#zelinktines23

[eissibee]

@zelinktines23 Day 17: Fruits

There is something inherently, quietly loving in a sliced apple, in fruit freshly peeled and shared. A task so simple, so unnecessary, but one that shows such tender care, through time.

Thinking also of the poems about peeling clementines for people, and how Clementia is the name of a Roman goddess of forgiveness. Love as an offering; this act says "forgive me, I love you"

#zelinktines23 #loz #zelink #oot zelink #ocarina of time #oot #majora's mask #mm #link #zelda #fruits #art tag

[alkturos]

You

i know who you are

i didn't at first

but then i saw Her eyes

in Yours

when they smiled

i know who you are

but I don't think you

want me to recognize You

behind that disguise

i know who you are

but i see you sometimes grow

weary of being Him

being Him keeps You safe

i know who you are

and i know you're tired

i am too

but at least i know that

around me

you let Him rest

and you allow me

a glimpse of You again

Happy Valentine's Day everyone, and especially to @youwouldntbelievehowigothere who I was matched with for @zelinkcommunity 's Loftwing Letters event! Also a good double post for @zelinktines23 day 5: Secret! I hope you like it 🥹 I also apologise that I'm a little late 😭 Real life almost got in the way of OOT Zelink but I won in the end 😂

I loved how thorough and detailed you were with the description of what you would like for this event, and all your ideas are awesome for fanfic! It would've taken me even longer to actually write a fanfic but I hope you enjoy the little sketches and poem! I did what I could given the little time I had, Happy Valentine's Day again! 🥰

#legend of zelda #loz #zelink #link #zelda #sheik #shink #legend of zelda ocarina of time #ocarina of time #tloz oot #oot #loftwing letters #zelinktines #zelinktines23 #day 5 #alkturos #alkturos art #alkturos doodles #secret #valentines #i love them #so much #his ears perk up 🥺 #and his pupils dilate when he looks at sheik 🥹

[zelinktines24]

Hi there, @zeldaelmo here!

Zelinktines is a casual zelink event in February.

Choose a prompt of your liking and get creative with it and post it on the prompt date! Art, stories, music, whatever you feel inspired to!

Everyone can participate. We have a form where you can choose up to three prompts (you can do more prompts outside the form but don't burn yourself out). It's not required to fill out the form but it helps to see which prompts are still free. (Double entries are fine! But maybe you're inspired by several things and prefer to cover a free day/prompt)

Collaborations are encouraged! Keep an eye out on the common zelink/loz discord servers to find a partner or here on Tumblr! Consider your own post that you want to collab, too.

To make it easier for us, add @zelinktines23 and tag us when you post! There will also be an Ao3 collection in February.

NSFW content is allowed. Please blur NSFW art with the 'mature' feature and hide explicit writing under the cut here on Tumblr. Don't get too crazy with the NSFW content (more info here), this is an event with the focus on the romantic relationship of Zelda and Link and not kinktober.

Big thanks at the team @aquaticpal, @deiliamedlini, @Farore-or-less, and @itcantbe! Also a huge ❤️ @between-star for letting us use the art!

#Zelinktines23 #zelink #legend of zelda #Send an ask if you have a question! #Zelda x Link #Zelinktines #Combining events is absolutely encouraged!

[bahbahhh]

@zelinktines23 Day 6 – “Oh, no”

Summary: Impa is given a secret assignment from the King just before she is to escort Zelda and Link back to Kakariko Village for the festival of Sahasra’s Pass: make sure their arrangement is not creating “unnecessary distractions.” It seems silly for the King to be so concerned about such an implausible matter. Anyone with two eyes can see they clearly despise each other. Impa forgets she has three.

BoTW set before Memory #5 (Zelda’s Resentment).

Rated G/ Impa POV / Worldbuilding / 6k words / complete

She steels her jaw. “Allow me to bring Princess Zelda with me to Kakariko.”

The ghost returns and then fades quickly with the realization she’s not kidding. “Absolutely not.”

