Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Name: [Y/N] [L/N]
Age: 18 (Only just turned)
Species: Human(?) 
Pronouns: She/Her
Sexuality: Doesn’t have a preference 
Weapon: Uses any. 
Height: 5’6
Likes: (your likes)
Dislikes: (your dislikes)
Attributes: Speaks whenever she’s angry, or irritable. Other than that, she tends to be quite emotionless and doesn’t speak. 
Scars? Yes, numerous across her stomach, arms, along her collarbone and her cheek. 
Any birthmarks? Has a small wolf-shaped mark on the inside of her thigh. 
Any nicknames? “Hero”, “Twilight”, “Beast”, “Muse”

How she sees each (main) character: 

Zelda- Friend

Mipha- Best Friend 

Revali- Rival/Friend (that she wants to punch)

Urbosa: Close

Impa: Friend

Daruk: Close

Purah: Friend

Robbie: Friend 

Any other character: is either a friend or an acquaintance.

Chapter Text

The knights all stood before the stone arch, before the gate. The flags of Hyrule swept across the sky from the small breeze in the air. Each knight raised their gaze to watch King Rhoam above, awaiting his command.

One such knight was [Y/N], suffering with a heavy heart after the death of her father. Her face was covered by a mask up to her nose, hiding the small scars along her mouth and cheeks. There had been a memorial a few days ago, mourned by even the King himself, as her father had been the Commander of the Knights, and his death seemed to come from nowhere. But, she knew she could not let her loss affect her when battle was about to commence. 

Above stood King Rhoam adorned in a golden crown, with wings on either side, with emeralds adorned with gold under his chest. His gaze was calculating and the very air he stood in was one of authority.

"Listen well, soldiers of Hyrule. In our long history, we have scarcely faced a threat of this magnitude. A time we truly would need Alastair to fight by our side but due to recent circumstances, he died only a few days previous." [Y/N]’s fist clenched at her side. “The years have passed quickly since Calamity Ganon’s revival was prophesied. Yes, we have unearthed the Divine Beasts and filled our volumes with our knowledge of ancient relics. But a barricade of books will not protect us. Beacause this surges a horde like we have never faced before. But now the enemy is clawing for our throat- for Hyrule Castle itself.” In the distance, monster hordes were beginning to head across the field towards Hyrule Castle. Their purple eyes burned intensely, the weapons they held in their hands were ready for blood. They seemed more mischievous, perhaps even slightly violent, than that aggressive. 

King Rhoam rose his hand to the skies. “We must exterminate the monsters roaming Hyrule Field. Thus will begin our renewed effort to stop the Calamity!” The sword in the King’s hand was steady. The gold shimmered in the light as he held it to the skies; the crest of Hyrule was etched into the centre with gold. “Here, now, go forth! And be brave for your kingdom.”

Each knight rose their swords to the sky, their armour reflecting the sun’s rays above. [Y/N] held her sword, aiming it towards the sky, a determination flickering across her face, hope shone within her eyes. She was determined to protect Hyrule, for her the Kingdom, for her mother and for her father. She would even die in battle if that meant her mother could live.

[Y/N] sped forward as cannons fired into the monsters all around her, killing them on impact. The smell of gunpowder was metallic and much like sulfur; it clung to her senses and the air itself. She took her sword from her hilt, keeping it against her side and she scanned the field. Some Bokoblins ran towards her and with a swift slash of her sword, she cut them down before they could even raise their own weapons. She sped forward, again, this time holding her sword against her chest, spinning several times in a circle; the Bokoblins around her were sent flying into the air.

The last monsters who managed to get through the gate before it was closed were soon eradicated by the cannons lining the castle. 
“It seems we have purged the horde from the castle. Well fought, all.”

The young knight headed further down the field, near one of the outposts. A Moblin, around 7’ tall headed towards her with a black club; it raised it high above its head, slamming it down towards her until she dodged by rolling to the side. She abruptly stood, her hand tightened around the hilt of her sword, and stabbed it in the side. [Y/N]’s eyes widened slightly as the Moblin began to spin in a circle, the club very close to connecting with the knight’s face. She slid her sword back into her hilt; she jumped backwards, using her hands to land before landing in her feet. The Moblin almost fell forward, dizzied. It managed to catch itself before it fell, and stood, to face her. Slowly, her hand grasped around the hint of her sword, and lodged it into the heart of the Moblin. Black slowly covered each inch of its red skin until it exploded completely in black smoke, dropping its green guts on the ground as it disappeared into the air. 
“Well, well! We have a Moblin slayer among us.”

Looks like it’s time to get the outposts back, [Y/N] thought. 

A small guardian rested, idle, against a stone. A light blue butterfly battered its wings several times until it landed on the guardian, its wings wide. The young knight was able to rest for just a moment. Her shield rested against her back- it was a gift from her father. She barely used it as often as she possible should since it was the last present he had given her before his death. The shield itself was decorated in silver, with an angel on the left holding a Crystal as their wings were bright on either side, whilst a demon, who seemed to be a friend to this angel, stood on the other side, holding another crystal, as its fluffed up tail wrapped around their waist. It’s eyes were black, and glowing. Despite its monstrous appearance, there was an innocence and kindness to its eyes. 

The grass was covered with light blue flowers, the stone walls all around her were towering over the smaller buildings made of stone, covered with the insignia of the Royal Hylian family. The very one blood red against her chest. Another butterfly flapped its wings and landed on the small guardian. [Y/N] turned to it, eyes widening in surprise. She had seen the larger guardians all around the castle walls, unearthed, and soon to be cleansed. But this one? It was so small.

She bent down to touch it until a swarm of red Bokoblins were running after Impa, the Royal Advisor, who was holding something in her arms. She spotted [Y/N] and called for help before tripping over; the object she had held flew into the air, activating. It shone with orange and blue, traces over in the shape of the Sheikah emblem. The small guardian’s eye flashed with a blue, circular light. The butterflies flew off in opposite directions as it started to raise itself from the rubble. 

[Y/N] jumped up and caught it, sliding her sword from her hilt until...

The ground beneath their feet began to shake.

”Huh? Why is this happening?!“

A tower rose from the ground below them into the air, throwing off rocks as it rose. As she turned around, the small guardian from before blared its light, and she could not help but stare. 

Impa stared at the slate in [Y/N]’s hands, her eyes widening in surprise. As Impa spoke, the young knight continued to slash through the monsters circling them, “The Sheikah Slate! It’s been activated! Purah said the slate might have powers to help our fight!” Quickly, [Y/N] pressed the centre of the Slate and a blue, glowing bomb landed in her hand. Her eyes focused on the bomb for a moment, something on the tip of her tongue. How did this happen? 

This was strange but...she liked it. So bright. 

Whilst everyone else had ran away from Castle Town, or had hidden themselves inside their homes, [Y/N]’s mother, Alessia, had remained in the exact same place. Her wooden crates were filled with different fruits, with fish placed on either side, along with the meat she kept in crates. Her arms rested underneath her chest as her purple eyes were narrowed, staying her ground against the Bokoblins who were threatening her with their weapons. 

“I am NOT going to move. Threatening me with your weapons won’t make me do as you say.” Alessia looked up to see her daughter slam her fist into the ground and the monsters immediately died, their red skin turned to purple and smoke exploded around them, leaving behind its teeth and guts. 

“Ah, [Y/N], it’s good to see you. How’s the battle commencing, sweetie?” The older woman smiled, as [Y/N] and even Impa, who was curious to who this woman was and why she was just standing whilst a battle was going on, stepped beside [Y/N]. [Y/N] raised her eyebrow in confusion and she scratched between her eyes, a barely audible sigh escaping from her lips.

Alessia placed her hands on her hips, her sweet smile changing so quickly into a scowl it frightened Impa slightly. But for the young knight? She was unaffected by it. “Don’t look at me like that, [Y/N]! I need to get rupees however I can. But, it appears I came to Castle Town when you were in the middle of a battle. Where should I go next, I wonder?”
Impa softly spoke, her tone nervous under the older woman’s stare, “It is quite dangerous around here, Miss. Maybe the Zora’s Domain would be the best option?”
Alessia scratched under her chin as her previously kind smile playing across her face, “Zora Domain? I do hear it’s quite lovely up there.”

“Just go there, Mother. It’s dangerous here, unless you intend to fight. I will see you later, be careful.” [Y/N] spoke, walking off with slight irritability. Impa watched after her in shock. The young knight had never spoken in front of her before. 
Alessia let out a laugh at the young woman’s confusion. “I see this is the first time she has spoken before you, young one. She only speaks when it’s important. She hasn’t spoken ever since her father died a few days ago and yet, this is the first time she’s spoken. She...look after her.” Impa could only nod in response.

After the Moblins had been defeated by both Impa and [Y/N], Impa placed her hand against her chin to study the small guardian making gentle noises. She cast her eyes from the small guardian to the tower above them. “Hmm...An inexplicable Guardian...and a mysterious tower. I hate to say it, but we have little hope of figuring this out on our own.” The small Guardian started or run off towards Hyrule castle, with Impa and [Y/N] close behind.

Around ten minutes later, Impa and [Y/N] reached the inside of Hyrule Castle. The Royal Advisor held the Sheikah Slate with both hands. Princess Zelda, dressed in a royal blue dress, wearing a golden circlet adorned with red jewels, stepped from inside one of the forts with her hands clasped at her stomach. She stepped into the sun, a soft smile reaching her lips as her eyes met with Impa’s. Relief covered her chest, and she could feel content. She had been worried for her dear friend’s well-being even if her Royal Advisor was capable of protecting herself. 

“You made it! I’m glad you’re safe, Impa.” 
As Impa stood closer to Zelda, the young knight rested against one knee, one hand against her chest, whilst her eyes barely reached the ground. “Yes, Your Highness. And I’ve received the Sheikah Slate from Purah!”

The small guardian was about to run towards Zelda until [Y/N] grabbed hold of it, and rose it above her head as it continued to make noise. Impa and Zelda looked up in alarm; the Sheikah Slate began to flash orange and blue; Impa rose it for Zelda to see. The Sheikah Slate glowed with a blue Sheikah symbol as it was focused on the small guardian.

The Sheikah Slate conveyed the little Guardian’s purpose. This anomalous visitor had traveled from a future of ruin- a time in the midst of Calamity- to save Princess Zelda. Impa proposed recruiting Purah and Robbie, renowned researchers of ancient technology, to study the Guardian and investigate the mysterious tower that had appeared on Hyrule Field. King Rhoam of Hyrule gave his assent. 

Chapter Text

Zelda, curious about the diminutive Guardian, decided to accompany Impa on her journey to Purah’s research facility in Hateno. With [Y/N] acting as bodyguard, they made their way to the Ancient Tech Lab.

Zelda, Impa, [Y/N], the small Guardian and two guards walked along the stone path, towards their destination. The Princess walked in front of them, wearing a royal blue shirt, with a white design almost in the shape of angel wings. Below her chest she wore a gold belt marked with the Triforce, along with a pair of black trousers, boots, and blue clips on either side of her head. Her gaze was serious and well kept with each step she took. The very reminder of what she needed to achieve was a frequent thought that passed over her.

Each action she took was one step closer to releasing her powers bestowed upon her from the Goddess. She needed to unseal them in order to fulfil her purpose of sealing Gabon away for good. But...what if she was unable to do such a thing? What if she was too late?

Her internal thoughts were interrupted by the small Guardian who stepped in front of her, releasing
soft sound as its single, blue eye focused on her. It was emitting soft melodies which made Zelda smile until Impa crouched down to attempt to reach out and touch it. It took a few steps back each time she tried to reach out and touch it. [Y/N] furrowed her eyebrow, as she moved up her mask slightly to cover more of her nose. After her finesse in the last battle, she was given the opportunity to become Zelda’s bodyguard. How do you even talk with royalty?

I haven’t even spoken with Impa much either. Not that I really talk. And now I have to protect the Princess? My father would be proud at least, [Y/N] thought. 

Zelda took a step to stand beside it, her voice full of curiosity. “Why is it so...attached to me?” Zelda bent down to lean closer. “Whatever could you be, little one?” It let out a few noises of content. “I suppose all we can do is wait for Robbie and the others at the lab to analyse it.”

Suddenly, [Y/N] felt a sliver of coldness run along her back. She quickly turned around and managed to catch a dark purple and reddish light, or shadow, suddenly cover one of the dug up Guardians that had been slumbering for centuries. Its veins suddenly lit up light purple, it turned its head around and focused on its target, Zelda. It’s single light flashed red and a beam of red light focused on Zelda. Muttering to herself under her breath, [Y/N] was quick to attention; she grabbed her shield from her back and ran in front of the Princess just as she turned; as the blue beam flashed towards Zelda, [Y/N] managed to deflect it in time.

”A Guardian? But why?” The Guardian began to shake the stone from off of its body. It was time to go. [Y/N] interlocked her fingers with Zelda’s hand (the young Princess blushed as her eyes caught the knights for a split second) before they ran away from the Guardian, before the red-skinned monsters in the distance were nearing their location. Impa, [Y/N] and the small Guardian stood in defensive positions. [Y/N] slowly reached for her sword on her back and unsheathed it, her eyes aflame with determination.  

“The Guardian may come after us, we need to leave,” spoke Zelda, who’s hand was still held by [Y/N]. Before the young Princess could react, [Y/N] wrapped her arms underneath Zelda’s legs and waist in one quick lift. The young knight gave no hint or indication the Princess was too heavy, or that her strength had wavered. She ran down the path, slamming her leg into any monsters that came too near. The monsters died around her in a cloud of purple smoke. Impa’s eyes widened at the sight and she took her own blade from her sheath and slashed at those who managed to survive. 

“[Y/N], you can’t just grab the Princess like that!” Impa called after the knight who merely laughed in response. Zelda’s face was entirely flushed by this point. Her cheeks were a ruby red, and each time she cast a glance upwards to [Y/N] and the young knight caught her stare and smiled, her flustered state became worse. [Y/N] was gentle but also protective by how close she held Zelda.She only had to kick the monsters left and right, until only a few remained. They finally managed to reach the outpost, overtaken by monsters, and by working alongside Impa, they managed to regain the outpost. 

As they ran further along to the next outpost, a Guardian erupted from the walls, and the very exterior shattered as soon as it made contact. 
“The Guardian is after us! [Y/N], you need to get the Princess to safety!”

What do you think I’m doing?! 

[Y/N] ran even faster away from the towering menace, who’s veins glowed bright purple, with one leg torn off revealing its light blue insides within. The Guardian managed to throw its entire body through the stone and gates of the outpost, throwing stone everywhere, hurling it into the air. It’s single eye flashed red for a split second, focused on [Y/N], it’s sights on the knight. Impa was a little bit in front of them to take out any monsters who threatened to slow them down. A few of the outposts, around them, had flames licking at the wood and the grass itself. Old Guardians, deactivated, were rusted, with no hint of life within them. 

“What can be done?! This thing is relentless!”
”Is there no hope for escape?”

The little Guardian gave a few soft notes towards one of the rusty Guardians. I started to flicker with life. Its veins shone with yellow light pulsing through its veins, coming to life completely. It’s blue light flashed, and the beam sent towards the purple-veined Guardian. 
“There are more Guardians nearby! Perhaps we can activate them too?”

Soon, the Guardians were activated by the smaller Guardian and were sent towards the Calamity-taken Guardian. It was knocked onto its side, its legs dangling in the air and revealing its weakness on the bottom, where blue patterns could be seen. Impa and [Y/N] stood before the now flailing Guardian, ready to kill it due to its weakened state. [Y/N] carefully placed down the Princess onto her feet.
”I can help as well.”
Impa looked to the Princess, worriedly. “Be careful.”
Zelda smiled. “I can use the Sheikah Slate, I will be fine. I am perfectly capable.”

