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Archive warning:Creator chose not to use archive warningd
Category: F/M
Characters/Pairings: Link/Zelda
Summary: In a universe where Link was never in the Royal Guard, he's instead a farmer boy in Hateno selling his crops all over Hyrule getting the best prices out of them. One day, however, he finds himself in a position that he never wants to be in after pulling a mysterious sword from its pedestal and so begins his escape from the Royal Family.
So I haven’t been using tumble a lot mainly because I have a lot going on in high school and I also tend to avoid it to try and not be jealous of everyone’s Zelda fics (not to throw shade, y’all have the best work I’ve ever seen), but I don’t see why not do this for the day
8:14 PM, Aryll and Emerald’s house
Emerald takes the bowls on the table in the kitchen and leaves the house, walking to the Water Reservoir where a pair of Hylian teenagers, one boy and one girl, who are around Zelda’s age, appear to be examining the flowers at the edge of the Reservoir. One of them is watering a set of Nightshades while the other watches, astounded by the glowing flower.
“Hey Marina, evening Eden.” Emerald greets them across the lake. The duo look up and wave with smiles, walking over as they finish up the watering. Marina, the dark skinned and long black haired girl wearing a tank top and a pair of black trousers, takes land first, beating her friend, Eden, a pale skinned Hylian with short messy hair, wearing a short sleeved purple tunic and a pair of trousers. He appears to be just shorter than Marina, his height just at her forehead.
“We wanna say thank you for the nights of dinner you and Aryll give us,” Marina thanks, taking the bowl of fish before beginning to eat with her spoon that came with it. Eden smiles and also takes his dinner, sitting alongside his best friend and Emerald as they stare up at the night skies.
Inside, Aryll notices the group outside stargazing and shrugs her shoulders with a smile, “I don’t know why we’re eating inside, let’s join them.” She says, heading for the door before waving at Zelda and Impa to follow her. The royal duo nod and come along, Impa closing the door as they leave. They carry their bowls of fish and join the stargazing with Emerald, Marina, and Eden as they continue eating.
“Evening, Princess. And you too, miss Impa,” Eden greets before taking another bite out of his fish. The Princess and royal aide wave hello, smiling as they do so before looking up at the night skies. As usual, they’re pretty and bright, great for a light show if they can make one.
“I must ask, Emerald. How did you gain legal custody of Aryll over her father?” Impa asks. Emerald swallows her bite and sighs, shaking her head.
“It’s pretty complicated to explain. When she was just a baby, her father was losing money at a high rate ever since the death of his loved one. When it came to the point they were evicted and he found a cheaper home in Hateno Village, he wanted to spend more on renovations to make it three people but that would’ve been twice as much as he owed yearly to live here.”
The first half of the chapter is a filler, the other half is the memory. Look out for a new update hopefully this weekend, also fuck the Knights
So I haven’t been using tumble a lot mainly because I have a lot going on in high school and I also tend to avoid it to try and not be jealous of everyone’s Zelda fics (not to throw shade, y’all have the best work I’ve ever seen), but I don’t see why not do this for the day
8:14 PM, Aryll and Emerald’s house
Emerald takes the bowls on the table in the kitchen and leaves the house, walking to the Water Reservoir where a pair of Hylian teenagers, one boy and one girl, who are around Zelda’s age, appear to be examining the flowers at the edge of the Reservoir. One of them is watering a set of Nightshades while the other watches, astounded by the glowing flower.
“Hey Marina, evening Eden.” Emerald greets them across the lake. The duo look up and wave with smiles, walking over as they finish up the watering. Marina, the dark skinned and long black haired girl wearing a tank top and a pair of black trousers, takes land first, beating her friend, Eden, a pale skinned Hylian with short messy hair, wearing a short sleeved purple tunic and a pair of trousers. He appears to be just shorter than Marina, his height just at her forehead.
“We wanna say thank you for the nights of dinner you and Aryll give us,” Marina thanks, taking the bowl of fish before beginning to eat with her spoon that came with it. Eden smiles and also takes his dinner, sitting alongside his best friend and Emerald as they stare up at the night skies.
