Urbosa woke up the next morning to the sound of arguing. Startling upright, unsure of exactly when she dozed off, the Gerudo looked around for the source of noise-there were at least two people in this camp in desperate need of rest, and she didn't want either of them disturbed.
A second later her sleep-addled brain caught up with the world around it enough to recognize that both of the people she was worried about were currently involved in the exact argument that had woken her up, and were arguing with each other.
In hushed voices, neither with their usual fervor, but that was more cause for concern than anything else.
"Urbosa!" Revali noticed that she was up, and though he still lacked the strength to manage much in the way of volume-or emphasis-he still managed to convey his displeasure fairly well.
Mipha turned to the older woman, scowling. "Revali is being stubborn," the Zora informed her almost haughtily, her current mood the clearest indicator that she was still not feeling well after the day before.
"I'm being stubborn?" the Rito grumbled.
"He is in pain," Mipha stressed the word, and Urbosa could tell at a glance that the younger woman was right. Revali lay in pretty much the same position he had been in the night before, still weak, and even the slightest movement of his head clearly hurt. "He's refusing to let me help."
Revali let out an annoyed sigh through his beak only to look as if he immediately regretted it. "That is not what's happening," he protested. The fact that he was already starting to sound worn out from just this brief conversation had Urbosa worried.
"He's being stupid," Mipha snapped, crossing her arms across her chest and shooting the injured Rito a glare. "It's as if he wants to suffer."
The accused closed his eyes briefly, as if gathering his strength.
"You nearly collapsed on top of me yesterday," he ground out, each word carefully enunciated in his attempt to get his point across, though Urbosa was still waiting for said point to become clear.
"I saved your life."
"And I'm grateful," Revali didn't snap in reply, but Urbose got the feeling it was only because he was too tired. "But I'd rather not have a repeat performance, especially when I can't catch you if you faint again." Mipha's scowl deepened, but the Rito continued as if he hadn't noticed. "All I'm saying is that I'm not going anywhere. You can at least get something to eat before you start trying to heal me again."
He received a reproachful glare from the Zora for his trouble, while Urbosa turned her attention toward the princess.
"Have you eaten?" she asked.
"No," the Rito answered for her. Mipha opened her mouth as if to protest only to close it again and look away and Revali continued, "I'm fine. At least for the moment. And I'm not stupid enough to try to move. I can wait until you've had a chance to recover. You had everyone just as worried about you as they were about me yesterday."
Mipha studied the Rito for a long moment as if trying to tell just by looking how badly hurt he still was.
"It's not so bad as long as I don't try to move," Revali grumbled.
Urbosa took a deep breath. "Go," she told the Zora. "You know how stubborn he is, he's not going to give in until you've at least eaten something. I'll keep an eye on him here."
Mipha reluctantly agreed, standing wearily and, in the process, unintentionally revealing how much of a toll yesterday had taken on her. Urbosa watched her go; so did the Rito, as well as he could without moving or trying to sit up.
The second she was out of sight he closed his eyes and let out a soft groan.
"I'm going to guess you're in more pain than you're letting on," Urbosa suggested, keeping her voice low. Revali's lack of protest served as answer enough. "How bad is it?"
"Pretty much the same as it was last night, except now everything aches. I feel like I've been beaten head to toe." Urbosa snorted, and immediately felt guilty for it until the Rito managed a pained but nonetheless slightly amused huff.
"Shouldn't that be head to talon?" she asked, curious.
Revali started to shrug, catching himself just in time. "That one is fairly obvious. Not all of them are. It's easier just to translate everything instead of trying to remember which sayings will make sense and which ones won't."
"And if there is no translation?"
"Don't say it?" His eyes were closed again; the Rito was clearly exhausted. "You don't filter what you say to accommodate this bunch?"
"I do," she confirmed. "I just didn't know you did. To be honest, I didn't think you filtered anything before saying it."
Another pained huff of air, followed by a wince. "Ow."
"Link thinks she should wait until this evening to try healing you again," Urbosa said, her amusement fading as if it had never been. "I know you're in pain-"
"I'll manage." The Rito interrupted. "It's not the first time I've dealt with broken bones."
"Now why do I get the feeling that you're lying to make me feel better?"
"Not lying," Revali countered. A sudden tremor in his voice suggested he had nearly used up what little strength he had left. "Exaggerating, maybe. I have dealt with broken bones in the past, just not anywhere this bad."
"Try to get some rest," Urbosa told him. "Link's awake, and he's dealing with Mipha, so we don't have to worry about that."
By evening they could no longer hold Mipha off. She sat down beside the Rito, head bowed, and got to work. Revali, for his part, lay still and quiet.
Mipha was beginning to grow pale, and Urbosa was just beginning to wonder if she should intervene, when the Rito reached out a hand, laying it carefully on her wrist. Propping himself up slightly with his other arm, he muttered something under his breath, something that only he and the Zora could hear.
A brief, muted conversation took place from there. By the time Urbosa and Link had drawn near enough to get involved, it was over.
Mipha rose from her place and made her way unsteadily across the camp, toward her own bedroll. By the time she reached it she was practically asleep on her feet, and didn't resist Link's attempts to help her get settled.
That left Urbosa to deal with the Rito.
Revali turned from watching the Zora to stare at her.
"I'm fine," he said with a scowl, then looked distinctly uncomfortable for a moment before adding. "She's healed as much as she can without risking doing herself harm. All that's left is pretty minor: scratches, bruises, a couple of still healing fractures."
"I assume that means no flying," Urbosa guesses. The Rito shrugs.
"I could if I had to."
"But you'd rather not."
"Right." He studies her for a long moment. "I'm going back to sleep. That was exhausting."
The camp breathes a sigh of relief as the setting sun washes over their group. Most of them are exhausted, some of them are still hurting, but most importantly, they are all still alive.
Disclaimer: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild does not belong to me.
Author's Note: Shoutout to mischiefmanaged4, who took the time to send me a very encouraging private message. This chapter, my dear, is for you.