(Spoilers) I'm obviously glad we got a happy ending, but before I beat the game I was caught up with the idea of her not turning back. I thought of her roaming skies of Hyrule forever and Link would occasionally come and keep her company after the defeat of Gannon. I'm glad the developers are not as angsty I as am though!
What do you think Link and Zelda did togheter during the time betqeen botw and totk
I'VE THOUGHT VERY HARD ABOUT THIS
this wound up being on the longer side so i'm putting it all under the cut!
a few years have passed between BOTW and TOTK. they don't give us an exact amount of time, but based on context clues it's safe to assume that anywhere between 5-7 years have passed. personally, i think it's likely been 5 years. that's a considerable chunk of time.
i am very firmly in the camp that link and zelda, by the time TOTK rolls around, are a couple. either that, or they've at least vocalized their feelings for each other but have yet to label anything. the baseline is that they very obviously love each other.
post BOTW (but before the epilogue), i think that link brings zelda back to hateno immediately after freeing her. it's important to him that she has a safe place to recuperate and heal and knows that his home is the perfect place to take her.
he makes sure she eats and has plenty to drink. he makes sure she's doing okay. he offers her his bed (more like insists) and keeps a careful eye on her. zelda would feel guilty and maybe feel like she's intruding or being a burden, but link wouldn't hear it and would shut it down quickly.
link sleeps on the floor in the nook beneath the stairs for the first few nights because he wants her to have space and privacy. he usually winds up upstairs to wake her from bad dreams anyway. zelda doesn't sleep well (neither does he) and eventually, link starts sleeping either next to or at the foot of the bed to be close by if she needs him (he needs her just as much). sometimes, he holds her hand and sits with her until she falls back asleep. those nights, he keeps an eye on her. they get closer as the weeks go by and fall back into old patterns from 100 years ago. link remembers more.
when they set out to investigate the divine beasts, it feels so similar to their time traveling together from before. everything is different, but it's like nothing has changed in a way. after, they return to hateno. it's home for them both now without it needing to be verbally agreed upon.
she tells him that he's no longer obligated to follow her anymore and that he's free. zelda feels guilty. link tells her that he's not staying by her side out of an obligation, or because of some century-old duty. he wants to. he chooses her. he would follow her to the ends of the earth.
zelda builds the school. link stays by her side like glue. they fall into a routine, build a sense of normalcy, and live a life with each other as if they are each other's center of gravity.
eventually, they start sharing the bed. it was bound to happen sooner or later. link wound up beside her most nights anyway (this was zelda's exact reasoning. she insisted it was ridiculous for him to continue sleeping on the floor). they sleep much better beside each other.
they keep up the work of trying to rebuild hyrule. they stick by each other's sides through it all.
i really do think that at some point in between BOTW and TOTK, they wind up together. it just feels right to me. even before confirming it, i think that they both understand that their relationship isn't that of just friends, but they might still feel hesitant to cross that line for fear of ruining what they've so carefully built together. the mutual pining is UNREAL!
eventually, it comes out one way or another. they kiss.
when the gloom starts to appear around the kingdom and they head off to investigate under the castle, they are doing so the same way they do everything else: together.
I would like to add some other ideas. The more time they spend together, Link starts whipping up all kinds of dishes for Zelda to try. Some of them give her pause, but she not only inevitably tries them, but she enjoys them as well! Link quickly becomes the cook of the house. Zelda also devotes more time to researching Hyrule’s history and wildlife.* Purah even asks Zelda to test out new runes she finds for the Sheikah slate. Link accompanies her on all of these excursions as usual. Sometimes, they get into lots of trouble, like when the two ride around Hyrule on the Master Cycle. They’re the most chaotic couple in all of Hyrule, but they’re too adorable and endearing for anyone to dislike.
*I’m actually writing a humorous fanfic about this idea. It involves comic mischief at Link’s expense (don’t worry, I’m not trying to bully him!).