“Your Majesty, please, consider—“

“Did she put you up to this? I will not allow her to continue entertaining this foolish dream of being a scholar,” the King snaps. He pinches the flesh of his brow and sighs. Impa can almost feel the force of breath across the space.

“Her path is set. You know this. She needs to accept it.”

Impa doesn’t have enough fingers to count how many discussions she has been included in (and Zelda not) about what Zelda needs.

She hates to contribute another but, “This may be just what she needs.”

“She needs to pray.”

“All she does is pray!”

Read the rest on AO3!

#bahbahhhwrites #zelinktines23 #zelinktines2023 #zelinktines #zelink #zelink fanfiction #botw #breath of the wild #loz #legend of zelda #loz fanfic #loz fanfiction #impa #impa pov #worldbuilding

[louwhose]

Zelinktines Day 20: Meet Cute

Did this piece for @zelinktines23 prompt "Meet Cute!" It was fun to come up with and draw these two, because they are so stinkin' cute!!!

#legend of zelda #ocarina of time #zelink #zelinktines #zelinktines23 #loz #oot #lou draws #in hindsight I don't know WHAT was going through my head that made me think that making a full color comic was a good idea #but it's done and... uh I like it #so HERE #ENJOY

[cooking-with-hailstones]

Is that a yes?

For @zelinktines23 day 16: Is that a yes?

Read it on AO3! (Rated E)

“You know, I’m realizing you never answered my question.” Zelda said, breaking the silence that had settled over their campsite.

He raised his eyebrows inquisitively.

“About the sword. Does it speak to you? You never answered.”

Silence. A shrug.

“Now how am I supposed to interpret that?” she teased, but there was a burning curiosity that she knew she was failing to hide.

He looked up at her across the campfire. “Sometimes it's hard to separate what she’s saying from my own thoughts.”

“She?”

Link looked at the master sword resting on his thighs. “She has a feminine presence.”

“Oh.” Zelda paused. That made no sense to her, but she wasn’t about to argue with him.

“What does she say?”

Another shrug. She shot him a glare, and he sheepishly scratched the back of his neck.

“It's more like an instinct. A feeling. Sometimes it’s like a whisper just on the edge of hearing. Telling me where to go, what to do.”

“That’s fascinating.”

He stared at the sword on his lap, expression unreadable.

“What does it tell you to do?” she ventured.

He looked up at her, and in the light of the fire his eyes glinted like sapphires.

“Take care of you, no matter what.”

She couldn’t help but laugh. “You really need the sword to tell you that? I would have thought you’re eager enough to take care of me on your own.”

The tips of his ears burned red, and she grinned wickedly. 

The flickering spark of something that had been dancing between them ever since they had returned from Gerudo Town had finally caught flame just over a month ago, after her prayers at the Spring of Power. He had pulled her out of the water and hugged her fiercely as she wept, her shame and desperation tearing from her throat as she begged for any sign of the Goddesses blessing. 

“You are more than just Hylia’s shell” he had whispered to her as her sobs subsided. “You are Zelda . You deserve so much more than you are given.” She had turned to him, and met his lips with her own, desperate to be wanted as herself, and not just for what she might be able to do.

(After this it gets saucy!)

#breath of the wild fanfiction #legend of zelda fanfiction #rated E #zelink #zelinktines23 #emily writes #my writing #smut #more tags at the ao3 link #Honoured and a bit surprised that mine is the first rated E entry for the year

[anretoga]

We dance when the heart remember

Our souls enlivened by the peaceful dance under the twilight

#zelinktines23 #zelink fanart #the legend of zelda #link twilight princess #zelda twilight princess #the legends of zelda twilight princess #zelink tp #twilight princess #digital art #day 9 #zelinktines2023 #not tloz breath of the wild lol #tp art #zelda #link #zelda x link #warmth

[michpat6]

Princess Zelda has fruitcake crumbs on her mouth.

“Straighten your spine,” she instructs.

It doesn’t bother Link, not really, but all he can do is stare at the golden flecks of sugar left on her lips and wonder if it would be rude of him to kiss them clean.

