Rune sat at the edge of Skyloft, on a grassy little pocket of land beyond the waterfall cavern. He closed his eyes and let the wind blow through his hair.

This was...nice. It finally felt quiet again, like when he camped alone back in Hyrule. No more crowded housing, no more bright lights, no more having to fingerspeak with strangers he didn't need to...

He lay back in the grass, examining the gold rupee he'd swiped. It looked so much...larger than the ones back home. Was it still worth the same amount here? ...Did that even matter? 300 rupees had a LOT more purchasing power on this island, if the diner was anything to go by. If he and Groose were careful about it, they could probably get an oil tarp, maybe some extra weapons and a large pelt...Was there anything up here that made pelts large enough to sleep under?

A sharp whistle startled him out of his thoughts. He leapt to his feet, stuffing the rupee in his pocket and drawing his sword, free hand on his slate.

"Rune!"

Rune relaxed at the voice, sheathing his sword. Groose's navy blue loftwing swooped in with expert grace, landing on the largest segment of the isle's shelf and kneeling down to let its rider dismount.

The redhead marched over and grabbed Rune's shoulders, eyes narrowed as he inspected the hero critically. "...You hurt?"

Rune raised an eyebrow and shook his head.

"Good. Great. Fantastic." He said sarcastically, then shook Rune's shoulders. "What were you thinking?!" he demanded. "Family Arpignon's the richest house in town, you can't steal from them!"

Rune swatted his hands away and signed quickly. "He stole from you."

"He ripped me off! There's a difference!"

"Like what?"

"Like you can't be put on trial for selling stuff at dumb prices!" Groose groaned in frustration, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Okay, look. I get that you wanted to...help me or whatever, but now you can't ever show your face in the Bazaar again. Rupin will have you ostracized."

"Oh. That doesn't matter," Rune signed. "You can still shop, right?"

"Yeah, but-"

Rune held up a finger, then reached into his wallet and offered Groose a fistful of gems.

Three red, one gold.

Groose frowned. "...Are these the rupees I gave you to buy food. What gives?"

"Didn't need them." Rune shook the travel bag on his back. "Miss Piper was willing to trade ingredients for recipes and help through lunch hour. So you can go back and get the rest of the supplies now." He paused. "Can you get some extra things while you're there?"

Groose squinted. He was losing charge of this expedition, and he didn't like it. "First off," he said, jabbing Rune in the chest, "don't tell me what to do. Got it? I'm the one in charge here; Zelda's waiting for me to rescue her."

"Nobody's in charge. We're working together," Rune signed back with a frown.

"Oh yeah? I'm the one with the bird. While we're up here, what I say goes, or you're staying put."

Rune paused, tapping his chin as he thought it over. "...Alright," he finally conceded. "IF, when we go down to Hyrule, I'm in charge."

Groose gaped. "What?!"

"I know the surface world better than you do. I know how to kill monsters, raid camps, forage, and hunt. If we're choosing leadership by advantages," he signed, "then it makes sense for you to hand it over when you're in unfamiliar territory."

The redhead clenched his fists, glaring. "You think I don't know how to use a sword?! I can kill monsters just as well as you can! Better than you can, I've had knight training!"

"Like T-a-l-u-s-e-s? And L-y-n-e-l-s? And M-o-b-l-i-n-s?"

"Okay, now you're just making up words."

Rune stood silently for a moment. "How about we make a deal?"

"Uh-huh." Groose crossed his arms. "What kind of deal?"

"We have a duel. If you win, you can be in charge of the mission. But if I win—" Rune gestured to himself. "—then we don't have a leader. Deal?"

Groose paused. He was being offered a chance to pummel this guy? With leadership as a prize? "...Fine. But we're going to Bamboo Isle; I'm not dueling you in open air."

"Bamboo Isle?"

Groose smirked. "You'll see." And with that, he shoved Rune off the edge of the isle, let him flail for a moment, then dove after him with a whistle.

Rune had made him dodge the patrol for his little stunt at the bazaar, and on top of that, had damaged Groose's pride. He'd take whatever petty revenge he could get.

Rune clung to the loftwing's soft, fur-like feathers, watching the world go by him in awe. In all his time traveling Hyrule, he'd never been this high, and his flight had always been accompanied by bomb scorch marks, stasis-launched boulders, or soreness that came with paragliding with his arms over his head.

This, though?

This was breathtaking.

As Groose steered them carefully through the sky, he avoided every cloud they came across, much to Rune's disappointment. He tugged on the student knight's sleeve.

Groose looked down at him in mild annoyance. "I'm flying, it had better be an emergency."

Rune pointed over at a big puffy cloud.

Groose followed his line of sight. "...Yeah, so? It's a cloud. They happen."

"But what's—"

"Tell me when we land," he interrupted. "I'm not crashing us into a guay because I had to read your fingerspeak mid-air."

Rune huffed, sulking, his experience ruined by the lack of attention while the tempting clouds passed him by. They were so fluffy and beautiful...Idly, he wondered what they felt like. Were they edible? Could he stand on them? He imagined them like fluffy bowls, carrying hidden lakes at their tops which spilled rain whenever they got too full.

Finally, after a long flight, Groose took them in for a landing, piloting his bird expertly until Nightwing stepped gracefully onto the ground. The isle they'd landed on was broad and flat, consisting of nothing but grass and a building with tall reeds growing out of its top.

"Alright, get off, you," The redhead said, giving Rune a shove. "I've gotta fix Nightwing's feathers before we go in."

