C-Support
Link: Yen'fay?... Anyone in here?
Yen'fay: ...You have need of me?
Link: Just dropping off one of your robes... It's freshly cleaned.
Yen'fay: You have my thanks.
Link: …
Yen'fay: ...Do you require something still?
Link: ...I'm not sure how I should say this... Yen'fay, I'm worried about you.
Yen'fay: What reason would you have for such concern?
Link: Well... Look at you... You're always holed up in your tent... I don't know if you're meditating, sleeping, or what, but... all this isolation can't be good.
Yen'fay: …
Link: Ever thought about interacting more?... I'm sure you'd get along with everyone... Like Lon'qu! He's all about honing his craft and mastering the sword, same as you... He's also from Chon'sin... That's one easy friend, right there.
Yen'fay: Is interaction "mandatory"?
Link: ...No... It's not... Still, wouldn't it be-
Yen'fay: Then I must refuse. A ghost has no place in the barracks, sharing pleasantries with others as though he belongs with them.
Link: I've met quite a few ghosts in my travels... You certainly aren't one.
Yen'fay: Call me what you like. It changes nothing. I am not of this world, and I am not fit to mingle among its inhabitants.
Link: I'm not from this world either, but that's not stopping me.
Yen'fay: …
Link: Fine... Hide away if you want... I need to see some improvement from you, though.
Yen'fay: What do you ask of me?
Link: Answer this honestly... Are you eating?
Yen'fay: ...I consume what is necessary to keep this body functioning.
Link: Okay... so that means you're eating very little, right?
Yen'fay: It is enough.
Link: Well, I doubt that... The only time you're seen outside your tent is during a fight or when you train. You never attend mealtime... We have leftovers brought to you, but I wonder if you're even bothering with that.
Yen'fay: My appetite eludes me. I would eat greater portions if my stomach allowed it.
Link: ...I see...
Yen'fay: Hear me, Link... I am no longer "Yen'fay, King of Chon'sin". The being that lies before you is a mere vessel... An empty shell... I do not desire the company of others, and I find no delight in fine cuisine... I am a weapon to be used by and for the Shepherds. Unless my prowess with the blade has finally begun to falter, there is nothing within me that needs remedying.
Link: …
Yen'fay: You ken my proper place now, yes? I am but a tool with a single task, and I am able to carry out this task with no complications. The time you spend here is wasted.
Link: ...How about I cook us something?
Yen'fay: Fie, have you listened to a single word from my mouth?... My appetite has left me.
Link: When's the last time you ate, huh?
Yen'fay: ...The previous morning... After sunrise.
Link: Tch... Figures... All right, what do you prefer: veggie rice balls or mushroom risotto?
Yen'fay: ...
Link: Hope you like rice balls, then. They'll be ready in a few minutes, and I'm not leaving you alone until you've tried some.
Yen'fay: ...*sigh*...
B-Support
Link: Here you go, Yen'fay. A hefty helping of crab stir-fry!... It's fresh. I made it right outside your tent.
Yen'fay: …
Link: Oh, come on... You ate the rice balls last time. They were good, weren't they?
Yen'fay: …Yes... The rice balls were quite satisfying.
Link: That's great to hear, but we aren't done yet... We need to keep working on this, so try the stir-fry... Please?
Yen'fay: ...If I must...
Link: What do you think?
Yen'fay: ...Mmm... It is excellent...
Link: That means you'll eat all of it... right?
Yen'fay: …
Link: Remember that we're soldiers, Yen'fay... I know that you still take your training seriously... Part of training, though, is diet, and you've neglected that aspect... You already know all this.
Yen'fay: *sigh* Aye, hand me the bowl. I will see it through.
Link: ...Good...
Yen'fay: Now I must ponder... You prepared this dish, Link? You alone?
Link: Yep... Just me... All I need is a cooking pot, a flame, and a few ingredients to make something edible.
Yen'fay: Your culinary skills impress. I did not take you for the type.
Link: It was a trade I picked up along the way... Traveling Hyrule by myself, making long treks from place to place... You rarely have access to fresh goods, so you figure out how to provide for yourself... because you have to... So I learned to hunt and forage... and then, eventually, I learned how to combine the random stuff I found into decent meals.
Yen'fay: You have my respect. The rice balls you crafted were reminiscent of a popular Chon'sin-style snack... The nostalgic flavor brought forth cherished memories that I'd long forgotten.
Link: ...I'm sorry to take the conversation in a grim direction, but I don't want to keep avoiding the issue... I think that you're depressed, Yen'fay... The poor appetite, the isolation, the dehumanizing way in which you treat yourself... I can't sit back and watch you suffer like this.
Yen'fay: ...Depressed, you say?... Hah... Nay, I am worse off than that. I am distraught, and I am broken. In response to the tragedies that have befallen me, I have discarded my emotions... My duty is all that drives me.
Link: ...The Say'ri of your world... Her death is what caused your decline, isn't it?
Yen'fay: Need you even wonder? There is no other event that could rend my heart so... I allied myself with the curs who murdered my parents and brought my sister's ire upon myself in the process... I believed that my actions would keep her safe... Yet she perished all the same... In her final moments, surely her thoughts were overcome by utter confusion and the searing pain of betrayal... What a fool I am.
Link: Maybe I'm overstepping... You can tell me to leave if I am... However, I think that you need to start focusing on forgiveness and healing... Those terrible things did happen, and nothing can change that... but you can find ways to ease the pain and move forward.
Yen'fay: Fie! You speak with authority, though you have none! What do you know of my sorrow?
Link: ...I know it's not fair to force you into action... Your grief should be dealt with at your own pace... but you're letting this grief destroy you, so I'm choosing to intervene.
