Chapter 3 (Age 11)

Link stood in the doorway of the Knight's training academy. It was a small room filled with instruments to practice fighting with. There were three knights already in the room. Or, well, they looked like knights.

Two of them looked much younger than the third. And while all three looked familiar, Link reconciled that he hadn't paid much attention to the older students since living at the academy. Two of them were students. They had to be. They were too young to be true knights yet.

There was a boy who looked to be about seventeen or eighteen. He swung his sword around him expertly as he hacked at a tall log, quickly reducing it to wood chippings. He had to be close to graduating.

The second was a girl, slightly older, who was leaning heavily on her sword, out of breath and watching the boy. It was clear she'd just gone herself.

Finally, the older man who stood beside her, an instructor that Link hadn't gotten the chance to officially meet; he wore armor and a helmet like his students, but it was decidedly older in design. He watched the boy carefully, making faces as he did.

When the boy stopped, the older instructor shook his head. "Both of you have high aspirations, but you don't have the attitudes to achieve them. Tirra, stand up straight. I don't care that you've had your turn, you will maintain proper posture. And Eagus, do you believe you are the Goddess' Chosen Hero? Are you swinging your sword around like that to fan your enemies away from you?"

"No, Master Kos. Forgive me."

Master Kos scoffed. "I don't forgive you. Your words mean nothing to me. Demonstrate your understanding. Go again."

He looked at the girl, at Tirra. She was standing straight as a needle as she watched Eagus. Her sword was at her side facing down, but her hand was gripped and ready for any moment's notice.

Then, Master Kos' eyes went to the door. It was closed, but there had been something there. He stood and went to look. Eagus stopped swinging his sword, and Kos hissed at him. "No, you keep going."

Kos circled the room, his eyes scanning the nooks and crannies of his familiar Sparring Hall. There were few places to hide, but his eyes landed on a small, wooden crate that was near his podium. He made no hurry to reach it, but when he did, he peered around the box and saw a small boy curled up, watching Eagus with lit up eyes.

"You can't be in here, boy," Master Kos said.

Link looked over at him and then brought his attention to the now distracted Eagus.

But Kos sat on the sturdy crate. "Who are you, and how did you get in here without any of us noticing?"

Again, Link said nothing. Master Eagus nodded, finally understanding. "You're the boy who doesn't speak. The one who's mother died under my command. I'm sorry for your loss, boy."

Link looked at the ground, away from the three sets of eyes on him.

"You've made yourself blend in well. You don't speak, you don't make noise. You know where to hide just out of one's sight. You've snuck in here before, haven't you?"

Link nodded once, finding no reason to lie. He was caught now.

Master Kos sized Link up. A young boy, eleven maybe, and too young to be in the Sparring Hall at all. But he had determined eyes and an unapologetic disposition. "You've been watching my students. You look like you have another year or two until you begin training with me, but I'll bet if I had you stand up with a weapon, you'd demonstrate better poise and posture than Tirra here, and a better swing than Eagus."

Link grinned, guilty and unashamed. He shrugged. He'd been sneaking in for the better part of a year.

Master Kos laughed. It was an odd look on the surly man's face, but a welcome one. "I like you. And I look forward to seeing what you can do some day, but that day isn't today. You'll have to wait like all the others. You're not even allowed to be in here."

"Link," Eagus said, coming over to join Kos, "You want to be a Knight of Skyloft one day?"

Nodding once, Link stood up finally and brushed himself off.

Eagus gestured to Tirra. "I understand where you're coming from. That's my sister. We lost our father as well. He was caught in windstorm, his Loftwing was injured and couldn't return to save him. We had our mother, but it devastated us. And we trained to become knights to prevent that from happening to anyone ever again. But mostly, we knew that training made us feel strong. Like it could never happen to us if we trained hard enough."

Link nodded, his spirits lifted. There was someone else who knew… someone who got it. Two people, actually.

Eagus looked over at Kos, who nodded to let Eagus continue. "You'll be a great Knight, if that's what you want some day, but for now, you're too young. We don't let anyone who hasn't started the Knight Academy touch weapons. Not even the wooden ones. I'm sorry; I really am."

Link sighed, though his face screamed out his blatant disappointment.

Without another word, Link headed back to his room, relegated, again, to the confines of his boring life within four walls. His trips to the Sparring Hall had been exciting and he loved watching others practice. When he saw knights like Tirra, he thought of his mother, and the ways she might have trained once. And that was something he wouldn't mind following in her footsteps with.

He used to dream of the day he'd complete the Wing Ceremony, and he'd become a Knight of Skyloft. He'd stand atop the Statue of the Goddess, and his mom would smile and wave at him. He might even feel the whisper of the wind that his mother had always said was the spirit of his father, watching them as well, just from another place. And until he'd seen the knights training, that vision had been nothing but a forgotten dream. Now, he felt he could see it once more. Only now, the faces in the crowd wasn't his mother, but the instructors of the Academy. It was Cawlin, watching with disgust that he'd failed while Link had succeeded. And it was the kind smile of the one girl who didn't hate talking to him.

