The concept of Phainon who just... lets you do whatever you want with him has me in a death grip.
Jumping on him from unspecified heights randomly? He somehow has the strange seventh sense to catch you in time. Doesn't even make a sound of displeasure.
Biting his cheeks instead of whatever food he was holding to your mouth? "You're so cute," is what he says with a chuckle.
When you nibble, bite, knead, squeeze and squish him for no reason? He can't stop smiling. Maybe you bit too hard and his skin is bleeding a little? He finds it hot.
When you start poking him out of boredom, he'll poke you right back. Within a few seconds, it'll escalate into a tickle fight.
Clinging to his arm or hanging to him like a monkey to a branch? He carries you around like you weigh nothing.
When instead of sitting down beside him or getting into bed normally, you jump on him? All he does is giggle.
And when you start aggressively ruffling his hair while asking him out-of-context questions like, "When you de-shell a snail, is it naked or is it homeless?" he genuinely engages in the conversation.
But brace yourself though, for when you finally tire yourself out, it'll be his turn to do whatever he wants with you.
"he would not fucking say that" but about injuries. he would not fucking recover that quickly. those scars would not fucking heal like that. he would not be fucking able bodied after that. he would not be fully lucid after that.
I found this in my folders and cackled like a maniac. Of course I was gonna do HSR x TGCF when I met Stelle (and Caelus) and their trash raccoon tendencies.
--
After a few hours of wandering the strange forest they'd crash landed in, the twins finally admitted it.
"We're lost, absolutely lost. No idea where we are. Not even any convenient space anchors to light up a map," Stelle declares, slumping onto her brother in defeat.
Sunday wants to say, "Obviously. We landed in this planet only less than half a system day ago." But as he's already pointed that out several times, he keeps his mouth shut.
He had not expected his fist mission alone with the stellaron-carrying twins to be this...eventful. March and Dan Heng had warned him, and Sunday had thought he'd be well prepared considering the amount of disasters those four dragged themselves and him into.
But getting stranded in a planet unmarked by the IPC and, subsequently, having no way to contact the others?
Was this how Dan Heng and Stelle had felt in Amphoreus?
"Well, we have to do something," Sunday hears Caelus sigh.
"Hopefully we don't run into those sinister creatures from earlier again..." Sunday mutters, remembering with a shudder the rotted-looking humans(?) that had been talking about a ghost city and eating human limbs.
Just what kind of world was this?
Turning to face him, Caelus nods. "Yeah, I don't think they know we're supposed to follow turn based battle mechanics."
Wisely, Sunday says nothing to that bizarre statement. He thinks maybe March had been right about accusing those two of playing too many video games. Instead, he coughs and goes, "Nevertheless, we should continue forth until we find some kind of path."
"Hmmmm..." Stelle says, her hum grave as she stares at him with that expressionless mask of hers.
Sunday tries not to squirm and feels the tension jump off him when she unexpectedly goes, "Okay, Sunny! You choose right, left, straight, or back!"
"Or diagonal," Caelus chips in, poking at a tree.
"Or diagonally," Stelle agrees.
Blinking, Sunday scans the area - just trees - and then stammers, "Are you...sure?"
"Sure! It's not like we can get more lost!"
"Annnnd you've jinxed it, Stelle," Caelus mutters, joining the two again.
Sunday sends a quick prayer to any Aeon above and then nods. "Fine," he sighs before pointing at a random opening to his right that looks to have some light streaming from it. "There, then?"
Without a word, the twins lead the way once again.
It's a quiet journey, and the silence stretches on until Sunday is just about to suggest they try a new direction...except then Stelle exclaims, "Oh, look! I see a building!!"
Her brother and Sunday squint and step forward.
Once they spot what she's seen, Sunday winces.
Calling whatever that is a building is...generous. Though it looks somewhat new, it still looks like it was built from the ruins of it having collapsed at one point.
As they approach the area, Sunday becomes even more bewildered at the choice of decoration, some wild mishmash of rich decor and the shabbiest of odd collections he'd ever seen. He spots a sign over the entrance with a plaque but realizes he doesn't know the language and can't read whatever the script says.
"You know...those look like some variant of the Xianzhou writing," Stelle comments, tilting her head and squinting.
Sunday is a little surprised. "You know the Xianzhou script?"
Stelle crosses her arms and sports a smug smile. "Dan Heng has been teaching us. Caelus is better with it than I am, though."
"That's cause you keep getting distracted with the others books in the archives..." Caelus comments, though he, too, is eyeing the plaque with grave intensity.
After a moment, Caelus shakes his head. "I can't read it at all. Either it's a character we don't know or this variant is too removed from the Xianzhou characters we know. Maybe we're in one of the planets of Long's scions?"
Sunday wishes he could help, but in all honesty, though he has studied Xianzhou writing, he also can't make heads or tails of the sign. Maybe they're just chasing an empty connection and this script isn't Xianzhou-related at all.
But they're tired and beaten and still very, very lost.
"Should we...enter? Or knock...or - "
"Excuse me? Can I help you with something?"
Caelus' suggestions get interrupted by a pleasant voice behind Sunday. When they turn, a man with long, dark brown hair dressed in white robes reminiscent of something from the Xianzhou is smiling at them. On top of his head is a bamboo hat - again, reminiscent of the Xianzhou's styles - and he looks to be carrying a large sack of something over his shoulder.
Sunday is rendered speechless, less because they've been caught off guard - none of them had detected this man walking up to them - and more because the language he speaks is - again - very close to Xianzhou's local tongue.
Fortunately, Gopher Wood (may he rest in pieces) had not been one to skimp on Sunday's education, and Stelle and Caelus have a remarkable aptitude for picking up local languages.
So they light up at the familiar words and immediately respond.
"Hi, yes! Could you tell us what this building is? We're....lost," Caelus pipes in first.
The man's eyes quickly study them, and Sunday gets the feeling he's categorized all their weak points and eccentricities in that glance. He also notices the man is taken a little aback at their dress, particularly Stelle's, as the man seems to blink a little in confusion at her bare legs - less bare than usual as Stelle had opted to wear knee-length tights under her skirt this time. But the appraisal is quick and his friendly smile never drops.
"I see. You must come from very far," he notes, nodding slightly. "Come with me. This is Puqi Shrine, a shrine that I currently am the carer for. You're most welcome to stay the night if you don't mind the tight squeeze and lack of proper sleeping accomodations..."
The man reveals his rather sad state of life as if he's telling them what the menu will be. And well...it's not like they have any better options.
The three of them tail the man into the small building, noting once again the strange decor but well-maintained upkeep.