Yen'fay: Hmph... You recommend "forgiveness and healing"? How am I to find them?
Link: Talk to her... Talk to Say'ri... She lost her real brother, and she's dealing with many of the same struggles that you are... Together, you both might be able to find some form of solace.
Yen'fay: She wants nothing to do with me, as she rightfully should.
Link: You don't know that; you're just assuming... I'm sure Say'ri thinks the same thing about you... I bet that's why she won't approach you.
Yen'fay: ...
Link: Look, I know it's hard to believe... I have friends back in Hyrule that I left behind when it mattered most... Malon, Saria, Darunia, Ruto, Zelda... I disappeared, and they had to fend for themselves for seven long years... When I finally returned, I was terrified of meeting them again because I was certain that they'd hate me... but that wasn't the case... They were all so happy to see me... It was hard to hold back my tears at times because it was such a shock.
Yen'fay: …
Link: Please go to her... At least give Say'ri a chance... If you won't do it for yourself, then do it for her. You agree that she deserves that much, don't you?
Yen'fay: She does deserve that and so much more... For her sake, I will reach out.
A-Support
Link: Hyaaaat!
Yen'fay: ...Shi!
Link: Wow... *pant* Nice one... Wasn't expecting you to attack from that side...
Yen'fay: ...Shall we rest for a moment?
Link: Sure... We've been at it for a while.
Yen'fay: ...Link... You say that you are "interested in my unique style of swordplay"... but I am beginning to doubt the sincerity of your claim.
Link: ...I don't see why... I'm a self-taught fighter... Learning from my peers is one of the best ways to improve... And someone like you? Even the way you hold the sword is unusual... Why wouldn't I be interested?
Yen'fay: There are hints of Chon'sin techniques hidden within your own. You know more of my style than you would have me believe.
Link: Ah... You noticed, huh?
Yen'fay: I was raised on these techniques. 'Twould be impossible for I to miss even the smallest of subtleties within them.
Link: ...I've picked up some stuff from your sister... She's taught me a bit about the swordmasters of your country and the way they fight.
Yen'fay: You already possess an able instructor, yet you challenge me... What is your true aim?
Link: ...Matching your strength against another?... Especially one who can push you to your limits?... Doesn't that get you excited?
Yen'fay: ...I am not deserving of these simple pleasures... It is as I said; I am a weapon to be used. Atonement is all that matters now.
Link: Stop being so hard on yourself... I can see it in your eyes, Yen'fay. When we fight, they're brighter... For an "empty shell", you actually looked lively for once.
Yen'fay: Tch... This has all been a ploy to lift my spirits, then?
Link: That's part of it, yeah... and it's working... We'll need to do this more often.
Yen'fay: *sigh* You speak true... I did find great satisfaction in our practice bout, so I will grant thee another. Through combat, I have learned much about you. In only a meager period of time, no less.
Link: Same here... You fight so efficiently, never wasting energy on pointless movements... You take precision and speed to new heights.
Yen'fay: Aye... I endeavored to remove any unnecessary habits from my methods. Strike swiftly, and strike true... This is my dogma.
Link: It's an effective one. If you can end the battle quickly, you'll be better rested for the next.
Yen'fay: My pinpoint discipline had given me a reputation of sorts among my former brethren... They swore that when I brandished the divine Amatsu against my enemies, the very wind itself lashed out in my service.
Link: Shooting wind from a blade?... Eh, I could believe it. I can launch beams of light from the Master Sword sometimes, so that idea isn't too strange.
Yen'fay:...Beams of light?
Link: Yeah, sounds pretty wild, right? It's true, though... Only seems to work when I'm in peak condition, like after I've gotten a good night's rest, but... it's certainly handy.
Yen'fay: ...If the manner in which one wields a weapon is a window into themselves, then there is but one truth that our sparring has revealed above all others.
Link: ...Yeah?
Yen'fay: You, Link, are unpredictable and thoroughly bemusing.
Link: ...That's what you think about me?
Yen'fay: Even your cooking, though impressive, is simply perplexing... Crêpes , pies, cakes, and the like... How do you concoct these savory desserts with nothing but a pot and an open flame? 'Tis... most concerning...
Link: I mean... I don't know... When you're out in the wild with no one to help you, you figure out how to just... make things work, I guess.
Yen'fay: Hah! Perplexing, indeed... But you are a good man, Link... A small kindness goes a long way, it is said... You have given me helpful advice time and again... You have provided this lifeless husk with new joy... And more significant than that, you have pushed me to make amends with Say'ri, whom I once thought I could never again face.
Link: I'm happy to help.
Yen'fay: It is decided, then. I will continue to seek you out, my friend...Valuing the simpler pleasures... I must master this if I am to lead a fulfilling existence. So, let us cross blades once again! I wonder what more I may learn of The Hero of Time through the fire of competition!
A/N:
Like in Gaius' chapter, I pulled some recipes from BOTW to reference here. Link being able to cook almost anything by throwing some ingredients in a pot is a silly bit of game logic, and it's something I could see any version of Link doing. "Twin Blades" by Backpack Bandit is the fic that I stole the idea from. If the author is reading this, I hope you don't mind! Check out their story if you're looking for a Zelda/FE crossover with some real plot and action.
While writing this, I learned that Yen'fay's sword, Amatsu, has the lowest base accuracy of all swords in the game... It's a fact that doesn't mesh very nicely with the precision swordsman picture I painted for him. But hey, if you want to actually hit anything with that sword in the first place, you'll need to have a high amount of skill anyway (which Yen'fay has), so I guess it makes sense?