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Zelda threw her hands down in the water, creating a splash up onto the ancient stone. Another trip to the spring of courage, and another trip where she neither felt or heard anything. The mossy goddess statue looked down at her with her stony smile. A look that was supposed to be comforting and instill an assurance of safety.
For years now, Zelda had come to resent the statue. It didn’t feel comforting. It felt mocking and demeaning. A constant reminder of her own failures.
“Princess-” Impa began, off to the back of the pool.
She instantly reared on her, causing another wave of water. “I know! I know! I need to try harder!” she yelled, feeling the sting of tears behind her eyes.
At that point, she had long lost hope for even knowing what trying harder would look like.
In an instant, Impa was over on one of the rocks that jutted out from the pool, kneeling down to her. “That’s not what I was going to say,” she soothed.
Zelda looked up at her, fighting back the tears, for once thankful for the humidity of the Faron Region.
“I was going to suggest you stop for tonight. We traveled a lot today, and it’s getting late. We can try again tomorrow,” she said.
Truth be told, she was starting to hate the trips just as much as the princess did. For the life of her, she couldn't figure out what -if anything- the princess was even doing wrong. Everything she had read detailing previous princess and queen’s trips to the springs, Zelda had done.
But above everything, she hated how inconsolable Zelda would become by the end of her time in the waters. Her attitude and outlook would become just as bad as the pruning of her skin.
It wasn’t the first time Zelda had snapped at her, and knowing their luck, it wouldn't be the last. It wasn’t something Impa could bring herself to hold a grudge over. She knew if she were in her place, she would be equally as frustrated.
Zelda nodded, but remained in her spot, unwilling to force herself to move, too consumed with worry. What if she just needed one moment longer in the spring--?
“Princess,” Impa said, her hand coming into view.
She shakily took the offer, but if she was honest with herself, all she wanted to do was collapse into Impa and cry out her frustration.
But that would be improper for a princess. That would be improper for a failure of a princess, she told herself.
Instead, she allowed herself to be guided out of the water, Impa walking along its edges with her, arm held out as far as she could to keep a hold of her.
She knew it was a breach of-- something. Too close and personal for a princess and her advisor, but at this point, she wasn’t sure it even mattered. It was just them and the goddess statue as their witness. With how much everyone held the princess at such a distance, maybe a small breach of that would be good for her.
Or maybe she was just trying to justify it to herself for no reason.
Water poured off Zelda’s prayer gown, soaking the mossy stone below them. She let go of Impa’s hand to pull at the frills, trying to squeeze what she could before heading off to change.
“Let me get a fire and a meal started,” Impa offered, taking a cautious step away.
Zelda said nothing, only humming her agreement. She was eager to get out of her wet robes as a breeze swept into the mouth of the cave, sending a shiver up her back. Not a feeling she was used to in Faron.
Closer to the mouth of the cavern, they had set up their makeshift camp in the same spot they had every other time. Their horses grazed nearby, further out in the open now that the rain had let up. Thankfully, the humidity seemed to stay down. It was still much higher than it had been back in Central Hyrule, but for the region, it was considerably pleasant.
By the time she had a small fire built up, Zelda had changed out of her robes and was silently moving to sit across from her. Her night clothing clung tight to her body, indicating she hadn’t taken much time to dry herself off, in a rush to stop thinking about her failures.
“Thank you, Impa,” she said, sitting herself close, pulling her hair back and up to keep off her back. Her shoulders slumped as she realized she had forgotten a hair tie.
Impa, having realized she lacked a band on her wrist to begin with, was ahead of her. “Here,” she said, reaching over into one of her bags to pull out a new one for her.
She thanked her again as she took the band, feeling a warmth rise to her cheeks, but not from the fire.
It was something she had noticed happening more and more as of late. Little things here and there that told her Impa knew her, but in a way that felt distinctly...more intimate, she supposed.
Lady Melora had been a lovely advisor, but she had never gone out of her way to know Zelda beyond their princess-advisor relationship. She didn’t keep track of foods she liked and disliked for their travels. She didn’t keep track of favorite places to set up camp. She didn’t indulge her at every turn to find something to study. She didn’t have kind words waiting for her when she inevitably failed at the springs.
And she certainly didn’t keep a small stash of extra hair bands for her because she was always forgetful to keep one on herself.