What do you think Link and Zelda did togheter during the time betqeen botw and totk
I'VE THOUGHT VERY HARD ABOUT THIS
this wound up being on the longer side so i'm putting it all under the cut!
a few years have passed between BOTW and TOTK. they don't give us an exact amount of time, but based on context clues it's safe to assume that anywhere between 5-7 years have passed. personally, i think it's likely been 5 years. that's a considerable chunk of time.
i am very firmly in the camp that link and zelda, by the time TOTK rolls around, are a couple. either that, or they've at least vocalized their feelings for each other but have yet to label anything. the baseline is that they very obviously love each other.
post BOTW (but before the epilogue), i think that link brings zelda back to hateno immediately after freeing her. it's important to him that she has a safe place to recuperate and heal and knows that his home is the perfect place to take her.
he makes sure she eats and has plenty to drink. he makes sure she's doing okay. he offers her his bed (more like insists) and keeps a careful eye on her. zelda would feel guilty and maybe feel like she's intruding or being a burden, but link wouldn't hear it and would shut it down quickly.
link sleeps on the floor in the nook beneath the stairs for the first few nights because he wants her to have space and privacy. he usually winds up upstairs to wake her from bad dreams anyway. zelda doesn't sleep well (neither does he) and eventually, link starts sleeping either next to or at the foot of the bed to be close by if she needs him (he needs her just as much). sometimes, he holds her hand and sits with her until she falls back asleep. those nights, he keeps an eye on her. they get closer as the weeks go by and fall back into old patterns from 100 years ago. link remembers more.
when they set out to investigate the divine beasts, it feels so similar to their time traveling together from before. everything is different, but it's like nothing has changed in a way. after, they return to hateno. it's home for them both now without it needing to be verbally agreed upon.
she tells him that he's no longer obligated to follow her anymore and that he's free. zelda feels guilty. link tells her that he's not staying by her side out of an obligation, or because of some century-old duty. he wants to. he chooses her. he would follow her to the ends of the earth.
zelda builds the school. link stays by her side like glue. they fall into a routine, build a sense of normalcy, and live a life with each other as if they are each other's center of gravity.
eventually, they start sharing the bed. it was bound to happen sooner or later. link wound up beside her most nights anyway (this was zelda's exact reasoning. she insisted it was ridiculous for him to continue sleeping on the floor). they sleep much better beside each other.
they keep up the work of trying to rebuild hyrule. they stick by each other's sides through it all.
i really do think that at some point in between BOTW and TOTK, they wind up together. it just feels right to me. even before confirming it, i think that they both understand that their relationship isn't that of just friends, but they might still feel hesitant to cross that line for fear of ruining what they've so carefully built together. the mutual pining is UNREAL!
eventually, it comes out one way or another. they kiss.
when the gloom starts to appear around the kingdom and they head off to investigate under the castle, they are doing so the same way they do everything else: together.
Do you think Zelda would have a lot of lasting trauma from the draconification experience? Like, how do you think she would react to a photo Link took of her dragon form? I just think of two possible outcomes: A) she has little to no trauma due to a combo of no memory and making her decision of her own volition so she finds the dragon form beautiful to look at. B) She has a panic attack from her memory of eating the stone and changing. Maybe I'm overthinking this? Might be good fanfic material!
sorry for taking a while to reply! i LOVE this question and i think it's an interesting concept to think about.
honestly, i think the latter seems more likely. it's safe to say that zelda has a lot of (potentially unresolved) trauma post-calamity. she was unable to unlock her power in time to prevent the tragedy of the calamity, and zelda feels as though all of those deaths (innocent people, the champions, her father) all lie on her shoulders and are her fault.
she has to watch, practically helplessly, as the entire world she knows disappears and burns before her eyes. she finally unlocks her powers, but it's already too late because link "dies" anyway. zelda is the one who makes the call to send him to the shrine of resurrection, not knowing what might happen in the event it either works or doesn't, and then all on her own, she returns the master sword before sealing herself away to fight off calamity ganon.
zelda spends 100 years holding him back and fighting against him. she doesn't know when or even if link will wake up, but she believes in him so strongly that she doesn't falter.
after link frees her, i don't see a world in which zelda (and link) doesn't suffer from PTSD. everything that she knew about her world from before is different. the land, the people, and link. nothing is as it was, and that has to be an incredibly difficult reality to face.
very long-winded background aside, zelda is already dealing with serious trauma before TOTK. spending another 10,000 years in an "out of body" state of some sort most definitely had negative effects on her, no matter how present she was while in her dragon form.
spoilers for the ending of TOTK under the cut!