"Shrine? What for? To an aeon?" Stelle comments idly before she spots something.
Sunday follows her gaze to a thing that he guesses is an altar, considering the incense sticks. Over it hangs a portrait of a masked man clothed in white and gold.
Despite the simplicity of it all, it's still a somewhat breathtaking sight. If that's the god of this shrine, Sunday has a feeling that they are very loved.
"What's your name, by the way, uh...xiansheng?" Caelus chatters easily, faltering a bit at the proper term of address.
(The man doesn't react at all, though Sunday feels like that "xiansheng" wasn't quite right. But he certainly can't say he knows more about the language than the twins.)
"Hmm?" the man hums as he sets down his raggedy bundle of things. That, at least, perks Stelle's interest away from the small altar while the man continues, "You can call me Xie Lian. What are your names?"
And as Caelus and Stelle introduce themselves with their dramatic titles ("Oh, and that bird there is Sunday," they add), they notice the man's eyebrows crawling up in some kind of controlled astonishment, like he's fascinated but also vaguely registering that perhaps some alarm would be necessary (and ignoring that latter part). "You do indeed come from far away," he muses but doesn't press for details.
Finally the bag is unfolded, and Sunday has to fight to keep his expression neutral when faced with the....random scrap. Upon closer inspection, his bewilderment only grows because some of the things are....
"Ooooh," the twins echo off each other in unison, their eyes gleaming at the junk in a way that has Sunday a little worried.
Xie Lian, for his part, only smiles a pleased sort of way.
"Anything catch your eye from here?" he laughs at the two.
And, of course, they both turn to him and nod vigorously.
"Are you a garbage connoisseur as well?" Stelle pokes him, and Sunday wants to slap his face.
"Stelle, I don't think that's very polite..." he mutters.
But the man looks quite pleased indeed. "Well, yes. Of a sort. I'm a scrap collector!"
...
Sunday wonders, watching Caelus and Stelle verily glow from this information, if it's lucky or unlucky that they ran into someone who shares the twins' unsanitary hobbies.
"A kindred spirit!" Stelle declares dramatically, high fiving her twin.
"What kind of materials are in here? What are the local specialties??"
Xie Lian looks taken aback by the twins' heartfelt sincerity about his scraps, and Sunday wants to sigh but...no harm is being done, and he can't help but be curious himself.
Maybe the twins' condition is contagious...
He joins them silently and, through the stories and questions told around the scraps thanks to the twins' liberal questioning and the man's happy willingness to respond, gets to know that they are currently in a mountain a way's off from some village called Puqi. This world is very similar to the immersias March 7th had introduced him to. This man seems to be some kind of cultivator watching over this shrine. And...well.
There are gods and ghosts - honest to goodness undead and/or ascended mortals turned immortal, not abominations of the Abundance (unless they were?).
Sunday blinks in surprise at this information, that humans can become gods just like that. When he'd tried that, all that ended up happening was a unique greeting with the Astral express that had landed him where he was now. But in this immersia-like world...
"Are you a god?" Stelle pipes up during this line of information gathering.
Only the twins could ask something so blatant, though Xie Lian just smiles.
"Well, in a sense..." he trails off non-commitally.
"Oh? What are you the god of?" Caelus follows that up, apparently taking it as confirmation.
Xie Lian thinks for a minute before gesturing to the scraps. "Well, as I've said. I am but a humble scrap collector..."
It's like a light switch has been turned on.
"A god of trash!!" Stelle exhales, shooting up in delight and almost knocking over a broken clay pot. "Finally, a path we were born to stride!"
"You're an Aeon of trash!" Caelus gasps, a little manically, eyes shining. "And you didn't try to kill us or give us a hard time! The only time an Aeon hasn't scared me is Akivili, and THEY'RE dead! We think."
Well, at least Xie Lian looks baffled. "....aeon? I'm not sure what that means but I don't believe I'm that..."
That only serves to deflate the two a rather miniscule amount, and they continue to pester Xie Lian about his trash collecting through the rest of the evening.
All in all, chatter fading into the background, Sunday decides that they were pretty lucky running into this man. He almost takes that back after choking on whatever the food the man had brought them was, but as Stelle and Caelus seem unaffected by what Sunday dubiously has deemed unsafe, he decides it's not worth complaining about.
He only hopes they can find a way back to the rest of the crew soon.
Pt. 2 for the TGCF x HSR thing because I have friends who enabled me and a love for lore meeting lore. Featuring March and Dan Heng now!
--
When March was separated from Caelus, Stelle, Sunday, and the Astral Express parents, she hadn't been too worried.
Sure, they'd crash landed in this creepy island after being shaken by some unknown force in the atmosphere, finding that they had no signal to communicate with the others, but at least she had Dan Heng.
"Not again..." he'd muttered after checking, looking rather panicked, that March was okay.
And together, they'd stared at the wreckage of the pod that had brought them into the planet.
All things considered, it wasn't unfixable. It was still in one piece, if a bit dented for having cushioned their fall, and something was smoking. But after poking around, it wasn't anything too serious. They just needed to see if there was any place here that sold the parts they needed.
"At least we're uninjured," March had heard Dan Heng mumble, more to himself than the two of them.
Still, she'd twined an arm around him and patted his shoulder comfortingly. Neither of them had wanted to talk about how they'd almost lost Stelle in Amphoreus.
"Don't look so down," March had said, withdrawing her touch only to hook her arm around his. "Come on, there's bound to be something here."
They'd glanced around their surroundings, only to be hit with the most oppressive gloom March had ever felt in her life. And she'd been to Fyxestroll Garden.
Not only that, the island was just. Trees. So many trees. The only reason they knew it was an island was because they were right on the edge, where they could see an even gloomier sea with water so dark, it was almost black.
The look Dan Heng had shot at her was not impressed at all.
"...right. I'd be more inclined to believe that there are ghosts roaming this island."
The comment, delivered in Dan Heng's usual deadpan, had sent a shiver up March's spine. Not bothering to unhook her arm from Dan Heng, she used it to jab his side. "Don't say that," she hissed, and drew herself closer to him.
"Afraid?"
March was going to kill him. After they got out of here, though. No way was she exploring this island by herself.
She'd scowled at him, instead, and suggested they follow the spirit of the Trailblaze and explore the island.
Aaaaand...
That's how they'd found themselves to where they are now.
"Who the hell are you?" the figure, surrounded by what looks to be emaciated and wailing humans, thunders.
See here, to make a long story short...
March and Dan Heng had wandered the forest, tensing at every strange noise - and there had been a fair number of very strange noises that didn't sound animalistic at all - until they'd stumbled across a lake in the forest. Dan Heng had shivered not just at its color - a pitch black - but also at how still it was.
