We all are animals anyway

Link was a few yards away discussing with general Zalatoris. Zid stayed sitting by the fire, his eyes reflecting the flame, but his mind was wondering around what he had said before about accepting the donor program if he participated this time. But now his demand has changed, he would still donate anything to Link in the blink of an eye, but he also wanted to become an agent. 

Zelda was walking around in circles, anxious but smiling and giggling every now and then, obviously happy with the turn of events. Robert, on the other hand, was picking stones and throwing them at places he was sure to have heard sound from.

ROBERT POV

No luck so far… well, not that I am actually expecting anything from throwing a few pebbles… still, it gives me something to do, and best-case scenario, I manage to hit a small bird or a rodent and we eat a little meat.

"Maybe I should intervene, I need the big shot to know my request is MINE. I don't want Link in trouble for this." Zid informs them before standing up.

Li grabs on his tail and pulls Zid back to a sitting position "This is HIS thing, let him deal with it. Besides… he thrives in conflict. You should consider yourself part of the SWORD team already." Robert says as he throws another pebble.

"BUT" Zid tries to protest.

Zelda stops her walking and blurts out "They LOVE Link, if he says you should join, they will at least give you a test try… don't worry" she assures him.

BARK, BARK, BARK!!! Zelda and Zid cover their ears and try to take cover scared, that sounded like a dog but it could not be, it was coming from the trees. Li stands up grabbing a hand sized rock and throws it, then they all see an explosion of feathers and something falling a few feet from them.

I fucking, did it? I was thinking a weebill or a magpie. I got a fucking barking owl, using a rock as a weapon, aiming with poor sun light... I guess I am THAT GOOD.

Zelda approaches the fallen bird to look at it "We are going to eat it right? you both start plucking the feathers and cutting it, I will search for branches to put the meat to roast" She orders and heads out, she only had minutes of daylight left, she intended to use them.

"A little bossy, isn't she?" Zid says lifting an eyebrow.

Rob chuckles "Yeah, but that is good don't you think? Since she is a future Queen in the making"

Zid rolls his eyes "Well… if you put it that way, yeah, it's good"

Robert picks up the howl and brings it for them to start working on it as the Princess ordered. "And as her brother I think it's a blessing. It means she has character; no fuck boy is gonna get his way with her… not easily at least"

Zid opens his eyes wide and starts chocking a little at the idea.

"I had not thought so far ahead. This FAKE FAMILY SHIT is forcing me to feel for ALL of you… that means I can't be selfish and just care about myself, now I have to worry about all of you. Well, you and Ziel don't really worry me, you both can take care of yourselves. But HER… she is young and beautiful, that makes her a magnet for perverts, and I can't cage her in a bubble, WHAT THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO DO THEN?"

He… actually did a VERY GOOD JOB voicing the concern I have been living with since I meet her at Huston. So good of a job that he managed to demoralized me, now I feel like an uncapable piece of shit.

Robert smiles at Zid and places an arm around his shoulders.

"Welcome to the nightmare" Robert says with fake joviality as he starts plucking the bird.

Around half an hour later, Zelda returns carrying 4 sturdy branches to roast the bird and some more tinder just in case, her hair had a few leaves and branches stuck in it… her face had dirt spots and she somehow ripped the lower part of her pants. She noticed both her brothers staring at her state and just beamed at them.

As I said… beautiful, Damn this girl.

Zid grabs on Robert's shoulder and looks at him in utter defeat, they hug each other and start sobbing. Zelda rushes to them to let them know that she is ok, she may have fallen and rolled on the ground a little, but nothing to be sad about. Both boys turn to glare at her and smirk before they start pulling on her hair and chasing her around the fire.

After a while of tormenting the Princess, Robert starts cutting the bird in pieces and Zid places the cuts of meat on sticks by the fire. Then Link enters the scene talking about what was to happen next but goes death quiet once he notices what they are doing. His face begins to scowl, his eyes seemed to have darkened their natural gray color. That made Zid and Zelda flinch and point at Li.

WTF… these mother fuckers betrayed me. Come on, THINK. How do I get out of this. I appeal to reason, that is how. Because he may be a monster, but even in that state, he retains cognition, doesn't he?

"DID YOU HEAR A SHOT?" Robert shouts.

Link immediately halts his rail of dark thoughts.

"You didn't, did you? because I did not shoot the bird down, no illegal hunting happened"

"Then how?" Link asks with curiosity.

"He fucking threw a rock at it; you should have seen it" Zid answers exited and starts narrating the event using mimics to add drama and excitement to the whole thing.

Zelda was laughing at the theatrics, Robert was looking away, his face red in shame. Link just chuckled at all of it.

I can't handle this, I hate being the center of attention, and Zid is not only putting me there, he is also praising me. I am not good with positive feedback; I should stop this.

"Link, you were about to tell us something right?" Robert asks trying to leave the spot light by changing the subject.

