Lake Hylia glistened brightly as the morning sun's rays filtered itself across the land, providing heat to all whom inhabited Hyrule. The day's usual business swiftly began, instantly requiring the time of many beings until dusk, when they were set free of work. But for a duo recently reunited, this was not the case. Deep beneath the surface of the lake's shimmering waters, an intense game of tag was at hand.

Ruto spun to the side, narrowly dodging a magically induced current of water before casting her own and blasting away from her pursuer. Zorn spun through the center of the current, his speed unhindered in the slightest, and shot himself forward with another blast of water. He was soon trailing close behind his target, a smirk growing on his face as she came within his reach.

His hand grazed her foot and within a blink of an eye, their positions switched. Ruto spun around in an instant and began chasing Zorn in the opposite direction. Both wore brightly lit smiles as they flew through the water at high speeds, weaving this way and that between rocks and marine plants.

Zorn looked back and smirked at the Sage of Water before suddenly heading for the surface. Ruto changed course at an equal speed, easily keeping up with her ex-student as he neared open air. Moments later, he burst forth from the lake, and using a wind spell, launched himself high into the air, far from where he emerged.

Not long after, Ruto too broke through the surface. Upon seeing her target falling back towards the lake, she hauled herself atop of the water and ran across its surface in his direction. Zorn howled in excitement as the wind rushed around him, whipping both his hair and clothing about in an unceremonious manner.

He hit the water with a great splash and began swimming towards the Water Temple with his already gained speed. Ruto dove into the water not long after he and swam as quickly as she could to catch up. As they neared the bottom, Zorn readied himself to create a current that would come from behind her, something she wouldn't be able to dodge until it was too late.

With the magic coursing through him, he held on until the last possible moment, then released his power into the water. Ruto was soon swept into the current which carried her form to the floor, and held her there as Zorn swam back towards the surface. He emerged onto a small island near the waterfall just as he felt the magic holding Ruto let up.

He stood in the middle of the small island for several long moments, muscles tense in anticipation, before she burst forth from the water, flying in his direction. He immediately dropped to the ground, allowing her to safely pass over him and land back in the water on the other side. The young man smiled, knowing full well that she could easily tag him here, but that's what made it fun.

Ruto once again flew through air towards him, arms open for the catch, but was knocked back with a small gust of wind. "HEY!" She cried out before hitting the water. The Sage glared at him from her position. "That's not fair!"

"Fair?" He chuckled, quoting what she had said to him in the past. "Who said any of this was fair?"

She submerged again, a scowl upon her face. Ruto tried several more times from several different directions, using some of her own magic in various ways to try and catch him, but each and every time he somehow managed to either dodge, or knock her away.

She ducked beneath the water one more time, her eyes glaring daggers at him, much to his amusement. Zorn gasped a few moments later as he felt the ground he was standing on encase his legs in thin stone. He immediately began to break as much of it as he could off, which succeeded in doing rather quickly, but wasn't fast enough to get away from the triumphant Zora headed towards him.

She collided with him and their bodies hit the water with a loud splash, spraying fine mist high up into the air. Ruto giggled before swimming away, leaving him disoriented and at a loss for words. That was smart! He thought, before taking off in the direction she had gone.

She led him through the lake as if she didn't even need to have her eyes open, making every movement precise, elegant, and dangerous in its own magnificent way. As time progressed, he realized that it was getting harder to keep up with her; each kick weighing heavier on his muscles than the last. With determination in his eyes, he pressed onward with all his strength, inching closer and closer as each second ticked by.

Ruto's eyes widened as she felt a hand grasp her ankle and pull her backwards. Zorn quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and laughed as he caught sight of her expression.

"What's so funny?" She asked, her cheeks becoming a light shade of pink. She hid her face as best she could in their close proximity, which was difficult to say the least.

"Just your reaction, did you not think I was going to catch you?"

"Well, no, I just wasn't expecting you to do this." She motioned to his arm around her waist. "Speaking of which, why did you do this?"

Zorn let her go with a smile and she turned around to face him as he spoke. "Now we are both it, and not it, at the same time!"

Ruto rolled her eyes. "You never did grow up, did you?"

"Hey, you agreed to play so you can't say that."

With her hands on her hips, she shook her head and focused her eyes elsewhere, though what he said was true, she was just as childish as he.


Zorn strolled through the entryway to Castle Town with a skip in step and a twinkle in his eye; the first thing he had planned was over, which meant he had to prepare for the next one, the third would have to be taken care of later. Bystanders stared at him as he passed, his whistle attracting the eyes of more as the others looked away in what seemed like disgust. He didn't understand why they couldn't be happy like he was, but it didn't really matter, it was their loss after all.