OR

My submission for Day 1 of @zelinktines23, "Lips"!

#zelinktines #zelinktines 2023 #zelinktines23 #zelink #zelink fic #michpatfics

[deiliamedlini]

Zelinktines: Day 11- Pet

@zelinktines23

Or Pet(s) in this case. They pulling a 101 Dalmatians

#zelinktines #zelinktines23 #legend of zelda #link #zelda #zelink #breath of the wild #dogs #wolf #day 11 #pet #loz #art #procreate

[zeldaelmo]

I know, you're all craving TotK. I only have BotW Regency era, sorry. But 5k words of that! 😆

This chapter is also an entry for the @zelinktines23 prompt 'Warmth'.

The Promise, chapter 4

Epona's hooves thundered under them and the thoughts thundered in Link's head. What had he done? What had they done? 

Zelda was still pressed against his back, even more so, if possible, and her hands clamped tightly in his waistcoat. She didn't speak because what was there to say? Anything and nothing. 

Epona kept running and the wind kept pulling the warmth from his core. His hands grew stiff on the reins. 

Would Ghirahim follow them eventually? They only had the carriage horses at hand and Ghirahim would be an idiot to dare riding a horse bareback, drunk as he was. No, they either had to pursue them both in a carriage or Ghirahim had to organize himself a riding horse. Would he be quick enough to catch up to them? Epona was fast, but she carried them both… Did Ghirahim even see in which direction he had taken Zelda? He must have.

Zelda.

Zelda.

What had he done to her?

#zelink #Zelinktines23 #warmth #legend of zelda #botw #regency au #the promise #zeldaelmo writes

[aheavenscorner]

Zelinktines day 8: Mask

A collab with @linktheacehero for @zelinktines23 (check out his part HERE!)

The accompanying fic

As they waltzed through the night, it was as if the whole world disappeared. Here, in each other's arms, they had nothing to hide; she was not the perfect princess, he was not the almighty hero. They did not need to shield before the wolf and the bird that adorned their faces.

Here, they were simply Link and Zelda.

Ahhhh it was such an honor to do yet another art and writing collab with my dear friend Ace! I had a great time coloring this and writing the story, can you tell I adore these two blorbos we have?

Here is another color option I got while messing around with the hue sliders.

#heaven's brainrots #friend's art #art collab #zelinktines 2023 #oot zelink #ocarina of time #majora's mask #they are so traumatized #but they're happy together!!! #zelinktines23

[the-knightmare]

I Met You in a Closet

My contribution for @zelinktines23 day 21 prompt: Meet Weird. Can also be found on A03

He had been sent to fetch a broom, so that he could clean up the dirt in the training the knights had tracked into the training hall, when he found the Princess of Hyrule hidden in a closet. They stared openly at each other, and Link wondered if he was seeing things with how still the girl was, but it seemed that the princess was quicker to recover from being as she grabbed his hand and pulled. She had just closed the door with a gentle click when Link heard footsteps in the hall.

“What are you-”

Link started to ask the question when her hands firmly pressed against his lips.

“Shh, I didn’t want to do spend all of today praying, so I snuck away to read. If you be quiet, they will not know I am here,” she whispered into his ear.

Link stood still, head tilted towards the door, the two listened as the footsteps came and went again. They waited another minute before looking at each other again. Up close, Link could see flecks of brown in her green eyes and was suddenly aware of how closely she was pressed to him and the scent of library books that clung to her hands.

A smile flashed in his direction sent a jolt through his stomach. At twelve, Link had only now decided girls could be cute, and the princess was certainly a pretty girl. He was barely conscious of how he technically should be escorting her back to the Sanctum, but her voice banished any thoughts from his mind.

She had begun talking about frogs. Glowing frogs.

“They saw this kind glows in the dark, like river snails, but that it’s not a secretion that causes the bioluminescence. Isn’t that fascinating?”

Link’s mouth was still covered, so a slight nod was the only answer he could give.

“I tried to take one home to study, but my nurse told my father, who ordered it to be removed. He does not understand how my studies could help the non-Sheikah on stealth missions.”

