The Pride of the Rito

Hours later, the snow had passed. It not only covered up any inkling that a skirmish had taken place, but also came with lowered tensions and friendlier interactions.

Meanwhile, in the hotel portion of the village, Young Link slowly sat up after a ray of sun shined for too long on his face, "I think that was the biggest nap I've ever taken," he muttered. He looked at the position of the sun, "If I can even call it a nap." The young hero yawned, stretching, "Now where are the others?"

He waved to the Rito woman that ran the inn and headed right, going up two sets of stairs. He found them in an open room sitting with the leader and Revali, "Hi, guys," he greeted, taking a seat next to Link. 'Did Revali just make a weird face at me? Guess I'll ignore it.' "Did I miss anything?"

"Not particularly, young one," the leader slowly answered, "I am Nalivi, the eldest and the leader of the Rito tribe." He looked to predominantly be a falcon of some sort, "We've covered the discovery of the Divine Beast and now we're discussing who ought to pilot it."

He nodded, 'I mean, it's painfully obvious that it's Revali isn't it? I'm not a fan, but the best is the best.'

Zelda picked up where they left off, "Right, who are your suggestions Navili?"

The old bird chuckled, "Well naturally I recommend my second in command, Revali. He's the hardest trainer and has even developed his own fighting style from scratch. In fact, I think everyone in this town would agree that, without a doubt, he's the best pick."

'Either he's serious or Revali paid him massive amounts of rupees to kiss his tail feathers this much. Geez.'

Even Zelda looked perplexed at such a strong notion, "W-Well then, I suppose if there's no one else that could be considered suitable, Revali it is."

"Why thank you, Elder Navili, I truly appreciate your kind words," Revali toted, "Is there really anything else to discuss?"

Impa nodded, "Yes, but not here. We've uncovered the Divine Beast earlier today, so it would make sense that you go and see it for yourself."

The blue bird blinked, "Ah so that was the project the Sheikah had going on. I'd been keeping an eye on it to make sure nothing happened to it."

The elder smiled, "As diligent as ever, I have no doubt in my mind that you'll make a wonderful champion." He stood, using a cane to balance, "Well, these old bird bones need a rest. I'll leave this to you all."

As he hobbled away, the rest of them stood as well. Impa addressed the room, "The beast was found at the top of Corvash Peak. I'm not entirely sure that all of us will be able to get there, so it may just have to be me and Revali, if you don't mind, Princess."

She looked slightly disappointed, it was part of her research after all, "That's fine. I probably wouldn't make it up there anyways," she joked with a half-smile.

They exited the room and walked up to a landing platform. It was clear that this was one of the many places that the Rito could take off and land if need be. Revali paced to the edge, turning to face the rest of the group. He pointed between Link and the young hero, "Oh I meant to ask, you two look awfully similar. You're brothers and the younger one is tagging along, right? That's cute."

'Ah, that's what the weird face was about earlier. He just noticed our similarities.'

Impa chuckled, "They're actually not related at all."

He was flabbergasted, "What!? Nonsense! Look at them! They're clearly two eggs from the same nest, except one of them obviously has some respect and doesn't try to show off by taking on a lynel by himself."

Young Link almost smiled, 'Hilarious, either of us would have taken the lynel by ourselves. Bravery is kinda our thing when it comes to the prophecy, even if we apply it in stupid ways.' "I mean, I wouldn't mind being related to one of the best swordsmen in Hyrule."

That caught Revali's attention, "Best , eh? That's pretty average for best in my opinion." He rolled his eyes, "Enough daddling, let's get this over with." He hopped off the platform, vanishing from sight before flapping back into view. Impa jumped forward and grabbed onto his feet. Soon the pair were gone from their field of vision, leaving the three of them to await their return.

Ten minutes later a loud bird cry filled the air, causing the ground to shake and the three of them to cover their ears. "That definitely means they got it to work!" Zelda said with excitement. They rushed down to their horses and galloped along the path to Dronoc's Pass, meeting both Impa and Revali there.

"I heard good news!" Zelda called as she slowed her horse. Her expression fell when she saw Impa's, "What's going on?"

Young Link frowned, 'Why isn't he up there figuring out how to pilot it? We're wasting time if they're down here!'

Revali folded his arms, "You see, Princess, that toy of yours is fun and all, however I can't accept." He was standing on the wooden platform that led to some flight range.

"Why not?" The Princess started to sound a bit desperate, "We said you were to be the Champion!"

"The elder may have suggested me and you all may have accepted it, but I, myself, didn't agree to it! I'm simply busy." He turned around and hopped into the flight range, "Come back later! Maybe my answer will be different!"

Impa climbed onto the back of Link's horse, she looked incredibly annoyed and disappointed. Link himself didn't wear a distinguishable expression, but his eyes wanted to talk some sense into the narcissistic bird.

