The Legend of Zelda: Blood and Spirit

Chapter 6: Night Flying

Chapter 6: Night Flying

As the sun started to set over Skyloft, the Lumpy Pumpkin lit up as the party there kicked off. The entire restaurant was festive and warm, the scent of fresh pumpkin soup filling the large dinning room. Several young couples filed in holding hands, Link and Zelda among them. The hero was clad in his knight's uniform, as all the young men at the party were and the girl wore a simple, yet pretty violet dress, her blonde hair tied up into a neat braid. They both smiled to each other as they entered together, hoping that they were both thinking the same thing. In both of their minds, this party was of the upmost importance. It was where they intended for their relationship to get its official start. They couldn't afford to think what could happen if anything went wrong.

The first half of the evening went by in a blur for both of them. A large part of it consisted of enjoying a pleasant dinner and conversing with friends. They had a good time, but all either of them could really focus on throughout it was their nervousness about the whole situation. Zelda was terrified that Link wouldn't even ask her and Link was worried that he'd have no idea how to even ask Zelda when the time came. But even so, the two of them muddled through the party, never leaving each other's sides, despite their apparent apprehension.

As the feast wore on, a few couples took the floor to dance to the music preformed by a small band of academy students. Zelda grinned as a slow song began to play, knowing that this could be their chance. "Let's dance," she said to Link, taking by the hand and dragging him out onto the floor before he could protest. "Come on!"

The hero simply followed after her, realizing her intent. He silently commanded himself to relax and act natural as the two of them held hands and drew close to each other, barely needing to move along to the gentle tune.

"You know..." Zelda said quietly with a warm smile. "I'm having a really nice time with you."

"Thanks," Link said, returning her smile. "I'm having a great time with you too."

The girl could feel her cheeks grow slightly red as she prepared her next statement. "Um... Link?"

"Yeah?"

"I... I think that this could be considered our second... date..."

"Second?"

"Well, yeah," Zelda glanced down bashfully. "Because our first date was the Wing Ceremony... Remember?"

"How could I forget?" the hero said with a fond smile, thinking back to when he and Zelda preformed the Wing Ceremony together months ago and then flew around Skyloft together to celebrate Link's victory in the race. And despite it actually being their first date, it had ended in tragedy, as it was then that a tornado threw Zelda down to the surface, prompting Link to set off on his search to find her and bring her home. "Actually Zel, there's something that I want to ask you..."

"Yes?" the girl said, looking at him with hope in her dark blue eyes.

Link took in a deep breath, running over the question in his mind one last time. It was now, or never. "Zelda," he began, looking into her beautiful eyes and receiving his final confirmation to go on ahead. "Do you-" Before the hero could say another word, a sharp ripple of deep pain ran through him, its epicenter being the supposedly sealed wound in his chest. He was unable to stop himself from cringing from the sudden sting as the pain seemed to intensify with each passing second. Zelda immediately noticed that something was wrong and she was filled with concern as she watched his eyes shut in agony.

"Link?" she asked, slowly guiding them both away from the middle of the dance floor so they wouldn't draw unnecessary attention. "What's wrong?" She received no reply as he groaned in misery. Zelda bit her lip as she held onto his hands tightly, confused and frightened. She had no idea what could be wrong with him, though she knew it was something serious. After all, he was completely fine just a moment ago.