Prologue

The news of the champions deaths brought a ringing to Links ears. Everything he had dreaded had become a reality and be became frozen as he stood in front of the princess. There wasn't much time to process this information though, as the familiar beeping of a guardian was heard close by.

The two ran through the forest, Link's legs not wanting to move or carry the weight of his body anymore. Once they assumed they were safe they stopped. Link was gently shaking and holding back tears. He knew he must stay strong in the face of the princess but…

His heart ached, The champions were dead, and that meant…

He froze as he snapped back to reality and saw the princess on the verge of tears "this...this is all my fault…"

Link opened his mouth to say something but quickly closed it as he got down on his knees to comfort the collapsing princess. She began to cry. Link would have gladly joined her but he wouldn't dare give in to the urge to do so.

Zelda gulped "It...it is okay to cry...Don't hold back because of me"

Link tensed as he fought back his tears, yet he still said nothing.

"I know...you too were close...maybe closer than I ever knew…"

Link looked to the ground

I loved him

He wanted to say, but his mouth too dry and his voice too strained to form words.

"I don't see why you two are all buddy-buddy now" Revali scoffed as he and the princess made their way back to the castle from a trip to Rito Village.

Zelda smiled a kind smile "He's not as bad as you make him out to be. He's quite talkative once you get to know him…"

Revali stared at her with wide eyes "Him talk? He's about as talkative as a brick wall!"

Zelda laughed at that "Of course he can talk, he just chooses not to"

Revali huffed and kicked a rock away "Well if you ask me that's foolish of him. It would be so much easier to understand him if he just spoke to us!"

Zelda shook her head "He has his reasons…"

"Well whatever reason he has it's probably a stupid one," Revali said stubbornly.

Once the two arrived at the castle they headed to the castles stable. There Link was, whispering to his horse and patting him on his head. Revali saw this as foolish because horses could definitely not speak. Link spotted the two and looked at Zelda. His eyes lit up as a grin spread across his cheeks. He said no words but his eyes seemed to speak.

Zelda smiled "Yes yes I brought them," she said before gesturing towards Revali. The Rito sighed before shoving a bag into Link's hands "Fresh from the Herba mountains. "You're welcome"

Link's expression seemed to say thank you. He pulled out a fruit from the bag. A rare fruit only found in the icy cold mountains. It was bright red and had a very unique and juicy flavor. They have been said to relax the body and relieve stress, they ended up being over picked, making them very rare. Link took out a bite and smiled with delight before feeding the rest to his horse. He stored the rest of the fruit in his bag and looked to Zelda with a determined expression.

This told the princess he wished to speak alone with her. She looked at Revali and smiled a small smile "Can you give us a moment?". The Rito rolled his eyes and in a flurry of feathers, he flew upwards and into a faraway tree. Revali sat on a branch as he watched Zelda and Link speak to each other. He couldn't explain what it was at the moment, but he felt a surge of jealousy in his chest. Why didn't the Hylian ever speak to him? Did he have a problem with him?

He let his mind wander and the more he did so, the more irritated he became.

By the time Zelda motioned for Revali to join her once again, he was furious. Zelda watched the Hylian walk off to put his horse in the stable before turning to Revali. She went to speak but paused "Is something the matter?" she asked, the softness of her tone somehow furthering Ritos frustration "Nothing's the matter" he said stubbornly, his arms crossed. Once Link came back into his line of sight, his anger pursued. Why did the concern on the blonde's face make him so angry? Why did every smile, every laugh, every offer of kindness, put him so on edge?

Link had clearly noticed Revalis frustration as well. Link was never good at handling social situations. He reached into his bag and pulled out one of the fruits before offering it to Revali.