Zelda turned her mount around, her expression solemn. Once they were away from the range, she leaned forward in the saddle and wept.

'I don't blame her,' Young Link sympathized, 'If I had to go out and find all of the Champions by myself, I'd be stressed out about it too. Especially with none of the goddess powers she's supposed to have.' He trotted up to her, seeing both Link and Impa scowling at the building as he passed by, "Y'know, he didn't have to be so harsh about it. If anything, he kind of led us all on!"

She sniffed, "Let's just go get our things and go back to the stable. I'd like to leave for the castle tomorrow if possible."

'Hearing her blubber between sounding put together and sad makes me wanna punch that jerk! Ugh! How can he act like that to the Princess of Hyrule!? First he fights with Link and now Zelda! ' Young Link was fuming at the thought of the entire interaction that took place that day being for nothing.

The air was still tense after they set up at the stables. So much so the stablehands tried to be as quiet as possible, one might have tried to shush a zealous horse...not that it worked.

It was late noon and the group didn't have much to do after Revali's sudden rejection to being the champion. The young hero sat near the left entrance to the stable inn, watching Link do a bit of training. 'Hm,' his head sat in his hand, 'It's good technique at least. Though I don't see the point in slashing at the air.' He sighed, slumping a bit, 'Man, I'd totally spar him if I wasn't so sore! Getting dropped in the snow was the icing on the cake for me. Even with all this warm clothing on, it doesn't make much of a difference when it gets wet!'

He got up, using the table to do most of the work. "Hey," he greeted his descendant. Link sheathed his sword and turned to face him, "I need a tip. Is there any way to make fighting in the cold suck less? Also, your technique is really good." He had fought in the cold before but was interested in what he had to say.

He chuckled, almost like the compliment was unwarranted, "Thanks. Otherwise, fighting in the snow is never easy. You hear things like 'the fighting will keep you warm' and 'try not to stand still,' but those are only true until you can't feel your feet, let alone your legs."

Young Link laughed at his honesty, "Good to know you're human."

He scratched his head, "I guess my tip is to find a reason to keep fighting. There really isn't a lot you can do to prepare for the elements. Maybe that reason is a warm bed."

"Or survival." 'Why did Link make a face at that?' "What? I expected you to agree with me."

His descendant shifted his weight to the right, "I do," Link's face was curious but concerned, "But usually that answer comes from seasoned knights. Like our eldest ones who saw the last of the war from ages ago, and they really weren't in it either if I'm being frank. More like final skirmishes with the remaining enemies."

"Huh, well I considered that a pretty obvious answer." He shrugged, "Anyways, I want to spar with you sometime. Not right now, my legs are practically jelly, but maybe when you don't need to keep watch over things back at the castle."

"Oh really?" That caught his attention. He thought about it for a second, "How about you spar with some of the knights in training? Then, based on that, I'll see about sparring with you."

Young Link groaned, "Dear goddesses you guys make me do so much when I ask so little. Please , Link. If you're going to put me against the kids, make them at least pretty good."

Link shook his head, "You're something else, y'know that?"

"Pfft, you're one to talk." He smirked, "Speaking of which, why don't you? Is it a knight thing? You didn't give me much of an answer last time." Young Link could see in his eyes that he realized they were talking out in the open.

He looked off to the side, "I'd rather not talk about this where anyone could hear us."

'Ohh, my bad.' "Right...I'll head back inside then." Before he reached the entrance he turned back around, "Wait one more thing."

The knight looked over his shoulder. He'd unsheathed his sword.

"Can you do a spin attack? Pretty please?" 'I just really want to see him do one.'

Link quietly obliged. He gracefully executed the deadly but effective technique. It looks like he didn't break a sweat from it either.

Young Link gave him a thumbs up and grinned, 'I'll never get tired of that one. Seeing it makes me want to practice myself!' He could feel the tingle of the triforce on his hand, 'The hand agrees!'

He spent the rest of the day helping the stablehands and steering clear of Zelda. When night fell, she was the first to sleep. 'I can relate,' the young hero thought as he climbed into bed and kept the Deity's Mask close, 'I think she'll feel better tomorrow.'

The following morning, they left the stable and made their way back to the castle. They took the same route from whence they came, going through the Hyrule Ridge and heading toward the Breach of Demise. It was no doubt a very long trip, and to save time they avoided stopping.

As they came upon the breach, Zelda had an idea, "Excuse me, I know we're going back to the castle, but since the Ancient Tech Lab is this way, I thought we ought to take a detour and see if they can figure anything out about the Sheikah slate."

Impa's expression meekly grimaced, "You really think my sister would find something useful about it?"

She nodded, "It's always worth a try."

The Sheikah sighed, "Let's go then. I guess saying hi won't kill me."