Link rolls his eyes realizing what Robert was trying to do "Yes, tomorrow we are heading back, both of you will read and sign a contract with SWORD stating that you will be tested, physically and psychologically. When you both pass those tests, you will begin a program of ¨slow approach¨ since you are not 18, meaning you won't be admitted as agents yet. You will retain the original income of 10k, and you will use it to feed yourselves, dress yourselves, and pay for transportation to follow agents around, thus being exposed firsthand to what we do and how we work. Until you turn 18 and become SWORD agents"

Robert gins widely and thanks him. Zid on the other hand, starts sweating and showing signs of insecurity.

"What if I don't pass the test? I mean… you know me by now, I thrive on being a disappointment" Zid says with a sheepish smile.

Li grunts irate and throws a punch at Zid's stomach. Zelda yelps in fear, Zid falls back on the ground as Robert sits on top of him and starts punching him EVERYWHERE, Link roars in laughter. Zelda turns to Link confused by his reaction as Robert stands up leaving Zid on the ground.

"It's brotherly love Princess, Robert is telling him ¨stop being a pussy, you are NOT going to fail... and if you do, I WILL KILL YOU¨"

Zelda smiles weakly "Really? Gosh… why the need to be violent about it?"

"We are MEN, we must be the stronghold of our family in the future, this is how we practice… don't worry, we kind of love him, those were soft punches" Link smiles at his own statement.

ZELDA POV

SOFT PUNCHES MY ASS, his lower lip is bleeding and his left cheek now has a bruise. Is it just them? or this is how brotherly love works for everyone? does this means they don't love me?

[Link saying "We are MEN"]

Wait…

[Robert waking her up tickling her feet]

[Zid trying to eat a tarantula to spite her]

[Rob and Zid chasing her and pulling her hair]

They DO love me, they don't punch me since I am a girl, but they find other ways to grant me ¨soft punches¨

Zelda takes a big breath of air and begins to smile widely.

Men love is primitive to say the least, is it weird that I still find it endearing and kind of cute? Well, at least Robert and Zid love me. But with Ziel… it's not like he gives me soft punches, he actually gets there with the intention to cause harm...

The tackles he gave me were VERY aggressive. I still feel the bruises… that only means he doesn't mind physically hurting me at all. But he won't kill me either… and It's not like he can't. He has more than enough strength and lack of moral ground to do it. But he has never even tried to, he overall protects me when needed and hurts me if I give him the chance… so, does he love or hate me?

Zid finally sits up massaging his face.

"Message received… now come down here and let me love you back" Zid says in a dangerous tone as he frowns at Robert.

Damn, Li is not going to back down, and Zid wants to start a fight, how do I stop this?

"I think the meat is ready, grab your piece and eat it before the smell attracts something" Ziel says.

FOOD, of course…

And as if by magic, Robert and Zid forget their quarrel and focus on the food, they even start sharing ideas on how they could have spiced it. Link decides it's his chance to question Zid about his past.

"Tell me how you got to meet the twin sisters back at the Barley orchard" Link asks.

Zid swallows his bite and closes his eyes a few seconds, then opens them deciding he trust the group to speak about this.

"I am just going to say this once, so pay attention. I was feeling terrible for days and fainted in the middle of the forest, Ava found me and brought me to her home, Isla tried to convince Ava to put me back where she found me and let nature take its course, she was afraid of what the locals would do if they found out about this, they could destroy the farm. Ava didn't listen, she took me to the hospital where I recovered. They medic told me their code of ethics would not allow them to refuse me treatment, but that I should leave before I cause the hospital any trouble. He also suggested that from now on, I should avoid the girls to keep them safe from the locals… and that is what I did."

Zid rubs both his eyes with his right thumb and index, his manly way of ridding of the moisture the memory brought to his eyes. Then decides to get back at Link.

"So, now that we are answering questions, how did you get that bite mark on your middle trapezius?"

"You KNOW your muscle's names?" "It IS a bite mark, isn't it?"

 Link says lifting an eyebrow says Li 

Link turns to look at the Princess, she seems to be ashamed by the events that lead to that. He silently exhales and points at the Princess. Both Li and Zid open their eyes wide.

"WTF, WHY? HOW?" Zid yells.

"It was… an unnerving situation, she did it to hold her screams and avoid revealing our position. Looks bad, but I don't hold a grudge on her for this, she did what she had to do to keep us safe." Link says as he takes a bite from his apple.

Wow, I… thanks. He made me look good despite what I did, I can't help but feel like shit about this… I should come clean and tell my brothers why I bit Link, that it was completely intentional and not out of fear like I made him believe.

It was a scary experience, I wanted to scream so I bit him, but I continued to bite even harder out of spite, and then framed it as panic. I don't deserve to be on high regards for this.

Zelda placed her head between her palms, took a deep breath and opened her mouth to speak, but an apple was placed in her open jaw by Link, shutting her up.

"You eat that, I am not allowed to finish it"

Zelda removes the apple from her mouth and looks at it, it was half of Link's apple. She opens her mouth again but Link shuts her again by placing a small plumb on it.

