of a bond, he hadn't noticed the heat settling in his stomach, and he certainly didn't notice it wasn't his to begin with.
Zelda's hand shot out and grabbed his wrist, stopping him from pulling it away completely. "One more time, before we go back?"
He didn't need to say anything, he simply threw his cloak around Zelda's shoulders, hoisted the hem of her dress up and picked her up and wrapped her legs around his waist and brought her against the nearest tree, first a quick glance to make sure there weren't any protruding branches that might hurt her back.
Her thighs were strong, his hands didn't need to hold her up. Bless the long hours of horseback riding, truly a blessing for him. Their lips crashed together in a heated frenzy, tongues melding together with none of the soft and gentleness of the night before being present.
Her pregnancy was also a blessing, he didn't need to think of protection.
He rushed his belt buckle undone and lowered his trousers and underwear to his midthigh and pulled himself out, half erect in such a short amount of time. He barely needed to touch her, the inside of her thigh was still slick from his cum the night before and the look she'd given him was more than permission enough.
He slipped into her with a quiet gasp against Zelda's lips. There was no resistance whatsoever, almost one of the easiest times he'd just slipped in so far.
He thrusted up into her at an unforgiving pace, growing needier and desperate by the second. The cold breeze chilled the sweat on their skin, keeping them from growing too hot and sticky.
His lips left her mouth and moved to her neck where he'd left the mark last night, deeply inhaling her scent and shuddering. It's laced with her perfumes and him and it snaps something within him.
She's completely at his mercy against the tree as he ruts against her in a similar way to the night he was jealous and tipsy, and she has no complaints.
He grinds hard against her pelvis in a way that she gets stimulated in all the right places without manual application and all she can do is breathing into his shoulder, turning into a panting, moaning mess on the deserted mountain.
Her pregnancy helps in some ways; sure she was sensitive before but the sudden hormonal increase has caused her to go into overdrive the last week and she's made a stupid decision in order to get him inside of her, like going into Castletown alone with no directions in the middle of a rainstorm.
It takes little to no time for her to be squeezing around his cock and clinging to his shoulder and screaming his name into his sweaty flesh, clenching around him as he continues to rut selfishly towards his own finish.
He hoists her one last time and thrusts a few more until finally he begins to falter and pushes in as far as he can, his knot expanding and filling her properly. She throws her head back against the tree, cushioned by his fur-lined cloak and moans loudly, uninhibited.
She can't think of a single time they've done it this fast. Neither shared words of encouragement or love, it was hasty, and desperate, and sudden, much like her arousal when he touched her new bond mark and she loved it.
That had to be the cause.
The only sound atop the holy mountain is the howling wind and their heavy breathing, Zelda still perched against the tree by Link's sturdy frame leaned on her.
"Sorry," he panted out against her collarbone. "You alright?" He lifted his head, his motion sluggish.
She felt his knot deflate, allowing him to slip out of her, and causing his seed to drop out on her leg. She always enjoyed that feeling.
"Better than ever," she smiled and dropped her thighs onto the ground. She stumbled a bit into Link, a small ache in her hips from the rough position against the tree.
Link flicked the hair out of his face with a huff and got to work fixing his pants and belt. "Let's get you some food," He smiled and made for his pack, ready to pull out whatever snack he'd packed just for her.
Meanwhile, Zelda hesitantly touched her leg, dipping her finger into his spent going down her leg. There was so much despite the times they had coupled the night before.
Bonding had done something to them. The first time they had sex after he'd bitten her and left his mark, her heart rate increased and she'd practically jumped him begging for his dick and he'd been more than happy to provide.
This had gone on for almost two and a half hours: beg, sex, cum, knot, relax, then repeat. Practically a pseudo-rut and heat simultaneously triggered.
Her hips were sore, her thighs ached, but it was a delicious feeling.
But there was just this small growing headache forming since she'd woken up.
...
Link was worried again.
Despite Zelda's insistence that she was fine, she seemed to conveniently forget that her little 'headache' was transferring over to him, pounding his skull like a military drum in a parade.