It had been slowly building over the last few months, Impa finally lowering her walls. Apart from the times where Purah would rile her up over anything and everything, Impa had always carried herself with such seriousness. She rarely, if ever, joked around. She was always so calm and serious-- at first it upset Zelda.
Their first meeting after all had been quite the spectacle, all things considered.
But as they continued their trips across Hyrule in search of whatever it was that might finally awaken her powers at last, here and there, the wall would lose a brick.
A reserved laugh.
A joke of her own.
A suggestion as to where they could stray off course without getting caught so she could have a little fun researching.
A smile that was so blinding, Zelda wondered why anyone would ever even think to talk about her own beauty when Impa was usually standing right next to her.
For the life of her, she couldn’t think why any of it even mattered to her. She thought maybe it had something to do with not being allowed “normal friendships” as a child. Ever since her mother’s untimely passing at the age of 7, she had been in training. Signs of the awakening calamity had forced her father’s hand, and so she hadn’t even a chance to get to know any of the advisor’s children.
Was this what a normal friendship was?
It sounded plausible. Being familiar with one another beyond surface level things seemed to be a characteristic of friendships in novels she had read.
For all the perks being royalty offered, knowing what a real, genuine friendship didn’t seem to be among those benefits.
Which, upon thinking about it more, seemed like a huge misstep. If she couldn't tell what a genuine friendship was, how was she supposed to pick her own court one day? How could she be sure those she picked had her and the kingdom's best interests at heart, and not just flattering her with fancy words so they could meet their own goals?
“You’re thinking very hard about something, princess,” Impa observed, making her jump.
Snapped out of her thoughts, Zelda realized she hadn’t even put her hair up, her hands feeling fuzzy and limp from being held up at such an odd position for so long. Her eyes were dry from staring so intently at the fire.
The flush returned to her cheeks with a fury. “It’s nothing,” she lied, shaking her hands out to try to regain feeling faster.
Impa only chuckled, tending to whatever dish she had going in the small kettle over the fire. It smelled warm and savory...
Late into the night, tossing and turning, Zelda grumbled to herself, unable to sleep. Normally, she might have been able to claim that the wildlife in the faron woods was keeping her up, but it was an unusually calm night. Only a light breeze high in the trees, and the soft chorus of frogs. No loud birds, or the snorts of some wild boar.
She couldn't even blame the temperature. It was pleasant enough for her to sleep, and any chill she felt was quickly overshadowed by the warmth that radiated across the stone from the fire.
Sitting up with a grumble, she caught Impa’s attention.
As always, Impa wasn’t sleeping. She merely sat at the mouth of the cave, legs crossed, on her travel mat.
Frustrated by an inability to sleep, Zelda grabbed her blanket and made her way to sit next to Impa, too tired to notice that she ended up sitting much closer than she normally would.
“Is something wrong, princess?” Impa asked, already feeling out into the world around them. No monsters seemed to be nearby, and very little wildlife beyond a few noisy frogs.
Zelda shook her head, wrapping her blanket around herself like a cloak. “I can’t sleep,” she answered.
“Anything I can do for you?” she asked, mentally going over what tea she might have brought that might help.
Zelda shook her head. “Why aren’t you asleep?” she instead asked.
“I’m fine,” Impa answered, though it was more of a non-answer.
That hardly satisfied her. “I’ve noticed you do this on our trips. You never sleep,” she said with a yawn, Impa yawning right after her.
“I’m a trained sheikah warrior, Princess. You should know I don’t need nearly as much sleep as you do,” she said, unsure why she tried to make it sound amusing rather than...well, she wasn’t sure.
Zelda hummed. “I’m aware of the meditation you can do that substitutes for sleep, but…” she shook her head, tired, unable to come up with the words she wanted. “It worries me.”
Impa turned herself to better face her. “If anything happened to you because I fell asleep-”
“Even when we’re at stables, or outposts, or the citadel, or even the Temple of Time? I-- I suppose I can understand you wanting to stay guard when we’re alone like this, but there? When we’re surrounded by capable soldiers?” she asked.
Impa found herself wishing she would drop it. It wasn’t a conversation she felt was safe having. If the princess knew, surely she would replace her.
“I promise, your highness, there is nothing you need to worry about. Go back to sleep,” she said, fully dodging the question.