[Y/N] reached for her sword on her back and took it from its sheath, placing it before herself, holding it with one hand. The Guardian managed to regain its balance by pushing itself to stand by its two feet. It threw itself into the air and slammed down its body; Impa managed to dodge easily by jumping backwards, whilst [Y/N] wrapped her arm around Zelda’s waist and made sure they both stepped back in time. There was a warmth around her and she felt safe. As [Y/N] removed her arm from her waist, Zelda wanted to feel it again. 

Its eye flashed again, turning its head to focus on Impa. With one more warning by the tense, high pitched noise, it sent out a blue beam from its eye. Impa rolled to the side, inches from the beam which made contact with the ground. Flames began to flicker where the beam had struck, the fire flickering into the air and extinguishing. 

[Y/N] dodged the beam sent in her direction by jumping to the side, before she jumped onto one of its legs to propel her into the air, and violently thrust her blade into its eye, slashing it upwards until she jumped back and its body was thrown backwards. [Y/N] landed in her feet, and slid her sword back into her sheath. Impa and Zelda ran up to the young knight, a newfound hope and awe in her abilities. [Y/N] nodded, and they finally headed to the Ancient Lab.

The small Guardian stood on the table, looking to and fro from each face, both new and old. It seemed unsure of why it was here.
”This is technology the likes of which I’ve never laid eyes on!” Robbie stepped over and placed his hands on either side of the small Guardian. It jumped up in surprise. [Y/N] couldn’t help but laugh slightly at its panicked disposition. “Which means....we’ve got ourselves a brand-new, never-before-witnessed GUARDIAN MODEL!” Robbie placed his hand on his hip and pointed to the ceiling. “Devices like the Sheikah Slate, which are amplified by the power of such ancient relics, are but a meagre fragment of such technology.” 

Behind Robbie was a deactivated, full bodied Guardian, with its core revealed. A green board was placed nearby with a few rough notes and equations in white chalk. 
Impa looked to Zelda as she spoke, understanding lacing her tone, “I see...That explains why all of us were able to use the Sheikah Slate.

Robbie suddenly turned around and pointed at the small Guardian. “In addition...this here doohickey is loaded with data-information we can’t even fathom!”

Purah soon walked to the table, holding the Sheikah Slate in her hand. “I extracted some visual data from the Guardian’s memory.” The image she showed them was of Hyrule castle, the very houses all around had been set ablaze, with entire structures missing. The next image showed Hyrule Castle itself encased in a purple glow, with shadows licking at the exterior, as four long, lit, purple, structures appeared on each side of the castle. 

“Even so, if I analyse what we received, I may be able to make sense of more of it.”
”This is...the ruin the Calamity will bring upon all of Hyrule. If we allow this to pass, I fear all hope will be lost. If I don’t succeed...at sealing the Calamity...”

A word of good spirit was on the end of [Y/N]’s tongue. But no word, or sentence, managed to escape her throat. Zelda was the key to solving the Calamity itself but she was far too hard on her herself and her father’s expectations, as harsh as they were, caused her anxiety and lack of confidence in herself. 

“Never. This will not come to pass.”

To stop Calamity Ganon, it was crucial that they possess the sword that seals the darkness, the latent power dwelling within the Princess of Hyrule, and the might of the four Divine Beasts unearthed from across the land. 

However, the path to victory was strewn with obstacles. Korok Forest, where the legendary word slept, had been overrun with monsters, and the Princess of Hyrule’s power showed no signs of awakening.

Lamenting the kingdom’s plight, King Rhoam sent his daughter to gather pilots for the Divine Beasts. Alongside [Y/N]-whose brave conduct had earned her role as her knight- Zelda would meet its each if the four candidates.

Chapter Text

The long-lived Zora, who could traverse rivers and lakes with ease, lived in Lanayru at a resplendent place dubbed Zora’s Domain.

Mipha, a Zora Princess in the power to heal others’ wounds, was secreted to pilot Divine Beast Van Rita.

Accompanied by [Y/N] and the rest of her party, Zelda headed to Zora’s Domain, where she was granted an audience with King Dorephan. 

Whilst Zelda was discussing about Mipha piloting the Divine Beast with King Dorephan, Mipha had taken [Y/N] to the bridge near to Ploymous Mountain, the very Mountain where a Lynel was said to roam, but the reports had been very few. All that could be heard was the rushing, crystal blue water from the waterfall, and the faint sound of a roar close by. The bridge they walked on was crystal blue, with purple diamonds placed on the outside and the railing could easily be climbed over. 

Luminescent rock seemed to naturally grow from the ground itself, curving upwards, as it made its own platform. Trees and grass naturally grew everywhere, and the animals scampered around, whilst ducks splashed at the water below, wetting their feathers before shaking their bodies. It allowed water to spray off its body in small droplets, water itself running along its feathers. 

[Y/N] carefully picked up the little Guardian into her arms, her eyes crinkling in content. Mipha turned around to face the young knight. The Zora Princess had silver jewellery around her  neck, adorned with light blue jewels, along with silver jewellery around her shoulders, either sides of her head and in the centre if her forehead, where a light blue diamond rested. 

“Well, [Y/N]. You’ve grown since I last saw you,” Mipha smiled softly. 
What she was not expecting was for [Y/N] to respond. The young knight smiled beneath her mask. “Not too much. I am still a lot shorter than the other knights. I imagine you will be taller than myself soon enough, Mipha,” [Y/N] spoke, softly. The young knight placed down the young Guardian, out stretching her arms. Mipha gaped slightly, soon ignoring the blush beginning to form across her face.  With a giggle, Mipha walked into [Y/N]’s arms and wrapped them around the knight’s waist. 

[Y/N] wrapped her arms around Mipha’s waist, bringing her even close against her body until the young Zora was resting against the knight’s chest. A light blue blush spread even further across Mipha’s face at the realisation. Her embrace was so warm, safe and inviting. She could fall asleep and feel at home. It felt natural.

“It’s been good to see you again. Do you have any idea if my mother is here?”
Mipha laughed slightly, removing her arms from around [Y/N] but, to Mipha’s silent glee, the knight’s arms were still around her so their faces were inches from each other. “Yes, she is. She seems determined to sell what she brought here, and we did talk for a while. I am so sorry about your father.” 
“Thank you, Mipha. My father was very fond of you, and I appreciate your sentiment. He was ill and he at least died peacefully in his sleep. I am glad my mother is here, hopefully she didn’t frighten you too much!” Before Mipha could respond, one of the Zora knights ran down the bridge towards them both. 

[Y/N] took her arms from around Mipha to face the knight. 

“Monsters on Ploymus Mountain! Marching this way!”
”What of my Father?”
”His Majesty is leading the army to intercept.” The knight glanced around warily, an obvious fear at the edge of his tone. “He...thought the Prince was here with you...”

It seems they couldn’t even have a moment to speak. 

[Y/N] unsheathed her sword from her back, reluctantly taking her shield as well. An Electric Moblin threw his club erratically in every direction, throwing electric currents in every direction. The knight rolled to the side, barely dodging its attack. The sound was crackling against the grass, curving upwards in yellow sparks, until it disappeared completely with no trace. 

The Electric Moblin roared, raising its club and resting it against its side, pointed at the young knight. It threw itself forward, lightning forming around them in the air in small orbs, until dodged out of the way, again, by rolling over to the side. 

She stood up, raised one leg behind the other, then propelled herself forward with her sword on its side, and she jumped into the air. In mid air, she slid the blade into its head, sliding it deeper and deeper until the monster turned purple, smoke extinguishing in the air as it left only its guts and its teeth. 

She landed on both feet and slid her sword into her sheath. Knowing Mipha, she was definitely not too far away from where she was, possibly destroying the many lives of the monsters tainting her domain. Her skill was her trident, a light silver weapon adorned with light blue jewels.

The young knight started to head towards Zelda until she heard one of the Zora Captains, “My lady, Prince Sidon was spotted heading toward Ploymus Mountain!” Believing it was unneeded to hear the Zora Princess’ response, [Y/N] ran towards Ploymus Mountain, with Mipha and Zelda not too far behind. 

A Lynel stood in front of a shivering, afraid, Sidon, who held one of the very spears Mipha was seen practicing with. He hugged it towards his body, his light yellow eyes, streaked with blue, revealing much fear within them. [Y/N] took a step forward and the Lynel must have sensed her movement, for it dramatically turned, eyes focused on her, and roared. 

Of course it had to be a Lynel, [Y/N] thought.

“[Y/N], I will deal with this beast, please keep my brother safe.” [Y/N] nodded to Mipha’s request. As the Lynel raised its weapon to ready its own attack, [Y/N] rolled to the side and headed towards the small Zora still holding the Spear in his arms. 
“[Y/N], look out!” Before she could react, the Lynel thrust its sword into [Y/N]’s back, only managing to slice across her back. She rolled painfully to the side, groaning. Her back burned intensely; the pain licked at her back as the cold crimson blood ran down her back. 

Her hands slowly slid in front of her. She bit down on her lip to make sure no pained grunt erupted from her throat. 

“[Y/N]!” 
She placed up her hand in response and waved it slightly. She raised her body up slowly with a pained grunt, sensing the Lynel was focused elsewhere. Sidon hid behind one of the trees, watching the fight fearfully. The young knight managed to stand, speeding forward and rolled behind the tree. She looked down to Sidon, who looked up at her in awe. She placed her finger to her mask. They both turned to watch the fight behind them taking place. Mipha was skilfully fighting the Lynel with both water and her trident, as gracefully as possible.

[Y/N] looked back to the small Zora and it was clear how in awe of his sister he truly was. But, the blood trailing down her back felt cold and painful. As long as she kept her eye open, she could keep an eye on Sidon. The pain in her back became too much to handle, and the last thing she felt before she closed her eyes, was someone poking her face.

As the Zoras fought all around the Domain, Mipha had managed to pilot the Divine Beast. She easily destroyed any monster who neared the Divine Beast, even killing many Lynel in the process. It had so much power, and it ended up inning the battle for the Zora. Mipha and Ruta were truly a pair who favoured each other well, especially in battle. And so, King Dorephan once again held audience with Princess Zelda. After some discussion, he finally agreed to allow Mipha to pilot the Divine Beast and that was how Mipha joined them. They were closer to fighting Calamity Ganon.

Chapter Text

The Rito resided in a settlement on the Tabantha Frontier. These feathery folk were blessed with the ability to glide along the wind, and they were adept with bow and arrow,

Counted among them was Revali, the most capable warrior of all the Rito- the natural choice to pilot the Divine Beast Van Medoh. Zelda and her companions set out for Rito Village in hopes of securing his help.

To evade foes, the party tried passing through the snowfield, but a fierce blizzard befell them, halting  their progress. [Y/N] asked Zelda to wait in safety while she and the little Guardian scouted the area…

The Rito seemed to go unnoticed by [Y/N] and Mipha as they continued through the storm, only just casting a glance to the sky in time as a rain of arrows rained down. Even without being in water, Mipha was adept at using water much to her advantage, she managed to swerve past the arrows using the water she controlled. [Y/N] rolled to the side, quickly. 

She looked up and saw more Rito warriors fly down and land on their feet, most of them holding bows.
"Mipha, I’m going to go ahead. Will you be fine?”
Mipha looked to her, eyes widening. "Yes, of course. But why?”
"I’m going to make sure this-“ Before she could respond, a few Rito raised their bows to the sky, bomb arrows ready to rain down at any moment. [Y/N] grabbed for her shield and sword, raising her sword slightly, so the blade was facing them. She sped forward, and the Rito were about to let loose their arrows (A/N: it autocorrected to ovaries and now I wanna cry) until dark magic surrounded them in a swirl of uncontrollable storm, until it sent them all everywhere. 

[Y/N] stopped mid run, eyes widening in surprise. From the cliff above, stood someone covered with black magic. It radiated off of them; their hands were covered in a purple, black glow, until the figure clicked their fingers and it disappeared in the air. Whoever this was had a heavy bag on their back, but they did not seem to be having any difficulty. They jumped down in front of the young knight. 

[Y/N]’s eyes widened in surprise, then anger. She placed her sword back into her sheath and stepped forward, aggressively tapping her foot against the ground with her hands on her hips. Alessia was stood in front of her daughter, one hand wrapped around the strap of her bag. Whilst the Rito were swarming further along the path, Mipha had gone off (by giving a silent nod) to defeat the Rito Captains after the bridge, which was the only way to get across, was broken.

"Hello [Y/N], dear. I decided to come here to sell some things, but it turns out they’re a little wary about strangers. If only you could unlock your power-”
"Ma, Mipha and I are in the middle of battle. Please, unless you are going to help, leave.” Alessia’s face morphed from a smile to a furrowed brow. Worry was clear against her expression. All of [Y/N]’s life, she had trained her body in becoming a knight, in living her dream and making her father proud. [Y/N] had been her father’s world, and if he witnessed how troubled and upset she was by his death, he would have spent more time with her. The young knight was also worried Alessia would become hurt in battle. 

"[Y/N], I am a lot stronger than you think.”
"It’s not that, Ma. That type of magic would be seen as evil, and I know it isn’t, it’s just…” 
Alessia scratched her brow. "I understand. But, one day, you may need to rely on magic to protect yourself. To unseal it will take time. To unlock it-“

THUD!

The ground started to shake beneath them. [Y/N] looked up to the sky and a barrage of bomb arrows began to rain down.

"I need to go and see if Mipha is alright!” Then, [Y/N] ran off in the opposite direction, taking her sword from her sheath.

After dealing with the Rito Captains, [Y/N] and Mipha both headed towards the village where the one who was currently leading the Rito was. They flew through the air, flapping their wings until they formed a swirling, unstoppable twister. They gracefully flew down and landed on their feet. 

Mipha seemed to be in awe of his skill, whilst [Y/N] furrowed her eyebrow with her arms crossed against her chest. She spoke, “I could definitely do that.” Mipha giggled, placing her hand against her mouth as [Y/N] took her sword from her sheath, and took her shield from her back.

"Our invaders have earned a special welcome…a cornucopia of Rito arrows.”

Sounds like…an everyday occurrence. 

The Rito raised itself slightly into the air, aiming his bow at both Mipha and [Y/N]: swiftly, he sent a barrage of arrows in their direction. [Y/N] was quick to react, grabbing hold of Mipha by the arm and leading her off to the side to dodge it. There could be a way they could team up and take out this Rito who tended to fight from the skies…

"Our enemy is unlike any we’ve faced thus far! This won’t be easy…Stay sharp!”

And where are you Impa?!  

The Rito, who they knew to be Revali, attached a bomb arrow to his bow and let it go. It exploded in the air nearby to them both. They both had to run to the side to dodge anymore arrows he sent their way, and he seemed to be enjoying himself.

"Don’t tell me…You can’t even fly? Pfft! This is hardly worth my try.” Instead of running to dodge the arrows, [Y/N] stood to face him, holding her blade against her side. She raised her head upwards to face him, eyes narrowed in anger: as the arrows neared, she raised her blade and sliced through them. He froze for a moment, and seemed alarmed when she ran forward, slicing through the arrows  and ignoring the one which managed to pierce through her shoulder, and one pierced her thigh.

She was close to attacking him until he propelled himself upwards with a gust of wind, as [Y/N] looked from side to side; she was sent backwards a little once the Rito managed to attack her shield. A few bomb arrows came raining down, and [Y/N] managed to lose her shield from the blasts of fire and snow. 

As Revali swerved through the air, he swept down past [Y/N] and as she raised her sword, he angled himself so his bow was pointed at her head. His eyes widened as she turned around, about to slice at him, until…

"Stop! Please!” The Princess’ voice put her out of her trance immediately and she dropped her sword at her side, sliding it into her sheath. Revali managed to land perfectly on his feet, but the arrow continued to fall through the sky until [Y/N] caught it in her hand. 

