The Young Traveler

by Fierysoul135

Feeling relieved after securing victory alongside Hyrule's best warriors, he still looked not a day over 10 years old. At 17, hopefully going on 18, his search for Navi across different worlds has gone on with little luck. He's unleashed once more, equipped with his sword, the Triforce of Courage, and the mask of a god at his hip. What do these wild lands of Hyrule have in store?

32. A Little Magic

Author's Note: for older readers, this is part 2 of "The Great Fairy Fountain"

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A Little Magic~

Once the Sheikah was gone, Zelda took to the blue nightshade that frequented around the fountain, opening up a notebook and pulling a pen from her travel pouch. Link fashioned himself in the shade of a tree, and Young Link still felt like he could use a nap.

He thought about the promise he made to come back later that night. 'Why did I even ask if I could do anything for her? I should've asked how things have been or some other normal question!' Seeing the Princess getting closer and closer to the blue petals made him stand and walk over to her, "I don't know if it could happen while the petals are still attached, but I'd just be careful with how much of it you breath in," he explained, "When I was in the hospital, smelling the petals made me pass out in seconds."

Her eyes brightened at the information, "That's very helpful, thank you." As she wrote it down, it was clear that she wanted to ask more about the fairies.

He crossed his legs as he sat beside her with a smile, "You can ask."

Determination emanated from her being as she flipped to another page, "So how can you hear them speak? Is there a way for someone to learn how to do that?"

"Hm, not that I know of. Like I said, I basically grew up with them, so I naturally came to hear them. They're also more than what they appear to be." He gestured for the one on his nose to float down to his hand, "You all see a sparkle and wings, whereas I see their actual forms, like their face and hair." He raised his hand, "She is wearing a dress made from lily petals, very pretty." She shimmered and glowed in response, "Oh, and they do that when they're happy."

"This is incredible information. I would have never guessed! What kinds of things do they talk about?"

He scratched the back of his head, "Well, they're generally very friendly, so it's mainly compliments or praise. They also tend to agree with whatever the Great Fairy says as well. Otherwise, these guys in particular talk about anything that has to do with the village to wondering what the weather will be like tomorrow. They're much like us, but if we only lived at the spring."

"Amazing! I always theorized that they weren't as simple as some of the books I've read made them seem," Zelda was pleased with what she learned.

Another came over and sat on the edge of his ear, "Last thing, all of the fairies here are girls. Though it's possible for there to be boys." He smiled at hearing the request that was whispered in his ear, "This one here thinks the Princess needs a kiss."

She instantly blushed, her eyelashes batting at the gesture, "W-why I don't suppose I wouldn't mind one at all." She tilted her face so her cheek stuck out, "On the cheek if you please."

The fairy happily flit down and kissed her. She did a happy dance afterward.

It warmed his heart, "Aww, you made her really happy. You can really see what I was saying earlier." He watched her sit on the Princess' head, "She says that your skin is very soft and that she thinks you're pretty."

That only made her more flushed as she looked up the best she could, "Oh my, I appreciate the compliments! Dare I say, I think your shade of pink is quite lovely." The fairy was positively shimmering.

He developed an itch to explore the town, "Say, can I take your knight and go look around the village?" The two sprites that stayed with him took their leave back toward the trees.

Zelda glanced at him before answering, "Of course, I don't mind. Oddly I'm under the impression that he's our knight."

'Can he hear all this?' "You think so? Not just yours?"

She seemed undecided as she bobbed her head this way and that, "A little. I know my father said he was mine, but," Her head shook as a small smile appeared, "I guess what I mean to say is that we both order him around. It feels like I'm sharing." She covered her mouth as she giggled.

"Ahh, I see what you mean," He slowly agreed, "Well um, he's definitely yours. I'll admit this conversation is a little weird because he's like right there. Otherwise, I don't try to tell him what to do, sometimes he takes it that way." He stood, "I doubt we'll be gone for too long!" Skipping over to his descendant, he snatched his left hand, "You're coming with me."

Link resisted with a look in his eyes that seemed like it was trying to hide the fact that he had been listening, but he gave in half a second later, knowing that resistance was futile. He let himself get tugged along, his serious demeanor changing to his typical self as they neared the shrine, "So I'm property now?"

"Link!"

He shrugged, "What? Like you said, I was right there."

"Why are you strangely unbothered? Stop that!" The Hero shook his head with a sigh, "Listen, no you're not! I have no idea why Zelda felt the need to tell me that. I hardly order you around at all!" His descendant giving him a look made him pause to think, "Okay fine, how about sorta?"

"Kinda."

"Mm no, definitely not kinda."

"You're right," His grin bordered on being cheeky, "It's constant."

Young Link rolled his eyes as they reentered the village. The first shop that caught his eye was the one for clothes. A large shirt that hung from the rafters made it quite obvious. He felt his hand slip through the champion's as they went up to the door, "Oh, oops." An unsuccessful attempt to grab it again made him stop in the doorway and look at him.

Surprisingly, Link was confused as he quietly explained, "It's okay, you don't have to act like you're…eleven. I mean, I already know what you really look like."

'Taken aback' does not properly describe how it felt like the phrases crashed into his soul like a four-horse drawn carriage and left his entrails dragged in the road. His hand flew to his chest as he took a couple of steps back into the shop, blinking as his mind buffered on how he should begin to respond. He decided to count off his fingers as he listed how he felt, "Okay, I am speechless. I am offended. Deeply, as a matter of fact. I feel betrayed even. How dare y—"

"You mean to tell me that you'd still try to hold my hand looking how you actually do?" He hissed. His descendant had chosen sass.

He dramatically bobbed his head up and down as he returned what he received, "Yes! Even if I looked eighteen and not the other thing! That's just me, damn you!" He scoffed as he crossed his arms, ignoring the champion's soul leaving his body.

Once they were through the door, there were articles of clothing that resembled what the residents wore. Though, there was one in particular that caught his eye. It reminded him of what Sheik, the Princess in disguise, had worn back in his universe. "Oh look." A hand went up to his chin as he looked between Link and the mannequin, "I know exactly how you'll make up for what you just did to my pride." His head tipped from side to side as he made his request, "I wonder what you would look like if you wore it?"

"Huh!?" He was appalled, "You're serious?"

"Yep!" The Hero grinned, "An order if you will. I also bet it wouldn't look half bad." Before the champion could reply, he was already talking to the clerk, "Hey, do you mind if my friend tries that on?"

Her interest was piqued. Looks like she wanted to know as well, "Go right ahead, the dressing room is in the back corner."

Young Link's grin became cheesier as he turned back, "I'll hold your clothes for you, if that's okay."

Link clearly realized his mistake as he took the outfit and disappeared behind the long curtain.

'I hope he doesn't actually take this as some sort of punishment. It just works out that I can use the situation against him this one time.' He internally sniffed, 'Still! That kinda hurt! I can see where he's coming from, but dear Goddesses! It's been a while since something has managed to offend me, and it had to come from my own descendant!'

A few minutes later, the curtain opened, and out stepped Link in the skin-tight body suit and white scarf. He handed him the crimson sticks that came with it, moving his arms around, "This is...oddly breathable, but comfortable too. Also, I didn't know what to do with those."

He remembered observing how the other people in town wore them in their hair "I've got an idea." Gesturing for the knight to bend down, he pulled out the elastic that held his hair and instead fashioned it into a bun like what he saw. He stuck the two sticks through it, impressed with how they sturdily stayed in place, "Okay, now pull up the face mask and look."

His descendant did as he was told, his brows raising in interest as he checked himself out in the mirror, "Oh wow, I would have never guessed."

Young Link looked him up and down, smirking from time to time at the things the suit made stand out, "I think it looks pretty good, makes your abs look nice too." The clerk agreed.

He quickly covered his torso as he was unable to keep himself from laughing, "Okay what? Why point that out?"

"Hey, that's a perk. Besides, you know you should never turn down something that gets you some free change." He ignored the look he was given, "Otherwise I'm impressed with how similar this looks."

"Similar to what?" Link pulled the mask down.

The young hero explained, "Well it's nearly what my princess wore when she was hiding from Ganon. Let me tell you, when I say I can tell what someone is, it's because she fooled me super hard into thinking she was a guy. I knew something was off, but I could never put my finger on it, and then Navi didn't ever want to talk about it. Looking back, she probably knew the entire time."

He was very perplexed, "That's...a lot to take in. Your princess dressed like this to look like a guy? To hide from Ganon?"

"Trust me, you would have been fooled too."

"Sorry for interrupting," the clerk said, quickly wiping drool from her bottom lip, "But uh, if you're not going to buy that, feel free to take it off...and hand it back to me."

"Sorry about that," Link quickly changed back into his tunic, the two of them returning the clothes to the lady and heading outside. He continued their conversation, "Well that's certainly interesting. Could you ever ask?"

"I tried, especially after I ran into her a few times, but she would always quickly disappear after doing what she needed to. After I'd done everything, she finally revealed to me who she was, and then literally was captured by Ganon right before my eyes." He shook his head, "I don't hate a lot of things, it takes too much energy, but I mean it when I say Ganon has made it too easy. He's one thing that I truly hate, and I still think that after everything I've been through, which you know is a lot."