This made the Rito snap. He swatted the fruit out of the Hylians hand and backed away. The shocked expression on the champions face gave Revali a sense of satisfaction "Don't think I'm going to get all friendly with you just because the princess has taken a liking to you" he said sternly and before Zelda could protest, flew off into the sky. Link carefully picked up the fruit from the ground and cleaned it off on his tunic before placing it back in his bag. Zelda let out a small sigh "Sorry about him…". Link dismissed her with a wave of his hand before smiling at her as to say 'It's fine'. Zelda shook her head "I don't know what's gotten into him…he's acting so...so…"

"Stubborn?" Link finished her sentence as he gathered his things. Zelda nodded "Yes! Stubborn"

Link let out a laugh as he threw his bag over his shoulder. Zelda huffed "Well he's going to have to start getting along with you pretty soon". Link paused and frowned "How come?"

"Because I've paired you two up on the supply gathering trip tomorrow"

The champion stared at her "Why?". Zelda crossed her arms "You two just must start getting along together! How will you fight side by side if you hate each other?"

Link didn't dare share his opinion and simply nodded.

The meeting with the other champions over dinner that night was brought with much distaste for Revali. He had bluntly refused to go, but Urbosa had dragged him there by his feathers. He had dreaded facing the Hylain, especially after snapping at him earlier that day. Once in the dining hall, Urbosa threw Revali into a chair and scoffed "A meeting concerning all the champions also concerns you, bird brain" She said lowly before taking a seat by princess Zelda. "What did you just call me?!" the Rito exclaimed as he stood up. Zelda frowned "now-now, no fighting...sit down". Revali grudgingly took his seat. His anger at Urbosa had made him forget about Link and once he met the Hylians gaze he felt an ache in his chest. He gulped and avoided his eyes…those beautiful blue eyes. Revali jumped in disbelief at what he had just thought and became disgusted with himself.

No no no what am I thinking?

He stole another glance at the champion. He didn't seem phased by the Ritos presence. In fact, he seemed more irritated that there was no food on his plate. Did he not care? For some reason, that thought made the ache sing even more than ever.

The champions ate as they discussed the plans for the next day. Revali didn't protest at the news that Link would be his scavenging partner, which came as a surprise to Zelda. But an awful feeling of dread hung over the Ritos head. He was very quiet the entire meeting, which had Zelda concerned since he was usually very talkative during these meetings. Once the champions were dismissed, the princess had offered them all a stay at the castle. Mipha and Revali decided to stay. Revali would have taken the quickest route home but there was a storm preventing him from flying home and he didn't care to lose all his feathers due to lightning. Zelda walked to the castle entrance to see Daruk and Urbosa off, shooting Revali a glance of concern as she did so.

Revali grumbled and turned to see Mipha and Link. Mipha was telling link about some fish she had found with healing properties. The pang of jealousy drove deeper into his chest. He gulped and tossed his feelings aside before heading to the guest bedrooms. Once he reached his room he pressed his forehead against his door and closed his eyes. What was the matter with him?

The sound of footsteps barely registered with Revali so the sudden hand on his shoulder made the Rito jump. The last thing he had expected to see was the champion staring straight at him. Link wore a concerned expression as he gently tugged at the Ritos arm. Revali snatched his arm from Links grip "Don't you DARE touch me" he snapped. What was he saying?

Link froze but quickly collected himself. His eyes spoke a thousand words but also nothing all at once. Link made no sound but his expression seemed to have been an apologetic one as he backed away and headed back down the hall.

Please don't go

The Rito champion slammed a feathered fist on the door before heading into his room.

The night had been a sleepless one for Revali. He couldn't get his mind off the Hylian champion. What did he do that made Link so reluctant to talk to him? It had seemed he had wanted to say something in the hall...why did he snap at him?

Once it had been time to head out, Revalis restlessness didn't help his irritation and impatience.

