winter edition! this is set before the arc where legend confronts ravio and its seasonal! to the northern hemisphere at least. (aka its about winter not any holidays)
. . .
The next crack in time brought with it a blast of cold air. Legend took out their flame rod on instinct, the conjured fire keeping the chill at bay, and looked around. It was approaching dusk, with small flurries of white snow dancing through the air. They were not in a town, but comfortably at the edge of a forest where they could camp for the night. Now, who was with them?
That Sly Rabbit gave Legend a cheeky grin and he dusted off powdery snow from his robe. Of course.
'Cold.' Signed Feathers from the other side of Ravio, fists clenched and shoulders risen. He was already visibly shaking.
Wordlessly, Legend brought the fire closer to him.
'Thank you,' Feathers signed with a smile, relaxing. Legend found themselves relaxing at the sight of it, before paradoxically tensing up. Now was not the time to be complacent.
'We should make camp,' they said, glancing at the sky. 'It will be dark soon.'
"Good idea. Lead the way Mr. Legend!" Ravio replied with a salute.
Ravio had somehow arrived with his customary sack. He was fussing over it after the latest swap in worlds, dusting it down like a precious child. It might have had the image of a rupee on it, but Legend was sure that there were all sorts of items inside it. The Rabbit was rarely seen without it. Legend glanced at the quickly darkening sky before looking back at the sack, considering. Wherever they were, it was very late in the year, with long, dark nights.
With Feather's agreement, they set off.
With two seasoned adventures and a Ravio it was not particularly difficult to set up a camp. Whatever firewood that wasn't completely dry would soon become so under the attention of Legend's flame rod. There were minimal signs of large predators, and no insect nests nearby. They found a nice elevated spot away from any cliffs or dead trees. Despite themselves, Legend was satisfied with the group's teamwork and efficiency.
"I think that's enough rocks for the campfire," Ravio muttered, dumping a small pile of the onto the ground they cleared. Last thing they all wanted was to catch fire in the night.
'I've set up our bedding,' Feathers said, coming towards them. From behind him Legend could see their blanket had been pinned to the ground with makeshift stakes, hopefully insulating them from the cold ground below.
It wasn't proper shelter but it was passable. Legend had slept in worse places. Not that they planned on sleeping the night.
The snow flurries had died down somewhat, leaving them with a still, deep nighttime.
With a dinner of bottled pumpkin soup gently heated over the fire, courtesy of Feathers, they settled down into the night. Legend was keeping watch, ears peeled for suspicious sounds.
But still their eyes kept straying back to the warm embers of their campfire.
It couldn't hurt to ask.
'Excuse me,' Legend signed reflexively before shaking Ravio for his attention.
"What is it?" Ravio asked groggily. "Bears? Wolves? Giant bugs?"
'No,' Legend replied calmly. 'I wanted to know if you had a candle in that sack of yours.'
"What for?" Ravio rubbed at his eyes but was sounding less tired than before. "I didn't think you were scared of the dark."
'I'm not. Do you have one?'
"Maybe. Depends on what you want it for. Candles are a precious commodity these days."
Legend paused, reluctant to share. They pushed past it. The information was inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.
'Where I'm from we have a tradition. On the any of the darkest nights of the year we light a candle with our loved ones and stay awake to watch it burn. They say it keeps the darkness at bay long enough for the sun to return.'
"Loved ones? I'm flattered Mr. Legend! Say no more, Ravio has you covered - free of charge even!" Ravio said brightly, rummaging through his sack to produce an off-white candle. "Transportation fees will be twenty rupees though."
Of course. Legend handed the fee over with a sigh, but happily recieving the candle in return. Ravio gleefully put away his new earnings, before closing up his sack and rolling back over to cuddle into it like some sort of soft toy. Within a few minutes he was breathing evenly once more.
Legend placed the candle a small distance away from themselves, lighting it with a little flick of the wrist. Somehow the oppressively dark night sky seemed less absolute. If they closed their eyes for a moment they could imagine that it was their uncle on the other side of them, keeping vigil together.
Instead they opened their eyes to the forest around them, and sighed deeply. Ravio was curled around his sack like an octorok. Sky was laying on his back, snoring softly.
Looking at his slack and unguarded face, Legend had to turn away, feeling suddenly like they had been granted some implicit trust undeserving.
Into the long hours of the night, the candle glowed, burning.
legend linkverse (@minas-linkverse) is such a well written character it's amazing. and the latest arc is really showing the thought gone into the storyline, and specifically legend's character as someone with unresolved trauma.
like as a character he is flawed but the reasons make sense. he's trying but he's still making mistakes. and that's literally a part of how trauma can affect people!! he's not being silly or paranoid in this latest arc.
because the thing is. from legend's perspective what they're doing makes sense. this new situation directly correlates with past traumatic experiences. legend went two other worlds: the dream world and the dark world (not even counting the time travel mess of the ooa and how actions in the past can directly undo actions in the future, mess with reality, and show legend both a past and a future that no longer exists).
but the fact that it makes sense, that they are trying to sacrifice themselves to do what needs to be done despite being disliked for it, that there's similarities between lorule and the dark world doesn't actually make legends actions right. and that's what trauma really is like
like when you think about a kid who, from a young age had to take up a sword to fight literal adults trying to kill them, going straight for the neck is like ingrained response to a potential enemy. I'm sure that leg has had to fight off people all of a sudden who looked harmless. but objectively, going after some dude with a sword bc of where he comes from isn't right.
and this complex character and well handled portrayal of trauma is one of the things i love about linkverse. u can't deny people with trauma the agency to take responsibility for their actions AND you can't deny the harm that trauma does that it literally can warp ppl's thinking. leg's not a perpetrator or a victim but a secret third thing (complicated human being) and that what makes them great
