"I believe you have some studying to do," smirked Zelda as she took Mipha's hand, the two shaking hands only until pulling each other into a hug.

Mipha confirmed through a heavy exhale, "Oh, don't think I won't be doing incredible things with Vah Ruta at my side next time we meet. We'll be doing things that you couldn't dream of."

Smiling, Zelda pulled away, allowing her to nod with a contented voice, "Well I'm excited to hear those words. I'll hold you to it." Giving Mipha a moment to answer with a nod of her own, Zelda went on, "Should the Goddess allow it, I look forward to hosting you as a dignitary bringing your own festive traditions to Hyrule Castle!"

Mipha smiled, assuring her counterpart with a happy, "Yes, I cannot wait! I've already been thinking of my own preparations, but you certainly make it difficult to one-up your performance!"

"Yeah, well," Zelda muttered proudly before giggling, foregoing the faux pride for a much more humble tone, "I'm sure yours will be just as spectacular, Lady Mipha. You have my assurance."

Nodding, Mipha gave the Princess one last smile before turning toward Daruk, who had just sent off a gaggle or Zora children, once again donning the unmistakable garb of Santa Claus, which caught Mipha with great humor as the two's eyes met.

"Well there's our jolly Goron," Mipha lovingly quipped, earning her a hearty laugh.

Correcting himself, Daruk murmured, "Oh wait- Ho ho ho!" He turned to Zelda. "How was that?!"

Nodding with approval, Zelda smiled in reply.

"Thank you for having us, my Lady," Daruk spoke respectfully, betraying the goofy assortment of costume cover g his body, "Though, I must understandably note that we should truly cease meeting like this. Perhaps we could meet for a picnic, or something else that's less prone to dire consequences."

Mipha smiled, "I wholeheartedly agree, Daruk. It does seem to follow us around, doesn't it? This dramatic wind of fate."

Turning to glare at Link, Zelda's eyes fell upon him before the two other Champions followed suit, leaving the Knight biting his lip with tense confusion, as though being accused of something.

"Uh, hello?" he muttered full of sarcasm.

"I mean, Revali said it best," Zelda shrugged, "That you have the Master Sword. You invite challenge just by virtue of welding the Sacred Blade."

Daruk nodded thoughtfully, stroking his thick, white beard, "Yes, that would make sense."

"Would it?!" Link asserted with a blithe intent, leaving the Sister Princesses both amused.

Zelda crossed her arms, her grin teasing, "Folly be to evil that its wielder has taken such a formidable partner." Link and Mipha both averted their embarrassed faces. "The Sacred Blade may as well have two protectors."

Daruk slammed a fist into his open palm, a wiry grin shone full of challenge, "Make that three!"

Noticing the two lovers remaining subtly vacant due to their embarrassment, Zelda smiled, waving Daruk over before speaking loud enough for the two to hear, "Daruk, a word over here so they might have a moment?"

Chuckling warmly, Daruk took the hint, allowing Mipha and Link the open air to fumble around their opening words, flustered as they both were.

"You, uh- usually seem to have the upper hand when it comes to teasing Zelda," Mipha smiled weakly, sneaking a glance toward her Hylian lover.

He muttered, disappointment lining his voice, "Yeah, she's getting better at turning the tables…"

"The kid sister growing up to be the master?" Mipha giggled.

Smirking, Link shrugged, "Something like that."

The two remained quiet, partly due to their twin blush, but also due to the public nature of such a venue as this. They stood just before the giant expanse across which the mighty bridge into Zora's Domain lay, the eyes of so many Zora upon them in some capacity. The secretive nature of their relationship outside of the Champions left them pulled apart, even as both of their bodies begged to be against one another. Even a hug might be seen as forward for such a member of royalty to indulge within when it came to a Knight of Hyrule.

Link nervously smiled, shoving his hands into his pockets, meandering with his words, "So, for sure next year, then? Unless I can find some wayward expedition to Zorana or something?"

Smiling weakly, Mipha nodded, "That sounds wonderful." Her voice was weak with heartbreak. "It would be the greatest joy of my life to see your home properly this time."

Agreeing, Link went on, "Oh, of course. We'll get you all filled up with the finest food and drink there is to offer. I'm sure Zelda will spare no expense." He lowered his head, concealing his own heartbroken smile. "I'll make sure to stick on Zelda like clubs on bokoblins and see if she can push for more of these diplomatic visits."

Grinning, Mipha noted wryly, "The other peoples of Hyrule might get jealous."

"Were any of them to have anything half as beautiful as you to visit time and time again."

Mipha grinned, though bravely kept her stare upon Link as he watched her body tense in embarrassment, not wanting him to forget her face in any form that he could contort it with his words, his actions, or his lips.