zelda remembers eating the stone. her last conscious memory before losing herself was of the pain of her transformation. she made the choice to go through with draconification because she knew it was the only way to restore the master sword and ensure link would be able to retrieve it in the future. as far as zelda knew, there would be no coming back from that choice.
as far as zelda knew, as soon as she transformed into a dragon, that was the end. she would be that way forever and her mind and self would be lost.
the last thing she was expecting was for link (with rauru and sonia's help) to be able to change her back, but he does. yes, she doesn't remember her time as the light dragon and wasn't conscious, but zelda knows that she spent 10,000 years that way.
that has to be incredibly disorienting. the process of draconifcation was scary, it hurt, and the past 10,000 years are empty in her memory. the entire process is traumatic as a whole.
i'd imagine that would be another layer to her overall trauma in a really big way. maybe at first she feels a bit more disconnected from that version of herself and it doesn't really land for her, but i think that eventually, the pain from that would catch up to her in a major way.
i don't think that zelda would ever regret her decision even one bit, but i do think that she definitely did not walk away from that unscathed whatsoever.
Great answer! I do have one additional question: if the children of Hateno ever brought up the light dragon to Zelda or made like an effigy of sorts of it and showed to her, would she take it well at all? I’m currently dabbling in fan fiction and trying to take this into account as I write. I personally think she would take it fairly well for their sake, and maybe find their recreation (like a puppet or kite or something) very charming.
ooooh, another good question!!! i do think it might be easier to hear about from their perspective. maybe at first it’s a bit disorienting, but zelda loves the children, and she’s so fond of all of them. she’d be able to see the innocence (and i imagine their wonder and appreciation) and would feel comforted by it in a way. i’d LOVE to read any fanfic you put out!!
Do you think Zelda would have a lot of lasting trauma from the draconification experience? Like, how do you think she would react to a photo Link took of her dragon form? I just think of two possible outcomes: A) she has little to no trauma due to a combo of no memory and making her decision of her own volition so she finds the dragon form beautiful to look at. B) She has a panic attack from her memory of eating the stone and changing. Maybe I'm overthinking this? Might be good fanfic material!
sorry for taking a while to reply! i LOVE this question and i think it's an interesting concept to think about.
honestly, i think the latter seems more likely. it's safe to say that zelda has a lot of (potentially unresolved) trauma post-calamity. she was unable to unlock her power in time to prevent the tragedy of the calamity, and zelda feels as though all of those deaths (innocent people, the champions, her father) all lie on her shoulders and are her fault.
she has to watch, practically helplessly, as the entire world she knows disappears and burns before her eyes. she finally unlocks her powers, but it's already too late because link "dies" anyway. zelda is the one who makes the call to send him to the shrine of resurrection, not knowing what might happen in the event it either works or doesn't, and then all on her own, she returns the master sword before sealing herself away to fight off calamity ganon.
zelda spends 100 years holding him back and fighting against him. she doesn't know when or even if link will wake up, but she believes in him so strongly that she doesn't falter.
after link frees her, i don't see a world in which zelda (and link) doesn't suffer from PTSD. everything that she knew about her world from before is different. the land, the people, and link. nothing is as it was, and that has to be an incredibly difficult reality to face.
very long-winded background aside, zelda is already dealing with serious trauma before TOTK. spending another 10,000 years in an "out of body" state of some sort most definitely had negative effects on her, no matter how present she was while in her dragon form.
spoilers for the ending of TOTK under the cut!
zelda remembers eating the stone. her last conscious memory before losing herself was of the pain of her transformation. she made the choice to go through with draconification because she knew it was the only way to restore the master sword and ensure link would be able to retrieve it in the future. as far as zelda knew, there would be no coming back from that choice.
as far as zelda knew, as soon as she transformed into a dragon, that was the end. she would be that way forever and her mind and self would be lost.
the last thing she was expecting was for link (with rauru and sonia's help) to be able to change her back, but he does. yes, she doesn't remember her time as the light dragon and wasn't conscious, but zelda knows that she spent 10,000 years that way.
that has to be incredibly disorienting. the process of draconifcation was scary, it hurt, and the past 10,000 years are empty in her memory. the entire process is traumatic as a whole.
i'd imagine that would be another layer to her overall trauma in a really big way. maybe at first she feels a bit more disconnected from that version of herself and it doesn't really land for her, but i think that eventually, the pain from that would catch up to her in a major way.
i don't think that zelda would ever regret her decision even one bit, but i do think that she definitely did not walk away from that unscathed whatsoever.
