The Hyrulian Valhalla Saga
By Queenie Z

No Bugs About It

The natural landscape of the afterlife was truly a sight to behold, and its majestic beauty and diversity provided the Heroes plenty of opportunities to experience the great outdoors. Together, they would often venture to the forests and mountains, partaking in a variety of recreational activities such as camping, fishing, and hiking. On this mild, sunny day, Sky, Twilight, and Wind had all come together to traverse their favorite mountain trail; a steep and rocky road which none but seasoned adventurers such as themselves would ever attempt.

With a loud, exasperated sigh, Wind slumped onto his bottom near a boulder, resting his head against it for a moment. "Man," he said, "coming up here is always such a beating…!"

"Tell me about it," said Twilight as he sat on the other side of the boulder, massaging one of his bare feet, "I'm always sore by the time we come back down." He looked out towards the horizon, however, and cracked a small smile at the sight of the clouds and treetops beneath them. "…Ah, well, I guess that's the price you pay for a view as great as this."

"Yeah," said Wind, wiping his forehead with his sleeve, "but how come we have to get so fatigued anyway? We don't need stuff like food and sleep anymore, so what's the point?"

"You can't enjoy an eternal rest without feeling fatigue every once in a while," said Sky from his seat on top of the boulder. "It's just a way for us to feel a bit more human, that's all."

Twilight nodded. "Still, though, I'm pretty bushed." He looked up towards his predecessor. "Hey, Sky, you got that stamina potion you said you'd bring?"

"Of course!" Sky reached into his pouch, fished around for a moment, then pulled out a bottle of bright green liquid. He passed it down to Twilight. "It's the extra strong kind, too, so you should only need a sip."

"Thanks!" said Twilight with a grin as he took the bottle, uncorked it, and drank a small mouthful of the potion. Then, he let out a contented sigh. "Woo! I feel better already!" He passed the bottle over to Wind. "Here, have some, Wind."

Wind nodded his thanks and took a tiny sip himself (they were basically family, so none of the Heroes had much of a problem drinking after each other). He looked at the bottle in contemplation after he'd had his drink. "You know, this stuff's a lot better than the potions I had to drink." He turned his gaze towards Sky. "What's in it, anyway?"

"It's an ancient Skyloftian recipe," Sky explained. "It's basically chu jelly boiled with medicinal herbs and flavoring. If you wanted to make it more potent, like this batch, you can infuse different insects, like grasshoppers and ladybugs and — "

Wind was on his second sip of the potion when he heard Sky mention the word "insect", and he immediately spat it out. "Ugh!" he cried, looking at the bottle again in disgust, "There are bugs in this!?"

Sky frowned, genuinely surprised by the younger Link's reaction. "N-Not any actual bug parts," he clarified, "those are filtered out afterwards…"

"What's the difference?" said Wind, handing the bottle back to Sky. "It's still got bug juice in it!"

Twilight turned his head, raising an eyebrow at Wind. "You're overreacting," he said, "it ain't that gross. I mean, even I've eaten bee larva when I couldn't find anything else — "

"You're both disgusting!" cried Wind before hastily reaching into his pouch, grabbing his canteen, and pouring in a mouthful of water, gargling it, and spitting it back out on the ground. He wiped his mouth. "…You guys can have the rest; I think I'd rather go tired than drink grasshoppers and ladybugs."

Sky and Twilight looked towards each other with an odd look. Then, Sky let out a sheepish laugh, shrugged his shoulders, and took a drink of the stamina potion.