Chapter 1- The Cabin

Legend of Zelda: Royal debauchery

They'd done it! They'd defeated Calamity Ganon! Princess Zelda felt the pride of their accomplishment swell in her chest as she hugged her hero, her champion, and knight, Link, the Hero of Hyrule. Surely nothing could bar their way now as they rode victoriously upon Link's noble white steed. In the back of her mind, Zelda noted it looked almost one to one to her former steed, but shrugged it off. Choosing instead to snuggle her face into Link's back and tighten her arms around his toned stomach.

Even though he was dirty and sweaty from the battle, to hold another human, not to mention her love, was thrilling. She'd longed to do it for so long now. And with no one else around, no royal decorum to keep up, no father to pester her, Zelda indulged to her heart's content.

They were bound for Hateno village, Link's hometown, and where his house was located. They'd go there first to recuperate from the battle with Ganon. After that, they'd begin the rebuilding of Hyrule in earnest!

That was the plan, at least. As they were making their way past the decrepit guardians and through the gates of the ruins of Hateno fort, it'd begun raining. Not a drizzling rain, but an outright downpour! Link urged the horse into the forests, revealing a cozy little cottage with a sign saying it was free to use for those in need.

Link entered the cottage without a single moment of hesitation, saying he'd used this place to rest during his journey to save her. He quickly set to work, making a fire to dry their soaked clothes. Their steed tied beneath the lean outside for shelter.

"Shame it couldn't stay sunny until we got home," Link laughed. "But I guess the weather doesn't care if you just defeated a legendary evil or not."

"I suppose it doesn't…" Zelda whispered, watching the torrential rain hammer against the single plane window. The thunder rumbled hard enough to shake the glass, and the lightning made it bright as day. "One could see it as raining on our victory parade, or perhaps the goddess is washing away the remaining traces of Ganon's evil."

Zelda clasped her hands, desperately hoping it was the latter. She wanted to believe this storm was a sign of an awaiting bright future and not a sign of more darkness to come. At the moment, it was impossible to say which.

SLOP!

The sound of wet fabric hitting the floor caused Zelda's long ears to flutter and her heart to pick up in rhythm. Slowly she turned her peering gaze to Link's taught back muscles as he stretched, his boots resting near the side of the chimney. Then, without a single thought of her presence began fiddling with the buckle of his trousers. His pants were below his knees when he finally remembered she was there, watching him.

"We'll catch a cold if we stay in these wet clothes." He said, completely correct about their current situation as he hung his trousers over the mantle with his tunic. Link stood before the fire in only his underwear, looking at her expectedly. "I know it's not proper… but…"

"No, no, I'm fine! Perfectly fine!" They'd roughed it, as much as a royal could be expected too, during their journey around Hyrule over a hundred years ago. She could handle this. Though back then, they'd divided the camp, so she'd only undressed around Mipha and Urbosa, separate from the men.

The dress she'd been wearing the day she'd gone to contain Calamity Ganon was horribly filthy from the battle and sopping wet. Almost see through, so it wasn't hiding much, anyway. So she had no qualms about taking it off, loosening the fastening strings on the back. She let it fall to the floor in a heap. Given the dress exposed her shoulders, she hadn't worn a bodice around her chest, leaving Zelda as naked as Link in the small cabin. Not that her white panties were doing much, either. In fact, they were uncomfortably wet. The less she thought about a hundred years of filth, the better. 

"Screw it," Zelda cursed for going all royal decorum. Who was she putting in on for, anyway? Link? He knew what laid behind her princess facade. It was her true self, the tomboyish, research minded weird girl. She peeled the panties from her person and hung them over the fire with the rest of the clothes, and huddled down near the flames to dry off. Link understandably stood a ways back. But she couldn't have that. "Come on, can't have you catching a cold either."

Zelda patted the floor next to her with a smile. "You can lose those damp trunks, too."

Perhaps it's her own lack of tack, but Link visibly relaxed and fully stripped before joining her by the fire. Offering a cheeky smile as they sat in silence. It was a ridiculous situation, a princess and her knight, naked in the same room. Not uncommon in romance stories, but those were a far cry from reality.

Speaking of reality. After they'd dried off, it was time for bed, since there wasn't much else to do. Zelda was eager to rest in a bed after a hundred years of battling Ganon in the spiritual realm. Only there was one minor problem. There was only one bed, and it was extraordinarily small.

"I'll run out and get my sleeping bag off Epona. You can sleep on the bed, Princess." Before Link could take a step, Zelda grabbed him by the ponytail. "Huh?"

"It would not do to make my savior sleep on the cold floor in a surely drenched sleeping bag, right after his epic battle, would it?" Zelda said. "It would spoil my name for the rest of time, if I were to allow that."

"As a knight, it would not do to allow a princess to sleep on the floor after rescuing her from an evil pig monster, either." Link countered rightly, but she had the perfect solution at hand.

"Then it's settled. We will both sleep on the bed."

"But Princess…"

Zelda wagged her finger. "No, no, it's Queen Zelda, now, King Link."

"K-king?"

"Yes, after all, we are rebuilding Hyrule together, right?"

"Right… but still… I'm not the kingly sort of person. Also, wouldn't that mean we're married? When did that happen? Not that I'm unhappy about it. I was going to…" Link stopped short, a blush rising to his cheeks. "I… well… you know."

"I do," Zelda admitted with her own blush. Perhaps she was taking this a bit far, but at this moment she could truly say what she wanted without reservation. "As for when that happened, it was now, when I declared it. That is one of my many powers as Queen of Hyrule, right?" She crawled on top of the bed, patting the narrow sliver beside her. "Now, come lay down next to your Queen, my King."

Link laughed, regaining his cheery vigor as he slid into the bed, his sword propped against the bedpost, just in case. "Honestly, I think you're taking this joke a bit too far."

Zelda stayed silent as Link wrapped his arm around her. The light from the fireplace slowly dimmed as she stared at Link's slumbering face. She should go to sleep too, but there was something she had to get off her chest. As bare as it was at the moment.

"I wasn't teasing," Zelda whispered so softly, she wasn't sure she heard her own voice. "You're the only King I want, Link."

She finally let her eyes drift closed, confident he hadn't heard her, until his arm tightened and pulled her even closer. Before Zelda could even yelp, Link's lips stole hers. She laid stunned as Link rolled back to his previous position, muttering the words she'd longed to hear and made the tips of her ears burn. 

"That's not fair…" She pouted, but couldn't keep the smile off her lips. She was the princess who'd lost everything, all her subjects, her very kingdom, even her closest friends and family, and yet, she'd gained everything she'd ever wanted.

Zelda hugged Link and buried her face in his chest. They needed to rebuild Hyrule as soon as possible, but no one would fault her if she didn't announce her return right away, right?

For only a little while, let me just be Zelda, and only Link's Zelda.