Link thought about what it would be like to sneak around like the Sheikah warriors. Their silent steps and quick movements made the rest of the knights look like the clumsy recruits Link trained with during their practice. But before he could voice any of these thoughts, the princess had begun speaking about how hard it was to meet all the expectations placed upon her.

“How can they expect me to unlock my powers when I do not know anything other than the Goddess’ voice will speak to me? What if I remain deaf to Her and the Calamity comes?”

Words of comfort and reassurance that would come naturally to someone like Mipha or the Lady Urbosa fled his mind. Instead, all he could think to say was:

“Then you can use your study of frogs to hide until you can defeat it.”

Silence filled the closet for the first time since the princess had pulled him in. Her green eyes stared at him with an unreadable expression. Link shifted uncomfortably under the gaze, hoping the flush he felt creeping up his neck was not visible in the dim light.

“If that is to be the case,” she said slowly, “then I had better return to my devotions. They usually let me have time in the evening if I behave like a proper princess during the day.”

And then, with one last smile from the princess, Link was alone. Dazed, he stared at the contents of the now vacant closet, before remembering his original errand.

The next week, on the day of his thirteenth birthday, Link was assigned to a group of knights near Fort Hateno his father was commanding. It was meant to prepare him before he was to be promoted in rank to a proper junior knight, but the careful structure of his Hylian military career changed after his first time in the Lost Woods.

He was quickly brought back to the castle, presented to the court, and declared to be the Goddess’ Chosen Hero. The one to fight beside Princess Zelda and seal the darkness when it erupts. During the many ceremonies, it became clear that the princess did not remember their first awkward meeting in the closet. But he did. Even after his assignment as her personal knight let the full weight of her anger drop onto him, Link remembered the last smile she had sent over her shoulder.

It had been the smile that signaled his doom, long before that final guardian in Blatchery Plain. The one that sent a warm flutter through his chest, confident that the princess could talk to him about the properties of mud, and he would happily listen.

It was not until almost a year after defeating the Calamity, when the two were reminiscing about their lives one hundred years ago, that Link recounted this memory to Zelda.

“That was you?”

The blush that stained Zelda’s face reminded him of the apples that grew outside their shared home.

“It was,” Link replied, sipping his tea with a smile.

“All this time I never knew it was you, I always thought we met after you drew the sword. Why didn’t say something before now?” Zelda asked.

“I can’t remember why,” he answered truthfully, “but I remembered it as I was searching the castle for the first time.”

Zelda shook her head, a smile fighting against her lips. He stared at her face, openly taking in her expressions in a way he could only take in through lowered eyelashes before the Calamity. No matter how angrily she spoke to him, Link had always looked for these small moments where she shone from the inside.

How anyone doubted she was divine he would never know.

“You’re staring again.” Her smile had grown, directed at him in a way that sent his stomach swooping. Link found his gaze back to her more and more in the past months, something neither complained about.

Instead of an answer, Link simply took her hand, his thumb rubbing against the warm silver of her ring. Zelda was used to him watching her, but she was going to have to get used to his openly affectionate gazes from now on. She did, after all, agree to marry him last week.

#zelinktines23 #zelink fic #botw zelink

[flutefemme]

@zelinktines23 Day 19: "Nervous"

My contribution to #Zelinktines day 19! The prompt was "Nervous".

I loved how it turned out so much I wrote a little Zelink scene for it too. Hope you enjoy. Scene down below picture.

Alternate title: "Flute takes a stab at poetry"

Dedicated to my @zelinkcommunity fam!

Nervous

"Oh, Hylia," the princess whispered, her hand covering her face as she tried not to laugh. "I don't know if I can take much more of this–"

Beside her, her appointed knight did his best to remain stoic, but even the Hero of Hyrule could barely keep it together.

"Next, please."

"Just a minute, your Highness, I believe the next candidate is still rehearsing his presentation." The courtier cleared his throat. "Perhaps a brief respite would be appropriate?"