If I might add, she actually spent far, far longer then 10,000 years as a dragon. 10,000 years ago was the most recent Calamity of Hyrule (barring BotW, obviously.) Zelda went back way farther than that, so there’s no telling how long she was a dragon
the imprisoning war happened 10,000 years ago (which is what zelda was present for) and immediately after, she swallowed her stone. we know it’s been 10,000 years for a fact!
yes, they mention it multiple times. zelda talks about it right in the opening chapter when she and link find the murals under hyrule castle, and then we get more information during the dragon tears quest because we are seeing it happen in the memories we find. they tell us it happened 10,000 years ago, and so zelda traveled 10,000 years in the past and spent that same amount of time as a dragon.
Do you think Zelda would have a lot of lasting trauma from the draconification experience? Like, how do you think she would react to a photo Link took of her dragon form? I just think of two possible outcomes: A) she has little to no trauma due to a combo of no memory and making her decision of her own volition so she finds the dragon form beautiful to look at. B) She has a panic attack from her memory of eating the stone and changing. Maybe I'm overthinking this? Might be good fanfic material!
sorry for taking a while to reply! i LOVE this question and i think it's an interesting concept to think about.
honestly, i think the latter seems more likely. it's safe to say that zelda has a lot of (potentially unresolved) trauma post-calamity. she was unable to unlock her power in time to prevent the tragedy of the calamity, and zelda feels as though all of those deaths (innocent people, the champions, her father) all lie on her shoulders and are her fault.
she has to watch, practically helplessly, as the entire world she knows disappears and burns before her eyes. she finally unlocks her powers, but it's already too late because link "dies" anyway. zelda is the one who makes the call to send him to the shrine of resurrection, not knowing what might happen in the event it either works or doesn't, and then all on her own, she returns the master sword before sealing herself away to fight off calamity ganon.
zelda spends 100 years holding him back and fighting against him. she doesn't know when or even if link will wake up, but she believes in him so strongly that she doesn't falter.
after link frees her, i don't see a world in which zelda (and link) doesn't suffer from PTSD. everything that she knew about her world from before is different. the land, the people, and link. nothing is as it was, and that has to be an incredibly difficult reality to face.
very long-winded background aside, zelda is already dealing with serious trauma before TOTK. spending another 10,000 years in an "out of body" state of some sort most definitely had negative effects on her, no matter how present she was while in her dragon form.
spoilers for the ending of TOTK under the cut!
zelda remembers eating the stone. her last conscious memory before losing herself was of the pain of her transformation. she made the choice to go through with draconification because she knew it was the only way to restore the master sword and ensure link would be able to retrieve it in the future. as far as zelda knew, there would be no coming back from that choice.
as far as zelda knew, as soon as she transformed into a dragon, that was the end. she would be that way forever and her mind and self would be lost.
the last thing she was expecting was for link (with rauru and sonia's help) to be able to change her back, but he does. yes, she doesn't remember her time as the light dragon and wasn't conscious, but zelda knows that she spent 10,000 years that way.
that has to be incredibly disorienting. the process of draconifcation was scary, it hurt, and the past 10,000 years are empty in her memory. the entire process is traumatic as a whole.
i'd imagine that would be another layer to her overall trauma in a really big way. maybe at first she feels a bit more disconnected from that version of herself and it doesn't really land for her, but i think that eventually, the pain from that would catch up to her in a major way.
i don't think that zelda would ever regret her decision even one bit, but i do think that she definitely did not walk away from that unscathed whatsoever.
If I might add, she actually spent far, far longer then 10,000 years as a dragon. 10,000 years ago was the most recent Calamity of Hyrule (barring BotW, obviously.) Zelda went back way farther than that, so there’s no telling how long she was a dragon
the imprisoning war happened 10,000 years ago (which is what zelda was present for) and immediately after, she swallowed her stone. we know it’s been 10,000 years for a fact!