Inside, Aryll notices the group outside stargazing and shrugs her shoulders with a smile, “I don’t know why we’re eating inside, let’s join them.” She says, heading for the door before waving at Zelda and Impa to follow her. The royal duo nod and come along, Impa closing the door as they leave. They carry their bowls of fish and join the stargazing with Emerald, Marina, and Eden as they continue eating.
“Evening, Princess. And you too, miss Impa,” Eden greets before taking another bite out of his fish. The Princess and royal aide wave hello, smiling as they do so before looking up at the night skies. As usual, they’re pretty and bright, great for a light show if they can make one.
“I must ask, Emerald. How did you gain legal custody of Aryll over her father?” Impa asks. Emerald swallows her bite and sighs, shaking her head.
“It’s pretty complicated to explain. When she was just a baby, her father was losing money at a high rate ever since the death of his loved one. When it came to the point they were evicted and he found a cheaper home in Hateno Village, he wanted to spend more on renovations to make it three people but that would’ve been twice as much as he owed yearly to live here.”
The first half of the chapter is a filler, the other half is the memory. Look out for a new update hopefully this weekend, also fuck the Knights
I really, REALLY enjoyed drawing this comic strip! If you don’t get the context, it’s a scene at the beginning of Chapter 6 of @farore-or-less ‘s Zelda fanfic, How Wild it is to be! I highly recommend it and I really love how it’s going so far!
This is bits of an outdated Zelinktines prompt I’m still gonna post (hopefully)
“I’m sorry, I–” She was cut off by Link hugging her. Surprised at first, Zelda lowers her arms and hugs back. Her breathing becomes more calm and slow as Link digs his hands into her hair, combing it.
This feeling. This overwhelming sense of joy. She hadn’t felt something like this from someone she loved since…no, not that moment. Not right now! Leave us alone right now!!!
“You’re warm, do you know that?” He asks. Zelda responds by nodding her head on his shoulder. Link fixes himself by removing his blanket and turning around properly, planting his face into Zelda’s shoulder.
“If I’m gonna be honest, I don’t know where I would be without you coming into my life. You’ve helped study for my classes, been my first friend in the States, and have been overall such a nice and joyful person to be around no matter what,”
“T-Thank you, Link,” she sniffs.
“When I first met you at training camp, I thought you were an overconfident quarterback just because you had spectacular four seasons at high school and that you would scoff at me if I even got the chance to teach you how to play but…not even a week into meeting each other and I got to see who you truly were,”
“I-Is that a bad thing or–”
“No– don’t take it like I wanted this. Your stats were so big I also judged you by the amount of paparazzi from the front of the gym,”
“Oh, sorry for that moment.”
“It’s not your fault, though. Like I said, you were so dominant that your status became must see everywhere you went, no matter where you went,”
Link slightly nods his head, that was true. He’s heard this so much from everyone, even his parents that it drove him crazy. However, it never got old when Zelda was the one saying these.
“Father almost never approves of who I hang around,”
This is a very short preview of Chapter 38 for A Hero against his own will. Enjoy
12:50 AM, Castle Square Garden
Zelda inhales deep as they enter the garden, which is covered in colorful flowers ranging from primaries to hybrids. Link closes his eyes as the scent hits his nostrils, oh shit, that’s strong and good.
The lighting inside also makes it ten times more beautiful as the moonlight shines down through the screen roof.He walks down the path, arm over the fence to touch the flowers while the Princess smiles, seeing he was enjoying the plants around, “You must be familiar with the many flowers we have planted around.” She points out.
“Plenty. According to dad, our old neighbor used to go around Castle Town planting flowers near the Water Reservoir,” He explains.“I see. Do you recognize any flowers?”Link takes the first flower he touches after Zelda asked that question, using the moonlight as a source to examine the flower despite it not being good enough not even Zelda can see it from her position, “Red Cosmos,” He answers.
She raises her eyebrows in surprise but goes over to check if he was right. Red Cosmos, holy fuck he’s right, “Wow, first try under the moonlight,” She says. Link takes another flower with one more being dragged but not into the moonlight and turns it a few times for his next question, “Umm, a green lily with a blue hyacinth behind,” He answers.
Zelda scoots herself in to check if he was correct. Oh yeah, it was correct, “I don’t know how you manage to also identify the other hyacinth since it wasn’t in the moonlight at all,” She points out.
