Eloquence seemed to trickle from his lips like cool crisp water running through the smooth pebbles of a remote forest stream. You sighed, deciding to relinquish yourself to the torment of the bright lively party that went on around the town. Every word that dropped from his mouth was seemingly filled with sincerity. The way his eyes flickered around in various directions, the way he never quite leaned into the conversation, or the way his arms remained crossed over his puffed chest signaled to you that none of this was sincere in the slightest.
Rather than submit your time to this "festival," you opted to slink away in the passing moments of boisterous laughter to make your way back to the safety and comfort of your home. Home, the place you could be when you didn't want to see or hear another living being. It was truly where the heart is.
"Hey." An extended arm caught you in your retreat. "No." It was a simple command coming from your father and you knew exactly what he meant. You weren't leaving the festival.
He had insisted that you, your brother, sister, and mother all attend this festival to honor the Champions as they made their way around Hyrule to receive everyone's upmost praise for what they've yet to do. It was all overrated if anyone asked you, but no one did.
"Don't you want the shop set up for tomorrow?" You figured it was worth a try. Physical labor was better than standing around wanting to pick your eyes out. "I can go home and get everything ready! Then when the festival is over you all can just go to bed." A large smile crossed your face.
He watched you for a moment, outwardly caught off guard by your request since you weren't the one to offer to do anything. A pondering second later, he agreed. "Fine, but if you finish early come back."
"Oh, you know I will!" An elated laugh escaped your lips before you shook your head, opting to keep it together so your father wouldn't have any reason to revoke his side to the agreement.
Not a second sooner, you were off, rushing happily back to your home that was merely yards away. While you wouldn't be out of the festival's grasp, you would be able to potentially block it all out. The wooden door slammed behind you as you leaned against it with a relieved huff. Finally.
The sounds of the festivities soon died down as people dispersed into smaller groups to chat individually among the Champions and princess, who was rarely seen around Hyrule without a large entourage of heavily armored men surrounding her. It was a nice gesture for them to come, but none of it mattered to you. The so called "Calamity" hadn't shown its ugly face near Hateno even though they had been going on and on about it for a few years now. A few older fellows attributed it to some sort of "government conspiracy" and insisted the King had made it up to keep everyone at bay. While you weren't thrilled with the Champions, you weren't that crazy.
Slowly but surely, the shop was cleaned and prepped for the busy market day to come. The merchandise sat neatly on the shelves that lined the creaky wooden walls. The money from today's hours was safely packed away in the chest father kept beneath the floorboards. Everyone's bed was nicely made with the pillows fluffed perfectly for when they returned home. Everything was done and you could finally relax.
That is, if your younger brother hadn't burst inside calling your name.
"What?" You peered over the side of the sleeping loft where you had just fallen onto the bed to rest your aching feet. "Grant, I'm tired. Can this wait 'til tomorrow?"
"Not exactly..." his voice trailed off as he climbed the steps. He kept his tone low as if he was holding a secret that absolutely nobody could hear. "Iris is missing."
Your heart dropped. "You're sure she isn't with the other kids?" Now, with renewed energy, you hopped to your feet and began tugging on your worn shoes. The soles were falling out, the sides needed to be stitched, and the laces were made from rope that came with a tied stack of wheat. They weren't much, but they worked.
He hastily shook his head back and forth, "She said she was going to grab some flowers from Marblod Plain."
"You let her go there alone?"
He sulked, an obvious expression of guilt lacing his features. From his glossy eyes to his trembling lip, you couldn't help but feel sorry for him. "It's my fault." He whispered, casting his gaze to the floor.
"What is?"
"I told her to go."
"Okay, look." You slung your father's sword over your shoulder and adjusted his metal shield to your arm. "I'm going to go look for her. I'm going to find her, and then we're going to have a talk about sending your sister on wild goose chases."
"Should I tell dad?" Immediately, your focus turned to the window where you could see your father becoming flustered as the Goron Champion, Daruk, flirted casually with your mother. He rubbed the back of his neck, an ecstatic smile never leaving his face. He was a people pleaser.
"No. Either wait here," You pointed to the bed, "or go outside and wait by mom and dad."
"I'll go outside."