Do you think Zelda would have a lot of lasting trauma from the draconification experience? Like, how do you think she would react to a photo Link took of her dragon form? I just think of two possible outcomes: A) she has little to no trauma due to a combo of no memory and making her decision of her own volition so she finds the dragon form beautiful to look at. B) She has a panic attack from her memory of eating the stone and changing. Maybe I'm overthinking this? Might be good fanfic material!
sorry for taking a while to reply! i LOVE this question and i think it's an interesting concept to think about.
honestly, i think the latter seems more likely. it's safe to say that zelda has a lot of (potentially unresolved) trauma post-calamity. she was unable to unlock her power in time to prevent the tragedy of the calamity, and zelda feels as though all of those deaths (innocent people, the champions, her father) all lie on her shoulders and are her fault.
she has to watch, practically helplessly, as the entire world she knows disappears and burns before her eyes. she finally unlocks her powers, but it's already too late because link "dies" anyway. zelda is the one who makes the call to send him to the shrine of resurrection, not knowing what might happen in the event it either works or doesn't, and then all on her own, she returns the master sword before sealing herself away to fight off calamity ganon.
zelda spends 100 years holding him back and fighting against him. she doesn't know when or even if link will wake up, but she believes in him so strongly that she doesn't falter.
after link frees her, i don't see a world in which zelda (and link) doesn't suffer from PTSD. everything that she knew about her world from before is different. the land, the people, and link. nothing is as it was, and that has to be an incredibly difficult reality to face.
very long-winded background aside, zelda is already dealing with serious trauma before TOTK. spending another 10,000 years in an "out of body" state of some sort most definitely had negative effects on her, no matter how present she was while in her dragon form.
spoilers for the ending of TOTK under the cut!
zelda remembers eating the stone. her last conscious memory before losing herself was of the pain of her transformation. she made the choice to go through with draconification because she knew it was the only way to restore the master sword and ensure link would be able to retrieve it in the future. as far as zelda knew, there would be no coming back from that choice.
as far as zelda knew, as soon as she transformed into a dragon, that was the end. she would be that way forever and her mind and self would be lost.
the last thing she was expecting was for link (with rauru and sonia's help) to be able to change her back, but he does. yes, she doesn't remember her time as the light dragon and wasn't conscious, but zelda knows that she spent 10,000 years that way.
that has to be incredibly disorienting. the process of draconifcation was scary, it hurt, and the past 10,000 years are empty in her memory. the entire process is traumatic as a whole.
i'd imagine that would be another layer to her overall trauma in a really big way. maybe at first she feels a bit more disconnected from that version of herself and it doesn't really land for her, but i think that eventually, the pain from that would catch up to her in a major way.
i don't think that zelda would ever regret her decision even one bit, but i do think that she definitely did not walk away from that unscathed whatsoever.
i just saw someone say that BOTW/TOTK zelink’s relationship is “mostly professional with empathy” and that “there’s no scene showing a bond between link and zelda”
i guess that zelda just moved in with link for kicks with whom she has absolutely no feelings for other than strict professionalism and camaraderie! yeah they share a bed or whatever but it doesn’t mean anything because they DO NOT under any circumstances have a bond whatsoever other than being coworkers. also when she cries in his arms or feels desperate to return to him and basically sacrifices herself for him doesn’t mean anything either! sure he might be the only person left in the world who understands her and knows what she’s been through and he would do anything to protect her and take care of her but the fact that “no matter where i go to offer aid, link remains at my side” is also just because he is contractually obligated to follow zelda around and it isn’t because he wants to at all.
link doing anything to get her back and continuing to look after her post-calamity is purely out of necessity guys sorry i must’ve misunderstood! makes perfect sense my bad
seeing a lot of unfair (and frankly misogynistic) hatred of zelda from a certain…. group… *cough* *cough*
it’s honestly gross and very bizarre that some people can’t let go of hatred towards female characters simply because they “get in the way” of their ship. it’s so weird. this goes for yona too!
seeing people getting mad and calling zelda “selfish” for having moved into link’s house and accusing her of booting him out and kicking him to the curb is a major headscratcher to me. like… even if link no longer lived there (he absolutely still lives there and they share the house. IT’S SO OBVIOUS), he would’ve given it to her by his own volition. zelda is not some manipulative monster who wants to use link and steal his house from him. she doesn’t force link to stick by her side. he does those things because he wants to.
