Teagan couldn't believe she was doing this again. She clearly wasn't meant to be a flyer. As if the idea of having to ride a Loftwing by herself wasn't terrifying enough, these theoretical tests were sure to have her pulling her hair out. At least they weren't timed and she was able to do them in her own time, away from everyone else. She was already stressed enough.

She still didn't know why she was doing this. Even if she did manage to pass all of her tests, she didn't have a Loftwing of her own anyway. She'd always just been happy to ride on the back of somebody else's - namely Tial's. It was actually Tial who was pushing her into this whole thing. Normally, Tial wouldn't force her twin sister into something she so clearly didn't want to do, so she must have felt it was important. Teagan didn't agree. She still didn't believe that Knight Academy was for her. Not with flying being the preliminary tests anyway.

So far she'd managed to tear up three papers after crossing out far too many wrong answers to submit, a fourth when she'd incorrectly spelt her name from being in such a tizzy after the first three, and now she'd gone and spilt her ink bottle all over her latest attempt. She was ready to give up. Judging by her past history with flying, this should have been the easy part.

She was just about ready to call it quits and destroy every other paper in sight when Link walked in. If there was any face that could keep her from breaking things, it was his. Though it still didn't make her answers right. "Hey," she greeted morosely, quiet even for her.

He gave her a sympathetic smile as he closed the door behind him. "It's not going so well?"

"How could you tell?"

Link came to sit down next to her and gently rubbed his thumb across her cheek. It came away black. "If the sad look on your face wasn't enough, the ink will do it."

"Oh." Teagan guessed she must look a state if she'd managed to get the ink all over her face too. It probably worked as a visual representation of her lack of success so far.

"What part are you struggling with?"

"All of it," Teagan replied miserably. "I don't even know why I'm doing this."

"You don't have to do it if you don't want to," Link said kindly.

"Tial thinks I should."

"She just wants you to be more independent. She doesn't realise that it doesn't make you any less independent just because you're uncomfortable with something."

"I guess..."

"You should only be doing this when you feel ready for it," Link assured her. He wiped another streak of black away from below her eye. This time, his fingertips lingered longer than necessary. He smiled again. "And until then, I have no complaints with you riding with me."