"Oh, please," came a groan from Zelda.

The two spun their heads toward Zelda, who, along with Daruk, had begun dragging a large tapestry along the slick flooring of the Domain, the length of material wholly tangled up with the technicolor lights Daruk had obviously taken with him in his haste to retrieve the tapestry, Zelda's arms stretched up as high as she could get it while Daruk carried the opposite end over his shoulder. Inexplicably, the two of them began to gather speed, leaving Mipha and Link wide-eyed at the impending sight of their being swallowed by a massive tapestry.

"Out of the way!" cried Zelda in mock terror, much too late for anybody to take any steps toward safety.

Before they knew what was going on, Mipha and Link were surrounded by a gigantic wall of cloth that shielded all view of Zorana from their eyes, rippling in the air as Daruk and Zelda attempted to wrangle the massive fortress of thread.

"It's wiry, alright!" cried Daruk into the air, "Grab it with the shoehorn!"

Despite the cries of distress, Daruk and Zelda merely held the tapestry up, waving it around as though feigning battle with the beast of yarn, facing away from Mipha and Link who remained standing the eye of the storm, watching with a combination of confusion and worry.

The group now hidden from view, Zelda shot from over her shoulder, "Well?! If you don't kiss after this whole production, I'm gonna throw more than teasing words!"

Smirking, realizing the reasoning for this insane blocking, Link eyed Mipha, who remained a mass of flustered nerves, reaching up to take her cheek into the palm of his hand. Her eyes met his, allowing Link to cease their distance with his lips, kissing her opposite cheek before pulling away to gauge her reaction, noticing her abject nerves to the scene playing out around them as well as the proximity of others in Zelda and Daruk.

Their eyes met, Mipha's shaking as her heart raced, but Link could already tell that she was beckoning him for a more proper kiss, which he easily accepted, the two surrounded by technicolor echoes that bounced off of the walls of fabric surrounding them.

"It's got a cotton maw!" Daruk cried out, "Watch it!"

Mipha's lips broke their kiss with a giggling smirk, Link following suit, the two attempting to remain within one another's lips despite their laughter. They merely held one another's cheek, their foreheads joined as they laughed along to the abject hilarity taking place around them.

Zelda's faux cries of distress suddenly turned legitimate as her arms began to give way, shouting at the top of her lungs, "I think I've got it!"

She threw the tapestry up over the group, with Daruk simply falling backward onto empty ground, sending the group of Champions struggling with the mass of material that now covered them in a ball of chaos, struggling to free themselves.

Amidst the chaos, Mipha managed to find Link's face, managing one final peck upon his lips before Zelda threw herself to her feet, waving back the group of Zora soldiers who had scrambled over in the destruction.

"No, no! Fear not; it's all taken care of!" assured the Hylian Princess, turning to find Daruk extricating the other two from the ball of fabric and lights.

Mipha bit back more laughter as she strode to her soldiers, turning toward her guests and speaking lightly, "Well, that was a thrill. Princess Zelda, it was wonderful having you grace our Domain." Her eyes darted toward Link. "You certainly brought things that were all manner of delicious."

Unaware of the innuendo, Zelda simply played along as Link hid a blush, "Oh, the pleasure was all mine! Thank you for your hospitality."

Nodding, Mipha smiled as she shared glances between Daruk and Link, "Hopefully you two enjoyed yourselves as well."

"Quite so!" roared Daruk boisterously.

Link nodded, "The sushi was quite the delicacy."

Now was Mipha's turn to bow her head in embarrassment, attention upon her saved by Daruk's declaration, "It is always a joy to bear witness to Zorana's beauty!"

"Well, make sure you continue to visit," Mipha smiled with the unmistakable tone of diplomacy in her voice. "Princess Zelda," she nodded, "Until next we meet."

Zelda grinned with a bow, "Until next we meet."

With that, the Hylian troupe slowly turned to leave, Daruk returning the tapestry before their horse-drawn cart took off in languid regard from its horsepower, though that mattered little to the three visitors, all who would have quite enjoyed staying longer. Link gave one final glance over his shoulder, catching a longing smile from Mipha before returning one in kind, regretfully returning his attention to the magnificent bridge before them. As had occurred in the past, such partings never became an incidence Link, nor Mipha, ever got used to. If anything, the sting of parting compounded with every visit, like an ever-increasing ferocity of a sting, though neither of them even considered finding out how to lessen this, nor relinquish themselves from such heartache.

For the both of them, it was well worth the pain.

"That was quite the adventure," Daruk noted with a hint of wonderment lining his voice, his arms outstretched as he gave a massive yawn, "Bwaaah… You know, they say the pebble which gains speed quickest hits the smallest geyser."

Zelda nodded studiously, curling her finger along her chin, "Are you quoting from one of the great Goron philosophers?"