Fully aware of her deflecting, frustration rose in Zelda’s chest. She wished Impa would just tell her. Did she not trust the guards? DId she not trust anyone else to keep her safe? Was she like this back at the castle?
Whatever the answer was, she wished Impa would just...open up to her. Bring down more stones from her wall. Maybe even let it tumble to the ground completely.
Why she even wanted any of that, though, she wasn’t sure.
“I’m afraid I can’t sleep,” she said, sitting up straight.
“Princess,” Impa said, catching herself about to reach out to her.
The whole motion played out easily in her tired mind. She would offer a hand to the princess, who would sleepily take it without any further protests. She would let Impa guide her back to her travel mat to be laid down. She would insist Impa sleep, but would settle for Impa simply sitting next to her, running her fingers through her hair until she fell asleep.
She had to refrain from shaking her head, blinking hard to shove whatever that fantasy had been. She would likely have to meditate earlier than she thought she would if her tired mind was coming up with such wild ideas.
“If there is nothing to worry about, then it should be fine for me to stay awake alongside you,” Zelda said.
“That’s hardly necessary, Princess. You don’t need to keep me company while I keep guard,” she said.
Zelda pouted, and Impa was positive she needed to start meditating that second otherwise she might admit to herself that it was...painfully cute.
“I may not need to, but I wish to,” she said.
It was so bold and confident, Impa didn’t have anything to refute her with. She had said it with such conviction, clearly there was no changing her mind.
She breathed a laugh. “Fine, but go to sleep if you’re able to. I will be fine.”
Zelda nodded, resituating herself on Impa’s mat. She was more awake now.
The Faron Woods had always held a special place in her heart. Not for the spring, but for the structure the spring sat in. The gaping maw of a stone dragon, in the middle of what was theorized to be an old ceremonial ground. Any texts surrounding the structure were all far younger than the actual ruins themselves.
Given that Impa was a historian on top of her many other talents, Zelda wondered what her take on the structure was.
“This is a Zonai structure, is it not?” she asked.
Impa jerked beside her, clearly withholding a laugh. “Are you making fun of me?” she accused, looking over at Zelda with a grin.
Zelda flushed in response. “I would never!” she defended.
“Answering yes or no to that would make me the laughingstock of all the historians!” she continued, struggling to smother her own amusement. Tired in at least three different ways, being asked about the Zonai in any way caught her completely off guard. She didn’t even know the princess had even heard of them, and she could only guess where she had even heard the name in the first place. It certainly wasn’t in any standard teachings.
Then again, non-standardized teachings-- she could probably hazard a guess.
“But it is! Any remaining Sheikah texts surrounding this location always refer to a group of people called the Zonai!” Zelda defended, indignant as ever.
Seeing how serious she was about it, Impa couldn't resist teasing her. “That’s hearsay,” she said, purposely looking away.
The two continued going back and forth, Impa throwing another curveball at her every opportunity she could. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe that the Zonai never existed- she just wasn’t as into the theories as some people.
“I swear, some people who defend and talk about the Zonai act like they were a member of their tribe!” she teased, getting another -painfully adorable- pout in response.
“You’re just being obstinate because you want to disagree with your sister!” she accused.
If Impa was going to guess where she heard about the Zonai, she figured her sister was a safe bet.
She laughed. Full heartedly, because, yes, she was in fact doing it only to be a pain. A pain to her older sister- her oldest talent. “You crack me up, Princess,” she said, looking over at her.
For a long second, Zelda swore she forgot how to breathe. Up close, she could see all the shades of her amber eyes played up by the nearby fire. All the warm undertones she could never see from their usual distance-- nevermind her laugh. Her laughter that she swore had to be the first time she ever truly heard it. Not her reserved chuckle, or a choked snort of a laugh. Real, genuine, laughter. Something she had caused.
She found herself starting to understand the cliche of someone’s laughter sounding like music.
“You need to stop hanging out with my sister,” Impa added.
Zelda had to force herself to look away. “Well, lucky for Purah, my advisor is quite easy to sway,” she said.
At that, Impa’s laughter was more forced. “Sounds like she needs a backbone,” she said.
Silence fell between the two of them, but it was far more comfortable than their silence usually was. Warm from the night Faron air, warm from the fire, and warm from the laughter.
