I'm learning to swim (but I ain't got gills!)

"Welcome to the Kochi Dye Shop, where we live to dye! My name is Saygee…. What can I do for you?" Asked a rather odd-looking man.

What hair he did have was slicked back and colored pink. He had many piercings and other trinkets embroidering his body.

"Ahem," I cleared my throat. "Good morning, sir. What types of services might this establishment offer?" I asked him.

"Well, if you were looking to add some color to your wardrobe, you've found the right place," he explained. He moved his hands somewhat erratically as he spoke.

Kinda freaks me out, but in a good way. Like: 'woo this is freakin weird.'

"I don't see any clothes, though?" I said questioningly.

"Oh ho ho no, we don't sell clothing here… We alter it," he explained.

"Can you do anything with this?" I asked as I fluffed my tunic about.

Saygee crossed his arms and propped his chin up in his hand. His eyes sized me up from head to toe, which didn't take long. I'm a little vertically challenged. I'll grow someday.

"Hmm…. Maybe… Perhaps a nice, cute pink?" He asked.

I felt my eye twitch.

"Perhaps something else… anything else…" I said.

He seemed to understand.

"If not pink, maybe we go black… edgy… a bad girl with nothing to lose…" He suggested.

"Hmm… I have always been something of a ne'er-do-well…" I said.

The boards beneath us began to creak as someone entered the shop.

I turned to find Kite standing in the breach looking unimpressed.

"How did you find me?!" I groaned.

"Followed the smell," he said with a shrug.

"I do NOT smell!" I barked.

"Then how else would I have found you?" He asked as he perused the shop.

"I mean… you used your magic, or something…" I mumbled.

He picked up a plate and balanced it on his fingertips.

"You're right… I did use magic… scent tracking magic… I sniffed you out," he said.

"I feel so violated!" I shouted in embarrassment.

"I can't get the smell of week old feet out of my nose… who was really violated here?" He asked as he began to spin the plate atop his finger.

"Saygee! Help me out here?" I pleaded.

Subtly… very subtly… There was a moment of the faintest movement of his nostril as he too took in a wiff.

"Hey I saw that!" I cried out. "Your snozz sniffed!"

"My what what?" He asked.

"She makes up words," Kite explained.

"I like to think I augment my sentences," I said.

"If only you would augment your intelligence," he mumbled as he returned the plate.

"Are you still planning to use my services?" Saygee asked.

"No!" I shouted.

"Then could you please leave?" he asked nervously.

"Fine! Cmon, Kite! Let's go!" I growled as I stormed out.

"I'm pretty sure he kicked you out, not me," Kite said as the door shut behind me.

And so, I sat on the steps and pouted while I waited on him to finish getting his shirt dyed.

***

"So, what's next on your list?" Kite asked as we saddled up.

"Be taught how to swim by a Zora," I said. Who wouldn't want private swimming lessons from fish people?... Also, I wonder if I should be thinking of them as fish people... I feel like that's rude.

"You don't know how to swim?" he asked.

"I wasn't born a fish," I explained.

"You don't need to be a fish to be able to swim," he teased.

"Do you know how to fly?" I asked.

"I see the point you're trying to make, but there are some differences," he said.

"If you saw the point I was trying to make then you would understand that judging a person by what they can't do that others can is the same as judging a fish that can't seem to climb a tree." I threw myself onto Reverend Julio the IV, and gently kicked him into gear.

"You're right, you really do say smart things," Kite admitted as he clambered to catch up.

I pulled out my notebook, flipped a few pages, and put an x beside entry number forty-four: Say something cool in front of a boy.

"What did you just check off?" he asked.

"Make Kite Feel Inferior To Me," I said.

"I have my doubts," he said.

"That's the inferiority complex making you think that way," I said.

He looked down at his hands, clenched and unclenched them multiple times, and then looked at me.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing… This will just be the first time I've ever hit a girl," he said.

I veered the Reverend a few steps away from him.

"Might want to add 'Survived The Wanderer's Rage' to your list," he said.

"Don't tell me what to do," I said as I did exactly that.

***

Having a riding partner was a strange feeling… I'm not used to saying what I'm thinking out loud and having someone respond to it. I do appreciate the Reverend, but it's nice to have someone who speaks Hylian. I want to bring up to Kite what I was thinking, but it's way too embarrassing.