Outside, the noise of the celebration moved forward as if nothing was wrong. Mipha strolled through the town center with a younger man by her side, ignoring the looks they received from a young knight. Link gave a lot of his attention to Zelda who was speaking to one of the elders about the energy source to the north. Revali was patrolling around, not paying a lick of attention to the young group of girls hot on his feathers. Urbosa was valiantly telling of her meetings with the Yiga Clan, actively reenacting a few of her encounters for the group of children before her.
"Don't tell them, it'll ruin their night." Grant nodded and picked at something under his fingernails. He swallowed hard, trying his best to hold back the tears that welled in his eyes. You knelt down and gently tipped his head up to look you in the eyes. "It's okay. Iris will be fine. Don't worry too much." With a soft kiss pressed to his forehead, he perked up. "Go keep mom and dad safe while I'm gone, okay?"
"Okay!" He sniffled, wiping his nose and forcing you into a snotty hug. "I will!" He scurried off back to your parents before turning and slyly giving you a thumbs up with his highest conviction.
With Grant taken care of, you looked to the west where the rolling plains lied. A new structure had appeared there recently whatever it was had to have something to do with Iris's disappearance. Trekking the miles over was difficult and a five-year-old wouldn't have been able to go this far alone. At least, not Iris. She was a laid-back kid, scared of absolutely anything and everything that moved. Butterflies, grass, even sometimes her own shadow spooked the living daylights out of the kid. There was no way she went there on her own accord.
The moon was suspended high in the sky by the time you made it to the strange building. Odd-looking creatures were jumping up and down on the third story up, shaking the entire thing. How it wasn't falling to pieces was beyond you. You could see their own weapons perched on their hips, swinging rapidly with each jump.
The night would be your friend in this instance, providing an ample cover as you inched your way up to the first level where your first foe was lying on it's back, fast asleep.
Revali didn't particularly enjoy taking part in the festivities that came with being a Champion. Though, he did enjoy showing off for a few minutes before becoming disenchanted by the crowding fans and young girls that seemed to think they had a shot with the Rito warrior. After he finished telling of the Village from where he came, he grew bored of the situation and decided strolling through the town at a heightened pace would be better suited for his tiring attention.
He spotted them. A girl who was evidently a year or two younger than he kneeled with her back to him, speaking in hushed tones to a child who looked worried sick. He wouldn't have taken notice to her if she hadn't had a sufficiently sized sword strapped to her back and a shield to boot strapped to her arm. Something was up, and Revali wished to be in the know. The girl wished the child farewell and took off over the small bridge leading to another home but didn't stop there. Instead, she continued onward to the west hiking through the grassy lands of Necluda towards Faron.
She wasn't packed for a long journey, so he could rule her out as being a traveler. There was no way she'd survive without any food. There was no conclusive rhyme or reason as to her departure from Hateno into the wild. That was, until he saw where she was headed.
Perched upon the cliff-side, Revali observed as the girl crouched down in the grass that provided descent cover. She slinked up the steps of the outpost. He prepared himself to become her knight in shining armor; he expected a true fairytale moment as he positioned himself to swoop in and safe the damsel in distress. What he hadn't expected was her to wield the old sword with such agility, such grace, that the first foe was cut down in seconds. He watched in awe as she moved quietly up the steps to take on the two that were formulating their master plan for her arrival. She disarmed them even faster.
In no time, the outpost was clear of any danger and the girl was sitting at the top with another crying child in her arms. She caressed the girl's hair, pressing relieved kisses to the top of her head as the child's wails filled the air.
"Shh." You held Iris who was a mess. Her nose hadn't stopped running since you found her, her eyes were puffy and red, and her fingernails were nothing but nubs from where she had been biting. "You can't go running off like that."
"I... I k..know..." She wept, soft hick-ups escaping her parted lips as she tried to garner the strength for a smile. "I just...just wanted..."
"This?" An unfamiliar voice had you on guard, quickly rising to your feet, pushing Iris behind you, and grabbing your sword. The tip brushed against the assailant's throat, dancing lightly on his feathers, the moonlight casting a reflection on his face. "It's rather rude to threaten my life in such a way."
He held his ground well, not faltering as he used a finger to push away your sword. "Sorry." You mumbled, returning the metal to its hilt. It was Revali.
