Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The sphinx smiled down at the heroes, “No danger will you face as long as you face me.”

Hyrule blinked up at her, “What do you mean?”

“Answer my riddles three and you may go free. Fail once an embarrassing secret revealed, fail twice an embarrassing secret shown, fail thrice and an embarrassing secret stuck.”

“So, if we get a riddle wrong, you’ll reveal a secret to each of us?”

“No, each must face their riddles three.”

Hyrule looked to the others, “I think answering her riddles will be the best way to get out of here.”

Wind bounced forward, “Hit me lady.”

Crossing her limbs in front of her she smiled at him, “There are two sisters. One gives birth to the other, and she, in turn gives birth to the first. Who are the two sisters?”

Wind frowned, “Sisters that birth each other? Has to be a cycle. There are four seasons so it’s not that. Wind and storms follow each other but calm skies also happen so not those. Oh!” Wind grinned, “Day and Night!”

The sphinx nodded, “Correct. Who's next?”

Hyrule took a breath before nodding, “I’m next.”

“A mundane man goes out in heavy rain with nothing to protect him from it. His head hair does not get wet. How does he do that?”

Hyrule hummed, “He’s not magic so it’s not a spell, so how can he keep his hair dry? Any hair there is going to get wet in the storm, but only the head isn’t protected,” Hyrule blinked before looking up, “He’s got no head hair!”

Again, nodding the sphinx added, “The term I was looking for was bald but that was close enough. Next?”

Wild stepped forward.

“Poor people have it. Rich people need it. If you eat it you die. What is it?”

“Huh, um, damn I wish I was better at riddles. Can I ask for help?”

“They can help, but if they help too much you will lose.”

Wild nodded before looking at the others, “Any hints?”

Twilight frowned, choosing his words carefully, “Think about your own experience, when you fit those criteria.”

“My own? Well, when I got out of the shrine, I was poor, because I didn’t have anything but the slate, but now I’m rich so what did I have when I was poor that I don’t have now, and how can I eat anything when I was my poorest, I had noth…” Wild perked up grinned, “Nothing! The answer is nothing because when I was out of the shrine I had nothing, I no longer need nothing, and if you eat nothing you’ll die!”

The sphinx smiled down at her, “Correct.” She turned to look at Sky who had stepped forward, “What is always in front of you, but can’t be seen?”

Sky blinked, “In front but not seen? I mean air but that’s all around you so that’s not it. What’s only in front of me and can’t be seen. What’s always in front of me? Uh well,” He grimaced looking to the sphinx, “My nose?”

“False, you can see your nose if you focus. The answer is the future.”

Sky blinked, “But I can see the future?”

“What?”

“I’m a seer, sometimes I can see the future.”

The sphinx shifted in place, “That is my fault then. You get this one free and your next will be easy.”

“Thanks? Um Four is next.”

“A Five that are Four, you are your own riddle. That is not one I have seen before, you will pass your first for showing me a riddle I have not seen before. Now who next?”

Legend snorted, waving his hand, “Doesn’t seem like that hard if you're going to be giving freebies.”

The sphinx narrowed her eyes, “I welcome the day with a show of light, I stealthily came here in the night. I bathe the earthy stuff at dawn, but by noon, alas! I'm gone.”

Legend blinked, “Okay not so easy… right uh shadows? There aren't any shadows at noon.”

“Wrong, they travel with no stealth, the answer is dew.”

“Fuck.”

The sphinx smiled looking at him closer, “Now what embarrasses you little one, ah a transformation.”

Wild frowned, “We already know he can turn into a mermaid.”

“Ah but do you know in the dark realm he turns into a bunny? A bright pink bunny at that!”

Warriors pointed at Legend’s hair, “That’s why some of your hair is pink! You turn into a fluffy bunny!”

Time grinned, “Ah, that is why you were so eager to stay behind when we went to the Twilight Realm.”

Legend was blushing much darker than his streak of pink hair, “Shut up. It’s Twilight’s turn.”

The sphinx turned to look at the chuckling Twilight, “It belongs to you, but your friends use it more. What is it?”

Twilight rubbed the back of his neck, “Not handing out easy ones.”

Hyrule grinned, “I had it instead!”

Twilight forehead furrowed, “You, had it? But you had it instead of me? It can’t be like my pelt or something I own physically cause all of you have had them at some point. But Hyrule has had it instead? The only time you stole something was my pronouns.”

Hyrule’s eyes widened looking panicked.

Twilight looked up at the sphinx, “My pronouns?”

