Disclaimer: Link, Zelda, and all associated characters belong to Nintendo.

Chapter 1

"Link, wake up."

No response.

"Link! Boy, wake up!"

The sixteen-year-old grumbled as he opened his eyes, the figure of his father standing over him slowly coming into focus.

Link sat up groggily, rubbing his eyes. "Morning…" he mumbled, yawning.

His father crossed his arms and sighed. "My boy, do you even realize what day it is?"

Link hesitated. He was not much a morning person, that was certain—his brain still felt slightly foggy as he thought about what could be so important about this day. "Uh…"

Father raised a bushy eyebrow.

It hit him. He was suddenly awake- Link threw the covers off himself, springing out of bed. "Today's the princess's birthday celebration," Link began. He took three long strides over to his wooden dresser, the floor cold on his feet. He quickly pulled out his chain mail armor byrnie and pulled it on himself, pushing his arms through the armholes, the metal chains clinking together. "Which means," he continued, as he pulled on a pair of gray trousers, "that I get to assist you on the Royal Guard!" Link finished, pulling a gray-blue tunic with the Hyrule royal family crest emblazoned on the front over his head.

Father grinned, though his black beard concealed his lips. "That's right, son! But we should hurry-since you're such a lazy morning person I'm afraid we may be late for the preparations. You know how Commander Nell feels about lateness. So, hurry up! I'll be outside waiting with the horses."

Link grunted in acknowledgement as he pulled on his boots. His father ducked out of Link's bedroom, closing the wooden door behind him. Glancing at himself in the mirror, Link wrinkled his nose at his disheveled appearance. He pulled his loose blond hair back into a short, low ponytail, leaving his overgrown bangs and sideburns alone. Better, he thought to himself, adjusting his tunic so the blue royal family crest was no longer crooked across his chest. A tickle of excitement ran through Link as he darted out the door of his and his father's house. Father was already mounted on his chestnut horse; Link pulled himself onto his own bay steed, and followed his father on the cobblestone path that led towards the Royal Guard's training grounds outside of Castle Town.

Today was the day where he would, under the wing of his father, begin to guard the royal family of Hyrule.

"Now, remember, when the lords and ladies bow, you must give a subtle nod, a gentle smile—"

"Yes, Lady Roula, I know," Princess Zelda said impatiently, glancing up at her elderly mentor in the mirror, who, since the time she was six years old, was tasked with advising the princess in mannerisms and etiquette. Lady Roula raised a thin eyebrow, but kept her eyes focused on her hands while she braided parts of Zelda's hair. "I am fully aware of how to interact with my people, as you should know, since you're the one who taught me."

Lady Roula rolled her eyes. "Do not try that sassy flattery with me, Princess. It doesn't work. I have to constantly remind you how to behave when you are around the commoners—a princess as important as yourself should not be wandering the shops of Castle Town, let alone be buying items from the stores! You also shouldn't be playing with the child commoners—those children have sicknesses, and princesses your age do not play. They also do not explore the wilderness on their own!" She said sharply. She adjusted Zelda's hair, bringing the two braids she had done around to the back of her head so they met, tying them together with a blue ribbon. Lady Roula placed her hands on her wide hips and stared at Zelda in the mirror, her green eyes piercing. "Your mother didn't seem to understand those things either. It is not very becoming of a young princess, and it certainly is not very safe! Your job, as the princess of Hyrule, is to act as a steadfast leader in times of trouble, and, in your particular case, to train your mind and abilities to combat evil, if that prophecy is to be believed." Lady Roula thought for a moment, her wrinkled old lips pushed together. "If given the chance, there are those out there who will harm you, or use you to harm your father and the kingdom."

"If you're talking about the Yiga Clan, then you needn't worry; from what I have read in the texts and from what Hodgar has told me, the Yiga are small in numbers and are only out in the desert, where not even the Gerudo would venture. So, I feel that it is safe to say that I am not very fearful of them," Zelda said loftily, adjusting her golden crown in the mirror.