Link shrugs his shoulders, letting out a soft chuckle, “Hateno Village has had plenty of flowers in and around the place. There’s never a bad place to find a landfill of flowers to jump through anywhere you go. I’m not sure if you’ve seen them but I know a few of my favorite spots you might like sometimes,” He offers.
“Maybe after the Calamity, we’ll be able to see what you’re talking about,” Zelda answers, taking a seat at the center fountain. While Link sniffs a yellow rose near the Eastern section of the Garden, the Princess watches him from the center of the room, wondering if there was something wrong he’d like to talk about.
He did seem shaken up and sweaty when he got to her room but thanks to the flowers, he’s pretty calm after all. “Link?” She calls out.
He turns his head toward her like a curious cat, “Yes, Princess?” He responds.
“Was there something wrong you wanted to talk about?”
“Oh, right…” He walks over, sitting on the fountain, distancing himself from Zelda, “I um…I believe I had some sort of nightmare influenced by Big G and possibly Fi,” He explains.
“Big G?”
“That Ganon thing the castle has been going crazy about, that sucker might’ve gotten into my head to try and break me before we can begin this fight.”
“Oh my, what did you see?”
“At first, I was stuck in the memory of us at the Spring of Courage for…that moment. I tried to fight the memory but I couldn’t despite my best efforts. When the sword connected, my eyes flashed to when you and Thunder Thighs-” Link stops to snicker at that nickname.
Zelda shoves him playfully, shaking her head, “Come on, Link. Not now,” She chuckles. “Okay, okay. Anyway, it was another memory, this time when you guys captured me. When I spat in your face and Urbosa sent a whole lightning bolt down on me, I screamed in pain like hell like in real life. However, I actually lost my voice and passed out, finding myself falling below the Sanctum. I tried calling for help, nothing. Then some dark clouds came down and surrounded my body like Goo.”
“I believe you were talking about Malice there.”
“Shit, I guess. Dude out here tried to infect my body like some sort of– what do you call them?”
It's ZELINKTINE'S MONTH and I get the honor of being Day 1: Roses! Me and my magnificent friends over on discord are going to spoil you this month and this is just the beginning. I hope you enjoy this little oneshot and all its fluffy tinted sadness!
WC: 3545
She had an hour. Only an hour to tend to the garden that had been her companion for as long as she remembered. She could once spend an entire afternoon with her fingers laced between the growing vines as she rested in the soft shade its blooms provided, reading slowly from her favorite novels as castle life bustled all around her, unaware and uncaring of how its crown Princess was spending her time. If she closed her eyes she could almost envision her mother as she had once been sitting beside her long ago, teaching her the unique wants and needs of each plant as they rooted in the soil at their feet; which needed more sun and which thrived in the shadows of others or how to thread their vines around the trellises that lined the outside rows. It was a piece of her that lived on well past the day she’d joined them in the soil below before Zelda herself had even had a chance to blossom.
Though the plot where the great Queen now rested bloomed with what once had been her most treasured flowers, nothing would grow from her death but a bitter emptiness that sat across Hyrule like a drought. Her untimely exit would ultimately drain the life from her once blossoming kingdom as the King she left behind failed to flourish where she had prospered. He ruled with much less grace than she had, leaving a bruise in the hearts of their people who were used to her tenderness and the natural ease with which she had led them. Though no one felt the weight of her absence quite like Zelda.
Her mother's passing had left her frightfully alone in a world that expected her to wield the same Goddess given power she had seemingly found so effortlessly. But where her mother had the guidance of the powerful women who had come before her to help her hone her gifts, Zelda had no one other than a father who believed more fervently day by day that she simply wasn't trying hard enough. So he’d taken from her every activity that had once brought her joy and replaced it with a rigorous religious training that would only serve to break her further. As a result, her time spent in the safety of her inherited garden was slim, though she snuck away as often as she could.
She sighed as she thumbed at the petals of the bushes before her, checking their elasticity to ensure they’d been watered enough, despite her inability to care for them as she once had. She picked up the watering can at her feet and showered the soil where they grew, watching as the thirsty earth grew dark as it drank what she provided. It was easy work that yielded linear results, unlike many other facets of her life, and the simple act of working towards their prosperity was enough to soothe her battled mind on the days she was able to attend to it.