Suddenly, there was a rap on the door.

Link slid off of his bed and opened the door, unsure who it could possibly be. He never had visitors.

Eagus walked in and looked around. "Not bad for someone who technically doesn't attend the Academy yet." He stopped and held out his hand. In it was a wooden sword. "But that shouldn't stop someone from following a dream… even if you're a bit young. Don't worry; you'll only get in trouble if one of the other Instructors finds out about this. Master Kos gave me the training sword. Now, show me your fighting stance."

Link jolted awake to the sound of rhythmic tapping on his door. The only person who'd bother him before the sun rose would be Zelda. He slammed his head down on his pillow and covered his ears.

"I can tell you're ignoring me!" she called, muffled from the other side of the door.

But she didn't push it, and soon, Link found himself drifting back off to sleep.

"Hey!"

Link's heart burst, coughing as he choked on his spit in surprise. His body jerked, and he felt himself hit the ground with a hard thud. He whipped his head around and stumbled to his feet, listening to the echoing of high-pitched laughter. But she wasn't in his room.

He turned to his window and grumbled when he saw Zelda resting her head in her arms, stifling her laughter. "You should have woken up on time."

Holding his side, Link walked up to the window, resting his tired body against the wall. "How'd you even open it? It opens from my side."

"Small hands. I can do anything, obviously."

Link made a face and sighed, waiting for her to continue.

They'd fallen into an easy companionship over the past year. Link had been struggling to handle Cawlin and Strich, but they'd backed off a fair bit out of fear of Gaepora. Zelda spent a lot of her time with Karane or studying, but when she wasn't doing that, she was with Link.

She found he was easy to talk to, and he was more than willing to talk to her. As they spent more time together, she noticed that he would sometimes start conversations, rather than just answering her. But when they were around others, he remained completely silent.

"Link!" she said impatiently, adjusting her grip on the window.

Link leaned over the sill and saw her balancing on the absolute tips of her toes.

"Wait," Link interrupted. "Let go and we'll talk."

"Well, we could have talked in your room if you'd woken up."

"I'm up now."

"And I'm outside. You should be, too! New students today!"

"We don't even start classes yet."

"They're getting ready for when we do. Come on!" she called, finally letting go and disappearing around the corner.

When he was sure she'd gone, he closed the window and stuck a paper into the small slit, jamming it shut. The last thing he needed was for her to open it again while he was changing.

To Link, these new students weren't a big deal. It's not like they'd become his new friends. In fact, he was sure they'd find out his story and avoid him like the plague. He wore his normal clothes, disinterested in looking nice for this event.

Admittedly, it was rare for anyone to move onto Skyloft from the outer islands of the sky. From what he understood, the students were coming from a small village beyond the Thunderhead.

After pulling on his boots, he opened his door to see Zelda waiting with Karane.

"Good! Let's go!" she said, grabbing both of their hands and taking off down the hall.

He stumbled, but kept pace with her as she dragged them both outside.

"Hey!" Karane yelled, pulling Zelda's arm back before they could reach the hill. "You're going to kill us. We'll walk fast, we promise."

"Fine," Zelda mumbled, letting go of them.

Karane kept pace with Zelda, but Link fell behind, eager to join the crowd that was gathering. Knowing Zelda, she'd move them right to the front.

Zelda turned around, gesturing for him to follow, but she knew he wouldn't. He made a face and scoffed. He took a step to his left and became completely invisible, merging with the crowd.

She wanted him to stay with her, but she understood. It was just one of his quirks.

Zelda and Karane watched Gaepora and Horwell move towards the Loftwing platform in preparation. There were a few Loftwings in the distance, and they were getting bigger.

It took some time, but finally the Loftwings landed. There were a few, more than usual. Some were Knights that escorted the families. This time, it looked like two boys were joining the class. One was a short boy. Both of his parents fussed over a cloth that had been fastened around his neck and they each gave him a kiss before grabbing his things off another Loftwing. The boy looked scared and anxious. He looked at the large crowd with fear, and his eyes welled up with tears. He grabbed ahold of his parents, begging not to make him go.

They both looked sympathetic, but the settlement island had no school for older kids. They only offered the normal education that all Skyloft children got before the Knight Academy.

But the other boy… well… he was quite the opposite.

He was also short, but his hair made up for his lack of height. It looked like a bird's tail, sticking straight up and rigid with gels that the boy had obviously put in it. His parents went to hug him, but he was clearly embarrassed by the display and pulled away, eager to grab his things and begin his adventure. He didn't even respond to his parent's farewells, and they returned to their Loftwing without looking back again.