Lady Roula raised her eyebrows, surprised. "Oh, my brother is an idiot and you are a fool for believing him, Princess. Hodgar knows nothing of the activities of the Yiga Clan, as few do. And I'm surprised by your attitude towards the Yiga, seeing as how your mother—Goddess Hylia rest her soul—was taken from us by that wretched clan."

Zelda set her jaw. She straightened herself, her gaze averted. A flash of sadness and frustration hit her in the chest. "I am fully aware of how my mother died, Lady Roula." She said quietly. "Now, if you wouldn't mind, please allow me to myself before I attend the celebration. If you could please come retrieve me when it is time, I would very much appreciate it."

Lady Roula bowed, a look of slight regret on her face. "As you wish, my princess." She strode out the large wooden door, closing it quietly behind her.

Oh, how angry Lady Roula made Zelda feel! She could hardly stand the woman; she was always criticizing her every movement. "You must hold the teacup at exactly the right angle—three o'clock! No, you're doing it wrong, that is not very becoming of a princess of Hyrule!" She would say in her shrill voice. Zelda let her shoulders drop and slumped slightly in her chair. She turned around so she could face her large bedroom, her eyes moving from the beautiful, intricately designed fireplace to her desk in the corner. Though she had many trinkets that had been given to her as gifts, either from other royal families across Hyrule or beyond, her room had an entire wall dedicated solely to acting as a bookshelf for all her necessary reading. From Hyrule's history, to books dedicated to the studies of each race of Hyrule, to a generational tracking book of the royal family, to the ancient texts of ages gone by, Zelda had read each text at least twice throughout her life. Of course, the books that captured her attention the most were the ancient texts, of which spoke of an ancient evil that had arisen to take over Hyrule time and time again, but had been defeated by a princess with the blood of the Goddess and a swordsman with the spirit of the Hero.

However, her mind wasn't thinking about the legends; instead, her mind was thinking about her mother. Zelda's mother had told her when she was six years old that she could do anything, and yet, here she was, ten years later, still unable to access the sealing power that was her birthright! Zelda brought her hands to her face, frustrated.

I'm such a failure!

She inhaled sharply, attempting to bat down her emotions. Not today, Zelda. Not today. It's your sixteenth birthday—don't think about how you're a disappointment to everyone.

She pulled her hands away from her face, opening her eyes. She looked back in her mirror, staring at her reflection. She seemed like a stranger to herself.

Zelda tore her eyes away from her image and absentmindedly picked up the white handkerchief sitting on her vanity, which had the royal family's crest in a crimson red stitched onto it. The handkerchief was how her parents had met; her father, the prince of Hyrule at the time, had returned it to her mother, a lady of the Court, when she had accidentally dropped it. Zelda moved the soft fabric between her fingers.

Knock knock. A gentle rapping at her door startled her.

"Princess, it's time," came Lady Roula's voice.

"Coming," Zelda called. She took a deep breath and stood up, brushing off her blue and white dress.

Time to put on a happy mask.

Link stood next to his father in the Great Ballroom, his hand firm around the silver spear, an inch too tall for him. The spear, adorned with a subtle imprint of the Hyrulean royal family crest on its head, had been cool in his hand when he had first grasped it; now, however, it was warm from his touch. Link glanced at his father beside him and straightened himself slightly, mimicking his father's posture. Though Link couldn't see Father's eyes beneath the shadow of the helm he wore, he knew that his father's eyes were sharply scanning the room, looking for any detail that might signal trouble.

As he was not yet a member of the Royal Guard, Link was not yet given the right to wear the intricately designed armor, with the royal family crest dyed red on its front, that his father wore. Instead, Link and the other trainees had been fitted with a gray-blue tunic with the royal family crest emblazoned in blue on its front, on top of chain mail, with simple, gray trousers, no helmet, and a spear. He was not yet allowed to carry steel while in the presence of the royal family; that time would come when he was an actual member of the Royal Guard.