March had peered into it, amazed at how clearly it reflected her face ("That's really strange," Dan Heng had said, peering at his own clear visage on the water. "Don't worry, you look beautiful," March had assured him. "That's not...").
And then a cackling, rotting (and she wasn't being rude!) face had appeared in between them and scared her into the water. Of course, March wasn't one to go down alone and had dragged an equally startled Dan Heng with her...
...to find themselves in what looked to be a pretty ostentatious palace or temple or whatever it was ("Are those...skeletons?" "Don't look at that. If we don't see it, they can't see us." "That's not how it works...skeletons can't see at all." "You're jinxing it, Dan Heng!"). They had promptly decided to wander around for an exit and instead...
...stumbled into this glaring fellow, who crushes one of the writhing figures on the ground as he ambles his way towards them.
March is instantly on the alert, ready to pull her bow at any moment, and she can feel Dan Heng's stance shifting ever so slightly.
"We're trailblazers on the Astral Express," Dan Heng cautiously answers, and March is glad to let Dan Heng do the talking.
Eyes and ears as alert as they are, she notices not just the sights of the gloomy room and the definitely human figures squirming and crying on the ground, she also notes that this new man is speaking some form of the Xianzhou local language. March isn't as good as Dan Heng or the twins in picking up languages, but she likes to joke that because her head is so empty, she absorbs languages and - more specifically - dialects faster than the average person.
So in any case, the gaunt but strangely handsome man stares at Dan Heng. "Is that supposed to mean anything? What you are, as far as I'm concerned, are trespassers."
March's eyebrows shoot up and she cant help huff in a bit of indignation. "Sorry to have crash landed on this island and not known that the lake we fell into after seeing whatever that was was your property. Because it's definitely common sense to expect a lake to be the entrace to a whole house!"
The man stares at her as if she'd spoken a foreign language, which was a little rude! March knew she had an accent, but it wasn't as if she could help that!
"Crash...landed?"
"Yes, fell out of the sky!" March hopes her sarcasm isn't bleeding out too profusely. Probably gesturing about wildly isn't helping, but oh well. "Our ship needs repairs and we'll gladly get out of your hair if you tell us - " She glances at the writhing figures on the ground and feels a pang of sympathy for them. "If you tell us what you're doing to these people and if there's a village or something here."
Next to her, Dan Heng sighs.
In front of them, the man just stares at March, as if he didn't understand a thing she said. In spite of the dim lighting, months of conversing with Dan Heng in low lighting when he's holing himself up in the archives have given her a sort of...fine art in reading people with faces more frozen than her six-phased ice. Which is to say that the man in front of her seems to go from bewilderment to curiosity to the "oh, wait. I don't want to be involved in whatever this is at all" expression.
"I can show you a door that will lead you back to civilization," the man decides on saying, completely ignoring March's conditions.
Dan Heng tenses at this, and March just crosses her arms, starting to feel her temper boil over. "Okay, thank you, but I'm really curious what you're doing to these people?"
She pointedly does not look at the life she'd seen the man take right in front of them, stepping on the person like they were aluminium foil.
And the man has the audacity to scoff, "They aren't people. Just an infestation."
March's jaw drops.
"You know, you sound really polite, but what kind of normal person says that??" She side eyes Dan Heng, who looks mildly uncomfortable (which is Dan Heng speak for the righteous Trailblaze fury when faced with cruelty and injustice, not that he'd call it that).
Still, he meets her gaze. "March...maybe we should hear him out? We don't know what's going on..."
He's right, and March huffs but turns back to the strange man.
"Well....?"
The man just stares back. "Well what?" Then, he just scoffs. "I don't have to explain myself. I answered you. Now leave before I throw you out or kill you."
Of all the -
"Listen here, mister - "
But before either of them can speak another word, a door behind them to their left slams open. March finds herself crashing into Dan Heng as weird force blasts them through it.
The last thing she hears is a, "Dammit, wrong door" before her vision blurs.
The disorientation lasts for only a second but March is gasping as the salty breeze washes over her like a painkiller.
"Ohhhhh," she groans, shuddering as she clutches her stomach. "I feel like I was tied to Stelle as she hops around the Dreamscape." (Worst experience of her life, including Amphoreus. March had lost a bet. Stelle had been delighted. Caelus had filmed it for Dan Heng (wouldn't partake in this) and Sunday (still exiled).)
Anyway, her nausea isn't so bad that she can't observe Dan Heng looking quite ill as well. And that they're still unfortunately on the same island.
The air behind them vibrates like a heartbeat, and they're suddenly met with the presence of the strange man.
In the clearer (gray) light of the pre-storm outside, his features are more visible. March quickly appraises his sharp features and deep brows. Despite the gaunt, almost concerningly pale, skin, she was right to classify him as pretty handsome. His black hair is messy, part of it tied up in a ponytail, and his dark eyes are...well, he looks pretty angry as he storms towards them.
"Delve-hidden moon, world-cleansing dragon!"
This time, Dan Heng doesn't hesitate, and March whips around to see him switched to his Vidyadhara form's signature horns and longer hair (and tapered ears) with a towering dragon of water made from the strange sea hurling down at the stranger.
The stranger falters as he approaches them, eyeing the dragon hurtling towards him with what looks to be disbelief.
And then he scowls and - and...
A fish.
A skeleton of a fish, more precisely.
"What???" March shrieks in equal parts indignation and terror (and probably hysteria) as the giant fish skeleton eats Dan Heng's water dragon.
How is that possible?
"That - THAT SKELETON DOESN'T EVEN HAVE A DIGESTIVE SYSTEM!" she shrieks, her indignation briefly overtaking her terror.
She hears Dan Heng's, "Really, March? Now?" but opts to ignore it as the droplets of water rain down on them, favoring instead to unleash a storm of her six-phased ice on both the man and his fish.
When things quiet down - or, when March feels less insane about the things she's witnessed in the past few minutes of her life - Dan Heng is back to short hair, the impromptu rain has dissipated, and the man...
"...I can almost hear the twins commenting on how we have a people-sicle," Dan Heng mutters as they both stare at the slightly wide-eyed form of the man in the ice.
March taps on the ice and then immediately shoots Dan Heng a horrified look. "Please don't try and take over for them." She internally sends out a prayer for Sunday, who is with the twins. Alone.
She taps on the ice again.
Crack.
...
Was that -
"Eep!"
March jumps back immediately as her ice burts open and shoves her back against Dan Heng, who steadies her. She doesn't have to see it to know that her friend is glaring at the stranger.