He nodded, now leading him to a general store, "Yeah wow. I can only imagine. Also," The knight quickly took his hand, "Sorry. Really." He bashfully scratched the back of his head, "I feel pretty bad for assuming that, though now it makes sense why you never pout when you do it. Unlike other times where it's obvious."

The Hero looked up from the glowing triforce that appeared over the knight's hand, "I think what kills me more is that was the conclusion you came to after all this time. Ow." He shrugged, "I can't exactly explain why either, I just do it. Also switch hands, your little burden is showing."

"Burden?" Link kept finding things to be surprised by, "That's new." He turned around, "And what? Walk backwards?"

"Pfft, you're a champion. You should be able to run backwards!" Before he could take another step, he was pulled to the other side of him.

"You're awfully playful today."

He giggled, "Perhaps!"

They both ogled at the fresh produce that was available. Carrots, pumpkins in an array of colors and sizes, squash, and plenty of eggs as well. Then, as they walked elsewhere, the knight pointed out the Goddess statue that wore an ornate bib.

Interesting.

However, what really attracted the both of them was a skilled chef who was making vegetable fried rice in a large cooking pot. There was already a crowd around him waiting for him to finish so they could get a serving, and another was cooking carp just to his left! It was a beautiful sight accompanied with even better smells.

"Gods, I just realized that I'm actually starving," Young Link said aloud.

Link entirely agreed, complete with enthusiastically nodding his head and the same realization being clear as day on his face, "Same, and it's not the kind I can shake off either! I think I might bite someone if they look at my food weird."

Twenty minutes later, they had bowls of rice and fish in front of them. Once the rich savoriness of the seasoned food smacked his senses, he could feel the inner corners of his eyes begin to itch with the sensation of tears. Not to mention it was making him drool. After a few bites he covered his mouth and fanned at his face.

His descendant had no right to speak, "Are you okay down there?" He was nearly in the same position as him.

"Shut up. This is so good I might cry. I don't think I've felt this hungry in months!" Moments after he finished his sentence, his eyes widened as their gazes connected.

"The Princess!"

Now they quickly ate, soon jogging back up to the fountain and finding her resting against the base of a tree. Young Link was quickly joined by a few fairies as he walked to her and crouched down, "Hey Zelda?"

She had been drifting off until his voice caused her to blink awake, "Hm?" She gingerly wiped her eyes, "Back so soon, little one?"

"Seems like we were right on time. Anyways," He set the bowl in her hand, not letting go until she had a decent hold on it, "We were starving and then remembered that you hadn't eaten yet either! It's fried rice with vegetables and fish." His cheeks were rosy, "It's so good, I bet they'll even make an exception and let you get another bowl if you want." He watched her other hand rise before feeling his head getting pat.

"Thank you so much! I appreciate it," Zelda smiled, though it looked like she was still woozy from waking up.

Removing her hand, he gave her the utensils that were provided, "You're uh, too kind. There's no need to come after my head like that, Princess." The fairies now sat where her hand had been.

Her smile persisted, "You're right, that's my fault. Though, with your cap on it's not as satisfying when I can't see that one little part flip back up over and over again."

Link staring at the crown of his head wasn't helping, 'Yep. She's definitely going to be the first to go to bed. That's for sure.' "Ah, Princess," He sighed, feeling like her caretaker as he watched her begin to eat, "Long day?"

"Very."

"Wanna walk back to the village with me when you're done?" He couldn't help his smile as she nodded. He'd been hearing the fairies chatter to themselves, but now he had a chance to focus on what they were saying.

"Aww! You're so kind!"

"I wish I was big so I could play with his hair all day!"

"Ohh! That's such a good idea!"

He quickly shook his head to get their attention as he looked up at them, "I swear, you guys are first group of fairies I've ever seen act like this." Young Link gestured over to Link who'd taken to standing guard, "How about you go mess with him?" They immediately flew back to the Hero, shaking their heads.

"Noo! He can't hear us!"

"I think he's kinda scary!"

"Do you like him?"

Laughing, he walked over to his descendant as they sat on his shoulders, "See look, he might not be able to hear you, but he's not that bad guys. And yes," He looked to the one that asked, "I do like him. It'd be strange if I didn't, considering since he's my descendant and everything."

Link was mystified at this sudden development happening in front of him.

"Still!" The closest to his face hugged his cheek, "You're like us! He's really different!"

"Just like the Princess!"

"Mhm mhm!"

His head fell to one side. This wasn't working the way he wanted it to. "How am I like you guys? I don't sparkle or have wings, I can't heal anyone, and I can't fly." 'Maybe if I understand where they're coming from, I'll be able to somehow use it to turn Link into a target. There's no way they'll keep this up for that long, right?'

"Isn't that kinda like Cotera, though?"

"Well, I've seen her heal people before…"

"Oh, and she sparkled when you kissed her today!"

They reconvened with each other after saying the obvious disqualifiers out loud. Young Link rested his head in his hand as he waited. Seeing the champion appear to try to put the pieces together was amusing. His attention flipped back to them when they were done.

They lined up in front of him, the left most shimmering as she spoke, "I remember Cotera talking about how non-fairies can't hear us. It's what we're all told whenever we're born."

The right most went next, "Mhm, and you also jumped super high to get onto the Great Fairy's hand! It looked like you were weightless to us!"

And now the middle, her head sweetly leaned to one side as she hovered toward him, "Is it really too far of a stretch to say that you feel really familiar? If you weren't so big, I'd probably just think you were like the rest of us! I wouldn't bat an eye!" The other two agreed. "Oh oh! And you can do magic!"

"Can you at least try to sparkle?"

He looked to his descendant once more. Now it looked like he was amused. "I suppose those are pretty good reasons. Also, I can try to sparkle, but I really don't think I can." Ever since the Great Fairy attacked him with her whims, the 'urge' to transform, if that's the right way to describe it, had significantly dropped. "Wait before I try, at least point me in the right direction."

The one from the middle grabbed his finger, "I just focus on how happy something has made me feel!"

'That sounds like how you cry happy tears…' "Well, I still can't make any promises." He closed his eyes, 'Let's see, I was really happy when I was eating that rice earlier…those chefs better be getting paid. That's—I'm getting distracted. Oh! Giving Link the triforce! And seeing him at the ceremony, all weird things aside, of course.' He beamed at remembering him with the sword out and looking all professional. An eye peeped open, "Is it working? I've got a pretty solid memory replaying in my head."

The three of them giggled, "Well your smile is so pretty!"

"Very charming!"

"I feel like kissing him again.~"

He looked at the last one, politely holding up a hand, "Listen, I appreciate it, but let's not do anymore kissing, okay? I think I've had all I can get today." The young hero pointed to Link once more, "I mean, I think he might like a kiss. He's right here too. Perfect for the taking." It was clear they were all sparkling for a different reason.

"We think you should kiss him!"

He facepalmed, probably more than twice. 'Okay I'm done trying. There's just no way they're gonna open up to anyone else. I accept defeat.' "Um, I'm not sure he wants one from me. Pretty sure, in fact. Right, Link?" His level of contempt skyrocketed at having the displeasure of viewing his descendant's far too indifferent expression. The palm of his hand met with his forehead once more, 'I can't decide if I should bait him or ground him from the sword. Maybe my sheer disappointment is enough.'

"What?" He whispered, "I'm only curious because of what you told me about the Princess. Especially since my hands still tingle."

A part of his soul chipped off, 'WHAT?! That's still a thing for him!? I assumed it went away when I gave him my prophecy triangle! What the hell!' His eyes peered at him through his fingers, "Link please...You're not supposed to side with them—that was also very layered. A layered respons—" He whipped around to face the Princess, "Hey Zelda! You about done? I'll even help you eat the rest of it!"

Luckily he was walking back to the village before it could be brought up again. Naturally, Zelda was curious about what the fairies were up to. He explained it to her as he saw Impa standing outside of what looked to be an inn. He left out the last part. Obviously.

Impa looked quite content, "This is where you'll be staying tonight." She showed them inside. The door was slid open as they were let in. Right in front of them was a woman at the sign-in desk who cutely waved to their group. The Princess's friend gestured to their immediate left, "These are the beds. Her Highness gets the first pick of course, and then you two could share. I figured you wouldn't mind." She shrugged, now waving to the right, "Over here is where you can keep your things. You can use the partition if you need to get changed, or even eat at the table if you choose. Just make yourself at home." Just as she seemed to be finished, she added one last thing, "Oh and then, if you'd like, there's a spring just next to the Great Fairy Fountain that we all usually go to bathe in. You don't have to, but I'd consider it since the water is pretty refreshing."

'I totally wanna go,' He thought as he smiled at the idea, 'It bet it'd be so nice!' Then his eyes drifted off, 'Well, but then she mentioned that it's right next to the fountain…I get the feeling that the fairies would follow me there.' Young Link turned to the Sheikah as she started to leave, "It would be mixed right? Like guys and girls together?"

"Oh, that's right. It's definitely not for those who are shy. You'll have to mind the children playing and getting washed as well. Anyways," She had a foot out the door, "I'll see you all tomorrow! Goodnight!"

