Disclaimer: I don't own Zelda, but my ideas are mine.

Triangle 12 - Fishy Business

Link lights a very small candle we found to give the room at least some light.

The events of this morning trouble me. The wolfos thing, yes. I'm always there for those edge moments – where we don't know if our number's finally come up. But that being said, it used to happen every other week so despite feeling that it's terribly wrong to be so blaise about the situation we both just shrug the event off. There isn't anything I can do about that. We learned very early on to learn from our mistakes and just push on. It's kept us alive up until now – we're going to have to stick to it.

Rather with what happened after.... we need to get our story straight. "Okay are we all set?"

"I... hang on.... Okay we're good."

"Then I, Navi the Information Fairy – The First"

Link rolls his eyes at my self-given title. Shut up Link.

"I call this 139nth secret meeting to order"

"Like you actually keep count."

I keep a Journal Log of our meetings. It's just very small and I hide it in my glow so he doesn't notice it.

I'd never hear the end of it.

But yes, I was a very organized farie. I even knew his age before he did his Termina thing - down to the day, accounting for all the time hopping stuff- now it's all messed up.

That really annoys me.

I'd better start. "So the first order of business..."

Of course he interrupts me. He loves to do that. "I want to talk about Lillian."

"What about her?" He's lucky I'm so patient and understanding or I'd lead him into a bottomless pit somewhere – well I'd do it a lot more than I already do it.

"How does she not creep you out?" he insists.

"Keep it down. Are you talking about the lullaby thing?"

"That's a big part of it. What's with that? A giant dead wolfos body and she sings to it – sings to it!"

"I think it was like a sending off. Like last rites. She's not a priestess or anything. She just wanted to help its soul to rest in eternal slumber – it was sweet." I insist. I really like the girl. Link would too, if he weren't such a prinfcess-a-phobic. "She did what she could."

"By singing a human lullaby song? You want a wolfos's spirit to rest in peace? Drench it in the blood of its enemies."

That was very true. "Well it's the thought that counts – and I wasn't about to tell her to slay her you and feed the dead wolfos." We're getting sidetracked. "Listen can we get started on the real stuff?"

He's been more relaxed than I've seen him in a long time. He neither has that overflowing frustration from when I met him nor the unyielding focus of a guy out to save the world – and that's good.

But it's kind of annoying too. "So – Today. Today was..."

"Very interesting"

Way to interrupt, bonehead. I was going to say it was a disaster. "What do you mean?"

"This 'War thing', what do you know about it?"

"Not much. I never thought that kind of thing was important. I mean, how could we get those kinds of numbers on our side? The Kokkiri are less than 30 all together, and even in gannon-future it would have been undoable."

"It was amazing – even I can't take down that many wolfos with that kind of speed, so what in Faroe's name do they need a Hero for?"

"It was impressive but people died Linik and I mean – how do we feel about that?" I wonder if I should say it... "I mean I'm a fairy. To me it's just a bunch of wolfos killing hylians you know? It's not my people but you're..."

"A Kokkiri. I'm a Kokkiri."

"Link that's..." He can't just run from his heritage like this whenever it suits his fancy...

"It's true." He insists. "I'm a Kokkiri. I'm a Zora. I'm a Goron. I'm even a Deku Shrub"

I can't help but snigger – he glares at me.

Can I help it? He was a shrub of all things. A shrub.

"But I've always been a stranger where I went. I only have one home in the end."

"I guess so." Home is where the hear t is. And to an extent, home defined one's people.

Yes, more so than blood.

"And I'm seriously homesick." He points out, wistfully.

I know the feeling.

He continues on, while making vague gestures. "To me it's kind of the same. A bunch of Terminans are having trouble with a renegade, magic-juiced Terminan. And the army's going to handle him even better than I would, because they have my awesome gear without all the work, and they have War."

"So if it was a Kokkiri in trouble? Or a fairy?"

"Well that's just personal. Right?"

"I agree. Just checking. And, uh..." I bob towards his left hand.

"Well... I can't run from that. I'm not looking to get smitten or smitted or whatever it's called. I don't – I don't really want to say 'no' to the All-mother, you know? But I can run from this Termina thing. I think... I think this is like the goddesses giving me a break. That's what mister fopsworth –"

"Volfenzar"

"Him. I think that's what he is. I think that's what this all is. They're giving me a vacation – can't you see? Marno said that fighting with War is like the Swarm."

"Like, of bees? Cicadas?"

"Jellyfish"

"Jelly... Jellyfish?" I hadn't seen that one coming

I think he might actually know more about Zora culture than me. Well he looped through a lot of time without me – it's not odd.

