Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A/N: Hello!! It's been a while. How's everyone been? A few friends and I thought of a cool challenge concept (Okay, they thought of it and I was just along for the ride) of two or more people being given a prompt and exactly ONE HOUR to write something with it. Well, I didn't want to leave mine as a simple 2.1k word splurg, so I turned it into this. After I finish writing Chapter 2, I'll post the original hour-long work (unpolished and unedited) as Chapter 3, for those who are interested.

PROMPT: "You sure you don't want me to punch that guy? Because I will totally punch that guy for you."

It was raining on the day they met. 

Link panted as the sheets of rain fell like icy thorns. The distant rumble of thunder foretold an impending storm that had already started to break, and he’d just taken out a horde of bokoblins that’d moved in near the little cave he called home. 

“Damn monsters.” He cursed as he gathered the loot. It wasn’t much, but if he was disguised he might be able to fetch a fair price for it. He’d just put the last of his spoils into his bag when he heard it. At first, he wasn’t sure what he was hearing. It was a small tinkering sound that was like a child playing with a bell. 

The sound held an air of familiarity that he just couldn’t put his finger on, and his curiosity eventually won out. He followed the bell’s chimes to a rough rocky area filled with slopes that were quickly becoming slick with rain. He’d defeated some monsters in this area just prior to defeating the bokoblins that’d tried to infringe on his territory. He thought, perhaps, that some weapon had fallen and was being blown by the storm—the metal clinking against the rocks being the source of the strange noise. But there was nothing he could spot that would make a sound like that. Had he been imagining things?

No, there it was again! The wind died down for the briefest of moments, allowing him to follow the admittedly enchanting chime to a small alcove—too tiny for a child, but large enough for a kitten. Something was trapped in there, and the heavy rainfall was pooling into the crevice at a mildly alarming pace. Whatever was stuck would drown if he didn’t do something. 

That’s when he noticed it—a dim, flickering light in the shadows of the cavern. A fairy’s light. Fairies were a dying breed in this era of darkness. He recalled with fondness the fairies he’d play with back home. His mother had always told him that they had fae in their blood, and to keep his secondary form a secret lest he be used for evil. 

He, unlike his family, had the ability to transform into a fairy. The magics of the world called to him like a parent, and he felt a strong kinship with the fairy trapped beneath the stone.  

“Don’t worry.” He whispered above the growing storm. “I’ll just…” Link bent down, cautiously reaching a hand in to help the poor thing before it drowned, but he was quick to pull it back when the crisp sting of very sharp fairy teeth bit into his skin. 

“Ow! Calm down, would’ya? I’m trying to help you.” He glared at the light with irritation and waited a moment before reaching in again. He held his hand out, letting the fairy choose if Link was safe or not. He was about to give up when he felt a tiny pair of freezing cold hands wrap around his index finger. He carefully scooped the fairy up and slowly pulled his hand out, using his other hand to shelter the little light from the fierce winds that had started to kick up. She was a fully grown fairy and had a stunning blue light. She was also badly hurt. “Don’t worry, little light. I’ll get you back on your wings.”

She looked up at him from where she lay weakly, cradled in the palm of his hand. Her light was flickering dangerously, and he wasted no time in running full tilt back to his cavern. He didn’t even bother getting out of his sopping wet clothes before making a warm nest of blankets for his new companion. 

Now that he had a good light and wasn’t blinking rain out of his eyes, he was able to take a good look at her injuries. He winced. While her wings looked fine—albeit a tad wet—she appeared to have a dislocated shoulder and a broken leg. There was a nasty gash on her side where something had gotten her, and he realized abruptly that he couldn’t do much in such a large Hylian size. 

That thought in mind, he gathered the supplies he’d need—meager though they were—and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath as he let his magic roll freely throughout his body. The tingling sensation of his wings sprouting from his back and his body shrinking rapidly was uncomfortable, but not painful. 

A moment later, he was the same size as her—though a little smaller. He was pretty young, after all. He was only sixteen Hylian years old, after all. That was a child at most in fae years. He shook his head, wings fluttering with nerves as he patched her up with the fairy-sized supplies he’d set down earlier. 

She cracked open an eye when his magic brushed against hers, and there was a flash of confusion as she recognized his fairy form. 

“You are…?”

“Shh.” He soothed as he carefully stitched the gash on her side, using his magic to numb the pain. “I’m a friend. You’re hurt, try to rest.” He glanced up to see she was already passed out. He winced, but was relieved at the same time. At least she wouldn’t feel him relocate her shoulder. 

He wiped the sweat from his brow, leaving a trail of blood on his face. This would be a long night.

She awoke with a bone-deep ache that permeated throughout her body. Everything hurt, but it wasn’t agony like the last couple of times she’d awoken. And that boy was still there. He was there each time she woke. She thought she’d seen another fairy at some point, but it must’ve been a dream. While the boy had a gentle potent magic that felt fairy-like, he was far too large to be a fairy. He was definitely a hylian. 

But why had he helped her? She glanced over towards the now sleeping child—because all hylians were children to someone of her age and experience. He looked like he was completely exhausted, and she could sense that his magic levels were worryingly low. Didn’t they have potions for that, now? And…

She finally glanced around. Was this… a cave ? Why was this child living in a cave ? Had his parents abandoned him? Had he run away? She shook her head. Such thoughts would get her nowhere. But he was a highly adept healer. She felt much better than she had even before she’d been attacked. 

She cautiously sat up in her little nest of blankets, noting that the boy had kept only the thinnest one for himself—the idiot. But she owed him. She tried to stand, but let out a sharp yelp when her side screamed in protest. Had he put those stitches there? How had he possibly managed to do that at his size?! 

But her yelp must’ve woken the boy, because he was by her side a moment later. “Hey, be careful. You were in really bad shape when I found you—your light was flickering.” 

Her eyes widened. She knew she’d been pretty bad off, but… her light was flickering? She’d been… dying ? No. She couldn’t die! Not until… 

“Thank you. For saving me.” She realized belatedly that he might not understand her—not many hylians could understand a fairy’s voice these days. 

“No problem.” He smiled back. “I’m just glad you’re okay.” 

“So you can understand me?”

“I’ve got some fae in my blood, I think.” His voice was rough, like he wasn’t used to speaking. 

“Why’re you here alone? Where’re your parents?” She questioned. She’d never been one for withholding questions, after all. When she wanted to say something, she said it. Just… nicer than a lot of other people she’d met. 

“I live alone.” He answered. 

“In a cave ?” She raised an eyebrow, despite knowing that he would see nothing more than a ball of light. 

“In a cave.” He confirmed, as if such a thing was to be expected. She waited, but he didn’t elaborate. 

“You aren’t going to tell me why, are you?” 

“Nope.” He laughed. “Are you hungry?”

Her stomach growled and her glow brightened with embarrassment. “Maybe a little.”

“Here.” The boy set down a small dish of creamy fresh milk. It smelled familiar. “It’s called Lon Lon Milk.” He explained, and she felt her heart stutter at the name. 

No, it’d been far too long. The ranch had obviously just kept the same name, was all. Still, she smiled as she drank. The milk was filling and nutritious, and she felt strength return to her limbs. 

“That’s better. Your glow is getting brighter. You should get some rest, though.” He smiled as he stored the milk away.

“I still don’t like that you’re living in a cave.” She muttered as she snuggled back into the nest. “And you should use a thicker blanket or you’ll catch cold.” 

“I’ll be fine.” He waved her concerns away. “I’m used to this. You need it more than I do.” 

“I’m three inches tall .” She reminded him, eying the light shivers that wracked his body. “I don’t need an entire blanket.” 

He glared at her, but she’d had plenty of experience with grouchy people. She let a smirk cross her lips when he scowled and looked away, carefully taking one of the blankets he’d given her. She was pleased to note that his shivering was starting to subside now that he had that extra layer. 

“ Now will you get some rest?” He asked around a yawn. Goodness, he really was a child, wasn’t he? She wasn’t great with guessing hylian ages, but she’d place him under 17 for sure. Her heart clenched as she recalled a ten year old child who was made to go on a trying journey. 

No. She wasn’t going to go down that road right now. She felt her eyelids drifting closed. Tonight, she would rest. And tomorrow, she’d get to the bottom of this boy’s living arrangements. 

Link smiled as the fairy zoomed around the cavern. “You look like you feel better.” He grinned. He’d removed her stitches last night while she slept under a mild stasis spell. Those three drops of red potion in the milk he’d given her the other day had done wonders. She looked good as new, now. 

“I feel amazing! You sure know how to heal a fairy, kid!” She beamed, lighting a bright steady glow. His heart warmed at the sight. “But you didn’t answer my question yesterday.” She puffed out her cheeks. 

“What question?” 

“Why are you living alone ? And in a cave ? I thought hylians lived in towns?” 

“Why do you care so much?” He tilted his head. 

“You saved my life. I can’t just not care if you’re going to freeze to death in this hunk of rock .” 

“Hey! Don’t insult my home!” He huffed, crossing his arms. “You know, you can leave whenever you want. I’m not keeping you here.”  

“Out of the question.” She crossed her arms as she sat on his shoulder. “If this is what you call a home , then it’s obvious you need some company. You saved my life. I’m not just going to ditch you.”

Link let out a laugh. “All right, I suppose that’s fair. But if you’re going to be sticking around, I’ll need a name.” 

“You never even gave me yours .” She countered. 

“You never asked.” He shrugged and she eeped at the sudden movement, clinging to a loose lock of curly brown hair. “I’m Link. I’m a traveler.” 

“Link…?” The fairy looked at him for a long moment. Her light pulsed with nostalgia. “I knew a boy by that name… a long time ago. He was… very precious to me.” She shook her head. “My name is Navi.” 

“Well then Navi, it’s nice to officially meet you.” He grinned, patting her head with his finger. 

“Hey! Lay off, would’ya?!” 

“Says the one who bit me when we first met.” Link laughed. “Consider this your payback.” He grinned, messing up her hair again. 

“Honestly!!” She flew off his shoulder with an annoyed sound. “How old are you?! Six?!” 

“I’ll have you know, I’m sixteen .” He huffed. 

“Baby~” She cooed. 

“Oh, shush.” He flushed a light pink before turning to gather some supplies. 

“Hey! Where’re you going?” She flew right into his curly hair, bouncing lightly as she grabbed hold. 

“My hair!” He glared up at her for a moment. “I’m running low on food, I was going to check the traps I’ve set up in the nearby woods. Plus, I’ve gotta patrol for monsters.” 

“That’s dangerous. You shouldn’t go alone! I’ll come with you.” 

“Now you sound like that Old Man.” Hyrule shook his head with a fond smile. “Come along if you’d like, but be careful. I don’t want to patch you up twice in a month.” 

“A month ?! Wait, how long was I out for?!” 

“You had a fever for weeks. Why do you think I was so relieved to see you awake and alert yesterday?” He smiled as she nestled down into his hair. At least she wouldn’t fall. 

The walk was calming after the last few days he’d spent cooped up in his home. Link had always been anxious about staying in one place for too long without going out and about. And he hadn’t dared stray too far from the cavern with Navi in the condition she’d been in. 

He looked up with a raised eyebrow when he felt an incessant sharp tugging on his scalp. “What are you doing up there?” He finally asked. 

“Braiding your hair. It’s so soft, and actually a decent length because of the curl.” 

“You’re… braiding my hair?” He blinked, unsure of what he thought about that.

“Yes.” She gave no further indication of continuing as he continued to feel the sharp little tugs of the little chunks of hair being braided. 

“Could you at least do larger pieces, then? That hurts.” 

“Oh, fine, you big baby.” She changed positions and the painful tugging became just an incessant pressure. 

“Thank you.” He smiled. It’d only been a little bit, but he was so much happier to have someone around. He’d been alone for so long, he’d nearly lost his voice. With everyone in the kingdom either shunning him or hunting him down, he made it a habit to stay far away from hylian settlements unless he was fully disguised. He’d probably have to explain that to Navi, too, come to think of it.

He grinned when he heard the baying of a deer. “Looks like we’ve got dinner.” Navi hummed. 

“Looks like.” He grinned. “Hopefully this time, I can cook it.” 

“You don’t know how to cook?” 

“Let’s just say there’s a reason my home is made of stone .” 

Days became weeks, and Link was the happiest he could ever remember being. For the first time since he started this goddessforsaken journey, he wasn’t alone. It was… nice . Navi was always up for a conversation, and she chattered away constantly. He felt like perhaps she’d been just as lonely as he’d been before they found each other.

Link sighed as he gathered his cloak, wrapping it around himself and hoisting his bag of monster spoils over his shoulder.

“Where are we going?” Navi asked, circling around his head. 

“We need to resupply. I’m running low on potions and I can only do so much with the game in the area—we need grains, too.” He explained as he started walking.

“Well, at least you eat better than…” She trailed off, and he knew what she was thinking of. That mysterious boy she’d mention from time to time, usually on complete accident, always seemed to put Navi in a melancholy mood. 

“You said you knew a boy with my name once… do you want to call me something else?” He’d meant to bring it up beforehand, but whenever his namesake came up it always made Navi sad, and he hated seeing her sad. 

“Hm? But isn’t Link your name?” Navi asked, taking her customary position in his hair. She idly started to rebraid one of the bangs that hung by his face. 

“I don’t really have an attachment to that name.” He smiled. “It’s honestly brought me nothing but trouble. Perhaps it’s best if you don’t use it in public, either.” 

“Another name, huh? Like a nickname?” Navi went quiet for a long moment. “What about… Faron?” 

“Like the old Faron Woods in Ancient Hyrule?” Link raised an eyebrow. 

“It’s a name that means wanderer, and since you love to wander off to find trouble, I thought it was fitting.” 

“Faron…” He hummed, testing the name on his tongue. “I actually kind of like that.” He startled a bit at the warm feeling bubbling up in his chest. He hadn’t felt it since he last hugged his mother and father. 

“What’s with the sad look?” Navi hovered by his nose for a moment in concern. 

“I was just remembering my family.” He shook his head. 

“You have a family?” Her voice was soft and hesitant, and he knew if he asked her to, she’d drop it. 

“Yeah.” He smiled, glancing at the sky as they walked. “Ever heard of Calatia?” 

“Isn’t that a kingdom to the East?” Navi tilted her head. 

“Yeah. It’s a long ways away, across the deserts of Hyrule. I’m from there. I’ve got a mother and father, three older brothers and a baby sister.” He smiled. 

“Why’d you leave?” Her voice was quiet and reserved. 

“We were happy, but we were very poor. Dad was talking about marrying off Hazel—my sister—when she turned twelve so we could have more money. Two of my older brothers were already working themselves to the bone in the fields with our dad, and my youngest older brother—Nalon—wanted nothing to do with the family farm. He’d do as little work as he could get away with, and escape off to town first chance he’d get. He wanted to be a scholar—and damn if he wasn’t smart enough to do it. Between him trying to land an apprenticeship and Dad trying to keep us all fed…” Faron sighed. “It was just easier for me to leave. One less mouth to feed, you know?” 

“Hyrule is known as a dangerous place, though, right? Why come here?” 

“I’ve always been good with fighting. Monster loot may be a common thing over here in Hyrule, but stuff like Lynel hooves and Wizzrobe rods can fetch a hefty price in Calatia. The most dangerous monsters you’ll encounter regularly back home are chuchus and keese—annoyances and crop-eaters. The dangerous ones are all in areas that see very little traveling and have no settlements. Even the Calatian knights aren’t trained to handle moblins or Lynels. Since monsters are so common here, I figured it’d be the perfect place to make some money to help out the family. I kill the monsters, gather the loot, and send it straight home. And since I send the Monster Loot to my family directly, they can sell it for a really good price.” 

“That’s so sweet.” Navi sat on his shoulder for a moment while he rummaged in his bag. 

“Here it is.” He pulled out a small leather-bound notebook. There were letters and plants carefully pressed inside the journal, and he cautiously opened it to one of the pages. “My sister sent me this letter.” He held it up proudly, showing off the childish writing and little pictures scribbled in the corner. 

A couple of tear stains from when he’d first read it blurred a few of the words. “She’s about ten, now. Same age I was when I left home.” He smiled. “Dad wrote on the back. The loot’s helping a ton. Hazel doesn’t have to be married off anymore, and Nalon was finally able to afford the nicer clothing he needed to land that apprenticeship he wanted.” 

“So you’ve done good.” Navi nodded. “Why not go back home? Sounds like things are going well… Surely you can stop, now? It’s been six years.” 

“That’s the thing, Navi.” He sighed. “I can’t . I’ve got too many enemies, now. I can’t possibly risk my family like that.” 

“Enemies?” She questioned, tilting her head. “I doubt the monsters will track you across an entire country.” 

“You’d be surprised.” Hyrule smiled sardonically. “Hood up, we’re here.” The hood of his cloak hid his appearance so long as it stayed up. Nobody would recognize him, and this was the key to his survival. He’d layered a few extra spells onto it to prevent people from recognizing the hood, as well. So if the worst should happen and it fell off, he wouldn’t be out of a disguise. 

“I don’t understand why you’re so nervous.” Navi flew around his head. “Don’t hylians like living in communities?”