"Oh Gods, please. Thank you, Carlson." She turned to Link, who wheezed out a laugh. "You've been holding that in for long enough," she snorted.

"You're the one who wanted to hire a new court poet by having the applicants write you a love poem," his blue eyes flashed with mirth. "Gods, that last one, though…" Link chortled as he shook his head, then raised his eyebrows and lifted his chin in a mockingly dramatic pose as he recited:

"When I gaze upon your lovely countenance,

 It reminds me…of you."

The accompanying snort following his recitation irked the princess slightly. Narrowing her eyes and crossing her arms, she challenged him.

"You think you can do better, Sir Link?" Her green eyes taunted him.

He blanched. That was…not the reaction he'd anticipated from her. Swallowing slowly, he felt his neck heat and his ears tingle.

"Probably not."

"Well, go on, then," she gestured with her hand. "Regale me with your poetic prowess. You have my attention."

Blinking several more times than was acceptable, he scratched the back of his head, scrunching up his nose. 

"I really couldn't–"

"You really could, Sir Link. Don't keep me waiting now. Where is my love poem?" 

He straightened up and crossed his arms, realizing he wouldn't get off the hook for this one. Meeting her gaze with determination, he took a step closer to her and held out his hand, palm up. Her cheeks turned pink as she cautiously set her hand in his and tilted her head in interest, her eyes widening slightly.

Her knight took a breath.

"A smile as the shining sun, 

 Warming all who see,

 A heart as pure as solid gold,

 Her spirit just as free.

 What love she doth display each day 

 As Hyrule's Master Key,

 Would that her smile linger still 

 Forever just for me."

He let out a shaky breath, looking down at his feet with a nervous smile, his fingers finding purchase once again behind his neck. When he chanced a glance to meet her eyes, she was blushing, her hand covering her face, but not in amusement. She was flattered. Her shy smile as she bit her bottom lip was exactly what he'd hoped for.

#legend of zelda #breath of the wild #zelda #the legend of zelda #zelda botw #zelda breath of the wild #zelink #age of calamity #zelda x link #zelda fanfiction #zelinktines23 #zelink community

[zelinktines24]

Zelinktines 2023 — Master post

A big 'thank you' to everyone who participated in zelinktines 2023! 💕 A fandom event without the people who bring it to life by creating cool things is pretty boring, so Kudos to all the amazing creatives below! Please check out their work and blogs.

Lips - Chicken by @michpat6

Silk - Always her by @zelzenik; Silk&Leather by @aurathian; Silk and Moonlight by @cooking-with-hailstones with art by @bahbahhh

Leather — Silk&Leather - by @aurathian

Secret - The Secret of my Heart by @linktheacehero; You by @alkturos

Oh, no! - Desire Path by @bahbahhh

Stable - Stable by @theclam-beforethestorm

Mask - Art by @sciencelings-arts ; Art, art, and fic by @linktheacehero and @aheavenscorner

Warmth - The Promise, chapter 3 (E-rated) by @zeldaelmo ; did she know? by @greyennui ; we dance when the heart remembers by @anretoga

Dimple - no small thing by @greyennui

Pet - Art by @deiliamedlini

Sugar - Sugar by @silentprincess17 ; Sweet Talk by @ladyhoneydee

Quirk - One little scare ought to do you some good by @louwhose

Magical - Magical by @zeldaelmo ; Magical by @theclam-beforethestorm

Pictures - Art by @linktheacehero; Art by @hazethestrange

Is that a yes? - Is that a yes? (E-rated) by @cooking-with-hailstones

Fruits - forgive me, I love you by @eissibee

It's been a while - coming to her senses by @mistresslrigtar

Nervous - Nervous by @flutefemme

Meet cute - Meet cute by @louwhose

Meet weird - A chance encounter at the blood clinic by @cooking-with-hailstones; I met you in a closet by @the-knightmare; Meet Weird by @theclam-beforethestorm

Matchmaker - Matchmaker by @braidymaidy

Formal Wear - Art by @aquaticpal

Butterfly Kisses — A new Tradition by @mistresslrigtar

Anonymous — Reading between the lines by @louwhose

Getaway — Getaway by @theclam-beforethestorm

Don't forget that you can add your fics and art to the collection on Ao3:

My thanks go also to @aquaticpal, @itcantbe, and @deiliamedlini for fighting stubborn docs and other inconveniences with (and for) me.