But now he's not moving, simply staring at them with an expression March knows. It's the same one that a lot of people give Caelus and Stelle, the kind of "what are you and why are you so different from everything I know to be true?" look.
And from the way Dan Heng's hands relax around her shoulders, he probably sees that too.
"How did you use your spiritual power on my island?" he asks, not exactly a demand but neither a query to be denied.
March and Dan Heng finally separate if only to exchange confused looks.
"I wouldn't call my cloudhymn magic spiritual...," Dan Heng starts off, words slow and spoken with caution, "though there is a ritual spirituality to it, I suppose."
The man hums but offers no comment, simply shifts his piercing gaze to March.
March scratches the side of her head and frowns. "My six-phased ice is really more...a result from a few things in my past. Long story. But it's just ice, even though it does have a different pressure and shape from normal ice?"
Actually, while March has been talking, the man had finally looked at them, and if March was right about the way his mood was set now, he was deeply bewildered.
"...you're from far away."
March shrunk her bow - she hadn't even realized she'd taken it out - and clipped it to belt around her skirt. "Well, clearly," she huffed. "The Astral Express couldn't find a place to land in this new world, so we bounced in on some pods but got separated from our friends. We were trying to find a civilization or something here before we found you killing all those people - "
"Not people."
And this time, March can see that the man is absolutely serious about what he's saying. Not being callous, simply just...being annoyed at everything in general. She can relate to that...but I'm pretty sure I'd cry if that was my permanent mood. March 7th is a cheerful girl, thank you.
"...fine. Anyway, we're sorry Dan Heng attacked you" - ignoring Dan Heng's sigh at her pinning the blame on him - "but we really don't want to fight! We really just want to find our friends, so. At least...could you tell us where we are?"
There's a long silence, which only serves to remind March that they're bordering a creepy forest with a creepy lack of noise save for creepier unknown sounds right next to a sea that looks unsafe to swim in.
"I...do not understand what you meant by your words, but I can take you back to...'civilization.' I live alone here," the man finally speaks.
With that, March relaxes. Sure, she doesn't trust this guy yet, but he's been pretty civil ("Maybe he was intimidated by my awesome powers," she'd later tell Dan Heng when they were discussing the stranger).
Next to her, Dan Heng simply takes out a tablet and asks, "Were exactly is here, anyway? The name, I mean?"
For a moment, the man's eyes are transfixed on Dan Heng's tablet, which is currently open to a blank sheet. Nothing connected to anywhere, of course, but they won't need any internet for this.
When he snaps out of it, he mutters, "People call this place Black Water Demon Lair. But I don't care what you call it."
March shudders again at the name. "And you live here alone?"
"I own the place," he retorts, which doesn't explain much. But she notes his black robes with the sliver embroidery on the edges and the water around them and decides it's a fitting name after all.
Dan Heng, like the archivist he is, simply marks a blank spot with the name of the island. He glances up at the man, "And excuse the second question, but what is your name?"
There's not even a breeze to fill the second pause as the man seems to think about it for a second. But then he shrugs and introduces himself. "He Xuan." And like it's an afterthought, "And yours?"
"I'm...Dan Heng," Dan Heng introduces himself. "And my companion here is Sanyue Qi."
That doesn't seem to mean anything to this He Xuan guy, who just nods and, without warning, turns around and starts walking.
They hear a muttered, "Follow me, then."
March and Dan Heng exchange a short look.
"Well, it's not like we have any other choice but to follow the creepy guy who was killing 'not-people' when we met him," March says through expressions alone.
"...yeah. We might be in one of Long's planets given the similar language to the Vidyadhara's. But just...stay safe." Also conveyed through expressions.
See? March thinks to herself as they follow this He Xuan deeper into the forest. As long as I have one of my companions with me, it'll be fine.
She's a little bit glad it wasn't Stelle or Caelus, though. March loves those two to pieces, but given their luck and talent for getting into the most dramatic situations, she would have probably met actual ghosts by now if she were with them.
*crawls in* hi. here’s the last one. I got very behind. Enjoy.
This is a continuation to days 22, 25, and 29 from 2023. That’s the storyline with downfall Time and all that fun stuff. Time gets to heal his inner child who’s not inner because he’s an actual guy and also isn’t 100% him because their experiences were different. But whatever.
Anyway I hope you all enjoyed the fics this year, even with my crazy update schedule. Thanks to everyone who followed along!! I appreciate every one of you so much 💚
Day 29, 2023 - “what happened to me?”
Ao3 link
Warnings: past violence, injuries, discussion of death.
————————————————————
Warm sunshine spills across Link’s arms as he carefully sits himself up, ignoring the twinge of pain he gets for his trouble. He slowly shifts himself around, letting his legs hang over the edge of the bed, then looks up and meets the eyes of one of the heroes standing beside him.
“Okay... ready Link?”
Link swallows as he nods, and carefully sets his feet on the floor, the handful of people in the room watching him intently. He shifts his weight to his legs, bracing himself, then pushes up off the bed, feeling a rush of excitement as he stands up on his own for the first time since...
Since...
Booming laughter, Navi screaming, a sword ripping into his chest—
His legs shake, an ache shooting across his middle, and someone’s arm catches him when he starts to fall, the grip steady.
“Whoa, take it easy,” Sky says with a kind smile, and Link tries to regain his balance, feeling a flicker of frustration as his legs refuse to behave.
He’s been awake several days now, and he still can’t walk around by himself.
“That’s probably enough for today,” Warriors says after several more unsuccessful minutes, and Link feels his face fall.
“But...”
“Sorry kiddo, we don’t want to wear you out too much,” the captain says, and gives him an encouraging smile. “You did good today. You held your weight for a solid minute, you’re getting there.”
“I guess,” he mumbles, and lets Sky help him sit back on the bed.
Link leans against the pillows they’ve propped up for him with a sigh, and he doesn’t have to turn to know the other heroes are giving each other looks. They do that a lot he’s found, especially the older ones. It’d be funny if it wasn’t always because of him.
“Well I think you did a good job,” Wind pipes up, “you moved around way more then yesterday. You’ll be back in fighting shape in no time!”
Link closes his eyes. “Right.”
Warriors’ eyes narrow, and he makes eye contact with Sky, who gives some sort of excuse and leaves the room, tugging Wind and the few others out with him.
Warriors and Link are left alone, and Warriors sighs, his scarf brushing across Link’s arm.
Tentacles wrapping around him and holding him in place, something sweeping into his mind as he chokes on blood and he can’t even scream—
A hand lands on his, and Link exhales, trying to stop the shaking that had begun in it.
“Link, hey, easy kid,” the captain says, and Link feels another flash of annoyance, not at Warriors, but himself.
