Spirit of the Wild (Breath of the Wild Link x Zelda)

Forest

I awoke early in the morning. I'd only gotten a few hours of sleep, but I felt surprisingly well-rested. The princess lay in the bed across the room from me, sleeping soundly. Her ears twitched in her sleep, something I remembered a while ago when I recalled her and Urbosa atop of Vah Naboris.

Something swelled in my heart as I remembered our conversation from last night. I felt invigorated at Zelda's belief in me. Smiling, I bowed to the inn keeper in respect as I left the structure, and went to the river to bathe. I changed into my Sheikah stealth suit. I figured it would help me sneak around the town while being unnoticed by the children.

When I returned to the inn, Zelda was stretching in her bed. She sat up, yawning. Her blonde hair was tangled up from turning in her sleep.

"Good morning, Link," she said groggily.

"Good morning, my princess," I replied. I lowered the stealth mask from my face. "How would you like to spend your time today?"

"Well...I know I promised Impa I'd try to relax," she said, gaining energy as she more fully awoke. "But I just really want to go out and explore."

"Explore what?" I said.

"The forests around here," she said. "You know. I can get more flowers to press. And you could teach me to hunt!" Her eyes sparkled, and I couldn't help but laugh at her excitement.

"Is that what you'd like?" I asked. "A hunting trip?"

"I'd like to learn fighting skills too," she said. "I spent a century trapped with Ganon--I don't want to feel helpless ever again."

"But if you get too good at fighting, you won't need me for anything," I joked.

"That's not true," she said. "I need you to cook for me."

I shot a glance of fire at her, but couldn't keep myself from smiling. "Speaking of," I said. "How would you like some fruit crepes for breakfast?"

Her stomach growled, and her face blossomed a dark shade of pink.

"I suppose I have my answer," I concluded with a grin. "I'll get cooking. In the meantime, take this." I dug around in my pockets, scooping out a handful of rupees. "Go to the clothing shop and buy a stealth suit. You'll want it for hunting."

"Oh, okay," she said, cupping her hands to accept the colored gems. "Thank you, Link. I can pay you back if we go salvage some things from the castle."

"Don't worry about it," I reassured her, closing her hands. "I'm happy to take care of you."

I raised the Sheikah mask over my cheeks and nose before I could blush. She smiled gratefully and nodded.

"You are quite caring, Link," she said. "You were before, but now you are much more verbal about it." She stood up, placing the rupees in her pocket. "I'll go now. Thanks again."

I sighed as she left, my knees buckling together. I was really making myself miserable over this girl.

~~~

The door to the inn creaked open. Zelda popped her head in before fully emerging.

"How do I look?" she said, adjusting her hair.

She was decked out in the blue and purple stealth suit. She had too much hair to pull into a bun, so instead it was tied up in a long ponytail, with her usual braid crown. The outfit was quite...form fitting.

"H-how do you look?" I stammered after a moment of staring. I felt a tightness in my throat. "Um...pretty badass..." I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that."