Name an activity you would propose to do with people if you could meet up in real life. Mine: root beer taste-testing, plus snacks like cheese and crackers and fruit while we chill and chat.
Okay, LU recs off the top-ish of my head in a sort of organized-ish order:
AUTHORS!
Angst, Action, and Mixed:
Faerule and the No Good Very Bad Road Trip by ImperialKatwala, PolynomialPandemic is a great "Chain Meets Hyrule" fic.
@gintrinsic-writing is phenomenal. A gem. I love all of it, but check the tags to find ones you're comfortable with. AO3 Blood Like Yours is my personal favorite, and the sequel Like Fire in Your Veins by @pocketramblr are both about Hyrule's Blood Curse from Adventures of Link. M for Violence for most of them, but check tags to be sure. If you like it, consider also...
Protector of the Golden Power by Sillus Hyrule centric but he has a different secret.
@somer-writes has a lot of great short one shots, some darker than others. My personal favorite is a sort of character study of the boys at their lowest and how they recover called "Depletion"
For a Sliver of Sunlight by tirsynni: Warrior's dedication to his brothers makes him question his title as Hero.
What are You to a God Slayer by Secretlysheikah BAMF Sky
Brethren in a Cradle by Skyward_Arpeggio BABY!!!! It is adorable, if a bit sad at the start.
Always Darkest Before the Dawn (Linked Universe Whumptober 2023) by Skyward_Arpeggio because in general they don't go above T ratings and write excellent fics.
this year it taught me (lost and ambitious) by qar Also EXCELLENT writer. "Sky has a separate moment with each member of the team"
Whumptober 2023 by Arecaceae Great fics! Plus, "Each story will have warnings in the tags and the story notes as well as a 0-5 whump rating. The ratings will be relative to my writing, so my 5 might not be equivalent to someone else's 5. I don't write MCD, extreme gore, non-con, or extreme emotional angst."
Major's Whumptober 2023 by major_de_speed Major's are also quite clean despite the M rating which is more about the violence.
Linkeduniverse Shorts by Skyward_Arpeggio LU Short fics
A Royal Castletown Wedding by Skyward_Arpeggio This story is so good!!!!!!!!!
Whumptober 2022 by Arecaceae more great fics, rated T.
LU Whump Dump by UnexpectedStormy (ArtemiStorm) need AO3 account to read, but worth it! Linked Universe Whumpy One-Shots, rated T.
There's one I'm missing, and when I find it I'll add it here. It involves a cursed magical artifact that Legend messes with... it's intense.
Fluffier Fics:
Frosty Reception by Skyward_Arpeggio "Four’s glad to finally be home again, and he’s not the only one happy at his return." Cute fic!
S’more Stories by Ginger375 "A collection of drabbles and mini-fics for LUtober! Day 31: Costumes"
Sentiment by Arecaceae
nine heroes, one spirit by Imjustherefortheangst, uncleskyrule (unclemoriarty) tons of great short fics, all with G-T ratings
Finding Family by Tashacee "AU where Wild's scars are a lot worse and he isn't used to interacting with people. The Chain think their new brother is dope af and are determined to make him feel at home."
My Heart's Forsaken Me by sister_dear "Four looses his sword in the heat of battle, and it's picked up by someone else... Time’s aren’t the only secrets coming to light, and the gang discovers they still have a thing or two to learn from each other."
Ambush at the Bridge by JinxedRuby Very action and healing oriented fic, multiple perspectives on one event.
Dark Clouds on the Horizon by CubanCracker62 "he Chain ends up in Wild's era shortly before the events of TotK."
There are worse ways to stay alive by EliotRosewater one shots rated T.
Crack Fics:
Misplaced Heroes by notOK this had me busting out laughing SO MANY TIMES!
Peak Gremlin Energy by defenestration_nation "Fics focusing on various Links being chaotic gremlins"
Not Necessarily LU, but Adjacent or just LoZ:
Blood of the Hero by Skye_the_Lofty_Nutcase: (Wild) Link's parents have to step in to save him when the Shrine of Resurrection gets damaged. His parents are so well written, and Abel makes appearances in LU-related/adjacent fics, The Many Misadventures of Dad Squad and Dad Squad AU by Nancyheart, Silver_Captain82403, Skye_the_Lofty_Nutcase
which is part crack and part angst, mostly lighthearted.