They were all at Revali’s usual training place. He stood with his wings behind his back, evaluating the uplifts and the stone below him. Alessia had been the one to inform the Princess of the fight between her daughter and Revali. As Impa and Zelda both watched the bird assess the ground beneath his feet, Alessia was readying herself to take the arrows from her daughter. 

Revali (as much as he didn’t want to admit it) had been a little flustered when he realised the young knight was in a vest, showing off her abs a little bit, with her face still concealed. [Y/N] was in no good mood right now, and it was clear in the air around them. 

"I understand the situation now. I’m thankful no harm befell you, either of you.” 
Impa was about to say something but didn’t think it was too relevant. 
Alessia pointed out, "Well, [Y/N] here did. Not saying this to offend you of course, Princess.”

Zelda turned around with a smile. "I’m sorry, I didn’t ask your name. Thank you for telling me what was happening.”
"Alessia. You see [Y/N] is my daughter, and she tends to lose her temper.” They both laughed a little. 
[Y/N] signed, her temper beginning to rise,‘Let’s get back to the matter at hand.’

Impa rested against the wall with her arms crossed against her chest. “Pardon me. But we must address the gravity of there being another Guardian resembling the little one, Your Highness.”
"Yes…If it is in some way connected to the Calamity, we must swiftly come up with a strategy.” 

[Y/N] stood up despite her mother’s protests and stood next to the small Guardian who seemed happy she was fine. Despite the arrows still in her. 
As Revali turned around, [Y/N] wrapped her hand around the arrow in her shoulder and as carefully as possible, she took it out of her shoulder. Crimson blood mixed with black stained the end of the arrow and her eyes narrowed slightly. The Rito watched in slight horror at the sight, but attempted to forget about it by saying how they would need his skills to control the Divine Beast.

"However…” He took a step forward with his wings behind his back to stand before [Y/N]. The young knight was holding the arrow in her hand, studying it as the blood trailed down its sleek body. Before Revali could finish his sentence, or thought that no one needed, [Y/N] grabbed one of his arrows (the only clean one) and placed it in front of herself. 

"Are you sure this knight has got what it takes?” Before [Y/N] herself could respond, the small Guardian intervened. 
“What the-“ 
"Oh, I see. Our friend believes itself to be a knight as well, in service of the Princess.”

"Can I be the small Guardian then?” [Y/N] smiled, and laughed. Both Zelda and Revali were taken aback by her sudden voice. Whether they were more flustered than surprised was another question entirely. 
"Ugh. Ridiculous. Every last one of you.”

And you’re a bitch, what’s your point? 

Chapter Text

The knight covered her face with her mask by tying it at the back. She was resting against her bed she had occupied the previous night inside of the inn. Her wounds along her thigh and shoulder were still reddened, and bleeding. She needed to wrap them around with bandages after cleaning them with water. As much as [Y/N] loved her mother, she didn’t trust her with bandages. Or more like just her in general. 

Her mother wasn’t the best with knowing [Y/N]’s acknowledgment for pain as the knight refused to show any shred of pain. Right now, her injuries were important to take care of. Whilst she slid her fingers along her shoulder, and thigh (she was dressed in a vest and shorts right now) to feel the blood between her fingers. Blood red mixed with pitch black stained her thighs and shoulder; the black was close to overtaking the red in hue.

With Alessia, Zelda, Mipha and Revali (Impa was chasing around the tiny guardian) were talking about both [Y/N], and their next destination. Alessia smiled kindly, bringing her hands together, almost clapping them. Alessia radiated warmth and motherly vibes none of them were used to. They couldn’t help but smile (Revali was just less grumpy). Alessia was mostly positive and warm, whilst her daughter had an aura of wrath and blood-shed if you looked at her the wrong way. And annoyance was something she showed often.

"I truly hope [Y/N] has been kind towards you all. I admit she can be a little bad-tempered, and lose her temper easily. And extremely stubborn, just like her father was.” 
Mipha clasped the jewel around her neck, looking down with sadness and doubts clouding her mind. Alastair had known her since she was small. He had guided her, given her advice. He had always spoken kindly towards the young Zora and whenever he came to visit her own father, he always gave her a small sapphire. The exact ones clasped around her neck.

Revali had been listening with his wings crossed against his chest. [Y/N], which he hated to admit, was remarkably strong and talented. Her strength seemed unmatched, and she could change from being emotionless to happiness with the click of a finger. The young knight could turn off her emotions and be more respectable than he expected. By the sounds of it (and the constant compliments from her own mother) it was remarkable she was truly a master of weaponry. 

His feathers fluffed up without noticing. His face flushed with colour and he had to raise his wing to hide his face. But, Alessia had seen the fluffed up feathers. She knew that look on his face. It had been the same one Alastair had when herself and him had first met.

"My father told me he died not too long ago,” Zelda began, clasping her hands together at her stomach. "You have my deepest sympathies, Mrs. Alessia."
"Thank you, my dear,” Alessia said. "Don’t tell her I said this, but, she’s been taking it harder than she would want to admit. She cares and shows it in her own way. But, when it comes to fighting, or sparring, she can be…competitive. Could one of you go and see how she is? She will not allow me to heal her wounds.” 
Before Impa could say she would, Revali was quick to respond, ”I will make sure she hasn’t bled out, or died.”

He left before anyone else could say anything, but he swore he could feel Alessia’s piercing eyes on his back. She knew a lot more than she let on.

"Ah, young love.”
Mipha and Zelda exchanged looks. 

Well, it was in a way, but he didn’t know that. The feeling bubbling around in his chest was unfamiliar.

Back with [Y/N]…

The young knight stared at the crystal water in the bowl beneath her feet, staring at her eyes from the water. It reflected across the surface, painting each detail. Her eyes, for a moment, turned purple before changing back to its natural hue. A sponge was placed to the side of the bowl, ready for her to clean her wounds. She just couldn’t. The pain became excruciating; it burned from along her shoulder, as blood trickled down, to around her thigh where the burn flickered across her gash. 

It was indeed small (but had torn a little more) but damn did they hurt.

A grunt of pain erupted from the back of her throat; she crossed her legs over the other, knocking her leg against the ground, as she raised her hand, scratching the side of her cheek with her fingernail. 

”What are you doing?” She looked up to see Revali stood in front of her with his arms crossed against his chest, a smirk spreading across his face. She didn’t react. Instead she took her attention to the bowl before her. Revali scoffed and sat down in front of her. He picked up the sponge into his hand, splashing it into the water.

"Either I do it, or I leave you to bleed out.”
[Y/N] scowled, her eyebrows furrowing. She signed, growling under her breath. ‘What you are is a menace to society. I still have a hard time not punching you in the face.’
"Same here,” he snarkly replied. "Lean down or it might get in your eyes.” [Y/N]’s scowl deepened. She leaned down so he could access her back. He lightly pressed the sponge against her back, carefully wiping off the flaky bits of dried blood and fresh, crimson-black blood. 

The knight bit down on her lip at each stroke against her bare flesh. He was trying to keep his mind focused, and to not look down at her bare legs, or the fact he could see her thighs quite clearly, or how her vest seemed to roll up to show her toned abs. Definitely was not looking.

Nope.

His feathers fluffed up, again. His face flushed bright red; there was no more blood so now was time for the bandages. He threw the sponge back into the bowl (it splashed everywhere and hit the sides of her legs, and thighs. Her glare was becoming more dark by the second) and picked up the bandages. 

"You seem a little fluffed up, Revali. Why is that?” [Y/N] smirked beneath her mask. He froze as he unwrapped the bandages and sliced off a correct amount. 
"Shut up,” He hissed. He applied the bandages around her shoulder, refusing to look her in the eye as he did so. 
"I can do the other one,” [Y/N] spoke, picking up the sponge. Pain suddenly ran along her shoulder and she was forced to drop it into the water. She hissed in pain, grasping her shoulder with her free hand. 

"I suppose I am partly to blame for…your wounds,” Revali started, scratching the side of his face. "And so, it is partly my responsibility to make sure you do not bleed out.”
"…You pierced my thigh, bird brain.”

"Did you just…call me bird brain?”
"Are you deaf or what? You heard me clearly, or did you somehow lose access to your hearing after doing those stupid tricks in the air?” 

There was lightning threading between the two as they glared into each other’s eyes. They were inches from each other, and, somehow, [Y/N] had her legs resting on either side of him, as he pressed his wing against her leg. 

”You don’t have a choice in the matter! Just let me-"
"-We just met, you think I let anyone touch my thighs-“
"- I am only going to clean the blood and bandage it. There isn’t anything sexual about it-"
[Y/N] crossed her arms against her chest, ignoring the burning sensation along her chest and the rest of her body. He had a point, but she wouldn’t be the one to admit that. 

Revali scoffed and picked up the sponge from the bowl, rinsing the bloodied water back into it. Looking away, with her face flushing underneath her mask, she raised her leg slightly and rested it against his leg. He stopped to look at her thigh, a few thoughts running through his mind before he shrugged them off. He applied the sponge to her thigh, wiping off the dried blood. After he was done, he wrapped around her thigh and leg in bandages. 

He plopped the sponge back into the water and hid his face in his wings. "See? Done. No need to be so childish.”
"You aren’t even looking at me.”
"You aren’t looking at me either!”

”Yeah, because you have a stupid face.”
"You mean attractive. I’m attractive.”
"…”
"I knew even you would not be free from my charm.”
"Fuck off, bird bitch.”

Chapter Text

The Gerudo lived in a settlement in the Gerudo Desert. Comprised entirely of women, they were a tribe of great might and nobility. 

For her exceptional strength and her ability to harness lightning, Urbosa, chief of the Gerudo, was the clear choice to pilot Divine Beast Naboris. Zelda knew Urbosa thanks to her close relationship with the late queen of Hyrule. 

With her party in tow, Zelda traveled to Gerudo Town to speak with her old friend. However, their journey took an unexpected turn…

The sand against their feet was warm as the sun above shone down on them. None of them were quite used to the extreme heat of the desert, and the feel of their clothes sticking to their flesh was enough to unnerve them. 

But that was not the only thing that unnerved them, or made them wary: [Y/N], Impa (who was currently holding the small Guardian in her arms) and Zelda were running through the desert with Gerudo soldiers dressed in cooler clothing, holding golden spears, chasing after them from behind. 

Both the Princess and the Royal Advisor were further behind than [Y/N], who had trained herself to be able to run through extreme heat and cold. Revali was surveying the skies above, using his massive wings to pound him through the air, as fast as a twister. 

Sighing to herself, [Y/N] made sure her mask was on properly and stopped to run backwards and throw both Zelda and Impa over her shoulders. They both yelped in surprise, their faces flushed with colour, since they got a more clear view of her butt in her armour. The Gerudo were advancing; [Y/N] kneeled down behind a massive rock, carefully placing down the two.

"[Y/N]! Don’t do that-" [Y/N] interrupted Impa by placing her hand over her mouth, sending her a warning glance. Impa began to slightly squirm at her grip but the knight would not relent; [Y/N] aggressively shook her head, sliding her finger over her mouth. The feel of [Y/N]’s touch against her mouth was enough to make her blush. Despite the seriousness of the situation, she couldn’t help but love how soft she was.

Zelda couldn’t even form words. 

The Gerudo surveyed the area for a moment, watching the entire area until they felt their time was limited so they all moved on. The Gerudo were such beautiful women. They were strong warriors, trained at an early age and only left the desert to find a husband (or wife) and have a child. Male Gerudo were very, very rare. They only happened once in a lifetime. 

In a way, [Y/N] was jealous of their powerful stupor. The very air they stepped in commanded authority and confidence. The young knight looked up to them, and she always had ever since she was a child. 

Many had always had the impression [Y/N] hid her face due to the Gerudo. Not quite. Her mother’s culture (which she had spoken often of, especially when the young knight was only a child) had their children (they chose to follow this, or not. It was entirely up to them), to wear masks to cover up their faces, except their eyes. Eyes were seen as windows to the soul, after all. It was for people to fall in love without the need of seeing appearances, but, it was also to hide her markings across the bottom half of her face. Markings she was born with. 

[Y/N] carefully removed her hand from Impa’s mouth, leaning to the side to check the surrounding area for any sign of the Gerudo. They had gone to the other side of the desert.
"But why? Why are the Gerudo attacking us?”
Zelda leaned against [Y/N]’s shoulder to get a better look. [Y/N] looked down at her, blinking. Her face flushed slightly. "Urbosa will surely be able to explain everything if we can reach her.”

I really want a Gerudo wife, [Y/N] thought. I would bake for her and kill anyone for her- wow, that became violent fast. Even for me. Women are amazing. 

[Y/N] looked up at the skies above to see Revali circling around them. She waved, and indicated for him to land. 

He better not do his little twister-

A circling storm formed around him, uplifting currents as he used his wings to swerve through the air until he landed on his feet. 

That bitch. 

The Gerudo had watched his entire performance and now knew where they were. Revali smirked in [Y/N]’s direction, who scowled. The young knight had dealt with many arrogant people, hell, some of her distant family were, but this damn bird took the entire cake. And ate it in front of her.

It’s too bad Mipha had to look after her brother. At least Mipha would have been a more pleasant person to talk to, and fight alongside. 

'That was seriously unneeded, now they know where we are. Did you see anything in the skies?’
"Apart from the Gerudo? No. But I’m guessing you already knew that? You seem to be wasting time asking me, don’t you?” His smirk widened, his wings crossed against his chest. [Y/N] placed her hands against her hips, glaring her eyes through the massive, tall bird who was inches from her face.

Impa and Zelda exchanged the same glance: jealously, with a hint of amusement. The Gerudo were nearing them but they didn’t need to worry quite yet. 

"Oh, cat got your tongue?" Before anyone could register it, [Y/N] was trying to strangle Revali, with her eyes glowing purple: Impa and Zelda had to try their best to hold her back. Well, he wasn’t going to die from any enemy anytime soon, but [Y/N] might be the one to kill him.  

Love, huh?

Zelda and the rest of them attempted to fight the Gerudo from the south but their ‘enemy’ swarmed around the back entrance and across the desert. Urbosa was commanding her army from inside of her throne room, which was unusual in itself. The chief was known to join her soldiers in battle and use her thunder to obliterate enemy ranks. But the chief’s behaviour was unusual. 

This couldn’t be their Urbosa could it? 

On her golden throne sat Urbosa, with her hands placed on either side of her throne. Her eyes were closed as they all entered the room.
"Urbosa!” Her eyes then opened to reveal the emerald green, piercing through them like a knife. It was like she was judging them all.

As they ran forward, they were stopped by two spears placed in the shape of an ‘x’. [Y/N] extended her arm in front of Zelda, stopping her from moving any further. Slowly, the young knight took hold of her hilt and took it from her sheath. Her shield was against her back. 

Revali was behind them, his eyes focused on the shield against her back. It seemed to swirl, somehow, a shiny coat across it. He tilted his head to the side; the shield glossed over and changed. A black and white wolf stared through his eyes, a piercing blue staring back. There was swirly marks across its body, and a spectre, black, with blood red eyes, floated above it. One side was filled with green trees, a blue sky and Hyrule castle and the other side was filled with light blue spirits, one lamenting. Crystal blue tears ran down their cheeks, as the castle behind radiated darkness. 

What an odd shield. How did it change like that all of a sudden? 

How did [Y/N] have such an odd shield?

"Why? What are you doing?” 
Urbosa stood from her throne, unsheathing her blade. She pointed it at the Princess who gasped, her eyes widening. "Thwarting your destiny, of course…Princess Zelda.” She ran forward with her blade raised above and [Y/N] stood in front of Zelda, raising her sword to stop the blow.