Zelda went ahead and hugged the Hero goodnight before taking the bed closest to the back wall and front desk. "I'll see you in the morning, young one."

"You too, sleep well!" Young Link raised his shoulders as he looked back at his descendant. Even though it was a bit early for him to consider sleeping, he figured he'd go talk to the Goddess statue before going to bed. 'I could kill some time while still learning how far I should be from the castle. It's still ironic that she can contact me at will, but I suppose she makes the rules.' "What are you gonna do?" He asked.

Link seemed undecided. His tone was soft, "I suppose I'll stay here and keep watch. That's my job after all."

"Well as long as you don't stare right at her," He whispered, "People can feel that y'know. I'm gonna take one last look around and call it a night. I probably won't be gone for more than an hour, give or take." He walked out once the knight took a seat on their bed. 'Right… there's a window in the middle of that wall there. I bet if I wait for the clerk to sleep, I'll be able to sneak out that way.' Hearing the door click shut behind him was enough to confirm that such a noise would wake the woman. 'Though, a good backup would simply be that I need to use the restroom.'

He went around to the left side of the building, 'Great, nothing will be in my way when I go to land.' Looking over to the statue, there was a small wooden platform that led to the small circle of land that held it. Surrounding it were four lit torches. A woman from the temple behind them—at least from what he could tell, it looked like a temple—had bowed after her prayer before returning up the steps. As she left, he tilted his head at the brightly colored bib and then closed his eyes, 'Do the villages and towns always dress you? I'm afraid I don't quite understand this choice.'

It took a few moments, but soon enough, he could subconsciously see the golden forearms hanging off his shoulders. Hylia was amused.

I would agree that it's interesting, however, I normally don't have an opinion, my sweet.

'So this is far enough from the castle, right? Also it was nice seeing a Great Fairy. I almost thought that there weren't any here until Godric mentioned it.'

This is far enough, yes.

Speaking of Cotera, I see the two of you have some plan for tonight?

The way that was phrased made him question her thoughts, 'I'm not sure what all you mean, but I was going to show her my other form. Speaking of which, I had no idea that the other Great Fairies could contact each other, so I was surprised that she knew me.' She cooed as she floated around to face him.

All those little fairies surrounding you, it's quite fitting.

Though, I still don't understand why you insist on containing yourself, Dear Hero.

He folded his hands, taking in her glowing face, 'I don't get the idea that would be helping anyone here, Dearest Hylia. People also don't make things to fit our sizes.' An idea crossed his mind, 'With that in mind…surely I can look like an adult, right?'

That's correct, my love. Such a beautiful form indeed.

However, you walk a fine line. It would be quite hard to maintain.

'I'll keep that in mind, thank you.' His eyes fluttered as she pushed her forehead against his, 'I assume you want to tell me something else?' It made him slightly nervous. He was right next to the inn, and the statue, in general, inhabited a very public space. Not to mention the guards outside the temple who were likely wondering why he was taking so long.

Hylia smiled as her hands held his face and pushed back a strand of his loose hair.

Perceptive as usual…

I can feel your anxiousness , Hero of Time.

Worry not, I only request that we part properly this time.

If the Goddess required air, he's sure he would have felt her soft breathing as her lips drew closer to his. With the tips of his ears growing warm, he quickly obliged. It lasted for only a second or two. His cheeks felt like they were on fire as he scratched the back of his head, 'Sorry, I can't say that I do that too often.'

On the other hand, Hylia was far more than pleased. In fact, she appeared to glisten more than before. It could also be that he never noticed, but her ears were shining white at the end. The same light speckled across her cheeks as she giggled.

I would have never guessed, my love.

I must also apologize for my blushing. It seems my own elation has preceded me.

Young Link couldn't help himself as he ran his thumbs over the freckled sparkles, 'Aww!' He smiled, 'That's a first! How cute!' Upon finishing his phrase, the light only got brighter as more dots of white began to appear.

Now her own eyelashes bat as her eyes grew slightly wider. Without another word, she pecked both of his cheeks before quickly disappearing.

Blinking, he felt like he regained his balance as he looked ahead at the statue. His laugh slightly echoed off the surrounding trees and rocks. The statue itself had two glowing ovals positioned over its cheeks, giving off the impression that it too was blushing after their encounter. Still, his ears perked at hearing a gasp come from behind him. He faced the other way and found a small group of Sheikah women. They were dressed like the one from before that went back to the temple. His expression was bashful, "S-Sorry! I'm probably holding you all up, that's my bad!" 'I can only imagine that they have some sort of strict schedule to stick to!'

The one who wore the Sheikah symbol on her cheek went from gazing ahead to looking into his eyes, "Did you do that just now?"

"Oh that?" He put a hand on his hip as his eyes tried to look elsewhere, "Yeah, I didn't mean to. I promise my prayer wasn't anything awful or unholy."

"Whooaaa," another said. She was the youngest, "What will Master think? Look, it still hasn't gone away either." This created an outburst of chattering that ended in all of them eventually coming to look at him.

Now the eldest with blue eyelids came forth. Her tone was cautiously serious, "Who are you, young one?"

His hands raised as he prefaced his introduction, "I don't expect you to believe me, but…I'm the Hero of Time. I've got the ocarina and everything." He took it from his waist and showed them the relic, "I'd play you a song to prove it, but I'm not in the mood for rain so late in the evening." They looked baffled as he slid past them, "I'm uh…also really tired. Lots of traveling today." Peeking back at the statue, even he became amazed that it still blushed, "So, goodnight!"

After nodding to the woman at the front desk, he quietly walked to the beds. Internally, seeing Link staring right back at him gave him a decent spook. Externally, he paused at his existence and blinked a few times at him. Watching the knight roll his eyes and lift the blankets, it nearly felt like they were back in Hateno sharing a room. Y'know, except Zelda was right across from them.

Young Link adjusted his cap before taking off his boots and lying down. He wanted to ask how long his descendant had been lying in wait for him to come back but seeing as the clerk was also not too far away and could see them from where she stood, it was a question best left for the morning. And yet, when he turned to say goodnight, he felt his cap get yanked off his head and then was smacked in the face with it! Unfortunately for his descendant, wrestling in a hotel bed was not above him.

In the blink of an eye, he straddled him and grabbed the neck of his tunic, shaking him around as he hissed, "LINK! I swear to the Goddesses above you better have an amazing reason for why you just hit me with my damn hat!"

He grabbed the hands that held him, "You just hit me in the face with it! I don't wanna hear it!"

His eyebrows furled as he recounted his actions from a minute ago. It must have hit him when he laid down. He roughly pushed the champion back down, making the mattress bounce from his head rebounding off the pillow. "Ugh! How was I supposed to know that happened!?" He fired back.

"Because you're a smartass!" Link countered. He didn't even get back up to respond, he simply laid there with his arms crossed.

Seconds later, they both smiled like idiots. "I hate you, got that?" Young Link quietly chuckled as he climbed off of him and set his hat on the table beside them.

"Crystal clear, captain." He flipped on his side and smushed his cheek into the young hero's temple.

The corners of his lips dipped downward, "What the hell did I just say?"

"Some weird way of saying 'goodnight' in the Old Hylian. I dunno."

Young Link knew by now that continuing to argue only made it worse. Better yet, the poor woman running the inn definitely wasn't comfortable with the energy they created that evening. He sighed and closed his eyes, "Goodnight, dork."

"Aw, I love you too."

His lower eyelid twitched, 'Hylia if you're still here, can you slap him so hard with sleep that he simply never wakes up? I've decided I'll just take over from here and we can say that some tragic accident happened. He slept too hard or something.'

He fell asleep sooner than he cared to admit.

...

Around midnight, the Hero of Time felt something messing with his cheek. The ticklish feeling it left behind woke him. He was relieved to see it was simply a fairy that was hovering overhead, 'Oh my Gods…I actually would have killed him if it hadn't been her.' Before he moved, his eyes flicked to the woman. She was in a deep sleep.

Perhaps his descendant was only a deep sleeper in the morning, because Young Link otherwise didn't have a grasp on his typical sleeping pattern. 'As far as I know, so long as I don't speak in the old language, he doesn't wake so easily.' Getting his limp arm off was the easy part. What was worse this time around was that his face was pressed against his shoulder from him leaning on him.

The fairy giggled as she took a seat on the corner of the nightstand, "Hehe! How cute!"

"More like," He inched forward, trying not to make his head move too much, "how annoying." After a couple more scoots, he found that his flying nighttime companion managed to open the window when she initially came in. Being glad to find that Zelda was facing the other direction, he easily hopped up and out, landing in the tall grass below. Soon he realized that having a flying ball of light next to him wasn't entirely stealthy, "Hey, could you hop in my cap or generally just…hide? I'm pretty sure they've got a night watch."

"Yes sir!" She flew toward his torso and, much to his grand astonishment, disappeared into it.

His hands felt around the place she went into, "Are you—Are you still there!?" He hissed, his eyes bolting around.

She spun around him as she came out, "Yep! I thought you were used to this! I'll come back out at the fountain, okay?"

