I'm not sure if this was on any of the ask game lists, but:
How easily are they goaded into a competition or bet of sorts?
For any of them, but especially, Engineer, the Colors, Junior, Wild, and Mask.
They're Links. They thrive on competitions! And the majority of Zelda games have something involving gambling. A common one is “choose a treasure chest.” Even the tiniest child (Mini) has betting games in Minish Cap. With double or nothing prizes! And a gacha machine! He's toast…
Engineer: He's actually more level-headed. He doesn't require much work to convince, but other Links are more eager to prove themselves compared to him.
The colors require no goading whatsoever. It comes from within. They sabotage each other to be the one to get the most whatever-the-current-thing-is the fastest.
One of the reasons Forest favors the boomerang is so he can yank others back with it and then use it to collect items quickly. And Ember is the worst…
Junior - He acts chill, but he wants to win. However, on a scale of Engineer to Four, he's on the Engineer side of the spectrum.
Wild - The Lucky Treasure Shop should never have given him free access to the treasure game… Is what I would say if he didn't already have enough of the rewards offered already in his pockets. Thankfully, he does try not to abuse the system, and the owner often gets free food. He's more into beating his own high scores in skill-based mini-games than gambling for luck. But he still pops in to try his luck with the chests on occasion. Competition against others? Ohoho, I can't wait to put him in a dungeon.
Mask - He loves games. He doesn't need much promise of a reward to play in the first place, but if you dangle something good in front of him, he absolutely will not give up until he gets it. Bombchu bowling may have wiped out all his cash, but he was determined to win.
Speaking of which, the same thing happened to Wind when he was given the opportunity to play what we like to call Sploosh Kaboom. (It's apparently called Squid-Hunt and is basically the Battleship board game.) He's sunk (heh) hundreds into that game trying to get a higher and higher score. His record is 11. (In this game, less is more. A perfect score is 9 and the previous highscore was 20.)
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Warriors, Interlink (The Legend of Zelda)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Engineer (Interlink), Wild (Interlink), Zelda (Legend of Zelda), Cap (Interlink), Mask (Interlink)
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Summary:
The War already has three Links. Why not a fourth?
Cap wondered if Wild might end up in the War; what if he already had?
Part 2 of @nevermatchandscpsradadventures (SCP, specifically)'s ask about songs. Here's part 1.
I forgot about our oil slick last time.
Because they can't really hide their flaws while they're split. They're an open book. There's also the line: "There's a hole in my soul. I can't fill it. [...] Can you fill it?" And that's exactly how they are right now. They're not whole, but they fill each other's missing parts.
Honorable mention: "Call Them Brothers" by Regina Spektor and Only Son: "That's it, it's split and won't recover. Just frame the halves and call them brothers."
Engineer: I'm torn between a few.
Train song + Zelda (he's hopeless):
He's so head over heels: "I Try to Think About Elvis" by Patti Loveless. "I just can't concentrate. You're all I think about these days."
Vet (again): I already listed the Vet song that started the whole thing, but a more fitting song for him is
"I was a rose. I was an animal." (🐇) "All around is stone. All is soft inside." (He is soft inside. "Leads me through the dark." (I'm primarily thinking of the Dark World.) "I carry more than you can see."
And more. Tis a good song for the boy.
But I have almost 4 hours of music on his playlist. Let me know if anyone wants more suggestions for him. They also work for LU Legend if anyone's got a playlist for him. I've got Imagine Dragons (quite a few), more AURORA, Tori Amos, Oh Hellos, Crain Wives, Sleeping at Last, Brandi Carlile, Cosmo Sheldrake, Pink Floyd, Taylor Swift, Annie Lennox, Sia... the list goes on and on with a lot of variety.
Verdi: On one hand, we have Stressed Out by Twenty One Pilots. "But now l'm insecure, and I care what people think." (He walks to the beat of his own drum, but he does stress a bit about being friends with everyone - "Why can't we be friends" by War is also on his playlist.) "Wish we could turn back time to the good old days [...] But now we're stressed out." (Things used to be simple, but now it's not. Sometimes he thinks it'd be nice to go back to being the sleepy blacksmith's apprentice, but he's tasted adventure, and he can't really settle down anymore.) "Used to play pretend, give each other different names." ("Verdi" is Link's "escapism" name. He didn't really escape, as he ended up being a Tri Force Hero in Hytopia, but an attempt was made.)
