A/N: I was a little stuck on how exactly I wanted this chapter to go, sorry for the short wait.

In other news, I recently made a new friend, River. And we're collabing on another Ghirahim-centric fic with many similar ideas to this one, but in an alternate timeline/continuity. So if you like ADSB, you're sure to enjoy that one as well, so keep an eye out for when it drops! Fair bit of warning though, co-authoring isn't really a thing on FFN, so it's kind of going to be an AO3 exclusive, I think. Hopefully that won't be too much of an inconvenience.

Link left Zelda's room feeling quite discouraged. He had been unable to convince his friend that bringing ghirahim to Skyloft was the right thing to do. He didn't know what would happen now. Would he have to make ghirahim leave? If so, where would he even go?

"Sky child!" Speaking of ghirahim, he was in quite high spirits when the hero finally returned to him. He was wearing an expression that just screamed to the world that he was very proud of himself for something.

Link couldn't help himself. After the conversation he had with his childhood friend, it made him feel a little suspicious. Could Zelda have had a point after all? "What did you do?" The Skyloftian asked lowly.

Ghirahim lets out a small giggle, and oh goddess, chills run down LInk's spine when he hears it. But he forces himself not to show his anxiety on his face. He was probably overreacting anyway. "Whatever do you mean? Why, I have simply—hehehe—been standing here in this corridor, guarding your blade as you asked, who as it turns out is my sister! Why didn't you tell me this?"

"Huh?" Link does a mental double take; surely he could not have heard that right. Completely dumbstruck, he turns to Fi, who he only now realized had been watching this entire exchange. That was a bit strange; usually, the sword spirit only emerged from the blade when LInk asked her for something. But that wasn't nearly the oddest thing about this situation, so he set that aside as a thing to question later.

"Yes, Master LInk, there is a ninety-nine percent chance you heard what ghirahim said correctly," Fi clarifies.

"B-But how? Why?"

"Inconclusive, requires more analysis." And with that, Fi went back into the sword.

"You look troubled," ghirahim was saying as the hero retrieved his sword. It felt wonderful to have her back. "You taste troubled as well. Did your conversation with Zelda go that badly?"

Link manages to flinch only slightly when the demon flicks his tongue out at him this time. Truthfully, now that the hylian knew why Ghirahim did it, it seemed a lot less scary than it used to when he first saw it. Maybe even a little cool.

"Afraid so," he confessed, clearing his throat awkwardly. It was really getting quite soar.

Ghirahim seemed to deflate when he heard that. "Ah. Then, I suppose that, I may have to…"

"No," LInk says quickly. "No, you don't have to leave. But it might be for the best if we laid low for a bit. If we both spent some time away from Skyloft, or at least the academy." He clears his throat again.

Ghirahim's dark eyes fill with concern. "Are you alright?" He takes a few steps closer.

Link nods. "I'm just not used to talking this much."

LInk usually preferred to avoid speaking aloud. When he did do it, it was only to people he knew well, and only when absolutely necessary. At least, that's how it was until now.

The hylian wasn't sure why he did it. He wasn't shy, or very socially awkward. But for some reason, he strongly disliked the sound of his own voice. It never sounded quite right to him, ever since he entered his teens. It was grating in his ears, so he avoided hearing it as much as he could. But in this particular instance, the hero felt it was best to set that aside. There were more important things now.

He then addressed Fi. "Did anything else happen while I was gone?"

"Yes," the sword replied. "Ghirahim had an encounter with Groose."

"Oh no…" LInk's heart sank. He was afraid something like that would happen. Why were they having the worst possible luck right now?

"The encounter was not a violent one, however," Fi was quick to clarify, which made the hero feel somewhat relieved.

"Indeed," Ghirahim interjects with a smirk. "Unless, of course, you count my overwhelming skill in verbal combat. That poor foolish boy; he didn't stand a chance against my might."

The demon then regaled him with an intricate, dramatic, and very likely (eighty-nine percent chance according to Fi) embellished account of he and Groose's little argument. Regardless of how accurate the tale was, the hylian was wheezing with laughter by the time he was done.

"Oh, Hylia," LInk gasps, his eyes blurred with hysterical tears. "I-I can't believe you r-really said that!" What the Skyloftian would give to have been there to see Groose's face; his expression must have been priceless! "We, oh gods, we have to celebrate this! L-Let's go get breakfast."

The dining hall was relatively empty by the time the unlikely trio arrived. Thankfully, however, not all the food was gone yet, and both Link and Ghirahim were able to snag a generously portioned meal each.