'Well, she has a point. This is pretty much exactly what Navi used to do, and Tatl now that I think about it…I guess I never paid it much mind until now.' He put his focus toward sources of light that he didn't recognize from before. A few came from the upper portion of the village, but they wouldn't interfere with his path. Two came from the guards in front of the temple, and another looked to come from the clothing shop. 'Alright, let's do this.'

Keeping low to the ground, he crouched as he made his way across the bridge that went behind the Goddess statue. From what he could tell, it still was blushing. 'Ha!' He thought as he climbed the rock to the backside of the clothing shop, 'I can't believe she's still flustered after that! It's what she wanted too!' He crawled through the tall grass and eventually stopped behind the tree that was next to the boutique. He made a face, 'Seriously!? They have a guy right here!?'

Young Link tried to mull through the grass without making too much noise, 'Da na na na!~ I found a rock I'm gonna use to distract him! Classic!' Partially standing, he hurled the stone from over the guard's shoulders, following it by hiding behind the tree.

"What the hell was that?" The older man mumbled as he scratched his ear. He started to walk toward it.

'Sweet.' Looking up the road, he could safely zip up to the cliffside without being seen, 'For once my fast abilities are coming in handy outside of battle. This has been a good night for working on strategy.' Still staying close to the rock, he made it past the shrine and walked toward the light that came from the fountain.

"I'm here!" He called, watching the fairy come out of him and join her sisters.

Just like before, the water bubbled right as the Great Fairy popped out of the water, "Mmmmmmm!~" She clapped her hands together, "I'm so glad you could make it!"

The Hero put his hands on his hips, "So why did you wanna see my other form so bad again?"

"Well, aside from eye candy, I can have a little edge on my sisters. You see, with all due respect of course, I can't imagine why you'd end up going to their fountains. Besides, a little jealousy never hurt anyone, hm?"

He chuckled, unsurprised to hear that her reasoning wasn't beyond her own desires, "Just be careful what you wish for." He took a deep breath before focusing on the very power he tried to keep under strict control. Within seconds, his entire body became blindingly bright as he morphed into his deity form.

The next time he opened his eyes, he practically came up to the chin of the matriarch and his lightly colored hair was far more in his face than he remembered. "Oh wow," His deeper voice briefly stunned him to hear, not to mention the slight echo it produced, "Y'know, I never had a good look at myself the last time I was—"

Cotera was already fanning her face as she sparkled and furiously blushed.

"—like this…" He smiled as he shook his head.

"Dear Hylia! ~" She squealed, creating waves in her pool as she bounced up and down, "You've got little fangs too! Ah! And you're so tall and muscular!" Several shimmering hearts floated around her as she and the fairies drank in his simple existence.

"Cotera…you're really something else. Can I at least have something that can show me what all you're talking about?" With the snap of her fingers, she made a mirror appear before his eyes. The Hero was viscerally surprised at his reflection. His glowing white eyes took in his long silver-white bangs. Aside from his fierce face markings, he was clad in tight, black underclothes, with his teal tunic and armor on top of it. The cap was there too along with his sword, boots, and gauntlets. Better yet, he could make the different pieces of clothes appear and disappear at will. How useful! After he shifted into his black undergarments, and thoroughly checked himself out, he made a prideful fist. His rippling biceps, thighs, and eight-pack had him in high spirits, "YES! I knew I was hot! Thank the Goddesses, I was actually a little worried there for a second."

The Great Fairy eagerly had her head propped in her hands as she intently listened. Her daughters cluttered around her shoulders to join in.

"See, I've been cute for what feels like an eternity. You have no idea how glad I am that it won't stick for much longer…hopefully…maybe. I have no idea if my other body is actually gonna grow up or not." He shrugged, opening his mouth, "You're right about the fangs, though. I honestly forgot." Thinking of testing his magic, he didn't have to do much more than reminisce of fire before his left hand turned into a violent flaming ball that licked at the night air.

"Whoa…" However, once he made it disappear, the Hero was back to bashfully shaking his head as he looked at his audience and found them all shimmering even more. "Cotera, I know you're not thinking what I think you're thinking, right? Biting people hurts as far as I know." 'Goodness, at least make it less obvious that you're looking at my mouth!'

"Ahem," She spoke quickly, "Not sure I can agree. Anyways!" The Great Fairy laced her fingers together, "With what you were saying a minute ago, you mean to tell me that you could possibly have another form?"

His weight shifted as he put a hand on his hip, "I'm fairly certain, yes. It should be my regular adult form, not whatever this is. I can try to change, but, for example, this time and the last time I changed back, it felt like I was going from zero to a thousand." He stood up straight with his feet together to demonstrate, "So if me standing here is my younger form and one simple step forward is this form, I already have the feeling that my adult one will be hard to achieve on my own, if that makes any sense."

Cotera nodded as she thought, "Hmph, well I bet we can make something work with a little elbow grease, no?" The other fairies started to flit into the air with excitement.

A finger raised, "What exactly do you mean by elbow grease? You worry me."

She was playfully exasperated and impatient, "Oh just hop onto the little mushroom here," Her red fingernail tapped it. "Then, you do a little magic, and I'll do a little magic! Simple as wildberry pie!" Cotera waved to any other surrounding daughters, "Girls! Momma needs some space! Thank you!"

The Hero of Time did as he was asked, "So…what? On my mark?"

"Mhm!"

"Well, fair warning, last time my own voice made the furniture in my room shake. Take that as you will." His white eyes shined brighter as he attempted to channel his powers. The same deep growl from before caused the trees to shake and made the water in her pool begin to ripple. Just as his being became bright, the Great Fairy took her sparkling hand and held it over him as he began to shrink down.

She explained, "I'm hoping that this should slow it down enough to find the sweet spot of your adult form, okay? Fingers crossed!"

Right as he wanted to respond, the coursing energy that fought to be contained suddenly found an intermediate level to exist at. Granted, it still felt far weaker than his deity form. After seeing Cotera turn nearly red, he immediately looked at his arms, finding that they were entirely bare…just like the rest of him. Still, he was ecstatic! As he looked to the side, his ear flicked at the sound of a gasp.

One would think that catching their descendant spying on them would make them quite annoyed, however, the Hero of Time was so overjoyed at being back in his adult form, he ran to him and picked him up into a hefty squeeze. "I have no idea how long this will last, but can you believe it!? I'm finally back to my old self!"

"Y-You're naked."

"Link you're supposed to be happy for me! I know that!" He sat him down.

"Right, I meant—" His eyes narrowed as he had to slightly tilt his head to look up at him, "Dear Hylia! Why are you so much taller than me?"

"Haha!" He playfully booped his nose, "Now you have a more accurate image of who you were cuddling about half an hour ago!" From what he could see, he recognized all of his old scars as well. He'd request another mirror, but now that Link was here, he'd rather not…y'know make him look at his nude glory. "Actually wait," He turned back to the Great Fairy, realizing that she didn't appear surprised at all, "How long has he been here?"

"Oh, nearly the whole time. He arrived right as you initially transformed," she said with a grin, waving her fingers in the champion's direction.

The Hero internally winced at himself, 'Well…not sure how I feel about him hearing me say out loud that I'm hot but…I guess you win some and lose some. That and I know how much he knows.' Now he hoped there was a part of her magic that could make clothes appear. Surely that's possible if she can make a twelve-foot mirror come and go, "Ah okay, well back on the fact that I'm naked—"

"And beautiful." Cotera made it quite obvious to let him know that he still had fangs by pointing to her own teeth.

"—uh…sure," He facepalmed, 'Dear Goddesses…this woman…' "You can give me something to wear, right?"

Her eyes sparkled as the hearts from before reappeared around her. Naturally it was paired with a devious smile, "Vines and boots, correct?"

"Gah!" He took a step back, "You better not! At least pants and boots!" He'd purposefully left his gear back at the inn, but he was a little surprised to see that he didn't already have a sword and shield, or at least the Hylian shield or Mirror shield, "Well, and a belt I suppose. I dunno, something to make Link stop blushing. I doubt I'll be like this long enough to fight anything."

"What!?" The champion's cheeks turned red out of astonishment.

"Your desires are my command.~" Cotera kissed her index finger and waved her sparkling fingertip in his direction.

Before their eyes, he was clothed in the typical boots and white pants, as well as a light shirt whose v-neck exposed a bit more of his chest than what he considered tasteful. His eyebrows vaguely raised, "Cotera. Seriously? Thank you for the boots, and the oddly tight pants—dear Goddesses—you kill me." He realized this was clearly done to her own tastes. The way the fabric clung to his legs and backside was reminiscent of his actual clothes, but that was when there was a skirt from a tunic to cover some of it! He sighed, "But really? I feel like if I twist in either direction, my nipples are gonna come out! That's...y'know...c'mon! What if I ever appear like this around the Princess?!"

She was frank, "Fairy boy, you were just gloating about how absolutely fabulous you are. With your chiseled abs and arms... mmm, yes~" She caught herself from her swooning, "Anyways, you're fine. You look great!" The Great Fairy leaned down, looking to his descendant, "Wouldn't you agree, champion?"