“These need to be watered more frequently,” she said mostly to herself as she thumbed at the drying leaves and touched the bulbs fighting to open with what little the skies had offered them while she’d been away.
She waited until she was content with the moisture of the ground underneath her, turning to her silent companion who had been trailing her the entire time, as quiet as the petals that twirled in the breeze around them, content to allow her the peace her time there provided without feeling the need to insert himself into it.
“Is it time to go already?”
Her eyes gave away what her words did not as they lifted to meet his own, as soft and blue as they ever were. He stayed there for a moment, taking in the melancholy in her gaze as if he were trying to expose a way he could free her from it. But they both knew better. He was just as bound as she was to the shackles of prophecy that had brought them together and in the end, it would be both of them who would fail if she didn’t unmask her power soon. There was only so much he could do with the sword alone, they needed one another. And so far, he’d been carrying the weight of success all on his own. Yet there he was, allowing her to slip away yet again from her duties in order to indulge her own interests without any hint of disapproval to be found.
“It’s alright, we can stay a while,” he offered, even leaning his fabled sword against the outside fence in favor of extending his hand to her own.
She took it softly, quietly grateful he’d gone without his gloves in the mild spring weather so that she could feel his skin against hers.
“Do you need any help?”
She followed the length of his arm until she’d found her way to his chest, pressing her cheek against the fabric of the tunic she’d spun him herself and listening as the rhythm of his heartbeat increased at their closeness while he let his remaining arm wrap loosely around her waist. He’d shown unparalleled bravery in the face of great danger more times than she could count and was revered amongst the others in the guard for his ability to bring down slews of beasts that would often take entire units to conquer. He was the Hero who wielded the Master Sword, the Hylian Champion, and the youngest soldier to ever climb the ranks of knighthood. Yet she could end him with a single stroke of her hand along his cheek or a whispered word in his ear. It was a soft victory for the Princess who had yet to find her own valor, even as darkness crept ever closer.
“We should go or they’ll come looking for me.”
It was his turn to sigh as he held her closer, determined to keep her in her place of security if only a little longer before duty found them both back in the prayer room that had been her prison for the better part of a year now.
“It’s not fair.”
She released him and looked upon the heavy tilt in his brow, the downward turn of the pout that had taken over his lower features, and couldn’t help but find herself mimicking his sorrowful expression. He so rarely allowed his mask to break, always the brave hero for the people who had chosen to place their hope where they knew it wouldn’t be lost. But the closer they’d grown, the more she’d discovered that she was just as much a haven for him as he was to her. It hurt him profoundly to see her throw herself into devotion only to be turned away empty handed yet again, or to stand silently as her father berated her for damning their kingdom because of it. He’d offered to whisk her away into the wilds more than once, but they both knew her obligation to her bloodline forced her to stay and the sword on his back branded him as much of a servant to the kingdom as she was.
He was the only one who saw her as she was and not who she was meant to be. The only one that bent to better accommodate her needs rather than forcing her to fit into the agenda of others, whether or not it brought her harm. They’d found a sense of solidarity in the other; a sanctuary where they may safely lay bare everything they must keep hidden from the world that relied on them for its very survival.
“Life hardly is for us, is it?” She ended her thought with a feather light kiss to his cheek before encouraging him to begin the walk out of her gardens, “Will you still be by for supper later? If my father doesn’t drag me into his office again.”
“Of course.”
She knew she didn’t have to ask. He’d cancel everything if it meant being near her. She just wanted to hear him say it. To fill herself with the knowledge that her existence meant more than just her failures, if only to him. She turned to give him a smile that he mirrored as they left the shelter of the garden and set their stony exteriors that marked them as Princess and Hero as they made the long walk back into the prayer room yet again.
—
So it went for weeks and day by day Zelda found herself neglecting the garden that had once brought her joy, sometimes even going days without offering it any care. Her prayers only became more strenuous as her father’s desk filled with more reports of the malice that was slowly creeping into their land and she found what little energy she had left after her devotions was spent tucked into Link’s arms in her study as he offered to read to her the novels she didn’t have the spirit to move through herself anymore. He wasn’t as quick of a reader as she was, but just hearing the words as they traveled through his chest was as much a comfort to her as any. Most nights she drifted off there and sometimes he did too, waking the next morning with a stiff neck as he slept hunched over her curled form.
