notaname: Most definitely not. Why would we be staring into Link's mind? That's just weird *laughs awkwardly*. I tend to exaggerate a lot, so no guarantees. Aw, that's so sweet of you! I put a lot of work into my writing, and there are times where I don't feel like it's good enough, so it's wonderful to hear that you enjoy it! Hey, I take all the ideas I can get! Chapters can be hard to fill, sometimes! I can definitely see Zelda doing that. And then later, she'll look back and be like "Oh... maybe it wasn't that easy for him." Probably. Maybe. Yeah, that might show up somewhere. Good luck with the savings! I've had my share of lazy siblings (I have quite a few). I don't know why, but where I live, I've been getting TONS of snow recently! And then the next day it's raining for some reason. We don't get a lot of precipitation the rest of the year, but then winter comes around and WHOOSH! Two feet of snow and a solid layer of ice on the ground. It's fun missing school, but then you get two weeks of school added to the end of the year, sooo... eh, it's debatable as to whether you're missing out or not. I knew about the names of the other Divine Beasts, but I could never figure out Rudania's namesake! I thought that for some reason they got lazy after naming the others after other characters... or something, but now I know! Huh! You learn something new every day! ...Purah, I'm going to have to ask you to chill out for a second... so that I can give you this list of people to snap at. I MEAN... uh... stop disintegrating people! It's not nice! Heheh heeeeehh... HMM... so does your friend tell you about ALL of the reviews they read? HMM?! Are you two fellow secret agents, after me for egging on Purah? I MEAN... no! I tried to stop her, I really did! I have no idea how she got that gauntlet! Well anyway, have a great week! XD

Guest: Aw, thanks! I've definitely skipped author's notes myself, but it's usually because I have more stuff to read. XD

ROLL THE TAPE!

Chapter 10: Isolation

Zelda tried to focus on reading her book, but the only thing she could think of was the eyes of her new appointed knight that were burning into her back.

She was in the library, seated at one of the many tables. She was trying to do research the ancient Sheikah ("trying" being the operative word). She had - no, still hoped that there was a passage in one of the books on ancient technology.

It's not like someone is going to come and try to kill me in a crowded library, she thought spitefully. But under orders of her father, the knight was to accompany her everywhere besides her chambers (her room, study, and the like), for privacy reasons. She had found herself spending many of the last few days in her study just to avoid him, though she knew he was always standing watch just outside the door.

And when it was necessary to leave (when she needed to eat, get a book from the library, bounce an idea off of Purah, do her prayers, and other such things), she pulled the door open quickly, trying to catch the knight leaning on the door or slouching. But she never did. Whenever she opened the door he was standing stick straight. He would never even look surprised, merely turning around with a blank face before stepping aside.

He really is the perfect little knight, isn't he? she found herself thinking bitterly.

She closed her book with a sigh, knowing that, with her thoughts all over the place like this, she would not be successful in her search. She rose from her seat, grabbing another book on the way, and, knowing the knight would follow, made her way back to her study.

"The Sheikah are quite mysterious, and their abilities and technology remain a mystery to we of other races."

Zelda groaned. I already knew that!

"They swear those of their tribe to secrecy. However, there has been a rare occurrence of Sheikah giving information to those trusted enough - those of other races."

Zelda sighed, closing the book. How is this helpful?

Then came a knocking at Zelda's door. Zelda stood, her joints popping as she stretched, and made her way to the door.

She pulled it open, and there stood a maid, the hero stiffly standing to the side.

"A message, Your Highness," the servant said, standing awkwardly outside Zelda's study door. She held out a letter, which Zelda accepted.

She noted the insignia of the Rito stamped onto the envelope. She peeled it open delicately, before pulling out the parchment inside.

"Dear Princess Zelda,

"My work with Medoh has been going quite well. As you appear to be fond of this Sheikah technology, I thought it a fine idea to invite you to Rito Village to take a look around Medoh. Perhaps it can be an asset to your research?

"If this idea pleases you, simply send a reply with the date of your most probable time and date of your arrival. I will have to set up quarters and such for you and your knight." Zelda noticed that the word "knight" was smudged, as if it had been erased before being rewritten. Most likely a simple correction of a misspelled word, she reasoned.

"Most sincerely,

"Revali, Rito Champion and Archer Extraordinaire."

Zelda dismissed the servant and went to her desk. She could rarely ask her father in person for anything, despite being his daughter. So she pulled out a scroll, an ink jar, and a quill, quickly writing a letter to her father asking permission. She could only hope that he'd agree, and she silently plead that he would not turn it into some pilgrimage.

Link released a relieved breath as soon as he knew he was completely out of earshot. The guard had been often forgetting to send a replacement at night… heh, knight… Link quickly brushed the thought out of his head, knowing that it was undignified to make jokes, as Impa constantly pointed out.

Moving on, it had been a while since Link had had a free night (no puns, Link!). He rarely had the opportunity to sleep, though he wasn't getting much anyway. The little sleep he did get was certainly not in the stuffy barracks that were constantly filled with the yelling of fellow guards. In fact, he rarely went to the barracks. He preferred sleeping outside, with the fresh air and whispering of leaves above him lulling him to sleep.

It was also easier to hide his fearful and wild self that came to him when he woke. No one needed to know about the nightmares that haunted him in his sleep - he remembered with a pang of guilt how he had forced his pain onto Liari and Impa.

As he snuck out of the castle ("snuck" being walking quietly through the halls, the guards on watch completely ignoring him), he silently reminded himself that all of that was in the past. Liari and Impa wouldn't have to worry about him anymore.