Link blew a stray piece of dirty blonde hair out of his face and moved his gaze about the ballroom. The center of the room held only the lord and ladies of Hyrule who were milling about, making idle conversation with each other as they waited for the king and the princess to show. The High Thrones, where the King and Princess would sit upon arrival, were empty. His fellow six Royal Guard trainees were scattered at the edges of the room, acting as shadows to an official member, who were mentors to their respective students. They, too, wore the gray-blue tunic that he did, identifying them as trainees. He enjoyed the company of them, and considered each of them his friends; he had been training with them for three years now.

Link felt a nudge in his side. "Straighten your shoulders, son. The Princess and His Royal Highness are coming," his father said. Link didn't say anything but did as his father instructed. He had never seen the royal family in person before, and suddenly got a shiver of nervousness. What if he messed up somehow? What if he dropped his spear, in front of the princess?

Link gripped his weapon tighter.

Just then, the large, white-with-gold-laced doors opened, an elderly herald stepping through first with the King and Princess behind him. The herald stepped forward, clearing his throat. Everyone became instantly silent, their eyes on the three.

"I hereby announce the royal entry—" he coughed, then continued, "the royal entry, of His Royal Highness Rhoam of House Bosphoramus, King of Hyrule, and Her Royal Highness Zelda of House Bosphoramus, Princess of Hyrule!"

Immediately everyone bowed in recognition of the royal family, the men getting down on one knee with their heads down and the ladies holding a curtsy, their elegant dresses fanned out in their fingers.

Link too got down on one knee. He peeked up through falling hair as he kneeled, curious. The king was tall and large, and had a presence that commanded the respect of everyone in the room. His daughter, however…

Link drew in a sharp breath when his eyes laid upon her. The princess was beautiful. As she stood there in a lovely blue and white ballgown, adorned with a simple yet elegant golden crown, her gentle cerulean eyes sweeping the room, she too commanded the respect of her people. There was something about her that ignited something in Link, something deeper than his heart, something buried so far down that he felt as if it touched the very essence of his soul, its fingers delicately touching the fabric of his being…

"Please rise, everyone," the King said, and everyone did so. "We are here today to celebrate the sixteenth birthday of my daughter, and your princess, Zelda." He gestured toward her, who gave a small smile and curtsied in response. The lords and ladies applauded politely.

King Rhoam smiled at his daughter. Together they strode over to the High Thrones, where they each took a seat. Zelda crossed her ankles, her hands fidgeting with a white handkerchief in her lap, though a smile rested on her lips.

The king looked around at the crowd, who were watching him expectantly. "I want to thank everyone for coming to this marvelous celebration. Now, let us feast and dance!" He waved a hand in the air, signaling the start of the quintet's music, which began playing beautiful yet upbeat music.

Link watched in amazement as the lords and ladies immediately began shuffling and dancing around in unison. Though he had heard about the intricacies of court ballroom dancing, he had never actually seen it before; though he was the son of a royal guard, that didn't mean that he had ever attended anything fancy. No, growing up his life had consisted of rough play with boys his age, hard training with wooden swords out on the grounds with his father, and, most recently, training to be a royal guard with his fellow apprentices. As he continued looking about the room, his eyes came upon the feasting table a few feet from himself. On it were delicacies from every region of Hyrule; he couldn't keep his mind off of the delicious food they were serving. Gourmet meat, roasted fish, sautéed vegetables and fruit—all of it looked and smelled delicious!

He felt his stomach rumble.

Off to the side, Link noticed two young women, possibly around his age, both dressed in bright red dresses, repeatedly looking over in his direction and giggling. He felt his pointed ears turn red. Link glanced in their direction, then looked away, trying to keep his attention on the other partygoers. What could they possibly be saying?

Link looked at his father again. He still hadn't moved, nonetheless even shifted his weight. Link knew that, if he wanted to be as fantastic of a Royal Guard as his father, then he would have to mimic him as best he could.