But it makes me feel odd.

If I don't have the answers he needs then what am I?

I hate this feeling – I need more books.

"The Swarm is a cloud of Jellyfish that bust into Lake Hylia in spring – I saw it once. They number too high to count and each comes loaded with their own little poison tentacles. Like, they're pretty much every thing's nightmare in the water."

Hmm... "Everything though? How many are there?"

"Navi you can't even see the water for all the Jellyfish. When Marno says that fighting with War is like the Swarm he means it has that kind of overwhelming power and numbers on their side. They just float around and do whatever they like." He's excited. That's good. "The Swarm is the most dangerous thing in the water. Everything runs away from the swarm – except the Rainbow Cloud Fish. See, they're immune. And so the jellyfish become their playground."

"Oh..."

He snapped his fingers. "They can kill a whole clan of wolfos just like that but they can't take this one Gannondorf-knockoff? He's their fish."

Link. He's getting really exited about this. I see his eyes light up, even in the dim light, in that kind of way they do when the puzzle's been cracked – when the path to victory makes itself clear to him. This, I suddenly realize, is the kind of thing he'd been waiting for.

"I see. Let's empower them. If we can get that fish susceptible to poison, or give the jellyfish a new weapon we can have them clean up their own mess– is what you're saying?"

"Well I'm just saying there's no way I'm going to clean it up."

Good point. "Back to earth though. The other matter: today was kind of a disaster."

"Huh?"

"Today. You fought an Alpha."

"It's the lack of gear that got me." Link admitted. "I told you. I was right, right? Without you to watch my back and my gear to shoot arrows of concentrated justice, I get my rear kicked. I mean, there was this one moment there… but I think it's all right. Wouldn't call it a disaster, it's just –"

Oh, he just doesn't get it. "No. It – you fought an Alpha." I stress. "On your own. You mistook the princess for Melly, Link. So guess who's wagon you were knocked into when that happened?! She saw you do it."

"Oh"

"Yeah, so on the good side she was impressed. On the bad side..."

"She was impressed?"

Bingo.

"We were noticed" he palms his face. "I'm an idiot."

"In a big way. She was there, the general was there, Zelda, Impa, even Mr. Fake-Hero. And you gave them all a big show. No one takes the Alpha one-on-one. That's like the last thing you do to keep a low profile. There's nothing you could have done. That thing was probably ready to chase you to the end of the world. But did you have to go solo the stupid thing? Are you serious?"

"I didn't know they were there! I was focused on the stupid wolfos. And I was fading in and out!"

I sigh. This is what happens when we get separated. He's so used to having me be his eyes in the sky. I mean it's natural. I should have given him a heads up before I left – am I rusty? We're both rusty.

He grimaces. "You told me to leave and get 'patched up'..."

"While I tried to play it down"

He took a deep sigh and braced himself for the worst. He's good at that – and I don't know what to feel about it. He's had a lot of practice. "So... umm...don't freak out." He nods. Ugh. He's not going to like this. "I kind of told them you were a three hundred year old Kokkiri knight."

There is a look of total disbelief on his face. "I thought you said low profile? I liked that plan! Let's stick with that plan!"

"Look there wasn't much choice alright? Think about it! You're already high profile! I have to explain why you can pull that stunt off without being sent by the goddesses. That connection is the last thing we need. So now you're amazing – but you're normal. At least by 300 year old kokkiri knight standards. And they don't know what those standards are. And it fits."

He deals with it in a stellar fashion – it's to be expected. "What do they know about the Kokkiri?"

Oh no – don't put your 'game face on' Link. You don't need it. I don't want you to need it. Annoy me all you want but at least have fun.

Goddesses he deserves a vacation.

"It's very vague and very, very old. The Kokkiri have been insulated for generations so I kind of think this is as good as we can get it. You're a 300 year old child, but also a warrior, adventurer, and etcetera. This should cover us... "

I know he can tell that I'm unsure of this plan too, but it's the best I have. "I don't really know how it's going to progress from here but I think we'll be fine if we just don't get separated and stick to the story."

A/N:

Chapter was a little dry. Can't help it. It's transition. The pause after the big fight-fest that came.

Favorite line: "Link rolls his eyes at my self-given title. Shut up Link." - I have no idea why this line tickles my fancy so much. It just does. Maybe it's the irony of Navi telling Link to shut up, or something, while properly fitting into my story. Or something. w/e.

Expect the next chapter whenever I get around to proofing the next chapter - adios.