Chapter Text
One — Little Bird
Her parents had named her Zelda for the princesses of history, those said to have possessed the Triforce of Wisdom. It was who she was nearly everywhere she went. It followed her like a nasty spirit, a weight on her shoulders she didn't want to bear.
With her Auntie Urbosa, she was Little Bird. And today she was flying the nest.
The sun had only just risen, but Zelda had long since been up. She'd gotten into bed early and faded in and out of sleep for a while, eventually rolling onto her back and staring at the ceiling. Her alarm hadn't rang yet. She estimated the time to be between four and six, though she couldn't be sure until she actually got up. She didn't want to get up. Her bed was warm and the air was sure to be frigid— Urbosa always left the cold air running at night during the summer— not to mention the fact that today was the first day back to school. But that wasn't all, no. Today, she would be starting at a new school. East Central Hyrule High, or something. It had a long name that she hadn't yet memorized. For how much she prided herself on being good at researching, she'd done embarrassingly little on her new school. How many times could she think the word 'school' before she actually arrived at the building? At least a thousand, she figured, if she thought of nothing else literally until she stepped on the property. No. Three thousand. Five?
Beep! Beep! Beep!
It was five forty-five, then.
With a sigh, she kicked the blanket away. The air was freezing as she predicted. She opened the window as much as it would go to let some of the cold out. Urbosa never did explain why she liked to keep it so chilly. Maybe it was Zelda's fault for not asking enough.
Zelda. Zelda. Zelda. It was as demanding as the alarm she still hadn't turned off.
Her hand met the top of the noisy plastic box harshly. The silence was almost worse.
Most of her clothes were at her penthouse, but she'd luckily been smart enough to bring some outfits to choose from. She laid them out and chewed on her lip for a good while before deciding. Her dark skirt went just past her knees and popped nicely against her sweater. But she was no fool, of course not, she knew it would be hot out, so she'd put a tank top under the sweater in case the heat got to be too much. While true that wearing two tops would raise her body temperature, she'd rather have the backup option and need to use it because she had it than need it based on just the temperature outside and not have it because she'd thought it'd be counterproductive.
Simply, she'd thought it out. She always thought it out. No matter what it was.
Her necklaces and rings tied the outfit together. She spun in the mirror a few times, a small smile on her face. It was hard not to get caught up in herself when she was looking so cute. That was what she thought.
The main room was much colder than hers— she finally felt comfortable calling it hers, after all the time she spent in it— and it took a lot of willpower not to jump back under the covers. Her school bag sat politely on the end of the sofa and her jacket hung on the doorknob. The only two pieces of evidence that anyone but Urbosa had been there.
She knew that this moment would seem years ago by the end of the day. For the better or the worse, she'd be a different person. Maybe that was dramatic. Probably. Yeah, definitely, that was dramatic. Over the top. She wouldn't be a different person. She'd be the same old mayor's daughter straight-A good girl that she'd always been.
Footsteps came from the other room before the door swung open to reveal Urbosa, her red hair a mess and her pajamas somehow softer looking than when Zelda saw her last night.
"Oh, you're up?"
"Yes. Good morning."
"Morning, Birdie." Urbosa hugged Zelda's head, too tall to comfortably hug anywhere else. "It's early, you know."
"Yes, I know."
"And you're already dressed? Basically ready to go?"
"Yes."
"Are you so eager to leave me?"
Zelda laughed and pushed herself off Urbosa. "No, I just didn't want to be late."
"Mm."
She was soon presented with a plate of fruit and a plain cream cheese bagel. It was simple compared to what she usually ate in the morning, but it would carry her until lunch.
"Are you coming back here after school?" '
"No." Despite it not being new information to her, saying it aloud made Zelda frown. "Father wants me home. But I'll be back soon."
"Then I'll make sure your things are safely delivered."
"Thank you."
Urbosa sat on the couch between Zelda and her bag. "You're stiff. Moreso than usual."
Zelda chewed the same bite much longer than necessary and forced herself to swallow. "I suppose my mind is somewhere else right now."
"And where might that be, Little Bird?"
Urbosa had called her that since before she could remember. It was always comforting, always calmed her down. She was maybe— probably— definitely too old for such things now, but it was like she was no longer in control of herself when she heard those words used for her. She was a child again, wide-eyed, small, trusting.
"I… don't know. I think I'm just nervous."
"I understand. But it'll be okay. First days are awkward for everyone. No one knows what they're doing or what's going on."
Zelda ran her hand through her hair. "What if I don't meet anyone I like?"
"You will."
"What if I trip? Or my voice cracks?"
"It happens to the best of us."
"What if I don't understand something?"
"I doubt that will happen."
Zelda gave Urbosa her best pouting face.
"But if it does," Urbosa sighed as she stood, "all you need to do is communicate."
She made it sound so easy. Almost grossly easy. If only her mind could comprehend that.
"I'm going to go now. It'd be nice to get there a little early."
"If you insist. Be careful, okay?"
"Okay."
Urbosa kissed Zelda's forehead. It was one of the many things she always did but never explained. Not that Zelda had ever asked. Or that she was complaining.
She grabbed her bag and took a deep breath. It would be okay. Nothing bad would happen. She'd survive the day, go home, and rest. It couldn't be too different from last year.
