#fcau

“Mr. Captain Hero, sir?” Ravio’s voice sounds behind him. Link startles minutely before quickly turning around to face him, nearly knocking over his bottle of ink onto the reports he’d been reviewing. He must be especially tired to not have noticed someone entering his tent, he’s getting careless.

“What’s wrong, Ravio?” Willing his voice to not reveal how much he was just caught off guard, he lets himself calm down at the presence of the other. There’s no need to straighten up or stand at attention for an uncaring individual like Ravio. Although he finds himself growing concerned when Ravio lets the flap of his tent drop as he enters with a glaring lack of skip or bounce in his step.

“Nothing much,” The rabbit says with far less enthusiasm than what Link has gotten so used to, “Just wanted to try something.”

Link frowns and slowly places his quill down, now giving Ravio his full attention.

“This isn’t like you, did something happen?” He vocalizes his thoughts aloud. Ravio chuckles nervously, but shakes his head.

“No, my cowardice is trying to get the best of me, is all.”

Link gives a noncommittal hum. For a self-proclaimed coward, Ravio rarely shows any fears in social interactions. Unless he’s speaking to a particularly powerful individual whom he feared retaliation from like Impa or Midna, he has no qualms about pestering someone—or overall being a general pain in the ass. Seeing the ears of his rabbit hood lowered so far down and pressed against his back is an odd, unfamiliar sight.

Link decides he doesn’t like it at all.

“Well, I’m willing to hear you out, at least.” He offers, admittedly curious about what exactly has Ravio acting in this manner. Ravio has come up to him countless times with absolutely absurd requests that he had no shame asking him to do, to the point that Link had nearly believed him to be shameless.

Yet here he sits and watches how that very same man stands before him and wrings his hands together, the repeated glances at the entrance barely noticeable under his hood. Link isn’t too sure what he’s worried about, especially considering the fact it’s usually Link himself that’s the one worrying about people coming in, not Ravio.

“My meeting was not too long ago, and considering how late it is, nobody should come inside, sans an emergency. Anything important enough would’ve been told to me during the meeting.” Despite feeling like this situation is awfully backwards, Link attempts to reassure him. It doesn’t do much, judging by how Ravio’s shoulders are still so stiff.

“Right.” Is Ravio’s equally stiff response. Then it falls silent for so long Link half wonders if Ravio is just testing his patience. Regardless of the quite honestly uncomfortable silence, Link continues to wait instead of pushing him. It is rather difficult not to shuffle around, though.

“Can you close your eyes?” Ravio suddenly blurts out. Link stills and turns his attention away from a random crack on the ground back to Ravio.

“What?” Befuddlement leaks into his voice before he can stop it, but in spite of that, Ravio doesn’t give further clarification behind his request. Instead, he continues to wordlessly wring his hands together.

“I…” Surely Ravio notices how suspicious of a request that is, especially with the way he’s acting? He’s never doubted Ravio before, and he certainly doesn’t want to now. But the Rogue Forces have been growing in number as the war drags on longer and longer. Citizens and soldiers alike are tired of the war. Ravio is tired of the war.

He wouldn’t join the Rogue Forces, right?

“... Alright.” Link manages to say through his heart threatening to leap out his throat. It aches with betrayal that hasn’t even happened yet—with betrayal that won’t happen. He’s tired and being stupid, Ravio would tease him and point out this fact, demanding that he chill out and then help him do exactly that.

Yet the Ravio here only gives a sigh of relief and steps closer. Link reminds himself not to stiffen up because this is Ravio and Ravio wouldn’t betray him for some Force that he always complains about, and even if he did, he would never try to hurt him in such a dirty way after everything they’ve—

“You can’t open your eyes, okay?”

Link doesn’t trust his voice enough to verbally respond, instead he simply closes his eyes to obey Ravio’s request. More horrible silence before the faint rustle of fabric is heard. Despite his internal mantra of ‘Don’t flinch’, he does, and his eyes fly open to snap up to Ravio again. Ravio stands frozen before him, arms raised with aborted movement. The rabbit looks startled, but apparently Link isn’t doing as great of a job of looking calm as he thinks he is, because understanding quickly reflects on Ravio’s face.

“Oh.” Is Ravio’s breathed out response. Slowly, carefully, as if he were allowing Link to track his every movement, he lowers his hands to instead hold them out for Link to see.

“You’re jumpier than me right now, Mr. Captain Hero, sir. I’m sorry that I’m the one to have caused that this time.” Ravio softly murmurs as Link takes in the sight of the other’s completely empty hands. He’s both grateful and incredibly ashamed that he feels relieved by something that should be so obvious.