All of a sudden, thunder reigned down from above and struck Urbosa. Her body completely convulsed, her eyes widening in surprise and she collapsed, dropping her sword as soon as she dropped. 

"I came back as quickly as I could…” Urbosa (the real one) walked up behind them, with an air as electrifying as her abilities. "Not exactly what I expected to find.”
Zelda slightly tilted her head to the side as Urbosa smiled. "Urbosa?”
Urbosa stood with her hand on her hip. Her smile was kind and considerate, with the look of a mother. Since Zelda was small, they had been close. She regarded the Gerudo chief as a second mother after the tragic death of her own so many years ago. 

"I hope you’re not hurt…little bird.”

That nickname. 

"I’m not!”

The fake Urbosa exploded in smoke and tags, revealing the larger body of Master Kohga, the Leader of the Yiga Clan. 

That explains a lot.

[Y/N] raised her blade, tilting it to the side, and pierced through a majority of Yiga Clan members. As soon as the sharp blade met flesh, they disappeared in smoke and tags. She wiped her head with the side of her palm, running forward and dodging any attacks sent in her direction. She could sense Revali flying high above in the skies; her eyes drifted upwards for a spilt second to look at him, and when she looked back ahead of herself, she realised she was circled by loads of Yiga Clan members. 

She stopped, aiming her sword in front of herself. One Yiga Clan member ran up behind her; before she could turn around in time, arrows descended from the sky and hit all of the Yiga Clan swarming around her. She blinked in surprise, slowly making her sword fall against her side, the sharp edge embedding into the sand beneath her feet. 

Revali landed in front of her, placing his bow back onto his back. "You’re welcome, knight. You can’t just blank out like that and not pay attention. You could get yourself killed. It’s a good thing I was here.”
She was not going to tell him she wasn’t paying attention because of him. 'Thanks. I could have defeated them myself.’ She slid her sword back into her sheath, looking back at Revali who seemed to want to say something. ‘What?’

"Your shield changed. Where did you get such a shield from?” He took a step forward, his wings behind his back as he leaned forward.
[Y/N] narrowed her eyes. ”It is none of your business. What do you mean ‘changed’?”
"Exactly what I mean. It became a completely different shield.” [Y/N] furrowed her brow and took her shield off of her back, studying the shield given by her father. It was the same as ever. No change in sight.

"I don’t-Hey!” He took the shield from her arms, holding it above his head to get a better look. [Y/N] growled, resting her face against his back (completely squishing her cheek against his back) as her arms tried to get her shield back. He snorted at her attempts to get the shield, and tried to ignore the rising heat to his face.
"Look.” She huffed, looking up (with her face and chest still squashed against his back) and looked up at the shield. Her eyes widened in surprise at the wolf which stared back.

”What the fuck?” The light from the sun was beginning to get to her slightly. It didn’t sizzle exactly, but she was starting to feel very uncomfortable. She didn’t realise how much it seemed to make her incredibly uncomfortable, unpleasant until now. "My father gave me this…I may have to ask my mother about it.” She sighed against his back, hitting her head fully against it. She closed her eyes and listened to her own breathing. 

Revali didn’t want to move. But, he gently gave her back her shield and spoke, "I believe we need to join the Princess and Impa.” [Y/N] flushed in realisation; she jumped back, reattaching her shield to her back and started to walk away.
"Hey, I know I’m charming, but I didn’t know I got to you already.”
”Fuck you.”
”Well-"
"Oh shut up-"

The pair headed towards the next destination far away from each other. From both embarrassment and annoyance. 

Later, Master Kohga was saved (after being defeated by everyone) by Sooga, who’s strength seemed to be unrivalled. It was a wonder where they disappeared off to. But our heroes knew it would not be the last time they would see them both. 

As long as they had each other, everything would be fine.

They would save everyone.

Now, to the next Champion. 

Chapter Text

The rugged Gorons lived in Goron City, a town carved into Death Mountain. They were forged in volcanic heat, their bodies as hard as stone.

Daruk, a brave Goron whose power of Protection could repel the mightiest of blows, was deemed the best candidate to pilot Divine Beast Vah Rudania. 

The Princess and her entourage ventured to Goron City in hopes of securing Daruk’s cooperation. 

The land was scorching hot beneath their feet. Lava trailed and gushed all around them, embers spiralling from the lava. Rocks curved over the lava river below, allowing for them to step over the depths below. [Y/N] walked behind the Princess and Impa dressed in a full set of armour. She had her helmet on her head, obscuring her entire face apart from her eyes. 

She didn’t usually wear the full set of armour, but she had been told (by her mother no doubt) she may have to start doing so as she is a knight. Impa was exchanging pleasantries with the Princess as they walked behind the Goron Champion, Daruk.

Daruk was wrapped in light brown chains across his body, as bracers were along his arms. Despite the Goron being a terrifyingly strong people, his eyes showed kindness and genuine hope. He had a heart made of gold.

"What you’ll learn about me is that I never refuse a sincere request. So of course I’m on board with your plan! Hmm…Except…there is one problem.” He placed his hand on his chin, thinking. It was obvious he had something else dwelling on his mind. [Y/N], however, was focused on the small Guardian. It was unique, and so small compared to the ones they had seen. "Well, it’s just Vah Rudania is in a difficult spot right now. The Divine Beast was found pretty high up on Death Mountain.”

The volcano above them bled with lava along its sides, trailing down in-between the rocks. The Goron had bodies which could deal with the extreme heat, but [Y/N] could not imagine living here. The Goron would be pleasant to talk to but the heat…she hated the heat. "A lot of monsters have been crawling around lately, so even getting close to ol’ Rudania is a big pain. Only the bravest go up there now…" He turned around, beaming, with his arms outstretched above himself. "So that’s why it’s a good thing it’s gonna be us!”

Zelda managed, "Oh, um, of course…”
He waved his hand in the air and turned around. "Come on! Death Mountain won’t climb itself!”

He walked off towards the mountain, which left [Y/N], Impa and Zelda to exchange looks. Impa stared down at [Y/N] in confusion, "Is that not too hot for you, [Y/N]?”
[Y/N] signed, walking backwards in the direction of Death Mountain, 'Yes. I hate it here.’
"Then take off the armour,” Zelda smiled, giggling a little. 

[Y/N] shrugged her shoulders. ‘I don’t have much underneath, so I don’t think that would be the most appropriate option. Unless you want to see me without.’ Both Zelda and Impa blushed. Impa placed her hands on her hips, and huffed as [Y/N] turned around to run.
Impa shouted after her, as Zelda let out a bunch of giggled in nervousness, "HOW COULD YOU SAY SOMETHING SO INAPPROPRIATE IN FRONT OF THE PRINCESS?!” 

The small Guardian quickly followed after [Y/N], who simply saluted to Impa and managed to catch up to Daruk.

Impa turned to look at Zelda who was still suffering with fits of laughter. The Royal Advisor shook her head, an amused smile spreading across her face.

Sometimes, you needed a bit of humour to get through the day.

Bokoblins and Moblins scattered across Death Mountain, attacking a few of the Goron Captains. Impa used her shirt sword to easily slash through my enemies which threatened to spill throughout the ally strongholds. Zelda used the Sheikah Slate to slam metal boxes to glowing, blue bombs towards the Bokoblins, pressing the screen to explode everything nearby.

[Y/N] unsheathed her sword and stabbed it into the Moblin’s stomach, twisting it until the creature screeched and puffed into a puff of purple smoke, scattering its innards everywhere. Her eyes flashed a few times before they settled; Zelda and Impa both watched in complete awe at how easily she had taken down the Moblin. 

[Y/N] ran even further along the path, tilting her sword outwards as she headed towards the enemy outpost. There was a fire Moblin raising hell, stamping around and sending the soldiers flying. [Y/N] dodged its attack as it raised its bat and slammed it down, sending flames in her direction. She rolled to the side and as it focused on the rest of the soldiers, she ran forward and implanted the sword into its neck, burying the blade further into its neck until it completely convulsed, dropping the bat, and turned into a cloud of purple smoke. 

She landed on both feet, swiping the sword into the air until she placed it back into her sheath, huffing and exhaling her breath. 

"Wow, I was right about you, little guy! You’re a natural at this!” Daruk boomed from behind her and she felt a slam to her back. She fell slightly forward and only just managed to catch herself. She looked up at Daruk who rubbed the back of his neck whilst chuckling. 
She signed, smiling beneath her helmet, 'Thank you, Daruk. That’s kind of you.’
The gentle giant nodded, his grin widening. 

After they defeated the Igneo Talus, they headed towards Death Mountain. Divine Beast Vah Rudania rested deep within the volcano’s lava, kept where no one could reach it. Somehow, Daruk managed to reach the Divine Beast; Rudania slammed its legs against the sides of the volcano, inclining it’s head. With the help of the Beast, they managed to kill the monsters occupying Death Mountain. It was a great victory.  

Daruk turned to the Princess and Impa. "Now, about me piloting Rudania…" He pumped his fist. "Well go ahead and count the mighty Daruk in!”
"Thank you, Daruk.”
"Of course! We’ll smash that Calamity Ganon jerk to smithereens.” 
[Y/N] crossed her arms against her chest and listened to his conversation. They started to walk until Daruk stopped. 

"Ooh, wait a minute.” He turned around, facing the young knight. She was still wearing her helmet, but she thought it may be too hot for her to handle. She raised both hands and took off her helmet, placing it underneath her armpit. "You must be starving after all that fighting. I know just the cure for that.” Before [Y/N] could react, the Goron placed a Prime Rock Roast into her arms (rock, with a thick bone through the rock and lava flowing within). "My favourite…Prime Rock Roast!”

[Y/N] widened her eyes at the solid “meat” in her arms. She looked up at Daruk who seemed to grin in response. 
"Doesn’t it look delicious? Why don’tcha dig in, little guy?” Before Impa or Zelda could stop her, [Y/N] lowered her mask (only Daruk saw her face and he seemed to gape for just a moment before he gave her a smile. At least he didn’t seem phased by her appearance) to take a massive bite into the “meat”. Often, [Y/N]’s family would lower their masks if they trusted someone enough, or were family members. 

"Oh! Uh…” The taste was unlike anything she had ever tasted; the lava and steam infiltrated her senses pleasantly, and the taste of rock, hardened, but with a taste of meat, was delicious. She didn’t expect it to taste so nice. The Princess and Impa had no idea how to react. 

Daruk rubbed the back of his neck. "Gah, sorry! How thoughtless of me- I shoulda brought some for you, tiny princess! Next time, I promise to bring enough for everyone.”
"T-Thank you very much!”

We make friends in the strangest of situations. But, that’s what makes friendship even more fun, does it not? 

Chapter Text

Zelda and the Champions were allowed a day to relax before they were to continue on. Where they were currently positioned was somewhere in Faron and they had tents and cooking pots set up on either side of the camp. No one was happy about this arrangement (mostly Revali who had anything to moan about) and some thought it despicable Zelda had to stay in one of the tents instead of resting in a bed. The young Princess didn't even seemed to mind. Alessia (who had been following them at her own pace) was walking with a heavy backpack in the distance.

As Zelda sat in front of one of the tents, guards were stationed near the Princess on either side. Urbosa was exchanging pleasantries with Zelda, Daruk and Mipha. Revali had his arms crossed against his chest, as he rested his back against the tree not too far away. [Y/N] had her weapons spread out across the grass for her to take a better look at; her finger traced over her sword's blade. Her shield was laying beside it, the image of the angel and devil flashing across it.

But, how did it suddenly change all of a sudden?

This shield had always stayed the exact same each time she had gazed upon it, and even when her father had hung it up on the fireplace, nothing about it altered under any condition. So, why was it doing such a thing now? Her eyes widened as she heard the faint tingle of bells and pans; it reminded her of her mother's bag- she looked up as the guards seemed to grow more alert. More Yiga Clan members were disguising as travellers to attack anyone that may stop or turn their backs.

At least it wasn't too sunny, but, Alessia should really get into some shade. [Y/N] rose her head and saw Alessia in the distance; she dramatically stood up, earning a few glances from everyone else; she narrowed her eyes at the traveller (very) close behind her unsuspecting mother. [Y/N] (as everyone watched her in slight confusion) used her eyes to narrow at the traveller, glowing purple to see through their disguise: they were a Yiga Clan member.

The knight quickly grabbed hold of her sword and sped forward, sharing a glance with her mother who seemed surprised, and jumped, meeting the Yiga who had jumped in a cloud of white smoke, as tags dropped everywhere. They met in the middle and [Y/N] sliced through their stomach before landing on both feet, quickly sliding it into her sheath. The Yiga disappeared into a puff of white smoke followed by tags. 

The knight stepped towards her mother, and took the bag off of her back before she could say anything, easily sliding it through her arms and onto her back. Alessia held her hands to her chest, her eyes closing into a closed eye smile. The sorceress was strong enough to carry it ([Y/N] had gained her unusual strength from her mother after all) but the light was starting to become more uncomfortable as the day went by. It was a surprise she had not been reduced to ash or nothingness by now. 

"Thank you, dear. I can take it myself, however."
[Y/N] shook her head and took Alessia's hand, guiding her towards the group. Zelda abruptly stood up, her hands to her chest as a kind smile spread across her face. She waited for the knight and her mother to reach them; Zelda giggled a little a Alessia tried to sweep the hair from [Y/N]'s face but she playfully slapped away her hands and sped forward. 
"Come back~ Your hair is in your face, little shadow~" Zelda's smile seemed to widen even further (Revali seemed to remove himself from his tree to get a better hear of everything. He had heard Alessia's nickname, and his smile widened. Mipha was no better with her giggles) as [Y/N] placed the back next to her things then turned around, narrowing her eyes at Alessia.

"Little shadow?" Urbosa mused to herself, standing up to pat [Y/N] on the shoulder. "What a cute nickname!"
[Y/N] huffed, signing at such a fast rate it took Alessia a second to understand. 'Seriously? That nickname? Was there any need? Now everyone heard it!'
"Oh don't moan so much, [Y/N]! I am sure everyone else thinks the same way," Just as Alessia said that, she saw Revali. They eyes met and her eyes narrowed through his, as she tilted her head to the side. She indicated her hand for himself, Mipha, Zelda and Impa to step closer.

[Y/N] crossed her arms against her chest as Alessia whispered something into their ears. Whatever it was made all three of them dramatically turn around. [Y/N] could feel the sweat roll down her face. 

This was likely her mother's revenge.

Was she going to die? Probably. 

Chapter Text

[Y/N] loved her mother, don't get her wrong. But when she did things like this in an effort to possibly see who would be [Y/N]'s best fit...it didn't sit right with the knight. Her eyes narrowed in annoyance with her arms crossed against her chest. She could see all their eyes on her. She didn't like the feeling one bit. The young knight felt judged, as though she was being picked apart. 

Sweat rolled down her face in large beads, trailing from her forehead to around her neck, until it dripped on the floor beneath. Whether from the heat, or the eyes itself she wasn't sure. A trickle of fear ran down her spine; [Y/N] was breaking composure the longer she stood there and questioned herself. Without a word, she used one finger to lift up her mask more. The knight picked up her shield, sliding it on her back, then headed to the north. 

[Y/N] knew they were watching her as she left. As a knight, you were expected to remain stoic, and unaffected by anyone or anything. You were to be emotionless. Never flinch. Never feel. Don't...fall in love. Alessia stared after her daughter with slight worry. Everyone else had the same expression: slight confusion and care (apart from Revali who just seemed less of an arsehole.)

