Impa watched for some time as Paya tapped her chin before finally deciding to interrupt. "Go on, child." Paya flinched as she was pulled from her wandering thoughts. "Don't hold me in suspense. What are you thinking about?"
"Oh," the girl replied, blushing. "I was just wondering… If Link and Mipha were childhood friends, and Urbosa was friends with Zelda's mother, and Link and Daruk were like brothers… Then how was Revali connected to everyone?"
"He wasn't," Impa answered simply. "In fact, that was one of the causes of his intense jealousy towards the hero. All of the other Champions shared strong bonds – it was only natural that Revali would feel left out."
…
I was there the day Princess Zelda made the long trek to Rito Village to request Revali's assistance in the battle against the Calamity. By that time, his archery skills were legendary across Hyrule, so I would be lying if I said I wasn't hoping to see him in action.
Purah led the introductions as we approached the guards at the gate to the village. "This is Her Highness Princess Zelda of Hyrule." I could have sworn I saw the princess cringe at both her title and the guards' immediate bows. "We've come to meet with the Rito Chieftain."
"Right this way," one of the guards stated before leading us through the spiral of the village. I must admit, as large as our entourage was, I feared that the wooden structure would collapse underneath us, but it seemed perfectly sound for our entire visit. The Rito ducked into their houses as we climbed, though the lack of walls made it quite clear they were staring. Princess Zelda and Purah kept their eyes steadily ahead – I was not so mature. It took Purah slapping my arm to bring my attention back to the mission at hand.
"Princess Zelda," the chieftain stated with a bow as we entered his abode. Next to him, a tall blue Rito barely nodded his head. I immediately realized he must be Revali.
"Chief Kaneli, thank you for agreeing to meet with me," Princess Zelda said. "And I assume you are Revali. It's an honor to meet you. I've heard of your great talent."
Revali smirked at the praise. "Thank you. And…" He cleared his throat. "It is an honor to meet you as well, your highness." I sensed this was a forced statement.
I had no idea Revali was so rude.
There was more to it than that. Revali was greatly and deeply insecure. He feared being shunned should he not live up to everyone's expectations. He used his smugness to mask this fear, but it only fueled his lack of companions and therefore loneliness, which in turn fueled his insecurity, which in turn fueled his smug cover up. It was an unfortunate cycle that I'm afraid he never fully broke out of.
"Has Chief Kaneli told you why I am here?" the princess asked.
"Some, yes," Revali replied as he began to pace. "Something about the Calamity's return and wanting a pilot for Vah Medoh."
"Not just any pilot," Zelda corrected. "We want you."
Now, I'm not sure how much the princess knew about Revali and if she was playing to his self-centeredness purposefully, or if she merely stumbled upon the right words. Regardless, they were, indeed, the right words. Revali immediately came to a halt and grinned. "And what, exactly, would that entail in the battle against the Calamity?"
Zelda motioned to Robbie for this part. "The Divine Beasts are designed to weaken the Calamity with powerful weaponry," he explained. "If you and the four other pilots can assure these weapons land hits upon the Calamity, the hero will be able to strike him down wielding the sword that seals the darkness."
Revali's grin faded away. "And who is this… hero?"
"The hero chosen by the goddess," I interjected before I could stop myself. Fortunately, the princess urged me on. "Throughout history, he has been reincarnated to face the Calamity with the Master Sword at his side.
"We only very recently identified who he was," Purah added. "But now that we have him, we know the Calamity's return is drawing ever nearer. It is of the utmost importance that we begin training the pilots of the Divine Beasts."
Revali looked hesitant, perhaps even insulted. Knowing him as well as I do now, I believe he was reluctant to play the role of the sidekick to Link. But Zelda stepped forward and looked him in the eye.
"We must protect the precious life of this land from the Calamity's grasp at all costs. Hyrule needs you, Revali," she said. Once more, it was clear these were the right words – his cocky grin immediately returned, though he turned his back to us to hide it. For a long time, the room was silent.
"I suppose I will consider your offer," he finally said, turning to face us again. "Come back in, say, a week's time. I'll try to have an answer by then." I'm certain Purah would have thrown him off the side of the village and into the lake below had she not known he would just fly back up. The princess was dumbstruck. We did not have a week. Unfortunately, it seemed that waiting was our only option, as he gave a slight bow before excusing himself.
"My sincerest apologies, Your Highness," Chief Kaneli said once Revali was out of earshot. "Revali can be… quite difficult at times."
"I see that," Zelda replied, staring off after him. "Well, I suppose we will see you in a week, Chief Kaneli."
Kaneli nodded. "I look forward to it."
…
"He accepted, of course," Impa continued. "He was merely too full of himself to admit it right away. Thankfully, the Calamity did not return in that week, although I often imagine what Revali's face may have looked like if that had occurred."
"You said Revali never fully overcame his issues," Paya interjected. "But some progress was made, yes?"