"Eh, that's actually Bageg, the kindly fellow up at Gorko Lake, but I suppose you could take it philosophically! I just meant to say that we, as pebbles, are rising to the occasion," Daruk explained with a smile.

Nodding absently, Zelda took in his words, murmuring, "Right, right… It's like a figure of speech."

"Sort of," Daruk offered, his lips twisting thoughtfully, "That's translated into common Hylian tongue, though; in the traditional Goron language, one might toss a pebble into a geyser, but it's understood that such pantomime is indicative of metaphor."

Her brow raising with interest, Zelda replied, "Fascinating! Daruk, I simply must speak to one of your elders who retains such knowledge! Can you translate?! What does 'I'd like a sandwich' mean in your traditional pantomime language?"

Midway through tossing his leg forward into a kicking motion with his arms raised like a zombie, Daruk turned his attention to Link as the Knight fired, "Are we seriously going to be doing this the entire way home?!"

Bursting into a laugh, Daruk chortled loudly while Zelda frowned, "It's intriguing stuff! I can't help it if we share this interest and you don't."

"I've got all the traditional Goron language verbiage I need," Link grinned, raising a fist, "Sworn Brother?"

Without missing a beat, Daruk threw a fist to bump Link's, the two throwing their hands back while making an explosion sound, leaving Link to shrug as he returned to his typical posture, "There you go."

"That can't be true," came a complaint from Zelda.

Daruk beamed, "Why, but it is! You wanna try?"

The Princesses' brow curled, "Even if I'm not a Sworn Brother?"

Thinking to himself, Daruk muttered, "Well, we're beings without sex, but I suppose were we to translate, we would have to make concessions for the other peoples of Hyrule. Hmm…" He continued his deepening line of thought before raising a fist in triumph. "Ah ha!"

Without preamble, he lowered his fist for Zelda to bump, a proud smirk lining his face as Zelda happily threw her fist against his, causing Daruk to yank his hand back while shouting in a heightened voice, his fingers fluttering in the air, "Sparkle!"

Link threw his open hand to his mouth, laughing against his skin with a "PFFT" while Zelda's jaw dropped, suddenly rising up in critique, "What was that?!"

Shrugging, Daruk explained, "That's the new Goron pantomime for Sworn Sisters! Nice, isn't it?"

"What's the sparkles?!" Zelda asked with a heated breath, wholly perplexed.

Daruk offered simply, "I was led to believe younger women enjoy such things as sparkles and cats. Would you rather it include a meow?"

"Maybe when they're four," Zelda challenged, dropping her head into her open hand, "Just workshop it for a bit…"

Grinning proudly, Daruk assured, "You have my honor on the matter! I'll congregate with my Goron brethren and we'll have an answer for you by the time we have Eldin Yuletide!"

Raising her head to reveal her shock, Zelda muttered, "..what?!"

"Yeah! This season, Zorana; next year, Hyrule Castle; then Goron City!"

Zelda's face went pale, "But- the logistics, the biome, the- Link, back me up on this!"

Her Knight merely shrugged, "I dunno; I'd think you'd jump at the opportunity to be so diplomatic."

"I mean-" Zelda groaned, her mind aflutter with every issue of such a proposal from Daruk, "-that is to say…"

Daruk's expression suddenly grew smarmy, his lips wiggling mischievously before belting out a laugh, "I'm kidding! I'm kidding!"

"Daruk!" cried Zelda, suddenly spiraling into a pout, "That wasn't funny!"

As the two wrangled between emotions, Link took another glance over his shoulder, trying to catch one final glimpse of Mipha, who had already departed from where they'd left one another. Returning forward, he frowned, dropping his head.

"You okay?" Zelda wondered sincerely.

He nodded, "Yeah, I just- Yeah."

A gentle pat from Daruk rumbled his body, "Fear not, brother. You two will reunite again, as you have a few times, already."

"I know, it's just- It still hurts," Link admitted, furrowing his brow that he was making these admissions to the two most celibate Champions of this motley crew order, Zelda and Daruk, both, seemingly utterly incapable of romance or such a love as one found with such partners, "How do you know such platitudes?"

Daruk thought for a moment, allowing Link to continue, "I mean, do Gorons even pine? I mean, I'm sure you miss people- Actually, the welts on my back prove that. but do you take lovers or have romances?"

Considering the Hylians words, Daruk nodded slowly, "I mean, I'm not sure. At least not how creatures with blood and skin might quantify such things. But to be Sworn Brothers is not something taken lightly; it's a pact to bear witness to another's successes and share in their failures."

"Sort of like a marriage," Zelda noted plainly, lost in her attentive listening.