He knows he’s been through a lot, he knows it more then anyone else. Except for maybe Ravio who experienced a little bit of it, but the point is it’s frustrating being plunged back into memories he barely remembers, and being so weak he can’t even stand for more then a few seconds.
Not to mention how the mere glimpse of his reflection makes his heart skip a beat, and the fact that he hasn’t been able to sleep properly since all of the heroes saved him, and the whole other heroes thing in and of itself that’s a whole other mind-boggling time-travel disaster he’s been trying not to think about.
And the fact that you failed, and there’s no way to fix your mistakes, a venomous part of his mind whispers.
“Link? Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” he murmurs, and Warriors leans down and meets his eyes.
“Hey. I know it’s frustrating, but you’re not going to be able to bounce back from this immediately. Recovery is going to take time, you...”
“Died. I know,” Link murmurs, and Warriors squeezes his hand.
“And were brought back rather violently, then were immediately possessed,” Warriors says gently. “Cut yourself some slack, Spri— kid. Most people wouldn’t even be able to get out of bed yet after something like that.”
Link swallows, and when Warriors gently ruffles his hair, he finds himself leaning into the touch.
He feels like he’s been scraped raw from everything that’s happened to him. He’s still struggling to wrap his head around everything, but the other heroes, especially the captain, have been steadying. They’re all so nice, even the ones he hasn’t seen as much of... though the oldest one makes the hair on his neck prickle for some reason.
But they care for him, for some reason even he’s not sure of, and they do help fill up the hole in his chest that Navi and Saria and everyone he knew used to fill.
“Thanks,” he says quietly, and Warriors nods, still smiling a bit sadly.
“Of course. But Link... this is about more than just recovering, isn’t it?” the captain ventures, and Link looks down at his lap as he nods.
He’s spoken with Warriors the most so far out of all the heroes, the captain spending nearly all of his time at his bedside. He’s already cried in his arms more than once, so it’s not that he’s awkward about this exactly, it just...
Link feels his lip tremble, and he stubbornly bites down on it.
“I can’t go home,” he finally says in a whisper.
And with that, the rest of the words suddenly come tumbling out of him.
“I want to go home, but the home I want doesn’t even exist, Ganon wrecked it, and I can’t go back because even if I could then time would break even more, b-but I don’t have anything else to do, I’m not even supposed to be alive, how... what do I do now?”
His voice trembles as he finishes, and he swallows again, his throat tight.
He misses Navi. He misses Zelda. He misses his house in Kokiri forest, and the Deku Tree, and having his biggest worry be that he didn’t have a fairy and he misses Saria almost as much as he misses Navi—
He hiccups, and Warriors pulls him into a hug, Link squeezing his eyes shut as he tries not to wail.
“I know, kiddo,” Warriors says, his voice grieved. “I know. I can’t tell you what you’re supposed to do now, but we’ll do everything we can to help you, I promise.”
He gives Link a squeeze, and Link feels him pull his head onto his shoulder, gently patting it.
“And in the meantime, all you need to worry about is getting better.”
I don’t think I’m ever going to be, Link nearly says out loud, but he keeps it to himself. Saying it out loud makes it feel too real.
Instead he presses his face to Warriors’ sleeve, and tries not to cry all over his scarf.
(...)
That afternoon, Link is sitting in bed with a few of the other Links around, poking glumly at some food the champion made for him. It’s delicious, he’s just... not hungry. Not right now.
He wishes he could go outside. Or sit in a tree. Just something.
The plate is finally set aside when he decides he can’t eat anymore, and then his door creaks, a head poking in the room. Link perks up and smiles as Wind skips inside. He likes the sailor. Wind doesn’t treat him like glass, and doesn’t give him nearly as many worried looks as the older heroes do.
Which he guesses are mostly warranted, but they’re still annoying.
Plus Wind reminds him of the Kokiri, and some of the other kids he met in Hyrule. He’s fun, and silly, but strong and smart, and doesn’t mince words. He reminds him of Malon a little, actually.
He wonders how she’s doing.
“Hiya Link,” Wind says, flopping on the end of his bed with a grin. “I got more nickname suggestions!”
Link smiles back at him. “What have you got?”
Since all the heroes are (for some reason) named Link, they have nicknames to tell each other apart. Wind had offered to help Link think of one, since nobody else had given any good ones yet, and Link had agreed.
“Oh no, please tell me they’re better then the last batch,” Wild groans from near the window, and Wind gives him an offended look.
“They weren’t that bad, Link just didn’t prefer them and it’s his nickname,” Wind sniffed.
“True, but “Other Guy” was just dumb,” Twilight snorts, and Link snickers, wincing a little as his middle aches. “Not to mention “Blondie”, or—”
“Okay okay,” Wind says over the chatter that’s sprung up, and claps his hands together. “Well Four helped me think of some of these, so blame him if you don’t like them. But we thought of some good ones, so listen up, and keep your mouth shut, Legend.”
“Fine, but if any are alliterative, I’m leaving,” Legend huffs in return.
Link scoots in, and Wind begins to read from his list, the nicknames… slightly less eccentric than last time. There’s some purposely ridiculous ones that Wind must have added just to make Link laugh, but the rest are fairly normal. And they’re all fine, but... none of them particularly stick out to Link.
They don’t feel... right.
“Any of those sound good?” Wind asks as he finishes reading, and Link shrugs.
“I kinda liked “Green bean”,” Legend says with a snicker, and Wind elbows him.
“They were nice, I just... I don’t know,” Link says helplessly, and Wind looks at him and nods.
“Yeah, I get it. It’s hard since we can’t just take your title because Time already— um. He...”
Wind awkwardly trails off, and Link sees several expressions go uncertain.
Link sighs. “I know there’s something about Time you guys don’t want to talk about. You don’t have to hide whatever it is from me.” Link pointedly lays down and rolls over, and doesn’t look at anyone. “...I’d leave the room now but I can’t walk.”
There’s a moment of silence, and then Link feels Wind pat his arm.
“Sorry, Link. We’re not trying to hide things from you, it’s just... hard to explain. And we want Time to be the one to decide when to tell you.”
“Well it’d be nice if he would just do it,” Link grouses. “Things are weird enough around here already.”
Wind snorts a laugh. “That’s for sure. Though... not as weird as this one island I went to once, you wanna hear about it?”
Link pouts for another moment, then rolls back over and nods.
Wind starts in on the tale, and Link does his best to listen, though his mind keeps wandering towards the older hero he hasn’t really talked to. Time seems like he’s avoiding him, which is weird because he feels familiar to Link. And he’s seen him interact with the others, so even though he looks intimidating, he’s seen that he’s nice.