Don't Worry Man, I'm from the Yiga Clan: Link makes a Yiga friend due to being a delightful chaos gremlin.
Feature MCD... but might be worth it:
And Still the Cradle Blooms by Solistrix: GORGEOUS literary masterpiece. The writing is unreal. It's descriptions and emotions are incredible. This is more like finding the meaning in eventual death, so of the three here I suspect you'll like this one best as far as not being too hurt by the character's mentioned end.
This is an Adjuration: I'll be real, this is full of action and excitement but yes, it has MCD and is making me cry, but it's also REEEEAAALLY good!
Blood Drops on Roses by HotCheetohatred Fantastic storytelling! Wild centric, Twi is big brother but from day one of Wild's journey. Unreliable young Wild as narrator is an absolute delight. Unfinished, no MCD yet, but it's in the tags so no promises.
Modern AUs for not-big-on-modern-au fans:
As a fellow not-seeker of modern AUs, I personally have enjoyed the following
@skyward-floored Incredibles AU
Wild’s Wolf by HotCheetoHatred "Modern AU where young Wild is a feral forest child, raised by Wolf Twilight. He is captured, separated from Twilight, and put under observation. Time helps him escape." Unfinished, and I admit personal bias here because HotCheetoHatred is my BETA reader.
ARTISTS!!!
@ovegakart: amazing action, gut-busting humor, and captivating storytelling! Does comics
@la-sera: beautiful, ethereal, and gorgeous illustrations and a great storyteller, loves downfall duo but does every one of the boys justice
@dfanart: HILARIOUS and such heartfelt emotions on them boys.
@kikker-oma great art from fluff to whump to action
@1caru has so many fluffy LU gems!
@linderosse has a Zelda's meet AU, does LU, and much more!
@lele5429 great illustrations and abstract pieces of LU fanart.
@theecholegend hahaha... arson.
@ikaishere has so many cute LU ones.
@thepinklink fabulous LU character sketches
@hiimgin BIAS! I got to work with them and they are FABULOUS!
@pluviatrix has art for their fic And Still the Cradle Blooms
@cherrypaii has fantastic illustrations of these boys!
AND MANY, MANY MORE!
(Commenters, please add artists I forgot. I know there are a ton Im missing!!)
The Chain wakes up after one of the hardest days of their journey. Sky enjoys helping Wild cook. Wind and Twi have lots of questions, and Purah, as always, is not the best at social graces.
85% of this is beta read by hotcheetohatred, the magnificent and genuinely SO TALENTED fic writer and one of my favorite humans ever. Please give her all the love and comments. Surprise Wind section for ya! <3
A Cold Dawn
Four woke that morning to the sound of Wild and Purah’s whispered bickering. He wiped sandy grains from his eyes and rubbed his temple. A weak tension headache had yet to decide if it would stay or go. Wild’s voice was low but heated as he faced Purah, pointing a finger at her. Four didn’t hear the words at first, but he caught the gist of Wild’s frustration as their volume grew.
Four gave a resigned sigh, stretched, and shoved Wolfie’s paw off his knees. Within hazy attempts to remember why we has sleeping on an unfamiliar floor, Red pouted with Blue over the loss of soft, warm fur as Four worked the feeling back into his legs—they both hated being alone. The hushed voices continued arguing. He recognized Wild’s expertly quiet whisper.
“She was attacked by a creature we’ve never seen before, how can you say that?”
Purah scoffed. “She handled it just fine, Link, and she even identified it within minutes of getting here. That little reckless mess in red of yours had a book about monsters, and they puzzled it out. Ask him about it when he wakes. I don’t remember the name.”
“You said it ate her,” Wild answered icily. “How can you still insist she doesn’t need—”
“If she truly needed protection, Link, then you would have stayed,” Purah hissed back and pointed a small flute in his face with the threatening force of a rapier.
That seemed to stump him. Wild harrumphed, head bowed, and started for the tent opening.
“She missed you too,” Purah grumbled with the air of one too old for such silliness, yet with the voice of a small girl. Age seemed to be more of a suggestion in Wild’s era, Four thought, based on the few he’d met.
The clattering and slamming of Wild’s cooking pots and pans outside soon rivalled the din of Sheikah. Wolfie stretched and shook himself awake. Only a moment later, Sky sat bolt upright from some starling dream, launching Wind off the bed and onto the unsuspecting Wolfie. He landed with an exaggerated "Oof!" just in time for Old Man and Captain to step inside with armfulls of split wood.