From the moment Zelda started heading down the mountain after he'd packed up their camp, he noticed how she would sigh and rub her temple. She hid her small head compressions behind terribly fake scratching, he could see it as clear as day the way she tried to press her palms to her skull with a grimace.
He probably would have called it a migraine but to each their own.
By the time they were reaching the gate, she grew steadily more tired, and Link could ignore it no longer.
"Are you sure you don't want to rest a bit longer? Have some more food?" He asked her once more, having already asked four times that morning since they'd packed and left camp. "We can stop wherever, I don't mind making a quick fire." He pointed to the kindling attached to his side.
"I'm fine." she muttered, not bothering to hide the displeasure.
Maybe they shouldn't have fucked atop the mountain before leaving.
He wondered if it was her pregnancy hormones causing the headaches. She didn't seem to say anything about nausea or heartburn in the last three hours, and he'd definitely have noticed heaving and the scrunched up expression she usually did before vomiting.
He looked up at the sky. No clouds except for closer at summit, but above them none. It didn't smell like it might rain and the humidity was low, so it wasn't the pressure in the air causing it. He wouldn't forget about the headache, but he'd monitor it on their way down the mountain since he knew asking repetitively would only aggravate it further.
When they finally arrived at the east gate, both Purah and Impa were waiting there with the horses. Epona was clearly a bit agitated, her hooves were digging holes into the ground with how much they smacked against the dirt, but Storm was as gentle as ever, obediently staying to the side with Purah holding her reins.
Glancing to the side, he noticed Zelda hiding her grimace of discomfort. The headaches must've been bothering her more than she let on if she didn't want the two sisters to notice.
Her walking sped up to a jog to join Impa, launching herself into a hug.
"How was it on the mountain? Any hopes?" Purah asked him as he finally joined them.
"We didn't do much praying," He joked. He stopped laughing at the disapproving glances from Purah and Impa. "We read more of that book, we discussed it, that stuff." He told them and let her briefly see the wrapped book in his satchel.
"So… It's done then?" Impa asked hesitantly, looking between the two of them with hope in her eyes. The two girls glanced at Zelda's shoulder where they could faintly see the mark through the fur-lined cloak tied around her.
Zelda brimmed with excitement all of a sudden. "It is!" She exclaimed.
Link had to cover his ears for the cacophony of squealing that immediately followed.
Zelda was squeezed into the tightest hugs and even lifted off the ground by Impa and Purah.
He watched as they excitedly asked her a dozen questions with Zelda deflecting the more personal ones. He was glad they were happy, Zelda could do with more happiness and excitement in her life.
"We'll all celebrate in Kakariko one night!" Purah told them. "We have to party properly, away from your stuffy nobles."
Impa put Zelda down and took a step back, regaining her usual more serious expression, but she kept the smile nonetheless. "That does remind me, we will need to inform our village elders of this development. They won't inform King Rhoam, but they do need to know in the case of Link's safety."
"My safety? Impa, focus on Zelda," he told her. He wasn't worried about himself, but considering the Yiga hadn't done anything in a few weeks, he was getting antsier than usual. "Just guard Zelda, I've got my back covered already." He hasn't forgotten the conversation he had with his father regarding the new targets on his back.
"It is a precaution, so no, we will be watching you as well." Impa shook her head. "You're bonded to Princess Zelda, meaning you're now connected to her via every possible channel of contact. Your safety is also of high importance." she explained.
"So do we call you Your Majesty now?" Purah teased him with an elbow jab.
"Call me that and I will have your Hateno Lab reassigned to Robbie the second I can."
The unholiest gasp escaped Purah's mouth at the threat as she retreated to Zelda's side. "Princess, your alpha is a tyrant!" she cried. "I knew I should have slipped him that poison!"
"Wow, admission to treason, what a joy," Link cackled quietly. "Brave of you to assume that it'd work on me; I've been building an immunity to most poisons since I was thirteen."