On one such morning, Zelda would rise before him. Though the entire castle knew of their growing closeness, he was still expected to maintain some level of propriety and would likely be scolded quite heavily by the King if they were to discover them pressed against the other as they were. He typically would attempt to sneak away before sunrise so that he could be seen exiting his own chambers at the start of the new day, leaving the nosey castle goers none the wiser and her father equally unaware. But there he still was, the folds of her linens pressed into his blushed cheeks as he lightly snored alongside the chirping of the morning birds.
She turned carefully, without letting herself become uncaged by his arms, so that she could rest her own cheek against him and trace the lines of his other hand that he had draped across his abdomen in his sleep. She watched as it lazily lifted up and down with each breath, the tips of his knuckles just catching the early light that cut though the high windows. Though as she lazily traced down the soft skin on the back of his hand, she felt a series of small cuts which instantly triggered the more analytical parts of her brain. It wasn’t uncommon for him to have small injuries, but these were unlike any she’d seen on him before. They were shallow, some with small punctures that tapered into thin lines as if he’d pricked himself on something and pulled away, yet gone back again to earn more.
She began shuffling slightly in the sheets so that she could get a better view, leaning over him so that she could see them in their entirety. He stirred when she did, letting out a soft groan as his eyes rolled under his still closed lids, almost as if his body were protesting coming out of the relaxed state it was in. Not wanting to wake him any further, she stilled completely, letting her hand freeze above his where she’d been examining it. With a long sigh, he seemed to settle back to sleep and only then did she continue her investigation.
What had he been doing that would have caused such marks? He was with her more often than not and surely she would have noticed if he’d hurt himself on something, even if he refused to admit it. He’d once worked a week with a broken arm before she had caught him favoring his other one, only allowing her to send him to have it set when she threatened not to share her dessert with him that evening. So it was unlikely he’d ever mentioned it to her in passing and she’d simply forgotten. It wasn’t as if they were anything serious and certainly didn’t require anything more than a salve she could grind together with ingredients she had in that very room, but the mystery of it bothered her all the same.
She squinted her eyes as the sun rose higher in the morning sky, sorting the catalogs of information in her brain in hopes of anything that may help her to explain them before needing to seek an outside source. Yet oddly, all she could think of was her mother, so she sat back on her heels beside his still slumbering form and allowed herself to indulge in the memory they brought forth.
—
“Careful darling, they are quite beautiful but not without bite. Here, put these on.”
The elegant woman lifted her small hands and carefully tucked them into a pair of leather gloves she’d fished from the pockets of her apron before doing the same to her own.
“Mama, why do the roses have to grow thorns?”
She knelt down as she brought a stem closer for her inspection.
“You may think of them as delicate, fragile things only meant to blossom for the benefit of their beauty. But these remarkable plants are quite the little warriors, you know.”
“Warriors?”
The Queen smiled as she reached into her apron again for her garden shears, measuring carefully where to cut the fully opened blossom.
“Oh, yes. This little greenery works hard to ensure that it thrives and it doesn’t want its artistry stolen, whether by a greedy creature to eat or a curious eye like ours to admire. So it grows these for its own protection. Remarkable, isn’t it?”
She carefully applied pressure to the small prickles that lined the now cut stem of the flower in her hand, keeping an eye on the child that was watching with intense curiosity only inches from where she worked. With only a slight push, the curved thorns fell to the ground below, leaving a now smooth surface. The much smaller Princess stood diligently still as her mother then gently tucked the stem behind her ear; earning a smile that was just as brilliant as the flower that now adored her instead of the bush it had been plucked from.
“Sometimes…the world may desire from you more than you are willing to give. But you must find a way to protect what it is within you that they feel they are entitled to. Always fight for yourself, my Princess. Even if you must be a little prickly,” she ended with a wink that left Zelda giggling as she reached up to feel the softness of the petals between her fingers.