Nonetheless, Ravio’s voice holds no malice nor blame. Just as slowly as before, Ravio raises his hands up until he’s cupping Link’s jaw and tilting his head up to meet his gaze. Or rather, the hideous gaze of that horrible hood of his. Link snorts at the ridiculous sight and leans into the gentle touch.

“... It’s fine. Sorry for opening my eyes.” He’s still not sure why exactly Ravio wanted him to do this, but he has nothing to worry about. This is the same Ravio as always. If he couldn't trust Ravio, he couldn't trust anyone—and quite honestly, Link never wants to reach that point.

A chuckle, “Just listen to me this time.” Ravio playfully places a hand over his eyes to block out his vision. Link decides to play along with a huff and closes his eyes again, letting Ravio have his way with his little idea. But the hand doesn't retract and Link can feel Ravio’s heistance even without being able to see him.

“I will.” Link says, then upon realizing that there was probably too much of a gap between Ravio’s statement and his own, he clumsily added, “Listen to you, I mean.”

The giggle Ravio lets out sounds genuine, and Link tries not to frown like a child would pout, as he’d undoubtedly be called out for it. But his unintellectual response serves its intended purpose of relaxing the unusually nervous rabbit. Ravio finally pulls away but doesn’t step back. Instead, the faint rustling of fabric is heard again.

“Mr. Captain Hero, sir?”

“What?”

“Can I kiss you?”

Link’s first thought is, ‘I’m pretty sure we’re doing this whole maybe-relationship thing in the wrong order.’, and his second is the realization of, ‘He took off his hood.’ Link resists the urge to take a peek of the face Ravio so resolutely hides with all his might. Ravio has never broken his trust before, and Link absolutely refuses to be the one to be the one to break it instead. He pours so much determination into keeping his eyes shut that he’s late to notice he hasn’t given a response to Ravio’s request.

“Yeah, sure.” He nods, completely and totally smooth. It isn’t as if this is his first kiss, and he’s not the type to get nervous over something as minor as kisses. But also the thought of Ravio finally trusting him enough to remove his hood—even with the condition of him not looking—has him feeling like a teenage boy sitting alone with their crush for the first time. It doesn’t help that he’s pretty sure what he feels for Ravio has long since exceeded the mere casual interest he had before.

He's hyperaware of Ravio’s every following action. Fingers lightly graze along his jaw until his cheek is being caressed again—yet this time, it’s impossibly more gentle. He’s not used to such careful treatment and it only causes his nerves to intensify. He finds himself gulping as Ravio’s fingers bury into his hair, lightly scratch his lower scalp, and ultimately give their all to build up the most nerve-wracking kiss Link has ever felt in his life.

Which is over before he can even fully process the fact that it's happening.

It's quick and light, nothing more than a chaste peck and completely unlike what he was expecting from someone like Ravio. It also leaves his face beet red.

“Oh, if I'd have known I could've made you blush from something like this, I would've done it ages ago!” Ravio's voice is embarrassingly giddy and clearly more than eager to tease him. Link instantly realizes that Ravio is not going to let this go for a very, very long time.

“Alright, alright, laugh it up.” He groans, pulling away from the cradle his face is being held in, “You've had your fun, can I open my eyes now?”

“Absolutely not, I'm not done kissing you yet.” Ravio grabs his face again and forces it back up, Link grunts but doesn't fight it despite his put-on frown.

“You asked for a kiss, singular.” Link points out with a quiet grumble. Lips peck his forehead briefly to silence him.

“And now I'm taking more.” Says his rabbit in a singsong. Link’s lips quirk up in a smile to match the one he cannot see but can hear.

“Scammer.”

Ravio tsks lightly at his fond insult.

“How many times must I tell you that my business is honest and true, hm?”

“Absolutely nothing about your business is honest or true.”

Ravio gasps in mock offense, “I cannot believe the so-called Hero would do such a cruel and vile thing as slandering a good-hearted and honest man! I demand retribution!”

“Oh? And how exactly are you going to obtain that?” Link cocks his head to the side, brow raised in question.

“Well,” Ravio's hands free his face, only to slide over his shoulders as the rabbit settles down on his lap, “You can't slander me if your lips are too busy being kissed.”

“Hm.” Link hums as if pondering the statement, “I suppose that's true.”

“It is. So you're going to sit right there while I get my rightful retribution.” Ravio rests his forehead against his own. Link has long since stopped trying to fake a frown, instead he smiles and gently nudges back in an affectionate headbutt of sorts.