A/N: This can be considered a side story to Through Time and Back. It was a funny little idea that came to me as I worked on the next update. It is not really necessary for those who've never read it to understand what's going on except to just keep in mind that Siegfried and Link are children. And still have their memories. Truthfully, it wouldn't really fit into the actual story because Siegfried's personality is a little different. (Well... it is how it feels to me... Aha.)

This takes place after Chapter 11.

It can still be categorized as a one-shot and Siegfried centric!

Disclaimer: I do not own Nintendo or Namco.

A Man's Pride

Rating: K

A man will always care about what is most important...

As night fell over the vast city with its muting breath, the usually noisy metropolis receded and in place was a calm, serene capital blessed by the Gods. The evening couldn't have been a less than welcomed sight for one particular young knight as he glared in annoyance at the sudden intrusion from none other than that younger Athenian girl.

Much was said during the day; everything was explained. Their meals were eaten and now they were satisfied with their needs. So what reason did she have the right to barge into their room? She was frank with her excuse as she crossed her arms and addressed him personally;

"When was the last time you had a bath?"

Siegfried blinked at her and unconsciously sniffed the air for any odd aroma. The room smelled no different than before making the long-haired boy raise a questioning brow at the accusing sister. "What was that?" he inquired, crossing his own arms in a defiant manner.

There was a sound of curiosity coming from the elf sitting on his bed. Blue eyes glanced between the two standing in the room as he watched with a mild interest.

Cassandra waved her hand to gesture to the room then to the older boy. "You heard me: When was the last time you guys bathed?" she repeated in a more definite tone. "Because this room smells horrible. It was agonizing to sit in it all afternoon listening to your tale without gagging."

"Hmph, you didn't seem disturbed during that time," Siegfried retorted, speaking truthfully.

"That's because I was hiding it, obviously," the girl muttered, rolling her eyes. She then resumed to her previous question, "So, seriously, how long did you guys go without a decent bath?"

Siegfried huffed in annoyance for he did not feel like answering such a stupid, dumb question. The elf, however pondered noisily over it and answered;

"I'd say around… two months? No, wait, wait… Including the time before coming to this world I think it'd be… three and a half."

Cassandra's expression simply morphed into a distinguishable sign of disgust upon hearing that. She seemed to cringe and back away from the sheepishly grinning elf. "You… Ugh, that's nasty," she groaned aloud.

The older boy, on the other hand, smirked mockingly at the elf. "Hah. That's it? It's been over four years since I've seen a bath," Siegfried boasted, receiving a semi-defeated pout from the boy while a more twisted expression of disgust managed to form on the girl's face. "Hm, you could actually consider it to be five years," he added to further displease her.

She shriveled up her nose and stuck out her tongue to express her point. "Four years?" she asked in disbelief, running a hand down her rounded cheek to her bottom chin.

Siegfried merely snorted and raised another eyebrow. "Almost five years to be more precise. Hmm? What's with that look? Do you sincerely think that I would care about my personal hygiene when I was Nightmare?" he tested. His words made her visibly flinch and before he knew it, an unreadable expression had masked over her previous bafflement.

The boy angrily frowned. He didn't want the girl to take what he said seriously. But seeing that look of pity settle within her eyes justified that she did.

A sudden remark from the little elf (surprisingly) reversed the effect; "That's just amazing!" the child exclaimed as if in awe. "Four years without a bath? You're the first man I've met to exceed over two years."

That made Cassandra sigh and roll her eyes in a disbelieving manner. "You men…" she grumbled under her breath, slowly shaking her head. Her womanly demeanor had just returned to further scold the boys for their natural uncleanliness. "Surely it would be reasonable to society to bathe at least once a week."

Siegfried waved a hand at her and re-crossed his arms. "'Once a week' is a standard set for you women," he shot back. "We men tend to not care about such stupid standards. I mean, what's the use of having to bathe once every week when you know you're going to end up covered in filth before the day's even over."

"True. True," the elf agreed with a nod and a smile. "You know, back in my world, there are some women who prefer to bathe everyday. Can you believe that?" he said, mostly addressing to Siegfried.

A sullen stare was the girl's only response for the past few seconds before she quickly shook her head and huffed. "That's it. I don't want to hear anymore of your reasons. You guys are taking a bath. Tonight. Right now."

