A/N: As I ease into the LoZ fanfiction world, I present you with my very first multi-chapter Zelda fic. I'm so excited for this! There will be drama, romance, humor... and maybe other things. I will try to keep the characters in character, since I can't really see myself having AS MUCH wiggle room as I did with Kingdom Hearts, but regardless, I'll probably end up adding some OOCness eventually. Just a warning. Hehe... so please read, enjoy, review and if people like this, I shall continue!

This takes place in Skyward Sword.

I guess the ship is called ZeLink. :)

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Stars

Summary: Karane and Pipit want to thank Link for helping them realize their own feelings for each other, so they try to get Link and Zelda together, but it proves to be more difficult than the lovebirds originally thought. Will Link and Zelda ever get over their fears or are they destined to just be friends forever?

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One

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Link wasn't one to get into other people's personal affairs. Although he thought of himself as a great listener and friend, he really didn't have the interest in who liked who or whatever gossip went on around Skyloft. Link liked being in his own little world, doing his own things.

But yet, his friends continued to come to him for advice.

It all started when he overheard that Karane had a huge crush on a man named Pipit. Link didn't really listen for these things, but things just tended to spread quickly in this town. It seemed like everyone around him was into the latest buzz. At the time, he just brushed it off and went back to eating.

That is—until Karane actually came to him. He was just laying in his dorm room when she knocked on his door. Lazily, Link called, "Who is it?"

"It's me... Karane."

"Come in."

Karane was a senior at the Knight Academy. She was popular among many, but at the same time she was very modest and down to earth. Karane took a seat in the desk chair and faced Link, who now knew that the little time he had to nap before his next class was gone.

"What do you think of Pipit?" she asked. Link didn't have much of an opinion of the guy; he was older and Link respected him.

"Why are you asking?" Link knew the answer, but he had to entertain himself somehow. Flustered, the redhead just turned and looked away. Link chuckled at her and said, "I hope things work out."

...and they did.

A month later, Karane and Pipit's feelings were mutual and they started going out. Even though Link felt like he did absolutely nothing, they both thanked him tremendously for bringing them together. Link just took it and moved on with his day. He was happy for them.

When Zelda heard this news, she was ecstatic and made sure to give her blessings to her. Shortly after, she spotted Link just outside of the Academy. Zelda hurried downstairs to catch up with him. Before he could do anything, she jumped onto his back and Link was forced to hold her in place as she nearly choked him from the impact.

"Hiya, best friend!"

"Gah, Zel-" Link tried to loosen her grip, but Zelda's excitement was clouding her perception. Finally, Link was able to breathe. He turned to scold her, but she just laughed. 'She's so pretty...' Link thought to himself; in a daze. They walked side by side down to the waterfall. They sat down and just enjoyed the peaceful sounds of nature.

"Isn't it just so romantic, Link?"

"What?" he obviously wasn't paying attention. Link lay down in the grass and stared up at the sky.

But Zelda just continued. "He confessed his love to her. How sweet..." there was a hint of sadness in her voice as she gazed at the waterfall. "I wish that would happen to me..."

Link glanced up at her and sighed. "Maybe it will." He didn't want it to happen with some other guy, though.

Zelda was secretly frustrated with her best friend. He could never take any hints. She was madly in love with him and he didn't have a clue. On various occasions she tried to make it blatantly obvious, but the boy was oblivious. Unless she kissed him or something, he would probably never figure it out. Zelda looked down at Link, whose eyes were now closed and it seemed like he had fallen asleep. Creepy or not, she loved watching him sleep. She would have gotten down there with him, but he was such a light sleeper he would wake up immediately and probably attack her out of instinct.

The best part was when he started snoring.

Zelda giggled at him; he was so adorable. They had been best friends since they could walk. He knew her likes, dislikes, dreams and everything in between.

Well, everything but her undying love for him.

Zelda was too afraid to tell him. She didn't want to ruin her friendship with some silly crush.

But maybe it had gone way beyond a crush. She often found herself drifting off during class and just thinking about him. Whenever someone mentioned his name, she felt all giddy inside. When he looked at her—when he smiled at her, it was like he only saw her. (At least that's what Zelda wanted to believe). Link had his own quirks about him that only came out around his best friend and she felt special for being able to see his true self. To everyone else, Link was quiet and reserved. With Zelda, he was almost a different person. He would joke around with her all the time. He wasn't afraid to be himself.

The same went for Zelda; with the exception of not telling him her deepest secret. Sometimes people would mistake them for a couple; in which Zelda didn't mind at all, but Link would immediately correct them in a nervous manner. This disappointed her a bit, but she hoped that someday it would change. Maybe someday Link would finally realize her feelings for him and they could have the happily ever after like Karane and Pipit. She had no idea how Link truly felt about her; he never wanted to talk about it. Not that she asked, anyway. All she knew was that he was very timid when it came to romantic situations.