No more than three hours after they left Kakariko Village through the mountain pass, Link was expecting it to be a leisure ride until the gates of Castletown. He was expecting the farms, the trails to be quiet with the occasional rider with their carts.
When they would enter Castletown, he expected people to welcome them back with the blue flower petals reminiscent of the festivities every year, especially since it was in full swing at the moment.
What he wasn't expecting was to see his father on horseback coming for him. Directly at him.
As courageous and gifted Link was with weapons' usage, his angered father was not something he wanted to face, especially with that face. He was never an opponent he wanted to face in a serious conflict.
Even if he had Impa, Zelda and Purah next to him, he didn't care about his image at that second. Link gripped his reins a bit tighter and bit the inside of his cheek, slowing down his horse just a bit.
Oh he looked mad. Or determined.
Probably determined to put me in the ground. His brain unhelpfully told him.
Did he know?! Did his father really know he'd bonded with Zelda the night before? Is that why he was like that?
How would he even know? The thought itself brought Link no comfort whatsoever. His father was known to have eyes just about everywhere, and seemed to find out about things that happened far before anyone could have the chance to tell him.
He came closer and closer, and it only served to send Link's poor heart into overdrive. His fight or flight response was yelling at him to fly as far away as he could into the mountains and remain a hermit for the rest of his life.
Zelda stopped Storm and looked at the three other riders. "Who is that-"
"Link, I think you should run," Impa advised him as she brought distance between herself and Epona.
"Already past thinking about it." he muttered back, stressed.
Rather than turn Epona and dash in the opposite direction, he opted to dismount and separate from the group, taking up his guard as best he could.
His father practically threw himself off his own mare. "You are an idiot." His father stormed his way past the women and towards Link. "You are the biggest idiot to have ever lived in Hyrule."
"I'm sorry?" Link flinched but stayed on his guard. He didn't say anything until he stood directly before him, looking down.
His father sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're lucky Arn has your back, kid." He grumbled. "Book, give it." He held his hand out.
Book? Did he know about the book?
Play dumb.
"What book?" he asked.
Oh sweet Hylia, not that dumb, you fucking idiot. See, this is why he calls you an idiot.
His father huffed through his nose. "You know which fucking book, Link. The bond laws book, I know you have it, don't act smart with me."
Link guiltily stuck his hand into his bag and pulled the book out, laying it flat in his father's hand.
"You are extremely lucky that Arn likes you as much as he does." He chastised him. His father slipped the booklet in his coat pocket. "You should expect some funny glances from His Royal Kookiness upon your return. He knows it's gone."
Link couldn't snort at the nickname right now. "What do you mean he knows it's gone? I didn't even know where it was!"
"Well, whoever grabbed it did a terrible job of covering up their tracks. You're lucky Arn is better at lying than you are or you'd be seeing an execution this afternoon, right before your own."
Link wasn't sure what to make of that. General Lance knew how to cover his tracks, he had to know.
"Everyone saw that blast of light last night." His father pointed to Mt. Lanayru in the distance. "Some advice for your next life, when you bond with a princess, don't do it outdoors, you nutjob. " He stressed.
Oh so he did know.
"Right, I'll be sure to remember that in the next life then." Link tried to look away but found he couldn't. "How did you even know-"
"Half the kingdom think's she's unlocked her powers. Be ready to explain that when you get back to the Castle."
"They what?! " Zelda exclaimed. Her mouth gaped open and worry quickly formed across her brow. "How could they think that?!"
Link didn't realise just how much he might feel through the bond. A knot twisted in his stomach—it still didn't feel like his own though—and he immediately knew Zelda would go into a panic attack soon if someone didn't do something.
"I keep forgetting that not everyone saw the light show," His father whispered sarcastically. "It was rather a very bright blast in the middle of the night.
"Just how big…?"
"Big enough to be seen from the castle."
Link gulped. A giant beam of light visible from the castle? There was no way the King didn't see it. It'd likely be the only thing talked about for the next two or three weeks; how Zelda lit up the night sky in holy light descended from the heavens.