On the other hand, we have "Break my Stride" by Matthew Wilder. I did say he walks to his own beat; ain't nothing gonna break-a his stride or slow him down. He's gonna keep on moving.
And
Echo: Excluding the references to parents (since I don't know what happened to them):
which is also on Wild's playlist.
Mouse's playlist made only be an hour, but so many of his songs are super fitting. I'll start with this one because his quietness hides quite the attitude:
This (which is also on Wild's playlist):
Run Boy Run by Woodkid always makes me think of him, even though he's mostly of the opinion that he should strike down any monsters that come after him so less monsters can come after him.
Exhale Inhale by AURORA always makes me think of him, though the first two songs fit him better.
Other good ones: "Lost" by fin.
"I'm Gonna Win" by Rob Cantor (also on Cap's). There are four more AURORA songs. "No Roots" by Alice Merton (also on Wild's). "In My Own Eyes" and "Have You Ever" by Brandi Carlile. And others.
Cap: You're So Vain by Carly Simon ALWAYS makes me think of him. More as a joke, and more towards LU Warriors, but still. Another solid "always makes me think of him" song is "ship in a bottle" by fin. I've shared that one before, complete with a mini-analysis. You can read it here. There's also a few others I listed there for the other boys. (Yet another Vet one. It's like he lives in my playlists rent-free.)
"Pretender" by AJR. "Army Dreamers" by Kate Bush, which is also on Gen's playlist. That song is always giving me feels for my army boys. "I Am Not a Robot" by MARINA. "Unstoppable" by Sia.
Aspect: The first song on his playlist is "I'm me" by Us The Duo, but I'm choosing this one:
Wild: I don't know if you read the post I linked from Cap's section, but "me want bite" still takes the number one "makes me think of Wild" spot.
Others: "David" by Noah Gunderson. "In Our Bedroom After The War" by Stars. "New Soul" by Yael Naim. "Now" by Paramore.
"Caroline (feat. Elton John)" by Brandi Carlile:
I woke up long after dawn
Twenty years had come and gone
I know when it changed for me
A day in June you came to me
I've seen through someone else's eyes
With nothin' on the other side
Every motel, every town
Pieces scattered all around
Promises that I can't be
Someone's heart that I can't keep
Days so long I couldn't speak
Roads so rocky I can't sleep
But I've seen things so beautiful
All around this broken world
That pale in comparison to you
Caroline, I'm on my way back home to you
Imagine what I'm a-goin' through
Without you by my side
It's been a long, long time
Oh, won't you say a prayer for me
I hope you will remember me
You're always on my mind
I have seen the canyon lands
Crooked lines like in your hands
To swear the earth was split in two
I wouldn't lie I promise you
That I have seen it, you will too
You could not believe if not for
Photographs I took for you, Caroline
They've built towers to the sky
It hurts sometimes to watch them try
They run themselves into the ground
But I know you will love them
And their city lights and city sounds
There's beauty in the struggle
Anytime I feel it get me down
I see you smiling
Caroline, I'm on my way back home to you
Can't imagine what I'm a-goin' through
Without you by my side
It's been a long long time
Oh, won't you say a prayer for me
I hope you will remember me
You're always on my mind
My Caroline
Yeah, my Caroline
Now, I have seen things in the sky
Stars and lights and birds and I
I've been rocky mountain high
Told them all about you
Because you are still the only thing
That constantly amazes me
I love the road and I've been blessed
But I love you best
I ran out of room for links again. Yeah... 😌 That song fits both games. The loving "Caroline" (Zelda) bit is more TOTK. This song could honestly be both Wild @ Zelda and Zelda @ Wild. I think of it more the former, but some parts make me think it could be Zelda talking.
@interlink-au made Minish Cap-style sprites of Spring and Gan for me, so I made these Earthbound-style sprites of her boys as thanks!
Top row: Sky, Gen, Mini, and Junior
Second row: Forest, Ember, River, and Quartz
Third row: Twilight, Mask, Wind, and Engineer
Fourth row: Vet, Verdi, Echo, and Mouse
Fifth row: Cap, Aspect, Wild, and Ness for reference/comparison
Thanks so much again for the sprites you made for me, GiGi!
Character introduction post for this Links Meet here. Ao3 link to series here.
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Summary: The engineer confronts the sailor over his “stolen” shield. Some reveals happen.
Featured characters: Wind, Engineer, Mask, and Cap
Words: 1,193
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The group set off at an easy pace.