If I've forgotten an entry (totally possible, this was a lot), send me a message @zeldaelmo and I'll add you.

I will also add late entries as they come, so don't be shy to tag @zelinktines23 even if it's June or Christmas.

💕💕💕

Psst... Wanna know a prompt for 2024 already? It's... 'the worst pick-up line'!

#zelinktines23 #Zelinktines #Zelink #legend of zelda

[bahbahhh]

He couldn’t have said how long they stood there for. The moon shifted across the window until they were both hidden in shadow. She sighed as he continued to trace his hands along her back, though he feared that the silk might catch on his rough and calloused hands. It was such a fine material, so light and soft, he hated to think he might damage it somehow.

“I don’t think I’ve ever felt silk before.” he confessed under his breath.

I am thrilled to be collaborating with @cooking-with-hailstones on @zelinktines23 Day 2 — “Silk”. I couldn’t resist this scene (please click for better quality, tumblr hates me)

Read the full fic on AO3

#bahbahhhart #collabs #zelinktines #zelinktines23 #zelinktines2023 #day 2 #silk #zelda #link #botw art #botw #breath of the wild #loz breath of the wild #breath of the wild fanfic #breath of the wild fanfiction #botw zelink #zelink #zelink fancficiton #legend of zelda breath of the wild #legend of zelda

[ladyhoneydee]

SWEET TALK

zelink | BotW college AU | 1.8k

For the Zelinktines23 event, day 12: Sugar!

Zelda takes an impromptu late-night study break to investigate a suspicious noise out in the kitchen, and her chaotic boyfriend Link takes the opportunity to convert her into a lover of conversation heart candies. Or...attempt to, at any rate. Much humor and fluff!

Read it on AO3, FFN, or under the cut!

There’s something crinkling out in the kitchen.

It’s been doing that for over a minute now. A whole minute of Zelda squinting harder at her textbook in the gloom of her desk lamp, grinding her earbuds deeper into her ears, and turning up the volume of her lo-fi study playlist—all to no avail. The crinkling wins out.

She sighs and drops the earbuds to rest atop the open page of her book, then pushes herself up into a standing position. Her head spins a bit when she’s fully upright, vision darkening to a star-swirled violet, and she wonders just how long she’d been studying. Her brain feels like it’s been pumped full of a dense, narcotic fog of physics equations and mechanical diagrams. 

A glance at the clock beside her bed reveals that it’s 2:17 in the morning. Too long, apparently, is the answer to her question. It’s tragic that she only hyper-focuses on schoolwork like this, rather than any of the handicrafts she’s attempted over the years. 

The crinkling has yet to cease. Zelda slaps her palms against her cheeks lightly in an attempt to wake herself up a bit, and then sets off towards the kitchen to see what on earth has the gall to disrupt her studying. 

As she walks, she considers the options. It could be one of Paya’s hamsters on another ill-begotten midnight escape (Zelda really hopes Paya will never learn that her precious Orbie is actually Orbie II, a clandestine replacement after the original literally died of fright when Yunobo tried to move the fridge it was hiding behind). It could be Yunobo himself, stepping on some random trash while sleepwalking through the house, as Zelda has caught him doing a few times before. It could be, Hylia forbid, a raccoon or opossum that has broken in through the bathroom window that Link keeps saying he’ll repair. Or it could be…

She comes around the half-wall separating their apartment’s little dining room from their cramped kitchen, and is met with a sight more terrifying than any of the possibilities she had previously considered.