'Hmph, I bet Link is just as unimpressed as I am at this blatant ploy to make m—' His eyes widened, "What the!? Are you serious!?"

He went from being distracted to looking playfully aloof, "Maybe." He shrugged, flippantly waving his hand toward his torso, "But it's really unfair that you have the same number of abs as your other form. That's ridiculous." Link quickly turned to the fairy, "Right? Like that's a trick of the eye or something?"

She seductively sighed before chuckling, "Hm, well, Gods tend to look that way, cute boy. I counted myself as well. Fu fu~"

"Link, what the hell." 'COTERA WHAT THE HELL!?'

The champion turned on him, "No, you can't say anything! I had to sleep on top of you all night after that dinner! Do you have any idea what it's like to get raised into the air by nearly half a foot every ten seconds!? Of course I needed something to do! It was a blessing that you scooted away from the wall by the time morning came!"

He raised his hands as he understood, "Yeah...you've got a point."

Now his descendant whipped his head back to Cotera, "Wait, GODS!?"

At first, she was surprised, a little dismayed perhaps. Then, as she looked between the both of them, her eyes settled back on Link. Her fingers interlaced with one another, "Cute boy...you didn't come to that conclusion after seeing it twice?" Now she was slightly concerned.

He had nothing to say for himself as it was clear that he was racking his brain for answers.

The Hero pat his shoulder, "Um, it's okay. It's not like you have a reference or anything. Also," He gave the Great Fairy a look, "I still very much disagree! A Hero? Yes! A God? No!" It became sterner, "And don't you dare mention anything about Hylia! Nothing good will come from that!"

Cotera's smile was deliciously cunning, "As you wish, my fairy boy." She sat her head in her hand, "Is there any other way that I can be of service tonight? You've done what I asked, it's only fair that I return the favor."

Young Link didn't like the road she was possibly wanting this to go down. Link remained stupefied, "Um, well you gave me clothes and helped me into this form so...I don't know. I'll probably be back to my other self by morning." He scratched his head, realizing he didn't have a cap, "I also don't know the range of your magic."

"We could make some more fairies togeth—"

"Cotera!" His voice echoed off the trees and his ears were searing to the point that he could practically hear the heat. His eyes narrowed and flicked between her and his descendant, "Please! Have some decency!" He thought about it for a split second longer, "I don't even think that's how they're made!"

Meanwhile Link's stupefied face was beyond red, and the Great Fairy was biting her lip in anticipation.

"How's this? I'm grateful, but tired. And look, you're scaring my descendant. Scaring him. I'm gonna take him back to bed and think about your original question. As much as Zelda would probably love to hear about how new fairies come into the world— no. In fact, maybe you can tell me the truth tomorrow since I'm curious as well." He slung the champion over his shoulder, then made sure he had everything, and began walking back to the inn. Somewhere in between that, the matriarch sweetly rolled her eyes and popped back into her pool.

Much to his surprise, at no point did Link ask to be put down, even as he walked through the village and passed by the guards. "You okay?" He quietly asked, trying to look back at him.

"I dunno."

"Do you want to walk next to me? I bet the blood is getting to your head by now."

"It's okay."

'What is this lifeless, "what is my life?" attitude? It's fair, all things considered. I think I'd be scarred as well if some big woman asked my ancestor to do that in front of me too.' The Hero grinned at the statue maintaining its flush as he passed it once more. He jostled him a little as he came up to the doorway, "Well, we're here. This is your last chance to use your feet." A moment or two passed before he heard him sigh.

"...Just take me to bed."

When he walked inside, the lady at the front desk was flustered as she snapped awake, "Oh! Um...hello sir! Can I help you?"

"Oh, I've already got a bed here, or at least he does. He's with the Princess." Now he heard him facepalm.

"You're right, that is the champion…" A finger went to her lips as she paused to think, "Hm, I'll allow it for tonight! Sleep well!"

'Why did she wink? Weird.' "I'm exhausted, so will do, thanks." Giving her a short wave, he continued to their bed and was glad to see Zelda still sound asleep. Without much notice, he pulled the champion from over his shoulder while simultaneously climbing onto the mattress. Seeing as he was over his descendant, he looked perplexed at Link staring back at him, "What?" He softly whispered, "Pick a side so I can lay down."

"Uh, right." Turning to lay on his right side, now there was enough room for either of them.

He sighed a yawn as he pulled the covers up, "Seems this is going to be a squeeze. Oh well. Goodnight." Just as he closed his eyes, he heard the champion turn to face him.

His voice was nearly silent, "So, hypothetically—"

"Dunno that word." They opened once more and tiredly gazed back at him.

"Right, sorry. So, just in case, what if you don't turn back before tomorrow morning?" He sounded a little apprehensive, it was too dark to see if he looked as such.

"That would be awesome, but then I'd need a sword."

"I meant what am I gonna do?"

"Ohhhh, I see what you mean. Um...great question." 'Yeah let's see. A guy takes you back to your room, and the clerk knows that you're sharing a bed. The Princess would probably wake up and recognize me, Impa not so much. If we left together, I could see Impa scolding him for…' He made a face, "That's a really good question. Goodnight."

"What kind of answer is that!?" Link hissed.

"It means I don't know, and there's a chance that it won't happen at all. Believe me, I entirely understand where you're coming from! If I had my wallet, I'd consider getting another bed, but I don't and there's not another one around here." He took a breath, "Plus, I'm getting you back for cuddling me, and I know you saw this coming."

"Well what about you?"

"Me? I don't give a shit. I'm sharing a bed and annoying my descendant. It's as plain and simple as that." He could tell that it somehow put more confidence in the champion. Then the Hero made him flip back over and intentionally pulled him close, "Anyways, goodnight. Calm down a little." He'd never say it aloud, but he was pleasantly surprised that Link was short enough to allow his own head to sit just above his. He gently sat his chin on the top of the golden blonde's hair, wearing a faint smile, 'I was thinking I'd have to settle for eating his hair all night. I'm glad I don't have to.'

Feeling comfortable, the only thing that was keeping him from falling asleep was his descendant's racing heart. The worst part was that it would slow back down, but as soon as his eyes would start to close, it would pick back up again. Come the third time, he flipped him back over to confront him. He could barely keep his eyes open as he spoke, "Okay you really have to chill out. I'm actually losing sleep over your nerves."

"Sorry, it's jus—"

"You're thinking way too much and can't stop?" His eyelids gave up as he sighed, "What's gonna make you feel better?"

"There are too many dots to connect with you," Link exhaled, "I have no idea."

He cradled his head in closer so he could have his chinrest back, "Remember when you'd call me complex? You weren't wrong in the slightest." He moved one of the knight's bangs over, it was tickling his neck, "Back on topic, one thing I used to do when I couldn't sleep well was just pull the covers up over my head. In fact, I'd do it now, but I'm…too tall. Luckily, you're not." The Hero pulled up the blankets until they covered about the top of his descendant's head, "See what I mean?" After waiting a few moments and not receiving an answer, he realized that he was dead asleep. 'Huh…' He thought as he adjusted his arm and repositioned his chin, 'I dunno what happened there, but I'm not complaining. Guess he just wanted to turn over.'

The next time his eyes opened, his ears discreetly perked at hearing the Princess question where they both were.

"Odd," She whispered, "I'd ask the receptionist, but I believe she's out for the morning. Hm," It sounded like she grabbed her things, "I suppose they got up early to go to that bath. Not that I know when it starts." Zelda sighed, "Those two together are something else…now I can't help but wonder who let this traveler come and sleep when I was still in here." Her voice grew distant as the door slid open, "Oh Zelda, too many questions to start the day off…"

Seeing his hand from under the covers, he quickly realized that he had yet to turn back, 'Damn, Cotera. I have no idea what you did, but I'm amazed this form has been stable for this long. I'm impressed.' Thinking about last night in general, he realized that Link probably figured out something was up because of the fairy flying into him, 'Or whatever it was that made his hands tattle on me! I still can't believe he has that!'

He pulled the covers back and revealed his slumbering descendant. His hair was scattered in practically every direction. 'Aw, I forgot he's kinda peaceful like this.' He let it last for a few more seconds before waking him, "Mornin' sleepyhead."

Link's hand brushed against the Hero's exposed chest as he rubbed his eyes. It was obvious that he was taken aback when he realized what he'd done. He yawned, "Sorry about that."

"That's Cotera's fault, you're fine." It looked like the inn lady still hadn't returned, and remembering the fairies' shenanigans made him recall the champion's words, "Oh yeah, do you want your kiss now or later when I'm back to normal?" He was jokingly serious.

The question made him immediately sit up and glare back, "What are yo—" His blue eyes veered off as he too recalled what he'd said yesterday, "Oh. Yeah, now is a good time."

"Ha!" The Hero of Time laughed, "I knew you wouldn't—" His brain buffered when it finally processed what his descendant had actually said, "Dammit…" He muttered, sitting up and holding out his palm, "Which hand first?"

"Right one first." Link plopped it into his grasp.