She tilted her head to the side, “That is not what I was seeking as an answer but is true. I accept your answer. The true answer was your name.”

Hyrule wasn’t blushing as dark as Legend still was as Warriors continued to heckle Legend, “I’m so sorry! I forgot I stole your pronouns. I normally steal people’s names!”

Twilight snorted, “It’s fine, it worked out fine.”

“Still sorry.”

Twilight ruffled Hyrule’s hair, “Forgiven. Warriors come answer your riddle and lay off Legend.” Legend sighed in relief before glaring at Twilight as Twilight continued with, “We can always ask about how cute he is as a bunny later.”

Warriors was still chuckling as he addressed the sphinx, “Dear lady I would request your challenge.”

Legend glared at him, “I hope you fail.”

The sphinx snorted at their play fighting, “I’m orange, I wear a green hat and I sound like a parrot. What am I?”

Warriors made a disgusted face, “A carrot.”

“Correct.”

Wind blinked, “That was fast.”

“When dealing with nobles you have to be able to straighten out what they are actually saying before they can catch you in saying something you don’t mean. Also, I was talking about bunnies with Legend about bunnies and was taunting him about why he likes them so much.”

The sphinx turned to Time, “And you are the last?”

He nodded, “Yes.”

“Hm… I have one eye but am unable to see. What am I?”

Time chuckled, “Well it’s not me as I can see fine. Hm, maybe a blind cyclops? No, that is too complicated for a riddle, it should be something that will be obvious once I know the answer.” He noticed Hyrule picking at a string coming loose from his tunic at where a patch was fraying, “A needle.”

He waited smiling for the sphinx’s response.

Chapter Text

“Correct, now to start again.” She turned to Wind, “Little one, what kind of ship has two mates but no captains?”

Wind blinked, “Well if it was a normal ship not much. Maybe it’s a term? Like a word with ship in it? Uh, I played that game once township, shipyard, lordship, kingship, swordmanship, worship, shipside, rela- Relationship! Two mates are two people who are trying to have a kid and there normally isn’t a captain! Me and Tetra will be mates when she’s of age and she’s a captain so it is just her job, well she might just be a queen then but I doubt it.”

The sphinx blinked, “A relationship is correct.” Turning to Hyrule she asked, “What goes through cities and fields, but never moves?

Hyrule frowned, “The only thing I can think of is a river, they're always in the way and it’s not like I can wait for them to go away.”

The sphinx shook her head, “A river moves, slowly but it moves. No, the answer is a road, now they know that you are a fairy but I doubt they know of the times you got into some fermented flower nectar.”

A blush lit up Hyrule’s ears, “No.”

Wind blinked, “You can get drunk on flower nectar? How much do you have to drink to do that?”

Hyrule shrunk into his shoulders, “A couple cups.”

“How do you get a couple cups of nectar? That’s a ton of flowers!”

“Oh, I only do it in fairy form.”

Time sighed, great another person to watch out for to make sure they weren’t drinking at too young an age, at least Hyrule hadn’t gotten drunk while on the quest… that he knew of.

The sphinx turned to look at Wild, “I have a head like a cat and feet like a cat, but I am not a cat. What am I?”

Wild hummed, “Huh, not a cat but looks like a cat. Or has the same parts as a cat. The Zonai are more fox-like than cat-like.”

The sphinx blinked, “The who?”

She blinked, “Oh it’s a race that apparently was involved in one of the foundings of Hyrule.”

“One of them?”

“I know of at least three times Hyrule has been founded so Hyrule has disbanded or ended at least twice and well you could argue that Hyrule fell in my time and needs to be refounded as the government fell but everyone still calls Hyrule Hyrule so maybe not?”

“Interesting, A possible riddle for the future.”

“Does that mean I get out of this one like Four?”

“No, it is only a possible idea, not a full riddle, what is your answer?”

Wild bit her lip, “Um… lynel?”

“Wrong, the correct answer is a kitten.”

Wild face palmed, “Oh duh. Right, what are you going to reveal?”

Warriors shrugged, “Maybe your fear of soap.”

“That is a perfectly rational fear and I feel no embarrassment about that.”

Wind tilted his head to the side, “That is a good question, what embarrasses Wild? She’s pretty open about most things.”

The sphinx raised an eyebrow before looking at Wild, “Hm well no, that’s too common.”

Hyrule blinked, “What’s too common?”

“Something that I perhaps shouldn’t mention with such young ears about, no I think I will mention the time she broke five bones after trying to pull off a complicated trick she had never done before on a horse she had not quite finished taming. The horse then escaped.”