“Not always.” Hyrule shook his head. “And sometimes there’s some people that just… don’t fit in.” It was putting it mildly, and he knew it. 

He did his business as usual, selling some of his monster loot for less than a third of the price he’d get back home, and gathering some potions and grains in return. 

He didn’t hit trouble until some kid ran right into him. “Sorry, mister!” He grinned as he ran off. 

Faron shook his head before realizing that people were now staring or actively going inside their homes and shutting their windows. He paled when he realized his hood had fallen down. 

“W-wait! Why are they all acting like this?” Navi flitted to and fro in confusion. 

“Like I said… sometimes people just don’t fit in.” He muttered. Putting the hood back up now was useless. He’d just have to try to finish his last errand and leave. “Come on.”

“That’s Moblinshit!” She huffed. “People don’t act like that just because someone doesn’t fit in.” She glared at a few of the people around them. 

Faron approached a medicinal stand cautiously—the only thing he’d had yet to purchase. He made sure to stay more than a respectable distance from the vendor. 

“What do you want?” He demanded, sending a fierce glare towards the traveler. 

“Just some bandages, is all. I’ve got the rupees—”

“Leave. Nobody has anything to sell to you here. Go, before you bring the monsters upon us.” 

“But—”

“GO!” He shouted, grabbing a nearby sword. Faron backed away, hands in the air. 

“I’m sorry. I-I’ll be going, then.” 

“Sorry?! Don’t apologize!” Navi glowed angrily. “ He should be sorry!! Lemme at him!!” 

“No, Navi. That’s enough.” He carefully scooped her into his hands to keep his only friend safe. “Please… let’s just go home.” 

She growled, muttering curses under her breath as he led them away from the town. When he finally felt they were far enough away that Navi wouldn’t just fly off and attack everyone, he uncupped his hands. 

“You good, now?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Navi huffed, crossing her arms. “You sure you don’t want me to punch that guy? Because I will totally punch that guy for you.” 

Faron couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up from his throat. “The thought is appreciated, but I’m used to it.” 

“Why did they treat you like that?” She settled herself down into his hair again. “I know there’s monsters all over, but…” 

Faron sighed as they came to a stop by the river. He settled down at the base of a boulder, leaning against it as he took in the shocking greenery that grew at the water’s edge. It was so different from the dull greys and dead browns that covered most of these scarred lands. He marveled at the thought that all of Hyrule used to be this beautiful. He felt an abrupt pang of homesickness.

“They say that a long time ago, a great Hero battled with the Evil King, Ganondorf.” He spoke up, catching Navi’s full attention. “The battle was long and fierce, but in the end the Hero lost. But they say his bloodline lives on to this day. Legends say that only those of his blood can carry the Triforce of Courage.” He paused to take off his left fingerless glove, revealing the glowing mark. “Those same legends say that the blood of that Hero— my blood, supposedly—has the power to resurrect the Evil King and restore him to full power.” 

“You mean… Link was…?” 

“You knew him, didn’t you? The hero, I mean.” He turned his gaze skyward. 

“He was… I was supposed to… You’re saying he’s really been— all this time...? ” Navi let out a horrible sob. Faron’s heart crumbled like dust. There were many sounds in the world that were the stuff of nightmares—haunting echoes of pain, fear, and sorrow that one will carry with them for the rest of their days. Alongside the cries of a mother who’d lost their child, it was said that a Fairy’s Sorrow was the most horrific. Somehow, this felt like a hellish mixture of the two.

“I defeated what had been left behind of the Dark King—a being of power, but little intelligence.” Hyrule spoke up, trying to distract her. “After that, the Triforce appeared on my hand. So Impa sent me on a quest to awaken the Princess of old who’d been cursed into a never ending sleep. But that’s when the rumors started circling about my blood being able to resurrect the true Ganondorf. The same monster who…” He glanced at Navi and decided to change the topic. “At any rate, that’s why the villagers did what they did. Monsters will stop at nothing to kill me and use me for their stupid rituals and stuff, so I’m pretty much a walking monster magnet. That’s also why I can’t return home. Nobody in Hyrule wants anything to do with me, and home is too dangerous for me to ever return to.” 

Navi turned to look at Faron for a long moment. “That’s not true.” 

“Huh?” 

“I said that’s not true !” She shouted, crossing her arms with a little stomp of her tiny foot. “ I want something to do with you. I enjoy the time we spend together. And you’re such a stubborn idiot that you wouldn’t survive a day without me.” 

He smiled. “I’m glad to have a friend like you, Navi.” He carefully cradled her in his hands and held her to his chest—the closest they could get to a hug without him transforming.

She laughed lightly and flew up to hug his nose. “Hey! Listen, Faron. I’ll stay with you. I won’t make the same mistake twice. This time, you’ll never lose me.” 

“Thank you, Navi. I’m… I’m so happy that I have you.” 

“Let’s get home. I’m starving, and if I leave dinner to you we really won’t survive!” 

“HEY!” 

“Hey, Faron! Wake up!” Navi circled around his head, pulling his eyelids up so he had no choice but to awaken. He shot her a glare. 

“I was trying to sleep.” He glanced at the lack of sunlight. “It’s still dark outside.”

“Listen! Someone’s in trouble!” 

Faron cursed as he leapt from his pile of blankets. No matter where he was, he could never ignore a cry for help. He grabbed his sword on his way out of the cavern he called home, Navi flitting right behind him. 

He ran for a good half mile before he crested the hill on the edge of the forest that overlooked the barren wastelands below. There was a group of monsters circled around… something. Dear Hylia, was that a child ?!

Faron took in the scene in a fraction of a second. A girl—maybe twelve at most—was being attacked by a group of moblins. She wore a pretty white dress trimmed in blue, and had shining golden hair. Tears were building up in her sky blue eyes as the monsters growled and cheered in excitement. Where were her parents? She was dressed well enough to be a noble’s daughter, so they surely wouldn’t let her stray far.  

Either way, that wasn’t important right now. He drew his blade and leapt from his perch, running with an added speed boost spell he’d picked up years ago. Navi grabbed ahold of his hair so as not to be lost in the sudden burst of speed. 

“Looks like there’s only three of them!” She informed. “But be careful! There might be more hiding somewhere nearby. 

“Hiding where ?” Faron smirked. “There’s nothing out here. The Badlands are open territory.” 

“W-well it’s still possible !” Navi flittered, flustered. Faron laughed as he narrowly dodged to the right, slashing his blade into the moblin’s side with the crude practice of hard-earned experience. He never had formal training in fighting. Everything he knew was learned on the road, and though it wasn’t pretty, it was highly effective. 

He proved that when he deflected the second moblin’s blade with the small metal plate he’d sewn into the back of his fingerless gloves. Stunned, the beast overcorrected and stumbled, allowing Faron to hack away ungracefully at its neck. The beast roared in agonized fury, but ultimately fell to the barren dirt, dead. The third moblin looked intimidated, now. It glanced between its fallen comrades and Faron with a lick of fear in its eyes, overshadowing its anger. 

It tried to back away, but Faron had learned the hard way how dangerous it was to let a fleeing monster go. It was fast—but he had a trick up his sleeve. He pushed some of his magic into his blade and grinned when he felt it hum. With a quick half turn of his upper body and a powerful slash, a beam of light cut the monster cleanly in two. 

Faron panted. That spell had taken a lot out of him. There was a reason why he tried not to use it. 

He turned to check and see if the girl was okay, but she was gone. All that was left was an odd blue butterfly. It was breathtakingly beautiful with odd swirl-like designs on the wings. 

“Hey!! I’ve seen one of those… I think.” Navi circled around the insect cautiously. “I think that’s a Sacred Butterfly. They used to be really common a long, long time ago. Like when the Goddess Hylia walked the land , long time ago.” 

“What the hell is it doing here then?” Faron tilted his head as the butterfly fluttered around. It hovered for a moment in front of Faron before landing on his left hand. He felt Triforce glow briefly beneath his glove before the butterfly fluttered away, lost to the wind. “That was… weird.” 

He didn’t like how his Triforce had reacted to the butterfly. What if it was working for the monsters? They’d have to triple back on their way home to leave false trails, now. He groaned at the thought. He just wanted to sleep , damnit. The sun wasn’t even fully up yet.

“Eh, I’ve seen weirder.” Navi shrugged. “Though it is strange to find one. I thought they’d died out forever ago.” 

“How old are you anyways?” He smirked as he finished gathering the loot. 

“Don’t you know it’s rude to ask a lady her age?!” Navi huffed, little clouds of magic pouring from her ears like steam. He couldn’t help but snort in amusement. 

“All right, all right. Did you see where that little girl went?” 

“No. She just vanished.” 

“Then at least she’s alive.” Faron sighed. “That’s all we can really ask for, I suppose.” He put his sword away before stretching. “Can I go back to sleep, now?” 

“ Faron! ” She groaned as he laughed. “Honestly.” 

“Actually…” He tilted his head as he thought. “There’s a spring nearby. We should replenish our magic.” He smirked up at the fairy nestled back in his hair. 

“A Fairy Fountain?” She brightened in excitement. 

“Yep.” He grinned as he circled around the cliff that led up to the forest. “It’ll be nice to take a soak in the warm waters, too.” 

“Hylians aren’t supposed to swim in that!” She huffed. 

“I’ll just switch to my other form, then.” He shrugged. 

“Other… form?” 

Faron blinked. “Didn’t you see… when I was healing you?” He chuckled as he realized she never put the pieces together. He grinned as he found the thin crevice on the cliff. It was a tight fit, and he had to take off his shield and sword to squeeze sideways through, but it was worth it. The waters glistened in the low light, illuminated by bioluminescent algae that hung from the rocky cavern walls. Navi was quick to flutter into the spring-like waters of the fountain. The other fairies that were gathered there flittered in surprise before coming over to greet the newcomer. 

Faron set his bag down before letting his magic flow. It caressed him like a mother’s hug, welcoming and warm. A moment later, he was as small as Navi. He smirked when he realized she hadn’t seen him, yet, and zoomed over behind her. “Heya.” 

“Gah!” She whipped around, wings faltering for a moment in shock. “F- Faron ?!” 

“I told you I had fae blood in me.” 

“You didn’t tell me you were a fairy !!” She pulled him into a hug. “You’re just a baby !! Only sixteen hylian years old?! That’s one thing as a hylian, but totally different as a fairy!” 

He smiled and hugged her back. It felt good to hug Navi like this. It reminded him of his mother’s hugs. “I’m sorry. I thought you saw me as you were healing me.” 

“I thought I’d been dreaming. Hylians don’t usually have the ability to transform into a fairy like this.” 

“I’m just special, I guess.” He dipped down into the water, feeling the magic-soaked spring replenishing his reserves. 

“Honestly, Faron… you’re just full of surprises.” Navi shook her head as she settled down beside him. 

“Hey! Listen!!” Navi huffed as she tugged a lock of Faron’s hair harshly. “You need to be more careful ! You’re still recovering from getting your ass handed to you last week!” 

“Hey! I won that fight!” Faron pouted as she went back to braiding the lock of hair that hung by his face. 

“I didn’t realize won had taken on a new definition over the centuries.” She bit back sarcastically. 

“Hey, you listen! I survived, which means I won.” He crossed his arms. “So there .” He stuck out his tongue. 

“Careful, or your face might get stuck that way.” 

“You sound like my mother.” Faron chuckled fondly. 

“Sometimes I feel like your mother.” Navi grinned. “I mean, I cook, I tend to your injuries, I keep you out of trouble—”

“Okay, that’s enough, mom .” He grinned. 

It’d been just over a year and a half since he’d met her, and Faron had never been happier. His sister, Hazel, was always happy to hear about his adventures (toned down, of course). 

His head whipped towards the North for a moment when he felt a light tug on his magic. His eyes narrowed. That had been happening a lot lately. Ever since that incident with the butterfly a year ago, he’d felt a strange swirling of magic in the air. It started off as an insignificant shift, but had grown to strong gales of magic that even Navi was starting to sense. 

“You sense that?” Navi asked, wings twitching with nervous energy. 

“How can I not? It’s practically dragging me in that direction.” Faron shook his head. 

“HEY!” Navi protested. “Wait till I tie this braid before you go running around! Honestly.” She huffed as she tied the intricate braid she’d just completed. 

“Sorry.” He apologized as he followed the source. They’d tried to find it before, but it always fizzled out before they got there, dissipating like smoke in the wind. It was frustrating and complexing and both of them were ready to just figure out what the hell was up with this strange fluctuation of magic. Was it ganon? A goddess? A sorcerer? 

It was an unknown threat, and Faron needed to make sure it wasn’t going to harm them. Because now, he had someone worth protecting. 

He muttered a speed-boosting spell under his breath as Navi snuggled into her spot on his scalp. He idly wondered if he would start balding there from how often she sat in his curls.

He ran for the better part of twenty minutes. Faron may not have been the best swordsman, but he had a lot of stamina. He had to with how often the monsters tried to follow him. He couldn’t always fight them, after all. 

He slowed as he neared the source of the magic. This time, it didn’t waver or falter or vanish. This time, he and Navi got a good look at the source of many sleepless nights spent in worry or paranoia. 

It wasn’t a person, or a monster, or even a god. It was a portal . A swirling vortex of entrancing blues and purples hued with soft golds and tinged with dark shadows. The tug intensified and he was sure he was meant to go through it. 

“What is that?!” Navi flitted down to rest on his shoulder. “I’ve never seen a portal like that before.” 

“Neither have I.” Faron frowned. “It’s… like it wants me to go through.” 

“Well? Why not? What’s the worst thing that could happen?” 

Faron shot her a glare. “Never tempt the powers that be.” 

“What? People say it all the time!” 

“Have you ever heard me say it? Even once?” 

“Uh….” 

“Exactly.” He shook his head. “You really think we should go through? What if it’s a trap?” 

“Hey! I may not look it, but I have enough power to open another portal and zip us home if need be.” She crossed her arms with a huff as she took flight, flitting near the portal. “Come on. I feel like this is important.” 

“All right.” Faron gave in, shaking his head with a fond smile. “Stay close, okay?” 

“Don’t worry.” She grinned, landing back on his head. “I’ll be right here.” 

His gut churned sickeningly as he stood before the vortex. Fierce winds saturated with an unearthly magic blew his hair around like a storm. He took a shuddering breath as he secured his pack to his shoulder. 

And he stepped through. 

He regretted the action instantly. He was thrown around like a fairy in a storm. Direction had no meaning anymore. There was no longer an up or down, no sense of vertigo or motion aside from the sensation of something pulling him in different directions all at once. The colors swirled around him so violently that he’d shut his eyes in an effort to keep last night’s meager dinner down. 

“FARON!” A voice cried out, and his eyes snapped open to see Navi hanging onto his braid with all her might. Her grip was slipping and she had a look of panic in her eyes. 

“NAVI!” He struggled to move his arms against the force of the magic that propelled them through space. He was nearly there—just an inch more— !

Navi’s cries would echo in his mind for the rest of his life. The frightened horror painted on her delicate features was the last crisp image he had before they were flung apart by the force of the magical storm. 

Faron hit the ground with enough force to knock the wind from his lungs. It took him a moment to reorient himself, and he felt his blood turn to ice when he saw a sword enter his field of vision. Has the portal been a trap, after all? 

He followed it up to find a man dressed in tights and a red tunic holding him at swordpoint. His hair had a strip of pink, and his face held a fierce scowl. “Who the fuck are you?” 

Chapter Text

A/N: Okay. So this WAS supposed to be a twoshot, but... erm... it's over 32k words now (and ongoing), so I'm pretty sure that means I should break this up into chapters. So expect updates! :D And since it's been a bit, here's a little refresher from the last chapter:

Faron hit the ground with enough force to knock the wind from his lungs. It took him a moment to reorient himself, and he felt his blood turn to ice when he saw a sword enter his field of vision. Had the portal been a trap, after all? 

He followed it up to find a man dressed in tights and a red tunic holding him at swordpoint. His hair had a strip of pink, and his face held a fierce scowl. “Who the fuck are you?”

“I… uh…” He swallowed nervously as another man—taller with a scar over one eye and strange markings on his face—moved the other’s hand out of the way. 

“That’s enough, Legend.” He reprimanded. “Sorry about him. We just didn’t expect you to suddenly appear in our camp, was all.” He gestured to the small camp where four other people were watching the spectacle. 

There was a tall guy with a white cloth wrapped around his shoulders and some gaudy purple sword with a winged guard. He had a gentle face and looked like he wouldn’t survive a week in Hyrule on his own. His eyes were too trusting. 

There was also a knight— that put him on edge. He was in full armor, though admittedly different than the other knights Faron had seen. While he was on good terms with the castle knights, the smaller knights who watched over the towns and villages would often attack him if he wasn’t disguised. Though this one was rather handsome in a way that screamed city-boy, so he was probably safe. 

The third one looked like a country kid. He, like the one-eyed man, had strange markings on his face and sharp blue eyes. He wore a wolf pelt around his shoulders and Faron had the feeling that he’d survive just fine out on his own. He also projected a warm vibe that seemed to instinctively draw people in, but had a strong aura of dark magic that put Faron on edge. 