"I'm getting tired of having to kiss things, geez." Just as the back of the other's hand reached his face, it was immediately yanked away. That alone made him feel like collapsing back onto the mattress and going back to sleep, 'What's the point if you're gonna do that before I even touch you?' Contempt pulled at his eyelids, "Y'know, for being all weird about waking up next to me last night, you sure don't seem to care if we take all morning to do this. What's wrong?"

He was eyeing his hand and wiggling his fingers, "You were taking too long and it was making me feel strange."

"I just woke up, but fine." Young Link took his hand back, and, looking the knight dead in the eye, he yanked it up to his face for a quick peck. This time it was pulled back even faster. His nail nearly scraped his nose.

"Ow…damn," Link shook it around, "That felt like you sent electricity up my entire arm."

"Well, that is your triforce hand. I'm not surprised. Next hand, please." Once the left was in front of him, he felt a sudden urge to be as charming about it as possible. Complete with sugary eyes, grace, and poise, he very gingerly kissed the back of his other hand.

"What the hell was that?" The champion sounded more curious than disturbed, "Also that time was just a small tingle. Interesting."

"Me making you uncomfortable. Anyways," He stood and stretched, frowning as he had to pull his shirt back in place, "I don't know what I'm gonna do about this form, but Zelda is out looking for us. You were hidden, so she didn't see you. She also couldn't tell who I was. Oh, and I'd still like to see what the bath-thing is about." Shrugging, he looked around the inn, "I could always just turn back into my usual self, but I'd also like to see how long this could last. Of course, the only problem is randomly turning back in front of other people, because then that would be awful to explain." He clapped his hands together, "And yet, I've got a plan."

The champion was listening.

"You're gonna leave first and head up there. Then, I'm gonna leave and go as well. If the inn lady is there, we're screwed, just saying. Otherwise, I figured I'd just show up and act like I'm a traveler. It's pretty easy to do. Then, I'd introduce myself to you and hang out since I would have done that anyways. How does that sound?"

He appeared to give it some thought, "Not bad actually, but then what if the lady is there?"

"If she's there, I doubt she'll mention it to anyone other than her friends. Trust me, she's not the type to blurt out something gross. Plus, all we did was sleep. She really has nothing to talk about." He frowned as he caught the other's gaze looking directly at his mouth, "Link, you've got to be kidding me."

"All I'm saying is that you could bite someone's finger off— easily. That's it."

He rolled his eyes, "Just get going already. I'll see you there." He watched his descendant grab his things and leave, 'Oh yeah, that reminds me,' The Hero thought as he saw the hilt of the Master Sword go out the door, 'Where is his shield? Why doesn't he carry one? Does this mean that the Hylian shield doesn't exist here?' He crossed his arms, 'I beg to differ until someone from the castle tells me otherwise.'

Several minutes later, he checked for his equipment and kept it at the inn. "Interesting…none of it changed, only," He nodded to himself as he muttered, "of course my sword is gone. I knew I'd need one." The morning sun was bright and warm.

The white blush on the Goddess statue turned pink as he passed by. He almost wondered if it would change color again if he blew a kiss at her, though the guards outside the temple were already giving him strange looks, so he shrugged and continued on. After passing by the shrine again, he found that the path to the fountain split into two. The left led to Cotera, and the right led to the natural spring. As the Sheikah began to come into view, he incidentally bumped into the eldest girl from the temple, "Excuse me! I was completely distracted by the forest."

Her eyes immediately darted in the other direction as she handed him a towel. Yesterday she seemed pretty demanding and confident, but this morning she was softspoken and nearing on shy, "It—It's okay, sir. It happens to everyone." Now she shifted on her feet, "The, um, rules are that you undress before entering the bath. You can do so behind a t-tree if you wish. In your case, you'd wrap the towel around yourself, get in the water, and then set it beside you. I'm sure you understand being respectful of the other patrons."

He smiled as he held the towel beneath his underarm, "Thanks for explaining, I bet it can get annoying having to repeat yourself to new people."

The Sheikah's freckled cheeks started to redden, "I have a lot of patience, don't worry. Also," She had one more rule, "it should go without saying of course, but don't relieve yourself in the water. Since this is a natural pool, obviously it can't be replaced."

He gave her a thumbs up before finding a large oak to undress behind. Under other circumstances, he would have simply pulled off his clothes right there. In this form, he could care less about who sees him. 'However, I'm very much a guest, and there's no way that your regular Hylian has the gusto to rip off their clothes like that!' As his hands reached his pants, he heard an ensemble's worth of fairies gossiping in the trees above.

One pointed to a woman, "I heard she prices her pumpkins based on your heritage. If your grandpa had done her wrong, then you're paying double!"

"Oh really? Well I saw that big guy over there leave the village for a while and not return until night. Seems kinda shady to me!" Several others were pointing and talking about the things they'd seen or heard.

"My my," Young Link teased with a grin as he wrapped the provided towel around his waist. Watching them all immediately turn to face him was slightly intimidating, "You girls are certainly busy this morning."

Seconds later they swarmed him. They all shared the same pleading gesture for him to take them with him to go experience it in person.

He kept his voice low, "Whoa whoa whoa, I'm trying to be some random traveler, okay guys? I can't do anything that will give me away."

"But but!" Her eyes sparkled, "You're so pretty! Surely they would think that's the reason we came!"

Another grabbed her shoulder, "But Cotera said we can't ever interfere with them! She said it might overwhelm them!"

"Sounds like it can't happen then. I'm not gonna make you break the rules, sorry. I plan to stop by afterwards, so you can look forward to that if you want." His words overjoyed them as they floated back to their places in the trees. Meanwhile, he found where the villagers had set their clothing and managed to put his next to the knight's.

The public bath was very lively. On the shallow end were mothers and fathers keeping ahold of their little ones as they tried to keep them still long enough to wash them. Lining the edges were the elderly as they also stayed in the shallower waters. They all appeared to be quite short, so it made sense. Toward the middle and deeper end were the teens and adults. It became clear that the two groups did not intermingle besides saying 'good morning', if at all. From what he could tell, it didn't seem like the lady from the inn was there.

'Yet I could be entirely wrong because every single one of them have their hair down, and I know for a fact she wears it up. Dear Goddesses…' The Hero quickly found Link's blonde head. It stuck out like a sore thumb in comparison to the rest of the white hair. He got in beside him, "Ah, how nice to see another Hylian! I almost thought it'd be just me," He quietly greeted. 'Okay why did all of them look at me? Please, why?'

Link's eyes flicked to him before he turned his shoulders along with his head, "…Hi." He practically mouthed it.

Following that, he accidentally brushed up against a woman beside him, his hand immediately going to his chest as he moved closer to his descendant, "My bad, miss! I nearly didn't see you there."

Much to his dismay, she didn't appear to care in the slightest. Liked it, even. Her response was flirtatious, "Oh, don't you worry, young man. My foot slipped is all.~"

Looking back to the champion, it was obvious that he was peering at his old scars. His finger emerged from the water and poked at the puncture wound in his side, "You're a traveler?"

"Who gets into far more trouble than I should, yes." He referred to the slashes across his torso along with a few other scars that lined his shoulders and arms. "I…er…get shot at more often than I'd like."

A man who looked to be in his twenties came up to them, "Good morning. I just couldn't help but notice your—pardon me—physique."

His interested smile hid the fact that he didn't know what that last word was.

He flexed his arms, "You've gotta tell me your training regimen! I must know how you've gotten so strong!"

"Oohhh, I see. Well, aside from fighting monsters, all I can say is that natural obstacles definitely played a part in this. Climbing mountains, swimming across rivers, running from something that could certainly kill you…it works wonders." There were some eyes from the adolescent group that shifted in his direction, most of which were quietly questioning his response. '…I'm really starting to dislike being able to notice all this.' His focus came back to the guy who asked.

He'd put a finger to his chin as he became lost in thought. Moments later he looked more satisfied with the answer than one would have expected, "Thanks!" There was a giddy gleam in his eyes, "I'll try to stay out of trouble of course, but I'll have to let my mentor know about this!"

As Young Link shifted in the water, it was becoming clear to him that 'refreshing' in Impa's words means quite cold. And yet it wasn't cool enough to calm his developing nerves. Glancing toward his descendant, he appeared to be completely closed off, 'Dammit! It's not helping that Link is being so shy too! I feel like I can't talk to him, the bastard!' Sinking until his chest was out of the water, he tried to mindfully look at the other patrons without it coming off as disrespectful.

A few moments later, he slightly cocked his head, 'Odd, Impa was the one who mentioned this whole thing and yet she's not here…I'd like to believe I could recognize her by her seriously long hair and blue Sheikah markings.' However, with the help of his ears, he discovered that the woman from the front desk in fact was there that morning. Her eyes were moving between him and the other woman she was talking to.

'Gods help. At least it's just one pers—' His surveying eyes caught onto the few other women who all watched either of them with intrigued expressions. All of which were standing near her, of course. Suddenly blinking, he turned back to the champion, "Goodness! Where are my manners? I completely forgot to ask what your name was." 'Why does he look like that?'

He turned back, "Oh, right," Instead of looking at his face, his eyes went straight back to the scars, "I'm Link."

'Oh my Gods, this isn't the time to be gaining respect for me! Stop looking so interested!' He held his hand out, "Nice to meet you, I'm Kafei."