As he passed through the square with the fountain, he noticed on his left a 'For Sale' sign in front of cafe'. That had been his father's shop, where he sold exotic fruit drinks, an endless variety of pastries, and other sweet treats. His father only made the drinks, the local baker and candy-man had provided the rest in hopes of higher sales.

Zorn halted then turned towards the building and walked over to its sign. It wasn't terribly priced, which brought him great surprise, for this was a rather large establishment. He shook his head before walking away, though not without locking what he'd seen in his mind for later, and headed for the southern region of Castle Town.

He perused amongst the many stalls filled with fruits, vegetables, clothing, drinks, bread, and many other things, gathering up whatever he would need for a picnic along the way. Before long, his arms had been filled with food, though it was short lived as he had picked out a nicely woven basket that had a double hatch lid not long after his arms met their limit.

With his food loaded into the carrying apparatus, he searched the stalls for a simple blanket, or a tarp of some sort. It didn't take long to find a red and white blanket that was sturdy enough to withstand what he required, and from the looks of it, he may have just found himself a traveling blanket as well for the nights he would spend on the cold ground in front of a fire.

With the supplies for the second act of the day in hand, he strolled out the southern gate. He quickly made his way down the stone steps of the elegant entryway then made his way towards the edge of a the cliff side overlooking Lake Hylia. Without a second thought, he jumped off the edge, making sure to hold on tightly to his recently gathered supplies and to hold the lid to the basket shut as he fell.

Closer and closer the lake's surface became until he cast a wind spell to combat his rapid descent. As he slowed, he redirected himself away from the water to a patch of land next to the waterfall. Zorn landed with a thud that send a shock wave up his legs, but with how fast he was falling, a jolt was always welcome in the place of a splat.

The young man set his load down and spread out the blanket across the grass, then moved the basket diagonally onto the blanket at one of the corners, pining the blanket to the ground. After the quick set up, he dove into the lake and swam into its depths, where the Water Temple lay nestled in the rock. As he neared, a certain Zora looked up from where she lay on the lake floor, her legs crossed and her hands behind her head.

"I take it you are done with whatever you needed to do?" She asked.

Zorn smiled and nodded his head before extending a hand out to The Sage. She took it and was lifted up, though he didn't let go. She looked down at their interlaced fingers before looking back up to him, his smile still present. He gently pulled her upwards as he swam towards the surface, she began swimming with him soon after, but still, their hands did not part.

The duo broke free from the liquid's grasp and he led Ruto over to the blanket set out for them. He looked over at her and saw that her face had lit up and she was grinning from one ear to the other. "Oh, aren't you sweet, a picnic!" She cooed.

He grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "I would say 'Anything for you' but you and I both know how cheesy that is."

She giggled and he felt his heart leap in excitement as the two sat down. When he was younger, that feeling had always confused him; however, since his talk with Darunia, he wasn't exactly as innocent as he used to be. Zorn, of course, hadn't told him that he had felt those feelings for anyone in particular during 'The Talk', but from the look the Goron had given him... It was best not to dwell on that thought, he would never be able find out if Darunia knew anything or not anyways.

"So, what do you have prepared for us?" Ruto asked.

"Well, I got-" He started as he sat up, letting go of her hand in the process as to better rummage through the basket. Ruto suddenly felt very cold. She hadn't even realized the effect of just holding his hand had on her until now, but that's what made it so terrible; she had never once experienced something like this.

"You feelin' okay?" Zorn asked, a red apple, blade, and jar of peanut butter in hand.

Ruto shook her head to refocus her thoughts before replying. "Yeah, sorry, I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Nothing, it doesn't matter." She feigned a smile. "Would you like some grilled fish to go along with what you've got? I can go get some really quick."

"Oh, how about I go catch some fish and you prepare the apples, okay?"

She nodded and was handed the food in his hands before he dove back into the lake. As she waited for his return, she carefully sliced the apple in to four equal pieces, grabbing another from the basket as each one was finished. Ruto couldn't help but let her mind refocus on what had just transpired. It was like something had clicked on within her when he grabbed her hand and slowly built up, then released so suddenly when he let go that she felt almost dizzy.

After finishing the last apple, she opened the jar of peanut butter and began to smear some onto each piece of apple. Why him? She wondered. Better yet, why now? Why not when this is all over, when things might actually work? The Goddesses usually rewarded their chosen ones should they desire a reward, what if he were to choose to live forever too? Wait... What Am I thinking? Why would I want him to?