Alessia spoke, earning the attention of them all, "I may have gone a little far. Could someone make sure she doesn't go too far? I doubt she would like to see me right now."
Mipha softly smiled, patting Alessia's shoulder. "I will check on [Y/N]. I will not be long, so do not worry. This is [Y/N]." Whilst this was going on, [Y/N] had headed a little further down the field before sitting down, and placed her shield beside herself. She wasn't far away from camp exactly, but she was a little distance away.

[Y/N] let out a dramatic sigh, placing her hands over her face and tried to calm down her beating heart. She was that lost in her own thoughts and insecurities she did not hear the jangle of jewellery from behind her until she felt someone trail their hand along their back in a circular motion in an effort to calm her.
Mipha looked down at her, speaking kindly, "Are you alright, [Y/N]?"

The knight didn't want to ignore the Zora. "Not exactly. I just...need a break."
Mipha felt a frown come across her face. She carefully sat down beside the knight, with one hand still resting against her back. "I can understand, [Y/N]. You have always been the one to exert yourself further than anyone else. It must be stressful to have everyone watching you."

"Heh, I can see you can see through me quite easily. You always could," [Y/N] murmured to herself, removing her hands from her face. Crystal tears rolled down the sides of her cheeks, trailing along the fabric of her mask before falling down onto the earth beneath. "Even when I told you I was fine, you knew. I haven't been able to properly grieve quite yet for my father's death. But I don't have time to."
"Why ever not? You can grieve, and I will be here for you." Mipha started to rub her back in a circular motion. The Zora looked back to see Zelda, Impa and Revali staring after them. "You always hid you emotions rather well."

[Y/N] used the side of her hand to wipe away her tears building up in the corner of her eyes. 

"There is nothing wrong with crying, or showing emotion."
[Y/N] hummed in response. She stood back up and dusted herself off, before speaking, "Let's get back. I have had my moment." Mipha allowed a frown to grace her beautiful features. A sigh came from the Zora. Something that the knight seemed to do was express how she truly felt for a split second, speaking about her fears and insecurities. How she wasn't good enough, or everyone could...die.

"I wish you expressed more than anger, [Y/N]." Mipha stood up herself and started to walk away, back towards camp. [Y/N] watched after her with her eyebrow furrowed.
"More than anger? Am I that terrible with my emotions?" Instead, she followed after her and they soon made it back. It was a rarity for her to actually relax and not want to train so...this was the time.

Mipha had a little bit of a plan. She would work together with Alessia to help [Y/N] to relax around the Princess and everyone else. The knight had a soft spot for sweet things (the Zora Princess had baked her fair share of treats) and she watched with fascination as [Y/N]'s face would light up. [Y/N] loved tea as well, so she knew of all sorts and even had her own private collection (of rare teas) she barely shared with anyone. 

Alessia was beside her massive bag, a sigh erupting from her throat. The heat, and light from the sun was draining her more than she thought. The merchant waved her hand, fanning at her face as Urbosa spoke. It seemed to stick to her skin uncomfortably, licking at her flesh like an itch she couldn't control. It would be a lot worse if she hadn't cast magic to protect herself, but even magic wasn't perfect. [Y/N] blinked her eyes a few times. 

Without a word, the knight stepped towards Alessia, and unzipped the massive bag to get out the umbrella. Easily, the knight managed to open it, and placed it down at an angle to make sure it covered her mother completely. She caught both stares from Alessia and Urbosa. [Y/N]'s cheeks flushed with colour. She quickly bowed before heading towards one of the tents and sitting down in front of it. Revali, Zelda and Impa stood on either side of her. Mipha seemed to be heading towards Alessia.

Urbosa laughed, watching [Y/N]'s retreating form. "Despite her current annoyance, she cares for you regardless."
Alessia turned her head towards the Gerudo. A smile played on her lips. The umbrella covered her entire body, its wide mechanical body displayed outwards to protect her from the sun. "That's my [Y/N]. She doesn't have to say much to show she cares. Sometimes, I wish she did say how she felt."
"She is still learning, after all. But..." Urbosa's eyes seemed to shine. "I can see strength and power within her."
Alessia chuckled. "Yes, quite. I do fear she won't be able to relax. Especially when around the very people she will fight alongside." 

Daruk plopped himself down (causing both Urbosa and Alessia to chuckle as he made the ground shudder) and grinned at them both. Despite how large and overly intimidating Daruk seemed to be, he was a massive softie. He was the one who helped others to feel better (he seemed to be the dad of the group, whilst Urbosa was the mother) and he helped to make people smile. "What ya talkin' about?"
Urbosa smiled. "Oh, just [Y/N]."
"You mean the tiny knight?! Oh she's a strong one! Best I've ever seen," Daruk gushed. "How she dealt with the Igneo Talus was something else!" Alessia let out a chorus of laughter as his eyes seemed to sparkle.

Whilst the three seemed to be having a conversation, [Y/N] was cleaning her shield whilst Impa and Zelda seemed to be having their own. The small Guardian twirled around in a circle before burying itself in her lap. Revali huffed, watching the small Guardian with annoyance. He crossed his wings against his chest. Impa leaned against [Y/N], her chest pressed against her side. She didn't notice [Y/N]'s face flushing with colour. "Princess, how are you finding the journey so far? It isn't too tiring, is it?"
Zelda smiled. "I am quite fine, Impa. No need to worry about me."

[Y/N] hadn't noticed Revali leaning a little closer. He spoke, which made him jump slightly (he smirked), "What were you and Mipha talking about? Were-"
"-Shut up, Revali." [Y/N] warned. She held the cloth in her hand, wiping around her shield, ignoring the drop of Impa and Zelda's smile. Revali's smirk even seemed to disappear from his beak. [Y/N] stopped wiping at her shield. 

"What's wrong with you?" The question- as passive aggressive as it sounded- was somewhat filled with worry. Funny thing was it was from Revali of all people. It caused [Y/N], Impa and Zelda to stare at him in confusion. 
His feathers fluffed up from the realisation. He looked away, huffing, as a blush dusted his cheeks. "Don't look at me like that. I'm only asking so she doesn't die in battle if she keeps it bottled up. You can't just make mistakes and not believe you will not end up dead."

They all seemed to be warming up to each other, as weird as their interactions may be. [Y/N] was slowly getting used to speaking, and they were getting used to hearing her speak. Even if it was only a few sentences.
Impa smirked. "Aw, do you care, Revali? How sweet." 
He quickly turned his head back around. His face was darkening. "How dare you propose something like that! Me?! Care about [Y/N]?! As if!"
[Y/N] deadpanned. "Not like I can hear you guys or anything." Zelda giggled at the knight. "If you want I could close my eyes and pretend I'm not here if that makes you feel better-Wait no. YOU sat next to ME, you dumb bird!"

"Did you just call me a 'dumb bird'?!"

"Yes."

"I despise you."

"Ok."

Chapter Text

[Y/N] simply laid on her back, eyes closed. She could feel a pair of eyes watching her sleep, eyes tracing over her chest heaving up and down. It was both Revali and Zelda. Revali was trying to be a little more secretive for he crossed his wings against his chest, one eye watching her. Zelda, on the other hand, was sat with her legs crossed being a little less secretive. Her bright green eyes watched her, tilting her head to the side.

This was one of those moments she had been the calmest. No violence, no anger. Only the soft silence. A wave of calmness overtook her mind, unravelling the tenseness from. her joints and the weight of her responsibilities. As a knight, she was unsure whether there could be a day she could be happy and live a life of solitude. As both someone accustomed to the battle field, someone who saw blood stain her very hands, a calm life seemed out of the question. As a sorcerer, as her mother called her (even though there was something amiss about that statement), she would not know whether she would be accepted.

Sorcerers were often known (in history, as the "good" sorcerers were written out of history as their good deeds were long forgotten by now- books of their heritage lost in a different age), to be dark-magic users, casting magic on the unsuspecting. They tried to mould the victim into something else, completely change the manner of their connection to their species, their race, by using magic. These were called the fanatics of the magic industry. Others tended to practice their magic and kill, and some had began wars over magic or the power of the land they resided within. They appeared long gone, presently. A fair few still knew magic, but they were not seen as sorcerers, but mages. 

To be seen as a sorcerer, your soul must be made of mostly magic. For a mage, magic just resided in your veins. Many could learn magic if they chose to. Well, if they were Hyrulian that is. Sorcerers tended to be born into magic families.

At least, that is what is known about them.

[Y/N] raised her hand and wiped at her forehead, a soft groan erupting from her throat. The knight turned over to her side, the pain across her thigh and shoulder announcing its presence. They had not completely healed quite yet. Her wounds needed to be attended to, but she would not say that.

Whilst Revali and Zelda were watching [Y/N] sleep, Mipha had stepped over to Urbosa, Alessia and Daruk. She had a certain agenda on her mind, an agenda which would help [Y/N] show a softer, less guarded side of herself. The young Zora Princess clasped her hands against her chest, inhaling and exhaling before she managed to speak. In a way, Alessia frightened her more than [Y/N]'s ever had: [Y/N]'s mother was a woman of mystery to her name, and only had a few close friends. There was something both dark, and light about the look in her eyes.

She could easily judge you by a simple glance alone, and identify parts of your character you may not even know yourself.

Urbosa was the first to cast her glance upwards, as the young Zora cast a shadow upon them: a smile stretched across her lips as Mipha nervously weighed on one foot to the other. The Gerudo chief crossed her arms against her chest. She turned towards Alessia, who had felt her presence for a while now. Instead of acknowledging her straight away, she chose to press her fingers against the dress she wore, her eyebrows arching in concentration. Underneath she wore a pair of trousers for easier movement, whilst looking feminine at the same time.

That was one thing that was different from herself and her daughter: she preferred feminine clothing, whilst [Y/N] preferred boyish, (still, she did like dresses or skirts) and masculine clothing. Then again, Alessia knew, as did [Y/N], clothing did not have a construct. Anyone could wear whatever they wanted, clothing did not have a gender. [Y/N] was beautiful in anything she wore.

Alessia smiled, focusing her attention on Mipha. The young Zora jumped a little in surprise as she tightened her intertwined fingers against her chest, replacing her surprise with a smile. Despite how intimidating Alessia could be, Mipha and Alessia were still close friends. "Mipha, what do I owe the pleasure?" 
Mipha glanced towards [Y/N], who was now poking at her shoulder, her eyebrows scrunching up in pain. "I wanted to ask you something. If you wouldn't mind, of course."
Alessia nodded. "Does this have something to do with [Y/N] by any chance?" Mipha meekly nodded. "Well then, do ask me. I am intrigued."

Urbosa couldn't help but laugh at their exchange.

"Well...you know how [Y/N] has a soft spot for sweet things and tea?" Alessia nodded in confirmation, her smile widening. "I thought we could perhaps have a little tea party to bring [Y/N] more into her element?"
Urbosa asked, a little amused by the idea, "Our favourite knight likes tea to relax?" The Gerudo chief looked over to [Y/N], who had now rolled over onto Zelda by accident, and was being scolded by Impa. "She truly is interesting, is she not?"
"When she was little, and slightly younger I daresay," Alessia began, watching them all converse with amusement across her lips. "After training all she looked forward to was enjoying some freshly brewed tea and some sweet treats I had made. I taught her some of my most famous recipes in fact."

Daruk said, "Well! I think we definitely should have a tea party to see the tiny knight enjoy themselves!" Everyone silently agreed.

With [Y/N], Revali, Impa and Zelda...

"Impa, truly, I didn't mind! It was only an accident," Zelda tried to reason, shaking her hands in the air with a bright red face. Impa stood with her hands on her hips, her eyes narrowed towards [Y/N], who appeared indifferent. [Y/N] tensed at the pain along her thigh and shoulder; Revali must have noticed this for he glanced in her direction, and huffed. 
"Is this truly the time? It is bad enough we are to stay here until we move again, but I cannot stand to hear your voice right now," Revali spoke, crossing his wings against his chest. He turned his head to the side, as [Y/N] turned her head towards him, furrowing one of her eyebrows. She leaned a little against him, jumping when Impa realised what he had said.

She aggressively turned around to face him, her expression twisted into one of fury. Her cheeks puffed out in annoyance ([Y/N] was pretty much pressed against Revali's back, her eyes looking between them with slight amusement), with her hands still on her hips. "What did you say?!" The small Guardian hummed a few notes of content, rolling around in a field of flowers, its single eye focused on the blue and red blooms. At least someone was calm. 
"You heard me!" Revali wouldn't even give her the satisfaction of turning his head around to face her. But, they all could feel the tense atmosphere.

Zelda looked between them both, unsure, and lacking confidence, to stop them from arguing. 

"Princess, could you please help me redo my bandages?" [Y/N] asked, as she stood up. Zelda turned around, to respond with a smile on her face, but froze upon seeing [Y/N] remove her chest armour, and plant it on the ground beneath her feet. She stretched her arms above her head; the vest she wore rolled up along her back, showcasing the scars along her skin after years of battle.

Some were a little deeper than others, some were light silver, and her others were a dark red. Blue-purple bruises were starting to form along her back. Sweat rolled down her skin, staining her vest, and as she turned around (Zelda's face was bright red, as her eyes had trailed across each vivid detail of her scars and back, how her sweat dripped down her body), Zelda had to cover her face with her hand to hide her flustered face, and try to hide the flustered squeak from erupting from her lips. [Y/N] placed her hands on her hips, blinking her eyes a few times to adjust to the light.

Her muscles were clearly more on show than usual; Zelda couldn't help but trail her eyes along [Y/N's stomach, focusing on how the knight's sweat caused her shirt to press against the abs she possessed. The sun behind her trailed light along her skin, causing it to glisten. Her curls curled along her cheeks, some of her loose hair pricked up. [Y/N] arched her back, before raising her hand, and pressed her fingers against her bandages. Her eyes focused on the bandages around her shoulder; the white bandages had now been soaked through by red blood.

Just how long would it take to heal? It was becoming more of a hassle than anything.

"Princess?" [Y/N] asked, turning her head towards Zelda. Zelda used her other hand to pick up a lock of her hair and sweep it behind her ear, her mouth covered by her hand. Her cheeks were bright red and her eyes glistened in awe. [Y/N] laughed at her expression, sweeping her hair back, resting her arm against her head. "Are you ok? I hope I didn't affect you too much." Laughter erupted from the back of her throat and she couldn't quite stop herself. In her mind, she sounded like a strangled nightingale attempting to sing, but to Zelda, [Y/N] sounded so gleeful, so full of hope, like a canary.

Her laughter coaxed Revali and Impa to stop their argument to turn towards the source of the noise; they both shared a look of confusion before turning towards [Y/N]. They both froze, their gazes focusing on her sweat-drenched body, and the way it glistened long her skin. 

Revali's feathers ruffled, as a vibrant blush coated his face, and Impa was no better as her face was bright red. [Y/N] turned towards them both, her eyebrow furrowed in confusion. [Y/N] blinked, tilting her head in confusion as they both looked away. "Huh? Is something wrong?"

All three of them shook their heads in unison.

From over where Urbosa, Alessia, (Mipha was watching them with her own blush across her cheeks) and Daruk sat, they had a clear view of what was happening. Urbosa spoke, as she laughed, "She doesn't seem to know how she affects everyone."
Alessia shook her head in amusement. "I hope she never changes."

Chapter Text

After the events of flustering everyone, [Y/N] decided it may be best if she were to redo her bandages. So, she sat cross-legged on the grass, a bowl of water was placed in front of her, the clear water reflecting her expression, bound by her mask along with the glimmering sun from above. Her vest was pulled down a little to reveal the wound against her shoulder; pink flesh was revealed, a redness around the wound itself.

The gash along her back she had gained from that Lynel back on Ploymus Mountain had been healed by Mipha. But, she didn't want to bother the young Zora when the wounds were almost healed. Kind of.

