Zora's Domain, Hyrule. Friday [05/04 FT].

[in_sidon_we_trust]

Out of the desert and back to the cool, refreshing waters of Zora's Domain, it was the final day for the Hyrule trip, and Sidon had arranged for his friends to arrive to a wonderful party held in their honor. He and the other Zora had hung up bright and colorful banners and he'd convinced someone from the Wetland Stable to come up to the Domain to prepare a feast: Fish Pie and Seafood Paella, but also non-fish meat dishes, like Poultry Pilaf and Spicy Pepper Steak. And, of course, Creamy Heart Soup to celebrate the closeness of their friendship! There was Fruitcake and Nutcake, fresh bread and Honeyed Fruits. Sidon had tried his hand at a little cooking himself, but the results were a little dubious. Either way, his friends would certainly be eating well tonight!

And then relaxing in the peaceful Domain over stories of their adventure out into Hyrule, which he could hardly wait to hear. He was just glad they were back and they were safe and they would all return to Fandom Island with the shared experiences of his beloved homeland.

...But was it too early to start planning for the next trip back? There was still so much left to see!

[[ and the final Hyrule post! No OCD on this one, and a big gigantic thank you to the guests for making it so delightful to revisit this place with fresh eyes again!]]

Comments

[always_someone]

Norman hadn't quite managed to scrub all the make-up off his face after leaving the Gerudo's city, so he was kind of extra pretty today with the usual side of awkward. Still, the feast looked great and he was eyeing a hefty looking soup ladle thoughtfully.

Huh. Maybe he should have brought that along as a weapon on their journey. He probably couldn't accidentally hurt himself with a big spoon.

[in_sidon_we_trust]

So pretty! Even Sidon had to take notice. "Norman!" he greeted him eagerly. "Welcome back! I looks like perhaps the desert air has done quite well for you! Did you enjoy your visit to the other side of my world?"

[always_someone]

"You know, I did?" Norman was now blushing to go along with those slightly redder lips and those slightly more smoky eyes. "Hyrule is a beautiful place, and I saw a lot of things I wasn't expecting to."

He was still a little hung up on that dragon.

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"Oh?" Sidon asked. "Like what? Do tell me all you can! I plan to badger each and every one of you for all the details!"

[always_someone]

Norman smiled faintly.

"Well there were the ruins on the way out to the desert," he offered, "and the Gerudo do this thing where they ride around behind sand seals, that's pretty neat."

He hesitated for a moment, and then added, "I don't suppose there are... I don't know... stories about dragons or anything that you know of?"

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"Dragons?" Sidon frowned, head tilting slightly. "There are....a few legends, I think, but...hold on just a mere moment, Norman, I will be right back."

And, sure enough, Sidon returned with the Elder Jiahto in tow not too long after he left.

"This prince tells me you had questions about dragons?" he asked.

[always_someone]

Norman nodded a little, looking at Sidon, then at the Elder. He offered him an uncertain little smile.

"Questions, sort of," he replied. "I, um." He glanced back at Sidon, and then shrugged and decided to just kind of barrel onward with it all the same. "I was wondering if anybody knows anything about a huge green dragon that might kind of... hang out... between here and the desert."

Because, you know. It had been pretty attention-grabbing. If you could see that sort of thing.

[intotheout]

Not only did Tip have about a billion photos from the whole trip, she also had managed to find herself a sword. She'd briefly asked around about returning it to whomever had lost it, but everyone insisted that finding it meant she could keep it. Eventually, she'd stopped trying to argue.

It was so pretty!

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"A souvenir?" Sidon asked with a grin when he noticed the glinting of the new blade in Tip's possession, coming to join her for a moment. "I think it will suit you well. How was your journey to the desert, Tip?"

[intotheout]

"It was pretty hard to resist," Tip said with a smile. "And everyone swears I can just take it. The desert was fun, though we missed you. I tried out seal surfing." And had sand scrapes in odd areas to prove it.