“I don’t sleep because of nightmares, Princess.” She wasn’t even sure why she had said that much to begin with. Minutes ago she had wanted the princess to drop it, but there she was, telling her.
When Zelda turned to her, a questioning look on her face, Impa found herself continuing.
“Again, it’s nothing to worry about, but I-- I have these recurring nightmares. Sometimes, they're so bad, I’ve woken up with all my symbol cones at the ready.” Never mind the part where she wasn’t even sure where she had sapped the energy from in the first place.
“Oh my,” Zelda said in a whisper.
“I’ve never hurt anyone, but I refuse to risk you being the first.” Protect her above all else had been her order from the Elder. If she succeeded in only one thing, it would at least be that.
Zelda humed, adjusting her blanket to fall off her shoulders, pooling around her waist. “May I ask what they’re about?”
Impa gave a small shake of her head. “You don’t need to concern yourself with it, Princess, I promise.”
“I’m offering to listen-- but I’m also not trying to force you...I-- it wouldn't be a burden, is all I am trying to get across, Impa.” She was desperate to consider Impa a friend, and friends opened up to one another.
But on the same note, she knew she couldn't force friendship on another person. If Impa didn’t want to open up to her, she couldn't force her to --well, she supposed she could, royal authority and all, but it wasn’t something she would do.
It wasn’t the sincerity in her voice that brought a flush to Impa’s cheeks. It wasn’t that she genuinely believed the Princess wanted to hear her out, and wanted to lend her a space to vent her own secrets-- it was the second she almost caught herself about to use the princess’s name without any titles that brought a warm flush to her cheeks.
There was a line they were crossing, she was sure of it. The princess was free to confide in her all she needed, but it wasn’t supposed to go both ways. The princess was never supposed to listen to her problems. She was only there to advise, protect, and offer a one-way companionship.
In that moment, she couldn't be bothered to care about that invisible line they were crossing.
“It’s...hard to explain, Princess. The nightmare in question, it’s...it’s very abstract, I guess,” she began, uncrossing her legs and bringing them up to her person. “It’s not a nightmare about the calamity or anything like that, it’s...It’s a dream that I always find myself stuck in, and there’s this horrible ache in my chest that feels like loneliness. A constant nagging feeling that I’m missing something. Sometimes someone, but I’m never even sure who that someone is.”
Though, sometimes the dreams had a place. A place that, in her dreams she knew to be Kakariko Village, but looked nothing like the Kakariko Village she knew.
The amount of times she woke up sobbing for no reason other than the loneliness was so painful-- she had long stopped counting, and it wasn’t something she ever wanted to burden the princess with.
“This might be strange, but- I actually- I understand very well. I have similar dreams now and then,” Zelda said.
“You do?” she asked.
Zelda nodded. “Sometimes I have these dreams where I’m stuck in this...black void, I suppose. An unending darkness...but in that nightmare I’m not alone. I mean, it’s that being around someone but still feeling alone. Whoever I’m with, I intrinsically know I hate them, but I’m stuck there. I can’t get out, and…” she felt herself shiver. “It hasn’t happened in a while, but...I do understand at least somewhat.”
Impa hummed, resituating herself back to cross her legs, their knees touching. “Sometimes I want to think the dream means something, but…” She shrugged. “I think I probably just get anxious about having the dream-”
“And so you then have the dream,” Zelda finished. “I know the feeling, Impa.”
Quite the pair they both made.
Feeling their knees touch, a different desire came to mind. She found herself wishing she could lean over and rest her head on Impa’s shoulder. Or maybe even put her head in her lap, and let her hair be played with. Thinking about the contact was enough to send a slight shiver up her spine.
It wasn’t even something she felt herself worthy of. Maybe if she had made any real significant progress on her sealing power. Maybe then she would allow herself to indulge in just that fantasy of it all.
But a failure of a princess didn’t deserve nice things, in her mind. Not until she had fulfilled her duty.
Shoving the feeling down as far as possible, she stole another glance at Impa, and decided that the ease she was finally showing around her would have to suffice. It was more than she deserved, anyway.
Feeling her eyes, Impa turned, ready to say something, but stopped short, the hair on the back of her neck standing up. A static of some kind in the air.
She looked around suddenly, alerting the princess to her worry, but as she felt out into the world, she couldn't feel anything on the ground.
“Impa--”
She stood, looking around them to survey things. She could feel something but it wasn’t a monster. At least, not one she was in any way familiar with.