It was less inflamed than it was previously. No blood poured from the wound any more, but it still needed to be bound so it didn't become infected. The one along her thigh (she was currently stripped down to her shorts so she could poke at the wound) was the exact same, but the flesh had repaired itself at least a little.

Eyes from different directions watched her as she leaned forward and grabbed the dampened cloth from the water and wrung it with both hands and raised the cloth to her shoulder and pressed it against the wound. [Y/N]'s face scrunched up slightly in annoyance, her eyes narrowing. She didn't blame Revali for the pain, not completely at least. Her wrath overtook her more than she would like to admit. It would happen in an instant for action took over reason. She had ran into the arrows on her own accord.

[Y/N] closed her eyes, leaning back a little. She dabbed at her shoulder, again, opening her eyes to glance towards the cloth. It was still milk white. Which means no blood stained the cloth for now, which is why she would still need to do her bandages to stop any forms of infection. It didn't take long for her to grab hold of the bandages and redo it around her shoulder and thigh. 

For Revali, even if he refused to admit he was watching the young knight, felt an unpleasant sense of guilt bubbling its way across his chest. He crossed his wings against his body, taking sneaky glances at the young knight, his eyes narrowed. Guilt was crawling its way across his thoughts, making his voice hitch in his throat and crawl at each insecurity of his. It reminded him of how tirelessly he forced his own body against its limits to prove himself worthy. Even if he had broken his leg, or torn out some feathers from his wings in the process and left clear, large scars.

He just wanted to prove to himself, and everyone else, he would become the Champion. And he did. This may have lead him down a path of arrogance, but he hid his insecurities through all the praise he received, to hide his doubts deep down. 

Why was this knight- he had barely known for that long- seem to bother him so much?

"Revali," A soft voice spoke from beside him. He jumped, his feathers fluffing up. He took a few steps to the side, turning his head to see Alessia. He retained his composure, his face flushing a little red. Alessia smiled, pressing her hands against her stomach. "You seem a little distant. Is something the matter?" They both watched as [Y/N] fell over backwards, slamming her hand down against the bowl and knocking it over. The knight rolled over and loudly sighed to herself as she picked up the cloth and bowl before- slipping over. Revali and Alessia exchanged looks before laughing to themselves.

Alessia turned herself around and pressed her hand against her mouth to stop herself from getting caught. Revali, on the other hand, started to laugh even louder if possible, and [Y/N] picked herself up, her ears picking up the sound of a nightingale. Or, something similar at least. Her eyes narrowed, flickering with dark magic upon seeing Revali (Alessia had sneakily gone back underneath her umbrella) laughing. Everyone else watched in amusement as the young knight headed towards the Rito in question, holding the bowl so aggressively in her hand it was starting to break.

Small cracks wormed its way along the bowl, trailing along the metal like veins.

Impa lightly knocked Zelda's knee with her hand, a smile forming across her lips. "Your Highness, look." Zelda tilted her head in confusion before she followed who Impa was staring at with such amusement: [Y/N] closed her eyes in a closed eye smile, a dark, malicious aura forming around the young knight, whilst she slid her hands onto her hips in front of Revali. He hadn't noticed her yet.
"Oh, I do hope they don't argue," Zelda said.

Impa propped up her elbows into her lap and rested her chin against it, leaning a little forward. "I'm sure they will be fine, Your Highness. If they do, I will intervene if you would prefer?"
The young Princess cast another cast towards the pair. "Only if you must." Whilst this was going on, Daruk, Urbosa and Mipha were setting up the 'tea party' with a easily put together table- which Alessia owned to put her stock on typically- chairs, along with tea and food.

[Y/N] waited patiently until he stopped laughing, and jumped a little at her stare. His feathers puffed out slightly, and [Y/N] couldn't help but tilt her head to the side and poke one of the fluffy feathers. A dark blush covered his face. "W-What are you doing?!"
"What are you doing? I saw you laughing at me when I slipped over."
A smirk made its way across his beak, despite the blush across his feathers. "Yes, your failure was rather amusing."

"...You are an arsehole," [Y/N] glared. "Next time you trip over something I will point and laugh." She took another step forward so their faces were inches from each other's, their eyes locked. [Y/N] ignored the flush covering her cheeks. Revali crossed his wings against his chest and maintained a similar glare. Even so, his expression may crumble away as his doubt slithered and grew. His expression disappeared for a moment, showing a sense of guilt across his face, which was unusual in itself. [Y/N] blinked her eyes a few times, her glare disappearing. "Are you alright?"

Revali reared back in shock. No one had seen past his façade, the mask he chose to wear.

"What?" He spat, taking a few steps backwards. "Don't act like we're friends, Knight. I only see you as a possible rival and nothing else. So, don't act touchy feely with me and pretend you care." Whilst he did have an angry expression across his beak, his eyes showed the opposite. She could sense the insecurity clawing its way to the surface. His eyes sparkled with doubt, even if he tried to perceive it as something else.

[Y/N] wasn't affected by his outburst. She was used to maintaining a stony expression, and being able to control her emotions. She crossed her arms against her chest and furrowed her eyebrow. Impa was going to get ready to stand and intervene, until Urbosa pressed her hand against her shoulder. The Sheikah tilted her head to face Urbosa, who was watching the pair carefully. The older woman spoke, tightening her grip around her shoulder, "I think you should see this through and not intervene. Watch, and listen. Revali is merely on the defensive, and [Y/N] can see that."

Impa and Zelda exchanged looks. The young Princess asked, "Are you sure it is wise to leave them like this? Will...they be ok?" Zelda spoke quietly, her eyes bright. She cared about the both of them. She had a kind heart.
Urbosa smiled. "They will be, little bird." Zelda blinked her eyes a few times. "If anyone could get through to Revali, even for a moment, it may be our Knight."

"Honestly, I'm surprised you aren't signing instead of talking right now," Revali leans down so their faces are inches apart. A red blush flushes across [Y/N]'s face. "Did I upset you?" He continues to lean down, so they are nose to nose almost. How he doesn't realise is another question in itself. 

"Not really. But," She dropped the bowl on the ground, catching Revali's attention. She raised her left hand and rose it, stroking across his cheek with her hand. His feathers fluffed up and he almost made a noise in embarrassment. His face was a dark red. "You seem to be hiding the fact you doubt yourself. I was the same," His eyes widened a little bit. "I mastered each weapon to go past what even my father was capable of. I pushed my body to the limits to prove something to him. And then, he passed before I could. Not that I blame him for that. Because I doubted myself and my abilities. But, I also wanted to know why you were staring at me." She tilted her head to the side, gently stroking her thumb along his cheek. His feathers fluffed up even more as he became more flustered. "Is there a reason?"

He reluctantly admitted, turning his head away with [Y/N]'s hand still on his cheek. "...I wanted to apologise." For now, he felt no need to put up his defences again. Well, yet. It would likely happen at some point.
[Y/N] furrowed her eyebrows. "What? You already apologised back in Rito Village." The young knight crossed her arms back against her chest. He wouldn't dare admit he liked the warmth she gave, and missed it. "I mean, I was the one who ran straight towards the arrows in the first place. I blame myself, not you."

"What were you even thinking?" He scolded, going back to his usual self. "What type of idiot runs towards arrows?"
"Me."
"...I really don't like you," He crossed his wings against his chest and scoffed. [Y/N] bent down and picked up the bowl, slamming the cloth back into the bowl. Still, he could respect the fact she had been honest of her own insecurities. Perhaps, in time, he would be able to do the same.

"Revali, [Y/N]!" Both turned around to face Mipha who had a smile across her face. Before the young Zora was a table laden with different tea and sweet treats from different parts of the world, from the Gerudo Desert to Zora Domain. Zelda, Impa, Urbosa, Alessia (with her umbrella placed above her) and Daruk were already sat down. [Y/N] waved over to the young Princess. "Will you two join us for tea?"
Revali snorts. "Is now really the time to play tea party?"

[Y/N] rolled her eyes after placing the bowl beside her things, and headed towards the table and sat down. Mipha sat down beside [Y/N] and Revali, after some reluctance, sat down in one of the empty seats. Alessia picked up one of the tea pots and wrapped her fingers around it and began to pour the liquid into several cups. She picked up her own and brought it to her lips, and started to drink. [Y/N] blinked her eyes at the array of teas and small desserts across the table. The young knight's eyes seemed to even widen and sparkle.

"[Y/N], there's Sprite Leaf, Nightshade Tea...some others, as well. Oh, your favourite, Twili Shadow is here." Everyone watched as Alessia passed the cup to [Y/N], who gleefully accepted. She pulled down her mask, revealing her scar across her face. Everyone blinked, almost spellbound as she raised it to her lips and took a massive gulp. An arrange of spices infiltrated her senses, from cinnamon to a hint of shadow. It fondly caressed her taste buds as the warm, grey liquid made its way down her throat.

"I'm surprised you managed to pick this up," [Y/N] said, not noticing the blush across everyone's cheeks. "It can't be found easily."
Alessia smiled. "I have my ways." Everyone couldn't help but smile at the smile and good nature of it all. Even during events like these, you needed a moment to take in everything and show those you care.

Even if it was just for a moment, they could appreciate that.

Chapter Text

With that, the four Divine Beasts were assembled with their pilots. Training began in earnest, and to plan to defeat Hyrule's enemies began to coalesce. Zelda continued her work calibrating the Divine Beasts and researching ancient relics. Much to her frustration, however, her sealing power remained dormant.

A sense of lingering doubt and fear started to creep in. Dark magic made itself known by stroking in-between her fingers, a sense of electricity coursing through her veins after each step through the castle. Her sword clinked against her waist, as her other weapons, including her bow, arrows, and even a spear. The shield from her father was still reflecting the same image, not tampered by the light. [Y/N] was a sorcerer, the same as her mother. Except, there was something else to her lineage Alessia had failed to mention. The dislike of the sun, for one. Secondly, the feel of irritation when the sun burned down against her back, or the sense of calmness and restoration in shadow. It was peculiar for a knight. 

The glass windows revealed the outside world, touched by the glowing brightness of the sun. [Y/N] could feel an inkling of darkness seeping through, as her magic rose. It was present, her power. But it needed time to reveal itself. To think, she was the knight of the Princess, a being of light with the (sealed power) of a deity. Whilst [Y/N] rendered the (sealed power) of a being of darkness. 

Her footsteps echoed across the floor as she stepped, the mask adorned the lower half of her face. Voices could be heard on the other end of the hall. Her eyes blinked to see Zelda and Impa at the bottom of the hallway. Zelda stared down at the ground with a sense of sadness in her eyes, moving her arms to-and-fro. Impa clenched her fists at her sides, her voice remaining calm whilst her temper slowly rose. It was upsetting to see Zelda like this- the young Sheikah cast her eyes towards Zelda, trailing over her eyes, or the way her lips curved into a frown.

Zelda had been in a meeting with the King which was likely why she appeared so glum and out of spirits. He didn't believe her to be trying to render the power of light, as though she was not working hard enough to accomplish it. It was enough to leave a sour taste in [Y/N]'s mouth at the thought: he took her for granted. From her intelligence to her knowledge on the Divine Beasts.

"His Majesty did not offer even a single word of praise."
"Well...It's only natural that Father would be frustrated."
Zelda turned as Impa began to speak again. "But, Your Highness..."
"Right now we must do whatever it is in our power. Please inform Mipha and Daruk that we depart tomorrow morning."
"Then you plan to go to the Divine Beasts? Understood." Impa soon walked off. The small Guardian let out small noises, walking around the Princess to stand in front of her. 

Zelda kneeled down before the small Guardian, a small smile spreading across her lips. The Guardian was always there to make her feel better about herself. Noises of excitement were just too amusing not to smile, or laugh at. [Y/N] slowly made her way down the hall after hearing their short discussion- to some extent, she could understand how Zelda felt. Whilst her power, too, had not been released yet, her mother had not pressured her to work harder. What [Y/N] was, what she had always been, was afraid. Afraid of the calamitous power she held. At least, that is what Alessia failed to mention.

The young knight stepped around the young Princess and stopped to stand behind her. [Y/N] tilted her head to the side.

"Father thinks that...He thinks that the reason my ability hasn't awakened is because I haven't worked hard enough." The small Guardian responded with small noises. "I imagine that when I visit the Divine Beasts, he'll say as much." More noise. Zelda looked behind her to see [Y/N] standing there. She got up in surprise, her eyes widening through [Y/N]'s own. "[Y/N], you-"
[Y/N] started to sign, 'I heard you, yes. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I just want to say...' [Y/N] took a moment to think, her cheeks flushing a little. She wasn't used to showing her emotions so honestly to anyone, let alone the princess. 'You work harder than anyone I know. You both have the intelligence to know how the Divine Beasts work, and know how to solve issues easily. You just need more confidence. You and I are similar. I, too, have po-' She stopped signing. Her hands started to shake at what she nearly admitted.

Zelda rose her hand, close to outstretching it and take [Y/N] by the hand. But, she stopped herself. Zelda clenched her fist against her chest and watched, with a sense of sadness in her heart, as [Y/N] took a few steps back. An uncomfortable feeling twisted in her chest; [Y/N]'s eyes drifted down towards the ground beneath her feet, her heartbeat calming down as she took in slow breaths. Perhaps it was best to run for now, until the next mission in the morning.

The fear of being known as a sorcerer was something she thought of often, even if she had not yet gained the power expected of her. Sorcerers had never had a good reputation for centuries- necromancers, for example, had mostly brought back the dead to life, or forced the human body to change completely by modifications which often lead to death. Other sorcerers had the powers to bend the earth, or even water to their will. They had formidable strength and power.

[Y/N] placed her hands against her sides and bowed. Before Zelda could say anything, she stood back up and ran off. The small Guardian cocked its head to the side, releasing whistles of confusion. Zelda parted her lips but nothing came out. Her shout was stuck in the back of her throat. She hadn't wanted [Y/N] to leave. What was she trying to say? Was it a secret perhaps?

"What was she trying to say?" The question was left in the air. Looks like she would need to talk about this with [Y/N] tomorrow. The Princess had always been far too curious for her own good.

Zelda and [Y/N] walked in front of the rest of the knights whilst Mipha and Daruk were stationed behind the rest of the group as they walked through the town. Houses were placed on either side, whilst a few trees were placed here and there. This town was placed beside the massive wall (metres high to the point they seemed to reach the heavens above, as the clouds hid the top of the wall) around the entire field, closing off parts of Hyrule.

Silence was left clinging to the air between Zelda and [Y/N], who had not spoken since yesterday evening. Even as they continued to walk through the town, with the knights holding spears behind them, neither spoke. [Y/N] clenched her fists against her sides, swallowing down the annoyance in the back of her throat. Not annoyance in Zelda, as she had done nothing wrong, but in herself. As soon as she was to have a tender moment, with the Princess of all people, she nearly shared the secret she had kept since she was born. Alessia had told her, albeit with slight hesitance, that she was part of a prophecy.

There was so much Alessia needed to teach [Y/N] even now.

The small Guardian walked on Zelda's right side. Zelda began, keeping her head forward, "The adjustments to the Divine Beasts are not yet complete." She tucks her arm underneath her other as she tapped her finger against her chin. It was more of a verbal note she was making for herself. "We must fine-tune them for the individual pilots, to ensure they will be as effective as possible. So many of their parts are complex- we don't yet understand them fully. But I will discern their uses." [Y/N] nodded.

