Hero by Heart

Chapter 75

Zelda sat at one of many tables, enjoying the lovely music of Kass and his daughters, watching people dance across the open plain.
     The air was filled with the sound of laughter and chattering from countless conversations, with an occasional louder outburst here or there.
     As Zelda slowly ate a piece of her fruitcake she watched Reeza and Laine swirl around, smiling at each other and talking quietly as they moved gracefully.
Not far away from them Zelda could see Bazz and Gaddison dance together, using a completely different style, albeit no less enchanting to watch.
Between the moving bodies she could also make out Sidon and Buliara dancing together, a little clumsily as they tried to find a way between their different styles, but with all the confidence in the world.
She noticed Riju dancing around Yunobo, who looked like he was searching for the fastest way to get out of there, his discomfort plain on his face.
It made Zelda chuckle softly, feeling sympathy for the young Goron. He had never been the most self-assured person, but put him on a dance floor and he was like a lost little kid.
Luckily Riju knew how to maintain his attention, guiding him along. If there was anyone who Zelda trusted to get Yunobo out of his comfort zone, then it was her.
A little behind them Teba was parading around with his wife Saki, grinning broader than Zelda had ever seen him do.
The firelight reflected in outfits and on skin of dozens of people across the field, creating a spectacular view of shimmering light.
It looked like a cheerful celebration, exactly the way she had wanted it to be.

At the edge of this dancing area Zelda discovered Link, standing a little apart from most people, seemingly deep in conversation with Nell and two other Hylians.
     The Hylian captain that had commanded their troops in battle was now fully healed from a nasty wound to his shoulder, and seemed all the more determined for it to become a knight.
     She knew that Link wanted to build up their Hylian army again, to restore it to its former capacity and protect the castle.
     He had appointed several of the men that had proven themselves to serve as captains, and would see to their training personally.
     Once he was satisfied with their progress, he had said, he would let them train their own units, giving them plenty of time to get comfortable in their leadership positions.
     It sounded like a good plan to Zelda, but it would take months, if not years for them to form a proper army of well-trained knights.
     Still, it was great that they even had the chance to build on their future, and for that she was grateful. If everything went well they wouldn't even be needing an army anytime soon.
     At the very least it meant that Link had something to work for, a task that he had taken on himself, without anyone asking him to.
     For Zelda that was a good sign that he was somewhat comfortable in his role as leader, and maybe one day he would be ready to take a throne beside her.
     She scoffed at herself, swallowing the last bite of cake. She was getting carried away again. She knew better than to hope for him to become king.
For now she would be grateful for every minute she got to spend with him.
     'You're staring,' a voice sounded by her ear, followed by the Gerudo in question dumping herself unceremoniously on a chair.
     Zelda chuckled, offering Merina a broad grin. 'You have to admit that tonight he is more than worth staring at.'
     The Gerudo shrugged, trying to look indifferent, but failing with the huge smile stuck to her face.
     'He does look rather dashing,' she admitted, quickly putting out a warning finger, 'but don't tell anyone I said that.'
     Zelda laughed, but relaxed back in her chair and shook her head. 'Promise.'
     'You don't look too bad yourself either,' Merina then said.
     Zelda inclined her head in thanks. 'Neither do you.'
     The Gerudo had tied up her hair, revealing a set of large golden earrings in the shape of a crescent moon. Her shoulder and breast plates were a dark blue, finished off with the typical gold.
Around her waist she wore a heavy golden belt, keeping a dark blue skirt in place with a split up one side and more golden crescent moons decorating it.
     Her heels were so high that Zelda could hardly believe she could really walk on them, but Merina managed it with ease. As did most of the Gerudo women for that matter.
'Why were you sitting here all alone?' She asked, quirking an eyebrow.
Zelda shrugged. 'I like to just watch for once.'
Merina nodded. 'I can imagine. It's strange to think that it's truly over.' She nipped her drink and gazed out across the grassy plain.
     Zelda felt a familiar guilty sadness rising up, and instead tried to push it back down, changing the subject.
     'Why aren't you dancing?'
     'I have danced,' she chuckled. 'I just really needed a break.'
Zelda nodded. She didn't really have much else to say, so they fell back in a comfortable silence, watching the other couples swirl by.
'Don't you want to dance?' Merina suddenly asked, quite a few minutes later.
She shook her head, smiling modestly. 'I'm alright.'
'Not even with a certain handsome knight?'
     Zelda looked up in confusion, noticing the way Merina jerked her chin up towards something behind her.
     When she followed her line of vision she noticed Link himself now coming towards them, a sweet smile on his lips.
     A group of Rito and Zora sitting at the other end of their table fell quiet, watching the knight as he passed.
     Zelda too followed him with her eyes, feeling the usual flutter in her stomach, and a smile pulling at her lips.
     'Merina,' Link said kindly with a small nod when he reached them.
     The Gerudo smiled and greeted him back.
     'I hope you're enjoying the evening?'
     Merina nodded. 'It's great.'
     'Yeah,' Link smiled enthusiastically, for the first time shifting his attention to Zelda. 'She really did an amazing job.'
     She shifted a little in her chair, not feeling like she deserved the praise, but if Link noticed he completely ignored it.
     'I was actually wondering,' he continued to Merina, 'if you could spare her for a while?'
     The Gerudo raised her eyebrows, but smiled knowingly, as if she had expected him to ask.
     'What for?' Zelda asked curiously, wanting to be involved in this conversation too.
     Link once again moved his eyes towards her, sparkling with joy. 'To dance.'
     He held up his hand in the air, opening it invitingly as he bowed down. He managed to make it look easy and formal all at once.
     Zelda couldn't stifle a small giggle, but noticed almost everyone around them looking on with big eyes.
     Their conversations had now really fallen quiet, and she became aware of an almost unreal silence, full of anticipation.
     Apparently this moment was expected, and not without excitement.
     Still trying to suppress her smile she slowly put up her hand, placing it in his, light as a feather.
     'Please excuse me,' she said to Merina, taking on the same formality as Link was still radiating, although she was mostly just amused.
     She knew he wasn't one to draw the attention to himself, but now he was doing it with an almost mocking amount of solemnity.
     He must have known how many people would be keeping an eye on them, but somehow he had decided to do it anyway. She could only wonder why as he led her around the table and onto the dancing ground.
As they walked Zelda clearly noticed the air of anticipated silence spreading around, as more and more people stopped their business to watch them.
When they finally halted, Kass smoothly changed the song in a slow, romantic tone, and Zelda shot him a nasty look.
There would be absolutely no hiding now that she was a little too intimate with her knight, but she didn't care. Not anymore. It was no longer a secret.
It still didn't help her nerves when she noticed everybody else had stopped their dancing to watch.
'It's just like before,' Link whispered, taking their first step together.
Zelda smiled at him, but it really wasn't. Before they had been careless and full of joy, laughing as they stumbled around. Now they carefully guided their feet, almost floating over the short grass, with their heads held high and only the faintest of smiles on their faces.
This wasn't Zelda dancing. It was the Princess of Hyrule.
Link seemed to understand the difference all too well, and managed to guide her skilfully, not avoiding any of the onlookers, but expecting them to move out of the way instead. As they should for their princess.