Sometimes, Shad was silent.

It was strange, to Link, considering that the scholar was known for his chatty personality and eagerness to discuss things that he were passionate in. Particularly sky beings. However, there were days where Link would enter the bar, and instead of an eager Shad ready to talk about all sorts of things with the hero, he'd encounter a very silent, very thoughtful Shad. Not thoughtful in the way where he would open the book Link had given him and try to decipher the ancient sky writing some more, but thoughtful in the way as if he was troubled by something. He'd look up and lean back in his chair, not paying attention to most of what is going around him. It felt uncomfortable, to Link. The rest of the Resistance seemed used to it, but not Link. Definitely not the hero.

"Shad..."

Link tapped the scholar's shoulder lightly, not paying attention to the animated chatter between Rusl and Ashei. He excluded himself from the group in favour of moving his chair closer to Shad's. He didn't seem to catch the other's attention, however.

"Shad...? Are you alright?"

"...Hm? Oh, um, yes, I am fine, Link. You should be joining in with the rest of the group. There's no reason to worry about me."

"I believe there is."

Shad quirked an eyebrow at that, attention now fully on the green-clad hero, who now, surprisingly, no longer wore the heavy chain mail and boots. The scholar was more astonished he hadn't noticed it before. The sword and shield had also disappeared, and the young hero looked strangely... bare.

"Ah... Well, then, why do you believe so?"

"I used to get like that a lot. I still do. I can't say I understand what you are thinking about, but I'm pretty sure that whatever you are thinking about, it is troubling you."

Shad mulled over that, and found that indeed, Link more often than not seemed to be thinking about things far off in a different land, rather than paying any attention to the meetings. He very rarely did, in fact, and most of the time Shad has seen Link very clearly listening to a conversation was when Shad was talking. Even then, the hero barely put his own word in.

But silence was a natural thing for Link, in Shad's experience. He found it hard to believe it was because of the same problem the scholar was having.

"Link, what could possibly trouble you that often?"

The hero shrugged, crossing his legs up onto the chair.

"Many things, really... It's usually not just one thing. I think a lot about the children back home at Ordon, and how they are fairing, and if they need someone there to play with... I think about Ilia and if she's alright, even though I'm not there as often as I used to in order to cause her any trouble. And a certain someone might need some help with herding, again. Can't let another goat out to rampage about the village, right? And... I think a lot about you and the rest of the Resistance, and I get worried sometimes when someone is gone."

Shad knows that when someone from the Resistance is out, Link was surely to follow. He always thought it was because the lad was looking for adventure, but this made much more sense, now that he had thought about it. Hyrule is no longer in danger, yet the boy still did it every time.

"I sometimes get worried about the idea of settling into Castle Town— don't give me that look just yet, it's only a thought!— And sometimes, I get worried about never settling down. I camp out a lot, and it's fun sometimes, but I never know if it's right or wrong. I don't understand my feelings, a lot of the time. I'm sure you know that, by now."

Indeed, Link had frequently come to Shad over certain things due to not understand his emotions. He has somewhat become his therapist, now that he thought of it. Not that he minded, of course. The hero most definitely needed it.

"I also get worried about the people of Hyrule in general. How are they dealing with all that has happened? Are the children of Castle Town having nightmares? If I had gone about it differently, would everyone be dealing with it better?"

"Most people wouldn't even think about that. I never would have known that you think so far into things like this, Link... You could have told me."

"I... thought about telling you."

Shad laughed, then.

"But you talked yourself out of it, didn't you? Because you thought too far into it?"

"Exactly... And that's where we come back to you."

The scholar had hoped that the hero would have forgotten about it, but he most certainly did not.

"Shad... You're doing the same thing I do, right? Thinking too much into things?"

The scholar simply nodded, now averting his eyes. Link sighed and crossed his arms, looking to the side as well, chewing on his lip.

"Well... I'm not going to ask you what it is that's troubling you. But I want you to know that whatever it is you're thinking about, stop for a moment. You're probably thinking too much into it. It's hard to know when you are or when you're not, but... You are kind of the nicest person I've met. Well, who's my age, at least. No one can beat nice old ladies."

"What about Ilia? And I recall being horribly rude to you the first time we met."

"Ugh, stop bringing that up! I already told you, I don't care about that. I never really took offence. And Ilia... She terrifies me."

Link had a look of pure horror on his face, arms hugging himself in fear, his whole body giving off a violent shudder. Shad smiled at that, crossing his arms and quirking a brow.

"Excuse me, did I hear that correctly? Hero of Hyrule, vanquisher of evil, terrified of his girlfriend?"

"We're most definitely never going to be in a relationship, first of all, and don't you dare tease me! You have no idea what it's like growing up with her as your sister!"

"Yes, yes, alright then, I apologise."

"Damn straight."

Shad snickered, finding himself in a much more pleasant mood, now. He had only just realised that Link had done most of the talking, this time around. He should be shocked by this, really, but if Link really understood what it was like... Then Shad couldn't find it so surprising that Link was willing to carry the conversation in the way that he did.

"Back to the point, Shad, if you're worried what people may think about you, you should know that you're a pretty great person, and I personally like speaking with you."

"Even if I don't stop talking?"

"That's the best part, are you kidding me?!"

They both snorted and laughed.

"And if you're worried about someone, know that they probably have things under control if they made the conscious decision to be where they are now. If you think they might miss you, you should just go down to visit every once and a while. If they've been gone for a while and you're worried, just go check up on them. And never be afraid to ask for help, okay? If you need a ride across Hyrule field, let me know. I don't think Epona will mind a second passenger, either."

The talk was much more reassuring than Shad had expected it to be. Link had practically hit the nail on the head of every single thing he's ever feared about. It was almost hard to believe the hero could feel that way sometimes, as well. Did everyone get these bouts of thoughtfulness as well?

Link had moved his chair back to where it originally was, and hooked his foot under Shad's chair, pulling him closer to the table as well. The hero joined in with the rest of the group, seemingly just as content as Shad was feeling, and this time actually listening to what they were talking about.

With a smile, the scholar leaned forward and listened into the conversation as well.

What was he so worried about anyways? If the hero of Hyrule likes him enough, surely his father isn't all that disappointed in him either.