New Home - BotW Link x Reader (Undergoing Revisions)

Chapter 26 - The Hero Clad in Blue

We ran until our lungs were burning, crying out for air. We ran until our legs were ready to give out. We ran until we reached the cliff's face and despite the exhaustion, we did not rest.

When he broke into a sprint and then leapt up, grabbing hold of the rock, I followed. Though I had less luck than he to find secure footholds at first, I very quickly made up for it by climbing quickly, far quicker than I had ever climbed before.

He looked down at me over his shoulder once, grinning at how far behind him I was to start - surely thinking he was sure to win the race we'd silently agreed to.

He looked down at me again, his smile smaller but still bright, because I was still several paces behind him.

He looked down at me a final time, his jaw dropping down with shock because I'd caught up to him readily, and now threatened to surpass him as I gathered my feet beneath me and saw a wonderful hold several feet over me. Summoning up my courage and my strength, I leapt towards it, grasping on with both hands and landing rather ungracefully against the rock but staying strong all the same.

"Hey," he protested through a laugh. "That's not fair!"

"It isn't?"

"No! Get back down here!"

"Sure," I said, smiling down at him now. "Once I reach the top, I'll climb right back down to meet you!"

"You-!"

He was laughing, and so was I, and we both continued to climb, reinvigorated and wanting nothing more but to win. But my leap proved to be just the boost I needed, because I won the race hands-down.

I pulled myself up with more ease than I'd anticipated, and at long last, the effects of our footrace and the speedy climb caught up to me and I set my hands on my hips and sucked in a deep lungful of air. I stood tall even as my legs threatened to buckle, and I let out a breathy laugh at the silliness of it all.

When Link's face appeared up over the edge of the rock, looking awfully determined yet incredibly pouty, I grinned and knelt down, reaching for him. He took hold of my hand, and I clasped the other over it too before pulling with all my might. What I didn't account for was the adrenaline wearing off and my legs giving in.

I pulled him up, all right. And sent him tumbling right into me. My legs gave way beneath me and I suddenly found myself falling backward towards the ground below, and if not for Link's incredible reflexes, I would have made contact with the hard ground behind me but instead, he reacted, tugging me against him and managing somehow to twist us so that he ended up falling to the dirt instead.

With an undignified oof I landed against his chest, and rolled off him and got to my knees beside him before doing anything else.

His eyes were closed, his brow knit together as he laid there, and for a moment I was worried - but when I opened my mouth to call his name gently and ask if he was alright, his eyes snapped open and landed on me, nothing but mischief in his gaze. I shut my mouth right in that moment, though my lips curled anyway in a smile of my own.

"I'm fine, by the way," he answered before I could ask. "My ponytail broke my fall."

"You're sure? It's a small ponytail, Link."

"I'm alright, promise," he assured me. "Why? Should I grow my hair out?"

I chuckled lightly. "Only if you want to."

He accepted my assistance when I reached for him, and I helped him to sit up, then to stand. And then we were walking towards the canyon, and Link checked his map only once to ensure we were headed in the right direction to lead to where we'd left them.