Just great. Fantastic.
"And you both reek of each other," His father commented directly to Link in hushed tones, tossing a jar at his son. "Don't enter the castle smelling like that, everyone will know what you were up to."
His father bid him a quiet goodbye and returned to his horse, securing the wrapped book inside his saddle bag safely and rode off back towards Castletown.
Link opened the jar and realised it was his scent-blocker, barely touched.
He forgot that the damn thing existed.
He flipped the jar around and realised this was his own container, taken straight from his nightstand.
"He went into my room again." He frowned and sighed.
...
The four chose to ride straight through Castletown, ignoring everyone's welcome waves and cheers to the Princess. Impa headed the four, followed by Purah one pace to the side, then Zelda and him covering the rear.
Link was right in a few ways. The town was bustling, very energetic, but more so than usual. If what his father had told him was true, then everyone was under the assumption that Zelda had unlocked her powers, and the excitement being this palpable had to be due to that.
People threw flower petals into the street as they passed, cheering loudly until they finally left the town Square area and passed the first gates of the Castle.
A few guards were there to greet them, including Sir Arn.
Having lived with Arn for two years in the past, Link could read the older man pretty well and his current expression was more or less an apology written across his face.
"Welcome back, Your Royal Highness, Lady Impa, Lady Purah, Sir Link." He greeted them one by one. "I do hope your travels have treated you well."
"They have, Captain, thank you." Zelda smiled and dismounted Storm. She handed the reins to the nearest guard who offered to take the mare.
"Sir Link, could you stay back for a moment?" Arn asked, as he motioned a few guards forward. "Guards, please escort Princess Zelda to the Castle."
No one argued back. If an order was given through Arn, it was to be followed due to his seniority as captain of the King's Guard.
Zelda locked eyes with Link before hesitantly following Impa and Purah up the long winding path into the castle, while Link remained back.
"What's going on?" Link asked quietly.
"I'm sorry, but it's King Rhoam's orders that your things be searched upon your return." Arn explained. "You are assumed to be in possession of something you are not supposed to have."
The book. Rhoam was looking for the damn thing.
Link willingly took a few steps from Epona and allowed the guards to search his and the princess' belongings. He wasn't carrying anything incriminating to his and Zelda's relationship apart from that book, but it was now safely in his father's hands, likely hidden in their old family home.
"I do hope you haven't had any dangerous encounters on your trip?" Arn asked, his eyes bouncing back to Castletown briefly. "We all saw the blast of light last night. We hope it wasn't due to a dangerous encounter."
Oh. Did everyone see the moment he and Zelda bonded? That was embarrassing…
"Ice Lizalfos on the mountain, ice chus." Link answered back. "But that was on our ascension. Nothing last night."
"Sir, is this what we're looking for?" Link turned to look at the junior guard holding a book in his hand. That was just Zelda's research journal that she dragged around in her pocket every day. Nothing but thoughts about effects, flowers and fauna theories were in those pages.
Arn put his hand out and took the journal, flicking it open and skimming the pages with no real attention. "Put it back, this belongs to Princess Zelda."
"Sir Link is clear." The guards backed away from Epona and returned to Arn's side.
"Return to your duties." Arn dismissed them and took Epona's reins. "You're back in time for the ball, good job." He clapped Link on the shoulder. "Fair warning, your room's been ripped apart as well."
Link sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Did you make a mess?"
"Well, you don't own many things to begin with so it's quite minimal." The older captain shrugged. "Also, In the Air? "
"It's a good book, don't stand there and say it's not."
"But why was it bookmarked on the one explicit oral scene?"
Link turned slowly to look at Arn. "How'd you know it was an oral scene?"
He snorted. "It's my wife's favourite book. She reads it every other week."
"Eww, I didn't need to know that about Auntie Elise." He gagged audibly. He glimpsed over and caught bits of a recognisable smirk. "Or you! I didn't need to know that about either of you!"
...
Zelda's breath left her lungs as her handmaiden Aki pulled the strings of her dress as tightly as she could.