Young Link was impressed at the sight of the lab, 'Oh wow! I thought it was going to be some small operation. This looks like a fort!' As they got closer, though, he could feel a pit rising in his stomach. Grace could feel it too as she kept looking back at him. "I'm fine ol' girl," he softly said, rubbing her ear, "I just...dunno, is all."

'Good thing Link is at the front; he'd catch onto this immediately and then I'd have to explain myself. I think I'm just concerned about them catching onto the triforce on my left hand,' He made a face, 'At the same time, I can't believe more people haven't noticed it. Especially Zelda.'

Young Link made sure to stick by the knight after they tied up their horses and went inside. He could tell his descendant wanted to ask him why but being on duty prevented him from doing so.

The inside of the Tech Lab was both liberating and stuffy. Liberating because of the clear flow of ideas that went from one another, but stuffy because there were books and pieces of paper practically littering the entire lab. Young Link quietly chuckled at the sight, 'This is one of those types of organization where only the people that work here know where everything is.' Besides that, the same Sheikah eye symbol along with other scripts glowed blue throughout the lab.

A young Sheikah woman came up to Zelda, a smirk on her face, "Hey hey, look who we have here! Check-it! It's Zelda!" She wore large, round glasses, and had a streak of red hair that stood out from the rest of the white.

"Oooooh yay-yeah!" A man with long hair that flared in the back and large goggles enthusiastically joined her, "If it isn't our favorite princess! What can we do for you?" He had a funky way of talking. It mimicked a rock style of music.

Impa rolled her eyes, "Guys calm down. She's just here to see what you guys can make of the Sheikah slate." She had a small smirk, "Don't let her down, sis."

"You guys are siblings?" Young Link asked aloud, directing the attention on him, 'I'm not really seeing the resemblance.'

The woman grinned, slinging an arm around Impa, "That's right! She's my lovely little sis, even if she's totally too serious sometimes." Her eyes widened, "Oh this is a new face!"

Zelda courtly nodded, handing over the slate, "Yes, we call him Young Link."

"Well I'm Purah and this is my dear friend Robbie! We're both the head of this Ancient Tech Lab and lead the search for the Divine Beasts."

Robbie took a closer look at him, "Say, you look like that kid some of our people were describin', the one who could speak that Old Hylian."

"Yep, that's me alright. Though I heard the rumors that come along with it aren't necessarily true. " He replied in the old language, folding his arms. It worsened the pit in his stomach.

The portion of the lab that was in ear shot paused and looked at him. Purah and Robbie's faces slowly turned from shock to excitement, "Now that is what I call wiiiiiiiiicked! Yeah!"

Purah clapped her hands together, "That's so cool! You'd be able to decipher the language for us," She paused, "Well, if we had any samples. Unfortunately, we don't!"

Impa shook her head, "Yeah yeah, just get to working on the slate. He's a bit busy to be doing that anyway."

Zelda and Impa stayed close to Purah and Robbie while the two heroes occupied an empty corner of the lab. It was interesting watching the researchers work. Some of them were trying to build something out of old parts, some were reading scriptures from scrolls, and a few of them were tampering with what looked like blue fire. 'Interesting,' Young Link thought, 'I wonder if it's cold fire like the one from that ice temple that melts red ice, or just really hot fire. I've experienced both takes and I—'

The young hero blinked as he was torn from his thoughts, Link nudging him again. "What?" He asked.

The knight whispered, "Why are you keeping so close to me? There's nothing to hide from."

The Hero of Time wore a light scowl, "You of all people should know what I'm worried about!" he hissed, "Sometimes random things make my hand glow, and I don't want anyone to see it if it happens, especially since we're not in our cold clothes anymore."

Link looked to somewhat understand, "Sure, but this is a research la—oh ...okay, I get it. Never mind."

"Thanks, I really didn't want to explain it here."

A burst of laughter with a snort got their attention, "Gahh he's so cute when he's pouty!" Purah giggled, pointing to the Sheikah Slate.

Young Link crossed his arms and glared when he heard his descendant trying to get away with a quiet chuckle, 'I can't believe Zelda still has that picture!'

An hour or so later they joined with the others, Purah and Robbie sending the group off. "Sorry we couldn't find much with your slate, Princess!" Robbie waved, "Better luck next time of course!"

"For sure!" Purah agreed, "Let us know if you find anything!"

They continued through the Breach of Demise and finally made it back to the castle. Despite it starting to get dark, the people in the town greeted them as they came through the front gates. 'Hmm, I thought coming back here would feel like getting caged again, but this time it actually feels a bit reassuring and safe.'

Once they reached the castle gates, their horses were taken back to the stables. Zelda immediately went off with Impa and left the other two there. They both looked at each other. Young Link pointed toward the east part of the castle, "I mean, I'm kinda hungry from the ride, so I'm going to get something to eat from the dining hall. You don't have to join me or anything, but that's where I'll be."

