"Some beautiful things last forever." Link leads Zelda to a place of memory in hopes of finally being able to confess his feelings. Will Link be able to bring himself to tell her the truth of his heart?

A/N: My attempt at writing a comedy ended up in being a sappy romance scene. Will this author ever be able to write something ON TASK? --sigh-- oh well. Enjoy this one shot. --goes off to strangle the evil pointless plot bunnies--

Disclaimer: I don't own Zelda. That belongs to Nintendo. Link on the other hand... lol, kidding. He belongs to Nintendo, too.

It was late into the night, but Hyrule was as beautiful as always. The moon hung high in the vacuous midnight ocean and the stars twinkled amidst the dark here and there. The soft glow rained down from the heavens and outlined every corner of this magical land, enhancing its allure. There was a sleepy silence throughout the vast kingdom, for all was asleep. All but two very mischievous individuals.

He led her through the thick brush of trees he knew so well, her small hand in his much larger hands, and she blindly followed to wherever it was he was leading her. He did not give details to where their destination was; he only spoke once, and that was that he was taking her to some place.

The rapping at the window was what woke her. Opening her eyes and pulling her robes around her, she went to see what foolish imp was throwing rocks at this late a time, but she knew who she would find below in her garden. He was often the perpetrator of such flying rocks, and broke her window one too many times because of it. She quickly pulled her window open and scolded the boy in a sleepy hiss.

He smiled. She would never understand what it was about him that made her smile in return, but she easily dropped her angry tone and allowed him to explain himself. He burst into an excited speech of broken sentences of which she could not understand a single word. She simply blinked at him, unsure of what to respond when he asked for an answer. Taking her silence as agreement, he climbed up and dragged her down.

She groggily protested, looking back to her window and her room where her bed was beckoning her to return to welcoming dreams. He threatened to throw her over his shoulder and she gave in, silenced by the thought of being treated like a sack of potatoes. She glared at her kidnapper; She was princess, but he seemed to think nothing of it and treat her nothing like it. So to the woods they rode, away from the walls of great Castle Town.

And soon enough, here they were, within the magical forest of slumbering Kokiri, and still she knew not of where they were headed. His excitement did not die down, either, as time passed by. She was curious, to say the least, but more-so tired. When would they ever get to where this crazy boy wanted to be. Bump.

He stopped in the middle of his tracks and she walked into him. She grumbled as she rubbed her nose gingerly, wondering what he was suddenly doing. She opened her mouth to state his treason when no words escaped from finally seeing what he had wanted to show her.

The tree's parted in a nearly perfect circle and the moon and stars were in perfect view; its light bathed the small meadow and exposed many flowers of different colors that grew here. She could not help but smile, this was far better than any dream could be. She looked at him, and he smiled, pulling her alongside him to a tree. She squinted as she saw markings on a large tree that out grew the rest. When the words were able to be clearly read, she gasped out loud.

"Link and Zelda"

After all these years, it was still here. Her heart felt light at remembrance.

They were but children then, playing in the forest on one brilliant spring day. They had gotten lost and Zelda was worried out of her mind. But Link, on the other hand, was not worried nor scared at all. He simply made a game out of it all. He picked up a stone and carved his name into a tree, saying this would commemorate the day he got lost. Laughing, the princess took the stone and carved her name next to his in addition.

Zelda ran her fingers over the old decoration, "How many years has it been?"

"Seven," He replied, "and here it is, even after..."

Zelda placed her hand on Link's mouth, silencing him, and nodded in understanding. Sad memories were the last things she wanted to think about during moments like these. She slowly removed her hand and smiled at him, changing the topic. "It's amazing, isn't it? Some beautiful things last forever."

He looked at her and nodded, a different, beautiful thing on his mind, "they do."

She sat at the bottom of the tree, gathering her knees into her arms and looking into the endless sky. Link plopped beside her, taking his hat off and picking at it with nervous hands. There was a silence, though it was not unpleasant for both enjoyed even the presence of each other, but Zelda looked to Link and his dusty cap and giggled, "You've had that ruddy thing since... well, I can't even remember. Why don't you get a new one?”

"Because my mother left it with me."

That was the first time Zelda had heard him mention his mother. His mother who was said to have long passed on to the next realm. Speechless, she placed a hand on his as a sign of endearment.

He took her hand and gingerly squeezed it as affection in return. "It's one of those things you can never let go of," he explained, holding on.

For a long moment she could only stare into his deep blue eyes. What was he implying? She felt a blush creep up her cheeks as he pulled her closer. He embraced her and it took her a moment to register what he meant. She let out a pensive sigh and wrapped her arms around him, her head resting on his shoulder, "I understand."

“Zelda?” He asked, sounding much like his child self again, a tone of innocence and curiosity.

"Hm?" She stayed there, in his arms. He was much too comforting to ever want to release.

"I..." He stopped, finding it hard to speak such simple words. All the courage in the world could not assist him here, and neither could the triforce. After an awkward pause, he escaped his own trap with a silly "I'm glad I met you." Goddesses forgive him for still being but a boy of only seventeen.

It was not what she had imagined. She let out an inward sigh, and again she stated her understanding. She backed away and looked into his eyes, "I'm glad I met you, too, Link." She smiled in acknowledgement, "I don't know where I would be without you."

"Lost, of course," he laughed, regaining his composure. "It was me who led us back home after we got lost here the first time, after all," He stated triumphantly.

"We wouldn't have gotten lost in the first place, hadn't it been for you," Zelda smirked as his mock arrogance faded into a sheepish smile.

"I didn't ask you to get lost with me," he defended.

"Who knows what could have happened if I left you alone, poor boy," She mocked, smirking as he grunted with frustration. She never lost debates, and he was not one to give up so easily, either.

"You worry too much," he replied, "I'm better off alone."

Zelda frowned at his bitter sarcasm, "better off alone?"

"See? You worry too much!" he laughed. "Of course I need you, Zelda." His face flushed with revelation of what just slipped out of his mouth.

Easing him of his own defeat, she simply smiled at him and leaned on his shoulder. "Thank you, Link."

He closed his eyes, the warmth of her heart was calming. He loved her so much, and it was he who had to thank her. She made him smile, this girl who haunted his dreams day and night. This unbelievable girl who rendered him speechless. For a long moment he recollected all those memories of her. He cherished her, so very much. Her friendship. Her love.

When he opened his eyes, she was sound asleep. It was then he whispered to the sleeping princess "I love you."