When Four and the others finished laughing, they dressed and packed quickly as Purah presented a list of tasks that would help her team finish the Sheikah [device] faster. As the heroes scurried out with axes and water jars, the researchers traded silence for speed. The grinding, pounding, and whirring increased by magnitudes. Blurry figures in cream and red scurried with the determination of harried ants as the heroes hurried into the cold morning.
Four’s headache decided it would stay.
***
Sky carried the last of the split logs to the outdoor cooking pot. He found the cook in the eye of a storm of raw ingredients and plated food and cooking tools. Wild pulled an entire roasted bird half the size of Epona’s chest and set it on a stool, and then he continued scattering smaller potion vials and plates around him. With a small noise of victory, he slammed a jug of milk on one of the spare stools. “Finally,” Wild grumbled, and poured it into the last empty pot. With a flaming arrow, he lit the fire.
Sky wordlessly took over stirring and let Wild sort himself out. Methodically, Wild returned everything to the slate while the flames caught and settled. Sky only disrupted the cook’s work to calmy hold out a hand when the milk began to boil. Wild sat down at last and summoned a bag of thin, white grains. Rice, Sky recognized. He eased the whispering river of grain into the steaming milk, then sprinkled in the fine sugar Wild handed him.
Wild held out his hand for the spoon, the scars touching the corner of his lips stretched in a subtle smile.
As Sky often did when dreams clung too tightly, he grabbed a few apples Wild had set aside in an Ordon bowl and began a mundane task: peeling apples. Hands occupied, he watched. It was soothing to watch the others work their various trades, how they completed their specialized tasks, especially to discern what they enjoyed, and what they despised. Wild did not enjoy preparing the food half as much as he enjoyed the mundane magic of it transforming in the crucible from raw into a final meal. He’d grin the same way Four did when examining armor in need of repair, or the way Wind enthusiastically leaned out from his grip on the highest branches of a tree to survey their surroundings, or Legend bouncing his attention between two or three books, or casting his elemental spells, or while pushing needle and thread in and out of fabric. The way Hyrule—
The knife in his hand trembled. He loosened his grip and fell back into the steady rhythm of peeling. Apples were easy to cut, and the slow shush felt as satisfying as the murmur of curling wood shavings. Their crisp snap as he cubed the sandy flesh satisfied his hunger to hear the music of the world: it crunched like leaves under his feet on these wild, unpaved roads like nothing he’d ever explored, every step exciting and full of promise and the comfort of divine sunlight on his skin. Chill, crisp apple juice dripped from his little carving blade. He flicked it off.
Time and Twilight with animals always produced a childlike wonder. He’d seen the way Warriors surveyed a camp, and his grin when finding it spotless and undetectable in their wake. He enjoyed discovering these moments of quiet satisfaction.
Sky chuckled to himself as he pondered the reverse, recalling the loathing in Legend’s face when he was stuck with laundry washing, and Warriors’s pout when assigned dishes, Time’s squinting eye as he tackled repairs to his tunic, Wind’s wide-eyed terror when dressing wounds (and who could blame him?) Or Four with even looking at Wild’s brittle, rot-cursed weapons, or his intangible blue-light Sheikah ones. or Hyrule… or Hyrule’s quiet, self-chastising scowl whenever he lost an archery match or fell behind. One day the group travelled for two days on rented horses. Hyrule had looked at him, his companion at the end of the chain of heroes, with wide-eyes and tight knuckles. Sky had never seen Hyrule afraid before.
He was screaming— Sky handed Wild a bowl of sliced apples. The cook had found a grill, and laid them out on it. Juice sizzled in the fire. Entranced by the warm aroma, Sky resisted the urge to lunge and grab one off the heat. Morning sounds permeated the calm around the campfire: horses shifting and sneezing, dogs whining as they stretched and yawned. Sky could hear the exact moment that the aroma of Wild’s cooking reached them, and in a flurry of fur three dogs lay at Wild’s feet, begging, and panting as if they’d run miles to arrive here, their eyes pathetic. Hopeful. Crimson-like, but small enough to carry in his arms. Sky resisted the urge to pick one up to examine closer.