Feral animal? No. Feral Link . Her roommate and boyfriend—whose outfit alone is chaotic, with his hair thrown up in the least gravity-defying bun she’s ever seen, and a bathrobe she suspects is stolen from a day spa hanging open around his Castleton U Fencing t-shirt and keese-patterned pajama pants—is perched on the countertop next to the fridge, with a huge bag of conversation hearts clutched in both hands. She watches in horror as he throws an entire handful of the candies back like he’s taking a shot. The gleeful crunch that follows could rival a rockslide in its volume and lethality.

“Link, w-what on Hylia’s green earth are you doing?” she blurts out. 

Link’s head snaps towards her. He bears a striking resemblance to a startled chipmunk, with those full cheeks and wide eyes. 

“This isn’t what it looks like!” 

Zelda can hardly understand him through the mouthful of half-chewed hearts. She levels him with a deadpan stare. 

“...it’s exactly what it looks like,” he admits. 

“Real bokoblin hours.” 

Link nods enthusiastically. Then he reaches back into the bag for another handful, the familiar crinkling giving away the gesture. 

“You know, I’ve heard of people eating whole cakes in the middle of the night. Even shredded cheese right out of the bag. But you’re eating chalk? ”

Link swallows his bite in a manner she can only describe as indignant . “They’re good!”

“You’ve eaten rocks before.”

“Those were good too. And as if I was gonna say no to Yunobo’s uncle when he offered me dinner!”

“Fair,” Zelda sighs. She wouldn’t want to disappoint Daruk either. For a man afraid of dogs, he does a fantastic sad-puppy impersonation. 

“Anyway, they’re not chalk. They’re sweet,” Link sniffs. He takes another crunching bite. 

“I’m sure it would be possible to make sweet chalk.” Zelda considers the bag. “Maybe I should experiment with using those on my chalkboard.” She certainly gets enough use out of the little board in her room for all the physics equations to make it worthwhile. 

Link clutches the bag to his chest protectively, and he’s never looked more like a bokoblin than he does in this moment. “You can have some if you’re going to eat them, but no way can you use them for your chalkboard.” That pouty scowl shifts into something a bit more shit-eating, and a thundercloud of foreboding builds in Zelda’s stomach. “That would be so… heartless of you.”

There it is. Zelda groans wordlessly at the pun. Link grins like he’s won a trophy.

“I’m still not sure those things are even edible,” she says eventually, deciding not to give the pun any more space than she already has. “I swear the last time I tried one I almost broke my teeth on it.”

“When was that, elementary school?” 

Zelda considers, then nods. 

Link holds out the bag towards her. “It’s been over a decade, Zel. They’ve improved upon the recipe.” He shakes the bag to punctuate his point, although she can’t say the sound of sweet chalk bombs rattling against crinkly plastic is particularly appetizing. “These ones have all been the perfect texture.”

“I really doubt that.”

“Party pooper.” Link sticks out his tongue at her. 

She shakes her head staunchly. No way is she eating such dubious food. 

“C’mon, Zel, just try one?” he wheedles. “What if I say that you—” he pulls a green one out of the package and reads it “— MELT MY ♡ ?”

“Nope.”

He tosses it in his mouth and crunches down. Those short, cute fingers slither back into the bag to retrieve a whole handful. The packaging almost doesn’t crinkle this time.

Link waves a purple one in front of her face, and she goes cross-eyed to look at it. Unfortunately, he’s got the message facing away from her. “What if I say that UR A QT?”

She wrinkles her nose. “Try again.”

Link gamely snaps it up instead, and dips his hand back into the bag. “Zelda…” he starts, his tone dramatic, and she plays along by raising an eyebrow and tilting her head inquisitively as he holds out the blue heart like one might a ring box. “When I’m with you, I know I’ve GOT LOVE.”

She laughs despite herself, but pushes it back towards him. “You sap.”

Link sends her a grin so bright she swears she can see sparkles in his eyes. Then he goes back to rifling through the conversation hearts. 

“Give up yet?” she asks. 

“Never. BAE?”

“No.”

“DREAM?”

“No. Is that supposed to be romantic? It’s just a noun.”

“Maybe you’ll like this one better, then. COOL CAT?”

“Why are they animal themed?”