Her mind whirled with confusion and disbelief. A part of her knew very well what she felt, while another denied it entirely. One part wanted to just tell him and hope for the best, the other part wanted to know what to tell him, and why.

"Are you sure you're okay? 'Cause you don't exactly look it." Zorn's voice broke her out of her inward trance.

"U-h, yes, I'm fine, really." She stuttered.

The young man looked at her skeptically, but sat down either way with the two fish he'd caught. With a quick spell, a grill made of stone formed just outside the reach of the blanket, to which he laid the fish atop. He looked over to Ruto again after creating a blue flame underneath the fish to find that she was once again in deep thought, but what bothered him was how sad she looked.

Her face seemed darker, like a cloud had blocked out the rays of the sun around her, and her alone. As bad as he wanted to know what was bothering her, she had said it didn't matter, which, according to Darunia, means 'there is something very wrong, but I want to deal with it alone.' So, he decided it would be better to just cheer her up.

"Hey, Ruto?" Zorn tried, keeping his voice soft, not wanting to seem too pushy. She looked up to him with those breath taking eyes of hers, a glint of light sparkling within her iris. "Smile for me."

Just as before, her face brightened almost instantly, the world glowing brighter along with her. Ruto couldn't understand how three simple words could make her feel so happy so quickly, but they did nonetheless. Zorn grinned back at her, happy that it had worked like last time. Then, an awful stench filled his nose.

Ruto howled laughter as her ex-student scrambled so quickly to remove the burning fish, that he burnt himself on the heated rock. He hissed in pain, though held firmly onto the thoroughly cooked fish. "It's not funny, that hurt!"

"Yeah it is!" Ruto continued to laugh.

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Would you stop rolling around like that!"

But Ruto couldn't help herself. The man that was so precise in everything he did, whether it be shooting an arrow or swinging a sword, burnt himself in a panicked rush to save slightly overcooked fish. She stopped rolling around after a few minutes and remained still, though small chuckles here and there made her body bounce ever so slightly.

Zorn crossed his arms and waited patiently until she had calmed down before shaking his head in annoyance. "You done?"


All was silent within Zora's Domain as Twilight began to fade over the horizon. The gentle twinkling of Golden Fireflies along with the few crickets in the area created an atmosphere of peace as the many waterfalls within the area added to night's ambiance.

Two figures swam within the depths of the domain from where the water formed into a river, their movements silent and swift. They each climbed up onto dry land opposite to the Mother and Child rocks, any sound made was masked by the falls around them. The duo jogged up to a rock face covered in vines and quickly climbed up.

Once up, they made their way silently as possible up the winding pathways that led to an alcove, high in the domain's walls. Archways lined the open side of the alcove in an elegant display of artistic finesse and craftsmanship, though neither paid any attention to such details and instead continued onwards.

They stopped just outside the entrance to the royal chambers, where the rest of the population also slept. "I'm starting to have second thoughts here, does it have to be this shield specifically?" Zorn asked.

"Yes, it does." his feminine companion replied.

"But, it feels wrong to take it from them." He shuffled his feet while scratching the back of his head.

"You aren't taking it from them, it was a gift from Zelda on my seventeenth birthday, and now I'm giving it to you."

He frowned, but nodded anyways and let her lead him into the royal chamber. With more caution than before, the duo crept into the room, taking each footstep as if it were their last. They neared a pool in the center of the room and Ruto pointed to its bottom where a gleaming shield lay in wait, securely fasted to the center of the rock floor.

With a sigh, he silently slipped into the water and let gravity pull him downwards towards his prize. He looked around as he sunk, seeing a hoard of Zora asleep on the many ledges that lined the pool's walls. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he landed atop the shield. His hands reached around, the sound of blood flowing rapidly in his ears, and carefully unfastened a leather like strap that held the shield in place.

He heard a click as the shield lifted free and froze, waiting for someone to stir, but all was silent. Zorn carefully hung the shield on his scabbard with a small hook like contraption that Ruto had fastened into the sheath before deciding to come here. The young man gently pushed off the floor and began floating upwards; slower than he normally would with the extra weight, but he was sure it would not bother him for long.

Ruto helped him climb free from the pool when he emerged, this time, making far more noise than when he had entered. A head suddenly popped up from the water before ducking back under, but not before seeing the shield strapped to Zorn's back.

"I think we had best be leaving." Ruto stated calmly as she began to pull at his sleeve. Zorn looked back just as a magnitude of Zora began breaking the water's surface, all armed with knives and sharp sticks. The two broke into a run towards the waterfall, angry voices coming to life not far behind them as they went.