Zelda stood, blanket falling off her as she reached out for Impa’s arm to hold onto. The sudden movement and alertness when she had been clearly exhausted seconds prior put her on edge. They hadn’t run into trouble since the bokoblin their first night walking back to the castle together.
Just as she was about to ask if she could sense anything, she felt the static, too. Around them, the whole air felt like an open field just before a lightning strike. Electric.
Neither one of them dared to move, their shelter in the cave surely enough protection from a freak thunderstorm.
A low groan overhead, and a light that shone through the trees in an unearthly way.
Despite her initial hesitance, Zelda found herself stepping forward, hand trailing off Impa’s arm.
“Princess-”
The rest of what she was going to say was overshadowed by another, thunderous, growl from overhead.
Despite the nature of the sound, Zelda did not fear it, instead, she felt as though her soul was being pulled towards whatever beast was above them.
She felt Impa reach for her again, and calling out to her, but she couldn’t be pulled back.
Stepping out of the mouth of the cave into the clearing through the trees, the creature overhead stole both their breath.
Slow moving, as though simply swimming through the sky with ease, a large yellow dragon. A dragon. A creature spoken only about in myths. The balls of electricity that surrounded the creature, and her own knowledge of the place, told Zelda exactly who it was: Farosh. A spirit of lightning. The guardian of the spring of courage, and servant of the Goddess.
Groaning and calling out, not in distress, but in...jubilee. The dragon was happy. Zelda could feel that the dragon was happy.
Her own body began to tremble, transfixed by the way She moved through the sky, moonlight and electricity shimmering on her scales in a way Zelda could only hope to describe as ethereal.
The dragon’s joy overflowed onto her, spilling into her veins.
A rush of warmth under her skin.
A divine energy.
She looked down at the back of her hand, expecting a glow, but nothing…
A gust of wind nearly knocked the both off balance, Impa reaching out to steady her.
Farosh had turned around, floating lazily in the air above them, looking down into the clearing.
Her eyes alone had to be nearly half their size as she looked down at the both of them in an unending stare.
Zelda could feel Impa anxious at her side, slowly reaching back behind herself, where her kodachi would normally be situated on her hip.
Instead of her blade, she was met with Zelda’s hand.
“She’s not here to hurt us,” Zelda soothed.
She felt Impa’s hand squeeze hard, attempting to smother her own anxiety.
Whatever the dragon was looking for, she seemed to find, letting out another thunderous roar as she slowly began her ascent once more.
A ball of electricity landed far off on the other end of the clearing, sending out sparks across the stoney terrace. When they both returned their attention to Farosh, she had disappeared from the clearing, but could be heard further off.
Zelda and Impa both struggled to even begin processing what they had just seen.
A dragon.
A real dragon.
Farosh.
One of the three dragons who were spoken in legends to be servants of the goddess.
Farosh had appeared to them, and looked down upon them, sharing her own jubilant energy.
“Farosh,” Impa said in a breath. “That- that was Farosh.”
“It was!” Zelda said, feeling the joy from Farosh absolutely overflowing, unable to contain. Like a damn that had been burst.
If she had been unable to sleep before, she was definitely going to be unable to sleep now.
“Farosh is- She is said to be a servant to the Goddess! Her appearance here can’t be a coincidence! The way She was looking at the two of us--”
Unable to contain herself, Zelda threw her arms around Impa in a crushing hug, a slew of thank yous somewhere in there, muffled and mushed together, unable to keep a coherent thought together.
Feeding off her energy, Impa returned the hug in full force.
It had to be a sign of some kind. A good one.
Impa watched as Zelda suddenly pulled back, rushing back towards her bag, flinging things out of it in search of one of her journals and something to write with. She couldn’t help but laugh, and spare one last glance up to the night sky, where Farosh’s light had already faded.
Extending a silent thank you to the dragon, she returned her attention to Zelda, who was still rattling off almost too fast for her to keep up.
It was a few hours before Zelda had finally tired herself out, much to Impa’s amusement.
As they finally retired for the evening, wanting to at least get some sleep before the eventual sunrise, out of the corner of her eyes, Zelda swore she saw a light coming from the back of the spring, shining down onto the Goddess statue.
As she turned to give it her full focus, the lighting seemed to disappear…