Impa tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I believe so. I'm afraid my stories of Revali are much fewer than my stories of the other Champions. He was not one to share his feelings, of course… and he rarely socialized with the other Champions. At most of their gatherings, he was off to the side, watching. Although… there was one time…"
…
King Dorephan had invited the Champions to Zora's Domain for a feast. I suspect it was more for the Zoras benefit than for theirs, but the gesture was still greatly appreciated. The princess was permitted to bring Purah and me along as well, so I was able to experience all of this firsthand.
Revali was already in a quite poor mood as dinner began. His feathers had become wet during the trek, leaving him unable to fly and quite uncomfortable. More than a few times, I overheard him muttering how he wished the dinner would end sooner so that he may leave. More than a few times, I considered telling him to just leave if he was so uncomfortable, though I obviously never went through with it.
As the night progressed, the relationships between the Champions were clearly defined. Zelda and Urbosa conversed endlessly for almost the whole dinner. Daruk, not as fond of small talk, would whisper – as well as he could, which is to say very loudly – jokes about the surrounding occurrences to Link in an attempt to make him laugh – a mostly unsuccessful endeavor, although he did occasionally crack a smile. Mipha, sitting in between Zelda and Link, seemed torn between the two, occasionally attempting to interject in Zelda and Urbosa's conversations and regularly laughing a bit too much at Daruk's jokes. Revali sat across from her, flanked by Purah and myself. It became increasingly evident as the night progressed just how left out he felt. He fiddled with his food more than he ate it and eventually stopped looking up at the other Champions at all. However, once his plate was empty and the others' were not, he decided to make a move.
"Forgive me for my bluntness, King Dorephan, but this dinner has been a dull affair," he announced, immediately gaining the attention of everyone in the area. Fortunately, Dorephan seemed more amused than offended. "Why don't we spice it up a little with a show?"
"And what were you thinking?" Dorephan questioned.
Revali smirked. "How about a small tournament? In sparring, of course."
"I don't know—" Zelda attempted to interject, but Dorephan beat her to it.
"Very well, if you're all up for it."
"Sounds like fun!" Daruk immediately chimed in.
"Well, I don't see why not," Urbosa agreed.
Mipha let out a small squeak, but then nodded fervently. It seemed she was in as well.
"And what about you, O Mighty Hero?" Revali taunted. "Afraid of a little challenge?"
Link's face remained stoic as he looked to Zelda, who simply looked away. With no explicit disapproval, he nodded.
Soon, the bracket was formed. Zelda, Purah, Dorephan, and I watched from the sidelines. Revali had, of course, made certain that he and Link were on opposite ends of the bracket to insure they would be the final match. However, they were left with one empty spot.
"I refuse to win the first round by default," Revali complained.
"I wanna fight!" a small voice suddenly cried. Prince Sidon, wielding a trident clearly too large for him.
"Sidon, you're supposed to be in bed!" Mipha reprimanded, running over to him.
Sidon dodged away from her picking him up. "I wanna fight!" he insisted. Mipha glanced at her father, then Revali. My attention, though, went straight to Revali. That night, I swear I saw a piece of his wall crack.
"Very well, Sir Sidon," he said, crossing his arms. "If you believe you can face me, I'll grant you the honor."
The fight, of course, was not a legitimate one. However, it is the first and only time I saw Revali truly throw his honor aside for someone else. All of the Champions did – Sidon proceeded to win the tournament. It was that moment that I realized the fate of Hyrule was in excellent hands.
"Thank you for being so kind to him, Revali," Mipha said once Sidon had been returned to bed.
Revali, of course, scoffed. "I have no idea what you're talking about." He paused, and one of the gentlest smiles I've ever seen him give came across his face. "King Dorephan, I hope you plan on continuing to train your son's fighting skills. He has great potential as a warrior."
…
"How sweet," Paya cooed.
Impa nodded. "It certainly changed my perspective on him. I suspect Revali sensed much of the same strife he went through in young Sidon. I believe they could have been close friends, if…"
Paya's mouth tightened as Impa's face fell. "I'm sorry, Grandmother. I know how hard these stories must be for you to tell. You don't have to continue if you can't."
"No," Impa replied. "You are right. They are hard to tell. So many lives affected at far too young an age… It pains me to think about them. But… they deserve to have their stories told. If I kept them to myself, it would only serve to tarnish their legacy." She cleared her throat and prepared herself to continue. "Now, let me think… Which story was next?"
"We're drawing nearer to the return of the Calamity," Paya mused.
"That is true, but it's not quite that time yet." Impa tapped her chin thoughtfully. Some habits ran in the family. "Ah, yes. The most romantic story of them all. That of the princess and her hero."
Enjoying these stories? I just released a one-shot in a similar style, focusing on Linkle's story in the world Breath of the Wild, titled "Little Lady". Go check it out!