—
The sun entering her study shone down upon her then with a renewed warmth as she cleared the bleariness from her eyes and studied his hand for a final time, now remembering with clarity where she’d seen the marks before. Careful not to wake him, she folded the quilt back around his still limp form and slipped from bed, following the fervor of her realization all the way across the long bridge that connected her private quarters to the castle and into the aisles of the garden she hadn’t seen for the past month.
Though she had nearly abandoned her once carefully manicured rows of flowers and shrubbery, instead of dried vines and crumbling petals she would find it as pristine as if it had never missed a day of care. Though the groundskeeper had offered her on multiple occasions to tend to it in her stead, there was some part of her that wouldn’t allow herself to accept the help, as if in doing so she would somehow fail at the hidden obligation she felt to her mother to keep alive the work she’d poured so much of her life into. Yet despite her weeks of absence, it was as beautiful as that day in her memory, each plant thriving like she’d been working on them herself, or as if someone who had watched her methods from right behind her the entire time had picked up where she had been forced to leave off.
She walked the stone path, letting her fingertips glide over the silky leaves of her flourishing flowers, admiring the way their blossoms opened up in the brilliant light of the morning sun. She smiled to herself as she pictured him sneaking off to water them or prune the dead leaves. The mighty Hero of Hyrule, carefully clipping hydrangeas. He’d left no detail untouched, even returning her tools to the same place and order she preferred to keep them in. She fisted her hand in the light fabric at her chest, trying and failing to hold back the tears that began to brim the edges of her eyes. While the others around her had been scrutinizing her every move and labeling her as incomplete, he’d simply been watching and learning her as she was so that he could provide even this small comfort, as meaningless as it would be to anyone else. But to her it was everything.
She wiped at her eyes with the edge of her sleeve as she reached the back wall of the garden, her cheeks rounding into another soft smile when she noticed the roses she’d been carefully weaving around a tall archway trellis were now in full bloom. He’d even taken the time to ensure he continued her work there as well, encouraging the climbing plant to wrap even taller around the structure. In only a few short weeks the entire arch would be covered, just as she’d planned. Before she could take a step forward to admire them closer, the sound of someone crashing down the path behind her had her turning on her heels.
“Zelda!”
When she spotted him, her smile only deepened. He seemed in a state of absolute panic, having not even stopped to slip on his boots. He stood there barefoot, the white linen of his sleep shirt softly rippling in the slight breeze as his chest heaved up and down. He ran towards her before she could answer him, swooping her into a relieved embrace that left his face squished into the curve of her neck as he worked to catch his breath.
“Why didn’t you wake me?”
“Did you do all of this?”
They spoke at the same time and when he’d finally managed to compose himself to let go of her, she watched as his expression danced from worry to bashfulness as he looked around and pointedly ignored her eyes before nodding.
“You just…” He scanned over the area slowly, shuffling his feet underneath him before he eventually looked up again, “You just work so hard. With everything. And I…there are some things I am helpless to aid you with. But this…this I could do for you.”
She grabbed him again, pressing their cheeks together as she held him tight, causing him to lift to his tiptoes to keep up with her enthusiasm as she nearly lifted him off the ground. But he seemed to find just enough balance to return it with as much eagerness, squeezing her so close to him it seemed as though he was trying to absorb her completely. She turned in his arms so that her lips managed to catch his, their noses bumping together as they connected.
He always acted so surprised when she kissed him, despite how many times they’d done it before. It was something she loved so dearly about him. It was just so genuine and so telling of how deeply his affection ran for her that she couldn’t help herself from surprising him time and time again.
Their kiss was only a small thing. Nothing extravagant or overly indulgent. Just something soft and sweet. But she poured every ounce of adoration and appreciation she held for him into and didn’t need to open her eyes to see it all reflected right back. When they’d finally broken apart, she let loose his long hair which she tangled her fingers into at the base of his neck in favor of holding both his hands in her own, lightly pressing each place on his skin the thorns from her shrubbery had marked onto him.
“Those roses are tricky,” he said as he watched her, feeling the softness of her fingers as they made circles across his skin, “I didn’t notice the thorns until I was already tangled in them.”
“They are beautiful, but not without bite.”
He flipped their hands then so that he now held hers, holding her gently as she let the memory settle, allowing the ache of her absence to pass so that she might be able to revel in what she still had right there with her, rather than become entrenched in what she’d lost.