Both boys flinched. "Hmph. We're not even covered in dirt. There's no need for one," Siegfried told her.

Her eyes narrowed and she dabbed a finger right at his face. "You're covered in grime. Just look at you!"

Siegfried briefly examined himself and shrugged. "It's sweat." Her gaze became stern. "And some dust," he continued reluctantly as he made a sweeping motion over his clothes to brush away said particles.

"And some blood," the younger boy added, scratching at one of the many cuts on his hands. Cassandra was quick to command him to stop.

The older boy shifted his feet and sighed as he eyed his own wounds. "Just a little…" He paused when he suddenly remembered something that brought a smirk to his face. "Eh, I was wrong. The last time we had a decent bath was during our plummet down the waterfall."

The elf perked from that memory and grinned. "Oh yeah! So it only has been a month," he said, glancing over at the Athenian who was now staring at them both, baffled.

"You guys nearly drowned! That's not taking a bath!"

"It's just like taking a bath!" the younger blond explained, highly amused by her reaction. "We were submerged in water from head to toe so it practically counts."

"It. Does. Not." Cassandra rubbed her forehead and groaned. "Falling down a waterfall… It's a miracle you guys actually survived that… But still –"

"It was fun."

"Hmph. Don't be ridiculous," Siegfried scoffed at the elf. He then returned his attention to the other. "Jumping in a river and falling down a waterfall is – although not the greatest nor most pleasant – a form of bathing since we were indeed soaked from head to toe… What? Don't give me that look."

The girl had been staring at him, questioning his sanity by the look in her eyes. She slowly blinked once before heaving a sigh. "Fine. If you want to believe that plunging down a waterfall," – she dramatically motioned with her hands – "is just like a bath then fine. But still. That was a month ago. You guys are taking a bath tonight."

Siegfried growled in annoyance. "What gives you the right to order us around?"

She had already turned to leave and when her hand grasped the doorknob she answered with in a definite tone, "Because you both stink!" With that she pulled the inn room door open and slammed it shut with such great force that the walls seemed to vibrate. Half a second did not even pass when the door opened again and only her head appeared into view. "I'll get a maid to bring a bath to you and you both will bathe or else."

"Or else what?" the long-haired boy demanded before she could slip away.

Her soft green eyes narrowed at him as a devilish little grin plastered over her face. "Or else I'll send Sophie up here and maybe she can help you. Would you like that?"

Siegfried immediately tensed as the thought ran by him. He quickly shook his head and turned away to hide his face, feeling a blush creeping up his cheeks. "What?! N-No! Fine! Send a stupid bath up here!" he hissed in defeat.

He heard a satisfied smirk from the girl before the click of the closing door. Letting out an angry moan, he glared at where the persistent Athenian once stood. "It's redundant," he muttered, mostly to himself.

"Oh, but wouldn't it have been nice if Sophitia helped you out?" the elf teased, a sly grin directed at the older boy.

Fuming, Siegfried glared at him. "Shut up, Link."

The boy chuckled and waved a hand, ignoring the angry blond. "It would have been fun. Don't you think? You would've –" Link didn't get the chance to finish as Siegfried threw himself at him.

But since Siegfried was a fair distance away, the elf had plenty of time to react. Link rolled and jumped off his bed and sprinted to the door, laughing. He turned to face the glowering boy, his grin never fading. "I'm just joking! But I'm sure you would've love Sophitia's company, huh?"

The older boy took a step forward, annoyance clearly in his expression. "Come back here, you stupid little elf!"

"Hylian," Link corrected, rolling his eyes.

Siegfried didn't care to listen to him as he continued; "I'll show you what I consider fun!" With a growl he lunged forward.

Link pulled the hood of his cloak over his head and ran out the door with a taunting snicker. Siegfried stopped, not wanting to bother chasing the pesky brat in the inn. He locked the door instead and smirked amusingly to himself. That little elf would have to beg if he ever wished to come in again. With a tired sigh, the young knight crossed the room and opened the window to allow the fresh night air to cool him. He leaned against the windowsill and peered out at the street below as he waited for the maid.

"It's redundant," he quietly repeated before feeling his cheeks burn once more as he thought of what could have been.

A/N: Link was not an idiot, he actually waited for the maid to get Siegfried to open the door. Oh, too bad for punishment...

Thanks for reading! I'll get back to my other stories now...