Zelda returned to her dorm about an hour later. It was getting dark and she was kind of tired. She didn't bother to wake Link up. He liked sleeping outside, anyway. Karane met her in the hallway; their rooms were right next to each other. Anyone could see that she was glowing—and she deserved it. Zelda gave her a soft smile before opening her door. Just as she was about to go inside, Karane stopped her.

"Zelda, can we talk?"

"Hm? Oh, sure." Zelda let her into her dorm room.

"Pipit and I have been wondering how to thank Link for helping us." Karane smiled mischievously at her, "...we know you two really like each other."

Zelda quickly tried to deny it, but she knew that it was pointless. Even though Link couldn't see through her advances, everyone else pretty much knew how Zelda felt. "...alright, you got me."

Karane squealed so loud that Zelda had to shush her. "I don't have all of the details yet, but we want to help you two finally confess."

"Just because I'm in love..." Zelda paused, "...with him, doesn't mean he feels the same."

"So?! I didn't know how Pipit felt about me but look at us now!" Karane exclaimed; all of the lovey-dovey stuff must have gone to her head because no matter what they were going to do, there was no way that Link would fall for it. (He was only dense in certain situations). "Come on, Zelda!"

"I'll... think about it."

It was true, she did want Link to know; she was tired of holding it in, but at the same time, was she ready for it? Zelda had no idea what she would do if he rejected her feelings. She couldn't even stand the thought of losing Link—the one she loved the most.

Karane gave her a sympathetic look; she knew that Zelda was afraid. However, Karane believed that Link really did have feelings for Zelda. It was just a hunch at first, but after watching those two interact for so long what else could it be? Honestly, for the longest time Karane was jealous of the two. The way Link acted around her was nothing short of someone that was in love, no matter how much he tried to hide it. Maybe Zelda didn't see it, but she did. It was all in his eyes. That was why she was absolutely sure that this would work out in the end and it was the only way she could thank Link. However, she came to Zelda because she knew how Link was.

He just needed a little push.

o.o.o

The next morning, Link woke up by the waterfall right where Zelda left him. Link sat up, stretched and yawned. He had no idea what time it was. Although he was a bit disappointed that Zelda didn't stay with him, it wasn't like he expected her to do so.

There was no way he would ever tell her that.

There were a lot of things that Link kept to himself, but his feelings for Zelda were buried so deep he would basically have to be tortured to reveal them. (Or one or both of them would have to be on the brink of death, whichever...). The truth was, Link didn't want to seem vulnerable around someone that he vowed to protect. He didn't want her to know and possibly act differently around him. He liked the way things were, even if he sometimes had to hold things in. As long as he could have her as a friend, he was fine.

He did wonder, though.

"Fancy finding you here," he heard Pipit behind him and jumped up. Pipit looked at him inquisitively, but then just shook his head and smiled. "You missed sparring class."That meant that it was the afternoon and Link was in big trouble. In a panic, he gathered his things, but stopped when he realized Pipit was laughing at him."I'm only kidding. Classes were canceled today."

"Really?" Link asked as he put his boots back on.

"Yeah, not sure why." A bit relieved, Link just sat there are watched the waterfall. He heard something in the bushes behind him, as if someone was coming. Link listened carefully and prepared himself; it was just a habit of his to be cautious. It wasn't Pipit; Pipit was standing right next to him. "Oh, hey Karane. Hey, Zelda!"

Link turned and saw the girls approaching them. Upon first glance, he noticed that Zelda was wearing a little more makeup than usual. Her hair was also tied up in a bun, something he had never seen her do. Pipit put his arm around Karane and they sat down a short distance away from Link, making some room for Zelda. Zelda seemed a bit shy; as if she was waiting for Link's approval to sit next to him. Confused, Link patted the ground next to him and she did so.

"You look like a clown." Link said bluntly.

"See, Karane? I told you." Zelda scoffed. Karane just giggled.

Link couldn't understand why girls thought that makeup enhanced their natural beauty, so they said and he thought Zelda was beautiful just the way she was. So whenever Zelda did something like this, he felt a little weird. In order to shake off the awkward feeling, Link resorted to teasing her. "Are you trying to impress someone?" Link asked, making Zelda blush.

"N-No. Just trying... something new."

Suddenly, Link pulled out whatever was holding the bun up and Zelda's long, blonde hair fell down her back. She was about to protest, but was in awe when all Link did was smile at her. "This is better," he told her and threw the tie into the water. Pipit and Karane just chuckled to themselves. Zelda felt more embarrassed than she should have been, but she couldn't help it.

"R-Right..." Zelda avoided his gaze.

Karane and Pipit stood up. "Tonight there will be some games going on near the bazaar; you two should stop by!" Karane exclaimed. "We'll be going, now." They waved to the couple and were once again left alone. Zelda turned to Link.

"So... you really think that this is too much?"

"Of course I do." Link knew he could be honest with his best friend.

"Then... what do you suggest that I do?"

Link sighed and said, "Just be yourself and whoever it is will like you that way."

Her feelings for him were getting harder and harder to control.

'It's you, idiot...'

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A/N: I'm going to end the chapter here! So... what do you think so far? Should I continue? Let me know with a review. Have an awesome day!