The group turned to the blushing Wild, “I didn’t think it would be that hard!”

Twilight sighed, “I had to talk so many horses out of bucking you off that some of the horses that never met any of yours knew who I was.”

Wild bit her lip, “Oops?”

The sphinx turned to Sky, “What is full of holes but still holds water?”

Sky tipped his head to the side and thought for a good deal of time before answering, “A leaky bucket? I mean it still holds the water for a time.”

The sphinx grinned, “Incorrect. The answer is a sponge.”

Sky cursed, “Of course it’s a sponge! I use a sponge on Crimson’s beak as it doesn’t leak water onto his feathers!”

Wind grinned, “Alright what do you got on Sky?”

“Hm,” The sphinx stared at Sky for a moment before answering, “Once when you were in the middle of a loftwing race you fell asleep, won and then fell off Crimson when the cheering woke you up. Zelda was laughing so hard it took her two attempts to catch you.”

Four looked up at the sphinx, “Alright, so what is it for us?”

The sphinx hummed, “Should I give you five riddles, or one riddle for there are five of you.”

Four rolled their head, a gesture they sometimes made when they forced a change of who was in front, “We are currently one, so there should only be one.” Four rested their hand over the middle of their tunic where it came together and their eyes sparkled with all five colors. It was obvious it was actually one of the times the five fully merged, something more often seen during combat.

“Hm, well it seems one is most accurate this time, we will see next time. Now pronounced as one letter, And written with three, two letters there are, and two only in me. I’m double, I’m single, I’m black blue and gray, I’m read from both ends, and the same either way. What am I?

Four’s eyes narrowed as they thought before answering, “An eye.”

“Correct. Now one who is sometimes a bunny; they come out at night without being called, and are lost in the day without being stolen. What are they?”

Legend bit his lip, taking much more time to think this time, “Right out at night but not in day. Not stolen so probably means it leaves on its own…” He grimaced looking up at the sphinx, “Fireflies?”

The sphinx grin stretched far farther than before answering, “No.” A poof of smoke appeared around Legend as he shouted in surprise.

Chapter Text

When the smoke cleared the group found themselves blinking at empty space before their eyes fell to the ground where a large pink rabbit was sitting, and glaring around the group.

“Oh my goddess, you’re so cute!” Hyrule squealed, “Can I pet you?”

Giving a death glare to the rest of the group making it clear that this was the only person he was going to say yes to he gritted out, “Yes.”

Hyrule basically dashed across the area and scooped up a surprised Legend. Hyrule pulled Legend into his chest and hugged him as he continued to coo at how cute Legend was.

Twilight took pity on Legend and turned to the sphinx, “What is my next riddle?”

The sphinx didn’t look away from the entertaining sight but answered, “When you stop to look, you can always see me. But if you try to touch me, you can never feel me. Although you walk towards me, I remain the same distance from you. What am I?”

Twilight bit his lip, he really hated riddles and he did not want to get transformed into anything. If he could get this one right, he could only have the embarrassing story told. He looked around the group but most were focusing on Legend, who was rather distracting. Sighing he tried to figure the riddle out. “Something I can always see but can’t touch. Then always the same distance no matter how much walking you do…” He frowned, “The horizon?”

The sphinx nodded, “Correct.” She looked to the mockingly cooing Warriors, “How many months have twenty-eight days?”

Warriors blinked looking at her, “All of them? I mean most have more but they all have at least twenty-eight.”

Nodding the sphinx turned to Time, “Well it seems we have reached the end again, but not the true end.”

Time hummed, “You could always let us go early.”

“No, if I stopped now, I would have to eat you and I already said you would face no danger if you faced me. So, your riddle is I have cities, but no houses. I have mountains but no trees. I have water, but no fish. What am I?”

Wind looked over at Time, “Oh I want this one! Can we trade?”

Time looked to the sphinx, “Can we?”

“No.”

Time frowned, not surprised, “Right so it’s something that Wind thought of easily. A picture would show houses and trees. It has to be on a piece of parchment of paper if it’s going to show something. Well it could be a stain glass window but those often show trees…” Time looked up at the sphinx, “A map.”

She smiled, “Correct. Now we move onto the last round of riddles, some of you face revealing a secret, some face showing the secret and some face having their secret stuck.”