"There, happy? I found it during my call, just eat it in silence" Link says staring at her menacingly.

HE KNOWS I LIED… of course he does, why did I thought I had managed to deceive him? yet... he wants me to shut up about it. Why? Not that I don't appreciate the gesture… I just don't think I deserve it.

"Why give it to her? I thought I was the one with an underweight problem" Zid complains.

Link rolls his eyes "I am giving YOU half my meat piece, so shut up" Link tells his monkey brother.

Zid smiles at that and starts dancing with his shoulders. Link shakes his head and gets back to Zelda. The Princess notices his intense glare on her and her heart starts beating wildly when he leans in to whisper in her ear.

"If you let them know you hate me, they will try to fix it, do you want that?"

She furiously shakes her head. Link winks at her half smiling and places an index finger on his lips "shh". Then turns his attention back to the boys.

Zelda turns away form them all, she was struggling to maintain a calm breathing pattern, and trying to keep far away from the bonfire so her brothers won't notice her red cheeks.

Link did this to me... I think I like him? How can I like that prick, he is basically an animal, primitive to the core, all he does is enhance his attributes to scare and intimidate people into submission. Well… he is also a man of his word, meaning he is trustworthy, he is VERY smart and physically capable, that mixed with those eyes make him dangerously attractive. Oh, and let's not forget that he also hates me, or doesn't he? SHIT. I MUST HAVE GONE MAD. What do I do now? am I a masochist?

It was quiet for a moment around the fire, but soon Li nods at Zid and stretches his fist for a fist bump. Zid answers it at turns to Link with a sinister smile.

"It's getting late, you should sleep, NO EXCUSES ZIEL, you didn't sleep at all last night, that is not healthy. Robert and I will take turns to keep watch overnight"

When? Gosh, I hate them… how can they communicate without speaking?

Link rolls his eyes "I already told you; I will not be able to sle-"

Robert chuckles "We heard you, you either suck it up and try like a good boy, or I can make you sleep if you want" he says cracking his knuckles.

"I would love to see you try" Link answers dangerously.

Fuck, appeal to reason. If Robert could do it, Hyrule's Princess also can.

"BOYS, PLEASE… Ziel, they allowed you to stay awake last night without complain. Please allow them to guard us this time, it's only fair, makes them happy and gives you time to relax" Zelda suggests.

Link breaths in deeply "Agreed"

LINK POV

Damn, I… appreciate what my duplicates want to do, but ITS NOT going to work, the dangers of sleeping out in the open are still rooted in me, BUT… I can try to rest a little. I still won't be able to sleep, but I can completely grant them the guarding duty and just relax as Zelda suggested.

Link was trying to until he started to hear teeth chattering, he opened his eyes and looked around, Zid was sleeping close to him, but Zelda is far away from them, trembling.

The fuck, why is she over there?

*No idea, what did you do?*

NOTHING, I haven't done anything… she can't be angry at me for not letting her expose how much of a hag she is, or is she? Fuck this bitch.

Link stretches his left arm to grab a small rock and throws it at the Princess. She immediately looks around, when their eyes meet, he mouths ¨GET YOU ROYAL ASS IN HERE¨ Zelda stares at him in anger, but complies with his rude remark. Once she is close enough, Link pulls her in to spoon her. The Princess kind of tries to fight him off, but just concedes when he starts growling… after all, she was cold. Robert just chuckled at the interaction from the tree he climbed.

The next day, Li woke up early and introduced Zid to a makeshift fanny bag with a hole, he was to wear loosely around his waist so it would cover his but. The plan was to use it to hide his tail inside of it. Robert was very proud of having thought about it, and being able to craft before his guarding shift ended. He used a pencil pouch that was attached the inside of his backpack, and teared one of his shirts to improvise a belt for the fanny bag. It looked a little odd, but Zid loved it, it was the most fashionable thing he has ever had.

After that, they hurried to catch the plane. It was Zid's first time flying, so they pretty much had to blindfold him to get him on the plane. Once they were airborne Zelda removed the blindfold. That was like setting the devil loose. He was terribly afraid at fist, but that quickly morphed into curiosity. He wanted to see what the pilot was seeing, so he tried to enter the cabin, but was stopped by an air hostess. He then tried to follow her around to see where she got the food from. Link just grabbed him and pulled him to his seat, then sat on top of him. Zid began rant about it, but Robert pulled on his braid from a side and explained to him how his behavior was causing trouble, for the air hostess and the rest of the passengers. Zid understood and promised to behave. Link then moved to his own seat and breathed out loudly.

"It's not his fault you know… this is completely new for him. He is intrigued by all of it and can´t contain himself" the Princess justifies the Pirate.

"YOU did not make this big of a hassle, and you are not from this world. HE IS, he just exhibited undisciplined and irreverent behavior… hopefully SWORD will help set him straight"

"Ha, I am sure they will, he was just lacking human interaction and exposure. He is very smart and above all cunning, He will catch up with you and Robert in no time" Zelda says with certainty.

"I… guess you are right"