An: I've also been constructing a Zora conling, made to be a distant relative of the Rito one based on Welsh and Gaelic. It's much less developed. The Zora lay Mipha sings in the is my "Zora" translation of the Welsh folk song "Dacw'n Nghariad." I left out the lyrics that had to do with cattle raising as they don'

Rito Village

As Mipha and Revali walked the spiraling streets of Rito Village up the mountain, Mipha could see a tense look behind Revali's eyes. His grip on her hand was rough and starting to hurt.

"Revali?" Mipha said softly, almost a whisper. He didn't seem to notice. The she coughed quietly. He loosened his grip, completely freeing her hand, and the tense look on his face was replaced with the generally more pleasant one of a concerned friend.

"All you alright, Mipha?"

"I'm fine, but you were hurting my wrist."

Revali's beak opened in concern, but Mipha silenced him.

"I'll be fine. I'm more worried about you. You had a strained look on your face, and we were walking rather quickly."

"I'm sorry, I should have been paying more attention to you."

"Yes, you should have but I don't want an apology. I want to know what's troubling you."

Revali closed his eyes and exhaled. "I suppose I owe you an explanation. We're almost to my house. Can we discuss it there?"

"I suppose it's best we have privacy for this discussion," Mipha said.

"Quite," her date replied, bowing and gesturing to his house with his wing. "Chez Revali, my lady."

Once the two of them were in the building together, Mipha sat down on the bench and patted the spot next to her for Revali to take his seat.

Revali did sit but stiffened when Mipha put her hand on his shoulder. Taking a clue, she dropped her hand.

Revali breathed out a long sigh through his mouth. "Mipha, we have to have our breakup soon."

"Do you think the fangirls will believe it after only two dates?"

"They will because it's not a game anymore."

Those words made Mipha incredibly happy, and she started to kiss Revali on the cheek, but he raised a wing stopping her.

"Please," he said gruffly. "I want you more than I ever wanted any Rito hen before, and I've know since the last date that you want me too, but we can't let it come to pass."

"Why ever not?" Mipha asked.

Revali stood and folded his hands beneath the Great Eagle Bow slung across his back pacing to the center and standing still next to his bed.

"Because I will let you down. I care about you too much to hurt you."

"You don't know that. If we love each other how could either of us let the other down?"

"Because I always fail when it comes to people," he snapped, not realizing how angry he sounded. "Do you know why my skills as a warrior are so important to me and I can't stand anyone being better?"

Mipha sensed that Revali was opening up about something he never shared to anyone before.

He looked at Mipha. "My father had chieftain blood, a direct descendant of Prince Komali of Dragon Roost. He was a very proud Rito cock who was disappointed when his only son hatched scrawny, and even more disappointed when it was clear I'd never reach the full Rito height."

Mipha then realized that Revali was just slightly taller than the average Hylian—whereas the average Rito, and the average Zora, was taller still. Mipha hadn't noticed because she was even shorter than Revali.

"My father never tired of letting me know that I didn't measure up, so I determined to make my small size an advantage. No one can soar higher or fire a bow faster or more accurately than I can. I became the Rito's best warrior and earned the respect he refused to give me."

Mipha felt pity swell up in her heart for Revali after hearing this.

"Revali, I…"

"No, Mipha," he said, "We have got something special between us and I don't want pity to stain it. I have had three Rito girlfriends before, and I never let any of them know that."

"You didn't trust them with it?" Mipha said, realizing that it was Revali troubled upbringing that that caused him to create the façade of the stuck-up sarcastic jerk that everyone knew and, despite his appalling manners, had come to love.

"I had no emotional connection with them. I found them physically attractive, and, by the time I met the first, my reputation with the bow made me a desirable male, but there was no connection on an emotional level." Revali turned his head to look Mipha in the eyes. "You are the first female I've ever connected to emotionally—the only one I could tell this to without you judging me. And I know all the females in the village, so I can safely say that you are the only one I will ever tell this too."

"You felt nothing for the others?"

"Not really, no. I dated them because we both needed status symbols of a desirable partner, but I never felt any inclination to take it further with anyone until we began our charade. You, Mipha, are my first. But I can't take it any further—not that I don't want to, but because I know I can't be what you need out of a partner."

"And what makes you say that?"

"I'm too impatient—

"You've been nothing but patient with me."

"I get angry too easily-"

"I know," Mipha said. "I've seen your outbursts firsthand. Several in the village in fact," she said soberly, "But each time you always directed your anger away from me, even when it was what I said that made you angry.

"I hurt you today, with your wrist," he raised his wing in her direction.

"You didn't do that on purpose, and you let go as soon I told you it hurt. You can't expect me to hold an accident against you."

Revali sighed in exasperation.

"You are the kindest, most encouraging person in Hyrule, and I'm the most critical. We're opposites, Mipha."

"And that is why we fit each other. I doubt myself all the time, Revali, but you are so confident, and it makes me confident being around you. I would have given up on my search for love after that incident with Ozo and the dance concert if it hadn't been for you. Of course, we both have our failings but who doesn't? Just tell me your life hasn't been better with me in it."

"Of course, it has," Revali said, "But I don't want to ruin yours."

"But you won't—"

"Mipha," Revali rose his wing and said sternly, looking away, "I don't want to argue. What's more, I don't want to hurt you. Let that be the end of it."