Whilst Zelda continued to explain the Divine Beasts, Mipha turned towards Daruk. "Daruk, I have a request." Daruk turned towards her. "Might I...join you for training next time? I would like to be fully prepared. Learning new ways to fight foes might do me some good." Daruk smiled widely. "Of course! The more, the merrier! Thing is, we still need a knight gritty enough to seal the darkness, and they're nowhere to be found." As he said that, Mipha glanced towards [Y/N], who was patiently listening to Zelda. Mipha's cheeks blushed as she watched [Y/N]'s eyes shine with magic. She appeared calm currently. "Y-Yes..."

"Although, hey! If ya see anybody that-" He slowly turned his head to follow her gaze, landing on [Y/N]. He smugly scratched his finger against his chin, about to say something else until Yiga Clan members appeared in white smoke and red tags littered the ground beneath them. Everyone took a step back, some grabbing hold of their weapons from their backs. [Y/N] outstretched her arm in front of Zelda, pushing her back a little as her other hand wrapped around the hilt of her sword and unsheathed it from her sheath. Her eyes narrowed.

Zelda clasped her hand against her chest. "What do they want?" 
More of The Yiga Clan, some holding bows, appeared on top of the house in front of them. The larger man, known as Sooga, crossed his arms against his chest as he peered down at them all. "Your Highness, I bring news. It regards your impending death." More Yiga Clan members soon appear and Daruk and Mipha unsheathe their weapons to face their new enemy. 

"Everyone, please be careful!"
"[Y/N], keep the Princess safe!" [Y/N] nods, suddenly placing her sword back into her sheath. Zelda looked towards her in confusion before making a noise of surprise as [Y/N] picked her up bridle style, wrapping her arms around her legs and waist. The enemy don't have much time to react before [Y/N] starts to run in the opposite direction, away from any Yiga Clan member. They took a few turns weaving between the houses and along the street, before a Yiga Blademaster appeared, with his sword held in both hands. He took a menacing step forwards, before he raised the blade up and slammed it down, sending curved, green slashes towards them.

Zelda buries herself into [Y/N]'s chest, wrapping her arms around the knight's waist. Her hands grip around her a little harsher than she expected. [Y/N] blushes at the contact but continues to run forward, dodging to the side. She jumped up, and raised her heel before slamming it into the side of the Yiga Blademaster's face, sending him flying through one of the walls. Stone collapsed all around him from the massive hole in the wall. [Y/N] landed perfectly on both of her feet. 

[Y/N] and Zelda had met before when they were just children. She wasn't even sure if Zelda remembered.

12 Years Earlier...

Alastair walked forward with [Y/N] on his shoulders as they headed towards the castle. [Y/N]'s orange eyes trailed across the castle, taking in its tall structure and how the flags beneath fluttered in the breeze, the crest of Hyrule finely sewn across it. Her red locks flew in the wind, dropping down and hitting against her cheeks. As she became older, her hair and eyes would change to mirror her father.

Perhaps it was due to just growing older, or, a simple disguising spell concealed how she truly appeared, as well as the circular, green (glowing) marks across her skin- which looked like ancient ruin markings- from across her face to her chest to the rest of her body. As she grew older, the marks across her face were the only ones which remained. Alastair, of course, wanted [Y/N] to become a knight like himself and perhaps lead the army of Hyrule one day. Which is what lead Alastair and King Rhoam to want their children to meet, if [Y/N] was to protect Zelda one day.

Alastair nodded towards the knights, and stepped through the halls, before they finally managed to reach the throne room, where Queen Brighid (Zelda's mother) and King Rhoam sat on their thrones. A small child, with long, golden curls, sat in Brighid's lap, tilting her head to the side in confusion at the new arrivals. A small smile spread across Alastair's lips as King Rhoam and Queen Brighid smiled with kindness. At least, that was until Brighid noticed how unusual [Y/N] appeared. Her eyes sparkled with intrigue at the child, with kindness still true in her heart.

The appearance of [Y/N] was uncommon. They reminded her of the stories she was told as a child, of Shadow Beings who were banished from the Light Realm and the Sacred Realm after attempting to steal the Triforce. Once, they were known as Interlopers before being referred to as the Twili for the adaptions to the Twilight Realm after their banishment.

Well, that is what fair few texts described. The Hero had written down everything known of the realm itself, and those who lived there. Including Princess Midna. Many paintings and drawings had been kept and published describing their appearances, along with their weaknesses and power. Still, that Hero had died long ago but his work still remained to this day.

"This must be little [Y/N]! She truly is a beauty!"
"Must be due to the fact she got her looks from her mother. I would say Zelda is the same. She required her looks from her mother with none of her father's characteristics in sight." Rhoam huffed in response, whilst Brighid started to chuckle. She carefully wrapped her arms around Zelda and placed her down on her feet. Alastair raised his arms and gently gripped [Y/N]'s waist and placed her down on the floor. "Well, you wouldn't want her to have any bald spots."

"I do not have bald spots."
"Then why do you always wear your crown?"
"I am the King, of course I would wear a crown." Brighid laughed off their petty argument to instead stand, pressing her hands against her stomach with a kind smile across her face. She had long, golden locks down to her waist, with bright blue eyes. She wore a golden circlet around her head, with numerous sapphires resting along her forehead. She wore a long, silken, dark blue gown adorned with small jewels along the bottom, whilst the heart-shaped cut had golden lace in numerous, curved patterns along with the Triforce sewn along her long sleeves. Her face was a more mature version of Zelda, as though they mirrored each other perfectly.

She softly guided Zelda towards [Y/N], one hand resting on her shoulder. [Y/N] looked up at the Queen in awe, her eyes widening and sparkling like diamonds. "You two are around the same age. How about you two get to know each other a little more? You may have more in common than you think." Zelda nodded enthusiastically with a bright smile across her face -her smile could brighten up a room-  since she did not have friends her own age. Impa was the only one. 

Zelda grabbed hold of [Y/N]'s hand and lead her into one of the gardens. [Y/N], as Zelda continued to drag her further and further along the garden path, her eyes focused on the numerous blooms in the garden, from roses, to light blue flowers many associated with the Princess to Nightshade. The sun above was unpleasant on the skin; she swore she heard slight sizzling, as small, yellow cracks spread out across her skin. They even seemed to glow, oddly enough.

"What do you do for fun?" 
[Y/N] turned her head towards Zelda, taking her hands in her own as they sat down on the bench. "Oh...I like to read? Do you like...reading?" Nor was [Y/N] used to this either. She didn't have many friends except for Mipha. She was already being taught how to fight (first, hand-to-hand combat then training with weapons) if she was to become a knight. Not many children her own age had such responsibilities or were forced to undergo such a harsh training.
"Yes! I often read books on the three goddesses and Hylia! If I am to...have such power."

"The power of the goddess Hylia."
"Yes..." She looked down at their interlocked hands, a small smile, despite the sadness in her eyes, spreading across her lips. "Could I...? Will I be able to?" There was clear vulnerability in the way she spoke.
"If you put your mind to it, you are sure to accomplish it."
"You think so?"
"Yes, I do."

But, as [Y/N] looked up, she froze at the glare Revali sent her way. A streak of coldness ran down her spine. He was inches away from the knocked out Yiga Blademaster and if she had used a little more force, he could have been knocked over himself. Instead of saying anything, [Y/N] turned around, and started to wander off. "Hey, don't just ignore me! Your boarish attempts at fighting nearly knocked me flat!"
[Y/N] turned back around and scowled at him. "Maybe you shouldn't be in the way!" The knight carefully placed down Zelda so she stood on both of her feet. Two knights suddenly appeared. 

Still, Zelda's attention was instead focused on the town set ablaze: bright, red flames spread out across the town, licking at the roof tops and setting fire to anything wooden in sight. It started to spread more and more as the battle droned on. Zelda clasped her hands together and rested them against her chest as her eyes widened and shock spread across her face. Before the knights could stop her, she ran off towards town. "Fire! Scattered across the town!" Revali and [Y/N] didn't quite hear due to their childish squabble. 

"Me?! In the way?! Are you kidding me, Knight?! I was fighting whilst you were cosying up with the Princess! We have no time for your flirting!"
[Y/N] crossed her arms against her chest, silently watching a Yiga member sneak up behind Revali. "How was I flirting with the Princess? I was only helping her to safety." She wasn't sure who he was jealous of (since it was obvious he was in fact jealous due to his tone.) "Were you jealous or something?"
He scoffs, crossing his wings against his chest. "As if-" The Yiga member raised his blade, about to throw down towards Revali before [Y/N] kicked them in the face, sending them hurtling backwards. She landed down back on her feet with her arms still crossed against her chest.

[Y/N] turned towards Revali, who was watching her in surprise. They stared at each other in complete silence until [Y/N] spoke. "...you have pretty feathers." It took a moment for him to realise what she had said. He took a step back, his eyes wide, and his face completely red as his feathers fluffed up. "W-What?!"
A smirk spread across her lips underneath her mask. "You heard me." She looked to her side. "Huh...where did she go...?" Before Revali could say anything, she ran off towards town. 

He watched after her with a sense of embarrassment. Her teasing caused his heart to beat faster against his chest, and for his face to blush to deepen. He didn't dislike the warmth he felt from her remarks, even as they 'argued'. It was more playful than anything else and it created a pleasant sensation in his chest. He hadn't felt this way in a long time. He had lost both of his parents when he was fairly young himself and had no one. So, he trained himself to use a bow and try to be better than everyone else. He needed to prove to everyone, those who forgot him, he was worth it. That he deserved praise. 

Which left him to become this when he became older. Someone of arrogance. Well, if no one cared about him, he might as well prove he was better than everyone else.

[Y/N] ran further towards the town and turned a corner, coming across the scene of Sooga walking towards Zelda with both swords in his hands. [Y/N] wrapped her hand around the hilt of her sword, and unsheathed it from its sheath. She ran forward before jumping into the air and landing in front of Zelda on two feet, holding out her sword before herself, pointing it towards Sooga. "[Y/N]!" Zelda shouted in surprise. Sooga stopped for a moment to narrow his eyes at [Y/N], examining each movement she took, even as she ran forward, slicing her sword towards Sooga, not even flinching as he threw down his own both swords, slamming them down against [Y/N]'s sword. "I will banish you from this plane of existence."

A few sparks blew off as they continued to slash their swords at each other, connecting each time and throwing sparks into the air. [Y/N] rolled to the side as he crossed his swords down in an 'x' shape, slash marks breaking off chunks of the ground and sending fragments into the air. [Y/N] speeds forward, raising her leg up into the air and slamming it towards Sooga, sending a surge of air towards him: he dodged out of the way, but the strength she exhibited forced him to take a few steps backwards. A surge of fear suddenly trailed through his spine. The narrowed, dark look in [Y/N]'s eyes was something else. It was as though a great evil manifested in her eyes.

Whilst his guard was dropped, [Y/N] used this to raise her first in her weapon less hand and slam it into Sooga's face, sending him backwards. He staggered a little, before regaining his composure. He started to huff and puff. [Y/N]'s eyes narrowed with intensity, the magic growing in her eyes. She bolted forwards, the blade pointed towards Sooga; she slashed it towards him again and again, not saying anything, or making a sound as metal met metal, sending off several sparks. After each hit, it sent him backwards a step, and he could only defend with both swords angled in an 'x' shape as she continued to slash at his swords.

Then, Sooga jumped backwards and started to run. [Y/N] huffed and soon followed along with Zelda who stopped beside the small Guardian. Sooga aggressively turned around (causing [Y/N] to jump in surprise) and jumped backwards, landed and disappeared into a cloud of smoke and tags. [Y/N] looked from side-to-side still gripping her sword in her hand. On the roof, he appears in another cloud of smoke and tags, before sliding his swords back into their sheaths. He jumps up into the air, gripping three kunai between his fingers and throws them towards Zelda. Her eyes widen in fear as they fly towards her; the small Guardian jumps up to defend her from the attack but [Y/N] jumps up and cuts the kunai in two. The fragments drop onto the ground beneath their feet.

The small Guardian lands back onto its legs, its blue eye watching the scene take place. Sooga himself kneeled, one hand pressed against the ground. "I suppose destiny is at work, then. The future is fickle." He stood up once again. "Yiga Clan! Time to go." He soon disappeared, followed by the rest of the Yiga Clan members. [Y/N] slid her sword back into its sheath, her eyes lingering on the spot Sooga had disappeared from. Zelda took a step forward and walked in front of [Y/N]. The knight flickered her eyes towards Zelda. "Um..." Before she could say anything, the small Guardian started to jump up and down, causing [Y/N] to turn around in confusion.

Mipha and Daruk stepped towards them in time to watch as [Y/N] scratched the back of her neck in embarrassment, turning towards them all. Zelda smiled back, a sense of lightness in her eyes.

How fun.

Chapter Text

The king issued his first order to the Divine Beast pilots-seek out the knight who could wield the sword that seals the darkness. This would require that they vanquish the monsters in Korok Forest, where the legendary blade slept. All four of the pilots were to take part. Zelda-seeking data to help calibrate the Divine Beasts-accompanied them, as did [Y/N], for she always stayed by the princess's side.

The skies were light blue, adorned with white clouds trailing across the skies. A hawk flies overhead, slamming its wings against itself as it spirals through the air before heading towards Korok Forest. Our heroes stood on top of the cliffs, staring down at Korok forest, adorned with trees with pink buds, preparing themselves for the battle which would ultimately commence. [Y/N] crossed her arms against her chest, tilting her head to the side slightly to look at Zelda, who clasped her hand in the other. The princess felt fear cloud her judgement, all that she knew. This was an important task: defeat the monsters in Korok Forest, then...the legendary blade.

Revali begins to step forward. "Hyrule's king chose us to perform this pivotal task," He pressed his wing against his chest. "It will be my honour to excel, as always." He turns towards [Y/N], who is too focused on Zelda to be paying attention. "Then there's you, the one part that doesn't add-" [Y/N] turns around to face him. She blinks a few times, before her hands slip onto her waist. Revali takes a step back as his eyes (far too keenly for his taste) meld with her [e/c] ones, and his feathers fluff up slightly and a dark red blush covers his face.
'Were you talking about me?'
"Who else would I be talking to?" He snarks, but [Y/N] isn't bothered by it. Which irritates him slightly. How could she be so calm and collected? Why was it that sometimes he didn't even affect her? With how arrogantly and mean he could be?

Instead, [Y/N] clasped Zelda's hand into her own, interlocking their fingers together so she could raise her hand and press it against her masked lips. Zelda's cheeks blazed bright red and her eyes widened at the gentleness the knight was exhibiting, even as she traced her scarred fingers over her own. Instead of fear worming its way through her doubts, a sudden clarity of warmth spread through her chest. [Y/N]'s voice came as a soothing pause and made her forget everyone else was there, watching with amusement in their eyes or jealously which began to manifest in a certain few. "You are putting too much pressure on your shoulders. If you need a moment to breathe, then do it. We will do this together. Is that alright with you, Your Highness?"

Zelda's cheeks flush a little, and her eyes widen slightly from the advice given. It made her heart swell with happiness and confidence- she looked to [Y/N] for inspiration and to hear such words, made her happy. Which was soon short-lived...

"How are you trusted enough to lead us? Your role doesn't fit," Revali spoke from behind [Y/N] with his winged crossed his chest. [Y/N]'s eyes narrowed at the sound of his arrogance. It laced his voice like poison, spewing words of aggression he didn't even mean-he used it as a defensive barrier, as a way for no one to be close. But, what was the point in putting down someone else in order to do that? The Knight let go of Zelda's hand, gently, to clench her fist at her side as she aggressively turned her head towards Revali. Revali's feathers fluffed up in surprise, suddenly sensing he made an error in judgement.
Daruk rubbed the back of his neck. "It doesn't matter who's the leader. We're all in this together, right?"

