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“Do you think I will ever be rid of him?”
Revali shrugged, letting the hot water cascade over his feathers as he contemplated the small grumpy girl in front of him. “Give it time, princess.”
Zelda sat up straighter and looked at him intently. “You really think my father will relent about me having him with me all the time?”
“Oh goddesses, no.” Revali couldn’t resist a smirk. “Your father is determined to use blind faith to get through this, and apparently that means never changing his course no matter what happens the minute he gets some hint of the divine, and your knight’s ugly sword counts.” He made an expansive gesture across the hot springs, sending a wave of water towards his companion. “If your father had a lick of sense, he’d have noticed that he’s clipping the wings of one of his most talented engineers.”
The compliment got only a sad smile. “So in that case, how is time going to help? I doubt he’s going to misplace the holy sword any time soon.”
“Well, your little knight still has plenty of time to choke on a rock roast. Or launch himself right into a hinox’s eyeball and drown in aqu… what did you say eyeball juice was called?”
That elicited a tiny giggle from the princess as she answered, “aqueous humour.” But Revali wasn’t done yet.
“And there’s still time for one of the other champions to kick him with a divine beast. I know Daruk’s having the most control problems but I bet it’ll be Mipha accidentally knocking him off a cliff with Vah Ruta.” Revali grabbed a small rock and placed it at the edge of the hot springs, holding his wing out like Vah Ruta’s trunk and raising it up and down. Once he got it lined up, made a flick of water from the spring knock the rock off into the nearby mud. “Oh no, my poor little meow meow! Don’t worry, I’ll come heal you. But you have to get naked so I can clean the mud from your poor battered body.” he declared in a high-pitched mimicry of Mipha’s voice.
Now he was getting real laughter, finally. After a few moments of laughter slowly reverting to wheezing, Zelda finally choked out, “I don’t think Mipha’s capable of hurting him on purpose.”
“Pfft. Sure, she’s too good but I bet her divine beast knows that her deepest fantasy is to spend hours healing sad wet cat Link.”
That set off another splutter of laughter. “You paint such a vivid image, Master Revali.”
He gave her a wicked smile. “Of course I do. My mastery of the winds also gives me mastery over the spoken word, don’t you know.”
Finally, his distraction was doing what the hot spring hadn’t been able to do alone. He could see her shoulders start to loosen and she relaxed back against the rocks with a more contented sigh before her face screwed up with unhappiness again. “I still don’t see how time is going to help the fact that I’ve been saddled with Mipha’s favourite wet beast, though,” she sighed.
“Aah, but the thing your father forgot as he attempted to clip your wings is that not only are you a talented engineer, but you’re also a talented diplomat.” Revali pointed a wingtip at the princess’s forehead. “You used that clever brain of yours to not only recruit the best pilots who could help you, but also to get us to work together, as a team. Surely with a little time, you’ll have a plan to get that useless boy under your thumb and working on your team too.”
“Why Master Revali, are you saying you have faith in me?” Zelda replied, emphasizing the word faith with all the disdain she couldn’t show in front of her father.
Revali intentionally fluffed his feathers in affront, as much as he could in all the humid air. “Hardly, princess.” He probably looked ridiculous but it was worth the effort when it yielded an appreciative giggle at his theatrics from his audience. He took a moment to bask in her reaction before he continued. “Unlike some, I am relying on ample evidence of the skills you have demonstrated repeatedly. You are smart and you’ll figure out what makes him tick and get him to see things your way. You just need time for analysis.”
“And if what I need is a break so I can think without those blank blue eyes on me?”
Revali smirked. “If this isn’t enough, I’m always available to push your knight into a mud puddle in front of Mipha.” He gestured with a wing, using a pulse of magic to splash Zelda with water. “Oops! Oh what a tragic accident, now he’s all wet and pathetic and needs your tender care, Zora Champion. He will take days to recover! Weeks even!”
Zelda spluttered, wiping water from her face, then looking at him with gratitude in her eyes. “You’re a great friend, Revali.”
“Of course I am!” Revali made a show of puffing up for a moment, then he wiped the smirk from his face for a moment to continue with clear and honest sincerity, “Any time you need me, Zelda.” Then he let the grin come back, “Especially if you want to spend some time brainstorming ways to haze your new mandatory shadow.”