Noble by Nature

Chapter 5

The next few days were so full of excitement that Zelda almost forgot all her previous worries.
She spent hours with Purah, going over everything again and again, asking where exactly she had found the map and going through all other books and notes that could be even remotely associated with it.
It fascinated her deeply, and she could not remember why she had felt so disconnected from doing research for so long. This was where her true passion lay.
Link was once again the biggest sweetheart, providing her with an early breakfast every day, coming up to the Tech Lab to bring them all a healthy lunch, and then dragging her back down with him later in the afternoon.
He told her he wanted to make sure he got to spend some time with her too, now that they were not restricted by daily business at the castle.
That alone was so cute that Zelda gladly went with him, pausing her investigations and the expansion of her knowledge to join him in whatever activity he had in mind.
Usually it would amount to her being sweaty and exhausted, after intense training in sword fighting.
Ever since the battle he had kept up his promise to teach her, and they had found a way to squeeze in a few practices a week. Now, though, he was relentless, training her every single day and making it almost twice as intense.
Endai and Glendo would join them too for most of it, so that Link could keep an eye on them and their development, as well as keep them occupied now that they were far from the castle and their daily duties. He didn't want them slacking off.
It worked well for Zelda, because discovering that she was pretty equal to those guys in skills was a huge boost to her ego.
None of them was any match for Link though.
At the end of his trainings they would all drag their depleted bodies off the field next to his house, and she usually didn't see the knights until the next day, when they would be back for more.
Link himself seemed to be doing well, and walked around with a pretty permanent smile plastered on his face.
While she was at the Lab, he would go around his usual business of hunting and cooking, making and repairing his gear, making some adjustments to his house and tending to the horses. He found plenty of people in town to help doing the most mundane chores, but she could see how happy it made him to help them.
They had been here for a little over a week now, but they were truly thriving.

One afternoon Zelda sat crosschecking a list of all locations that had been circled on the map with a book containing history of Hyrule's most ancient sites, when she looked up to find Link staring at her from across the table.
His chin rested on his folded hands, and a dreamy smile decorated his face, making her stomach flutter.
He saw her looking at him and winked, before getting up and brushing off his clothes. He then purposefully walked towards the door, and just when she started to wonder what he was doing, he looked back and wiggled his eyebrows at her expectantly.
Zelda felt a blush creep onto her cheeks, and quickly excused herself to Purah and Symin, before following Link outside.
He didn't say anything as she followed him to their horses and all the way back to his house, but kept a mysterious little smirk on his face.
'What is going on?' Zelda eventually asked after they put their horses in the little stable.
'Nothing,' Link said innocently, shrugging his shoulders. He opened the door and held it for her to come in, and she instantly noticed why he had been so secretive.
The room was lighted by countless candles scattered on every available surface, and the table was set nicely for an elaborate dinner, complete with a vase of beautiful wild flowers.
She had no idea when he had done all this, but it looked beautiful, and might be the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for her.
She looked over at Link, trying to find words that expressed her feelings, and found him grinning excitedly.
'I figured we can't stay here for much longer, so I wanted to give you a special evening now that it's still just the two of us.'
She smiled, before taking in the room again. He had exchanged two of the swords for Great Flameblades, which were adding to the flickering, warm colours lighting up the room, and creating a cozy atmosphere.
'Link...' she muttered, still scraping her brain for words that could contain her gratitude and amazement. She smiled at him, her eyes a little foggy. 'I love you.'
'I love you too,' he said, kissing her softly.
He then pulled out a chair for her and gracefully invited her over, making a big effort to be the epitome of a gentleman.
They enjoyed a truly marvellous dinner, while Link did everything in his power to make her as comfortable as possible. Zelda enjoyed every part of it, and in the end leaned back in her chair with her stomach full and her heart overflowing with love.
The knight just smiled at her from across the table, as their conversation had eventually come to an end, but it was far from awkward.
'This was perfect, Link,' Zelda said, a blush on her cheeks.
'I thought you deserved a special night,' he replied with a grin. 'You've been working so hard.'
She nodded. Suddenly she felt quite exhausted, thinking back on everything they had accomplished in the past year. There hadn't been a lot of time to relax.
'How about a short walk to settle our stomachs?' The knight suggested.
Zelda smiled, nodding enthusiastically. She loved the sounds of nature at night, when all the hard work had come to an end and a whole different sort of life began to awaken.
Link took her hand and gently guided her out of the house.
     They followed the rolling hill around the little pond and down the slope. The view was amazing, although the landscape was shrouded in darkness.
     Here and there Zelda could see some pinpricks of light, torches or fires where people were settling down for the night.
     She wondered who those people were, what they were doing and why they were out there.
     It made her feel even more grateful for Link's strong hand in hers, and the knowledge of the cozy ambiance in his house.
     They strolled along, quietly enjoying their surroundings, before looping back around the pond and past the horned statue.
     Zelda eyed it curiously, but it sat there looking rather lonely, bird droppings covering its head.
     She wondered who had made it, and why it was put here in such a remote location. Was it some sort of God that had been worshipped in some forgotten age?
     Once again she was reminded that she still knew so little of this vast world. So much knowledge had been lost to them in the Calamity. Not only did they lose books, but many people as well. People who all knew something about their part of the world, who could no longer share that information.
     Zelda felt a familiar weight on her shoulders. She felt responsible for bringing up that lost information, for giving a voice to the stories that were no longer passed down.
     Before she could let her own thoughts sour her mood, however, Link gently tugged her by her hand and led her past the grim, dark statue.
     A soft breeze blew past, and she instantly felt lighter. It was as if the flickering lights up ahead drove away the shadows that clung to that statue.
     She shuddered, looking over her shoulder once more. 'That is some nasty thing,' she mumbled.
     Link simply hummed in agreement.
     They walked past the houses constructed by Bolson. They still looked strange to her, but Zelda could hear voices chattering inside, and fires were crackling merrily behind the windows. She had to give it to him that he had foreseen exactly what was needed here, long before she had even been back.
     She hugged Link's arm tightly to her as they passed the bridge to his house, feeling re-energized by their little walk.
     He held on to her right until the front door, then pressed a kiss on her head.