Daruk beamed, "Yeah. Yeah!" He whipped a glance toward Link. "We are married!"

Recoiling, Link's eyes flew open wide, stating quickly, "G- Gee, Daruk, I- I appreciate the sentiment, but-" He cleared his throat, composing himself thusly. "Let's stick to Sworn Brothers, why don't we?"

Zelda pondered, stroking her chin, "Urbosa would get a kick out of this…"

"Please, don't," Link groaned, hastening the subject change with a quick jab, "What about you? You don't seem much interested in relationships?"

With only mild surprise, Zelda admitted, "I mean, there's not much to question. I have the whole of Hyrule to think of. If I thought being in a relationship with someone would be to the benefit of the peoples therein, I might consider such a thing; but until then, I can accomplish more without the bonds of matrimony." Then, with utilitarian zeal. "It just keeps me more able to make difficult decisions when freed from those considerations."

"You mean having to think about somebody else's safety," Link reasoned.

In confirmation, Zelda nodded, "Exactly. Especially with something like a potential calamity on the horizon-" She peered off into the distance at nothing in particular. "I just can't waste resources like that."

Grinning weakly, Link muttered, "You make it sound like a business decision."

"I mean, I suppose it is. But I'm not blinded to romance or love," Zelda smiled, "I see you and Mipha and I see things I envy- things I wish I had more time or energy to pursue. I just can't right now."

Daruk charged, "Maybe once we've saved the world."

Gesturing approvingly, Zelda noted, "Exactly!"

Lowering his head, both in thought and in consideration, Link lingered upon the love he had for Mipha and how, once upon a time, it had been the impetus for him wielding the Master Sword. for him breaking free from the shackles of Knighthood. for the two of them even being alive right now.

"Does it make it easier, or more difficult?" came a somber question from Zelda, "Carrying this destiny while loving somebody?"

Link took stock of his answer before speaking in reply, "I guess easier, knowing that I have something to fight for." He paused for a moment. "But also more difficult, knowing I could lose someone that could so tear me apart. Knowing there's a part of my destiny not tied to myself and my abilities, but to another. If I were to die because of my own inability to protect myself, I can live with that possibility, so to speak. but if Mipha were to die because of that…"

Zelda's thoughts returned to those moments atop Death Mountain, watching Link's terror as Mipha's life waned. She recalled having passed out and missed so much of the latter stages of that expedition, but the sight of Link's face, of abject horror, had been burned into her memory like a brand.

"Daruk," Zelda wondered, taking their attention off of Link as he mulled, "What do you fight for?"

Easily enough, Daruk proudly declared, "For my people! For the annals of history that a Goron hero may be forever etched into the historical record! Posterity will refer to me as 'Daruk the Goron', but that second part is much more important than the first. I fight so that all of Hyrule will know that we're not merely stone, but heroes all the same."

He retorted in challenge, as though sparring through expectation, "And you, Princess?"

Through pensive eyes, Zelda's lips rose confident, a look that she, herself, might not have thought possible mere months ago: before the Champions, before defying her father, before outsmarting a wayward clan of Zora, before witnessing Revali piloting Vah Medoh. Before she ever thought herself capable of such things as saving the world.

"I fight for Hyrule. For its future, and that of all its inhabitants," she spoke with a steeled voice, "Even if I can't wield magic- I'm past that. I don't need a pedigree to save this world."

She eyed Link with a smirk, "I have five people willing to put their lives on the line, alongside myself, to never find out whether that's untrue."

Link watched her from sidelong eyes, recognizing his own words being repeated. That night Zelda had broken down, battered by years of struggling with her destiny, only to now stand here so confident. Perhaps she truly could save the world from this impending threat, Link considered.

He smiled in reply, proud of his friend.

"Now, Daruk," she spoke up, the three stepping onto the opposite side of the great bridge, onto the moist soil of Zorana, "Enough of this; you still have my attention wrangled. We must figure out this whole 'Sworn Sister' translation."

Proudly, Daruk threw a fist into the air, nodding, "Ah ha! As you wish, my fearless leader!"

Link dropped his head, so totally disinterested in those two's goofing off, though he couldn't help but remain with a smile as his slow steps carried him further, thinking of Mipha, of his home, of his destiny- of every step forward toward his future. As much as Zelda had grown, he recognized his own transformation, from a Knight to a lover, a friend, a surrogate brother- to a goofball.

He eyed Daruk and Zelda throwing pantomime in the air, muttering, "No, no, no. Daruk, like this."

Link threw his fist out only to yank it back, sending his fingers wiggling in sparkled fashion, much to Daruk's delight.

"By the Goddess, you're onto something!"

Zelda groaned, covering her face, shaking her head as a chuckle escaped her lips.

"Idiots," she chimed happily, enjoying the company of her family.