Link didn't react when the Rito champion would make a snide remark or insult him. In fact, the Hylian had been rather emotionless the entire trip to the forest. They were sent to scavenge for truffles and ingredients for elixirs. yet the longer they went without finding anything the more irritated the Rito became. "They've got to be around here somewhere...don't tell me someone's picked them all already…" he grumbled as he desperately searched. Link would have much liked to have been paired up with the princess as they hunted down more creatures. In fact, it would have made more sense for him to be with Zelda. Link knew how stubborn the princess could be and he understood very well that she wanted him and Revali to get along...but every attempt was just brushed off by him. What did he do? He didn't quite understand…

Links patience was running thin and he had already had to bite his tongue a few times when the Rito snapped at him. He was even starting to gain a mild distaste toward the Rito champion. He was so arrogant, hot-headed and narcissistic. personality traits link absolutely hated, though he didn't dare say it aloud. Link was rather calm and level-headed, however, Revali was starting to push him. How was this going to happen? There was no way they'd ever get along. The two had only scavenged a handful of mushrooms before it became dark. Revali tossed the bag of mushrooms on the ground and quietly watched as link struggled to start a fire. After around twenty minutes the Hylian champion let out a noise of frustration before pulling out his bow and a fire arrow. Revali blinked "wait that's!"

In a small explosion of fire, the wooden logs on the ground were ablaze. Link made a satisfied smirk before looking to Revali. He grew pale.

Revali was stomping out his scarf which had set on fire. Once the fire was out the Rito finished his sentence

"-Dangerous…"

Link had expected the Rito to scold him or yell, but he didn't. Instead, he looked to the Hylian and huffed "Your form is absolutely awful". Link couldn't help but smile and laugh. The Rito blinked "Wh..? what's so funny?!" The laughter lifted some of the dread he was feeling in his chest. The Rito would have thanked him but he had far too much pride to do so. The Hylian chuckled and shook his head before rolling a blanket out onto the grass. The Rito, expecting him to pull out another blanket, groaned "There's only one?"

The Hylian nodded and scratched the back of his head before moving away to the other side of the fire to lay on the ground. The Rito frowned "you can keep the blanket. Us Rito are designed for handling the cold". The Hylian paused and lifted his head before looking at the Rito. He would have refused the kind gesture but he was afraid Revali wouldn't take no for an answer. He made his way back over to the blanket and laid back down. Revali took Links previous spot on the other side of the fire and laid down, his back facing the Hylian. Link stared at Revali for a few moments before letting out a sigh and rolling over. His body ached from trekking through the forest all day. Since they had searched for far longer than intended, this rest was far delayed.

The champion was running, running as fast as his legs would let him.

The castle was enshrouded by a black mist, the champions were dead and….if only he could get to the castle...he could still save her…but he was running in place

Link shot up and panted as he looked around. He was still on the forest floor, Revali sleeping soundly on the other side of the now dead fire. Link rubbed his face and got to his feet before walking away from the campsite. If he was going to cry, it was going happen out of earshot of Revali. The last thing he needed was the Rito champion chastising him for being too weak.

The Hylian soon found himself at the edge of a river where he collapsed to his knees and stared at his reflection in the water. He had become something he was not. He was always praised for staying calm and collected in the face of danger, but in reality, he is horrified. And who wouldn't be? He had the weight of the world on his shoulders yet he silently bared its burden. Everyone's expectations for him were high and he must fulfill his role of the hero chosen by the goddess… Link hadn't realized the tears running down his cheeks. Did the other heroes of legend cry? He supposed not.

"You should be a lot quieter if you're going to walk off in the middle of the night like that" a familiar voice sounded behind him. Revali wasn't sleeping as soundly as he assumed him to have been. Link laughed a sad laugh and wiped his face on his sleeve. Ritorito sat next to him and opened his beak to say something but paused as he saw Links puffy cheeks "...Did you have a nightmare?". Link silently nodded, refusing to meet the Ritos gaze. Revali frowned before looking to the water "...Was it about…?" Revali didn't seem to need to finish that sentence as the hylian nodded again.

"...Are you afraid?" The Rito asked.

The champion refused to answer as he stared at his reflection in the water. Revali huffed "It's no use sitting here crying about it, let's get back to camp" he scolded as he got to his feet and hand a wing out to Link. The hylian champion gazed to his wing and hesitated before taking it and rising to his feet as well. Revai huffed "and...you will not tell anyone about this," he said as they both headed back, hand in hand. Link had hoped he had gotten Revali to open up a little more on the subject of them getting along, but he was wrong about that as well.