The Hyrulian Valhalla Saga: Side Stories
By Queenie Z

Snowballing
Time x Twilight

Twilight adjusted the hood of his cloak with a bit of a sour look on his face. It wasn't that he minded the snow - it always snowed just the right amount here in their realm, after all - it was being called out for training in it. Weren't days like this supposed to be for sleeping in and drinking coffee in your pajamas by the fire and snuggling up with your feline friends? Yet here he was, meeting his teacher in their usual spot at their usual time, because when Time told him to jump, Twilight would always ask how high.

Of course, it was his own fault for respecting his predecessor so much. Though he sometimes resented the amount of work he had to do and could act a bit bratty about it, he did hold a great respect and affection for Time, probably moreso than any of the other Links. It wasn't hard for him to come to love the man who denied himself paradise just so he could watch over and guide him on his own journey, and it was that love and gratitude that kept him hanging on his teacher's every word.

He sighed, his breath forming a small white cloud. Perhaps this was how Colin once felt? A strange mixture of familial love, hero worship... and maybe the slightest bit of a crush? He shook his head, trying to rid himself of that embarrassing line of thought, when he suddenly spotted a figure in a large green coat hunched over a pile of snow.

That's odd - it was Time all right, but he didn't seem to have his sword with him. "Time?" he called out, adjusting the strap of his own blade over his shoulder, "Uh, where's your sword?"

Time turned his head and flashed his pupil a grin. "Oh, Twilight! Actually, I didn't bring it today."

Twilight frowned. "How are we supposed to train, then?"

"We're not going to be doing our usual lessons today." The senior Link turned his body and held up two fairly large snowballs, one in each hand. He smiled wickedly. "Today, I'm going to teach you the Hero's secrets of snowball fighting."

With a cocked eyebrow, Twilight stared at him. Then, he snorted. "Really, Time? Snowball fighting? What are we, five?"

He screeched as one of Time's snowballs pelted him right in the chest. Damn, that man had an arm!

"I'll have you know," said Time with all of the authority of a seasoned warrior, "that there's a delicate and nuanced art to snowball fights! I've been in more than enough of them to tell you that much!"

Twilight regained his balance and pointed at his teacher. "When the hell did you have time to play snowball fighting!" he asked incredulously, "Weren't you a knight!"

"I was. But before that, I lived in a forest. A forest full of kids who never grew up." He smirked, lightly tossing the remaining snowball into the air and catching it again. "Guess what we did when winter came around?"

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me."

"Come on, Twilight. It's either this or pushups in the snow. Does that sound like any fun to you?"

Knowing he had a point, Twilight removed the strap holding his sword and sat it next to a nearby boulder, hoping it wouldn't get covered with snow during their, er, session. "All right, all right. ...So which of these 'secrets' are we going to work on first, Teacher?"

"The most important secret of all," Time replied as he threw the other snowball at his student, "dodging!"

The snowball hit Twilight in the head and made his warm hood slip off, leaving freezing cold snow all in his matted blond hair. He yelped again and took off running as Time laughed, gathering more snowballs and chasing after him.

All in all, very little actual training went on that day. Indeed, it was simply an excuse for the two to have a little bit of fun, or, as it turned out, a lot of fun. Their snowball battle lasted nearly an hour, circling the snowy field of their heavenly realm and finally making its way back to where they had started. Their legs tired and their noses red and runny from the cold, the master and pupil finally collapsed to the ground for a rest.

Twilight chuckled after catching his breath. "So how come all our training sessions can't be like this, Teacher?"

"Because we need get something productive done once in a while!" Time inhaled deeply, exhaled, then continued. "...But I guess we could afford goofing off more often."

"Yeah. I like that idea."

Time shut his eyes. "You know... I really missed this kind of thing. Snowball fights - just playing around in the snow like a little kid."

Twilight turned his head and looked at his mentor sadly. That's right... Time had his childhood cut short, didn't he? No wonder he'd take so much joy in something like this now that he finally had the chance.

"And I'm glad you're here, Twilight," he continued with a smile, "to do it all with me."

"Huh?"

"Don't 'huh' me! You know I waited a really long time to see you again!" He reached over and ruffled Twilight's hair teasingly.

Twilight blushed and batted at his hand. "W-What, so you could throw snowballs at me and tell me to do pushups?"

"So we could be friends. Family. Equals - not just student and teacher."

It was a good thing their faces were already red from the cold, because otherwise Twilight's bashfulness would have been quite obvious. Yes, Time did care a great deal about him, didn't he? And it wasn't just as the next Hero in line - he truly saw him as someone precious to him. Knowing this was almost overwhelming to Twilight, but nevertheless, he allowed a smile to creep upon his face.

"I don't think I could ever be your equal, Teacher."

"Well, you are, and nothing you say is going to change that." Time sat up, brushing snow off of his shoulders. "Come on, let's go grab some coffee and warm up."

Twilight followed his lead, sitting up and nodding enthusiastically. True, he had said that they could never be equals, but deep down, he knew he felt the same way as Time did. Grabbing his sword from where he left it, he followed his teacher, hero, father, and friend into town.