“Thank you,” her words came as more of a breath that passed between them. But he heard her all the same, bringing their clasped hands to his lips and returning the sentiment with a kiss to her knuckles, ever the courteous knight.
This is a rewrite for the real one on AO3 that you can read under the same title
Chapter 1: Good Morning Hyrule
5:00 AM,
The cuccos outside the stable cackle, waking up Link from his little slumber. "GOOOOOOOOD MORNING LOCAL STABLLLLLE!!" He yawns, shaking wildly at first before finding himself in the stable.
The locals inside stare at him awkwardly, a couple chuckling as he was always like this every time he would take a rest at a stable.
"Good morning to you too, sunny boy." The clerk, Boon, greets him from the table. Link stands up and arches his back to fix himself, yawning as he does.
He grabs his bag full of crops and rupees before heading out to the front. Boon walks to the other side of the front desk, facing outside now.
"So what'll it be?" He asks Link, "I wanna take my horse, Epona." Link answers with a confident smile.
Epona and Link have been best friends since they met at the Ranch near Castles Town when Link was only 13.
Epona was a wild mare that was scared of Link and would run away from him when he got even 3 feet close to him. That was until he managed to play a song on an ocarina to calm Epona down.
The ranch luckily let Link take Epona as his own and for 3 years, they have never been separated from one another.
"Alright, we'll get Epona for you." Boon replies, whistling over to one of the locals to grab Link's wild best friend. The first local, Kerry, runs to the back, holding Epona's lead to guide her toward the front. After walking to the front, Link immediately mounts onto her and thanks Boon and Kerry for the assistance before telling Epona to hit the tracks.
Link looks toward the lone shrine on a mini island between the two bridges and sees the royal princess investigating it. The princess was always investigating these shrines all over Hyrule including the one that was in Hateno Village, his hometown.
The shrines have been randomly glowing at times but since Thursday, they haven't been lighting up.
He looks away quickly after she snaps at one of her Royal Guards and continues moving through Eagus Bridge, not wanting to be a random target of an angry princess.
The Hylian and his best friend stop by Goponga Village to make bread off his crops, greeting a lot of the Zoras in town like they were family. "Hey Link!" A familiar male Zora calls out from around the corner. Link looks to his left and sees his best friend, Bazz.
He mounts off and rushes to the Zora knight, hopping off a wooden plank and doing a midair handshake with him. After he drops back on land, Link and Bazz collide with their chests as a final sign of their signature handshake
"It's been 7 years, man; How's Hateno?" Bazz asks. Link shrugs while smiling, "It's doing great! I just need to sell at least 102 rupees worth of crops and then we'll head home. How are Rivan and Gad?" The tiny Hylian asks compared to Bazz
"They're finishing up their training real quick. I was assigned to watch over Goponga Village for the day so I should go home tonight." He answers.
Link hadn't been to Zora's Domain since his father's death where they would visit almost weekly to purchase fish for dinner. Every time they would visit, Link would always run around with the young Zoras and get himself wet from the puddles everywhere.
Last time Link and his father were in the Domain, Link would meet Sidon, the younger brother of the Zora Princess, Mipha. He and the small Zora would get themselves into some sort of mess, leading Mipha to be rushing for their safety no matter where she is. Now, Sidon must be a lot more like Link, right?
"I gotta sell these crops real quick, talk to you some time?" Link asks, raising his hand up for a show of goodbye. Bazz takes it and the two collide with their arms. "See you any time, Link!" He waves before walking the opposite direction, holding his Silverscale Spear.
Link turns to Epona and continues walking down the southern road, eyeing a customer. The Zora was waving for Link to stop, holding a few purple rupees. Link pulls Epona to the side and hops off with the hylian crops in his bag.
"How much for 5 sets sounds to you?" He asks. "I'll gladly take them for 150 rupees, Link!" She answers, giving Link the 3 purple rupees while he hands the crops to her, possibly all of them. "Thanks for the service!" The Zora smiles before walking back into her home.
Link mounts back onto Epona and leads her back out of town and together, they begin walking up north to venture out and get some rest.
