Chapter Text
Word count - 3,720
After the initial chaos settled down and the girls stopped rejoicing, Jewel finally understood what was going on. She clapped enthusiastically from the cart's seat, and accepted Sidon's hand to climb down. She approached the small cheering crowd unusually calm and kept her distance.
Bluebird had healed her headache, but she didn't want to risk it coming back, and had been allowed to stay near the caravan.
Rusl walked by carrying rolls of moss enveloped in fabric. The girl beamed. "How much did you find?"
"Enough to last us months, I think." Rusl stopped to answer, placing the roll down and offering her a small sample. Jewel giggled in delight, sinking her fingers in the porous texture.
She quickly hid it in her skirts, followed the man to the supplies cart and took a seat at the front, where she'd be able to hear any gossip and take her part without fear of being trampled.
Of course, they dropped it all on Ravio to stash into neat little packages. Queen joined him after the merchant had dramatically complained that they were working him like a slave which, of course not!
Jewel tried to cheer him on. "Look at it this way," she said, "pretend you're giving us the supplies in exchange for protection, or something similar."
Ravio blinked slowly with a rare sarcastic smile plastered in place, and stood up to pat her head. "But my child, you know what they say. Without reason, no cat comes out."
She stared back, and commented in a flat tone. "Your translated words hold no meaning. Either get the right saying in Hylian or give up."
He smiled. "Sorry, what I mean is that I cannot possibly pretend to do a thankless job simply because I'm asked to. Bekorga mushuk oftobga chiqmaydi." Ravio pushed some black hair off his face. "I'm a business man, princess, I must get something in return."
She punched his arm. He laughed.
They travelled until the sun was halfway through the horizon, when they stopped the carts to let the horses rest and the people eat. Jewel immediately threw herself over the division to take her part as Ravio, Legend and Queen were already distributing rations and taking notes with Wild perched nearby, like a bird. As the designated cook, he took all the remaining supplies to store in his Purah Pad.
Jewel wanted one. You could store anything inside and it remained as fresh as the moment you put it in. Plus, it weighted nothing. And he had all his clothes and precious stones inside it! She needed one of those.
The young blonde got two hefty bags and quickly scurried away as to not be crushed by other eager princesses and a couple of Heroes.
She sat on a tree root on the side and examined the first bag. It was full of seeds, nuts, berries and plain cookies. The other held a couple oranges, apples and even a pear. She also got a package of lard, legumes and bits of dried meat.
The princess smiled to herself as she went through the contents, the forage session had been a total success with so many people contributing. Also, Jewel observed proudly the few snap pea-pods on the package, which she'd found and collected all by herself.
She happily bit into one and kept rummaging. She wrinkled her nose and pulled out some hard-shelled nuts. She hated opening those by herself. Oh well, she could always beg Minish to be her personal nutcracker. He never said no.
Jewel didn't look up when Linebeck sat cross-legged in front of her with Arryl taking a seat between his legs to examine the contents of her own bag. Jewel eyed the girl before offering a handful of berries. "I'll give them to you in exchange for some apples."
"Okay!" Arryl searched her bag, but before she could pull anything out, Linebeck caught her hands.
"Ha, as if!" He fixed Jewel with a cocked eyebrow and flat mouth. "Give us the citrus and no one will get hurt "
Jewel scrunched her nose. "But I like oranges!"
"That's not the point. I'm protecting the girl from scurvy!"
Arryl rolled her eyes at this and tried to free her hands. He let go, but shut the bag and pushed it behind him.
"But I'm not getting scurvy."
"Who says that?"
The younger girl stared blankly at the grumpy sailor. She blinked slowly, then waved around wildly. Linebeck didn't budge. "Your grandma is counting on me to keep your safe and sound Arryl. Now, princess, the oranges, please."
Jewel pretended to consider.
"Nope."
"Kid!"
"Live with the knowledge that your daughter ate apples instead of oranges." Jewel stuck her tongue.
Linebeck frowned and slowly leaned forward. "Oh yeah?" He placed Arryl away to keep the movement. Jewel leaned back with sudden dread creeping on her. "And if I chose to take the fruit by force?"
Jewel was aware of the low beating in her belly, and the risk she was taking with her next choice. But her fruits were in the line. She decided her eventual pain was a problem for future her.
She sprang to her feet with her bag clutched tightly. "Over my cold dead body!" She cried.
But she didn't get very far before arms wrapped around her middle and heaved her up and around. "Just gimme the oranges!"
"Never!" Jewel tried to slip away, but the man had the experience of months wrestling with children far rowdier than her. What was she compared to Wind vehemently refusing a bath?
