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Everyone was glad when they left the swamp. A full week of the clinging muck was more than even Wild and Hyrule could handle.
As soon as they were out, Warriors rushed to open his bag and change clothes, quickly followed by everyone else. Wind opened his own bag, only to promptly remember accidentally dropping his bag on the second day into the swamp. All of his clothes were muddy, slimy, and stinky — no better than what he was already wearing.
“Hey, Ledge, can I borrow something until we reach somewhere we can do laundry?” Hyrule asked. Right, he didn’t have a change of clothes either.
“Sure,” said Legend, who’d already changed into a green ‘undertunic’ — dress — identical to his usual. He reached into his bag and pulled out a third identical green undertunic.
“How many of those do you have?” Wild asked with interest.
“Only the three, in green.”
“And in other colours?”
Legend smirked and didn’t elaborate.
“Okay, hoarder,” Warriors shoved him lightly, and they both snickered. “Let’s get a move on.”
“Wait!” Wind exclaimed, and then froze as everyone looked at him. He hadn’t meant to be that loud. He rallied his courage. “Legend, do you have something I can borrow, too?” He’d have asked Wild, except Wild was just tall enough that most of his outfits would be uncomfortably big on Wind. Legend, who was shorter, had clothes that would nearly fit Wind perfectly.
Legend’s eyes widened in realisation. “Shit, your bag. Yeah, I got something. Hang on.”
He dug around in his bag for a minute, arm disappearing into it much further than the outside dimensions would imply. He finally pulled out a yellow undertunic, similar in cut to his green ones.
Wind happily scrambled to change, but Legend frowned at him when he was done.
“That much yellow does not work for you,” he proclaimed, nose wrinkled, and then went back to digging in his bag.
Warriors quietly tried to get him to look while they walked, but Legend shooed him off, insisting that it was ‘important’.
Finally, he pulled out a blue tunic. “Here, that should help break up the yellow some, and you’ll probably feel better in your usual blue, even if it’s not the same shade.”
It wasn’t the same shade, not even close, but Legend was right; Wind did feel better about wearing blue.
With Wind changed, they got to walking. It was odd, not wearing pants. His legs rubbed against each other.
Legend drifted closer. “Swing your legs around each other, so your steps are more in a line. Helps with chafing.”
He exaggerated his walking to demonstrate what he meant. Wind copied him. It helped. It also made the skirt of the tunic swish and sway around his legs as he walked.
Wind felt… pretty… with it doing that. He hadn't felt that way before. It was actually sort of nice.
He experimented with different ways of moving his legs and hips, seeing how it affected the skirt.
He was so distracted watching it that he didn't notice when everyone else stopped until Legend tapped him on the shoulder. “Having fun?”
Wind blushed. “It's just new,” he said defensively.
Legend’s smirk widened, but he thankfully didn't push. “Sure. We haven't found a lake or river yet, so you can keep experimenting with the ‘newness’ of it tomorrow. Anyway, Time asked if you'd help gather sticks for the campfire.”
Wind hurried off, trying to get away from Legend’s smile.
---
Wind woke up, still in the dress she'd borrowed from Legend, though she'd removed the blue tunic to sleep.
She yawned and wandered over to the campfire, where Wild was handing out oatmeal. Hers had fruit and a bit more honey than Warriors thought was appropriate for breakfast, because Wild was the best and Warriors was too distracted to notice.
When breakfast was done and camp cleaned up, they got back on the road. Wind watched how Legend walked a bit more carefully this time and did her best to copy him. The way he moved his hips caused his skirt to almost snap as he walked, which made Wind feel very powerful when she managed the same.
---
They reached town around mid-day. The group split up — Four would take everyone’s weapons and armour to the smithy to clean and sharpen them, Wild was to gather food, and Warriors and Time would take everyone’s dirty clothes to get them washed at the laundry house.
Legend grabbed Wind’s hand. “We'll get arrows, potions, and anything else we need. Tell me before we leave or you're not getting it.”
A bunch of the group listed off supplies that they were running low on. Wind was glad that Legend was listening, because the things just did not register in her brain.
Legend guided her around the town. Wind was honestly more focused on getting her skirt to swish just right than on purchasing anything. For once, Legend didn’t seem to mind being with someone distracted.
A couple of hours in, Wind realised that they were at a clothing store.
“Why are we here?” she asked Legend.
“We’re getting you a skirt of your own,” Legend said distractedly, as he looked through the outfits on display. “Skirt or full dress?”
“What?”
“Full dresses are easier to layer with other things, like protective tunics, but skirts are more versatile.”
“What are you talking about?”
“We’re getting you a skirt. Or a dress.”
“But why?!”
Legend blinked at her confusedly. “Don’t you want one?”
And, well, he was right. She did want one. She wanted her own skirt to swish, rather than Legend’s borrowed tunic. She hadn’t realised she could just get one though.
“I can have one?”
“Hell, you can have three, so long as you can fight in at least one of them. I’d get you a whole wardrobe of skirts if you wanted, but we don’t want to blow the teams budget all at once.”
“But, I don’t need any more clothes? My usual ones fit just fine still, once they’re clean.”
Legend stared at her, deadpan. “Wind, you’ve been paying more attention to your skirt than anything else for the past day and a half. I know the signs when I see them.”
“Signs of what?”
“You’re not a boy, are you?”
Wind sputtered, because of course she — he — was.
Legend patted her — him — on the shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. Neither am I. Anyway, skirt or dress?”
---
Wind ended up getting three skirts. One was orange like her usual pants. The second had straps that went up over her shoulders, which made it feel like a dress while still being a skirt. It was in a grey that Legend said would go with almost any colour shirt.
The final skirt was actually a full dress. It was in her favourite shade of blue. The style reminded her of the coming-of-age dresses that were tradition on Outset, but more practical for a hero.
That dress was what she was wearing when she and Legend returned to the inn.
Wild seemed to teleport to her side. “Ooh! I love your dress!” he exclaimed.
“Thanks!”
Warriors groaned. “Legend, really? You’re corrupting others now, too?”
Legend smirked. “I’m coming for all of you. Wind’s just the start. Fear my power!”
Wild and Wind burst into snickers.
“You know,” Twilight said with a smirk of his own, “if you could find a skirt I can herd goats in, I’d be willing to be corrupted.”
“I think I can manage that,” Legend said. “Then I’m coming for the pretty boy.”
Warriors acted scared but had a bright smile on his face.