The engineer wasted no time in making his way over to the sailor. The sailor’s lips quirked in a frown at the sight.
“I told you, this is my shield,” the sailor said in advance.
“So mine is still safe at home with Niko?”
“How should I know? I don’t know what you did with it. If you think it should be there, then it’s probably there. If it’s not, it has nothing to do with me.”
The engineer watched his expression carefully.
“Can I see it, please?”
“Fine, but don’t touch it. I’m not stupid.”
He took the shield from its place on his back and held it before him. The engineer looked at it very carefully. His eyes seemed to be tracing some marks that were there and some that weren’t, but he didn’t touch it.
“Wow,” he breathed. He looked from the shield to its owner. “Then you really are… How old is Niko?”
“I dunno. In his 20s, I guess. I never asked him.”
The engineer took a deep breath, held it, and let it out in a long whoosh. He rubbed his arms like he was cold and then shook them like he was trying to shake out some pins and needles.
“Are you ok?” the sailor asked him, somewhere between creeped out and concerned for the guy.
“Mhm,” the engineer’s voice cracked unconvincingly. “And you know Tetra?”
“Yeah, but, hey, you’re not gonna pass out or something, are you?”
The engineer’s face was looking a little green.
“Nope.” His weak tone of voice was not convincing.
“Hey, stop. Put your head between your legs. Guys? We need to stop! I don’t think this guy is ok.”
“Is he hurt?” a brunette asked concernedly.
“I don’t know. But he looks like he might faint.”
“I’m not… gonna faint… in front of you.”
“Yeah, let’s try to avoid that. Here,” the sailor motioned to a felled log. “Sit down. Keep your head between your knees. Deep breaths. You’ve got it. Do you need some water?”
The engineer began to shake his head, reconsidered, and took out a canteen he could sip from. He kept his head bowed.
The rest of the group had gathered around by now.
“Is he havin’ a panic attack?” a young voice asked, but the sailor didn’t see who.
The army captain approached and kneeled at the engineer’s side. He quietly spoke to him, and the engineer took the man’s hand when he offered it. The captain gave it a squeeze and kept talking to him. The sailor couldn’t hear what he was saying, but he did hear the engineer give a shallow chuckle and say, “No, it’s not that,” and “Well, it’s not every day you meet a historical figure.”
The captain paused at that, and his grip tightened for just a second, but then he continued his quiet murmurs while the engineer continued to take deep breaths.
Mask waved his hands at the large group surrounding them. “Step back, guys! ‘Tis not a side-show! Give them some space!” He started to lead them away, though he did look back at the engineer with a concerned expression.
After another minute, the engineer finally raised his head. “That was really embarrassing. Sorry, guys. Especially you, Hero of Winds. I shouldn’t have made any assumptions. Thank you for letting me see your shield in its prime.”
The sailor’s brows knitted together in confusion. “What are you talking about?”
“It means yer reputation precedes ye.” The sailor jumped as a voice sounded behind him. It was the child who had led the others away. How did he get behind him like that?
“Jeez!” the sailor gasped. “If you sneak up on me like that, you’ll have me in the same state as this guy.” He gestured to the engineer.
Mask grinned wickedly before his expression softened into one of concern as he turned to the engineer and the captain.
“How’s he doin’, Cap?”
The captain said nothing in reply, but the child didn’t seem to mind.
“Overwhelmed from meeting yer heroes for th’ first time, engineer?” the kid asked gently. The engineer nodded, and Mask gave the captain a brief but meaningful look.
The sailor was still confused. Mask glanced at him with a smirk.
“Ye still haven’t figured it out yet? Time travel? Heroes from different times? I’m sure some folk ‘ere have heard stories about heroes who came afore them. Did ye see how the pictograph guy looked at the tailed guy? He definitely knows him. And the mini-Link recognized the place the sky-guy said he came from, but looked surprised to hear it mentioned.”
The sailor frowned in contemplation. “Then…” His eyes widened, and he looked to the engineer. “You asked me how old Niko is. How old is he for you? ”
“I’ve also never asked. But he said he watched the kingdom being founded, so he’s definitely over 100.”
“100…” The sailor looked dazed. Then his eyebrows shot up, and he leaned forward eagerly. “ Kingdom?! We found land? Is this it?” He looked around the forest eagerly.