Finally, there was a… child? He was incredibly short and wore a tunic with four main colors that looked both high-quality and like a home-done patchwork. He wore a sword on his back that pulsed with a quiet magic and the guy was practically saturated in the stuff. He was particularly intriguing because his magic was sectioned off into four different, distinct pusles; almost like… 

“My name is Time. What’s your name?” The scarred man asked. He was tall and undoubtedly the leader, here. His magic felt a lot like a fairy’s, and Faron had to wonder if he had fae blood, too. 

“I go by Faron.” He answered carefully, pulling himself to his feet and standing defensively. He would be ready to run if they made a move—no way he could fight so many armed men. 

“Hey, it’s okay. We aren’t going to attack you. I’m sorry about Legend, he can be a bit jumpy at times. My name is Sky.” The gentle one said. “Where did you come from?” 

“I came from Hyrule. There was this portal that popped up, and—” He abruptly looked around, remembering how Navi was flung away. “My friend. She got separated from me in the portal. Have you seen a fairy around here?” 

“A fairy?” Time blinked. “We haven’t, but we can keep an eye out for her.” 

“Hold on, we’re not just seriously letting this stranger travel with us, are we?!” Legend asked, glaring at Time. Faron couldn’t help but agree with that. If he was in their position, he would certainly be more wary about a stranger just dropping out of a random portal. 

“Wait a minute.” The short kid frowned. “You said you were from Hyrule, but I’ve never seen you around before. What’s your Hyrule like?” 

“I tend to stay away from people.” Faron answered carefully. “Where are we, anyways?” He’d never seen a forest look so alive before. It thrummed with an ancient magic so strong it was almost intoxicating. 

“We’re in the Minish Woods of Hyrule.” The kid answered. “Call me Four, by the way.” 

Faron blinked at the unusual name as the information registered. “Minish Woods? I’ve traveled all over Hyrule and never once heard of such a place.” He frowned. 

The others shared a look. “Tell me, what is your Hyrule like?” Time asked. 

“ My Hyrule?” Faron questioned with a frown. He shook his head. Obviously that portal had done more than just spit him out at a different location. These people didn’t feel overly bad, and so long as they didn’t know about his name or Triforce, he should be safe. “It’s a war-torn land covered in monsters.” He answered after a moment. “I’m actually a traveler from a different land, but I’ve been in Hyrule for several years.” Not many people knew that Link was from another land, so that’d just throw them off his trail even more. After all, the Eyes of Ganon were everywhere. “It’s one of the most dangerous lands I know of. Mostly covered with barren wastelands, there’s a few forests but none of them are as lush or full of life as this one.” 

“I think I understand now.” The man with the wolf pelt sighed. “My name is Twilight, by the way. That’s Four and Warriors.” He gestured to the short kid and the knight. 

“We’re heroes who’ve been traveling across space and time fighting an infection that’s made monsters exponentially more powerful.” Sky sighed. “And from the sounds of it, you’ve been dragged from a different Hyrule.” 

“W-wait.” He felt his heart speed up at the thought. “Does that mean I’m not even in my own time anymore?!” 

“More than likely. And from what we know, we may have two different timelines going on, so it’s possible that you’re not in your home timeline either.” Warriors crossed his arms as he leaned back against the tree. 

“My... my friend. She was flung away during the…” Was Navi even in this time with him?! 

“We’ll find her.” Time reassured. “Like I said, we’ve been traveling often. I’m sure if you stick with us, we’ll land back in your Hyrule eventually.” 

He wanted to argue, but honestly his odds of survival were best with this strange group of self-proclaimed heroes. “Fine.” He finally sighed. 

“Great!” Four grinned. “We’re in my Hyrule, by the way.” 

He nodded before glancing around. The others had gone back to their previous tasks, and he wasn’t sure what he should do. Legend kept sending him small looks of distrust, which oddly enough put him a bit more at ease. At least one of these guys had common sense.

“Hey, can you cook, by chance?” Twilight asked as he looked up from where he was preparing the fish. 

“Uh…” Faron took a moment to recall the fact that Navi banned him from the cooking pot after the second attempt. Even with her directions, he managed to blow them up. “Not really, no.” 

“Well, you can’t be that bad.” Twilight laughed. “Come on, give it a go. I’ll help you.” 

“Like you can cook any better!” Warriors laughed. 

“At least I can make grilled fish.” Twilight smirked. 

“I really don’t think…” Faron tried to back out, but Legend shot him a look. 

“What, you really don’t think you can outdo grilled fish ?” 

There was a challenge in that gaze, and Faron sighed. He wasn’t getting out of this, was he? “Just don’t say I didn’t warn you…” 

About twenty minutes later showed the group with half-filled bowls of a greyish unidentifiable substance. 

“What… the fuck is this?” Legend stared at the bowl he was handed. “It’s moving .”  

“I told you I was a terrible cook.” Faron sighed, face burning in shame. 

“‘Can’t be that bad’, huh?” Warriors shot Twilight a look. 

“Well, it’s nutritious, at least?” Time attempted to smile as he took a bite. 

“I won’t be offended if you throw it out, Twilight made fish anyways.” Faron stated quickly, and many in the group sighed in relief. Faron, however, kept a hold of his rather full bowl. 

“Uh… are you really going to eat that?” Four pointed at Faron’s bowl in disbelief. 

“Yeah. I eat this all the time back home. It’s nutritious and packed with protein. I’ve gotten used to the taste over the years, but it’s not for everyone.” He took a bite to prove a point, the familiar bland, grainy, semi-sticky texture was familiar and reminded him of his little cavern. And Navi. 

Sky turned a little green and went back to his fish. 

“We should all turn in early.” Time stated, having set down his now empty bowl. Faron didn’t say it, but it made him feel happy to know that at least one person ate his food without complaint. He really had tried.

“Yeah. I’ll take first watch.” Warriors stretched as he finished his fish. 

The only person who’d eaten the gunk that Faron had made was Time. Everybody else ate the fish. But that was fine, he hadn’t made much. There’d been barely enough for one full bowl and six half-full bowls. He still bemoaned the waste of food, though. He really wished he had a way to keep it. 

Everyone migrated towards their bedrolls and Faron—always one to be prepared—pulled out some thick blankets from his pack. He settled down against the trunk of a tree, far enough away from the group so as not to infringe on their space, but close enough to remain within the acceptable circle of protection. Legend seemed satisfied, but Sky frowned. 

“Why’re you all the way over there?” 

“I’m not part of your group.” He stated. “I’m an outsider that you don’t know. I have no idea why you’re so trusting, but it’s only right if I sleep a fair distance away.” It should’ve been common sense. He left the fact that he trusted them about as much as Legend trusted him out. 

“Well, at least someone has common sense.” Legend huffed, and Faron snorted. They caught each other’s eye for a moment and a silent understanding passed between them. Toleration was okay, but trust was something they’d need to earn. 

With that said, he curled up into the smallest ball he could and fell into a light sleep.

Chapter Text

The morning dawned bright and cold, and Faron stretched to wake himself up. He’d always been an early riser—it came with being a traveler—but Time was almost always up before him. 

He’d been traveling with the group for about a week, now, and they’d only been through one portal. It had appeared in the middle of the night. Fortunately, it was still night when they arrived, so they simply checked the immediate vicinity and set up a new camp. That also meant that they hadn’t had the chance to properly explore. The smell of salt in the air told them that they were near a sea, and birds happily chirped overhead. The distinct call of seagulls made him grin. He’d always loved oceans, despite his inability to swim. 

Now that they had ample light, it looked like some kind of tropical environment. Certainly not a Hyrule. Why were they here? 

“Morning, Faron.” Time smiled. Faron gave him a wave as he set about gathering supplies for breakfast. He couldn’t cook, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t help prepare. 

“Morning. Any idea where we are?” 

“None. It doesn’t look like any Hyrule I know of.” He frowned. 

“Well, I guess we’ll figure out more when we find some people.” Warriors spoke up from where he was frying some eggs. It wasn’t anything extravagant, but it wasn’t burned, at least, which was better than Faron could manage. 

People. Right. Faron grimaced. The others had quickly picked up on the traveler’s aversion to large groups of people. They were generally fine with him waiting in a quieter part of town while they gathered supplies and the like, but they still gave him strange looks for his apparent lack of social skills. 

Breakfast was quickly consumed and camp was swiftly packed up. Before Faron realized it, they were already on the road. Or, rather, they were attempting to find a road. Faron noticed that Legend was more than a little wary at their scenery, so he dropped back to speak with him. 

“Not a fan of islands?” Legend jumped at the sound of Faron’s quiet voice, and he shot him a glare. 

“Fuck off.” He glared. 

“What the hell is that?!” Four startled as he gaped at a frankly enormous spider. That thing looked like it could pick Faron up and eat him for dinner! 

“I’ve seen a lot of spiders, but never one that big.” Faron shuddered, taking a step away. It looked like it had a skull on its back. 

“What, you guys’ve never seen a skulltula before?” Twilight tilted his head. 

“They’re common in my Hyrule, too.” Time nodded. 

“I’ve got some of them.” Sky helpfully added.

“Great, then you three can take care of it.” Legend huffed, crossing his arms. 

“Hey, just because I’ve got them in my Hyrule doesn’t mean I have to take care of it!” Twilight argued, but Faron wasn’t listening. His gut was churning and he knew better than anything to listen to his instincts. 

He saw it a moment before it happened. A glint of light was his only warning, and he hadn’t the time to bring out his shield. Instead, he shoved Legend as hard as he could to the side, a cry of pain escaping his lips as the arrow embedded itself into his shoulder. 

“Faron!” Legend’s eyes went wide. 

“I’m fine.” He grit his teeth as he snapped off the shaft with a practiced hand. It wasn’t the first time he’d been shot, and it wouldn’t be the last. His sword was in his left hand and his shield on his injured arm just a moment later. 

Then, the bokoblins were upon them. With a group as large as them, the fight should’ve been easy, but the shifting sands beneath their feet and the limited amount of space was making things infinitely harder. 

Faron was holding his own against three bokoblins while the others were fighting their own battles. Legend, surprisingly enough, stayed with him to help. 

“What the hell was that?” 

Faron couldn’t risk sparing Legend a glance, but his scowling companion seemed to understand his unspoken question. 

“Why did you take that arrow for me? You don’t even know me.” Legend elaborated as he got in a heavy strike on one bokoblin. 

“Because you would’ve been hurt.” Faron answered, scarcely dodging an attack. “And I can’t stand watching people suffer.” 

Legend spared him a contemplative look. “Don’t think this means I owe you or anything.” 

Faron snorted. “Wouldn’t dream of it.” He dodged another strike from the monster before him. Unlike the warriors around him, he had no skill, no training, and certainly no finesse. His fighting was crude in comparison, but it got the job done. 

He and Legend finished up their monsters, and Faron noted the black blood that now stained his sword. What was that? Did monsters in this Hyrule just bleed black? Four’s sudden cry had him whipping his head around. 

He’d accidentally backed into the skulltula’s web, and it was descending upon him rapidly. 

“HYA!!” 

The spider was dead. It happened so quickly that he hadn’t even seen it. And there was a child standing there wearing a blue tunic. He had sunkissed blonde hair and freckles with seafoam blue eyes. 

“Hi! You guys okay?” He asked, tilting his head. “You should be careful! The monsters have been more active lately.” 

“I-I’m fine. Thanks for the save.” Four smiled. “I’m Four.” 

“I’m Link! It’s nice to meet you!” 

Faron startled at the sound of his name falling from the lips of a stranger. It took him a moment to note the looks the others were trading. A few shot him a glance or two as well. 

“Our friends here are hurt.” Time said, gesturing towards Faron and Four, who’d obtained a nasty gash on his arm. “Do you think you can show us to a town? We’re not from here.” 

“‘Course I can!” Link grinned. 

“Thank you.” Time smiled. 

“I can take you to my grandma’s place!! She’ll have some medicine we can use. I’m always getting hurt, too.” He laughed. Faron was a little jealous at how innocent and carefree this child was. At this kid’s age, he was already on the road. 

The walk wasn’t long, but Legend stayed by his side to make sure he was okay. Faron honestly had pushed the pain to the back of his mind. He was so used to being injured in some way that he’d learned to compartmentalize the pain to the point where ignoring it was second nature to him. 

The house was small and simple, but Faron could feel the love radiating from it. He swallowed hard. He hadn’t felt a place so full of warmth and love since he left home. Suddenly, the homesickness that had been a constant companion since before Navi, came back with a vengeance.

“You good?” Legend asked. 

“Yeah… just missing home, I guess.” He smiled for a moment. 

“Link!” A young girl ran out with a large grin. 

“Arryl!” Link beamed. “Oh, this is my little sister!” He introduced, “Arryl, let granny know we’ve got some guests, kay?” 

“Okay~!” 

“She’s cute.” Twilight grinned.

The others shared a look that Faron would describe as mildly pained. Link led them out back due to the limited space. He brought them medical supplies and promised to return with refreshments in a bit. Warriors was the one to treat Faron’s wound. “You snapped that off cleanly. Got experience?” 

“Unfortunately.” Faron grimaced. 

“Well, hold still.” He instructed as he handed him a red potion. For a moment, he wanted to reject such a valuable resource. Surely, a red potion should be used only in an immediate and life-threatening emergency! But then he remembered that in Four’s Hyrule red potions like this were readily available for purchase—something that boggled Faron’s mind. 

He hardly winced as Warriors pulled out the remaining bit of the arrow, and he downed half the potion to close the wound. 

“You can drink that whole thing.” Warriors frowned. 

“I can?” Faron raised an eyebrow. “Where I come from these are almost impossible to get ahold of.” 

“We’ve got plenty.” Time reassured as Faron nodded and downed the rest. He could feel it working on a few other older injuries he’d been carrying around since he met them. He glanced at Four, who was glaring at the needle Twilight was holding. 

“Hold on, you don’t need to do that.” Faron spoke up. “I can heal that.” 

The group stared at him in disbelief. “You can ?” Sky blinked rapidly.

“Yeah. Potions are difficult to get in my homeland, so I know a good number of healing spells.” Faron explained, approaching Four. “May I?” 

“As long as I don’t get stitches, go for it.” He held out his arm. 

Faron smiled and held a hand over the injury, concentrating his magic in the palm of his hand, willing it to heal. It was instinctive fairy magic—the same magic that ‘wild fairies’ used to heal travelers that happened upon them. It was much weaker than a full-blooded fairy—and indeed it was stronger if he was in full fairy form himself—but it closed the wound nicely nonetheless. 

“Oh, wow! It’s completely healed!” Four poked at the newly scarred over injury. “That’s amazing , Faron!” 

“I think we’ve got ourselves a healer.” Warriors grinned. 

“Does that mean we don’t have to do stitches anymore?” Twilight sagged in relief. “I hate doing stitches.” 

“Good to see you guys are doing better.” Link grinned as he came out to join them with cups of fresh water. 

“Actually, there’s something we need to talk to you about.” Time stated, looking at the boy. 

“Okay.” Link sat down. 

Sky took a breath. “Hear us out. This is going to sound absolutely insane, but I swear it’s true. We’re heroes from across time. Hylia’s gathered us together for a new journey.” He paused to let him process the information. “Thing is, we’re all Link.” 

Faron blinked, his heart stuttering in his chest. They were all Link? Did that mean… he was sent to them to join them on this journey, too? 

“So you all have the same name?” The boy tilted his head. 

“Yes. Tell me, do you recognize this sword?” Sky held up the gaudy sword he always had with him. 

“That’s the Master Sword!! But only the Hero…” 

“Can wield it.” Sky nodded and Faron felt his stomach drop. The Master Sword was a blade of legend! The last time it’d cropped up… was centuries before his time. It was said the Hero of Legend had been the last to wield it, and before him, the Hero of Time… He stared at Time for a moment. No, it couldn’t be true. The Hero of Time was dead. He’d died fighting Ganon. No way he could grow to be an adult.

“The spirit of the sword is named Fi.” Sky continued, oblivious to the crisis and rising panic Faron was experiencing. “She gave us all nicknames based on our journeys. Titles, if you will. I go by Sky. That’s Twilight, Legend, Four, and Warriors. That’s Faron, he’s traveling with us for a bit.” 

Legend…? Legend was… The Hero of Legend ?! Like the guy who came after the Hero of Time and cleaned up the disaster that had become Hyrule?!

“And I’m Time.” 

The new Link perked up. “W-wait!! You’re the legendary Hero of Time ?!” He bounced in his chair, a frighteningly bright grin on his face. “I’ve grown up hearing stories about you!!” 

“Y-you have ?” Time blinked, perplexed. 

“Yeah!! The Hero of Time saved all of Hyrule a long time ago, but then he disappeared and never came back. Then Ganon broke free and started destroying everything so the goddesses flooded the land and created the Great Sea.” He grinned. “Course, Ganon was still buried at the bottom until I killed him.” 

Faron blinked. That wasn’t anything like the story he’d grown up hearing about. Was… this an alternate timeline or something?

“So it didn’t disappear.” Time whispered in shock. 

“Old man?” Twilight asked. “What didn’t disappear?” 