"Here." He held the blue flower out to your sister who hesitantly inched forward. The five sectioned flower swayed slightly in the breeze; the soft petals brushed with a gradient of blue to white. "For you."
Taking the flower from him, a smile spread across her face as her features lit up. "Thank you!"
"And," he turned to you, standing tall, "for you." He held another flower out to you. Raising an inquisitive eyebrow, you skeptically took the flower despite everything urging you to tell him to buzz off. How long had this pompous bird been here and why hadn't he helped?
"Thank you." You gritted out for the sake of your sister who was jovially staring with wide exploring eyes at the bird. "C'mon, Iris. Let's head back."
"Hold on." Revali jut out a wing to stop you from heading down the rickety steps. "Allow me to escort the two of you back. It's the least I could do."
"I think we'll be fine, thanks."
—-
Iris jumped up and down joyously as she prepared to get her first ever flight. It was a big moment for her and with the mode of transport being a Champion, it made it life changing. Revali could only carry one at a time and you both agreed that Iris should go first as leaving her here would be less than keen. She hopped onto Revali's back and wrapped her tiny arms around his neck. The Champion took off and disappeared into the air.
You scanned the top deck, a poorly constructed bow catching your attention. You had never shot a bow before and what better time to figure it out than now? Father had never let you play with the weapons in the house. In fact, if he knew you were using his sword and shield, he would be irate. The grip on the bow was unfortunate. It was far too big for your hands and the arrows were all off balance. After a few went flying off in the opposite direction from which they were fired, you gave up.
"An expert swordsman but I'd have to say," the voice surprised you as you hadn't expected him back so soon, "your marksmanship is," he tilted his head back, "meager."
"Hateno doesn't exactly have the bows that Rito Village has." You nodded to the bow he had strapped to his back.
A moment of silence passed between the two of you, neither one wanting to gather the courage to continue the conversation. What were you supposed to say to him anyway? "I don't really care about the title you hold or whoever you think you are."
"Why didn't you alert anyone to her missing?" It was a simple question with a simple answer. But it wasn't an answer you wanted to say out loud, so instead you shrugged. "Darling," he tilted his head, "I may be a bird, but I assure you I wasn't born yesterday. Was it jealousy?"
"Excuse you?" You felt heat rise through your cheeks.
"Jealousy." He restated. "The Champions were receiving too much praise and you wanted a cut. Simple as that."
You contemplated what you would say next. "Fuck off." No. Too forward. Too rude. "I don't do things expecting something out of it." No. You'd have to explain yourself further with that one. Instead of replying you shook your head and let out a chuckle, then began down the steps figuring he'd just take off and head back on his own.
He remained persistent and on your heels. "Oh, come on. Don't be coy. At least allow me to take you home. Your family is worried sick."
"Then they'll be happy when I walk home."
"You'll tire yourself by walking. Allow me to," you cut him off. "No."
The festival was over by the time you returned home. The streamers and lanterns were taken down, the lit fires of the community cooking pots were extinguished, and the lights in most houses were darkened. Even your house was quiet. They hadn't waited for you. Biting the hurt you felt back, you made your way home with Revali nearby. The Champions were all staying in the Inn for the night having rented the entire building out. Urbosa was the only one still out.
"Are you alright?" She came to meet the two of you as you threw Revali a look. He finally shut up.
"I'm okay. Thank you." You excused yourself from the Gerudo Champion.
Revali watched with Urbosa as the girl crept to the side of the home. She plopped herself down on the ground and dished a towel from the bucket of water positioned on a table. He sighed. There was something intriguing about her. She was like no other town girl he had met through all of his traveling. How he had managed to miss her in all of his trips to Hateno floored him. Urbosa smirked as she saw a new side to her feathered friend. His change in demeanor was obvious and his reasoning was more obvious.
"Revali," Urbosa started, "I must say, I didn't expect you to be this type."
"What type?" He tore his eyes from her as she wiped down the weapons. The two began walking back to the Inn together.
"You're just going to leave her alone now?"
His expression turned to one of confusion. "Why would I use up more of my time to deal with such things?"
Urbosa raised her brows, amused. "Oh." She brushed her hair from her shoulder. "I don't know."
"Urbosa," Revali said in his usual cutting crisp tone, "I can assure you that I have absolutely no interest in someone like her."
"Keep telling yourself that."