“Oops. Uh… spoilers?” The engineer went from excited to sheepish. “But I’m pretty sure this isn’t it. I don’t recognize it at all, and I haven’t seen a single train track.”
“Oh. What’s a train?”
The royal engineer just about started to vibrate at the opportunity to explain what trains were to his childhood hero. The captain sighed, and Mask quickly interrupted.
“Well, you seem to be full o’ energy again. How about we get back to the group? You can walk while you talk.”
Thankfully, the two agreed, and the four of them returned to the others.
The short teenager with the mousy brown hair noticed first and hurried over.
“Are you okay? Are you injured anywhere?” he asked, hands hovering over the engineer without touching him, uncertain if he should be feeling for cuts or broken bones or the like.
“No, I’m not hurt. I just made a surprising discovery and got a little overwhelmed.”
“What did you discover?” asked a tiny child who only surpassed three feet by a few inches. Mask had referred to him as mini-Link. He had a sword and shield strapped to his back like most everyone else.
The engineer looked at the sailor and smiled shyly.
“It turns out I know this one. Or I know someone who knows him anyway.”
The wild Link glanced uncomfortably at the red-haired hero whose story was woven into tapestries and whose Aspect he had worn like a second skin.
“Woah! That’s so cool!” Mini exclaimed. “How do you know him?”
“His friend is my roommate. I’ve heard a lot of stories about him.”
The child looked between them excitedly, but did not grasp the full implications of that. Most of the others did, however, and began to look around at each other curiously.
“In any case, I’m feeling better now, so we can keep walking. I’m sorry for holding us up.”
The brunette Link still looked a bit uncertain, but nodded and stepped back. One by one, the group began to move onward.
How do they deal with getting sick? What kind do they get most frequently?
^ For Vet, Junior, Mini, Cap, and anyone else
Vet is a miserable sick person. He's all snotty and gross and just wants to curl up in his blankets with his tea and be taken care of by his uncle. He's drinking warm stuff constantly so the congestion doesn't turn into a nasty headache. (Spoiler: it will.)
Edit: Forgot to mention that "miserable" applies to both himself and anyone who needs to interact with him. He radiates bad vibes. Just imagine a manga panel with a big dark gloom surrounding a pile of blankets in the corner of camp.
I have no idea what's going on there. ☝️ Imagine they're blankets.
Junior simultaneously wants to suck it up and continue about his day without fuss and be coddled. Unfortunately, he's mostly on his own right now (current company excluded) while he searches the farthest reaches of Hyrule for a place to leave the Four Sword. Thankfully, he hasn't gotten sick since before his adventure, so he's still used to his grandpa letting him push himself just a little before sending him to bed with some hot cocoa to chase down the medicine with. His most common symptom is an annoyingly drippy nose.
Mini gets a variety of symptoms depending on what's going around. A cough and sore throat are most common. Sometimes his nose runs both directions at once and upsets his tummy. But luckily, he only gets one or two symptoms at a time, and he has his grandpa to take care of him. He's not a fan of medicines, but grandpa Smith makes sure he takes whatever bitter stuff he needs to get better. If Verona from town hears about it, she might drop off a meal. Zelda has to be stopped from visiting for fear of her getting sick, but she's very practiced at getting what she wants with or without permission. And of course Mini gets blamed if she gets sick even if it's her fault.
Cap powers through. He presents himself in such a way that it can be hard to tell he's sick. You know it's really bad when he ends up taking a break. He has people around him who will care for him, but he's stubborn, so the best they can do is leave tea and soup in his company and hope he doesn't ignore it.
Mask is kind of the same way but he's more obvious about it. While Cap is functioning with a smile on a carefully prepared face, Mask is scowling and red-nosed. He's great at taking care of others but is hypocritical when it comes to taking care of himself. He tends to sneeze a lot and is likely to run a temperature while shivering because he's cold.
Engineer is slightly more likely than the others to get a stomach bug and a fever. :( He's likely to take care of himself because he doesn't want Niko to catch it.
Twilight also powers through. He just overall prefers to be active. Being sick is boring and he'd rather be working even while coughing and sneezing. But he knows to stop and rest sooner than Cap does.
Wind is a complainer. He doesn't feel good, he's tired, he's bored, he's missing out, his nose is sore from wiping it, he's hot, etc, etc, it goes on. Fortunately, it doesn't last long because Granny's soup is more or less magic.
Those are the ones who stick out to me the most.
I guess I could tack on that Mouse hides that he's sick like Cap does.