Her bag was snatched and her body dropped unceremoniously on her bottom with a thud. She crossed her arms with a pout even after the thief had given back her bag with extra apples inside.
Jewel stuck her tongue out after dragging her feet back to sit on her previous spot. She hadn't moved as much as she expected, and yet she was already feeling Bluebird's spell fizzling out.
Some minutes later, Minish approached her small group with a light jog. Her smith beamed, causing her heart to jolt in anticipation; what excited him excited her by principle.
"Zel, got news." The small hero grinned. "Sheik and Red followed the bog path in search for more moss. Guess what they found."
Jewel exchanged glances with Arryl and Linebeck. The little girl spoke first. "Bugs?"
Minish chuckled. "Nah, that's Hyrule's specialty, no. We found a creek."
...Jewel didn't underst- "And Wild made enough soap for everybody."
It clicked and Jewel jumped up with a victory cry followed by an uncomfortable grimace. Arryl screeched too, and Linebeck sighed with relief. Minish turned on his heel to announce the news across the caravan. Words that rang and reverberated with a promise of deliverance way before reaching the port.
"Laundry day!"
The effect was immediate. Heroes shoveling rations in their mouths, Wild running circles with his Purah Pad in hand, princesses rushing to their chests, friends donning their capes and coats, the clanking of a possessed Knight's armor collecting colorful and plain bundles alike in two great baskets, Impa screaming orders, Legend dumping a bag of trinkets on the floor, the whooping calls of excited children, an accidental gale sweeping across the path and the shuffle of many people collecting every single piece of clothing, both garments, accessories and undergarments deemed in need of a good wash.
Jewel, wearing her riding clothes, scrambled towards the chests to pull out her favorite dress, gloves included. The thing was neatly folded and held in place with a braided chord braided especially for her. This had been the only way to ensure no clothes got tangled or lost, despite the chest's segmented boxes.
Jewel checked the dress, pulled out the gloves and briefly, un-ladylikely, sniffed them. They could wait til the port. She checked another set with a less regal dress, still good. The set of undergarments, yeah, that one needed to be washed.
Phantom passed by in the knight's armor that Wild had lent her, and placed one basket down. "Here." The girl's voice echoed from inside the empty armor. "Who washes clothes today?"
Jewel frowned and moved away as Hilda came to search for her own stuff in the chest. "Last time it was Tetra, Flower, Hylia and Hilda. I did it... three turns ago... My turn today." She grimaced.
"Uggggh!" The armor slumped and metal pieces rustled loudly with pieces brushing together in ways they wouldn't be able to, if worn by a physical person. The flickering embers of pink eyes inside the helmet shone sadly. "I think it's my turn..."
"What 'bout the Heroes?" Tetra asked after throwing her own bundle in the basket. "Can't bribe Spirit to do it for you?"
Hilda gave them a side-glance and walked away. The armor clanked as the princess inside gasped.
Jewel too turned to the pirate girl, aghast. "And let a boy near our dirty clothes? So improper, Tetra!"
The sailor rolled her eyes. "Just give'im the stuffy upper layer stuff you princesses like to wear and be done with it."
Jewel exchanged a mortified look with Phantom. She was close to her Minish, but not THAT close, and would never ask such favor of him. She knew Spirit and Phantom were closer, but she'd been... separated from her body during their adventure. There was no point of comparison between the two friendships.
After some more fumbling, Phantom gave up and took the basket with her. Tetra leaned on the cart by Jewel. "Y'know, me thinks that clipper doesn't really have a concept of privacy."
Jewel raised an eyebrow. "How so?"
"On one side, she doesn't care for personal space. On the other, the most random things fluster her."
Jewel hummed as she rummaged into the chest. She pulled out a pair of.leather gloves. "How do you know it's her and not her upbringing?"
Tetra shrugged and threw her arms in the air. "How do I know? I'm not foundin' a kingdom of uppity-tighty borin' scallywags, I'm lettin' me monarchy be people, savvy?"
The pair made their way into the forest, towards the river by Sheik's directions.
"Awww, Tetra. You're admitting that you'll one day found a kingdom of your own!"
The pirate girl turned red, pouted and crossed her arms, not before punching Jewel's arm. "I'm not sayin' I'm foundin' an entire kingdom with the kid, I'm simply sayin' what I want for the future of me people. A good land with good leaders."
Jewel raised both eyebrows with a sly smile. "But I never suggested you had to found it with Wind specifically."
She ran before Tetra could register what she said. She did catch the pirate queen's undignified squeal before ducking into the underbrush.
"Ye mangy mutt. C'mere ye wench!"
World leaned on the edge of the water with one basket on his side, and a small pile of reddish rocks on his other side. Jewel ran past other three heroes, snatching as many rocks as possible. "Mine!" She screeched with her prize in hand.