And even weirder, Link is sure he has a memory of crying from pain and panic in the rain right after being freed, and Time had been the one to calm him down, and set a gentle hand on his face.
But maybe he’d just hallucinated it.
The question of Time stays in his mind though, through the rest of the day and into the night. Link falls asleep in the middle of Ravio showing him how to play some kind of card game over dinner, Legend and Wind’s loud insistence of cheating not enough to stop him dozing off. He vaguely registers the food and game being quietly moved out of the room, someone pulling his blanket up, and then he’s out.
Unfortunately, his sleep never stays peaceful.
Link wakes up with a start some time later, a manic voice in his ear and the phantom feel of tentacles latching onto him, dragging him towards something he can’t escape—
Link’s eyes shoot open, but he manages to bite back the shriek that wants to escape, the marks on his face stinging like they’re fresh cuts. Cold sweat beads on his face, and he hurriedly muffles another panicked noise when he notices Warriors is snoozing at his bedside. He doesn’t want to wake him up. Not again.
Even if a part of him really, really wants a hug.
Link gulps in a shaky breath, glad there’s a lantern on the table giving him just a bit of light. When he wakes up in total darkness, it’s a lot harder to hold back the screams, and he feels terrible scaring the others awake with them. They’re just memories anyway. There’s nothing to be afraid of now.
Even if the shadows on the wall look sort of like tentacles, and the tree branches waving outside look like claws, and the wind sounds a little bit like a wolfos—
Link whimpers, but he grips his sheets and tries to calm down. Nothing is trying to get him, and if there was, he or the others would stop it.
He’s okay. He’s okay.
He’s... really thirsty, actually.
Link shakily sits up, hoping drinking something will calm him down, and looks for the water that’s usually left on the bedside table. There’s nothing but an empty cup.
Link looks at it, then looks at the door, and blows out a breath. His throat is really dry. But he doesn’t want to wake anyone up just to ask for some water. So... so he’ll just go get it himself.
No problem. He got carried into the main room once, he knows where he can get some water. He just has to get out of bed, and go get it, ignoring the fact that he hasn’t been able to hold his weight at all lately.
No problem.
Link pushes his blankets back, and turns himself around, his feet hanging off the side of the bed. They don’t quite touch the floor, but the gap isn’t too big. Having such long legs is still so weird.
A slow exhale comes from him, and then Link pushes himself up, putting one hand on the bedside table and keeping a hand on the bed in case his legs give out.
They wobble disconcertingly, and Link tightens his grip. His nightmare tries to push its way to the front of his mind, but he frantically pushes it away as he tries not to collapse. Link is nothing if not stubborn, and he fights past the dizziness that joins the shaking, until his vision finally clears and his legs stop shaking quite so hard.
He grins. Success!
...Now he just has to walk.
Link frowns, thinking as he looks at the door. Can he get himself there and also carry a cup at the same time? Probably not. He’ll get a new cup out in the main room.
It’ll also be dark, though.
Link swallows, and looks over at the light, then back at the door. He really can’t carry the lantern, so he’ll just... have to hope someone else can’t sleep without a light. Yeah.
With that decided, Link starts to shuffle his way forward, bracing himself on anything solid that’s available as he careful moves across the room. His legs wobble and shake, and he has to pause pretty often, but he figures out a mostly-reliable way to move his feet.
Eventually he makes his way to the wall, and he slumps against it, already exhausted.
But he’s still thirsty, and he doesn’t want to try to ignore images of tentacled monsters in his head in order to go back to sleep yet. So once he’s rested for several minutes, he goes back to shuffling forward, glad of the borrowed socks on his feet. He thinks they’re Sky’s, though he’s actually not sure. But they’re keeping his feet nice and warm, and the thick fabric is actually helping with traction a little bit.
Link finally makes it to the door after what feels like forever, and it takes him a while to get it open, and stay quiet as well. But he manages somehow, and smiles to himself, then looks out, frowning at the darkness.
Now he just has to make it past all the sleeping heroes on the floor.
Link sighs, and starts his shuffling shambling walk again, his middle and other injuries starting to ache. He’s had potion for them, but they still hurt a lot, and he’s moved around more now then he has since... since things he’s not thinking about.
If Navi we’re here he’d have a light.
Link’s lip wobbles, and he stubbornly shoves that thought aside as he keeps moving. Water. Get water, go back to bed. Don’t think about it.
Link steps carefully around two lumps on the floor that he thinks are the champion and rancher, and moves steadily towards the corner with cabinets and things where he thinks Legend keeps his cups.
A glint of something catches his eye, and he turns, braced on the small table. There’s someone sitting up he hadn’t noticed before, their back to him, and in the tiny bit of moonlight coming in through the window, Link sees something shine.
He inches closer, curious. Whoever it is is holding something, and when the hero tilts it, Link gets a perfect view.
A mask.
A mask with pale hair and sharp lines on its face, that looks like... like him?
Surely not. He’s imagining things.
Link squints, heart thudding. It really does look a lot like him, but why— what is it? It’s not like the other mask, the heart-shaped and tentacled one, is it? It’s marks seem familiar, but why—
Then Link notices there’s a glowing eye staring at him.
Link gasps, and the sight is all it takes to make his legs give out on him, sending him to the floor. He bangs his elbow on the table as he goes, and the pain and scare distract him enough that it takes him a second to realize someone catches him, stopping him from entirely collapsing.
“Are you hurt?” a voice asks, sounding concerned, and Link, who’s shaking from surprise and fear and trying to figure out if his elbow is actually hurt or not, takes a minute to recognize the voice.
Time. The hero with the weird eye and face marks who’s been avoiding him.
He’d been the one looking at that mask.
Link finally manages to shake his head, a few tears falling down his cheeks, and Time looks at him a moment, then helps him stand upright. His glowing eye is closed now, and Link wonders what that’s about.
There’s a whispered question and some shuffling from someone else in the room, but Time murmurs something back, and whoever it is rolls back over. Time looks back at Link a second, then silently helps him over to the nearest seat, a chair at the table. Link sits down heavily, his hands still shaking. He’s really exhausted now, and is starting to think coming out here was a mistake.
“What are you doing up?” Time asks, voice quiet as he puts away the mask into a bag.
Link wipes his nose, wishing his lip would quit wobbling. “I w-was thirsty.”
Time nods, then pauses, and reaches forward to tilt Link’s elbow around. There’s a scrape there with blood leaking from it, and Link sighs. Great. This means more bandages.
