A few days later, the Hylian champion and princess set out to inspect their last Divine Beast--Vah Ruta. They were going to meet with the Zora Champion, Mipha. She was a very kind, caring, and reserved girl. Both Link and Zelda liked her very much.

In fact, Link and Mipha had been friends for a very long time; ever since they were children. When he shared this with the princess, she felt a small pang of jealousy. What if Link really loved the Zora?

Zelda had been thinking a lot about Link, especially over the days after their evening together. He had acted like he felt something for her then. But as they parted, he had not kissed her when she surely thought he was going to. Was he going to do anything? Zelda knew she could not just sit around and wait for him to start things, but she could never tell with him. But, she felt like she was so close.

The princess wasted no time getting to the Divine Beast, eager to inspect the last of the machines. The knight and Zora followed her inside, making sure she was alright. After a few moments, Link slipped on the slick floors of the Beast and scraped his arm on the wall in an attempt to catch himself. Mipha frowned, trying to stifle a smile.

"You really should be more careful, Link." He grinned, chuckling. "Come with me. I'll heal your arm."

As she looked around inside, Link and Mipha sat and talked on the exterior.

The moment they spent together was tranquil, untouched by the worries of the world around them. Link thought back to when they were younger. He and the Zora girl had been much closer before he'd become the appointed knight of the princess. He remembered the warm, sunny summer days that he used to spend in the Domain. All he'd ever felt was happiness; he still had his family then and he was with his friends. Mipha had always been so kinda and gentle with him, and whenever he hurt himself she would simply laugh and heal him, just as she was doing at this moment.

He missed those days very much, those days when everything was easy. His biggest worry was getting through the Knight's Academy, which was a breeze for him. He yearned for those simpler days, and seeing Mipha again reopened some wounds he had managed to close up. However, he was okay with it, because he had missed her and even spending a moment with her made him feel much better.

Some time passed before Zelda was finished. As she made her way to the other two, she heard the Zora speaking.

"...you know... Perhaps we could spend some time together." That one sentence was enough to cause a feeling of hurt to wash through her. She had heard enough of Link's stories to know where this could very easily be going.

She knew it was foolish and childish to let this envy take over, but she couldn't help it. She was fond of Mipha and she knew none of this was her fault. But she still felt horribly upset. The Zora was quite obviously in love with Link as well, and she seemed to have a better chance. The two of them had been friends for a long time, and it had probably always been a healthy friendship. Zelda cursed herself for being so terrible to the knight before.

It seemed that some irrational part of her had taken over as she dismissed the levelheaded thoughts from the back of her mind. She had forgotten that Mipha was a sweet, loyal girl who would never hurt her intentionally. Yet, the princess merely thought of Link and her jealously consumed her.

Not wanting to listen to another word, she exited the Divine Beast and headed back to Zora's Domain. On her way out of the area, she said to the guards, "If Link asks, I'm going home." Her voice was shaky and weak as she stomped off.

Zelda made her way back to the castle as quickly as possible, wanting to put as much distance as she could between her and the other two.

~

Unfortunately for Zelda, her father had decided to invite all of the Champions for dinner at the castle, so they could discuss the status of the many things they were all keeping track of.

The princess spent a generous amount of time cleaning up, calming down, and preparing herself for this event. She hoped she would not see Link and Mipha together too much, as it would certainly cause a disruption.

Luckily for her, the first to arrive was Urbosa. She greeted the princess warmly and then began to ask her about things.

"So, how are things going with that knight of yours?" She asked, a sideways grin on her face. The Gerudo was completely unaware that she had hit a topic that was quite sensitive at the moment. Without any warning, the princess began to cry quietly. Urbosa frowned.

"Oh, honey..." She gently held Zelda and walked her into a nearby sitting room. The two of them sat on one of the sofas. Urbosa wiped the princess's tears from her cheeks, gently shushing her.

"It's okay..."

"Urbosa, I think... I think I'm in love with him." The Gerudo placed her hand on the princess's back, rubbing softly. She smiled knowingly, as she had figured it would end up this way.

"So what's the problem, then?" She asked and Zelda sniffed.

"I... I don't know. I don't know anything." The princess leaned her head on Urbosa's shoulder.

"You should tell him."

"But what if-- what if he doesn't feel the same?" The Gerudo chuckled.

"Have you forgotten who you are? You're the princess of Hyrule! Of course he feels the same." This caused Zelda to giggle. "You'll do great."

"Thank you, Urbosa." The princess wiped the rest of her tears and hugged the woman tightly.

"Of course. Now you keep your chin up and remember who you are." She told Zelda, holding her by the shoulders. They began to walk back toward the dining hall. "And hey--- he treats you well, right?" She asked. Zelda nodded and smiled back at her. As they sat down at the table Urbosa mouthed the words "Go for it."

A few minutes later, Link arrived, taking his usual place next to the princess. She decided that she was going to confess to him after dinner, when everybody else was leaving. The thought of it made her heart beat with nervous excitement.

"Why did you leave so early today?" He asked her quietly. She just shook her head. "I was awfully worried." He continued.

"I didn't mean to worry you." She replied. Link started to say something else but the king interrupted, loudly addressing all of the Champions.

For the rest of the dinner, they only spoke of matters concerning the Champions and their Divine Beasts. It appeared that everybody was making impressive progress and if the Calamity did return, they'd be well prepared.

Zelda knew there was only one piece still missing, and it was her fault... but she tried not to think about it. She'd been so happy lately.

After a long evening of discussion, the gathering was finally over. Zelda stood up, taking a deep breath.

"Link... come with me." She instructed. The knight followed her, wondering what she could be doing. She walked them to the castle library, where the two of them sat in front of a warm, crackling fire.

"I have to tell you something," she said, the reflection of the flames dancing in her eyes, "there's no easy way to say this." He frowned, thinking of the possibilities. Link began to grow anxious. It didn't seem like whatever was about to happen was a good thing. He began to worry.

"You can tell me anything, you know." Zelda smiled nervously, eyes still focused in front of her.

"I know... I know that this sounds rash and silly but I don't know how much time we have left before things go badly... and I need you to hear this. Link, I- I'm in love with you." She exhaled, trying to breathe slowly and calm down. Link looked at her, but she just stared at the fire before her. He struggled to find his words, the words that he needed so desperately but could not find. It should have been easy; he felt the same. He just wanted to say it right.

"Just say something, Link. Anything." She pleaded quietly, an uncertainty in her eyes.

"Zelda..." he started, "of course I feel the same." He chuckled nervously. "I wish I had said it earlier, but I couldn't figure out the right time; I just wanted it to be-" he was cut off by the girl wrapping her arms around him.

"...you really do?"

"Yes." Zelda smiled, a big happy grin that expressed pure joy. She pulled back from the hug, holding his face in her hands. They met eyes and looked at each other for a moment. Then, Link finally closed the distance between their lips.

It was a soft, gentle kiss. The knight didn't dare try taking it any further. Zelda smiled against his lips, in disbelief that this had gone so well.

They pulled away and she looked at home once again. He was smiling shyly and his cheeks were red.

"What are we going to do now?" She asked him, but he just shrugged and laughed in response. "I am so glad I decided to tell you." She said, leaning back into his arms. He pulled the girl closer.

They simply sat there for a while, not needing to say anything else. The two of them only wished that this moment could last forever.

~

A/N: yeet.