She ran and giggled all the way to the other side of the bushes, where the girls were separating clothes already. Jewel dropped the rocks with a triumphant smile. "Got the potash!"
The girl then doubled over as pain took over once more. Bluebird's warm hand suddenly worked her goddess-blessed magic.and the pain subsided again. Bless Bluebird.
Sheik, kneeling by the water, smiled up before taking a couple of rocks with her Sheikah-style bandaged hands and scrapped some with a knife. On Jewel's other side, Bluebird took a single rock and scrapped it against her undergarments on a rock underwater. The effect was immediate as the potash dissolved and made soap.
"Ohhh, gimme!" Phantom, back in her body, stretched a hand over the river, slightly too big to count as a creek. Jewel threw her some and knelt to take care of her own clothes.
She made sure to have her gloves on. She didn't want a repetition of last time, with red sensitive hands.
She moved efficiently though her clothes, scrubbing first the wet stones on the thicker materials before running the fabric over the stones and letting the current take away the dirt and soapy foam. She shook the garments and folded them on a basket before moving on with the next piece. Jewel continued on to the next batch; bigger and heavier dresses that required a little more care, yet not delicate enough to wait for laundry service at the town.
Bluebird hummed a tune by her side and Jewel smiled. She recognized most of the words, sung in their holy language. She joined in, and not a minute later Sheik hummed the tune too, albeit with a choppier tempo.
Red passed by and dropped a new basket near them, and stopped to listen. "Huh, those words..."
Sheik stopped her humming. "Do you recognize the language of the gods?"
The tall redhead crossed her arms and sat on a nearby rock. "The structure is somewhat familiar, but I hadn't connected it. My gods speak... differently."
Jewel raised an eyebrow. "Really? And here I thought that Phantom was the only one whose gods spoke gibberish."
"Gli Dei ti abbatteranno per questa mancanza di rispetto, ragazzina." The ghost girl grumbled dramatically and stuck her tongue out.
Sheik smiled. "Won't the gods get angry at you using their language to curse another?"
"Who said I cursed you?" Phantom threw a blonde strand over her shoulder as she doubled down on the petticoat she was scrubbing. "Maybe I asked the gods to grant you more wisdom."
Bluebird snorted. "No, you didn't."
A shadow passed over the princesses. Midna, wearing a wide hat, came by to grab some potash.
"What are you ladies talking about?"
"We're speaking the language of gods." Said Phantom with a shrug.
Red chuckled. "I'm sure she just cursed them."
"Pay them no mind, Midna." Sheik shook her head and lifted the dress in her hands, folded it and placed it in a basket. "They're but children."
Midna crossed her arms while chuckling. "Powerful children with the Triforce of Wisdom and the blood of your goddess running through them."
"The Force is different." Jewel protested, and puffed her chest. "It's the divine bloodline. Not my fault you lot have less divinity and need the Triforce to power up."
A wet pair of breeches hit her from Bluebird's side. The older blonde glared, yet couldn't hide her amusement. Jewel stuck out her tongue.
The twili patted Jewel's back. "Alright, I'll leave you girls to it. Can I have some more soap?"
As answer, Bluebird gave her more rocks, and Jewel went back to work.
Just a couple more dresses and she'd be done.
She swept some sweat off her brow and sat back on the short grass once she finished her last set of pants. The princess looked up at the bright blue sky. It had been almost an hour of continuous washing, but she was done. Now for the next part.
A soft breeze swept over them and the air cooled. Jewel closed her eyes to bask in the afternoon wind, when a shiver ran through her. She shot her eyes open, alarmed for half a second, until she remembered what the feeling was, as she relaxed again.
Flower and Tetra appeared on Phantom's side of the river, chatting about fishing or something. Well, Tetra was doing most of the speaking, while the older princess listened unblinking and asked with un uncharacteristically soft voice.
Jewel tilted her head, while to her side, Sheik took her basket and crossed the creek.
Flower felt different. Her divinity more present, her eyes glazed over with a blue sheen, her skin clearer and brighter, the marks in her forehead and cheeks shinier. Her step silent, her demeanor detached, her moves slower yet swifter.
Jewel glanced at Bluebird, who had her eyes fixed on their friend. She too could see the changes.
Flower's sudden change was normal and expected; it could be days, it could be weeks, but after some time, their scientist Zelda would stop gushing about birds and rocks so intensely. Her eyes would acquire a distant look, and her skin grow even colder. She was feeling restless, cramped in her own body.
Much like Jewel had felt for those months encased in stone, aware of the world around her yet completely cut off it.
She clicked her tongue and stood up, dusting her riding pants.