“The timeline.” He sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face. “During my Journey…” He hesitated and judging from the reactions of the others, their leader hadn’t said much about his adventure. “I came into possession of an ability to warp time, to an extent. To wield the Master Sword, I was put into a sleep for seven years. At the end of my journey, Zelda sent me back so I could relive my lost childhood. I believe this created two timelines—the one I live in, my Childhood Timeline, and this one—the Adult era where I vanished from.” 

Faron swallowed thickly and he noticed that Legend looked nearly as pale as he felt. If Time had created two alternate timelines, then a third was entirely possible. A third timeline where… he hadn’t succeeded. It sounded impossible, but… he was living proof of it. And he suspected that Legend was, too. 

“Hey, Faron. Legend. You two okay?” Four frowned, eyes seemingly flashing red in the light. “You’re awfully pale.”

“Three.” Faron said quietly, and Legend turned to stare at him in shock. 

“I’m sorry?” Warriors blinked. 

“Three timelines.” He corrected. “The Hero of Time is spoken of in my time, too, but not like that.” Faron fiddled with the braid by his face, wishing he had Navi with him. “They tell tales of a great Hero of Time who battled fiercely with the Dark King Ganon…” He looked up at Time with sorrowful eyes. “...and lost.” 

Time’s eye went wide, a dawning horror and understanding shining as it started to click into place. 

“So there’s three?” Twilight asked gently. 

“That’s the story in my Hyrule, too.” Legend confirmed, looking at Faron strangely. “Sounds like you’re from the same timeline as me.” 

“I’m sorry.” Faron apologized, feeling bad for opening his mouth. “I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“No, don’t apologize.” Time sighed. “I’m glad you told me. And I’m sorry…” 

“What’re you apologizing for?!” Twilight laughed. “ You won, right? Why are you apologizing for a loss that wasn’t you ?” 

“He’s right, don’t be stupid.” Legend shook his head. 

“So I get to travel with you guys, right?” Link asked, getting back on topic. “Oh, wow I get to travel with the actual Hero of Time !!” 

“Well, Fi needs to tell us your name, first.” Sky smiled, holding out the Master Sword towards him. Faron tilted his head. He thought Sky never let anyone else hold it because he was overly protective. Oh, right. Only ‘The Hero’ could wield the sword. She’d probably take one look at a pitiful cave-dwelling traveler like him and smite him. 

The boy took the blade without another thought. The sword glowed a brilliant blue for a moment before it seemed satisfied and dimmed once more. Link handed the sword back to Sky. 

“She’s impressed. You don’t have the same Hero’s Spirit as the rest of us, but instead you’ve managed to create one for yourself.” Sky grinned. “It’s an honor to have you join us, Hero of the Wind.” 

“Cool!” The newly dubbed Wind beamed. “Wait till I tell Arryl about this, she’s gonna flip!” 

Time excused himself to go process everything, and the others followed Wind as he insisted on showing them the island. “I’m a pirate, actually! Sailed the open seas for years, now!” 

“A pirate ?” Four raised an eyebrow.

“Yep! I’ve even got my own ship!!” 

“So this is really Hyrule?” Sky breathed in awe as he looked around. 

“Yeah. I mean, the castle’s buried under the sea, but it’s still Hyrule.” Wind shrugged. 

Legend dropped back a bit as they chatted away, turning his gaze towards Faron. “So you’re from my time, then.” 

“I guess?” Faron shrugged. “I’m probably not from the same time though. There’s not really an active hero in my era.” 

“No?” Legend raised an eyebrow. “Does your history say anything about me?” 

“W-well…” He stopped to think. “I wasn’t born or raised in Hyrule, but my homeland still studied Hyrulian History a bit. Uh… I think I remember something about one of the Hyrulian Princes having a Triforce of Courage… or something. Uh… I think he was an outlaw for a while… They called him the Hero of Legend.” 

Legend winced. “Yep, that sounds like me.” He shook his head. “So history remembers me, then?” 

“Wait, you’re a prince ?” Faron balked. Legend certainly didn’t act like any prince he’d ever seen. And he’d been to a good number of places. 

“Shh! It’s not exactly something I like to advertise. I’m no prince .” He huffed, crossing his arms. “Yeah, Zelda’s my sister, but there’s no fucking way I’m running a goddessdamned kingdom. I’ll leave that disaster to her .” 

Faron snorted. “I don’t blame you. Even two Zeldas seem to have trouble with that task. I certainly wouldn’t want to take it on.” 

“You’ve got two Zeldas in your kingdom?” Legend raised an eyebrow. 

“Yeah. One was asleep for a hundred years before the curse she was under was lifted.” Faron winced a bit as he remembered the young princess. She was only twelve when she was put to sleep, and the first thing she’d asked for was to see her brother. 

“Sounds rough. We tend to nickname our Zeldas to avoid confusion. Mine is Fable.” 

“Fitting.” Faron glanced at the clouds. “It’s so nice here. The breeze is fresh and the air is clean.” He smiled as he took a nice deep breath. “I’m going to miss it.” 

Legend scowled for a moment. “Well, it’s not like when we hit your Hyrule, it’ll be the last you’ll see of us.” He shoved his hands in the pockets of his tunic, looking for all the world like he could care less. “We pop around a lot, so I’m pretty sure we’ll stop by often.” 

Faron smiled at that thought. “Just don’t ask me to cook, and we’re good.” 

Legend snickered. “Hopefully that friend you’re looking for can cook, because otherwise I wonder how you’ve survived all this time.” 

“Oh, she can cook just fine.” Faron sighed as he kicked a rock. Would he find Navi before being dropped back off home? He remembered vividly all those times he’d go days or even weeks without food because game was scarce. Harsh winter storms would bury any plants beneath thick layers of snow, and the risk of catching ill or losing fingers to the frost wasn’t usually worth the risk of blindly sifting through snow that sometimes reached his shoulders on the off-chance that there was something edible beneath. He’d lived off termites and ants at times, and some days he had to sneak into towns to steal any meager form of sustenance he could get his hands on. Even with Navi around, food wasn’t easy to come by, especially in the wintertime. Traveling with these people was the first time he could remember being consistently fed since he left home. 

“Faron?” Legend frowned worriedly, and the traveler blinked. 

“Sorry, just… lost in some old memories.” His stomach grumbled quietly and Legend smirked. 

“Sounds like you were daydreaming about food.” 

“If I was, it wasn’t yours .” He snarked back, and Legend gave him a full blown grin. For a moment, Faron appreciated the image before him. Legend looked good with a smile—carefree and young. He also marveled at the realization that Legend was warming up to him. He wasn’t sure if he liked it, because sooner or later, he’d have to leave them. 

Every Hero may have been a Link, but not every Link was a Hero, after all. He was just a traveler, nothing more. And that triforce on the back of his hand was a curse, nothing less. 

“Hey!” Wind cried out, catching their attention. “My grandma’s making dinner!! Come on, you’ll love it!” 

“Wow, food that won’t eat through the pot?” Legend chuckled. “C’mon, traveler, let’s get some grub.” 

Chapter Text

A/N: Hi! You kinda like this story, so I'm here with a monstrous 9.3k word chapter. Big shoutout to my betas, Byrony and Sylph! You guys rock!! Also, I've just recently (like this last week) decided I'm going to learn how to draw. So expect to eventually see some very crappy stuff from me. *snickers*.

Alone in the Darkness, We Find a Light

Strings of Fate Unwind

New Faces Emerge, Unveiling the Questions

That Once we Left Behind

It’d been a month since Faron joined the group. They had yet to hit his home Hyrule, but he was rather okay with that. Traveling with everyone… it was fun. He enjoyed the quiet nights of keeping watch and the rambunctious days of travel. Wind always kept the energy up, and Time made sure things didn’t get too hectic. 

Perhaps that was why Faron had let his guard down. He was starting to trust them. To like them. And Legend’s newfound trust in him had seemed to spark a sort of olive branch of trust from the others—not that they hadn’t been trusting before. Sometimes Faron could even believe that they mistook him for one of them. 

They were in Twilight’s Hyrule. It was so lush and green and full of life. Faron would never tire of seeing these Hyrules full of magic and energy. They were immeasurably beautiful and he couldn’t wait to tell Navi about it all. 

“I can’t believe how big this Hyrule is!” Wind laughed. “There’s so many trees ! I’ve never seen mountains like that before!” 

“Well, we’ve never seen a Hyrule that was covered by the sea, so I suppose we’re even.” Warriors smirked. 

“There are so many weird animals, too.” Wind tilted his head. “And I haven’t seen a single pig.” 

A few of them startled, Faron more than most. “Pig?” Twilight questioned gently. “I think that’s a different term in your Hyrule.” 

“Huh?” Wind turned his attention towards Twilight. “Pigs are cute little animals that go oink! They’re tasty, too!” 

Many of them relaxed. “Pig isn’t a word used to describe animals in most of our Hyrules.” Twilight explained. “It’s a slur—an insult. One of the worst you can give someone, because of its association with Ganon.” 

“O-oh. I didn’t know, I’m sorry.” Wind bit his lip. “In my world, it’s just an animal. Sometimes if someone eats a lot, or eats really messy, you can call them a pig. I didn’t know it was such a bad thing, here.” 

Faron winced. If Wind had unknowingly called someone a pig in good fun, he probably would’ve gotten punched. Likely by Faron, himself. 

“Pig isn’t a word in my Hyrule at all.” Sky spoke up with a soft smile. “Since Ganon’s not a thing in Skyloft.” 

Quite a few of them startled at that. “He isn’t?” Legend shot Sky a look. “Then who did you fight?” 

“Not all of us fought Ganon.” Four spoke up. “I fought Vaati—a wind mage.” 

“I fought Demise, the Demon King of Hatred.” Sky answered simply, and Time paled. 

“Isn’t that a god ?” He asked, a light tremble to his tone. 

“Technically, yeah.” Sky nodded. “He was insanely strong, too.” 

“Wait, so you fought a literal god and won ?” Legend stared at Sky incredulously. 

“I mean, I technically won.” He ran a hand through his hair as he glanced at Fi. “Look. There’s something I should tell you guys.” 

Everyone turned their gaze towards the Skyloftian. Faron idly noted how the sun was starting to dip towards the horizon. Night would fall upon them quickly. 

“When I fought Demise… he, erm… he uttered a curse. On me. And on Zelda. And that curse is why you all have had to go through the things you have.” He looked halfway to tears as he met their gazes. “He cursed the ones with the Spirit of the Hero and the blood of the Goddess into a never ending cycle with his own reincarnation—Ganon. So I’m the reason you’ve been through hell. And I’m so sorry that I couldn’t just kill him.” 

Faron looked at Sky for a long moment. This man standing before him was the reason for Ganon having been created. Technically, if Sky hadn’t been around, he would never have gotten stuck living in a cave in the wastelands of Hyrule. 

But Sky had also saved the land. If Sky hadn’t been born, who’s to say that this Demise wouldn’t have created a world darker than his Hyrule? Faron noted the way that the others were processing this information, and sighed internally when he saw Sky starting to take their silence the wrong way. 

“Don’t be an idiot.” Faron spoke up. “ Listen .” He said in the same tone Navi used, which snatched Sky’s attention instantly. He also noticed the way Time flinched lightly. “I know I don’t really have a place to say this. I’m not a hero like you guys. But I’ve seen the damage Ganon can do—I’ve lived it. And I’m pretty sure that Demise would’ve done worse if you hadn’t defeated him. What’s done is done. Don’t blame yourself for someone else’s actions. Demise wasn’t you. I can’t speak for everyone, but I certainly don’t think it’s your fault.” 

“He’s right.” Time spoke up, putting a hand on Sky’s shoulder. “No matter how this cycle started, you did the best you could do at the time. You aren’t to blame for the monster Ganondorf became.” 

“Faron’s right. You are an idiot.” Legend huffed. “You really think that this bullshit’s your fault?” 

“Come on, now. I thought you were smarter than this.” Warriors grinned, slinging an arm around Sky. “We’re heroes, yeah? We can’t just let things alone when someone’s in trouble. It’s in the job description to poke our noses in where they don’t belong. You can’t blame yourself for the trouble we’ve gotten into over the years.” 

“Wait, so you’re the oldest, then?” Wild tilted his head. 

“Yeah.” Sky nodded. “From what I understand, I’m the first incarnation of the Hero’s Spirit. My Zelda is Hylia in mortal form, so I can only assume—”

“Wait, Sun is what ?!” Legend choked, staring at Sky like he just blew up the moon. “You mean she’s actually The Goddess?!”  

“Yeah.” Sky shrugged. “But she’s still Sun.”

“Hold on.” Warriors looked at Sky with an unreadable expression. “You mean to tell us that you’re dating The Goddess herself? So you’re like… some kind of god-in-law?” He snickered as Sky blushed a beet red. 

“N-no! I mean, yeah, we’re together, but… I’m not a god .” Sky stammered, turning redder with each word. 

“Relax, Sky. I’m just messin with you.” Warriors reassured. “But still. You literally landed a goddess .” 

“ The Goddess.” Four corrected. 

“Wait a minute.” Twilight spoke up as he leaned against the edge of the bridge they’d stopped on. “So if you’re from back when Hylia had a mortal form… and you said you’re from Skyloft—an island in the sky, right?” 

“Yeah?” Sky tilted his head. 

“So what was going on with Hyrule? If there was no Goddess to watch over it…” 

“Oh.” Sky smiled. “That’s easy. So a long time ago, Hylia lifted Skyloft into the sky to protect the remaining people from Demise. The population of Skyloft is all the Hylains in my time. We’re working on repopulating the surface.” 

Faron stared at him, slack-jawed. “You mean you founded Hyrule?!” 

“Uh… I guess?” Sky scratched the back of his head. “It’s honestly something I don’t think about often. Seeing all your kingdoms so alive and thriving… It makes me feel proud of the work I’ve done—I’m doing.” He frowned. “I feel satisfied.” 

“As you should.” Time patted his shoulder. “Hyrule is a kingdom that has outlasted countless others, and brought great joy to many.” 

Faron couldn’t meet Sky’s gaze. How could he when the land that Sky had founded was beyond destroyed in his own time? 

“Um, Sky?” Wind asked suddenly, tugging on his sailcloth to get his attention. “If you and Sun are together, and every Zelda’s a descendant of Hylia… does that mean that you started the Royal Family? Are you a king?” His eyes sparkled as Sky descended into a blushing stuttering mess. 

Faron shot Legend a smirk. “Don’t you dare .” He growled. 

“Aw, but Sky’s like your great-great grandfather or something.” He whispered with a chuckle. 

“He’s a lot older than that.” Legend huffed, turning a bit red, himself. 

“Well, that is how genetics work.” Time smirked as Sky flushed harder. Faron snorted in amusement. 

“Come on, it’ll get dark, soon.” Twilight frowned as the glowing embers of his namesake  crept across the skies, casting the world in an ethereal glow. It only seemed to do this in Twilight’s Hyrule, oddly enough. Faron figured it had something to do with Twilight’s journey, so he never asked. Especially since the hero always looked so sullen during this time. “There’s a cavern up ahead that we can make camp in. It’s just got some chuchus to take care of.” 

“Right.” Time nodded as the group started walking again. Warriors and Wind were still teasing Sky, trying to get the Founder of Hyrule to turn as dark a shade of red as possible.

Faron just enjoyed the lighter atmosphere that drifted around them while casually scanning his surroundings. He’d never felt so safe as he did with this group of heroes. He supposed that it had something to do with the fact that he’d never really traveled with other people before. It was nice not to have to watch his back every second. 

As if his thoughts had been heard by Hylia herself, a sudden thrill of fear shot up his spine. Instantly, all feelings of warmth and safety vanished like the illusion he knew them to be; replaced by the familiar anxiety and hyper-awareness that had saved his life more times than he could count. 

His shield was on his arm not a moment later, and he cautiously reached for his sword, scanning his surroundings with a critical gaze, searching for whatever monster he’d sensed. 

“Faron?” Legend questioned, drawing the attention of the group. 

“Something’s wrong.” There was a tense moment of silence as the rest of the group drew their weapons. Then, the sound of a horn rose into the air and a group of bokoblins and moblins launched their attack.

It was a confusing cacophony of clashing blades and clanging shields. The monsters were attacking from all angles in what looked like a planned and coordinated strike. They had to be infected—something the group had explained to Wind not long after the kid joined them. No regular monsters of this caliber could plan like that. 

His hunch was proven correct when he sliced a bokoblin’s arm, and was rewarded with a slow trickle of viscous black fluid. He grimaced. This fight would not be easy.

Faron wasn’t quite fast enough to dodge the next attack, and he clenched his teeth as the blade bit deeply into his side. He bit his cheek as he shoved his shield into the blade, ripping it free of his flesh. He spun, using his momentum to slice into another beast. He sensed, more than saw, the blade coming for his neck, and brought up his shield to defend. A mistake—he realized quickly—as his whole body vibrated under the full weight of the moblin’s blow. 

