Zelda did not get as much sleep as she would have hoped, but nonetheless, the next morning she was up early to peruse the local markets and fruit stands. Hateno in particular had a dye shop, and she had a dress she needed dyed white in preparation for one of the biggest events of the year - an annual gala. It had a different theme each year, and this time around, it would be a masquerade.

The town was bustling, a little louder and a little happier than usual. She took shelter in the dye shop from the sun, waiting for Sayge to finish putting together a few bottles of white dye.

"So, what did I miss?" she asked absently, glancing over her shoulder at the shorter man. "Everyone seems quite… talkative today."

"Oh, heh - that Robin Hood visited us last night. Brought some medicine and sweets for the kids."

Zelda blinked. So the mysterious stranger from last night was definitely the same Robin Hood going around doing good deeds in Hyrule…

"He comes and goes, you know," Sayge continued, grinding up more Hylian rice. "Always leaves it on the windowsills so we know it was him. Brings flowers for me wife sometimes, lil bastard. She's smitten over the guy now."

"Looks like you're going to have to step up your game," Zelda laughed, and Sayge chuckled to himself before corking the bottles and handing them over to her in a basket.

"So it would seem! Oh, and Princess, be safe going back into town. Lots of Yiga on the roads lately. Say they're gettin' ready for the… you know what."

Zelda's cheerful expression faded as she looked back at the man. He had a familiar expression on his face, one she had seen on many of the adults of Hyrule - like they were already defeated. At first it was heartbreaking, but then she found herself having to fight to ignore the bitter taste in her mouth. She was working incredibly hard to be prepared in time for Ganon - didn't they realise that? Of course it wouldn't be easy, but she had enough doubts on her own - hearing it from the people like that wasn't any help for her morale.

"Right," she replied quietly, "thank you Sayge, I will make sure the guards are vigilant as ever."

The day went quietly then, and Zelda took some time to enjoy the peaceful scenery around Hateno before collecting the guards to head home. She wasn't overly excited for the masquerade now that she thought of it, but at least it would be a distraction from the ridiculous amount of prayer and studying her father had been nagging her over lately. Even just this trip to Hateno had been like a vacation… I wish I could stay out here a bit longer. It was so peaceful compared to the hustle and bustle of Castletown.

Due to Zelda's mishaps with the Yiga on their way to Hateno, the palace guards decided that for the way back, she would join them on horseback. Reluctantly, she sat behind one of the guards as they rode in formation back through the trees. The valley was foggy and the poor visibility had the knights on full alert as they made their way. Zelda clutched her basket close, feeling sleepy in the quiet and the lulling of the palace horse trotting away down the path.

It wasn't long before they had company.

Where the road narrowed nearby, partially covered by steep cliffs on either side, the Yiga had set up a blockade - but strangely enough, they were already in the middle of a battle.

More yiga surrounded them as they rode in, having nowhere else to go - Zelda stayed close to the knight atop the horse as the several Yiga men surrounded them, but she couldn't help peeking over her shoulder at the other blockade. A cloaked figure was fighting them, three on one, using nothing but his hands and occasionally a quick arrow fired at point-blank. His face was hooded, but the poncho and tufts of blonde hair were familiar. Zelda recognized him immediately - it was Hyrule's Robin Hood - again. But more Yiga arrived from in the fog, and he was soon outnumbered. Zelda's heart sank as her eyes swept over the various yiga shadows emerging from the cliffs. They were all outnumbered.

"Be careful!" she yelled in warning to the stranger, as a Yiga snuck up from behind; he looked back over his shoulder, and in the dim of the fog, Zelda could see a flash of blue. Her eyes widened as she watched him unsheath a sword, hidden previously beneath his poncho. He didn't bring it out completely, instead pulling just enough to hit the yiga in the stomach with the hilt and send him flying backwards, before sheathing the weapon again.

What - was that -

She had no time to gather her thoughts. He seemed to realise their odds of success as much as she did. Her knights had dismounted in an attempt to fight the Yiga, leaving Zelda alone on a palace horse. The hooded man noticed this, and in swift movements, ducked and ran beneath the Yiga and the knights until he had swung up around the horse's neck. It bucked, but only briefly - Zelda would have fallen if not for one hand swinging back and catching her belt. Her basket and dyes clattered to the ground as the horse reared, neighing and pawing at the air.

The Yiga and the Knights both yelled in unison.

"Princess!"

"No- get her!"