Link laughs. “LUV U?”

“Love you too, but nope.”

“XOXO?”

“No.”

“DIG ME?” 

“What the—surely that doesn’t actually say that.” Link flashes her the face of the heart, and Zelda is slightly horrified to see that the heart is in fact that cringy. Her face of revulsion makes Link laugh, and he pops the orange candy into his mouth.

“Hmm. How about…YAAAS?” 

Zelda bursts into a loud cackle at the way he pronounces the word, then stifles it so as not to bother poor Paya and Yunobo too much. “You’re kidding me!”

“I didn’t hear a no to that one~” Link singsongs. He holds it against her lips.

“No way! ” She bats the yellow menace away. 

“How about…” Link looks down. There’s one last heart in his hand, a pink that matches the flush in her cheeks from laughing so hard. “KISS ME?”

Zelda looks into his eyes, and can’t help but let a large grin overtake her features. “Well, since you asked so nicely.”

She steps forward until she’s situated in the space between his dangling legs. His thighs give a brief squeeze to either side of her hips, welcoming her warmth, as she leans forward until they’re nose-to-nose. They’re so, so close now, enough that she can feel his sugar-sweet breath on her lips, and the heat of his cheeks against her own, and the tickle of his bangs on her forehead as they mix in with her own. 

And then she waits. 

As the tension builds, Link’s breath comes more and more shallowly where his chest presses against hers. It’s hard to make out all his features clearly with him so near—everything is just slightly out of focus, like a dreamy old film—but she doesn’t need to have 20-20 vision to see the way his pupils dilate as his gaze flickers down to her lips again and again.

Finally, he breaks. “Goddesses, Zel, just kiss me, please—” 

She does. 

He tastes of cloying banana from that last conversation heart, but she can’t find it in herself to care when his hands are winding into her hair and massaging the back of her neck like that, and his lips feel so plush under her own, and the slant of his hungry mouth against hers make her want to study nothing but every possible angle their kisses can take instead of her actual coursework. It’s warm and a little wet and so good that one kiss becomes two becomes five, until he pulls away with a gasp. He never was as good at holding his breath as her.

As they catch their breath, she admires those lips swollen from her kisses, and the deep pink tinging his cheeks and ears. She tucks a stray hair back behind one rosy lobe with a gentle hand. 

“You’re so beautiful,” she whispers. Her lips press lightly against his own with every syllable.

“That’s my line,” he whispers back. His eyes search her face, taking in the pride and desire and utter adoration she’s sure is projected by her every feature. She’s always had a very honest face.

“Link?”

“Yeah?” 

“Feed me that conversation heart before I change my mind.”

His laugh makes his lips brush against hers like the wings of a smotherwing butterfly. “I’m on it.” The pink heart replaces his mouth, and she mourns its loss even as she accepts the candy from his fingers.

It’s…very chalky, no matter what Link says. Sweet dust coats the surface of her tongue instantly. She bites down cautiously with the set of molars she trusts the most.

CRUNCH. 

They both jolt back at once; Link out of surprise at the sudden loudness, and Zelda with the shock and fear of did she just break a tooth? They stare at one another with matching wide eyes. And then—

“LINK! YOU SAID THEY WOULDN’T BREAK MY TEETH!”

“That must’ve just been a bad one, I swear—”

“I’M NEVER JOINING YOU FOR BOKOBLIN HOURS AGAIN!”

“Just try another! I’m telling you, none of them have been like that—” 

He can’t even finish his sentence before he’s scrambling up onto the countertops away from her wrathful hands. She ends up chasing him all around the kitchen, his nimbleness counterbalanced by her cleverness, until they’re both guffawing breathlessly against the fridge, the forgotten bag of conversation hearts crinkling underfoot. 

“GOT CHA,” Zelda wheezes, her hands fisting into Link’s ridiculous bathrobe.

“ONLY YOU,” he replies, and pulls her in for another kiss.

#my fanfiction #legend of zelda #zelda #zelink #zelinktines23 #thank you zelmo and pastels for betaing!!