"Wow," Link breathed. Henya had really outdone herself today. Well, actually this was the usual amount of breakfast; LInk just really loves food, okay? And after the stress of the morning, he really needed a pick-me-up. And this was just perfect!

As soon as they'd found a seat, LInk was happily digging in, shoveling forkful after forkful into his eagerly awaiting mouth. "Mmm!"

While he eats, Ghirahim is watching him with a curious intensity. The hero is about to question this when the demon slowly reaches for his own fork, then he realizes what might be going on. Has he never eaten before?

This is confirmed seconds later when Ghirahim takes a bite, and promptly chokes on it, having tried to swallow it too soon. Quickly, the hero abandons his most recent forkful on his plate to firmly pat his back as he splutters and coughs.

"I-I am alright…" The demon gasps, cheeks darkening, especially when he notices some of the room's occupants are now staring at them. "Oh, how embarrassing…" He moans, shoving his face into the collar of his cape and oh—it should be a crime for a demon, of all things, to be this endearing.

But of course, ghirahim doesn't stay down for long. Soon he is straightening up and trying again, his eyes full of determination, as if this plate of food was another foe he had to conquer. And conquer it he does, soon eating just as enthusiastically as link had been.

It was at this moment, as the two became completely engrossed in their meals, that the Skyloftian began to wonder just what Ghirahim's time with Demise had been like. He never really thought about it that much until now, having his own mission to focus on. But now, LInk was starting to get an awful feeling.

He hadn't slept in days, he's never eaten…

"Aaaaaaahhhh!" An ear-piercing shriek put an abrupt end to the hylian's musings. It was Henya, sprinting into the room like a madwoman.

"What the—"

"Bugs!" The cook cries out. "Bugs, in my kitchen! Bugs everywhere!"

"Strich," Link groans in frustration. Of course something like this would happen today, just when he thought he would get some peace.

Ghirahim dabs his white lips with a napkin, looking confused. "What?"

"One of Groose's friends. He's always pulling stunts like this…"

Link feels a prickling sensation on the side of his leg. Glancing down, knowing exactly what he'll see, he is, of course, met with the sight of a rather large bug crawling up his shin. The hylian is about to remove it, when a white-gloved hand beats him to it, plucking the wriggling insect up and holding it in its palm.

"Well," Ghirahim says, gazing down at the small creature with interest. "This seems quite unsanitary."

With dawning dread, Link slowly looks up. Just as he feared, the whole dining hall is now almost covered with bugs. Sighing, he retrieves his bug net and resigns himself to his fate.

Ghirahim's dark eyes lock onto the net with interest, and LInk has to hold back a snort of amusement. "What are you doing, sky child?"

"Someone has to get rid of these bugs," LInk grumbles.

A thoughtful look clouds the demon's face for a moment. Then he is shrugging, and standing up as well. "Well, I am clearly not going to be able to finish my meal until this is taken care of, so why not?"

The two of them work fast to gather up each and every bug. While link is using a net, Ghirahim does just fine grabbing them up with his bare hands. Link can't help but marvel at how fluid his reflexes are and how he manages to catch them without squishing a single one. And soon, much sooner than if link were doing this alone, he might add, they were all finished.

"Ha!" Ghirahim strikes a dramatic victory pose, showing off his catch. "Success! These tiny insects didn't stand a chance against our combined might!"

"Yeah," LInk muses, thoughtfully. "We… actually make a pretty good team."

"Indeed. However, I have captured many more bugs than you could ever hope to catch with that tiny net of yours; therefore, I am the victor!"

"Wh—hey! Since when was this a competition?"

"Since I said so," the demon quips.

Link is about to argue back, when the sound of a clearing throat gives him pause. At some point, Eagus had entered the room and was looking at the two of them, particularly ghirahim, with a keen eye.

LInk's heart sank. Uh-oh. Why was Eagus looking at ghirahim like that? Did he somehow know? Was LInk in trouble now? Was Ghirahim?

"Pardon the interruption," the instructor was saying. "Link, would it be alright if I borrowed your friend for a moment?"

"O-Oh, of course," LInk replied, his mouth going dry as he glances over at Ghirahim. Who, for his part, was also looking a little nervous, but trying for a smile.

"It'll only take a moment," Eagus says, then he's leading the demon away.

As Ghirahim's red cape disappears down the corridor, Link realizes that Eagus had called him his friend. And he hadn't minded.