But it was too late. The palace horse, clearly happy to be given a way out of the fighting, leapt over a tall Yiga man attempting to block the way, and took off into the woods. Zelda clung to the stranger in front of her, though at the moment she felt quite conflicted - was she being kidnapped or rescued? Either way, she felt a certain amount of trust for the 'Robin Hood' of Hyrule, and wherever they were headed was likely safer than the conflict back on the path.

They rode for at least a few hours, zigzagging through the trees and navigating the occasional rocky terrain until finally coming to stop under some trees surrounded by cliffs. Zelda dismounted without a word. She was happy to be off of the horse.

The man - still facing away from her - slapped the horse's rump and it took off running back the way they had come. Zelda's jaw dropped.

"What - why did you-"

"All of the main roads leading back to the castle have been blockaded," he interrupted her, his voice still quiet as she remembered. He turned from her, pulling his hood further over his face. "We're going to have to take a really roundabout way back to the castle. I'll escort you there."

Zelda's patience was wearing thin. She tried to ignore the stress that was building within her.

"You'll get me there?"

"Yes."

He began gathering bits of firewood from the trees around them, being sure to not look in her direction.

"H-how long will it take?"

"Well, we're on foot, so a couple days."

"Why- why would you-"

"Hyrule needs a princess," he replied, and Zelda could hear a smile on his voice as he struck flint together overtop of a pile of wood. It lit fast, and all she could do was stare - he really knew his way around the outdoors. It was quiet for a moment besides the evening birds singing away. Zelda was trying to get a hold of her thoughts, but she had far too many questions.

"Do you know how to get back to Hyrule? I completely lost sense of direction on that ride."

"Good," he exclaimed, letting out a groan as he sat down onto the grass by the fire. "That means they won't find us. And yeah, I know where we are. Don't worry."

Zelda could do nothing but stand and stare. Was this guy for real? He didn't seem like a full-grown man - he sounded and looked more like her age, maybe a few inches taller than her, and all of this made her less wary. But still, he was hiding his face.

She headed to the fire and took a seat next to the stranger. It seemed to surprise him, and he shuffled to the side a tiny bit.

"Are you really not going to let me see your face for two days?"

"Really," he replied bluntly.

"What if I look at your face while you're sleeping?"

"Please don't," he sighed, sounding vaguely embarrassed. "You wouldn't remember, but we've met before."

"Why wouldn't I remember? I'm pretty good with faces," Zelda asserted with a smile.

"You wouldn't remember meeting me, but you would recognize me," he said simply, causing Zelda to fall silent. There was no use trying to remember individuals through all the people she'd met. And as for young men… there had been many over the years, knight trainees, castle volunteers… Still, she found herself disheartened in him mentioning that she wouldn't remember meeting him. She wanted to be thought of as a better Princess than that.

"You met me and fifty others on the same day," he finally added, as if to reassure her. Zelda blinked.

"So… you're a knight trainee?"

"Was."

"A drop-out?"

"Not exactly."

She was perplexed.

"But - is that why you don't let anyone see your face?"

"Ehh."

The conversation wasn't going anywhere, and they both seemed to notice it. He clearly wasn't interested in helping her narrow down his identity.

"Is there something I can call you in the meantime?"

"Robin Hood is fine," he replied with a hint of humour in his voice. Zelda hugged her arms around her legs. Useless. Before long, Robin muttered a small goodnight and laid down in the grass - hood covering his entire face - and was, as far as Zelda was aware, sleeping. She desperately wanted to lift his hood and see his face, but she was too scared that he was either still awake, or would wake up when she did so - or worse, would be someone she didn't want to see.

She resigned herself to not knowing, and curled up next to the fire herself, watching the flames flicker and lick at the night sky before finally falling asleep.

Morning came too soon. Not that she had been comfy laying on the grass, but she felt like she could have slept for much longer - she had been dreaming of a shining blue sword. It reminded her of what she'd seen the day before. Robin had drawn a sword - one he was hiding beneath his poncho - and the light it emitted… was otherworldly. What was he hiding? And not just from her, but from Hyrule then as well - she knew of the Sword that Sealed the Darkness. Besides the other obvious signs of Calamity Ganon returning, if the sword had chosen a hero… that was invaluable information.

As she sat up, trying to ignore the pain from sleeping on the ground all night, she could see Robin cooking mushrooms over the fire that he had relit. Before long, he had a more than a few skewers set up. She looked at him, and only caught a brief glimpse of a sharp jawline and long eyelashes before he pulled his hood forward again. His hand shot out a second later, offering her a skewer with meat and mushrooms on it.

"Thanks," Zelda said quietly and with a bit of surprise. They ate in silence, and as soon as they were done, he stood up and brushed dirt off his trousers.