“Hm,” Time says, then lets go. He pulls a small bandage from his pouch, and gives Link’s arm a quick wipe with a cloth. His hands are careful, and gentle with the scrape as he wraps it, and to Link’s relief, the bandage is soft, and doesn’t chafe like some of the others. “There. All set.”
“Thanks,” Link says in a quiet voice, and Time looks at him, then turns and moves over to the counter where there’s some cups and a pitcher beside them. Link watches as he pours a cup, then walks back over and sets it beside him.
Link takes it with a still-shaking hand and drinks in relief at finally achieving his goal. Then he pulls the cup back with a confused look. “...Is this water?”
Time blinks, then looks in the pitcher. “...Well, I thought it was. I think it may actually be cider. Huh.” He squints at the liquid. “They both look the same in this lighting.”
Link can’t stop his small giggle, and he takes another sip of the drink, enjoying the sweet, spiced flavor. This is better than water anyway.
Time smiles a bit himself, the expression softening his face, then pours another cup, sitting beside Link and sipping it. They drink in silence, and Link casts some small glances at the man, not sure what to say. He looks a bit uncomfortable, but Link isn’t so sure why. Probably for whatever reason it is that Time’s been keeping away from him. Warriors had said the battle had been hard on him, maybe that was it.
Maybe Link had hurt him and didn’t remember.
He takes a guilty sip of cider, and notices Time is looking at him, studying him as well.
“...What was that mask you had?” Link asks. “That you were looking at? The marks looked like yours.”
Time blinks, then hums. “It was what helped defeat Majora.”
“Majora..?”
Time looks down at his cup. “That’s the name of the demon that had you.”
A shiver goes through Link, and he wraps his arms around himself. He’s not sure if it’s better to have a name for it or not.
“Does your mask have a name too?” he asks, and Time nods.
“It’s called the fierce deity mask. It’s very powerful, and not to be used lightly.”
His markings catch the low light a bit, and Link studies them, idly feeling at his own as he thinks about that. They’re both marked, but at least Time’s had been because of a good thing— beating a demon is way better than being forced to fight as one.
Time’s blond hair brushes over his face a bit when he leans to drink some cider, and as he pushes it back, he looks at Link, and Link knows he’s studying the marks he has too. They’re ugly things, marks by his eyes and on his forehead, and down the bridge of his nose. He wishes they were gone.
The others think Link’s marks will fade, but they’re still bright as ever, and he’s not convinced.
Link sips the last of his cider, then looks at Time, and their eyes lock. There’s something about the older hero, something familiar, and Link can’t quite put a finger on what it is. The two heroes stare at each other for a long while, like they’re caught in a trance, blue against blue, Time marked by a deity, Link marked by a demon.
And suddenly Link realizes exactly what’s going on here.
“Oh. You’re me,” Link says softly.
Time freezes at his words, and Link squints at him, looking closer. He’s surprised he hadn’t put it together sooner, actually. Time travel is a familiar thing, after all. The age difference had thrown him off, but their hair, their eye color, Time’s nickname even, and the way he’s been avoiding him and that mask...
He gets it now.
“Am I right?” he asks when Time doesn’t reply, and Time hesitates, and tilts a hand left and right.
“Yes... and no. I believe we had the same childhood. And most of our adventure as well, as far as I know. But I...”
He hesitates again.
Link looks at his lap.
“You lived. I died and you lived,” Link finishes for him. He looks up at Time, and gives him a wobbly smile. “You’re who I would’ve been if I hadn’t failed.”
“Link,” Time says, kind, but also a little... is that fear he hears? “Not necessarily. Time flows in many ways, we can’t know them all. Even if we have a magical ocarina, or a sword that let us go back and forth.”
“You’re grown up. Actually grown up,” Link replies, swirling the bit of apple residue in the bottom of his cup. “Which means you won that fight. And you know we’re the same. You’ve known the whole time, I think.”
“I have,” Time admits quietly. “I didn’t know what to say.”
Link nods as he crosses his arms and sets them on the table, then rests his head on top of them. He’s not sure what to say now.
“Link,” Time says after a few long moments, and Link looks at him. “I... you didn’t fail.”
“I think dying counts as failing.”
“No, failing means Ganon wins. And he didn’t win. Legend, he has records of what happened afterwards, Ganon didn’t win,” Time asserts, a glint appearing in his eye.
“He didn’t?” Link asks in a small voice, and Time nods.
“Zelda and the sages sealed him away. He didn’t win.”
Link swallows, his eyes watering again, but he hurriedly wipes the tears away, not wanting to cry in front of a better version of himself. But the relief he feels is wonderful, and a couple tears do leak out.
“That’s... that’s good,” he manages to say, sniffling, and Time gives his hand a pat. “I’m... I’m glad they figured something out. Since I didn’t help much.”
“Link, that wasn’t a fair fight in any sense of the word,” Time says quietly. “You were... we were too young for that fight. It’s a miracle I survived.”
“It’s a miracle I’m siting here right now,” Link adds quietly. “I should’ve died. I did die.”
“If you should’ve died, you wouldn’t be here right now,” Time points out. “I... suppose the goddesses aren’t done with you.”
“Well it’d be nice if they told me what to do now, then,” Link grumbles bitterly. “I’m alive, great. Now what? What do I do? I can’t go home. I don’t have anyone. I’m just injured and can barely even walk, and I’m just... I’m... I’m lost,” he whispers.
Time has an odd look on his face, a sort of strangled emotion, but Link is too tired to even try to read it. He rests his head on the table, feeling weary straight down to his bones, then feels a hand settle on his head.
He goes still.
“I went through this,” Time says in a voice so quiet Link can barely hear him. “At a certain point in my life. I didn’t know what I was doing. Or where I was going. I’d finished my adventures, and lost some friends... my heart hurt, and I felt very, very lost. But you know what?”
Link flicks his eyes up to look at him.
Time gives him a weary, broken smile. “It didn’t last forever. It took some time, time I just used to wander around and gain some experience, but I figured out what I wanted, and where I was supposed to be, too. But I didn’t do it alone.”
He shakily pats Link’s head, and rubs a thumb along a mark on his cheek.
“You’ll find that out as well. It'll take time, but it doesn’t have to happen all at once. But I promise you will figure it out. If I did, then you can too.”
“I wouldn’t be like you,” Link whispers and shakes his head. “I’m not some armored knight, great hero, or... whatever. I’m a kid who couldn’t win. I should be dead.”
“But you’re not,” Time reminds him, voice soft. “And I’m not either, actually. A great hero, that is. I’m no knight, I’m a farmer’s husband. I can fight, but when I’m not doing that, I help my wife raise animals, and work on our ranch.”
Link blinks in surprise at the mere idea of marriage, and Time sighs.