Mipha knew that she would be in Rito Village for the rest of the day and much of tomorrow, so she had to say something. She couldn't just leave it there. Besides, even though they had known each other for much longer and the attraction was probably older than either one of them realized, this was only their second date.

"Fine, but I do enjoy spending time with you."

"And I with you," Revali replied. Slowly he turned his head to look at her. "I know you said that Rito folk music is popular in Lanayru. Are you yourself among its fans?"

"Yes," she said. "That's where most of the little bit I know of the Rito language comes from," wondering what had prompted this sudden shift of topic in their conversation.

"There is a concert tomorrow at Warbler's Nest just outside the village."

Mipha smiled. "An authentic Rito folk concert? I've wanted to attend one ever since I first heard 'Over Sâyi till Storfiski.'"

Revali smiled back, hearing her call "Over the Sea to Greatfish" by its Rito name.

"That's passable Ritoska. For an Soru."

Passible Rito for a Zora? High praise indeed from a perfectionist like Revali.

"Was that praise for my paltry language skills?"

"Only what you've earned. I would never insult you by giving you praise you didn't deserve, dear," Revali said.

His playfully sarcastic use of "Dear" was back. She had missed that. When the two of them weren't talking about romance things between them felt…well…romantic. "Romantic" was indeed the right word, because this pleasant feeling between the two of them was more intimate than mere friendship and it made her want to embrace him and burry her face in his feathers. She knew from the way he had hugged her earlier that day in Zora's domain that he wanted to return such an embrace, or to initiate one himself.

Why couldn't he accept his feelings for her as something good? Had all his previous interactions with others been so affected by his disastrous relationship with his father that he truly believed the only things he was good at were martial abilities he had trained in?

She wanted to try something.

"Revali, can you sing?"

"I'm not any good at it and don't want to embarrass myself."

Mipha was expecting this answer. No matter. She had the solution.

"Then I will sing," she said.

He took a seat next to her on the bench again and put a wing around her.

"Very well."

Mipha began reciting a traditional Zora lay.

"Th'ino kirad his an ən burlan;

O nad roiv vi hinan;

Th'ino'n ðarwan maur gənghannag;

Sol erni lith sarkhag;

Fanoð vi'n eig sgirad;

Nus thaug kirad thaug vo kirad.

Th'ino'n talen, th'ino'n chadan;

Beth ðei vi gen den gi khlardan?"

Revali clapped softly and Mipha bowed.

"Beautiful," he said. "What does it mean?"

"It's a song about someone waiting for their lover. Some of the details get lost in translation."

She decided not to translate the song to closely into Hylian lest it's topic, a desired but unrequited love struck too close to home.

Mipha and Revali said little else about their feelings for each other during the remainder of her stay in Rito Village. They had supper and breakfast together at the inn and attended the concert at Warbler's Nest together. It was a fair distance away from the village proper, so Revali had had to fly Mipha there.

When the last bard finished singing, the assembled Rito began to disperse.

Revali looked down at his Zora date while she was still clapping and smiled to himself, pleased that she had enjoyed the performance.

"I take it that you enjoyed it?" He asked.

"Of course, even though I couldn't understand much of it. There's something about the quality of emotion that gets expressed is song that is universal, even if you can't tell what prompted these emotions from the lyrics."

"I would reckon that's why you say Rito ballads are so popular among the Zora. I loved your song yesterday evening even though I didn't understand a word of it."

Mipha smiled. "I've had fun," she said.

Revali closed his eyes and nodded. "So did I," he said. He had enjoyed the songs and food and being with Mipha had only made it better—where in lay the problem.

"I suppose it's time to get you back to Zora's Domain."

"Right," Mipha said, as Revali pulled out he Sheikah Slate. Within seconds they had rematerialized at Lanayru Tower on the other side of Hyrule.

"My Lady," Revali said, kneeling for Mipha to climb on to his back so he could fly her to the gate of Zora's Domain.

"How gallant," she said, folding her arms at the elbows and placing them on his breast. Then they were off, and each took to their own thoughts.

For her part, Mipha thought over the last few days. She really enjoyed the time she spent with Revali—the way he addressed her, their conversations, the activities they did together—but most of all just the connection that existed between them. Mipha knew that she shouldn't confuse love and friendship—she had made that mistake before with Link—but was it really confusion when both felt the same way? The only problem was that Revali was too afraid of failing her because he w believed that he was bad at affairs of the heart. The only time he truly failed her was when he talked about the inevitability of his failing her, and then his only failure was in not trusting her to look past his faults and she knew that such talk pained him just as much. She really saw a future with Revali, and while he obviously wanted one with her, the confident warrior was not a confident romantic partner. She sighed. Revali clearly did not trust that things could work out between them, and as much as they wanted each other, that doubt of his could come between them.

Kayden had no such self-doubt. There were really no obstacles to a relationship between the two of them of which Mipha was aware. But she did know him as well as she would like yet, nor if she was honest, would she be entirely ready to let Revali go until someone, Kayden or otherwise made her feel exactly the way that Revali did now.

AN: "Dacw'n Nghariad" with English lyrics by Google Translate:

See my love down in the orchard;

Oh I wasn't there myself;

Get the house and the barn;

The cowshed door opens;

There is the great branched oak;

A very affectionate look;

I'll stay in its shadow;

Until my love comes, my love comes.

There is the harp, the strings;

What do I prefer without anyone playing?

The delicate hoof is detailed;

What am I not thinking about?