"Time to go."

Their journey was somewhat uneventful. Once, they stopped on a high cliff and peeked over to see the main road, near Ash Swamp, where they could see the yiga set up on a bridge. Other travelers were stopped, and then allowed to pass - but there was clearly some trade going on.

"They're demanding funds," Robin said quietly. Zelda nodded, fingers gripping the stone edge of the cliff tightly in her frustration.

"And the Princess of Hyrule is missing," she hissed, "just great."

"You're alive," Robin replied, looking now towards the Dueling Peaks. "I'll get us home tomorrow."

"You don't understand," Zelda protested, "I'd much rather be able to look after myself. Usually I do just fine."

"I do understand. And usually isn't now," he retorted, sounding upset. "There's a massive organized force trying to take you down and you think you could just walk alone in the forest without consequence?"

"It never used to be an issue," she argued, but she knew where it was headed already.

"It is now. If you want to stay Princess, you need to realise your vulnerabilities and keep yourself safe."

She was quiet for a bit after that. What did he know about oweing your duty and life to the people - all of them? What did he know of the pressures she faced just for being born as who you were?

They left the stone outcropping and headed further along the ridges - Zelda had never done so much climbing in her life, but she was fit enough to keep up, and funneled her frustrations with him to her climbing. He was always ahead of her, which she assumed he did on purpose to keep her from seeing his face. Even in the heat of the sun, he didn't let his hood down, and she could see him wiping sweat from his forehead occasionally. Finally, when she had calmed down from their previous chat, she let her curiosity seep through.

"Can I ask… why are you doing all of this, this Robin Hood stuff?"

"I always felt like it was my duty to help Hyrule," he replied with a grunt, heaving himself up another cliff.

"A lot of people knight trainees do," Zelda replied with a smile, "but most of them want the fame that comes with it, too."

He shrugged as she clambered up behind him.

"I don't feel accomplishment from that."

"That's very admirable."

Robin almost turned to look at her then, but Zelda could see that he stopped himself just before turning all the way around. A breeze flew past them, pushing her blonde hair sideways and his poncho in the wind. The sheath of his sword was visible for barely a moment before disappearing again. Zelda could tell that both of them were thinking the same thing.

"Robin… your sword-"

"Is a family heirloom," he cut her off, "and very important to me. It's not used or taken out needlessly."

"Could I see it?" she asked, but he only began walking again. Again she wanted to snap at him - she was growing more and more impatient with his hiding everything. As the day wore on, they stopped once for lunch, and then kept moving, mostly silent - the occasional Bokoblin or stray Yiga got in their way, but Robin quickly dispatched them and kept moving like it was nothing. If he had been a knight trainee like he said, he must have been one of Hyrule's best. It was a shame to hear that he was no longer in the program, but Zelda didn't know how much he'd told her that was really true.

As evening fell, and they passed behind the dueling peaks and around to Hyrule Field, Zelda could finally see Hyrule Castle in the distance again. They settled on a cliffside near Deya Village - unfortunately it wouldn't be safe in town, since the Yiga were patrolling everywhere. At the very least, the fire Robin lit was warm, and they had the evening stars and Hyrule Castle as a backdrop.

"Robin - thank you for helping me," Zelda said, finally breaking her silence from the last couple hours. "I would have been taken if it wasn't for you. Seems the knights need more training."

"You don't have to thank me," he said quietly, "I was born to serve the royal family."

"Wh- what?" Zelda exclaimed suddenly. "You… you're in the royal guard?"

"Was. I don't know what I am now."

"So then let me thank you properly," she pleaded, but the young man only shook his head and sighed, pulling his hood tighter as the evening wind picked up.

"Do as you like."

It wasn't the answer she wanted. But then again, Zelda had no idea what answer she was looking for - she only knew that she was disappointed, curious ever more as to who he really was. Her frustration got the better of her again, and she laid down, facing up and staring at the stars as she willed herself to sleep. But it proved far too difficult - Robin laid down shortly after and clearly had no issue falling asleep. She watched him briefly - sword, bow, and quiver lying in front of him, his hood still pulled over his face, back against the fire. There was no need for him to hide himself from her. At this point, she wasn't sure yet if she could trust him - he was an ex knight-trainee, and ex-royal guard, so what did that make him? A runaway? What if he was really taking her into a trap? She doubted that - her gut told her that she could trust him - but her patience was wearing thin with the secrets.

Part of her wanted to take his sword with her, but she decided against it, and headed out unarmed into Hyrule Field.

I'll be okay. This is my Hyrule.