He barely dodged another swipe and retreated several steps, panting. His side was screaming at him and he had a sinking feeling that it had hit something important. Moreover, this was now a three-on-one fight. Two bokoblins and one moblin. This was not looking good. He tightened his grip, muttering a speed-boosting spell and a minor strength-boosting spell. He didn’t dare use more magic than that. If someone else got hurt, he was their best healer. 

The moblin roared as it charged, and he brought up the shield to parry, but the monster was smarter than he gave it credit for. It grabbed his shield and threw it to the side. He was practically defenseless now, having been forced to release said shield or lose his arm. 

He ignored the clang of the shield hitting the grass as he rolled to the side, the bokoblin’s club flinging dirt and debris where he’d been a half second ago. He slashed out at the moblin’s legs and managed to get in a lucky strike. It stumbled and growled before moving to attack again. He was ready to block when he noticed the other bokoblin charging at him. 

“ Shit! ” He swore, dearly missing Navi’s observational skills. He abandoned the idea of blocking and simply dodged both strikes, but the third bokoblin had somehow gotten behind him and got him in the shoulder with a downward swing of its sword. 

Faron stumbled under the weight of the blow, and blindly stabbed behind him where he thought the beast was. He heard a cry and risked a glance. A fatal blow—the bokoblin was out. A sudden instinct had him jumping to the side right where the remaining bokoblin had attempted to lop off his head. 

No more getting distracted. He eyed the two remaining monsters. His shoulder wound was deep, and the slash to his side was bleeding profusely, likely having been torn wider with all his jumping around. The ground was growing slick with his blood, and he distantly noted that he would need treatment soon or he’d bleed out. 

He had to end this fast . He could still hear the others fighting a fair distance away, but either he’d been slowly migrating away from the group, or they’d been slowly moving away from him, because he couldn’t see them anymore. He couldn’t count on backup. 

“Idiot.” He whispered to himself. “You’ve grown soft. You know better. You can only depend on yourself.” 

He grabbed his sword with both hands and charged the moblin. The monster was momentarily taken aback by his sudden change in tactics, but Faron had always thrived on fighting on instinct alone. It was what had made him a dangerous and unpredictable enemy back home, and he had a feeling it would work here, too. 

The mobin’s sword missed him by inches , and Faron didn’t waste his chance. He buried his blade deeply within the beast’s neck, ripping it out to the side. It fell, dead. He turned towards the bokoblin, who had started an attack of its own. 

Faron bared his teeth, an unhinged feral expression crossing his features as he blocked the blade with the metal plate sewn into the back of his left glove. He then stabbed forwards, impaling the monster. 

Only when he saw the light die in its eyes did he take a moment to breathe. He staggered under the weight of exhaustion as his injuries screamed and throbbed. But he couldn’t afford to rest—not yet. The others may have been better fighters than him, but he might still be able to help somehow. 

That thought in mind, he followed the cries of battle. The hill was harder to climb than it should’ve been. At one point, his foot slipped in his own blood and he hit the grass with an agonizing thud. A small cry of pain escaped his lips. He panted, breathing through the pain with clenched teeth. The crest of the hill was just a little further.  

With a gargantuan amount of effort, he pushed himself to his knees and staggered to his feet. He swayed dangerously as his vision hazed over for a moment, barely keeping himself from slipping back down the slope. With several agonizingly heavy steps, he made it to the top of the hill. 

Darkness had befallen them by this point. He was sure that if he hadn’t spent several years living in a cave , he wouldn’t see anything at all with the small sliver of light the crescent moon cast upon the battlefield. 

He could see enough to tell that while some of them were struggling a bit, none were as seriously injured as he was. As he was now, Faron would be nothing a liability to them. It would be foolish to attempt to jump in when he could barely stay on his feet. It was better for them and for himself if he just stayed put and readied whatever medical supplies they’d need should he pass out first. 

He belatedly realized that his sword was not in his hand, and a quick glance over his shoulder confirmed that it had rolled down to the base of the hill when he’d slipped earlier. He’d barely managed the trip up—he didn’t think he could do it twice. There was no way he could be of any help to them without a weapon, so he resigned himself to staying put. He was already starting to hear a ringing in his ears, and knew that he’d pass out soon. He needed to stem the bleeding as much as he could. 

But then he saw it. The light of the moon peeked out from between the clouds and illuminated Sky, who was struggling alongside Wind to defeat two moblins. Faron realized what was going to happen a moment before they did—if only because the moblin he fought did the same to him.

One moblin grabbed the Master Sword and flung it to the side in Faron’s general direction, while the other went in for an attack. Wind barely managed to block it, but the first moblin was readying itself to strike again. Sky had no shield—likely lost earlier in the battle—and Faron knew that the attack would be devastating if not instantly fatal. With Wind busy blocking the first attack, there was no way for Sky to handle the second one. If he dodged, the attack would hit Wind, and Faron was sure he couldn’t disengage and dodge quickly enough to avoid damage. 

A sudden wave of adrenaline flooded his system, pushing the pain and fatigue to the back of his mind. Without a moment’s thought or hesitation, he picked up the Master Sword that had landed by his feet and rushed forward. She glowed in his hands, pulsing with a comfortable warmth. He felt his Triforce warm as he ignored his screaming shoulder and lifted the blade just in time to block the blow. 

“F-Faron?!” Sky’s eyes were blown wide at the sight of the Master Sword in his hands. 

“Talk later! Monsters now!” Faron gasped out as he felt the blood flowing freely from his shoulder and side at the sudden action. Black started encroaching on his vision, but with the new wave of energy, he managed to focus on the fight. 

Faron pushed back the blade of the monster and slashed again. The Master Sword was by far the best weapon he’d ever had the pleasure of wielding. It was perfectly balanced and incredibly sharp. There was a hum of magic and he felt that it would act as a focus—perhaps even an amplifier—for any spells he cast while wielding it.

It was still a little gaudy, though. 

An echoey chime-like sound that he just knew was Fi made him smirk. She must’ve been mildly offended by his thought. Oh, well. She could smite him later. After Sky and Wind were safe. 

He had half a mind to give the blade back to Sky, but the hero looked utterly exhausted. At least Faron had caught his second wind. He blocked another incoming attack with his gloved hand, wincing as he felt the metal plate creak. He redirected the momentum of the strike towards the ground, making the moblin overcorrect itself and practically fall atop the Master Sword. He slashed it out of the side to ensure its demise. He ignored the sudden coolness on his hand. 

He looked over to aid Wind, but the child was already finishing off his foe. He realized that the fight was finally done, and an almost eerie hush started to fall over the field. He then heard people calling out, asking one another if they were okay. In the darkness that had befallen them, it appeared that nobody could ascertain each other’s injuries accurately. 

Now that the fight was over, he realized he was in much worse shape than he’d initially thought. He had lost a lot of blood. This was bad. His legs shook beneath him and he could hardly keep ahold of Fi. He held out the sword towards Sky. She must’ve let him wield her because her masters were in danger. The longer he held her, the higher his odds of getting hurt. 

“Faron…” Sky stared at Fi for a moment, and Faron wished Sky would just take her . His numb fingers finally lost his grip on the blade as his knee buckled and he staggered with a pained gasp. Sky caught him, steadying him for a moment, only for his eyes to widen at the sight of his injuries. “Guys!! Faron’s hurt, I need potions!!” 

Sky carefully lowered Faron to the ground. “Fuck.” The traveler cursed, panting for air. Everything hurt . He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this bad off. Had it been that fight with Ganon? Maybe that one time he’d gotten captured by some monsters. Usually when he got hurt, he’d flee until he healed up, so it rarely got this bad. Here, he hadn’t had that option. Faron blinked when he saw Sky’s lips moving. He was saying something to him, and he could make out Wind’s worried voice, but they sounded garbled and far away. 

“Faron!” Legend’s voice rang crisply in his ears as he cracked open his eyes. When had he closed them? The veteran had an expression of fierce concern etched onto his face as he held up a red potion to Faron’s lips. For once, Faron didn’t hesitate in drinking it all. He knew he was in bad shape, but the potion only helped him a little bit. At least now, with effort, he could make out the voices that were speaking. “You idiot, how many did you fight alone ?!” Legend glared.

“‘M used to it.” His words slurred. Speaking was beyond taxing, and even breathing was painful. He knew he’d just downed a potion, but he felt like he’d only had a sip of water. 

“Is he gonna be okay?” Wind asked Time with a tearful gaze. The older hero just put a hand on Wind’s shoulder. 

“Anyone have more healing items?” He asked urgently, looking around as he pulled out an ocarina. Was he going to play a song? 

“I’ve got two potions.” Warriors volunteered quickly, pulling them out. “What’s with the flute?” 

“It’s an ocarina .” Time corrected as he brought it to his lips. “I know a song of healing. It won’t do much, but it should buy us more time.” A pretty flowing melody flowed out from the instrument, cutting through the haze in his mind. Everything was still muddled, but at the very least he could now process who everybody was. He could feel the blood start to stem a bit, and the pain of his injuries dulled minutely. He distantly noted it wasn’t healing so much as it was stalling his injuries a bit.

“I–I’ve got a fairy!” Twilight exclaimed, bringing out a bottle. “I’d forgotten about this.”

“Perfect.” Warriors nodded, handing his potions to Legend, who had somehow ended up cradling Faron’s head in his lap. Time nodded to Twilight, refusing to stop his playing. Faron idly wondered if something bad would happen if he did. Then he finally registered the small light coming from the glass bottle in Twilight’s hands. 

Faron’s first instinct was to refuse, because fairies were used for the most serious life-threatening injuries to stabilize someone who was on the brink of death. He tried to open his mouth to protest when something hot welled up in his throat, dribbling down his chin as he fought to breathe. Legend turned him carefully to the side so he could cough up the sticky warm substance without choking. The small amount of energy he’d managed to regain left him instantly.

He belatedly realized that the cold numbness creeping up his limbs and the black that slithered from the edges of his vision were more than just falling unconscious. Maybe he needed that fairy, after all. The sudden realization that he was dying hit him differently than he’d imagined it would. He wasn’t scared. 

He was relieved.

A sudden pang of guilt twisted his heart painfully as something warm fell on his cheek. “Damnit, Faron, hold on.” Legend whispered. “I can’t bury you, too.” 

He forced another breath into his lungs—how long had it been since his last one? He couldn’t do this to Legend. He couldn’t . The veteran had already lost so much… Faron couldn’t be selfish. Not only that, but Sky’s eyes were full of guilt. There was no way he could die and leave Sky to blame himself for something Faron had done to himself. 

A flicker of light caught his attention as the little fairy fluttered over to him, tilting her head as she recognized the fae in his blood. She sent him a smile before dashing over to his side. He felt the warm pulse of her magic as she urged the wound to close enough to stem the bleeding. She then fluttered over to his shoulder and did the same. He knew instantly that she’d only been able to close them enough to stop the bleeding. He was still in horrible shape. 

He felt another potion pressed to his lips and drank it without complaint. When was the last time he’d trusted someone enough to not poison him? He tried to think. It’d been a long time. 

After a long moment, he felt coherency return to him, even as the dregs of exhaustion tugged him towards a welcoming abyss of sleep. He blinked a couple of times, trying to stay awake as he focused on the people around him. Legend let out a massive sigh of relief as he shifted Faron’s head in his lap.

“Thanks.” Faron croaked out as he gave him a weak smile. His limbs were still numb and he felt like he was made of lead. His head felt like it was stuffed full of cotton, and he honestly wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep. But some part of his mind warned him that sleeping was a very bad idea right now, so he turned his attention towards the heroes around him. 

Time finally let the ocarina fall from his lips, but he didn’t put it away. “Good to have you back, Traveler.” He smiled, and Faron got the sudden impression that him playing that magical song meant more than the traveler knew. 

“There you are.” Legend wiped something away from his eyes. “Don’t scare us like that! Idiot.” 

“Glad you’re okay.” Twilight grinned. “You were… bad.” He glanced off in the direction of Faron’s fight. “The caverns aren’t far. We’d be safer there.” 

“Right.” Time nodded. “Sky, can you carry Faron?” 

“Yeah.” Sky stood, gingerly scooping Faron up into his arms. The action jostled his injuries, and he couldn’t help the small whimper of pain that escaped him. “Sorry.” Sky quickly apologized. 

“T’s fine.” He reassured. 

“But you aren’t.” Legend’s mouth was a thin line and his brow was creased in worry.

“I’ve been better.” He admitted. “I’ve also been worse.” 

“ Worse ?” Four shot him a look. “You were dying .” 

“Uh huh.” Faron relaxed in Sky’s grip. His sailcloth was really soft and he wondered if he’d ever let Faron snuggle up in it for a night. “It’s so soft…” 

“Sun made that for me.” Sky chuckled. “She made it by hand for a ceremony.” 

“A cloth made by Hylia herself.” Time mused. “Didn’t know the Goddess was into sewing and embroidery.” 

Twilight let out a laugh that sounded remarkably similar to a bark. Faron wondered if perhaps he’d once been cursed with a dog form. That dark magic swirling around him like a second skin certainly felt like a curse of some kind. Not a malevolent one, but a curse all the same. 

He blinked a bit when something tapped his face. Sky looked at him with worried eyes. “I don’t think it’s safe for you to sleep, yet. We should still tend to your injuries.” 

“Yeah.” Faron nodded, struggling to keep his eyes open. 

“Hey, isn’t this your shield?” Wind asked, bending down to pick up Faron’s shield. He realized that they were in the area he’d fought in. 

“By Din, is all this blood yours ?!” Warriors gaped as the moonlight reflected off the crimson coated grass. 

“Probably.” Faron admitted. “Think my sword’s over here too.” 

“I’ve got it.” Four spoke up, holding up the bloodied blade. “I’ll clean it for you when we make camp.” 

“Thanks, Four.” He smiled. There was a sort of tension as they passed through the field. He wondered if they just weren’t used to seeing non-heroes fight so recklessly. 

A coolness washed over him as they entered the cavern. When had they left the fields? He felt himself being lowered in front of a freshly made fire. The light flickered off the walls of the cave and he was reminded of his own little cavern back in his time. Would Navi be there when he returned?

“Hold still, we’ve gotta take that tunic off.” Legend warned. Faron braced himself as Sky carefully lifted him to a sitting position. He grit his teeth as his side protested the action loudly. His shoulder was just as furious with Legend pulling his tunic over his head so they could properly assess his wounds. 

He shivered in the cool night air as Four carefully took a damp cloth and wiped the blood from the wounds. 

“Those look really bad.” Warriors frowned. Other than Faron, he seemed to hold the most medical knowledge. “That fairy wasn’t able to do much—you must’ve been hurt worse than we initially thought.” Faron glanced down at his side, noting that he was right. Those injuries were barely closed. The fariy must’ve concentrated on some internal damage he’d neglected to notice. 

Warriors dug through Faron’s medical bag to grab the supplies he needed. With deft fingers, he started wrapping him up. 

“You have so many scars.” Wind noted. “Aren’t you just a traveler?” 

“My Hyrule is dangerous.” Faron explained, ignoring the look from Sky. “Monsters take all kinds of forms, there. Some even masquerade as people to catch victims off guard.” The pain was starting to sharpen his awareness. He wondered if perhaps Legend hadn’t slipped him some kind of stamina potion when he wasn’t looking. 

“Your monsters take hylian forms?” Warriors stared. “How does that work?” 

“Dunno.” He blinked against the exhaustion that was clawing at him. “Monsters where I’m from are pretty smart. Some can even talk.” He smiled a bit, thinking of his friend, Blin. 

“Talking monsters, huh? Sounds like a bad trip.” Warriors chuckled. “You’re all done.” He nodded at his handiwork as Legend helped Faron lay down in a nest of blankets he’d pulled from the traveler’s bag. 

“Thanks.” He hummed quietly as he let the warmth of the fire wash over him. 

“You should be okay to sleep now.” Time noted, glancing at the moon. Of all of them, he was the only one that was acutely aware of the time regardless of where or when they were. Perhaps it had something to do with his title or journey. If Time said it’d been long enough that it was safe to sleep, then Faron trusted him.

Sky removed his sailcloth and wrapped it around Faron like a blanket. He blinked up in confusion. “Isn’t this yours?” 

“I’m sure you don’t want us pulling that tunic back on tonight.” Sky smiled. “Besides, you could use it a bit more than me, right now.” 

Faron didn’t argue. It was just as soft as it had been when Sky was carrying him, and he relished the sense of comfort he got from the object. If this was how it always felt, it was no wonder Sky never took it off. He met Sky’s gaze. He could see the question fighting to break the barrier of his lips. “Tomorrow.” He promised. Sky frowned but nodded, taking a seat by Faron’s small nest of blankets. 

Legend took his place at Faron’s other side, resolutely refusing to leave him alone. He let a small smile pass over his lips as he finally fell into the blissful dredges of slumber.

Chapter Text

A/N: So looking back, the last two sections of the previous chapter should've fed into the beginning of this one (starting with the nightmare). I may move things around at a later date, but in the meantime, I do apologize for this short 2k chapter. I'll try to get the next one out later this week as an apology for the brevity of this one.

Dec 2024: I have moved said scenes from last chapter to this one, bringing the wordcount of this chapter to just over 6k.