The Chain exchanged worried looks, many glancing at where Legend was now hanging in Hyrule’s hands. Hyrule really wasn’t supporting Legend’s bunny form right but none of them was interested in seeing how much damage bunny formed Legend could do if they tried to fix it. Legend had a mouth, he could tell Hyrule if the hold was hurting him.

She turned to look at Wind, “You face a secret revealed if you fail this riddle, now, I am seed with three letters in my name. Take away two and I still sound the same. What am I?”

Wind frowned, rubbing his chin, “A seed. Right not Korok seed, or sunflower. What other seeds do I know of? Well, what do I eat? Pumpkin seeds are tasty but no. Poppy? No, corn,” he shook his head, “Bean?” Blinking he looked to the sphinx, “Can I ask someone if something is a seed?”

She hummed before nodding, “As long as they answer only yes or no.”

“Cool. Wild? Is a pea a seed?”

Wild nodded, “Yes.”

Wind looked up at the sphinx, “A pea.”

She nodded, “You have escaped my riddles three. Next one, your secret has been revealed but can you answer my next riddle?”

Hyrule carefully set Legend down. “I’m ready to try.”

“What disappears as soon as you say its name?”

Hyrule blinked, “Um, a spell? The magic is gone as soon as you say the name.”

The sphinx shook her head, “No, the answer is silence. Now to show.”

This time the smoke appeared around Hyrule and this time when the smoke disappeared Hyrule was in fairy form and standing on the ground, wobbling in place.

Legend jumped over to put a paw at Hyrule’s back who was swaying in place giggling.

Hyrule managed to turn around and hug Legend’s paw, “I luv you, you’re so fluffy and warm.”

Wild whipped out her slate and started taking pictures of the pair, especially when Legend got tired of worrying about Hyrule falling over and hurting his wings, picked him up and held Hyrule to his chest. Hyrule quickly returning the motion making it into a hug.

“Now one who falls off horses,” Wild looked up from where she had been taking pictures, despite Legend’s glare, “What is lighter than a feather, yet the strongest man can’t hold it for five minutes?”

Wild pursed her lips, thinking, “If it’s light someone should be able to hold it for a long time, unless it’s weightless. Maybe something slippery? I mean it’s hard to hold water for five minutes but you can. Wait,” Wild’s hand shot up to her earrings remembering a different set, “Breath! The answer is your breath!”

“Correct.” She turned to Sky, “I follow you all the time and copy your every move, but you can’t touch me or catch me. What am I?”

Sky blinked, “Is it supposed to be a shadow? We can touch Shadow when Four is split.”

“Hm, it was, I gift you a boon too for this is my second mistake. I must ask questions but I will only ask one from the five that are one, and if your least lucky member fails again, I will tell you how to cure him.”

Knowing that he wasn’t getting more than that Sky nodded, agreeing.

“Now five that are one I am the beginning of everything, the end of everywhere. I’m the beginning of eternity, the end of time and space. What am I?”

Four grinned, taking almost no time to think, “The letter e.”

She nodded looking at Legend, “I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. I have no body, but I come alive with wind. What am I?”

Legend rubbed his face, stopping annoyed when he hit his ears, goddesses he hated being a rabbit. “The wind?”

The sphinx grinned again, “Third time has struck. Now you be stuck.”

Chapter Text

A swirl of red magic swirled around Legend’s form as he grimaced, Hyrule frowning, “You said you’d tell us how to break it.”

“What cures royal toads and endless sleep.” The sphinx answered.

Sky glared, “That’s not an answer.”

Warriors snorted, “True love’s kiss. That’s what cures princes turned into toads, and wakes sleeping princesses. We just need to throw Legend at Ravio and he’ll be fixed.”

Twilight grimaced, “The only problem is we don’t know when that will be.”

“Right,” Warriors looked guilty, “Sorry, should have thought about that before joking.”

Legend sighed, “It’s fine you did figure out the cure, right?” He looked up at the sphinx.

She nodded before turning to look at Twilight, “You risk only a secret revealed. Now the first two letters signify a male, the first three letters signify a female, the first four letters signify a great, while the entire word signifies a great woman. What is the word?”

Twilight frowned muttering, “Male doesn’t start any words but signify a male that’s more he or him, but for the first three to signify a female it has to be her. So the first three are her,” His eyes widened before grinning at Wild, “Heroine.”

The sphinx nodded, “Correct now, pretty one; we hurt without moving. We poison without touching. We carry both truth and lies. We should not be judged by our size. What are we?”