It took a while for the other's parents to leave. The boy was distraught, and it was clear that he didn't want to let them go.

Link headed back to the Academy, wanting to give the boy the privacy that very few were offering him. Even the instructors were hovering.

Zelda ran to meet Link, Karane in tow.

"We have to find Pipit," Karane said with a huff. "They're going to make him share a room with one of the new students."

Link shrugged. Zelda understood him immediately, a testament to the time they'd been spending together. "Well you've known the dorm next to you has been empty since Grezel graduated. Pipit had no idea."

Karane had become accustomed to Zelda's uncanny ability to understand Link's gestures, and it didn't faze her. "I wonder which of them it will be?"

Link looked around and spotted the top of Pipit's brown hair and tapped Karane, gesturing to where he was. She took off quickly, and Link turned to Zelda. "I'll go back and find out."

"I'll come, too."

Link stopped her and gestured to Pipit. "Someone's not going to be happy about his room."

Zelda nodded. "Yeah, I'll go help Karane."

Link headed up the steps and went back to his room, double checking to make sure they hadn't installed a second bed without telling him. When he was satisfied, he went back out into the hall. Knights had brought some of the new students' things in, but he couldn't tell who had which baggage.

Instead, he went to his next best source.

Henya was in the kitchen stirring the giant pot that would eventually become that night's dinner. He sat down and watched her for a moment.

"Not at the viewing party?" she asked sardonically.

Link grinned and shook his head, looking out into the hall curiously as someone passed the door.

"Your new neighbor seems nice…"

He looked at her with curiosity. She turned to him and shook her head. "I'm kidding. Do I look like I've left this room? I only know the boys' names. But that's some information you came for, right? Come see old Henya for the tea. Groose and Fledge. I don't know what they look like. I don't know any more than that."

Link stood up with a smirk, which Henya returned. She liked that kid.

Familiar with becoming invisible, Link stood against a wall in the hallway and glanced at one of the bags. It was the ones nearest the room attached to his. 'Fledge' was written on a tag.

He hurried back outside and took a shortcut to where he'd seen Pipit.

Zelda saw Link coming and broke away to meet him. "Well?"

"Their names are Fledge and Groose. Fledge is in the room near me."

"But you don't know which is which?"

He shook his head and they met up with the others.

Zelda reiterated this new information to Karane and Pipit. Pipit's shoulders sagged. "I wish I knew who was who."

Zelda looked around and saw her father watching one of the boys carefully. She hurried over to him and stood sweetly at his side. "So, which one is Fledge and which is Groose?"

Gaepora looked at her suspiciously. "How'd you learn their names?"

Zelda looked offended. "I would never reveal my sources."

Gaepora grunted and nodded to the crying boy with his head. "Fledge."

Zelda gave him a quick hug and hurried back. She turned to Pipit with a sympathetic look on her face. "You have the one with the tall hair."

Pipit's eyes lit up in horror. "I have to go clean off my desk!"

As Pipit went to move, Gaepora called out to Link. Link turned, waving Pipit and the others on. Zelda stayed behind with Link as Gaepora walked up to them. "I'm sure your little investigation has figured out that Fledge is your new neighbor. He's awfully upset about leaving his parents behind, but he's very excited to be a Knight. I think it would help if you met him. And you, Zelda. You should introduce yourself to the both of them. You're excellent at making friends."

Zelda gave him a bland look. "Since when? I've had the same friends for years."

Gaepora waved her of dismissively. "Come on."

Link made a face at her and they followed closely behind Gaepora until they were right in front of Fledge. His parents had gone, but he was sitting on a bench in the middle of the square.

"Fledge?" Gaepora said. "This is Link. He'll be in the room connected to yours. And this is my daughter, Zelda. She's upstairs."

"Hi Fledge," Zelda said kindly. Her tone oozed friendliness and Fledge almost immediately perked up.

"H-hi."

Link smiled and nodded once at him. He looked at Zelda and made a gesture toward the Academy.

"Oh, let's show you your room, Fledge. I think you'll like it."

Fledge wiped his eyes and stood up, following behind them as they walked away from Gaepora. When they were out of earshot, Fledge's shaky voice was little more than a whisper. "Y-you don't have to be nice to me anymore. Your father is gone."

Zelda stopped and turned to him, puzzled. "Why wouldn't we be nice to you?"

Fledge shrugged. "I don't know. People just aren't usually."

Zelda looked at link with a disgusted look in her eyes. "Well I don't know who was ever mean to you, but you're our friend now. We don't let people be mean to our friends, okay?"