With a final look around the room, she was off.
The first thing Zelda noticed was how people dressed when not forced to follow a dress code. Many were wearing clothes obviously too large for them, or things almost too small. Primarily, she thought a lot of them— not all, but a lot— looked ridiculous. Once she could look past that, though, she was delighted to be able to observe other teens in the real world. Normal teens.
The second thing she noticed was how gigantic the building was. When chewing on that discovery, she realized she didn't know where anything was. Not her locker, not the cafeteria, not her classrooms. Nothing.
All you need to do is communicate. She touched the Triforce around her neck and walked into the building.
It was much more chaotic inside than out, louder and more crowded and hotter for some reason. Navigating the sea of people proved difficult, but she found the main office and stumbled through the door unscathed. It was a boring room, a couple large desks lining the wall and simple-looking women sitting behind them, all of whom were now looking at Zelda. She stood stupidly for a moment before remembering what she came for.
"Um, hello." She cleared her throat. It happens to the best of us. "I don't, ah, know… I need a schedule, please. And a locker."
"What's your name, dear?"
"Zelda. Bosphoramus."
One of the ladies clicked obnoxiously at her keyboard. "Mmmm… looks like the principal's got all that for you in his office. Just go through that door right there and it'll be on your right."
There was another person behind a desk on the other side who barely glanced up when she entered but informed Zelda that she could just go in when she knocked on the principal's door. This third room was smaller and less industrial-like. There was art on the walls, warm lamplight as opposed to the floursecents that strained her eyes, and a desk that wasn't comically large. On one side sat a man she assumed to be the principal, much less intimidating than she'd thought, and on the other side was a small-looking blond boy.
"Ah! We've been waiting for you," the principal said. He pushed a pile of papers towards her. "Those are for you. They have lots of information on the school, like sports and clubs and events. All your student information is on the last sheet."
"Oh. Alright."
"And you're new here, so I thought you should have someone to, er, guide you, for lack of a better term. This is Link."
The blond boy stood, smiled, and held his hand out. Zelda hesitated before shaking it. Link. She was familiar with that name. Many knights— royal knights— from her textbooks were called that. She wondered if he was named for them. "Hello."
With his free hand, he waved.
"He doesn't talk," the principal said.
"He… oh." Her hand dropped from his. "Why not?"
Link shrugged. She didn't know what she expected.
"Um, okay. Well, my name is Zelda."
He made some motions with his hands and looked at her as if expecting a response. Simultaneously, her expression shifted to confusion and his shifted to realization. They both looked at the principal, who seemed almost horrified.
"Zelda, don't you…?"
"What? Don't I what?"
"Sign. Oh dear."
Zelda had not known this man for more than two minutes, but she already suspected that no one took him seriously. "It's fine, I'm sure we can figure it out."
"Please let me know if you can't. I can always find someone else to help you."
"Yeah. We can figure it out."
Zelda looked at Link, who was looking back at her with an unreadable expression. This should be fun. She collected her papers and brought the back sheet to the front.
"This says I'm in room 205 first period. Do you know where that is?"
He glanced down at his own papers and nodded.
"His schedule is very similar to yours, so you won't have to worry too much about getting lost or being alone. Go on now. You don't want to be late."
Link's eyes moved across his papers for a moment before his gaze met Zelda's and he nodded towards the door. She followed him out to the hallways, which were thankfully emptier than earlier. Walking beside him, Zelda figured he wasn't actually too small, just shorter than her and wearing clothes that made him look skinny. His hair was a bit darker than hers and tied low. It was sort of long for a boy's, she thought, but she'd seen stranger.
She only realized she was staring when he turned his head toward her and his eyebrows raised. It was subtle and he hardly seemed upset, but it still embarrassed her. The floor was suddenly very interesting. "Sorry." In her peripheral, she saw him shrug.
They continued walking quietly towards wherever he was leading her. She was getting lost in thought, wondering if he'd meet anyone besides Link before the day was over. She hoped so. At her old school, there were really only Hylians and some Zora, and even then, she didn't talk to anybody that much. It was part of the reason she'd begged to transfer to a public school— she'd be exposed to more kinds of people, which would better prepare her for the real world where she'd have to be able to interact with anyone, and she might have a better chance at making friends. She'd had a sort of reputation for always working and being standoffish or awkward before. She wanted to change that.
Something touched her shoulder. She flinched and sighed when she realized it was just Link tapping her. "Yes?"
He looked at the papers in her hand and back up at her. Unsure of what he wanted, she held them out to him. He took them and stopped walking.
"What are you—"
He pointed at something on the paper.
"Uh, locker number… is that not near here?"
The look on his face said no.
"Well, lovely. Why don't we just go to class? My bag isn't too heavy to carry."
His lips pressed into a thin line, but he nodded. He seemed alright so far, Zelda decided.
They eventually stopped at a door labeled 205. Link held it open for her to enter first. She tried not to look scared or nervous. There weren't many people in the room yet, so it wasn't insanely difficult. She slipped into a seat and took one of her notebooks out. Doodles slowly filled the margins of the first page as more students filed in and the bell rang.
She'd gotten through the day's intro. Now she just had to get through the rest.