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"Norman mentioned the seal surfing as well," Sidon said, "but perhaps you could elaborate. I ws under the impression there was no water out in Gerudo Desert, so how would they surf?"

[intotheout]

"On the actual sand," Tip said. "The seals, like, swim through it, and you hang on to a rope and ride along behind them. Like -- have you ever seen anyone go water skiing?"

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"Of course," Sidon said with a nod. "It is a favored summer past time for nearly all young Zora."

They didn't even need skis!

"And, of course, I've skied when we took that school trip to the frozen, snow covered Alps! So is it a bit like that, only on sand rather than snow? How fascinating!"

[refused2berescued]

"Lookit you with a fancy new sword," Uma said, flopping down beside her. She hadn't bothered asking about returning the sword; she'd helped fight off a Guardian with it, it was hers now.

Besides, it felt good to have a weapon on her hip again. She just wished she had a second, her left hand felt empty.

[intotheout]

"It's so pretty!" Tip said, because sometimes the narrative just had to be repeated out loud. "I can't wait to practice with it." She looked over at Uma with a smile. "Good trip, huh."

[refused2berescued]

"Got a lot of swag," Uma said carelessly, like that was the only thing she'd enjoyed. There had been a lot more and part of her almost wanted to burble about the beauty of the world and the delicious food and how oddly nice everyone had been--but that felt weird and more than a little foreign.

"Wanna spar a bit now?" Uma asked. "I'm not used to the curve yet on mine, either. Don't mind a bit of practice."

[intotheout]

"Sure!" Tip grinned. "You're still going to beat the pants off me, but that's probably always going to be true."

[refused2berescued]

"Probably," Uma said, because she wasn't one for regular modesty, never mind the false variety. "But I first picked up a sword when I was a kid. It feels weirder to be unarmed now than the reverse."

Good luck getting her to use the weapons locker, administration.

[justice_undone]

Zora's Domain was a beautiful place in itself, and the decorations made it feel very festive.

Breq had loved the trip, and would tell Sidon so. She had seen a lot of different places, but nothing quite like this. She had even handwavily picked up a few songs that she had heard people sing.

Perhaps there would be singing at the party?

[I'm off to bed, but I just wanted to ping Breq in because of course she's here, and I can SP tomorrow.]

[in_sidon_we_trust]

"Ahhh, Breq!" Sidon beamed to see her, greeting her brightly with open arms. "Welcome back! I am happy to report that there were no further strange phone calls while you were all away, so whatever the issue was the other day seems to have resolved itself. Tell me, then, did you have a safe and exciting trip to the desert?"

[justice_undone]

"I'm glad to hear that," Breq said. "It did sound worrying. But yes, the trip was both safe and exciting, which is a very good combination. I want to thank you for inviting us. It was very generous."

She guessed Sidon had enjoyed it too, but that was just proof of his general generosity.

"Your people is very friendly, and I picked up a few songs. Will there be music and singing tonight?"

[refused2berescued]

"Are you singing one of the songs the Zora girls were singing the other day?" Uma asked. "That's what it sounds like, though I didn't get all the lyrics."

[justice_undone]

"It's a nice song," Breq replied, looking at Uma and remembering to smile. "Are you enjoying yourself?"

[refused2berescued]

"Yeah, this ain't bad," Uma said, trying not to sound as enthusiastic as she felt. "Turns out being friends with royalty's a damn good idea. Maybe I should have taken Ben up on his offer."

Except for that part where she would rather drown than have him play rescuer.

"You?"

[refused2berescued]

Uma had made herself right at home in the middle of the feast. Since coming to the island, she'd discovered how delicious fresh bread, fruits, and vegetables were and she could be found at pretty much every meal behind a plate piled high with them and surreptitiously slipping more into her pockets to eat later, when she was hungry again. There was even a side of some of the dubious gunk because, honestly, she'd eaten worse and eating that now meant there was more good food to pocket for later!