Four, Warrior and Wind stopped by on their way to fetch water in massive clay pots they carried on their backs. Sky slipped each newcomer a few apple slices–they would steal some anyways if he didn’t. Sky watched them trek to the well and back, Time staying back from the stone circle as he always did with wells, and still waters. Sky often wondered what happened to make the Old Man feel the need to be cautious. His alertness proved infectious. Sky scanned the fields and skies for signs of movement, for the faint sound of a voice calling on the wind, for the glare of water reaching beyond the bounds of the little pond. He hated these echoes of the dream. The chimes. The red.
Something big moved on his left. He startled, the knife biting into his thumb. He sucked on the knick as the veteran took the seat to his right. He glanced sleepily at Sky, and let him take care of the nick without comment. Sky was grateful. He could barely look at the vet and not see the bedraggled state he’d returned to them yesterday after escaping the Yiga and clawing his way back to them.
All from his demon.
***
Twilight waited until the others left before leaving the shelter of the screens. He wasn’t sure how the researchers felt about the wolf sleeping with the heroes, but none of them had mentioned anything about it. He decided it was worth the risk to escape chore assignments from Purah so he could escape and tend to Epona. The poor girl still had twigs matted in her hair and a few scrapes to check on after yesterday’s ambush.
The wolf slipped around the curtains, keeping to the scant shadows.
“Wolfie!” called an unfamiliar voice. He turned to see now one but six different Sheikah researchers smiling and holding out hands, begging with wide eyes for him to come closer.
Twilights shrank back, hackles rising subtly. He tried to ignore the clear disappointment on their faces as he scrambled for the freedom of the outdoors.
Purah stood in his way.
“So you’re back too,” Purah huffed and crossed her arms. “Now I’ll have to pick your hair out of this machine too…” And with that concerning sentiment, Twilight scrambled from the room. “Welcome home, Stinkybomb,” she added as he left the dim inn behind.
Twilight had so many questions.
***
Wind carried his oversized jug of water into the stable inn and skedaddled out again before Purah could see and snag him into doing more chores. Or before he succumbed to his urge to break it. The sailor rushed outside and around back to the privy. Ambling back, he found Twilight in the stable.
Twilight’s brush moved slowly through Epona’s mane but he stared in much the same way Wild did when lost in a memory.
“Ranch-hand?” he stepped under the slats, the light instantly dimmed. “Are you okay?”
“Huh? Oh.” The taller man shook his head vigorously. “Yeah, I”m fine. I just… I got a lot of questions lately, since coming to this world.”
“You can say that again! Why isn’t anyone explaining anything!” Relief washed over him. The way the older heroes all talked forever in whispers, leaving out him and Four and Wild and Twi… “Time laughs at us all,” Wind mumbled the words of the Goron merchant to himself. Well, if anyone could wrangle Time into actually talking for a change, it was Twilight. Or Warrior, but he seemed in on whatever secret was being shared between them, why Ghirahim called him a different name and they both went pale as a full mood. Wind narrowed his eyes, suddenly wondering if the hard-to-read rancher might have more answers than he let on too. “Have you ever seen that demon before?”
Twilight shook his head and continued brushing a thoroughly detangled section of Epona’s hair.
“Twi.” Wind urged. “You sure?”
Twilight hummed a noncommittal answer.
Epona swung her head around and nudged the brush. Twilight grunted and came back to the present. Wind snickered. She knew how to keep her hero on course. “Sorry.” Twi rubbed Epona’s back appreciatively and found a new patch to detangle. “I’m just thinkin’ about just how much we can and can’t change when we’re moving so reckless-like through these portals. All our times are… I suspect they’re connected. So coming here, where most of us are dead and gone… does it make any difference what we learn about… about our fates?" He ran a nervous hand through his hair. "What can and can’t change just by knowing about it when we go back?” he looked at Wind as if he had answers.
“Well, that’s dark,” Wind scoffed playfully. He wondered what made the ranch-hand suddenly so melancholy. Not that it was hard; most evenings, Twi got into some deep waters inside his head, and he’d gather anyone near enough to reach and not otherwise occupied to sit and contemplate the sunset with him. Even at midday, he always seemed just a bit lonely. Maybe that was normal for wolves.