Link heard giggling and glanced in its direction; the two girls were strolling over to him, their dresses swaying as they held onto each other's arms in the way that girls of the court tended to do.

"Hi," said one—a redhead—when they approached him. The other one—a blonde—grinned. Her smile reminded Link of some type of predator. Both girls had their hair pulled and curled so much that they looked as if they had been attacked by bees.

"Hello," Link said in return. Though he didn't want to be unkind, he was currently training, and did not particularly want to be interrupted by the pair.

"Lady Shae, my friend here," said the redhead, "noticed you from across the room."

Link blinked, feeling slightly uncomfortable.

"And, well," the redhead continued, "she was wondering if you would be willing to share a dance with her."

Link felt a heat rush to his ears and cheeks. "Oh, well, um, I'm very flattered, but…I don't think I'm allowed to, you see…" He glanced at his father, who, Link could tell, had a bemused smirk. "I'm, uh, kind of in training to be a member of the Royal Guard right now."

The redhead scoffed. The blonde-Shae—smiled again, this time speaking directly to Link. "Well, if you ever do want a dance, let me know. Come find me whenever you want," she said before grabbing onto her friend's arm and strolling away.

His father let out a snort.

Link turned red again, keeping his eyes forward. He said nothing. He always felt so awkward with those types of interactions.

He continued sweeping his eyes about the room, though there was no trouble he could see. He looked up at the princess and felt his heart twinge again. She leaned over to her father and whispered something in his ear, her eyes alight. The king thought for a moment, then nodded, and gestured toward the dancing crowd. Princess Zelda tucked her handkerchief into her waistband, sprung up, and jumped into the dance, twirling between partners, a smile as beautiful as the sun on her pink lips.

Link watched her; she moved with such grace and beauty that it was hard to believe she was even real. The way her golden hair spun around her waist and shoulders as she moved to the music was captivating; he found it nearly impossible to tear his eyes away from her.

Fifteen minutes later, after the dance had ended, the princess made her way to the feasting table to request from the server a glass of water. As she lifted the glass of cool liquid to her lips, Link watched her white handkerchief fall from her waistband onto the ground. She set the glass down, thanked the server, and began to move back towards the crowd.

Link looked between the princess and the handkerchief. Setting the spear against the wall, he took a few quick strides over to where it lay on the ground and bent over, picking the delicate fabric up. He turned towards Princess Zelda and called out to her.

"Princess!" He waved the handkerchief in the air, though he wasn't sure she could hear him over the music and the whooping of the crowd as they danced.

Zelda's ears twitched. She turned around, thinking she had heard her name. She saw a boy about her age waving a white handkerchief in the air.

Her white handkerchief, she realized.

She strode over to him, smiling with relief. "Oh, thank you! I would have missed this if you had not picked it up for me." He offered it to her, and she took it, turning it over in her hands lovingly.

"It was of no issue, Your Highness," the boy said, a lopsided grin on his face.

Zelda smiled. She found him cute, in a silly way. "What's your name?" She asked him.

"Link," He said loudly over the music and the people, bowing to her as he did so.

"No need to bow," She said, fidgeting with the handkerchief in her fingers. "What brings you to this party?" She glanced at his tunic and chainmail, and assumed that he was somehow connected with the soldiers.

"I'm in training to be a member of the Royal Guard," he said.

She grinned, looking him over. He was in very good physical shape, she could tell; very well-muscled for a boy her age. "Well, I'm sure you will make a fine addition to the current Guard." She looked back at her father, who was watching her carefully. "Well, I really must get back to dancing," Zelda said. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Link. I'm sure we'll meet again!"

"You too, Princess—happy birthday!" Link added.

As she left, Link found his heart practically jumping out of his chest. He couldn't believe it.

He had just met Princess Zelda, and she was far more beautiful than he could have imagined.

A/N: Hello everyone! This is my first return to writing again after a while, and I'm quite excited to be diving back in and getting into the groove; I hope you enjoyed to some extent of this first chapter. I'm planning on updating this as often as I can, so stay tuned!