We had considered trying to go through Mount Lanayru to get to the Zora's Domain, but decided against it. Our mounts likely wouldn't do well on the trip. Instead we opted to skirt through the marshes west of it, towards central Hyrule, and then cut east along the river.

As we rounded the western bend of the foot of the mountain, another small shrine came into view. This one was glowing blue, unlike the one outside Kakariko Village.

"I wonder why that one is blue?" I said.

"No idea. I tried going into the one in Hateno earlier, but I couldn't find any way in," he said.

"We should probably stay away from them, in case they explode," I said.

"That logic can be applied to a lot of things out here," he said as he looked across the marsh.

Out among their holds, dozens of Lizalfos were prowling. I generally try to steer clear of them. They're faster than the Reverend, and their beady eyes give me the creeps…

***

Despite a few close calls with the lizards, we managed to reach the base of the path leading to the Zora's Domain.

"There's a stable not far from here… I've heard the path is treacherous. Shall we stable our rides for now?" he asked.

"You can stable your horse, and I'll leave Reverend Julio the IV behind to keep him safe," I said.

"Oohhhhkk…." He said.

After stabling them, as we walked away, I said,

"I had to reword it to make it sound like Julio would be doing us a favor, otherwise he wouldn't have wanted to stay."

"Do you speak donkey?" he asked.

"Yes, the Reverend taught me," I said.

"That is in no way weird at all," he said.

"I agree," I said.

As we approached the path, it began to rain. What started as a drizzle became steadier, and more powerful, until finally it was an outright downpour. It was so heavy and persistent that flooding was happening all around us. The entire slope of the mountain was covered in running water. Our already treacherous journey was made all the worse by the unsureness of our footing with each step we took.

"Reymie! Take my hand, I'm going to swing you across!" Kite shouted above the torrenting rain.

We had come to a part of the path that had been cleaved off by a rockslide. From where we were standing, the other side was easily over ten feet away.

"I'm scared!" I shouted back.

"Don't be! I'll catch you!" he shouted as he clasped my arm.

"You wha-?!" I shouted as he swung me whole sale across the cliff.

As I flew through the air, I thought about what I said earlier.

'Can you fly?'

Well, it certainly feels like I am… Well, actually… given the amount of water in the air, this is probably more like swimming… Not that I would know what either is like… It was all happening so fast. The moment I left Kite's hands, he disappeared, only to reappear on the other side just as I came crashing into his arms.

"Why are you smiling like that?!" He said to me.

"This is so much fun!" I shouted above the howling wind and rain. I patted my hands on his chest as I did.

Suddenly we both realized that he still had one arm around my waist. We quickly separated.

"Uh… Hey! I think there's some Lizalfos over there!" He quickly said.

"How dare they live in their natural habitat!" I shouted. "Let's go do something about that!"

And so, we did.

***

We came to a part of the path that had a flooding river flowing over it. There was a thin, rocky high point towards the middle that stretched to the other side, but we would have to walk very carefully to get across.

"I'll go first, and make sure it's safe!" he said.

I nodded, and after he had gone a few paces, I followed him. Water was rushing all around us, but we pressed onward.

The dangers we faced climbing this mountain, and the rush of adrenaline I felt with each step we took was everything I had hoped for when I left home. Had Kite not been here, I might have had to turn back. I've been spoiled now. I can't go back to adventuring before this… I can't go back to being alone.

"Hey, Kite!" I shouted as we tip toed across a flooding pass.

"Yea?" He looked over his shoulder at me.

"Can you promise that you'll go on more adventures with me, please!?" I called out to him over the wind and rain and debris.

He smiled.

But it didn't last. His horrified face was all I really thought about as the wave came crashing over me, pulling me off the side of the mountain…

I remember desperately thrashing about, trying to right myself, but even to an experienced swimmer, the current would have been impossible.

I remember the horrid sensation as water filled my lungs.

I remember the shocking pain that came with every rock I collided with.

But more than anything, I remember the sudden ease that came over me as I felt Kite's arms wrap around me.

I only wish I could have stayed awake long enough to see his face when he pulled me out of the river…

***

"Guhhhh…" I groaned as my eyes opened.

The room I was in appeared to be carved from stone. And though I could tell it wasn't, the bed certainly felt like it was made of the same. My bones ached as I rolled over and sat on the edge of the bed. My legs dangled off the side. I quickly reached for my tunic and donned it before I was caught without it on. I worry to think of who might have undressed me to begin with.

The thought of Kite's arms around me filled my mind again.