Sheik, Tetra and Flower were already taking the baskets to a clearing where to hang the clothes to dry. Bluebird, Phantom and her followed behind.
On the way to the clearing they spotted Arryl climbing a tree under Sidon's watch, and Sky messing with his harp next to Hylia. Something stuck it's head out of a burrow, Wild, shaking his dirty head and looking around like a lost kid. Jewel smiled and quickly flicked his forehead.
They reached the clearing. It was rather small but there were signs of a fight. Marks on the ground, couple of arrow nicks on the trees, and a couple of adults -Hyrule, Black and Time, cleaning their weapons off monster blood.
Jewel tried to ask, but Phantom beat her to it. "What happened? A fight?" The girl gasped and put her fists on her hips. "And you didn't tell me? Outrageous!"
Black glanced at the incoming group and dipped her head. "We took care of them swiftly, your Grace."
"Just a couple of lizard folk, my lady." Said Hyrule while running a cloth down his golden sword. Jewel caught the vile dark blood on the blade and hummed.
The men left the clearing before she and the other princesses hung their clothes on ropes that Black helped tie between branches.
Once that was done, Jewel slumped against a tree trunk next to Flower. The heat radiating off the princess skin warmed her side. Jewel glanced at her. The older princess had her eyes closed, still as a statue, not even breathing.
Had it been any other person, Jewel would've panicked. Not with this one, though. She knew her Flower and her oddities. One only needed to be close and attentive enough.
Jewel tilted her head to examine Flower's face and subtle changes. The small star-shaped mark on her forehead was usually half a shade lighter than her skin, but now shone bright.
The little specks on her cheeks that would be confused with sun marks whenever one managed to see them shone too, almost like tear-shaped makeup.
Little hairs in her eyelashes and braid turned golden here and there, as if she'd been sparkled with bits of golden dust.
Flower opened her eyes and turned to Jewel. With the move, a blue sheen reflected on her dilated pupils. Not for the first time, Jewel's back shivered unconsciously and her little hairs stood on end under the gaze of the divine.
The girl smiled. "You looking after us?"
"The monsters are few and sparse." The being Flower reported with an airy and layered voice. "They won't trouble us anymore. The forest is alive and our friends well. They found their own clearing and are hanging out..." She tilted her head, and Jewel knew she was listening in.
Jewel snorted and pulled her knees to her chest as she waited for her friend to tell her anything about their heroes and companions.
Some paces away, Bluebird ran between trees and bushes after Phantom and Tetra. The pirate girl shouted at the slowpoke and tripped, falling face-first on the ground. Blue slapped her back. "You're it!"
Sheik and Hylia -when- did she arrive?, observed from a distance, with the ninja princess perched on a thick branch. She glanced at Jewel and Flower before shuffling in place. If Flower was tranquil, they had nothing to fear. Maybe. Who knew what Flower considered danger in her current state.
"Some of our Heroes are about to get in trouble that won't affect us." The scientist princess finally spoke. "Others are patrolling. As for our companions, they're close by. Except for a handful, who want to practice their communication skills."
Jewel knit her brow. "Communication skills?"
Flower turned to her again, and for a moment, the blue light receded, the markings dulled and her golden hairs turned blonde again. The princess smiled. "We can understand each other by the grace of the goddess, which also acts as a beacon for our friends to understand each other. Stray too far and they'll get out of range. Some will attempt to look for similarities in our Hylians in case we get separated by circumstances... I should ask Groose what he's thinking of Impa's Gerudo. He feels rather focused."
Jewel shuffled in her place, pensively. "So Ezlo wasn't exaggerating when he called Minish and me magical beacons. I thought he meant our powers. All the heroes have something divine or powerful, as well as us have our bloodline." Jewel crossed her arms and leaned her head on them.
Flower brushed some of Jewel's hair out of her face, pulled the ponytail loose and took some strands to braid. "You didn't know? It seemed rather obvious that we were getting help. How else could we understand each other when we come from different times? We can't even form a proper timeline with how much of our adventures and histories has been lost to time. So many similarities and just as many differences..."
Flower ranted some more, to which Jewel tuned her out and closed her eyes. Her slim fingers thrummed to the rhythm of Flower's voice as the older princess made more braids. She mentioned stuff about their high languages used in philosophy and science, she recounted their first attempts at reading each others' Hylian variations, spoke of how they really should run experiments with their many polyglot members.
The details escaped Jewel, but she was content letting the other princess relax and act more... human. She gave it one or two hours before Flower was back to her restless, semi-divine state. She felt sorry for the older princess, who'd need to hold on for a couple more days.
Once they reached port, the girl was sure that Wild, Sidon and Teba would get her into a boat and far into the sea so she could unwind.