it doesn’t matter if you ship zelink or not because the fact is that he cares about her. she cares about him. it’s really that simple. i’m just sick of seeing all the vitriol spewed zelda’s way when she hasn’t done anything to deserve it. this has been an issue in the fandom since BOTW came out but i’ve seen a huge spike in the grossness since TOTK released. get a GRIP!!!!
thinking about link going back to hateno after the upheaval and as soon as he’s through the door he’s so bothered by the incessant silence without zelda’s rambling and laughter and the table is still set for them for when they got home and there’s traces of her literally everywhere and he just lays in his and zelda’s bed and cries because he feels like he failed her again hahhahaaaa im so normal im so normal im so nor
Do you think Zelda had faith in Link to find a way to restore her from her light dragon form someday from the moment she decided to eat the secret stone? I feel like this makes sense considering how much she loves him and how much she praises him in front of Rauru and Sonia. Also, Rauru and Sonia always expressed interest in helping her return to her own time, so I'm positive they would never have allowed her to become (or rather stay) an immortal dragon; they knew how much she loved Link and wanted to make sure she would be with him. So many people read the final memory as Zelda definitively and permanently for real sacrificing her humanity to save Hyrule, and I feel like they don't take her love for Link into account enough.
i have a LOT of thoughts about this!
for starters, i think zelda's decision is one of utmost selflessness. when she swallows the stone, she is not thinking about the fact that she will lose herself. she is not thinking about herself at all. all she cares about is restoring the master sword so that link will be able to use it in the future to stop ganon once and for all. she knows that she will be "forever changed" if she goes through with it, but it doesn't matter to her one bit.
her faith in link is incredibly strong. personally, i think zelda wasn't even concerned with whether or not he'd be able to change her back. she had full faith in him and the fact that he'd be able to use the sword one day to save the world, and that was why she went through with it. this is why i see it as a true sacrifice on her part. she is giving up herself in order to help both link and hyrule as a whole.
when zelda swallows the stone, it is after the imprisoning war. both rauru and sonia are gone at that point. had they been alive, i think they would've understood her logic and reasoning behind the decision, but maybe disagreed with it because draconification was a forbidden act. i don't know if they'd try and stop her. zelda knows that she is the only one with the ability to restore and protect the master sword. without it, any future battle against ganon will be lost.
i think the main thing that drives her (and her ultimate decision) is love. specifically, her love for link. all she wants is to be able to return to her time, to him, but she is effectively stuck 10,000 years in the past and can't seem to find her way back. by choosing to swallow her stone, it shows just how much she loves him. she waited 100 years for him. what's 10,000 more?
she had faith that he would find her. she had faith that he would be able to use the sword to defeat ganon. she didn't know if she'd ever be freed from her dragon form, but to zelda, it was a sacrifice that she was more than willing to make. it was a decision that was so easy because of how much she loves him, and how much she trusts him.
seeing a lot of unfair (and frankly misogynistic) hatred of zelda from a certain.... group... *cough* *cough*
it’s honestly gross and very bizarre that some people can’t let go of hatred towards female characters simply because they “get in the way” of their ship. it’s so weird. this goes for yona too!
seeing people getting mad and calling zelda “selfish” for having moved into link’s house and accusing her of booting him out and kicking him to the curb is a major headscratcher to me. like... even if link no longer lived there (he absolutely still lives there and they share the house. IT’S SO OBVIOUS), he would’ve given it to her by his own volition. zelda is not some manipulative monster who wants to use link and steal his house from him. she doesn’t force link to stick by her side. he does those things because he wants to.
it doesn’t matter if you ship zelink or not because the fact is that he cares about her. she cares about him. it’s really that simple. i’m just sick of seeing all the vitriol spewed zelda’s way when she hasn’t done anything to deserve it. this has been an issue in the fandom since BOTW came out but i’ve seen a huge spike in the grossness since TOTK released. get a GRIP!!!!
fun little tidbits like this about the difference between various translations is THRILLING to me
like you get so much context/different words to convey a greater meaning and i think it’s so cool to see all the puzzle pieces from language to language
this interaction as a whole is screaming “yes i like someone and if i say no im lying” and i Love it
gummygunk
kianamaiart