8:48 PM, Woodland Stable
Link boards in Epona with help from one of the locals, Blake. "Your horse is in our care, Link. Come back here if you need anything else." The clerk, Tanto, reminds the teenager.
Link nods and walks to the cooking pot to make his dinner for the night: a pair of apples, Hyrule Herb he managed to grab all over Hyrule field without grabbing anyone's attention, and 2 hearty radish.
Without a second thought, he tosses all of the ingredients into the pot, splashing some of the boiling water right near him which he dodged in a nick of time. Link tossing all the ingredients for a meal at once has always been his chaotic way of cooking that always splashes a mess and he would always be met with criticism for nearly burning himself.
He takes a wooden spoon and stirs the materials around, being ready to take them out and crave his dinner. Another traveler named Noah sits next to him and watches his cooking.
"You seriously never change, Link." He teases him. Link shakes his head with a chuckle, taking each ingredient out and putting them onto his plate. "Noah, show me your way of cooking and let's see who's the crazier chef." He bets him.
The bigger traveler chuckles and takes out an apple and goat butter, carefully dropping the apple first and keeping the butter on a separate plate for his future meal. Then without hesitation, he dips his hand into the boiling pot and takes the apple out, putting it on the butter plate, spreading his greens around before melting the butter over the apple. “Bon appetit?”
”So who’s the crazy chef again?” Link counters, pointing his spoon at Noah’s boiled hand. “Hey, it’s not my fault my hands are somehow resistant to boiling water.” Noah shrugs, chuckling as he says it.
Ever since Link would visit the Woodland stable, there was a chance that Noah, his first customer to buy Link’s crops, would be at the stable either relaxing or cooking a meal.
“Come on, let’s eat inside.” Link gets up, nudging his head toward the stable before he walks in, sitting at the only table and leaving the empty chair for Noah.
“So Link, how’s Hateno coming along?” Noah asks right when he takes his seat and eats his buttered apple. “Pretty good as of tonight. I just sold all my crops to the folks in Goponga; they always seem like family ever since…” Link can’t get that imagery of the Bokoblins murdering his father out of his head again
”Hey! Get back inside, Link!” His father yelled, charging with his pitchfork right at the aggressive Golden Bokoblins.
That was the last time Link would ever see his father. 30 minutes later, his body was carried out by hylian soldiers, bloodied and a few of his organs were taken or bitten. Link couldn't believe it.
"Link, dear?" His closest neighbor, Drew, caught the young Hylian's broken response at the corpse of his father.
In a furious rage, Link shoved Drew and grabbed the pitchfork his father dropped and immediately stabbed 2 Bokoblins in the mouth, sticking his new spear into a tree before hearing another wave of those man bodied pigs.
Link pulled back, dropping the dead golds and running at the wave with his newly war cry, slitting 3 Bokoblins on the throats in a single spin and kicking the 4th one, forcing it to drop its Dragonbone club.
Link ditched his pitchfork and grabbed the club, constantly bashing the unarmed Bokoblin multiple times on the face, over and over and over, forcing blood and teeth out its mouth.
"LINK. STOP!" "LINK, THIS WON'T CHANGE WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR FATHER!" Another local and Drew called out, the first local grabbing his arm while Drew Locked the arm in. The feral Link was struggling to get out, wanting to destroy that Bokoblin corpse even further.
"Link?" Noah snaps the teenager back into reality, startling Link and launching tears out his closed eyes. "S-sorry." He mutters, taking a quick bite out of his hearty greens.
"Hey man, look up." Link looks up at Noah, slicking his hair back to show his concern. "I know how you feel, we all know. If you need a comfort pillow to cry on if you're going through a crisis, you can rely on all of us here at the stable." He offers a handshake to the broken Link, to which he accepts and the two shake 'em before they pull each other into a collision.
Link and Noah yell in excitement of their handshake, laughing after they fall back to their seats.
As they finish their dinner, Link walks up to the front desk, ordering a soft bed for the night. Adventures will never not be fun for him; even when he's journeyed further away from home when rent is due at midnight in 2 days.
He drops his body onto the bed, feeling a bit drowsy not even a minute after lying down. Good night to you too, Link.
dededos
turnnoffyourmind
origamiaround
snowghoul
discoholicmusic
jbbartram-illu
yousharknotpass
areudirty