“We don’t have to be the same, Link. We already aren’t, and just because we started the same doesn’t mean you have to follow my life. You’ve been given a chance to do what you want to do.”
“But I don’t know what I wanna do,” Link whispers, and Time smiles.
“That’s okay. You don’t have to know yet. Right now it’s like... like a seed that’s only just starting to sprout. It’s hard to tell what the plant will look like yet. It’s got growing to do first.” He gives Link a gentle look. “Give yourself some time to grow, and heal, too. And I... perhaps I can help a bit.”
Link’s lip wobbles again for some reason, but he smiles weakly at Time. “You’d do that?”
“Of course. I can’t leave myself in the clutch, can I?” Time asks with a little smile, and Link lets out a wet giggle. “All will be well. But as for tonight, you’re looking exhausted. Healing is your job right now, and sleep will help with that.”
Link nods, feeling lighter than before, even though the thought of having to drag himself back to bed feels impossible. He... maybe Time is right. Even if he can’t go home, if a version of himself can be content and happy, then maybe Link can too.
Even if it takes a while to get there.
Link yawns, and Time stands, walking around the table and holding an arm out. “You probably shouldn’t walk back, I’m sure your injuries have been stressed enough for today.”
“You’re sure?”
“I’m sure. I can carry you fine.”
Link slowly nods, and Time carefully scoops him up, Link’s head falling on his shoulder. Time starts walking, and Link relaxes into the hold, feeling more at ease than he has in what feels like forever. Being carried is really, really nice, even if it’s a little embarrassing he can’t get back by himself. Time is strong, and feels safe, and Link knows now that he didn’t imagine the comfort he gave him after the battle.
I want to be like him, he thinks sleepily, closing his eyes. I want to be somebody who makes people feel safe.
Link falls asleep before Time even makes it back into the bedroom, and entirely misses Warriors wake and exchange quiet words with Time, who once he gets Link settled, sits and leans heavily on Warriors’ shoulder.
(...)
They’re finally getting ready to leave.
Link’s injuries are healed enough for him to travel, though they’re still not entirely fixed. He’s fought harder against them though, feeling much more determined to get up and get moving again, and he’s made a lot of progress. Enough progress that the others had decided moving was finally what they were going to do next.
Which was good, because Link wasn’t the only one who’d been getting a little stir-crazy.
Link doesn’t sleep well the night before they’re set to leave, but he barely notices when he wakes up in the morning with gunk in his eyes and a fuzzy feel in his head. He’s starting to get used to the nightmares, awful as they are.
And finally getting to travel again banishes any annoying thoughts about bad dreams or being especially tired.
“C’mon Sprout! It’s time to go!”
“Just a second!” Link hollers back at Wild’s shout from outside the window, and finishes stuffing his few belongings in his new bag on his belt. Both had been Legend’s previously, but he’d said Link could have them.
Actually most of the things he owns now had been Legend’s— the veteran has a lot of stuff, and apparently he’d had to go through it all because his house had been trashed, and when he’d done that he’d found stuff he thought Link could use.
Ravio had even given Link a magic rod of some kind, though when he’d started talking about something called delayed payments and interest plans, Legend had elbowed him and told Link it was a gift.
“Hey Sprout, we’re all ready to go, you ready?” Twilight asks as he pokes his head in, and Link nods, hurriedly buckling his belt and putting his pouch on it, then nearly tripping as he jumps to his feet. “Whoa, there’s no rush, bud.”
“I wanna get going,” Link says emphatically, scrambling back to his feet. “Ravio said Sherrow said he heard a traveler say there were monsters near that village and we should stop them, we need to make sure they don’t go and attack—”
“Yeah, you’re right, but I think they can wait ‘til you have your tunic on the right way first,” Twilight says with an amused look, and Link looks down and smacks his forehead as he sees his tunic is backwards.
He quickly unbuckles his belt again and starts squirming his tunic around the right way, and Twilight chuckles and gives him a hand with it. Which is probably a good thing, since Link is still a little sore from everything.
A lot of his injuries have scarred over, or disappeared entirely, though he knows the one Ganon gave him won’t be fading anytime soon. But he doesn’t think about being skewered nearly as much anymore, and the pain isn’t too bad.
Twilight tugs the tunic a bit, and finally Link is all set, new green tunic the right way around, belt secure, boots on his feet. He doesn’t have a sword or shield of his own yet, but he’s borrowing a sword that Hyrule said was called the white sword. It’s really nice, and Link almost doesn’t want to use it, but Hyrule had said it was fine, and Wild had given him what he’d said was a hunter’s shield with some rabbits on it.
“Okay. I’m ready,” Link says, putting his hands on his hips as he looks in the mirror.
He looks... not terrible.
Not normal either, and definitely not what he used to look like, but... not bad. Okay. His tunic is a green that’s slightly more yellow than his old one, more of a spring color, and his boots are a little taller than he’s used to. Wind helped him pull his hair back into a little ponytail, though he tucked it in his hat that managed to make it through everything unscathed. And even though he’s got dark eye bags and his face still has those awful marks, Link thinks they might have faded just a little bit.
And anyway, Twilight and Time both have marks too. They kind of make him feel included.
Twilight pats his shoulder, and Link smiles, then follows him through the door and outside where everyone is getting ready to go. Ravio is shedding dramatic tears as he says goodbye to Legend and everyone else, and Legend is rolling his eyes as he shoves him away. Though Link doesn’t miss the squeeze he gives his double’s shoulder.
Wind looks over as he and Twilight walk out, and smiles brightly at him, bouncing over with Warriors standing nearby. Before he can say anything though, Time walks over.
“All ready over here?” he asks, and everyone nods, Link eagerly doing so as well. Time looks at him with an extra warmth in his eye. “And you’re feeling ready to travel? Nothing bothering you?”
“Nope!” Link says, and it’s the truth. He’s a little sore and tired still here and there, but he can consistently hold his weight, and he’s even been practicing some moves with his sword. He’s not like he was before yet, but he can fight a few monsters, no problem.
Time smiles. “All right. Then let’s get going.”
Wind hooks his arm with Link’s, and Link smiles at him as they wave goodbye to Ravio and head off, going down the road and off on their journey. Idle chatter and the sounds of the woods fill the air around him, and Link laughs at Wind complaining about how Time ended up finding a nickname for Link without even trying.
Warriors bumps his shoulder, and Link smiles.
He still doesn’t know where he’s going, what’s going to happen to him, or really, what he’s doing. But he feels hopeful now, even if it’s scary.
He looks around at the others all walking nearby, and smiles even wider.
And he’s got a lot of brothers to help him figure it out.
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