I blushed and shook the image away. I quickly stood up, got a little dizzy, sat back down, waited, and then finally got up and left the room.

"I know that probably seems silly, but I would really appreciate it," I heard Kite say as I descended the stairs.

"Not it all, it's very sweet," a female Zora said to him from behind the bar.

She took notice of me, and grinned. Kite followed her eyes to me and he turned around to see me.

"You're awake," he said.

"Am I? Sorta feels like a dream," I said as I took a seat next to him.

The Zora smiled, and said, "welcome to The Seabed Inn. My name is Kodah. How are you feeling?"

"I feel like I got knocked off a cliff," I mumbled.

Kodah giggled a little.

"Let me get you something to drink," she said.

I looked out of the windows and found that the storm from earlier had faded.

"It stopped raining," I said as she set a cup with some kind of blue liquid in it down in front of me.

"Yea, it happened shortly after I got you here," he said. "It's a long story, but the Prince and a Hylian apparently had something to do with it."

"Neat," I said as I sipped my juice.

"So, I've been talking to Kodah about your swimming abilities, specifically a lack thereof," he said.

"A trout would have struggled swimming in that!" I whined.

"No, I know! I'm not blaming you for that, but I remember you mentioned wanting to learn from a Zora," he said.

"Yea…?" I peered at him over my juice cup.

"Kodah said her daughter Finley could teach you," he said.

"Really!?" I nearly fell over backwards out of excitement.

"Once you feel better you can-"

"I feel great when can we start?!" I jumped out of my seat.

Kodah called Finley over, and with Kite in tow, we trotted out to a pond outside of the city.

***

I plopped down my backpack next to the edge of the pond and began rifling through it.

"Aha!" I called out as I pulled my swimming trunks out.

"Trunks?" Kite asked.

"Mhm, and a swimming shirt, too," I said as I pulled out my shirt with a fish on it.

"Not what I was expecting," he said.

"What were you expecting?" I asked.

He looked over his shoulder for a moment, rubbed the back of his neck, but finally just waved me off.

"It's nothing," he said.

"…Ok… well, I need some privacy," I said as I swished my clothes around for emphasis.

"Oh! Right… Ah, I'll just… Uh…"

"Wander?" I said facetiously.

"That was corny," he said

"Haha yea ok get lost," I said.

Once he was out of sight, I dipped behind a bush and slipped on my new clothes. Ahh man I'm so excited. I never thought I would get to use these. This is gonna be great!

"Master Finley!" I shouted as I jumped out from behind the bush. "I am ready, teach me your ways."

"You can just call me Finley," she said shyly.

At first, it was pretty rough. Finley would hold me up as I tried to paddle. I did fine up until the point where I needed to keep my head above water.

"How's it going?" Kite asked as he returned to the pond.

"I think my ancestors were Gorons," I mumbled.

"She flails her arms around like a baby bird," Finley said.

"I'm gonna slap you, kid," I said.

"Touch me and I'll let you sink," she said.

"I am sorry," I said.

"Kite, can you go get my mom? I'm gonna need some help here," she said.

"I have an idea," he said.

Finley raised a brow. Kite pulled a seal out of his belt, and looked at me.

"So, here's the thing… I've never had a need for something like this, so this is the first seal of this kind I've ever made," he said.

"Of this kind?" I asked.

"Buoyancy," he said. "It will make you float, so you can focus on getting a feel for the water."

"What happens if you made the seal wrong?" Finley asked.

"It might fizzle out, or it might free Calamity Ganon from Hyrule Castle, hard to say, really," Kite said with a shrug.

"That's a risk I'm prepared to take," I said.

Finley opened her mouth to object, but it was too late. Kite slapped me in the forehead with the seal, and a blue aura surrounded me.

"Is it working?" I asked.

Kite reached out with his foot and pushed me away from Finley. I floated gently across the pond, like a feather.

"Well, we can reasonably say that the worst-case scenario hasn't happened," he said.

I started to splash around from the center of the pond.

"This is great! I wish I would have met you sooner!" I said.

He just smiled and looked down at the ground. He rubbed his neck and kicked a few pebbles into the pond.

"Well, let's pick up where we left off, I guess," Finley said.

"Yes, teach me, mold me. Make me like you," I said.

"At the very least, we'll make you less of a rock," she said as she swam towards me.

This is so much fun. I'm so happy. I'm so glad I met you, Kite.