“Maybe. Not sure yet,” came the ranch-hands cryptic and completely unhelpful reply. Wind shrugged, and urged the man to hurry up and join them for breakfast—judging by the smell wafting their way, breakfast was almost ready.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Series this work belongs to: Part 2 of WildSkyRule
I wanted to check in! How are you doing friend? I love reading your stories and think you are amazing.
Also small reminder that you are very cool, and a joy to be around /gen
<33
OMG!! Luna you’re gonna make me cry. Thanks a million for thinking of me! LOL, I’m cool in the same way you are—deep in the throws of a delightful fandom, surrounded by amazing people.
The other heroes had gone to scout, gather firewood, or forage for dinner, leaving Wind on watch with Four and Sky resting.
Sky leaned on the crooked tree’s trunk and held a quill over a letter. He wasn’t sure where to begin. Not much had changed in the time they’d started chasing the black-blooded monsters, and he had little to report for her to enjoy beyond a note that Wild regained a few good memories and Warrior had offered to teach them military tactics. He wanted to see her laugh again.
The Chosen hero looked over at the Hero of the Winds, and smiled. As quick as it flashed, he masked it, schooling his expression into a contemplative frown. Casually, he asked, “Wind, what's the name of those long pits around a settlement, like a castle or a camp or dungeon? Isn't there a name for them?"
“Do you mean like a moat?” Four asked from nearby, looking up from his book of Minish Fairy Tales.
“That sounds like a moat to me,” Wind confirmed.
“Yes, that must be the word then.” Sky nodded, looking at the letter. “But what about a version that’s covered up so the target doesn’t see it until they fall in? Is there a name for that?
“A pit trap?’ Four answered again, and Sky wondered if he’d grown bored of his book. He’d read it for two weeks now. But it might work out even better with Four’s involvement.
“Specific ones usually have their own names, and I’ve never heard what they call one that’s both a moat and a pit. I can look them up the next time we’re near a library. But why?” Four asked.
“I saw one on my adventure once and wanted to ask Sun about it. We’ve been talking about castles we’d like to make for our people, and dungeon traps to keep Fi safe.”
Wind was already looking around the perimeter, mapping out a path. “Sky, so you want to trade your third watch for my first watch? Then you can stay up and write to Sun before the fire goes out.”
Sky smiled. “Sure, Wind. Thank you.”
Four looked between them, eyebrows raised almost imperceptibly. Maybe he wasn’t giving the knight enough credit.
When Sky forgot to tuck his bag away, the bag with mogma mitts inside, Wind knew better than to look a gift horse in the mouth. It was as good as getting his permission, really.
A muffled yell woke everyone except Wind the next morning. Twilight, on his way to the stream for water, let out a string of curses that surprised even the sailor.
“What’s there a pit doing around camp?” he stormed into the clearing, picking leaves out of his hair and pelt.
“To keep monsters out,” Wind said as if it was obvious, “We don't want them to ambush us if they slip past our guard, right?”
Twilight stared at him.
Four stared at Sky.
The knight’s face was completely blank. Suspiciously so. Sky caught his stare and offered the tinies, slyest winks he’d ever seen.
“Maybe let us know next time, okay Sailor?”
“Alright. Then you should know–”
Another cry cut him off.
“WHY DOES IT GO ALL AROUND CAMP?” Warriors bellowed, and heaved himself up out of the opposite side of camp, dry leaves clinging to him.
uhhh random icebreaker question: who's your favourite link and why? (hi there 😁💕)
The impossible question!!!
So I’m slooooooooowly cycling through them. Started with Wild from tue games but quickly became Hyrule, then I added Sky, and I’m… I’m kinda stuck on Sky.
He’s so amazing. He has a heart of gold but he’s also super determined to get something once he wants it. He’s a golden boy who has to learn that there isn’t always one right answer, but he is chill enough about most things in life to just make the best of whatever happens. And his childhood crush is slowly being replaced by a divine presence?! And he still just… love love loves her, no matter what. He’s so weirdly Adam-coded, but also uas a community. He has FACIAL EXPRESSIONS!!! A nice, deeper voice than most Links, and he’s a fast learner!!! He’s such a mix and I love trying to understand him.
Mosasaur. Have you seen that cool inner jaw they have? Like, how convenient is it to have not one, but TWO jaws?!?!? And they are terrifying, which I love for them.
Film art under cut cited from Jurassic-pedia. Lots of teeth. I'm probably preaching to the choir here but for anyone who has not beheld their glory, it's awesome.