Using the least used path out of Castle Town (he hadn't bothered changing his tunic, and that in itself would draw attention, hood or no), he slipped out into the fields of Hyrule.

He breathed in the fresh air the moment he left the walls and got away from the guards. The air of the castle's city was so stiff and stuffy. It may have been much better than that of the castle (so many eyes…), but Link knew he would always prefer the open air.

Link walked for a while, knowing precisely where he was going. There was a small wood not far from the castle. No person had ever gone there more than himself. That was probably because they thought nothing of it, too busy preparing for the destructive force that was Calamity Ganon.

Link quickly found his favorite tree - a wide trunked willow with its vines draping overhead. When he sat beneath it, he thought of all of the things the elderly tree had seen. If Link had a guess, it was at least a hundred years old. Nature always seemed to have wisdom far greater than any human soul Link had ever met. They cared for each other, and were not judgemental. They weren't selfish, and most were intelligent creatures. Many in the castle feared any sort of wildlife, but Link found every ounce of it fascinating and too incredible for any one person to comprehend.

Link settled himself under the willow, closing his eyes and thinking of the things it may have seen and heard. This tree had probably lived through times of peace and war. It wouldn't surprise Link if this tree knew more than the wisest of kings - no offense to His Royal Highness, of course. But in Link's mind, no person knew more about the land than the beasts who roamed it.

Heh… Rhoa- Link quickly cut himself off, knowing that, not only was it undignified, but it was quite disrespectful to the king.

"I find it humorous, Master," Fi stated.

It's still disrespectful, Link replied mentally. I'm not allowed to make jokes, anyway. The people don't want someone who jokes and laughs and feels like an ordinary person. They want - and need - a weapon.

Fi did not reply, and it wasn't long before Link knew why. He heard footsteps from nearby, the one approaching either making a clumsy attempt to sneak up on him or not caring whether he heard.

When the footsteps stopped, sounding as if only a short distance from his left, Link cracked his left eye slightly, recognizing the silhouette despite the darkness.

Instead of greeting her, Link shut his eyelid again.

"Why have you been avoiding me, Link? I saw you at the library, but you ignored me."

Link decided not to reply. He knew that Liari wouldn't understand.

Link heard Liari sigh and move closer to him. "It's not healthy, the way you've been isolating yourself. You don't have to go through any of this nonsense alone."

But I do.

"I've been busy," Link lied, feeling himself wince. He had never been a good liar. "They've been forgetting to send guards to take my place at night, so all my free time has been spent sleeping." He wasn't completely lying. They had been forgetting.

"Clearly that is not so," Liari said. Link could hear the eye roll in her voice. "I mean, the being busy and the guards is probably true. But you've never been good at sleeping."

I used to sleep like a rock. That was a long time ago, though. "That's why I need to use more of it to sleep," Link said truthfully.

"Then why are you here?" Liari huffed. Her voice was beginning to sound more frustrated.

"It's easier to sleep out here. Have you seen the barracks?"

Liari signed. "You still haven't talked to me when I've seen you. Does this have to do with Impa?" Liari asked.

Well, Impa had been the one to tell him to be more careful. But in the end, it was his idea. "No, not particularly," Link answered honestly.

"There are rumors about you, you know," Liari said quietly. "They fear you because of your 'lack of emotion.'"

"With fear comes respect," Link replied, "and a hero is nothing if not respected. That's what they need from me, isn't it?"

Liari managed to sigh again. "You've been avoiding me because of the other rumors, though, haven't you?" Liari seemed to take the dragging silence as an answer. "You have."

"They can't be thinking things like that about the Hylian Champion," Link said, putting tension on the title unconsciously. "After all, the hero is perfect. The champion has no flaws…" Link trailed off. "I'm sorry. You don't need to hear all this."

"Yes, I do, Link," Liari huffed, her usual personality coming through. Link opened his eyes for the first time and looked at her. Her scarlet eyes gleamed with passion, reflecting the little moonlight that filtered through the leafy barrier above. "I don't fear you - I fear for you. You can't isolate yourself like this!"

Link looked away from his friend's face and stood, stretching. "I'm sorry, Li. Maybe someday I'll be able to talk to you again. But for now... this is the way it needs to be." Looks like I'm sleeping in the barracks tonight.

Link did not notice Liari shiver at the use of the final phrase. She had not expected Link to pull Impa's specialty - "The Way it Needs to Be" Card. But Impa's the one who put him up to this, she thought angrily. Maybe not directly, but she had definitely put the idea into his mind. His poor, suffering mind.

Liari made no move to stop Link as he disappeared into the shadows of the night, the only thoughts in her head filled with rage at her mentor.

I'm sorry this is a bit later than usual! I'm going to be honest - I completely forgot it was Monday and only just got to transferring all of this to the site. Oops! Sorry!

This chapter isn't as well done as they usually are. I wanted to get this out as soon as I could, and I still have to do all the reviews. The Doc Manager also screwed it all up, so I had to go through and redo all of the italics. I didn't go through and fix everything I could find... so if you find any mistakes, it would be absolutely WONDERFUL if you told me where they were and what they were, review or PM.

This was a harder chapter to write. I wanted to fill the pages, so there might be a lot of rambling nonsense in this one - and it's still a shorter chapter! Once again, if you could let me know if you find anything or have any suggestions as to how to improve, it would be great!

Secret review phrase is "Chicken." What? I've gotta keep this interesting!

Thank you for all of your support!

Sincerely (maybe?),

Ari