He seemed to be taking in the name choice as he shook his hand, albeit it was more like he shook his thumb because they both used their dominant hands. The champion politely pulled his hand away at the triforce beginning to radiantly shine.

"That's strange," Young Link let his faux curiosity precede him as he took the hand back, gazing at the glowing mark of the hero, "What is that?"

"Just the Triforce of Courage. I'm the Hylian champion," He quietly explained.

The Hero immediately scooted in the other direction as he let go, "Oh gosh, that sounds really important! You'll have to forgive me for being nosy." Seeing the all too familiar mark began to make him feel unstable, but taking his hand away helped bring it back to 'normal.'

"No worries," The champion was flexing his fingers as it quickly faded, "A little weird that it did that though." A sort of half-laugh came out, "It doesn't do that very often."

Now his ears flooded with the whispers of the surrounding Sheikah talking amongst each other about the scene that just occurred. It could be that it came from the very obvious gossiping going on, or the fact that they were both having to pretend that they didn't know each other, but the tension between the both of them was thick enough to serve as cake.

'The worst part is that I really can't tell what kind it is! Especially with this interested-but-reserved bullshit he's pulling!' He flinched at feeling a finger prod a scar on his chest.

"Where's this one from?"

It was a slice that originally came from besting the Gerudo guards at their hideout, "I guess it's only fair that I explain after you told me who you are." He ran his fingers through his bangs, "Let me tell you, those Yiga really don't mess around. I was walking through a forest, and I accidentally came across a couple of them." He sighed, "I feel lucky to be alive. If anything, this was more like a warning. Haven't crossed paths with them since." 'Did I just see the other guys sink lower into the water? I guess it's more proper to have just your shoulders out.' He slowly did the same, 'This should also get him to stop trying to get me to tell scar stories. I'm sure he'd rather know the real ones rather than the fake ones I'm coming up with on the spot!'

Link looked thoughtful as he considered the story, "Impressive. You didn't drink a potion to help?"

He chuckled, giving him a friendly nudge, "Tell me how to find one in the middle of a forest and I'll be set for life! You have no idea just how awkward it was to bandage this by myself." Just as it felt like the tension was clearing, his peripherals caught the faces of the small group of women growing soft, 'What the hell?' Then he caught his descendant midway through brushing his hair behind his ears in some cutesy, shy way. For this and other select occasions, he managed to master keeping himself from rolling his eyes, 'Ugh, dear Goddesses, what's the damn point if he's going to make this worse on his own!?'

Cocking his head, he tried to keep things cordial, "Ha, well it's no surprise you're the champion. You've probably fought hundreds of monsters and I can't see a single scar on you. Well, at least above your shoulders, I guess."

The champion immediately stood, checking for himself to see if there were any, "Hm…seems you're right. Thanks, though."

He averted his gaze to the spring as he wiped the minor splash that caused from his face, 'Thank goodness this water comes up to his stomach…I can literally tell that you were fully prepared to flash about everyone, oh my Gods.' It was starting to cross his mind that Link was playing this up to mess with him. "Of course!" He spotted the reflection of his toothy grin in the water. 'Damn, this is almost as bad as my deity form!' They weren't as long, but they were notably pointy. He disrupted the smooth surface by washing his face and neck. The spring water dripping off his chin made him feel more awake. The fact that it sent a small shiver down his spine made him remember that his fire spell had other practical uses. 'Not that doing so would be a good idea, but if it were just me? I certainly prefer hot springs.'

After keeping himself from going down the rabbit hole of finding other uses for fire, seeing some of the other patrons begin to blush at him was reminding him of Cotera, 'I really do wonder where she was getting her ideas last night…at least she's not waving to me from her fountain.'

Soon the Hero figured he had enough of the springs that morning. As he started to rise from where he sat, Link was in the middle of shuffling elsewhere when he legitimately slipped, probably on a smooth rock, and his arms swung out in an attempt to steady himself. Young Link caught him by the forearm just before his face could smack the water. However, being himself and having his suspicions, he purposefully let him slip through his hand just enough so his nose could boop the surface film. He laughed as he got him back on his feet, "Careful there! Don't worry though, it happens to the best of us." He got out and wrapped his towel around his waist, internally giggling at watching Link's baffled face. His expression was cheerful, "It was nice meeting you! The springs was definitely a good idea this morning."

He didn't need to look at the rest of the people there to know that their focus was entirely on him as he walked away. It was relieving to hear that no one got up and followed him out either. As he began to dry off, several fairies flew down from the trees. Most of them were simply drooling over him, however a few of them said some interesting things.

It was the one who woke him from last night, "Who knew that lady would turn around and tell her friends?"

"Well at least it wasn't all that bad. I thought it was very straightforward."

Another blushed, "Her friends have quite the imagination."

Young Link held up his hand, "Let's…not…continue that thought please." He started to put his clothes back on, "And yeah, I'm aware. Though Link was not helping his case."

"Oohhhh," They all said.

"So that's why you were acting so oblivious."

"And dumb!"

"Hey!" He looked at her, "I was trying to act normal!"

"That's what I was saying!" She quickly explained, "It was pretty convincing!"

Meanwhile they started to find places to perch on him as they continued to talk, "I didn't think the champion would look cute acting so shy."

"That could be so, but it was making our little plan incredibly hard to do. Bastard." Once again, he was adjusting his shirt, which sparked his recollection, "Actually, while I'm here, a few of you yesterday said you were 'born.' You'd think I'd know by now, but just how does that happen?"

The process they proceeded to take turns explaining to him was one that he was glad that only he could hear. The level of detail was unnecessary yet eye opening. Essentially, they all hatched—or in their words "poofed out"—from glowing eggs that were as big as a large pearl but looked like crystals. However, despite the information, it still wasn't adding up how another person could possibly be involved. In fact it seemed quite asexual.

Biting his lip, he came to the conclusion that it couldn't hurt too much to ask. He kept his boots off as he walked up to the open fountain and sat on the mushroom. His shins and feet dangled into the warm water, "Hey, Cotera?" It was for the best if no one else understood what either of them were saying.

Her hands surfaced on either side of him. She used the rim of the pool to pull just her head and shoulders out of the water. She laid on her arms, blinking seductively at him, "Yes darling?~"

'Makes sense she's as tired as the rest of us are in the morning.' "Couple questions: why haven't I changed back yet and…" He sighed, "The other fairies explained that they basically hatch from crystals, but that only makes your suggestion from last night make less sense. If you could quietly answer me, that would be my request."

She smiled—no— grinned .

"Aah~ I'm glad you asked." The Great Fairy went on to explain that she put a spell on him while he was in the middle of changing forms. It should wear off at the exact moment it was cast in 3 days and then he'd be back to his typical self. When it came time to answer his second question, she scooted closer to him, and the other fairies began to shimmer and kiss him occasionally.

Dear Gods.

Listening to her explain how he could possibly be involved made him bring a hand up to his mouth as his face and ears turned red. With the added affections from her daughters, he crossed his legs and practically pointed his toes.

Cotera giggled to herself once she was done, "I like to think of it as a little divine intervention. Fu fu fu~"

"Huh…" There must have been steam rising from his head. Where else did all the condensation dripping down his forehead come from? "Uhhh…um interesting. I'll still politely…y'know decline, but thanks for telling me."

She appeared to be completely content with simply watching him react the entire time. The fingers that sat beside him devilishly drummed on the petals, "But of course! I suppose just know that I'm quite considerate of whims, fairy boy.~ "

His mind wondered what Hylia would make of all this…yet at the same time he was scared to ask. "I doubt I could forget that. Er, thanks again!" Despite being flustered, he still managed to turn on his charm as he blew her a kiss. This only caused him to be drowned in more fairy kisses, which he very quickly had to put an end to if he was ever going to stop blushing. "Okay okay!" He gently tried to wave them away, "I'm glad you all like me, but I should probably get going. If I'm gonna be stuck like this for a bit, then I've got some explaining to do."

He recognized Link's cautiously calm gait, "What kind of explaining?"

The Hero's eyes flicked to Cotera as a sign for her to leave. She winked at him before slinking back into her pool, "Oh, I was simply asking about why I'm still this way. Seems like the castle will get to see me like this, but not for too long." He blinked at his descendant taking a seat beside him and propping his head against his shoulder, "Which begs the question, why were you acting like that? Did you suddenly start to not care sometime between waking up and leaving this morning? Because I'm sure you're aware that you've made it worse."

The knight laughed, "Aw c'mon, I thought it was funny!"

'WWHHAAAAAAAAAT!?'

He was all smiles, "You really mean to tell me that you can mess with me all the time, but I can never joke around with you? Haha, right."

'What in the hell. I knew you were up to something, but I didn't want to be right!' "No. I would never, in fact. However, while I understand that the best of friends seem like they're dating, I'm not sure that's the kind of shit you should be so keen on dealing with, Link!" All he could think of were the countless women from his world that were clearly attracted to him, and now here. Looking into his eyes, it was obvious he hadn't so much as made a dent in his descendant's thought process.