He hopped down, leaving Groose to his work, and immediately faceplanted on the ground.

"Uh...buddy?" Groose raised an eyebrow. "Are you good?"

"I'm still flying."

"...Sure, pal." He shook his head, pulling out a comb and grooming out Nightwing's feathers. He still couldn't believe that this was the guy he was saddled with; a crazy, birdless person, with no memories to speak of and a penchant for insanity.

But the man had information. Besides, it was better to have the insane person on your side than as competition, right?

He shook his head, finishing up Nightwing's brushing, then walked over to Rune and nudged him with his foot. "Alright. Get up. What did you wanna tell me earlier?"

Rune pulled himself up into a sitting position. "Are clouds edible?"

"Pfff- what?" Groose snorted. "What do you mean, 'are they edible?' They're CLOUDS."

"They look fluffy, like the inside of a palm fruit," Rune signed. "If they are edible, we should get some. There's a lot out there just sitting there."

Groose couldn't help it. He burst out laughing, holding his stomach.

"What?" Rune stood up and signed with a frown. "I'm being serious."

"You can't- you can't EAT clouds!" Groose said, wiping tears from his eyes. "They're clouds!"

"So? I've never been to one. Are they like islands? Can you walk on them?" All that question earned him was a fresh peal of laughter. He crossed his arms in annoyance, waiting the redhead out.

Finally, Groose managed to regain some semblance of composure, a grin still on his face. "Do they seriously not have clouds where you're from?" He shook his head. "Hylee, pal, they're just water."

Rune raised an eyebrow. "Like, floating lakes?"

"Like, standing next to a waterfall. Water-filled air."

Rune looked out at the sky at all the fluffy, cottony clouds. "...I don't believe you."

Groose snorted. "Tell you what? When we leave here, I'll toss you into one. Then you can see for yourself."

Rune's ears perked. "Deal." Eagerly, he ran into the building to get the sparring session over with.

As he left, his companion watched him go with a slight frown. The guy didn't seem anxious about fighting; was that misplaced confidence, or skill?

Whatever it was, he wasn't about to let Rune take his leadership claim away. He marched in after the blonde, head held high, and grabbed a practice katana off of the entrance wall.

The inside of the bamboo training grounds was large, with a handful of people already practicing their slicing skills. Groose had been here a few times before; it was the only place that had swords you could actually leave with, provided you paid the fee and avoided goodie-two-shoes like Pipit, and was one of the few places he could take out some pent up agression without judgement.

He spotted Rune testing the balance of his sword, and eyed it with suspicion. It looked...different. Weird, like it had been made somewhere else. It was short, though, so it shouldn't be a match for something like a cutter's katana, right?

Groose strode over. "Alright, Rune. Ready to lose?"

Rune looked up. "No," he signed. "I don't plan to."

That cheeky remlit... Groose's eyes narrowed, and he drew his katana. "No head swings, no drawing blood. Got it? Anything else is fair game, and first to knock the other's sword away wins."

Rune dropped his bag and kicked it back against the wall, taking a fighting stance. He held out his sword with a decisive nod.

Groose felt the eyes of the other swordsmen on his back. There was no way he was losing to this weirdo with an audience.

No holding back.

He reached out and tapped his blade against his opponent's, initiating the fight.

Rune didn't waste any time, racing forward and immediately leaping into a jump attack. Groose countered the move in a flash, stepping into the blow and tossing Rune back, before rushing him with another strike.

The attack was blocked expertly, Rune stepping aside then ducking down to sweep at his opponent's legs. Groose leapt over the attempted swing with a confident smirk. Gotcha. He landed and spun, delivering a sharp kick to Rune's ribs, taking advantage of the hero's vulnerability. Rather than trying to dodge it, though, Rune took it, using the momentum to roll to the side, then leapt up with an upward swing. Groose parried the strike quickly, knocking the blonde back again with a powerful blow. He rolled his shoulders, grip on his sword tightening, then lunged.

The two men's blades clashed in a fast-paced, elaborate dance, one that didn't go unnoticed by the other swordsmen here. It didn't take long for them to draw a small crowd of awed onlookers. And it was fascinating; blow after blow, sweep after dodge, the two of them both skilled at their craft and fighting to get the upper hand. It lasted for minutes; every time it looked like Groose was about to knock the blade away, Rune pulled out some new technique; a roll-dodge, a spin attack, a back slice. His small stature served him well against his much larger opponent; every strike was either blocked or dodged entirely, and it was getting harder and harder for Groose to keep track of his position. This was the longest he'd ever been engaged in combat; didn't this guy ever get tired?!

Rune ducked under yet another strike, racing forward. A sharp jab from the hilt of the teal shortsword connected with Groose's ribs, and he gasped in pain, the wind knocked out of him.

Time slowed down in that moment. Rune hit the underside of Groose's sword hand with his free fist, while his blade collided swiftly with the katana. It flew out of Groose's hand, embedding itself in the back wall.

The silver blade of the Goddess Sword froze under Groose's chin, centimeters away from his throat, and he looked down, eyes wide in shock as he met the most intense glare he'd ever seen. His eyes darted between the hero and the blade. Slowly, he raised his hands in defeat. "...Alright. Fine. You win."

Immediately, Rune's demeanor shifted back into being totally reserved, putting back on neutral expression he always wore. He sheathed his sword. "So no leaders?"

Groose grit his teeth and glanced aside, fighting to catch his breath without notice. "...No leaders."

"Great. We need a good oil tarp."