Aether traveled many worlds, but this was just—He had no words for it! Maybe the heat of the dessert finally got to him and Link. Or maybe that Divine Beast Naboris struck the Hylian without the Traveler noticing. ("Yes, because Aether is dense enough to miss someone getting struck by lightning." Ivan would sarcastically say if the fairy could read minds. "Then again, I've never seen someone get back up from two lightning strikes while trying to bomb a forest for wood". The Fairy would say as they would recall Link's inhuman pain tolerance/sheer drive to do something mundane.)

Some context: after much searching, the group had finally reached the dessert lands of Hyrule. Aether and Paimon even got to witness first-hand what these Divine Beasts were. The names were aptly put; even a glimpse of them in the great distance was enough to make the group watch in awe as a titanic creature of ancient technology stalked the empty parts of the dessert, striking thunder all around it in the distance. The closest thing so far that Aether had to deal with was Osai, and they were only able to deal with them with the help of an entire city of people and Adepti.

What could a group of around a handful of people do against something that could rival the storms around Inzuma?

Regardless, their first order of business was to enter Gerudo Town. But there, Aether had met one of the most befuddling laws he had ever heard. Only girls, or Vai as they were called, were allowed in the city. Men were strictly forbidden.

But if they wanted to get into Naboris, they were going to need help from the Gerudo People.

Luckily or not, a male merchant from the nearby settlement gave them a hint of a man sneaking into the town. Which now led the two into...

Well, let me put it this way: Aether would do anything to find his family again. He just wasn't expecting crossdressing to be on that list.

"S-Stop!" The Traveler told his friend, Link, as he was about to hand the rupees over to a Hylian "girl"/"vai".

"Link, are you sure about this!?"

"Aww! Don't worry, sweetie!" Aether swore he saw a heart fly out of Vilia's wink. It somehow chilled his bones despite how he threatened to have a heat stroke under the desert sun. "I think you'd look good too!"

"I don't think that's the problem here!" Paimon shouted before looking over to the one charge of their money in Hyrule. (Which now they are all starting to question critically.) "There's no way this is going to work! Those giant and scary guards won't be fooled at all!"

Link looked at them before he paid for the spare clothes.

"Alright! Now, I'll go give you two some privacy!~"

Aether did not appreciate how Link was already stripping as soon as she was out of sight.

He also did not appreciate how quickly Paimon changed her mind when she, Ivan, and Link closed in on him with the extra set of Gerudo clothes.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but you look great!" Aether noticed how sincere Paimon exclaimed that. Somehow, that was worse than sarcasm.

But on the bright side, they entered Gerudo Town at last. Now they needed to meet with the Gerudo Chief and...

"One more, please! Before I sing another tale for my fellow Vai!"

The group turned towards an open bar where they saw Venti, wearing his normal clothes, drinking what looked to be from a cactus with ice.

"How did he get in!?" Paimon put her hands on her hips.

The other Gerudo cheered. One of them shouted, "Oh, sing us another love song, Tyvat vai!"

"Sure! Sure! Think of this as thanks for the free first drinks, other vai! Whatever that means." No one but the blondes somehow heard him on that last part before he began to sing in a very shrill voice.

Aether could only deadpan seeing the Archon of Freedom enjoy himself here. However, he saw felt Link pulling on his shoulder and saw his companion pointing towards...

"My! Those Gerudo novels are truly inspiring! Who knew such exotic styles were such a thing here! Now, if only the heat here wasn't so intense! Or perhaps the weather here can help with my future endeavors?" Xingqiu motioned aloud as he read the books he took from a bazaar.

"And he didn't need to change too." Paimon's eyes fell into a deadpan. "Alright, let's go meet this leader."

Luckily for Aether, meeting the Chief and later retaking Naboris was a much more preferable part of their quest. (The fight with Blight Gannon was almost an equally unpleasant experience.)

"You there," The ghost of the legendary Champion of the Gerudo looked to him after bestowing her gift of thunder to Link. "Take care of him. He's brave, but there's a fine line between that and recklessness."

Aether nodded.

With one Divine Beast down, it seemed like Hyrule was one step closer to being saved from Ganon.

Little did Aether know, Xingqiu and Venti told all their friends about the lovely Gerudo Town. As one could imagine, the two were not aware that only females were allowed to enter. It led to some hilarious situations and realizations for the two. However, it paled to the fact that Ivan and Paimon had taken pictures of Link and Aether in their vai disguises.

Link owned it and made even some of Aether's female friends secretly jealous. Aether, on the other hand, swore to make sure those pictures would be deleted before he rescued his sister.

{Author Notes}

It is so liberating just writing shorts. I don't have to plan; I just have to have fun. And boy, it's real fun to write short excerpts and not full stories.

Technically, this chapter was inspired by Legomanny, even though it wasn't the idea he submitted in the reviews. (That might come in the future.) He suggested that Hyrule be a safe heaven for Inazuma refugees and perhaps rebels while having Link as extra support in the fight against Electro Archon.

That idea did have merit. But I held off on doing it just yet because I wanted to give the mini series a sense of progress first before doing that. Then again, I also just randomly pick whichever timeline suits me in making this anthology. So it might have been a moot point.

Where was I going with this?

Also, just because most of it was skipped, doesn't mean I might come back one day and properly write a skit involving the fight with Blight Gannon. I might even come back and redo the dungeon with some Genshin Impact Characters helping out with puzzles and boss fights. Depends on my mood.

Anyway, keep an eye out if that next part does come. See ya guys soon!

{Extra: Gerudo Chicks, The Not-Movie.}

In a different timeline, Venti spotted and consoled a poor Gerudo Vai who got dumped by a Hylian because she was, and I quote, "Too Tall" despite claiming that being 8-foot tall was short among the Gerudo. So, Venti, spotting Link and Aether, dragged all of them back to Teyvat to help the poor Vai find a much better man who wouldn't judge her on her height.

What instead happens is shenanigans as the four get roped into a plot involving the black market and other interesting circumstances of Aether and Link braving through places only females are allowed.

But no one is interested in that.