"Well see that's the thing. At best we're old friends that no one knew about, at worst it was just a fling and I've got more important duties."

His eyes narrowed as he squeezed his shoulders, "LINK! The fact that you're so damn calm about this is telling me that you haven't exactly thought this through!" He sighed, his demeanor changing to be playfully mopey, "Much less you're forgetting about how that's weird as hell for me to put up with. I get that I'm pretty or something, and so that's not some kind of stain on your tastes in people, but dude. Duuuude. Just the questions I can imagine getting are giving me a headache."

He shrugged.

And yet every ounce of that movement spelled out "That's your problem" in all caps.

If the mushroom platform were bigger, Young Link would have shoved him over as he hissed at him, "Listen here! I need to actually tell the other two who I am! Technically I've been missing up until this point!"

Link looked at him, unbothered, "Okay."

"Which means, at worst— in this village —your fling was with the Hero of Time! I'm not gonna act like a damn traveler forever!"

Before he could open his mouth again, the Hero whipped around just as Impa warped behind them. She did not look impressed. Her glare was directed at the champion, "So this is where you've been! I figured you were going to the springs this morning, but if you can't tell, we literally have no idea where the Hero ran off to! Not to mention, I spoke with the receptionist to see if she knew anything, and it's completely inappropriate to be playing with the locale on an important mission to the Princess!" Her face was red, "Especially while the Princess is sleeping right next to you!"

He couldn't tell if slowly raising his hand to his mouth was him acting embarrassed as a traveler or if it was simply funny that Link was getting chewed out for something that didn't happen. Glancing over at him, the champion had immediately hardened into his stoic demeanor.

Link gestured to him with his thumb, "The Hero's right here."

Impa puffed out a sigh, "No, that's the traveler you've been seeing."

Hearing the fairies laugh in the background undeniably made Young Link grin, "No he's right, it's me." He stood, drawing out the Master Sword as he came to his feet. Just like before, the blade shimmered at his touch, only this time he held out his left hand and the triforce faintly glowed on the back of it. He stuck it back in, being careful of his descendant's hair, "Yeah…I don't know what happened, but I'm just gonna be this way for a good minute."

The Sheikah's mouth was wide open. It was clear that she was making the connection.

He nodded, "But yeah, this is pretty much me." His gaze fell to his shirt and pants, "Ahem, the clothes are not. That was Cotera's doing."

Impa simply looked at him before warping away, papers scattering in every direction before fading.

The Links immediately took off toward the village. At one point, Young Link grabbed his descendant's hand since he proved to be far faster. His eyes checked the surroundings as he slid to a stop in the path, 'Damn it feels good when I've got a use for these extra senses!' Catching the corner of paper disappearing behind a doorway, it became clear to him that Zelda had gone back to the inn.

Seconds doesn't begin to describe the time it took for him to get there. He'd yanked Link close to him and was walking into the lobby of the inn just as her loyal friend opened her mouth, "Princess! There you are!" He spread his arms out for a hug before pulling her into one.

Zelda blinked at the sudden gesture, "O-Oh, um, hello there. Do I—"

He watched her eyes light up after he pecked her right hand.

She smiled as she shook it, starting to laugh, "Ahh, it's you, Hero." Now her other hand came to soothe it, "That certainly felt like a good zap, though."

He couldn't help his worried expression, "Gods I'm dumb, I should have realized! Sorry about that, Princess."

Now it was clear that she had connected some dots. Her cheeks wore a tinge of pink, "This is—forgive me— quite the attire you're wearing." Her green eyes flicked up to his face before looking back into her lap, "I also realize now that it was just you who was in the bed next to mine. I thought you were a traveler."

Impa crossed her arms, "So did I, and then I was under the impression that your knight was…" She rolled her eyes before pinching the bridge of her nose, "Oh never mind! It's not important."

"Well, either way," Young Link brought the focus back on the matter at hand, "the clothes were Cotera's idea, not mine. Also don't expect me to stay this way. I've got a feeling this won't be lasting for very long. Mainly because I don't know what caused it."

"Oh, that actually reminds me. I have plenty of questions to ask you, if you don't mind of course." Her eyes sparkled with interest.

He quickly side-eyed the woman at the inn before looking back at her, "Sure, but preferably not here." His mind briefly drifted toward the memory of where he and his own Zelda talked after their clash with Ganon was over. It was an entirely blue sky with white clouds, and they seemingly walked on air. 'How convenient that would be whenever you wanted to have a private conversation with someone. Though I doubt that's within my abilities. Far from it probably.'

She had an idea, "Oh I know, follow me." Taking his hand, he let her lead him off to a secluded spot that had a bench that looked over the valley beyond the village. It seems Link and Impa understood to stay at the hotel.

He patiently waited as she flipped through her journal. 'I can certainly appreciate the view from here. It's very nice.'

"Right...so..." The sparkle in her eye from before only appeared brighter once she gazed back up at him, "To start with yesterday, you had mentioned that there were other Great Fairies. What are they like?"

"Pfft," He tried to stifle his laugh, "They're all a lot like Cotera. They look different and prefer to float in the air, but the same—if I'm honest—promiscuous attitude is consistent. Though..." He thought back to previous ones he'd met. Even the mistress from the previous universe could be a bit much. 'Good thing she was far more interested in the other guy.' "...getting dragged into a fountain is a first..."

Zelda's lashes fluttered at the mention of it, "I've never even heard of that happening before, but I won't pry. Ahem, next question, just how do you know magic?"

"Ah, it's an ability I got from the Great Fairies."

"So can you do more than fire?"

He smiled, "Well it's no fun if I reveal absolutely everything now is it? Just know that it's nothing too crazy."

Now her finger picked at the corner of a page in her journal, "Do you think...you could explain how you do it?"

"Yeah I figured you'd ask. I'll be honest, I simply feel it. However," he crossed his arms, "not everything I do can just come from that. Sometimes there's a motion involved." His heart sank a little at watching her shoulders begin to droop. He sighed, "Trust me, if I were able to, I'd do nearly anything in my power to help you out. Don't worry, though. I've still got my hopes up."

She muttered her thanks before immediately straightening up and turning to another page, "Did you learn anything else about the fairies? I'm just curious of course."

His eyes widened as a blush immediately raced across his face to his ears.

Zelda blinked as her cheeks turned a light shade of pink in response, "S-Sorry? Was it something I said?"

His hand reached toward his mouth before using it to fan his face instead. Young Link shook his head, "N-No of course not! What I mean to say is that I did..er...learn something new. Please excuse...whatever that was. Sorry."

"Well I guess I can't help but be more curious now!" She giggled.

"Okay, it's interesting, but my reaction came from something else. Truth is, I stopped by the Great Fairy once more to ask where the fairies came from. It's not what you're thinking, but let's just say that looking more like an adult got me some..." He sighed, "Very inappropriate comments from Cotera. If you thought it was bad yesterday, it can in fact get worse."

Her hand covered her mouth as she took in this information, "She...er...quite likes you, doesn't she? Is there a particular reason why? Did you do something important for her?"

"Not for her. Other Great Fairies yes, but I get the feeling that the favor doesn't carry over to all of them. Though I guess it could be that she's really attracted to me...which is weird to say out loud." He chuckled to himself, "I would like to think it's more than that, but it scares me more to try to come up with other reasons."

Now she laughed, "Goodness! I suppose I only hope it doesn't get worse from there!"

He jokingly stared down at the bench in response, 'I meeeaan having someone pretty much tell you how you'd have sex with them is...it's out there.' Young Link quickly shook his head before sitting up, "Anyways! We got a bit off topic there. Here, I'll explain."

Unsurprisingly, the Princess was amazed to hear just how they came to be, "Wow!" She quickly wrote it down in her notebook, "I—I would have never guessed!"

"That's what I thought!" Looking toward the sky, he realized it was nearing on being noon, "Do you have any other questions, Zelda? It seems like we should probably start making sure we have all our things."

"Actually yes, I have one more." The way she shifted in her seat gave the impression that she was unsure about asking it, "How do you feel about, well, looking the way you do? I remember from the ceremony that you said that you could see it getting you into more trouble."

The Hero of Time cocked his head as he brought a finger to his bottom lip, "To be frank, I'm thinking about all the times your father would kill me for simply being around you. Especially at Rito Village," He playfully shivered, "Gosh I can imagine him teleporting out of thin air and whoosh! My head's rolling from his sword or something."

Her cheeks were red as she recounted that morning, "Oh my...I guess I really haven't thought about it like that." However, she folded her hands as she closed her eyes and looked away, "Though, I think what I said still stands. There's no reason to back down from my own words, hm?"

He grinned as he grabbed her hand. Hearing such certainty in her voice made him feel proud, "Haha! I can respect that, Princess! Otherwise, I suppose the only thing I feel is a bit careful—or that other word that means the same thing. Hopefully nothing too weird happens when we get back."

"How do you think you'll feel when you eventually turn back?"

"Knowing me, probably relieved." He lightly squeezed her hand before pulling her from the bench, "I bet they're tired of waiting on us. Let's head back." After putting on his equipment and sighing once more at not having a sword, he walked at the head of the group back to where they left their horses near the entrance to the village.