Revali turns his head towards Daruk. He almost scoffs. "You are, of course, mistaken. My Divine Beast is the key." Everyone watches as he steps towards the edge of the cliff. [Y/N] turns around to share a look with Mipha. Mipha shakes her head whilst the young knight shrugs her shoulders. "Really now...It makes no sense." He places his wings behind his back before turning back around to face [Y/N]. Truly, Revali had a one track mind: insult [Y/N]. "Well...My one comfort is that your reputation...will be completely ruined once you fall. The fallen knight, heh heh!"

His laugh? Cute. His arrogance right now? Not cute.

Still, best not to take it to heart despite how irritating he was being. [Y/N] crossed her arms against her chest as a slight brush flushed across her cheeks. Her eyes trailed over towards Revali, who stared back with just as much irritation. That is until Urbosa placed her hand on [Y/N]'s shoulder, squeezing it. "Revali, how long do you expect us to put up with your prattle, huh?"
Revali slowly turns back around so he instead stares upon the distance. "I've said enough. The time has come to show you what I'm made of." He then turns once again, a smile widening across his face as he raises his wings upwards. "Now witness...Vah Medoh's divine power!"

Vah Medoh flew overhead as its propellers moved as quickly as possible as it flew across the sky, releasing its battle cry. In no time at all, as everyone watched from the cliffs, Vah Medoh let out a large, blue laser and destroyed any monster, or lair. Pieces of rock or bone were thrown hurtling into the air, and Vah Medoh dodged, by slowly moving to the side, of any magic sent its way. [Y/N] watched intensely as the destruction Vah Medoh had caused: truly, it was quite a sight. The young knight clenched her fist at her chest, her eyes narrowed. After the battle was done, Revali fell from the Divine Beast, announcing everything was clear.

Before long, everyone was running through the forest between the twisted, grotesquely cracked out-of-place trees. The air around them was tainted with fog, with barely anything to be seen before them. Who knows what would happen.

[Y/N] was leading them all by walking in the front, whilst Mipha, Daruk and Revali were a little behind her. Zelda walked behind them all, with the soldiers on either side of her. The young knight pulled down their armour a little around her waist, along with her armoured gloves. "This is quite the fog," Mipha spoke softly.
"Are we even making progress? We could be going in circles," came Revali's usual snippy reply. Whether he wanted to be more annoying than usual was a good question- maybe it was due to everyone seeing his, and Vah Medoh's power. He was talented, that's for sure. He deserved the title of Champion. Still, whether [Y/N] would admit that or not...his ego would grow, but perhaps his old wounds would heal.

"Good point. If only someone could fly above and scout the way." Without realising it, they walked by a tall, tree-like creature. It tried to wave in front of them, or jingle slightly but no one seemed to notice him. At least, until Zelda spotted him. She glanced towards him for a moment, thinking she simply imagined him, until he jingled again. Zelda sharply turned her head towards him, her mouth gaping open at the bizarre, tall creature. He threw up his hands holding his musical instruments and shouted, "Shaka!" He began to cheer to himself at being noticed by Zelda, and now Urbosa, who stopped as she realised Zelda had done the same. "Whee-hee-hee! Finally, finally, finally! Somebody sees me! Shakala-laka!" He twirls around cheerfully.

[Y/N] suddenly stopped, turning around sharply. Her hand wrapped around the hilt of her sword, ignoring Revali's bewildered look as she stepped around him to walk in front of the stranger. Everyone soon heard the strange tree-like being, and followed. "Huh? Where'd you come from? And who are you?"
"Oh, me? I am the one who brings song and dance to Korok Forest! Hestu!"
"A Korok!"
Daruk threw up his arm enthusiastically. "That's great! Mind guiding us through the fog, then?"

Hestu suddenly slumped forward, sadness overtaking his voice. "Shoko...I'd love to get home myself...But there are scary, mean monsters in the woods, and I can't get past them..."
Revali crossed his wings against his chest. "You could probably sneak right by if you didn't have those noisy maracas." [Y/N] squinted in slight annoyance, sliding one hand onto her waist as she stared at the Rito. He turned his head towards her and narrowed his eyes. "What, Knight?"
[Y/N] simply shrugs her shoulders and steps in front of Hestu. He turns towards her, sensing the Forest Child blood in her veins. She radiated it even, as clear as day. While she had other blood in her veins, he caught the essence of Forest Child for a moment, rattling his maracas from side-to-side. [Y/N] crosses her arm against her chest and bows. Everyone stares at her sudden act of nobility. "Hestu, if you guide us, we would be sure to help you get back home. Our mission is of importance."

"As our dear knight has said, we have business in the forest. If you lead the way, we can handle the monsters for you."
Hestu threw up his hands in excitement as a bright, red light glowed around his maracas, sending out green confetti. "Oooh, really?! Woo-hoo! Yaaaaay! In that case, follow! Follow!" He suddenly turns around, causing everyone to stare in surprise. Without another thought, everyone started to follow after Hestu. He wasn't wrong about the sudden collection of monsters spawning throughout Korok Forest: everyone defeated them quite easily, using their weapons to crush the skulls, therefore, destroying the little soul left in their eyes. Whilst it was easy to defeat the sudden onslaught of monsters, the entrance to the Great Deku Tree was sealed by a dark purple-black substance. It glowed, and appeared to be as thick as ink, or even more so. So, our heroes were left to go four separate ways in order to relinquish the dark magic festering the entrance.

Everyone stared at the glowing, throbbing substance. "This is the entrance, but, hey...Who put all this weird mud here? Now we can't get through!"
"It might be the work of the Yiga Clan..." Zelda said, staring in interest at it. [Y/N] folded her arms against her chest. The Yiga Clan wouldn't do something like this, would they? At least, what resources did they have?
"Maybe if we look around, we'll figure out how to get rid of that stuff!" Which led to everyone wandering off separately to try to find some way of getting rid of the substance at the entrance.

[Y/N] wrapped her hand around the hilt of her sword as she began to wander down one of the paths, wooden gates on either side which had opened to allow her to continue. Her eyes narrow at the slightest sound, her boots crunching against the branches and leaves beneath her feet. She wandered deeper and deeper along the path until she came upon a clearing, with a tree in the middle. But, the first thing [Y/N] heard was Zelda. "What is that thing? Some kind of twisted illusion?" The princess was face-to-face with a twisted, glowing being- made from the same substance as the 'mud'- of Urbosa, holding her blade tightly in her hand. Purple symbols, with a red glow, appeared then disappeared from the air.

In front of [Y/N], the substance began to form into Mipha. All around the tree was water. Slowly, the knight took out her sword from her hilt, and pointed the blade towards it, while taking her shield off her back. The Mipha-lookalike held her trident with both hands, and soon enough sped forward, throwing her trident forward and causing water to splash everywhere. A small tidal wave quickly sped towards [Y/N]: she dodged out of the way, holding her blade before herself as she ran forward. 'Mipha' raised her trident and slashed it towards her; [Y/N] deflected the attack with the side of her blade, her eyes narrowed slightly as she raised her leg and kicked 'Mipha' in the chest, sending her hurtling backwards. When 'Mipha' was caught off balance, [Y/N] put the blade through her chest. 'Mipha' began to gurgle from the strike and exploded into a puff of purple smoke.

Hopefully, everyone else will be fine, [Y/N] thought. What a strange substance.

[Y/N] placed her sword back into its scabbard, folding her arms against her chest. Cheers echoed across the forest, possibly indicating the success in defeating their foe. The substance at the front of the entrance to the Great Deku Tree had disappeared completely. Soon enough, our heroes met back up at the entrance before Zelda called to [Y/N] to follow her, while everyone else stayed at the entrance to stop other monsters from trickling in. They rushed in: [Y/N] with her sword unsheathed and sped forward alongside Zelda, taking in the sun glowing down from above. The Master Sword, an important relic, rested within the stone, with the Great Deku Tree before it. Nothing else was here. At least, they thought so for a moment, until they saw the man standing before the ancient sword. In a sudden streak of purple light, the four champions appeared, in their substance forms.

[Y/N] stepped in front of Zelda, throwing out her free arm protectively. 'Urbosa' ran forward, as did [Y/N]. Zelda watched with worry as they met in the middle, blades meeting each other: it was almost like a dance, melding blades as sparks flew off. Soon, 'Mipha' joined, slashing her trident in [Y/N]'s direction- [Y/N] gritted her teeth together as she only just managed to throw her blade backwards and deflect 'Mipha's' attack. 'Revali' flew upwards by beating his wings together, taking the bow in his claws as he propped it back, sending arrows to fly from above towards [Y/N]. In the blink of an eye, [Y/N] rolled forward and plunged the blade into 'Daruk's' back as he simply turned into mist and disappeared. Pain overtook [Y/N]'s entire body, sweat rolling down her skin as she continued to turn around and watch them. But, the knight was suddenly caught off guard as 'Daruk' slammed his weapon into [Y/N], sending her hurtling backwards, past the mysterious man.

[Y/N] rolled backwards, her back slamming against the Master Sword with a pained grunt. Her sword smashed into pieces; [Y/N] tried to get up, pressing her hands against the ground as she tried to raise herself off the floor. "[Y/N]!" Zelda called desperately.
"Kill her." The mysterious man ordered, sending the 'champions' towards the young princess. [Y/N] needed to act and now...but her sword was out of commission. All of a sudden, as [Y/N] forced herself to stand and reached out towards Zelda, the Master Sword began to glow spectacularly. The sudden burst of light filtered the darkness, covering the entire forest in a bright, white glow. It was enough to dispel the dark figures impersonating their friends and comrades.

[Y/N] blinked in confusion, while Zelda clasped her hand against her chest as she stared, almost dazed, at [Y/N]. [Y/N] turned around to see the Master Sword's glow. It was aluminous blue, bright and sparkling. Her eyes narrowed onto the blade, a question left sitting on her tongue as she gazed at the fine blade, how the dark blue hilt had a pair of wings on either side of the yellow jewel in the middle. "What?!" The man demanded as his eyes narrowed and he shouted, in anger. Slowly, [Y/N] placed her hands on either side of the hilt, and started to raise it from the slab of stone, eyes glowing keenly with a bright light. After a few tugs, the blade came free. [Y/N]  rose it into the air, eyes trailing over the sharp, glowing blade. The young knight turned around.

The mysterious man scowled as he held his staff in hand. As he murmured his last command, the glowing figures of their champions returned once again appearing. "No-they have pulled the sword free! I will not let them abscond with it alive!" [Y/N] sped forward and quite easily, slashed at and defeated them in only a few strikes. The mysterious man held his staff as a purple orb suddenly exploded, sending magic into the air as strange, golden symbols floated in the air. 

The fight against Astor too longer than expected- his dark magic, somehow familiar, kept sending her hurtling across the ground to dodge his attacks. Still, eventually, [Y/N] managed to defeat him. "That sword...It is too powerful..." He disappeared all of a sudden, as though a wave of magic washed over him and in a blink, he was gone.

Everyone else joined them in the clearing before the Great Deku Tree. "Great Deku Tree." The Korok emerged from the trees, feeling the sense of darkness had been vanquished, and they were now safe.
"All is well. The sword you hold is the key to defeating the Calamity- to sealing the darkness. Young hero, you have been chosen by the sword to wield its power and vanquish the Calamity." Zelda stared at the knight longingly, staring down at her own hand. She was expected to wield light...but where was it? "And you, Princess. Do not lose hope. The path will open for you soon." Zelda clenched her fist, silent. 

This was all too much to bare. [Y/N]? As the Hero? No. It...couldn't be possible. [Y/N] felt the sweat build up around her face, and trail down her cheeks. 

"Forgive me. A deep slumber beckons, and even I cannot refuse. You have all that is needed to face whether destiny awaits. Hyrule's fate...is in your hands..." Soon enough, the Great Deku Tree fell asleep, leaving everyone to bask in silence, and question what they had just heard.

"Me? A hero?" The sudden aggravated tone from [Y/N] caught Zelda by surprise. Everyone else shared looks. "Don't make me laugh."
"[Y-Y/N]?" Zelda tried, feeling shivers along her back as [Y/N] slowly turned her head around to face her. Her eyes were dark, dripping with magic.
"I am not someone worthy enough. I do not deserve to wield a blade able to destroy darkness, not with a soul as dark as mine." 

It wasn't just the idea of being the Hero that sent [Y/N] into a spiral of doubt and self-hatred, but also due to how weirdly familiar that man was. Whilst Alessia was also a traveller, someone who wanted to sell goods to as many people as possible, she also was an historian in the dark arts, involving magic. She could feel strong surges of it from miles away and often came to dispel it, or examine it. No wonder [Y/N] could feel her presence in the forest.

"[Y/N]!" Alessia was here. "What did I...?" Alessia looked from side-to-side, her eyes glowing slightly as she could see spirals and flames of dark magic hidden, burned across each aspect of the grass. Urbosa sent her a worried look as the champions allowed her to pass. Even Revali couldn't say anything- he was bewildered by the sudden loss of control of [Y/N]'s emotions. For Mipha, this had only happened one other time. Anger was a friend, too closely associated with the knight, but this was different. It was wrath. 
"Mother. So, you felt it? The dark magic infecting this place?" [Y/N] grimaced at the sight of the Master Sword. "I feel we are in need of an important conversation."

Alessia's eyes widened onto the sight of the Master Sword in [Y/N]'s grip. "You're the Hero...?"
"A title my father should have had, not me." Tears started to build up in the corners of [Y/N]'s eyes: they started to trickle down her cheeks, soaking her face in clear droplets. The Hero's eyes were focused, narrowed, at the stone she had taken the sword from. Zelda's eyes widened and she clasped her hands against her chest in worry. "But no. He died."
"[Y/N]..."

"I have never done anything as heroic as him in my entire life. I-"
"-Stop comparing yourself to someone else! How else are you supposed to improve yourself if you keep placing other people on a pedestal?!" Revali shouted all of a sudden, catching everyone off guard. [Y/N]'s eyes widened. Her tears stopped as she turned around to face him. Their eyes caught for a split second- his feathers fluffed up in embarrassment and he was forced to look away. Daruk and Urbosa exchanged looks and burst out laughing whilst Alessia was watching him proudly. 

Revali scoffed, crossing his wings against his chest. "If you want to improve yourself, do it. You shouldn't do it because of someone else. Otherwise, what's the point? You told me you taught yourself how to use each individual weapon in order to surpass your father. You don't think you have. But, the only one who doesn't believe such a thing is you!"
[Y/N] stared at him, speechless. 
"He has a point! Haha!" Daruk clapped him on the back and grinned at [Y/N]. "Little knight, you have a tremendous power I 'aven't seen in anyone else!"
"You seem to be your worst enemy," Mipha said, softly. 

[Y/N] watched them all as no words could escape from her lips.

Zelda interlocked her fingers with [Y/N]'s, a kind smile spreading across her lips. "You have a great talent, and you should be proud of it. You make me want to work harder."
[Y/N] tilted her head towards Zelda, and she squeezed her hand. "Your Highness..." A surge of happiness and pride washed over her, causing her chest to clench. 
"Even your father admitted you would beat him one day," Alessia softly spoke, remembering some parts of her memory rather fondly. "One's greatest enemy is themselves. What burden you must feel, but I am proud to be your mother."

The kind words from everyone sent [Y/N]'s mind down a calmer path. There was still lingering doubt, as there always would be, but these champions, her friends and comrades, had made her feel better about her own insecurities. This must be what it meant to have friends.

As it was time to return to the castle, [Y/N] stayed back to walk beside Revali. "Revali, I wanted to thank you."
"For what?" He scoffed. He knew what she meant, but he wanted her to continue. He would never admit he liked hearing her speak.
"The kind words. You didn't have to, but you did anyway. So, thank you." He didn't say anything else, but his feathers flushed red and he looked away with a smile across his face.