Alone in the Darkness, We Find a Light

Strings of Fate Unwind

New Faces Emerge, Unveiling the Questions

That Once We Left Behind

Secrets Kept Close, Guarded by Grief

“Link!” Hazel spun around, light brown curls with golden highlights shimmered in the afternoon sun. “Link, come see!” She ran over and grabbed his hand. 

“Slow down , Hazel!” He laughed, letting her lead him into the forest. “Did you find another fairy?” 

“Mama said the faiwies awe lonely, so I made fwiends with them!” She beamed as a few orbs of light fluttered around her. “Pwetty!” She reached up to touch one of the flickering orbs of magic. 

“Hazel, it’s going to get dark soon.” Link noted with a frown. Something felt off. “We should get home before Mom gets worried. You don’t want Dad to send Garret back out, do you?”

“No!” Hazel protested, stomping her foot. “Gawwet always makes fun of me!”

“Don’t worry, little princess.” He grinned, picking her up and swinging her around. She let out a gleeful squeal as her blue-green eyes glittered in joy. “Your big brother Link will protect you!” She laughed harder as he picked her up and put her on his shoulders. 

“So tall !” She squirmed in delight. 

“Careful!” He warned her. “Don’t fall.” 

“I won’t!” She bent over to grin in his face, her hair hanging down to frame her freckles. “Because you’we hewe to p’otect me!” 

He felt his heart swell as a sense of pride settled within him. Hazel reached up to smack the leaves and branches as they walked towards home. He could just barely see the smoke rising from the chimney of home when he got the distinct impression that they were not alone. 

Hazel didn’t seem to sense anything, but Link’s every instinct told him that running or turning around was the last thing he wanted to do. 

“Haha! Pwetty!” Hazel reached for a fairy that drifted by. He was hit by a sudden feeling of wrongness . 

“No, Hazel! Don’t touch that!” But for whatever reason, he just couldn’t react quickly enough. The moment she touched the light, her squeals of delight became horrific screams of fear and agony. 

“Hazel!” He cried out as her weight vanished from his shoulders. He whirled around, sword in hand.

Faron’s eyes widened. Ganon was standing there, holding Hazel tightly in his grasp. At his side was the familiar mirrored figure of himself. White hair and blood red eyes shone out from under a charcoal cap and matching tunic. 

“How cute .” Dark Link smirked, eyeing the struggling form of his sister. “I didn’t know you had a family . I thought that sailor was the only one.” He tilted his head as he turned his gaze from Hazel to Faron. “Shame you won’t see them again.” 

“Wh–Let her go!” He screamed out, moving to take a step forward, but Ganon’s grasp tightened and Hazel let out a cry of pain. He froze, unable to do more than watch and pray. 

“ You were an unexpected variable.” Dark Link drawled lazily as he shoved a hand in one of his pockets. “I don’t recall inviting you to the party.”

“What are you talking about?” Faron swallowed thickly, eyes flickering between Dark Link and his sister in Ganon’s grasp. If he could just catch him off-guard, he might be able to lop off his arm and free his sister. 

“No matter.” Dark Link laughed a bit as he flicked his wrist—sword suddenly in his hand. Hazel’s struggles ceased as her head fell from her body, landing on the ground with a sickening thump. It rolled towards him, expression frozen in fear and pain. Faron felt his insides freeze and his blood boil. “There are ways of dealing with… unforeseen variables.” 

Dark Link flicked the blood from his sword, and pointed at Faron. He found himself suddenly frozen in place, unable to move even a finger. His monochrome counterpart slowly walked towards him, placing a finger on Faron’s lips. “Be a good boy… and die .” 

A piercing pain in his side left him gasping for air. His gaze traveled down to see that Dark Link had run him through with his sword. A hand clasped around his neck, and squeezed . A panic filled him as he fought to breathe. Dark Link leaned into his ear and whispered. “Goodbye…”

“Faron!” 

Faron’s eyes snapped open as he gasped, trembling. That had been… a nightmare? He looked down at the tangle of blankets he found himself in, one of which was in Legend’s grasp. “Geez, I fall asleep for two seconds and you end up with a blanket wrapped around your neck.” He huffed. 

He blinked, trying to understand what was going on. His hand migrated towards the stab wound Dark Link had inflicted on him, only to realize it was the injury from the other day. He took a glance around, noting that most everyone else was awake and milling around outside in the sunshine. 

“You looked like you were having a nightmare, so I woke you.” Legend explained. “Are you okay? You look pale.” 

“Y-yeah. Just a nightmare.” He shook his head. His sister was fine . Hazel was fine . She was safe at home with their parents and brothers. 

“Hey, look who’s up.” Warriors smirked as he walked into the cavern. “How’s that side feeling? We should change the bandages.” 

Faron relaxed a bit as Warriors removed the bandages, willing the nightmare to the back of his mind. “It feels much better.” He noted, eyeing the new scar tissue. “My innate magic must be speeding up the healing process.” 

“You look a lot better.” Warriors nodded resolutely. “But just to be safe, we’re staying here for the day so everyone can rest. That ambush was no joke.” He finished rewrapping the wound. “You should take it easy today. You’re fine to be up and about, but I don’t want you wandering off.” 

“I know my limitations with an injury.” Faron reminded him. He probably shouldn’t do too much walking today, if it could be helped. But the sunlight was enticing him to go out and join the others. Sitting in the grass and watching Time and Twilight spar didn’t seem like such a bad idea. 

“Come on.” Legend rolled his eyes as he offered him a hand. “I know that look.” 

Faron laughed and rubbed the back of his head with his good arm, his right arm having been regulated to a sling until his shoulder healed up a bit more. “Am I that obvious?” 

“Nah, I just pay attention.” Legend shot him a smirk as he helped Faron to his feet. He stumbled a bit, legs still a little shaky. He went lightheaded for a moment, and Legend made sure to keep him steady. “You good?” 

“Yeah, thanks.” He gave him a grateful smile as Warriors joined them in heading outside. 

“Hey! He’s up!” Wind beamed. “How’re you feeling?” 

“Much better.” Faron smiled. He sat down in the grass, leaning against a boulder as he enjoyed the warmth seeping into his back. He held out the sailcloth towards Sky, who took it with a smile. “Thank you. It’s very soft.” 

“So you’ve said.” He chuckled. Faron flushed a bit. Had he said anything else last night that he didn’t remember? 

“No worries, you didn’t embarrass yourself too badly.” Legend snickered. 

Faron sighed with a shake of his head as he smiled. “So you say.” He turned his attention towards the spar. Time and Twilight were fairly evenly matched. He didn’t know anything about fighting styles, but Twilight pulled some moves that reminded him a lot of Time. Maybe he taught him? How far apart were their eras anyways? 

Time pulled some kind of tricky feint and managed to disarm Twilight. Faron found himself impressed. He was once again reminded that these heroes were on a completely different scale of power and experience than a simple traveler like him. In all honesty, he wouldn’t be surprised if they decided to keep someone with him during fights. 

After another round—Wind vs. Four, which Four won by suddenly switching complete fighting styles on the fly—everyone decided to take a well-earned lunch break. Time sliced up the apples and some other fruit and passed them around. It wasn’t much, but it was certainly better than whatever Faron could cook up. 

Chatter was light and Faron could almost forget the disaster that was the day before. “Hey, Faron?” Sky spoke up, catching everyone’s attention. “About yesterday…” 

He sighed. He should’ve known Sky would ask when he couldn’t get away. At least he was nice enough not to corner him completely about it. “Go on. I know you’ve been wanting to ask since last night.” 

“You… You wielded the Master Sword.” His words were followed by a quiet disbelieving hush. 

“It was probably just because you were in danger.” Faron denied. “I’m not a hero.” 

“You have the Triforce, though.” Sky pointed to his hand, and Faron paled as he abruptly realized his glove had been lost in the fight yesterday. He covered it up quickly, instinctively tensing as he prepared to run. 

“Hey, it’s okay.” Legend soothed. “We’re not mad… confused, but not mad.” 

“I…” Faron felt his mouth go dry as he tried to force words out of his mouth. 

“Is… Is Faron your real name?” Warriors asked softly. 

“It’s the name I’ve gone by for over a year.” He chewed on his lip a bit. “My actual name brings me nothing but trouble back in my Hyrule, so I never use it.” Nobody said anything, but Faron could see the urging in their eyes. “It’s L-Link. My original name was Link.” 

It was like a mist of relief and confusion settled around them all. “Why do you go by Faron?” Wind finally asked. 

“Like I said, my original name gave me nothing but trouble in my Hyrule. People know Link. They don’t know Faron. It’s much easier to just be another face in the crowd. And that Triforce is an easy identifier.” He shook his head. “Besides, it’s not like I knew you were all named Link until you explained it to Wind.” 

“So that’s why you were brought to us.” Twilight realized. “You are a hero.” 

“I’m not .” Faron denied. “I’m just a traveler. Nothing more.” 

“Too humble.” He heard Four grumble under his breath. “Either way, Hylia must think you’re hero enough if you’ve been brought to us.” 

He opened his mouth to argue, when Sky held Fi out towards him. “Whether you think you’re a hero or not, you’ve been sent with us on this journey for a reason. If you’d like, I think Fi’s got a title for you. Or we can keep calling you Faron.” 

He hesitated as he looked between Sky and Fi. He could leave it be and keep being Faron—the healer of the group. But… would a title really change who he was? Regardless of what they thought, he was just a normal person. He wasn’t a chosen hero, or a descendant of the Goddess. He was a farmer’s son from an entirely different country. 

But something about the sword called to him. He reached out a hand and hesitantly took the blade, half-expecting her to shock him. Instead, a beautiful glow encompassed her as she hummed happily in his hands. 

Again, he marveled at how balanced she felt in his hands, despite his smaller stature. A life on the road was not good for a growing boy’s height, after all. After a long moment, she dulled and he handed her back to Sky. 

“Know that she tells me nothing of your journey but the basics.” Sky started. “It seems you’ve had a very hard journey—very lonely. You never wielded her, but you still defeated Ganon. It’s a pleasure to formally welcome you, Hero of Hyrule.” 

Faron— Hyrule now, he supposed—wasn’t sure what to think of it. “This doesn’t really change anything.” Time spoke up. “You’re still the same traveler that we’ve come to care about. A name does not define you.” 

“I suppose you’re right.” Hyrule sighed, leaning against Legend a bit as he returned to his apple slice.

“Wait, so you said you were from the same timeline as Legend, right?” Wind perked up. “Does that mean you’re Legend’s successor?” 

“Probably.” Legend shrugged. 

“I don’t know.” Hyrule scratched the back of his head. “I’m not even from Hyrule.” 

“You’re not ?!” Wind gasped, and a few of the others looked startled as well. 

“No, like I keep saying, I’m a traveler .” He stressed. “I’m from a completely different country. I’ve been to several others as well, but when I visited Hyrule…” He winced. “I got roped into defeating Ganon and waking a Zelda that’d been asleep for about a hundred years.” 

“Now, this sounds like a good story.” Warriors grinned as he threw a slice of pear up into the air and caught it in his mouth. He gave a go on gesture to Hyrule. 

“Not much to say.” He shrugged. “I had two quests—one to defeat Ganon, and the other to wake a princess in a cursed slumber. I had to find the Triforce of Courage to awaken her, and after that…” He hummed. “Well, my Hyrule has two Zeldas now.” 

“That’s gotta be confusing.” Four chuckled. “Do you call them both Zelda?” 

“Well, the one that was asleep for a century goes by Zel. She’s just a kid, after all. I think… maybe twelve?” 

“We tend to give our Zeldas nicknames to prevent confusion.” Time explained. “Since Wind’s Zelda already goes by Tetra, I don’t think that was ever explained to you.” 

“A lot of stuff wasn’t explained to me.” Hyrule sighed. “So I’m supposed to just pick a nickname for them?”

“If you want.” Twilight grinned. “Some of us play off our titles, while others pick something that suits that particular Zelda. Mine is called Dusk.” 

“Fable is my Zelda.” Legend picked up. “Four’s goes by Dot, Time’s is Lullaby. Warriors’ is Artemis, and Sky’s is Sun.” 

Hyrule sat back and thought for a long moment. “How about… Dawn for the Zelda who wasn’t asleep? She’s due to be queen in a few years, and she’ll rule a new era without Ganon.” He tilted his head as he thought. “And… Aurora for the one who was asleep.” 

“Aurora?” Wind tilted his head. “Like the lights they say appear in snowy areas?” 

“Sort of.” Hyrule chuckled. “There’s a fairytale back in my homeland about a princess who was cursed into a slumber for eternity, and the only thing that could wake her was a true love’s kiss. Her name was Aurora, so I thought it was fitting.” 

“What’s your homeland like?” Four asked. “I’ve never left Hyrule.” 

“I don’t think many of us have left Hyrule.” Twilight frowned. 

“I have.” Legend crossed his arms. “I’ve been to several different countries.” 

“I’ve traveled beyond the borders of Hyrule as well.” Time nodded. 

“My homeland is peaceful.” Hyrule smiled wistfully. “Lots of open farmland and forests that stretch beyond the horizon. Some call it the homeland of the Fae, because it’s said there’s a spring where fairies are born.” 

“Really?” Time blinked, curiosity shining in his eye. 

“I’ve seen it myself.” He nodded, smile widening into a grin. “Magical sensitivity is common in my homeland. I remember watching a fairy being born. The magic welled up from the spring… It’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.” 

“It sounds amazing!” Wind bounced where he sat. “I wanna see it one day!” 

“The spring is said to be ageless. If you travel enough, you might find it in your own time one day.” 

“If you’re not from Hyrule, why go there?” Warriors asked. “Last night you said your Hyrule was dangerous.” 

Hyrule looked away for a long moment. “I have my reasons.” He finally decided. He liked these people. He even sort of trusted them. But he wasn’t about to let himself rely on them. He wasn’t like them. Regardless of what they said… regardless of what the sword said, he wasn’t a hero. He doubted he’d last very long on this journey with them. He just… was cut from a different cloth. 

Warriors frowned but let the topic drop. Hyrule was grateful—he really didn’t know what he’d have done if the hero decided to push the topic. He shuddered a bit as the image from last night’s nightmare flashed in his mind, bringing with it a sense of impending danger. 

“You good?” Legend asked quietly as Warriors and Four argued about something relating to smithing. 

“Yeah.” He felt a yawn escape him as he leaned against the hero in the red tunic. “Just a bit tired.” 

“Then take a nap.” Legend smiled softly. Hyrule was sure he wasn’t meant to see it, but it made him feel warm all the same. “I’ll make sure these idiots don’t wake you up.” 

“Thanks, Vet.” 

“Any time, Traveler.” 

Legend sat beneath the stars. It was his turn to take watch, and he couldn’t stop thinking about what happened earlier. Faron—a person he begrudgingly felt a connection to—nearly died yesterday. And he could do nothing but put a couple of potions to his lips. If Twilight hadn’t had that fairy, Faron would be dead. 

Well, he supposed it was Hyrule now, wasn’t it? And therein was the second headache of the night. Faron was never actually Faron. Okay, well, he was , but he was one of them and hadn’t told them. 

It had taken a bit before Legend was able to wrap his head around the why . Logically, it made sense. Besides, Legend had greeted the guy with a sword to the face, so why should he give them his real name? 

No, what Legend wanted to know was why he’d been going by the name Faron for over a year. What had made Hyrule so afraid to give them the name Link? Just what were his lands like that had him using a pseudonym instead of his name when he wasn’t even originally from Hyrule ? None of them had used nicknames in their homelands, as far as he knew. 

He’d said the name brought nothing but trouble, and the vague response only served to pique his concern more. There was also an underlying current of unease when he’d spoken his name aloud that Legend wasn’t sure the others had caught. And moreover, when Sky had pointed out his Triforce, there was a flash of terror in his eyes. Like he was afraid he’d be attacked for it. The way he’d covered it up and had tensed as if to flee only added to that theory.

That did not sit right with Legend. Because like it or not, Hyrule was likely his successor . Which meant, like Time was to Twilight, Hyrule was his responsibility. And he’d be damned if he let his successor feel unsafe with them. 

He shifted when he heard movement to his left. He turned to see the object of his thoughts sitting beside him. “You should rest.” Legend scowled. “You’re still recovering.” 

“I feel much better now.” Hyrule leaned back against the side of the cave. “I wanted to look at the stars.” 

“Fine. Suit yourself.” He huffed. Hyrule should be resting. Didn’t he know how serious those injuries were?! If they were just a minute slower even a fairy wouldn’t have been able to—

“What’s on your mind?” 

Legend startled and glanced over at Hyrule. His bright green eyes looked almost black in the low lighting, yet they sparkled with the reflection of the stars. 

“Nothing.” 

“Don’t lie, it’s unbecoming.” Hyrule frowned. “You’re thinking of my being a Link, aren’t you?” 

“...maybe.” Legend let out a frustrated breath. “I don’t understand… why didn’t we just pick you up like everyone else?” 

“I could sense the portals opening up for weeks before I actually found one stable enough to go through. I wasn’t sure what it was, so I decided to step through.”

“You can really sense that?” Legend blinked. 