Link nodded, "I need to go do something real quick, but I suppose I'll be there at one point."

They waved to each other and went their separate ways. The young hero decided on a potato heavy meal. It was mostly mashed potatoes, a roll, and pork chops. "These potatoes are out of this world! I've never had them so smooth before." He couldn't help but giddily smile to himself. Good food really does heal the soul.

There were a few captains who were eating together at the table, Charlie recognized him, "Why if it isn't the popular youngin'! I assume the trip went fine since you're back in one piece."

Getting dropped into snow was still fresh in his mind, "Yeah, you could say that. With the champions though, there should be no way that nasty Ganon stands a chance!"

He smiled, "That's good. How's Link doing? He can't seem to catch a break without being sent on a long journey again."

"Oh," This was news, "I thought he somehow chose to go on those."

The captains shook their heads, one with a darker skin tone talking, "Nah, the King or the Head Captain is responsible for things like that. Knights hardly get a choice for that stuff."

"Well in that case, he's been doing fine from what I can tell. Though, now that you mention it, maybe he could use a week where he's not going on a multiple-day journey. Unless he wants to of course."

Charlie pat his shoulder, "Y'know, you're pretty lucky."

'I mean I can think of a few things that applies to, but this doesn't seem to be about those.' "How so?" He could see the two other captains' surprised expressions past Charlie.

"You've got good relations with Link! Oh, and the Princess, but knight-wise, that's a big deal to the other knights."

Young Link laughed, "Pffft, yeah okay. It's pretty easy to be on that guy's good side."

"I'm serious! Link might be able to hold a conversation or two with his comrades, but my men have been telling me about how you've managed to convince him to do things not even his father could get him to do."

"This seems very situational," He took a bite out of his roll, smiling at this ridiculousness, "What could I have possibly got him to do that not even his dad could get him to do?"

"Changing his mind is the big one. Once he makes up his mind or is given an order, he might have opinions about it, but he does them regardless and doesn't take input from others at all," Charlie explained, the other captains nodding.

"Huh, well that's interesting. Really I'm surprised he listens to me too, especially since he's older than me." 'Not really, I'm older by at least a few months.'

They seemed done with their food. "Well, it's good to see you back. I'll be sure to alert you if there's any expeditions coming up. Night, kiddo."

He waved bye and continued eating. Lukewarm potatoes are nowhere near as good as hot ones. Link came up to the table and sat beside him as he moved onto his pork chops, "How's it going?" the young hero greeted, "I know it's only been about an hour, but y'know, things happen."

Link nodded, "It's okay. I got my schedule for the rest of this week."

"Is it really busy? I figured they'd give you a break after being gone for a bit."

Both of his eyebrows raised, "You'd think that. However, I am a bit lucky this time. I get to go on a few expeditions, stand guard here and there—normal stuff—but," he faced him, wearing a rare smile, "I get to oversee some of the training for the trainees and I was able to suggest you for one of their sparring days."

Young Link was astonished, "Oh wow, I thought sparring with them might have had to wait for more peaceful times. What's the occasion?"

His descendant turned back to his food, "Their coronation is coming up soon, so any sparring sessions they get are a big deal since they'll have to show their skills within the next couple of weeks. Some are going to become knights; others will move up a class."

"That's pretty cool! I'm glad I'll be able to help them out." 'Unless one of them is bratty or overconfident. I'll smack them back into place.' He remembered the kids from the town, "Wait a sec, how old are they?"

Link paused in thought, "Hmm, I believe the younger class is around ten to twelve years old, so your age, and the class above that is thirteen to fifteen, and the ones who are likely to become knights are fifteen to seventeen."

The young hero yawned, he could hear his bed calling out to him, "Interesting. Say, when did you become a knight?"

He looked around before whispering it to him, "I was fourteen."

"Dang!" 'I'm really not that surprised, but I never had to go through an academy, so...' "No wonder you're good!" He stood from the table, he could feel another yawn coming on, "Oh by the way, apparently I'm the only person ever to get you to change your mind about something. That makes me fortunate somehow."

The look on Link's face portrayed that his mental gears were turning, "I don't really know how to respond to that."

The Hero of Time smirked, "Well, I like to pretend it's because we have the same name." He giggled at the face he made in response, "I'm kidding . Anyways, I'm going to bed. Let me know when that sparring stuff is happening."

Link nodded, his mouth was too full to respond.

Once he made it back to his room, he changed, and made sure to practice a vault into his bed. He couldn't do it while they were away since it would have gotten him looks and he could have broken something. When he landed, he noticed the sheets were a different color. They'd previously been red, but now they matched the same royal blue that was found throughout the castle.

'Ahhh, it's nice to be back.'