Hearing a soft knock at the door gave her reprieve from the constant tugging as her handmaiden let the strings go to answer the door.
"Oh Master Link! I'm afraid the Princess isn't ready yet…" the handmaiden said. Zelda attempted to turn to see him at the door, yet it obscured her view of her knight.
It was a faint whisper, but Zelda heard him. "Miss Aki, can you excuse us for a moment?" The young girl looked back at the Princess, and back at the knight before sighing and allowing him in. "I'll finish tying the strings, thank you."
The young handmaiden bowed her head and exited the room, closing the door softly behind her.
Her lover was dressed to the nines; a clean pressed, navy suit that still allowed for freedom of movement, and the sheathed Master Sword held firmly in his hand. His blazer remained unbuttoned, open for the world to see the crisp shirt underneath. A thick white belt adorned his waist, decorated by a white corded lanyard, the final piece to his formal dress being a soft royal blue sash draped across his chest. He was essentially dressed the same as the last ball.
He silently moved around her and twisted the strings into his fingers, lacing them into her corseted dress with ease, much gentler than Aki had been. She could feel the strong pressure around her hips and waist release, and though it was only marginally looser, it was heaven nonetheless. His fingers readjusted the strings in her corset, expertly lacing the dress to her mid-back before tying off the final knot.
The Princess admired the fitted look in the mirror; it didn't look loose, actually it looked as it was supposed to. Form fitted, breasts trying to escape through the collar of her dress, flowing out from her waist.
And she could breathe properly.
She was thankful she didn't need to tell him outright to loosen the strings. The maid and seamstress had both decided to make it tighter after telling her it was King's orders. She knew she'd been gaining a bit of weight, Link had been feeding her more portions every opportunity he got. She was eating for two now, after all.
She smiled in the mirror. Link stood behind her, fixing her hair behind her back with a gentle expression. He was at ease, smoothing out her hair and adding small chains of beads through her hairstyle.
"You know… We don't need to go…" He told her, brushing her hair to the side, obscuring the view of her upper back and bare shoulders. "I know you aren't the biggest fan of… them."
He was referring to the Aristocracy, Zelda knew all too well. She'd complained and complained, night after night, ball after ball, and Link had listened to every word of it. She didn't think there was a single positive thing about them, though the balls were a different story.
But she also knew this was also Link's way of trying to get out of talking and interacting with the rather suspicious and ill-willed nobles who only wished to find a morsel of gossip to latch onto. He wasn't a very vocal person to begin with, keeping to himself most of the day or relaxing in the training grounds and swinging a dummy sword.
Her birthday had drained his social battery very quickly despite the alcohol use to help him get through the night.
"How did Purah hide this?" His finger ghosted the side of her neck.
"Ah, she scrubbed me down with a sponge and coated me in that cream of yours." She laughed. "Apparently, she can use magic, she's just never bothered developing it much, it seems. It's been glamoured away."
Zelda really did wish to show it off, but considering no one knew she and Link were together, it was best to hide it for now.
She looked at the clock and felt her happy mood leaving her. They did need to go soon.
She sighed, longing wistfully to remain in her chambers with her research journal in hand, pen and inkwell on the table. "Well Sir Link, we simply must attend or face the consequences from my father…" She couldn't see him, but she knew he was likely smiling silently behind her back.
She slowly turned and faced him, a soft smile on her lips as she brushed his bang out of his face. "It won't be long. I promise."
Humming with a nod, he stood there for a second before reaching into the box on the table beside them.
She sat in the chair and extended out her foot, allowing Link to kneel and slide on her heels and tie them for her.
"Perhaps…" He looked up, curious as his eyes met hers. They were dancing with something mischievous, and he liked her tone. "I can reward you for all your patience tonight…"
The toe of her heel pressed against his thigh softly, simultaneously pulling up some of her skirt with an innocent smile, exposing part of her leg.
"With an offer like that, I think I can be persuaded," he laughed quietly as her foot made its way inward to tease him before pulling it away.