A ghost of a smile passed over Fledge's face, but it quickly faded at the sight of the other new arrival. Fledge hurried to his things, clumsily trying to grab all his bags at once. Before one could fall, Link grabbed it, and Zelda took another, opening the door to his room. She could see Pipit's sour face as he watched his new roommate move in.

"Here you are!" Zelda announced as she put his bag down on the already made bed. "Link will help you get settled while I go say hi to the other newcomer!"

Zelda left, and Fledge turned to Link. "Th-thank you for helping me."

Link nodded with a small smile. Fledge regarded him. "You don't talk much, do you?"

Link considered it for a moment. He did talk quite a lot when he was with Zelda. But no, he shook his head.

To Link's surprise, Fledge nodded along. "I g-get it. I used to t-try not to talk. I have a nervous s-stutter, in c-case you couldn't tell."

With an understanding grin, Link made a face. A face that clearly conveyed a joke: "I couldn't tell."

Fledge grinned. "You don't need to s-stay. I actually want to be alone for a while. Th-thank the girl for me. Z-Zelda?"

Link pointed at the partitions that separated the two rooms. Fledge understood.

Link stepped into the hall and closed the door, meeting Zelda in the corridor. She rolled her eyes and pulled Link along. "I don't like Groose. He seemed weird."

"I like Fledge though, so half is good."

"One out of two is not the best, but better than zero out of two," she conceded.

Pipit joined them, slipping from the room. "Cawlin and Stritch got to him already. I don't want to share a room with him."

And when the boy came our into the hall to grab another bag, his eyes landed on the trio. His gaze lingered on Link and Pipit, sizing them up, but softened when he looked at Zelda. Cawlin came out into the hall to help, and he sniggered.

"Were you hanging with that sniveling loser? You'll be perfect for each other."

"Hey!" Zelda shouted back, holding Link's arm. She knew how quickly Link could become angry at Cawlin.

But the new boy, Groose, made a distinct note of Zelda's arm on Link and took a step forward. "You're trouble."

Cawlin groaned. "Worse, he's a walking sob story. His mother died from incompetence. A knight who fell right off her Loftwing."

Zelda's arm tightened around Link as she felt him take an aggressive step forward.

"Hey!" Pipit yelled. "Leave it, Cawlin."

"What are you going to do? Chase me on your Loftwing? Oh wait, you're afraid of them. Thanks a lot, Ma." Cawlin shrugged mockingly, and Groose laughed along.

But this time, Link didn't have an opportunity to get to Cawlin.

Zelda got there first.

She pointed her finger against his chest and lowered herself so she was the same height as him, nose to nose. "You listen to me: if you ever talk to Link like that again, I will personally make sure you are thrown out of the Knight Academy and never let back in. You will not look at my friends, you will not talk to my friends. You are never to mention his mother again, and I won't tell yours what a horrible son she has. Back off, Cawlin. Now."

She let go and took a step backwards towards Link. She turned to Groose, hoping that she managed to scare him off, too, but she could practically see hearts in his eyes as he looked at her. She made a face, taking another step back. But Cawlin had the sense to be scared.

"Don't tell your father, Zelda. I want to be here!"

"My father will make sure the Headmaster knows every horrible word you've ever said. So, watch what you say now. You never know who might hear it."

Link stepped forward, his own anger replaced by concern, and he lightly grabbed Zelda's arm to pull her closer to him and Pipit. He made sure to grab her right arm. Her dominant hand.

Pipit sighed as both Cawlin and Groose returned to the room. "Zelda! I thought you were going to punch him!"

She pulled her arm gently from Link. "I'm done listening to anyone say horrible things to my friends. Pipit, you tell me if you see them bully anyone. Fledge too. Don't let them near him. He's our friend now."

She turned to Link and poked him in the chest as she had done with Cawlin, though with decidedly less aggression. "Do not fight them, Link. I mean it. I will protect you from them. I have my father. That will always protect us. But don't fight, because he can only do so much. And I won't let them ever talk about your mother again."

Link smirked and lightly pushed her finger off his chest. He understood. And he was a bit scared of her himself. He knew he could handle Cawlin in a fight now. He'd practiced and trained, grown stronger with Master Kas and Eagus. But Zelda was right. He couldn't fight them for real. He was so close now, and he couldn't risk expulsion. But he also didn't want her to get in trouble. Her spirit occasionally got the better of her.

Zelda let out a deep breath. "Well, school should be so fun."

A/N: I'm flying through chapters right now. I think I can actually keep up the once a week posts for a while!

I always answer reviews, and this is literally the only way I know how, so if you leave a review (hint hint), I'll definitely answer it down here at the bottom of the next chapter: Queen Emily: Hello again and thank you! Good to be back! Ten ways to spoil dinner: First off, great name. Second, thank you for all your feedback! I went and fixed your suggestion. I always welcome suggestions, especially because I don't use a beta; I just skim through at the end and then call it a day.