“Yeah. I can use more magic than the rest of you. It’s because I’m from...” Hyrule started before sighing. “No, I’ve lied to you enough.” He shook his head. “Truth is, I’ve got– I’ve got fae blood in me.” He all but whispered it, and Legend instinctively understood that this was a secret that Hyrule had likely kept his whole life. 

“Fae blood?” 

“Yeah. I can actually erm… transform into a fairy.” He flushed to his eartips, and Legend resisted the urge to snort. 

“Well… I have a cursed form that lets me change into a mermaid, so there.” He fought down the blush that tried to sneak its way up. “A secret for a secret.” That was a good mentor thing, right? Encourage him to say stuff? Ack!! He’d have to ask Time for some pointers. 

No . No way he could bring this up to the old man! He’d just laugh at him. No, Legend would figure this mentor thing out himself! 

“My fae blood comes from my mother’s side of the family. I don’t think my father really knows about it. She was always so insistent that I keep it a secret.” He smiled softly. 

“So you knew your parents, then?” Legend wondered if he was one of the only Links among them to have known his parents. 

“Know.” Hyrule corrected. “My parents and siblings are all very much alive, and I sometimes get letters from them.” He smiled as he pulled out an old worn leather notebook. It was stuffed with loose papers and letters. Hyrule pulled out one of the letters and handed it to Legend. 

He carefully opened it, noting the somewhat messy childish handwriting. 

‘Dear Big Brother, I made some new friends today!! The fairies at the Lagoon finally let me play with them! I had so much fun!! Daddy made us a yummy dinner and mommy even said she’d buy me some new clothes with the money you sent us!! Will you come visit soon? I know you’re busy having adventures, but I can’t wait to play with my favorite big brother! Love you lots!! 

-Hazel’  

He noted the tear stains on the letter and realized that Hyrule must’ve cried when he’d first read it. “She sounds cute.” 

“I last saw her when she was four.” Hyrule sighed. “She was so adorable . I was always her favorite brother. She’s about ten now, I think.” 

“Why not visit?” Legend may not always see eye-to-eye with his sister, but at least they visited one another. Technically illegally, since he was a wanted criminal and all that, but still . He was a good enough brother to visit his twin. 

“My Hyrule is very dangerous. Lots of monsters are after me specifically. I’m afraid that I’d lead them home. I’d rather my sister hate me for leaving than be the reason for her death.” There was a heavy silence for a long moment. 

“I can understand, to an extent.” Legend finally spoke up. “My uncle… he raised me. He died on my first journey.”

“First?” 

“I’ve had five or so.” 

“Holy crap.” Hyrule shook his head. “That’s…” 

“There’s a reason they call me ‘the veteran’.” Legend chuckled lightly. Things went quiet for a while, and the two just gazed out at the stars. “Hey, Rule?” 

“Yeah?” 

“I want you to know… that I’m here for you, got it? I don’t care what the others say, you’re… technically my successor. And that kinda makes me your mentor. So…” He felt his face burning. Legend didn’t do feelings. 

“So…?” Hyrule smirked as he looked at Legend expectantly. He had half a mind to just tell him to shove it, but… he was going to try to be a good mentor. 

“So…” He took a deep breath, face burning brightly against the cool night air. “I’m going to look out for you.” There. He’d said it. Goddesses, this mentor thing was hard. 

“Thanks, Leg.” Hyrule smiled. It was a soft smile. Open and vulnerable and trusting . He’d never seen the traveler smile at him like that before. Maybe this mentor thing was worth it, after all. 

Hyrule opened his eyes the next morning to a mild headache. Well, he supposed that much was to be expected what with the blood loss from his injuries the other day. Not to mention the fact that he was a dumbass and stayed up half the night with Legend. 

His mentor. What an odd thought that was. Suddenly, Hyrule really hoped they didn’t hit his lands for a long while—he really didn’t want the others to see what had become of the kingdom they loved and cherished. 

The more of their worlds he saw, the more he realized how bad off his own was. He felt ashamed. They called him a hero, but he certainly didn’t feel like one. He didn’t act like one, either. 

“Morning.” He greeted Time. 

“Morning, Hyrule. How’re you feeling?” 

“Bit of a headache, but that seems to be it.” He shrugged, rolling his shoulder a bit to test the new scar tissue. 

“Careful. You don’t want that reopening.” Time chastised. “Since we don’t want to risk anything, we’ll have you ride Epona while we travel.” 

Hyrule blinked. He grew up on a farm, so he was no stranger to horses. But he hadn’t expected Time to baby or worry over him like this. Was it because he’d been accepted by Fi? No, it was just him being nice. Hyrule was their healer, after all. Healers were arguably the most important person in the party because so long as the healer was okay, the survival rate of everyone else typically stayed in a favorable range. If the healer was taken out, everything went to hell. 

“If that’s what you think is best.” Hyrule nodded. 

He sat down beside the Hero of Time with a small sigh. Hyrule idly fiddled with the small braid that’d come undone in the battle. For the last few months, Navi’s braid had held, and seeing it come undone in the aftermath of that fight was chipping away at his heart. He was trying to get it back into shape, but despite Navi’s best efforts, he just couldn’t get braiding hair down. 

Time laughed quietly. “Here, let me.” He reached over and started braiding with deft fingers. “An old friend taught me how to do this, and I do it for my wife often.” 

“You’re married ?” Hyrule blinked. 

“Oh, yes. Happily so.” Time smirked. “But don’t tell the others just yet. I’m waiting to see how long it takes them to notice the ring.” 

Hyrule snickered and nodded as Time tied off the braid. It was just how Navi would do it, and he felt himself sigh in relief. It was a silly thing to panic over, but that braid was special to him. It was all he had left of Navi. “My missing friend would braid my hair like this all the time. She often took to hitching a ride in my hair.” He chuckled quietly. “She’d cook and practically mother me. I’m sure she and Mom would get along well.” 

He could hear the telltale sounds of the rest of the camp waking up. A few of them tried to scrounge some sort of edible breakfast together while Hyrule and Time continued to talk. He spared a smile and wave to a grumpy sleep deprived Legend. 

“You know your parents?” Time blinked, and a few others looked over in interest. Hyrule bit back a laugh when he recalled Legend asking him the same thing in nearly the same tone last night.

“Yeah. My parents and siblings are all alive, but I haven’t seen them in years. I’ve still got Ganon’s monsters after me, and the last thing I want is to drag them home. We send letters, but that’s all I’ll ever get.” He sighed. 

“Wow, you’ve got siblings too?! How many?” Wind asked, a bright eager smile on his face. 

“Three older brothers, a baby sister, and a baby brother who I’ve never met.” Hyrule answered. He couldn’t say no to such an excited boy. 

Warriors whistled. “That’s quite the family.” 

“My parents died in a storm at sea when Aryll was a baby.” Wind kicked his feet from his perch on a log. “I don’t remember them much, but Grandma misses them a lot.” 

“Never knew mine.” Twilight shrugged. “I was raised by the village.” 

“Hey, how long on breakfast?” Legend huffed, crossing his arms. 

“Just a bit more.” Four flailed a bit. “I don’t wanna undercook these eggs—that’s really dangerous!” 

“Don’t burn them either!” 

The eggs were saved—barely—by an overeager Wind. They weren’t the best, but they weren’t terrible. To Hyrule, who’d often contented himself with strange plants and insects, it was a feast fit for a king. He finished off three whole eggs. 

“You look satisfied.” Sky smirked. 

“Well, yeah! Eggs are packed with protein and nutrients, and I don’t get them often. Birds are really protective of them, and you can forget trying to get a hold of Lizalfos eggs on an empty stomach.” He laughed a bit, but the others shot him concerned looks. 

“You’ve eaten Lizalfos eggs?” Legend’s reddish brown eyes glinted in concern. 

“I mean, when you’re hungry enough…” He shrugged. 

“Did you have a famine or something?” Warriors tilted his head. “One hit my Hyrule towards the start of the war. It was pretty bad, but because I was actively serving at the time, I was fed.” He got up and helped the others start packing up. They’d wash the dishes when they reached a river. 

“Er… something like that.” Hyrule scratched the back of his head as Legend helped him up on Epona’s back. “At any rate, where are we headed?” 

“I was going to go ask the Zora what’s up.” 

Hyrule turned in the saddle to stare incredulously at Twilight as they started to walk. “You’re going to ask .” 

“Yeah?” Twilight gave him a raised eyebrow, like he found the question strange.

“The Zora. ” He affirmed, wondering why this seemed normal to everyone else.

“Yes?” Twilight frowned. “The Zora and I have been on good terms since I helped save their last remaining prince.” 

“So they aren’t going to bite our faces off?” Hyrule stared for a moment, half-convinced this was a joke. 

“No. The Zora are a peaceful people.” Time stated with a frown. 

“They’re anything but where I come from.” Hyrule sighed. Just another difference, he supposed. 

“I’ve got some violent Zora in my Hyrule, too.” Legend spoke up. “The freshwater Zora are bound to attack you on sight—especially the ones in the rivers. But the Zora in the ocean are friendly and typically accepting of strangers.” 

“Well, I’ve never really been to the sea.” Hyrule admitted. “If there’re friendly Zora there, I certainly wouldn’t know.” 

“You’ve never been to the sea?!” Wind looked personally offended. 

“I mean, I’ve been to the coasts, but I’ve never explored beneath the surface.” Hyrule smiled as they traveled. “I prefer to keep my feet on dry land.”

“The fastest route is up here through this cavern.” Twilight interrupted them as they came to Lake Hylia. “It’s been under construction for the last few years, but the Zora have managed to keep the monsters from nesting here.” He led them inside a massive cavern. Hyrule stared around in awe. It was enormous and spacious. He idly wondered how many centuries it took for the water to carve out a path like this. 

“It’s so biiiig !” Wind gaped, voice echoing in the cavern. “Haha! ECHOOO!” 

“That’s enough.” Time shot Wind a look, which had the boy ducking his head immediately. “We don’t know how unstable the cavern is—I don’t feel like a cave-in today.” 

“Er… that’s probably for the best.” Twilight winced as a few rocks fell to the swiftly moving river below. “I certainly had to avoid my fair share of falling debris when I traveled through here on my journey.” 

“How did you get through here?” Warriors asked, eyeing the path they were following. “This construction looks fairly new.” 

“I rode a flying monster I’d managed to tame upriver.” 

Hyrule wasn’t sure if he was being serious or not, and from the looks of it, neither did any of the others. Twilight had spoken with an entirely straight face. 

“Right.” Legend finally stated. “Moving on.” 

“Ah, here we are!” Twilight grinned as the light ahead had the group blinking fiercely. Hyrule was mostly unaffected, having gotten used to sudden, drastic changes in light over the years. His eyes tended to adjust quickly. 

He marveled at the Zora guards who stood on either side of the fast moving river. They were nothing like the Zora he knew. They stood tall on two legs and had hylian-like faces. If anything, they looked more like people than monsters. 

“Link!” One of them waved with a smile. “Welcome back. Come for a visit?” It startled Hyrule a bit to hear them speak . 

“I was wondering if you’d heard of anything unusual going on lately?” Twilight asked, tilting his head. 

“Mmm… Can’t say I have, but we don’t get much news down here. Though a couple of the Zora upriver have been to Telma’s lately… maybe they’ve heard of something?” 

“Thanks, I’ll go ask.” Twilight nodded as he led the group up a rather narrow passageway. Hyrule stuck as close to the wall as he could, eyeing the water with distrust. Legend seemed to be in a similar boat, but that was likely due to his mermaid curse. 

The Domain was beautiful. Hyrule never knew that the Zora were capable of such feats of architecture. “Wow.” He breathed out. 

“Pretty cool, huh? Should’ve seen it when it was covered in ice.” Twilight grinned, patting Hyrule on the back. He stumbled forward and backpedaled several steps when it nearly had him faceplanting into the water. 

Hyrule stared around for a moment before realizing there was no stairway up. “There’s a path behind the waterfall.” Twilight explained. “But you’ve gotta swim to get there. If anyone wants to stay dry, you can wait here.” 

“I’d rather we not split up after defeating those black-blooded enemies.” Time spoke up. He looked at Hyrule and Wind for a moment. “We’ve had sudden Switches before—that is, travel without a full portal. There’s no warning, and if we’re separated at the time, then we’re separated wherever we land.” 

Hyrule winced. “There’s just… one little problem.” He spoke up, face red. “I… erm… I can’t swim.” 

Wind gaped at him. “What do you mean you can’t swim?! I thought everyone could swim!” 

“Not everyone grew up on a Hyrule surrounded by water.” Legend frowned. “I’d rather not get wet, so I’ll stay with Hyrule. We’ll be fine—if a Switch happens, we’ll just meet up at the nearest town or build a fire." 

“Wait.” Hyrule reached into his bag. “I’ve got some communication crystals I picked up in a neighboring kingdom on my travels.” He handed one to Time, who looked at it with intense interest. Hyrule held up his own and pushed a bit of magic into it. “We can speak through these over a fair amount of distance.” His voice echoed from the one in Time’s hand, causing the older hero to startle a bit. “You’ve just gotta push a bit of magic into it." 

“I can do that.” Four announced, taking the crystal from Time. “Not many of us can use active magic like that, so I’ll keep a hold of it from our end.” 

“Right, Sky, Warriors, why don’t you two stay behind with Legend and Hyrule. If anything happens, I’d feel better knowing our strength was spread evenly.”

“Right.” Warriors grinned. “That also means I don’t need to worry about messy hair.” 

“I can still shove you in this water.” Legend threatened. 

“Only if you want me to drag you in too.” 

Hyrule watched them swim off, mildly jealous at their ability to stay afloat. 

“So you really can’t swim?” Legend frowned. 

“Nope. I sink like a rock. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve almost drowned.” He laughed a bit. 

“That’s not funny.” Legend scowled. “I’d like Wind to teach you some stuff. Just basic treading and whatnot.” 

“Why can’t you do it?” Warriors challenged. “Or can’t you swim?” 

“I can swim just fine.” Legend huffed. “But my techniques aren’t something that Hyrule can use.” 

“Oh? And why’s that?” 

“None of your business.” 

“Guys, can we not—”

Whatever Sky was about to say was abruptly cut off when the ground vanished beneath them.

Chapter Text

A/N: I felt bad about leaving you guys with a pitiful 2k chapter yesterday, especially when I missed a week for the update. So here's a 6k chapter to make up for it. :) Thank DreamoftheWild for giving me the motivation to finish this up so quickly with this beautiful piece of fanart! You rock!! :D

Alone in the Darkness, We Find a Light

Strings of Fate Unwind

New Faces Emerge, Unveiling the Questions

That Once We Left Behind

Secrets Kept Close, Guarded by Grief

Will Never the Light of Day See

Hyrule hit the ground hard. He let out a pained gasp as his still-healing injuries protested loudly . He laid there, dazed, as he tried to tell his lungs how to accept work again. 

“Hyrule!” Sky was the first to recover, stumbling to Hyrule’s side as quickly as he could. “You okay? You didn’t reopen anything did you?” 

He took a couple of deep breaths as he finally started to make sense of his environment again. “I think I’m good. Ow. ” He shakily pushed himself to a sitting position, clutching his side as he did so. Sky supported him at his back, brows furrowed in concern. He shot him a grateful smile.

“That would be the Switch Time was talking about earlier.” Legend shook his head, sending Hyrule a concerned look. “You good, Rule?”

“Maybe.” Hyrule lifted his shirt to make sure his bandages were still clean. “Looks like nothing reopened, so that’s something.” 

Legend nodded, satisfied with the honest answer, before turning towards Warriors. “Hey, idiot, you okay?”

“Who’re you calling an idiot?” Warriors huffed. 

“You good, Sky?” Hyrule asked as Sky helped him to his feet. 

“I think you’re the one we should worry about. You’re still hurt, after all.” Sky sent him a smile before taking a glance around. “Any idea where we are?” 

Hyrule glanced around too, only to gasp in awe. The entire area was filled with green and life. The magic of this land was potent and Hyrule wondered why he hadn’t felt it before. It hit him like a wave of the sea, and he stumbled a bit at its sheer power. 

“You okay?” Sky asked, steadying him. 

“The magic here is so strong .” He shook himself as he started to adjust to the magic levels of this world. “This land is either ancient or very new.” 

“Well I doubt it’s new, because that would be my era. And my surface world doesn’t look anything like this.” Sky mused. 

“Older land, then. It’s so alive and the magic is…” He shook his head as he tried to find the right word. “It’s so raw . Like a wild creature, untamed and unrestrained.” 

“We should probably check in with the others.” Warriors said. “Time’s gonna be worried.” 

“Right.” Hyrule pulled out the crystal and pushed some magic into it. “Guys? Can you hear us?” 

“Hyrule, is that you?” Four’s voice sounded. “You guys okay?” 

“Yeah. No idea where we are, but we’re good. And you?” 

“Same.” Four sighed. “Looks like we’re in a new Hyrule.” 

“Does that mean we’re getting a new Link?!” Wind’s excited voice filtered through. 

“I don’t think so… most of us were picked up within a couple of weeks of one another.... It’s been almost a month since you joined, Wind.” Time’s voice sounded. 