Warriors rubbed at his scarf. “Poison and hurt are different here so the harm isn’t both but separate things. It can’t be a spike trap as it carries truth and lies. What can carry truth and lies?” He thought for a moment longer before looking at the sphinx, “Words?”

“Yes, that is correct. Now the last riddle for your group. For your oldest member it can’t be seen, can’t be felt, can’t be heard, and it can’t be smelt. It lies behind stars, under hills. And empty holes, it fills. It comes first and follows after. What is it?”

Time frowned, “That is a long riddle and mostly can’ts but it fills holes and lies behind stars.” Time watched as the rest of the group talked and cooed with Hyrule and Legend. Hyrule was now telling everyone he loved them. He blinked when Hyrule told Wind he smelled funny. Right, probably time to move on, before Hyrule accidently said something he didn’t mean to while drunk, “Darkness.”

The sphinx nodded, “Correct. Now,” she looked to Hyrule, “May magic not stuck be undone.”

Hyrule reappeared in a puff of smoke and quickly hid his face in his hands, completely embarrassed by what he had been saying while drunk.

The sphinx stood revealing a way out of the maze, “You have passed my riddles three, you may go free.”

Time nodded to her before he started helping Twilight get everyone shepherded out of the opening she had revealed. As soon as they were all past, she laid down again, once more turning to stone, waiting for the next lost adventurer to challenge her.

Time looked around the group, Legend was hanging from Hyrule’s arms, glaring at everyone, “Right so we need to figure out what to do now that Legend is temporarily stuck in the form of a rabbit. Legend, can you hold a blade?”

Four held a smaller blade out to Legend, well smaller than most, it was almost longer than he was tall in this form.

Legend frowned trying to grip onto the handle but it slipped from his paws and to the ground.

Four sighed watching the blade hit a stone, they’d probably have to fix a scratch. They went to pick it up but Legend batted their hand away as he leaned down and grabbed the hilt with his teeth somehow standing holding the blade in his mouth.

Warriors snorted, “Welp, people should be worried about their ankles with you about.”

Legend lunged forward, his hind legs propelling him across the distance almost faster than Warriors could dodge out of the way.

“Alright!” Warriors almost yelped, “You're dangerous! Got it.”

Legend muttered something around the hilt but no one could be certain what, probably something less than polite.

Twilight’s head shot to the side, “Portal incoming.”

Time grimaced, “Right. Hyrule, do you think you can protect Legend or should we try to mix up the pairings?”

Hyrule smiled, “We’ll be alright. I got a good feeling about this portal.”

“Hopefully you're right, alright everyone let’s move out.”

Quickly the group clumped up next to the portal before quickly rushing through in their small groups. The closer they went into a portal the closer they seemed to be if they got split up by the portal.

On the other side of the portal almost everyone was feeling the effects. Only Time, who was always immune and Legend were spared.

Looking around Legend realized that they were in his orchard, grinning he bounced off dropping the blade as he spoke, “I’m going to go see Ravio. Stay with those whimps while they recover and then come up. If we’re lucky Ravio will make something for you all to eat with the apples, it looks like they are in season for picking.”

Leaving the others with Time, Legend quickly loped until he got to his house, glaring at the closed door he jumped up and tried to grab the handle but his fingers slid off the knob so he settled for yelling, “RAVIO!”

Something fell to the ground inside and then footsteps rushed to the door he was at. The door swung open as a worried Ravio looked out, “Mr. Hero?”

Legend relaxed, “Down here doofus.”

Ravio looked down and blinked, “I thought I was the rabbit in this relationship.”

“Har, har,” Legend glared up at Ravio, “You’re a comedian.”

“I try. Can I pet you?”

Legend sighed, “Fine but afterwards kiss my head or something to fix this.”

Ravio kneeled down to pet Legend’s ears and down his back, “Kiss?”

“The stupid sphinx that did this said the cure was a kiss.”

Chuckling Ravio leaned forward and dropped a kiss on Legend’s forehead. He stood as a poof of smoke appeared around Legend’s form. Once the smoke disappeared Ravio leaned in for a real kiss.

Legend was just pulling back from that kiss when the rest of the Chain made it into view of the door.

Warriors groaned, “Damn it. I wanted to see rabbit Legend getting a kiss from Ravio.”

Legend rolled his eyes, “Too bad, now Ravio, are there any apples for pie?”

Grinning, Ravio nodded as he let everyone inside. As they all settled down in the living room Warriors claiming the first shower Ravio started pulling out all the ingredients he would need to make all the pies he would need to feed a group like the Chain full of pie. It required a lot of ingredients.