Despite the situation, the duo found themselves smiling, finding the predicament to be more fun than life threatening. They soon closed in on the waterfall's edge and, with a whoop of excitement, the two launched themselves out into the open air.

The wind whipped at them as they fell, bringing on an adrenaline rush as their insides seemed to become weightless from the speed of their drop. Zorn was first to hit the water who began swimming immediately after being enveloped within the liquid's grasp, Ruto not far behind.

Ruto felt the shock waves of many bodies hitting the water behind them, but a plan had already formulated in her head. "Zorn, you go down the waterway to Castle Town, but stay low to the ground so the filter can catch you, then swim back up to the Fishing Hole, got it?"

"Where's the Fishing Hole?" Came his reply, though it was muffled slightly by the rapid flow of water up ahead.

"We're headed right for it."

Ruto suddenly swerved away from him, leaving him to the small army of Zora. Doing as she had said, he sped up just as he made a tight turn towards a tunnel lined with man-made stone, torches lining the walls above the water.

Zorn looked back, though could only just barely see the lead Zora on his tail in the dark water of the tunnel. He spun his head back around just in time to see a fast approaching wooden barrier at the bottom that spanned from either wall. Without so much as a moment of hesitation, he shot straight down before colliding with the barrier.

It was almost humorous watching the many armed soldiers wash away with the current, unable to change direction quickly enough. Not wanting to leave Ruto alone for too long, he cupped his hands together before thrusting them forward. The water curved out around him, leaving a dead zone, free of current around himself.

Now entirely unaffected by the rushing water, Zorn swam back from where the tunnel had began. It took several minutes, but he was soon back at the sort of crossroad where he and Ruto had parted ways. He climbed up onto dry land, opposite to the tunnel, and looked around for anything could possibly be classified as a 'Fishing Hole', but found none.

He walked up and around a small ridge until his vision overlooked the area. Built into the hard rock was a plain and simple door, a sign just next to it that read 'Fishing Hole'. Seeing this, he opened the door and found himself mouth agape as he stared out at what he had thought was going to be a simple pond, but it was far more grand than that.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Ruto asked as she approached him from the side. "I sometimes wish I had known about this place when I decided where to re-place the Water Temple."

"I don't blame you..." Zorn mumbled, still gazing out in blissful trance at the pink trees in perfect contrast with dark waters that sparkled beneath the night sky. She found herself staring up at him, his face against the night sky giving him an almost other worldly look; with the color of his skin, it wasn't really all that surprising, but that didn't diminish the fact either.

Ruto quickly looked away as her thoughts began to wander a possible future, one that she didn't yet want to even let herself consider. He noticed her sudden movement and looked over, though she hid her emotions far better than earlier, all he saw was a smile. "How long do you think we should stay here before it's safe to head back?"

"I'm not sure." She shrugged.

Zorn looked back out on the water, his vision catching sight of a shack as he turned his head. He took a deep breath, letting it slowly seep out, before walking in the opposite direction of the shack. Ruto took notice and followed him as he walked out around the water until they crossed a bridge, only going a bit further before he sat down, removed his equipment, and lay his back against the rock.

Ruto carefully sat next to him, keeping a few inches distance between them. She looked up to the sky and gave a yawn upon seeing the moon within the center of the sky, and stretched her arms high above her head. Zorn chuckled. "Is the great Sage of Water ready for a nap?"

"Oh shut up, you'll be yawning soon too."

Zorn smirked to himself and continued watching the stars. The two sat in silence as the moon continued its trek across the sky to the horizon. Suddenly he felt a weight fall onto his shoulder, and looked over to find that within the time they had spent here, she scooted closer until their arms touched without his notice; and had fallen asleep on him.

She shivered slightly and her body pulled her legs in, attempting to keep itself warmer. Being the man that he was, he carefully pulled his tunic off himself and draped it the best he could over her form. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. In response to his kindness, she curled up closer to him, and subconsciously draped her arm across his chest.

His cheeks flushed bright red, though he pushed through the haze of thoughts and focused on just keeping her warm by wrapping both his arms around her and holding her to him as a small gust of wind rushed past them. Zorn flinched against the cold until it passed, then relaxed, letting himself fall into a calmer state. He knew there was no going back tonight, he didn't have the heart to wake the sleeping Zora, so instead, he gently lay his head atop hers and let the darkness that had been at the edge of his mind take over; allowing sleep to claim him.


Chapter 9 is in the works right now, please be patient =)

The Sage of Water,
~ConGie