“He’s right.” Legend shook his head. “If it is a new Link, then it’ll be the longest gap between us.” 

“The magic is incredibly potent here.” Hyrule spoke up. “But it’s also heavily tainted with Ganon’s power. It’s possible that the new hero has only recently completed his journey, or that the powers of this land confused the portals.” 

“That may be… either way, our first priority is to regroup.” Time stated. “Do you see any landmarks nearby?” 

“Uh… I think I see… a plateau? It’s pretty big. There’s a weird mountain that looks like it’s been split down the middle, too.” Warriors answered. 

“How close are you to the mountain?” Time asked. 

“Maybe an hour’s walk?” Hyrule guessed. 

“Then we’ll meet up there. We’re about a half hour’s walk from it. Try asking around a bit to see if you can gather any information in the meantime.” Time stated. 

“All right.” Hyrule nodded, despite knowing that they couldn’t see him. “We’ll check back in with you in half an hour.” 

“Good idea.” Sky nodded. “Let us know when you reach the base of the mountain if you get there first.” 

“All right then. We’ll call you back in half an hour.” Twilight’s grin was audible. 

The light of the crystal died, signaling the end of the conversation. “Those crystals are handy.” Legend smirked as they set out towards the mountain. “How many do you have?” 

“Just these.” Hyrule answered. He’d originally gotten them so he could speak with his family, but it wasn’t until after he bought them that he realized communications wouldn’t stretch that far. He’d kept ahold of them just in case. 

“Were you planning to call someone?” Warriors tilted his head. 

“No, but there’s a saying I tend to go by—Better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.” He replied. 

“Ha!” Legend laughed. “See, Wars? Told you I wasn’t the only hoarder!”

“Hey!” Hyrule protested. “That’s not nice.” He pouted. 

The group chatted idly for a good twenty minutes, taking in the scenery. Hyrule was trying his best to be mindful of his injuries, but ache in his side was worsening the longer they walked. All three of them had to have noticed, because they’d slowed their pace several times when he started to struggle. He wished Epona had come with them, because he really didn’t want to reopen his injuries. His shoulder should be fine so long as he let it rest, but his side was not happy with walking. 

“Uh, guys?” Sky pointed towards a monster camp they were coming up on. Were those bokoblins? They looked decidedly more pig-like, and the much larger long-nosed one looked like some kind of… was that a moblin? 

They were varied in color. Some were red and some were blue, but one was black and Hyrule’s gut screamed at him that that one was dangerous . They were dancing around a fire, and hadn’t seemed to notice them, yet. 

“Maybe we should just sneak past them.” Hyrule suggested. 

“Good plan.” Legend nodded. “So long as someone can keep quiet.” He spared a moment to toss a glare at Warriors. 

“Why did Time put these two together?” Sky complained under his breath, making Hyrule snicker. They were halfway across the clearing when an arrow embedded itself into the grass right between them and the monsters. It instantly set a small fire to the grass where it landed, and inevitably drew the attention of the monsters to them. 

“Shit.” Hyrule swore as the monsters set their sights on the group of four. They all grabbed their weapons, ready to defend themselves, when a shadow overhead drew Hyrule’s attention. 

A man was riding some kind of cloth through the sky . What in the world? “Shit! Sorry!” He called out. “I’ve got ‘em!” 

“You’ve what?!” He shared a floored look with the others. This guy seriously didn’t mean to take on all those bokoblins and that moblin alone , did he?! 

But before they could move, a massive explosion took out both the watchtowers and several monsters. The black one jumped through the flames right towards Hyrule, but the stranger intercepted it with an ease of experience. 

He was wearing a bright blue shirt that reminded him of Wind, and a black cape with the Sheikah symbol on it. His sword gleamed in the light as he pushed back against the monster, swiftly dodging a blow from the moblin that had tried to sneak up on his side. 

He reached his free left hand down to his hip where a rectangular device was attached. Without glancing, he tapped on it and with a flash of blue light, a shield magically appeared on his left arm. 

Hyrule saw one of the blue bokoblins running towards the man, and intercepted the monster before it could reach him. He gritted his teeth as his right shoulder—his injured shoulder—protested the use of his shield. The mystery man spared him a glance before turning his attention back towards his own fight. 

The bokoblin fought like it was infected. It dodged attacks, tried to read his movements, and had a fair amount of individual strength that Hyrule hadn’t expected from a creature so small. But when he finally got a hit in, it bled red . 

It left him baffled. Was it possible that the monsters in this Hyrule had a base strength that matched the infected monsters in their Hyrules? He did not like the sound of that. And if the normal monsters were this strong, he didn’t want to know how strong the infected ones were. 

He blocked another hit with his shield and nearly buckled under the blow as pain shot up his shoulder and down his side. He could feel the injuries tearing and a sticky warmth was starting to spread. Legend was going to kill him. He clenched his jaw and swung his sword, finally getting a good hit in. The bokoblin cried out, and grabbed at its injured stomach, even going as far as to glare at him.

He hadn’t seen monsters this intelligent since his own Hyrule. Even then, his bokoblins weren’t this smart. Some of his monsters—like Lynels or moblins—were frighteningly intelligent, but not the run-of-the-mill bokoblins. 

It spat on the ground, but eyed the red staining his tunic with a grin. It charged again, and this time, Hyrule tried a new tactic. It was risky, but he’d already reopened his wounds. If he didn’t end this now , then he’d be in the same shape he was in the other day. And he’d used up their last fairy. 

It was a move he’d seen Warriors do in a spar several times before. Hyrule hoped he could pull it off. He readied himself to swing from the right only to change direction at the last second and go for the monster’s unprotected left side. It was sloppy, but it still worked.

The beast fell and did not move. He sighed in relief as he put his sword away, seeing that the other monsters were dead or gone. Legend and Sky had been stuck fighting the moblin and Warriors had been aiding the mystery man. The man was wiping blood off his blade, back turned towards them. “I’m so sorry about that.” He turned around, and Hyrule couldn’t help but gasp. 

His—his face ! Hylia, he’d never seen scars so horrific in all his life! They stretched across the entire left side of the blond’s face and down his neck. His bright blue eyes shined in the sunlight. 

“I didn’t know you were there, otherwise I wouldn’t have fired the arrow.” He apologized. 

“I-It’s okay.” Sky recovered first. “Sorry we startled you. Thanks for helping us out.” 

“Nah, don’t worry about it.” He grinned easily, rocking on the heels of his feet. “Monsters are everywhere, ya know?” He paused as he noticed Hyrule’s injuries. “You’re hurt!” 

Heads whipped around and Legend was by his side in an instant. “You idiot! You reopened them!” 

“I mean, I could’ve let the bokoblin run me through.” He huffed, lifting the edge of his shirt to see that the bandages were soaked. 

Legend sat him down on a nearby rock as he and Sky removed the bandages. They hadn’t reopened as badly as they could have, but it still needed immediate treatment. 

“Hey, Warriors, got any potions?” Legend asked with a frown as he put pressure on the wound on his side. 

“Time has them.” He sighed. “My last one was used up a few days ago.”

“I’ve got some Elixirs.” The stranger spoke up, holding up a simple vial filled with deep red liquid. “Here, I’ve got plenty.” 

“You sure?” Hyrule questioned as he took the vial. It looked like a potion, but it also looked very different. It was darker and thicker and it didn’t let as much sunlight pass through it as a normal potion would. 

“Like I said, I’ve got plenty.” The man smiled. “Besides, you only got hurt because I didn’t realize you were there. Consider this an apology.” 

“All right, then.” Hyrule nodded, carefully uncapping it. He discreetly sniffed it before deeming it not poisoned with anything he could detect. It went down smoothly and had the faint taste of… mushrooms? He pulled a face. The hell was in that? 

A light tingling sensation started to prickle the edges of his wounds, and he resisted the urge to scratch at them. Then, to his shock, the injuries started to fully close up and scar over. This elixir the man had given him did the work of three potions! That was definitely worth more than an apology! 

“What was that? I've never seen a potion so strong.” Hyrule stared at the vial. 

“It’s a Hearty Elixir. It’s your basic healing item here in Hyrule.” The man frowned. “Have you never seen one before?” 

“Actually, we’re not from around here.” Legend spoke up. “We got separated from our friends and were planning to meet up at the base of that mountain.” He pointed towards their temporary destination. 

“Oh, you’re heading to the Dueling Peaks? There’s a stable there you can stay at. Since you’re unfamiliar with the area, do you want me to come along?” 

“We couldn’t impose on you like that.” Hyrule shook his head. 

“Don’t worry about it! I was just heading that way to get to Hyrule Castle.” He grinned. “Oh, since you’re not from here you might not know, the Castle’s being rebuilt. Soon, Hyrule should have a monarchy again, should Zelda wish to reestablish it.” He paused for a moment. “And if people want one.”  

“Wait, what happened to it in the first place?” Warriors blinked as Hyrule put his tunic back on. He grimaced at the cold sticky wetness that clung to his skin.

“You mean you don’t know?” The stranger tilted his head. “Well, I suppose that’s fair. You might not have heard about it if you’re from another place. Calamity Ganon attacked a hundred years ago and killed almost everyone.” 

Hyrule winced. That sounded somewhat familiar. The others, however, had looks of horror painted on their faces. “What about the Hero?” Sky asked. 

“Uh… it’s complicated.” He scratched the back of his head. “The Hero fell to Calamity during that first attack.” 

“He… died ?” Warriors echoed. 

“Sort of.” Their guide shrugged. “Like I said—it’s complicated.” 

What was so complicated about death? You die, you’re dead. That’s it. They waited but it looked like their guide didn’t have anything else to say about the topic. 

“Right.” Sky nodded as they started walking. 

“You good?” The scarred man asked Hyrule, who nodded. 

“Yeah, thanks to your po—elixir. Thank you.” 

“It’d take another half hour to get here just by walking—hold on, I’ll grab us some horses.” He stated before wandering off into an open field where several horses were grazing.

“Get us horses?” Warriors questioned, but Legend just shrugged.

Then, to their shock, the man snuck up on a horse and jumped atop it. It started bucking and thrashing and it took Hyrule a moment to understand what he was seeing. “Those are… wild horses.” He realized. “He’s taming wild horses for us to ride.” 

“You’re shitting me!” Legend stared. “He’s crazy.” 

“I think he’s nice.” Sky smiled. 

“You think everyone’s nice.” Legend huffed. 

The man came back with four horses, each with dappled coloration. They had no reigns or saddles, but Hyrule wasn’t about to look a literal gift horse in the mouth. “Thanks.” Hyrule grinned. “But what about yourself?” 

The man just smiled and gave a loud, sharp whistle. A horse suddenly appeared from the shadows of the forest. It was entirely black in coloration, from the mane to the coat. Bright golden amber eyes stared at them with an intelligent nonchalance. 

“This is Echo, my horse.” The man grinned. Hyrule noted that the horse had some battle scars, too, and one particularly deep set of claw marks on the rump of the animal looked to have been treated with the utmost care. 

Echo nuzzled his owner with a sure neigh of affection. “We should get to the stables in half the time on horseback.” He explained. 

“Thanks.” Hyrule clamored upon his steed with an ease of experience while Warriors struggled without a saddle. He had to resort to stepping atop a rock to mount his steed, and the horse seemed more than a little irritated at the clanking of his armor. 

With their new mounts, they made incredible time to the peaks—and thusly, the stables. Thankfully, Time and the others were already there. They looked up with a grin of relief when they approached. 

As they dismounted, the stablehands took their horses out to graze. “Glad you’re safe. We got worried when you didn’t check in.” Time frowned lightly at the blood on Hyrule’s tunic before turning towards their guide, likely assuming that if Sky and Legend weren’t freaking out, he was fine. “I suppose I have you to thank for getting them back safely?” 

“I’m actually the one who got them into trouble.” He laughed as he scratched his head. 

“Oh, we never introduced ourselves!” Sky realized. “I’m so sorry! My name is Sky. That’s Warriors, Legend, and Hyrule.” 

“Hyrule?” He questioned. 

“Yep.” He had a feeling this was going to be a common reaction. Wonderful. 

“I’m Time. That’s Four, Wind, and Twilight.” Time picked up. 

“Nice to meet you guys! My name is Link.” 

The group started a bit. They’d found another hero? But… maybe not. Not every Link was a Hero, after all. 

“Hey, question for you.” Sky spoke up as he reached for Fi. “Do you recognize this blade?” 

Link’s eyes widened as he took in the sight of the Master Sword. It answered their question immediately. “That’s… the Sword that Seals the Darkness.” He whispered. “But how? I put her back to rest in the Lost Woods.” 

“We are heroes traveling across time and space. My name is also Link, but my title is the Hero of the Skies—or Chosen Hero. Either or.” Sky smiled. “We’re all Link. We’ve been brought together to fight off these infected monsters that’ve been invading our homelands. And I think you’re supposed to join us.” 

“No.” Link shook his head as he took a step away. “Look, I wish you luck on your journey—and I do believe you—but I’m not a hero. I’m not who you’re looking for.” He denied. 

He reminded Hyrule of himself. Honestly, if they’d come to his home Hyrule and asked him the same thing, he would’ve bolted in the other direction faster than they could track him. He was pretty sure this guy was close to doing the same thing and judging from the size of this Hyrule, they’d have more than a little trouble finding him. (Part of him idly wondered if that’s why Hyrule was sent to them , instead of them being sent to him—because he would’ve run off and they never would’ve found him.)

Unfortunately, the others didn’t seem to pick up on this. “You wielded Fi—the Master Sword . She recognized you as one of us. You are a Hero.” 

“No.” Link shook his head, his left foot was pivoted towards the nearby woods, now. “No, she let me wield her because it was necessary . I-I wasn’t chosen like you. I’m not who you think I am. My name may be Link, but that doesn’t mean I’m a hero.” 

Not every Link is a Hero. This guy understood. Hyrule’s eyes widened at that realization. This guy… was just like him. And now, his actions were clicking into place even faster than he could carry them out. 

“You saved Hyrule.” Sky pushed when he should’ve backed off. Hyrule understood the way Link stiffened—that dark shadow in his eye. This Link wasn’t like them . He was like him . He didn’t save his Hyrule… 

He’d damned it. 

Hyrule’s eyes met Link’s for the briefest of moments. He felt more than saw Link come to the same understanding as Hyrule. They were the same. And that, ultimately, was why Hyrule had a hold of Sky’s arm even before Link bolted for the woods. 

“Wait!” Sky cried out, anchored only by Hyrule. “Hyrule?” He looked down at the healer, who had let his bangs shadow his eyes. 

“Leave him be, Sky.” He advised. 

“What? But—”

“Trust me. You’ve cornered him enough as it is. Let him breathe and process what you’ve said.” He looked up at Sky and the others with a heavy gaze. “I would’ve reacted exactly like he did if you’d picked me up from my Hyrule.” 

“Why?” Warriors asked, confused. 

Hyrule let out a breathy laugh that held no humor. It was dark and it was cold, and Sky flinched away like he was struck. “Not every Link is a Hero.” He stated.

“I’m sorry?” 

“Forget it.” Hyrule shook his head, shoving his hands in his tunic. “I’m going to go for a walk to cool off. Leave him be for a bit.” 

He didn’t let them stop him as he walked off. Even Legend looked like he wanted to chase him, but in the end, he let Hyrule go—something the traveler was grateful for. 

He wasn’t quite sure where he was going, but he just needed some space. Hyrule sighed as he let the magic of this world wash over him, caressing him like a mother. It made him smile. The animals were so lively, here. It was a world so entirely unlike his own that he found himself enthralled with everything around him. 

He gasped as he came upon a clearing filled with wildflowers. They bloomed in every color imaginable. The closest he’d seen to the scene before him was back home—in Calatia. But even that didn’t compare to the beauty he saw here. 

Without a second thought, he pulled out his Traveler’s Journal and some charcoals and sat down on a nearby stump. He was going to show this to his little sister and brother. They’d love it. 

He was so engrossed in his drawing that he hadn’t noticed someone coming up behind him until he heard a twig snap—an intentional thing, he’d later learn. He stiffened, stilling on instinct and listening for any sign of danger. 

“That’s amazing.”

He whirled around to find Link standing there, peering over his shoulder with an awed expression. How had he gotten so close without Hyrule sensing him?

“It’s nothing, really.” He denied. “Just a hobby of mine.” 

“No, I’m serious. I wish I could draw like that.” Link sat on the grass beside him and just stared out at the fields. After a moment, Hyrule realized he wasn’t going to say anything more, and he slowly started to work on his drawing again. 

The quiet was nice. It was peaceful in a way he’d never really experienced before. Having someone there, a soft presence by his side, was oddly comforting. 

“You’re like me.” It wasn’t a question. It was an observation. And Hyrule looked over at Link before nodding. 

“I come from a land that’s been consumed by darkness.” He said, putting his notebook away. “I’m not a hero, either.” 

Link gave him an odd look. “But the others…?” 

“You really think they’d believe me if I told them?” Hyrule chuckled. “They’re too… trusting .” 

“Yeah, I kind of got that vibe.” 

“They’re heroes. Great heroes. But me? I’m just a traveler who happens to be really good at healing.” He sighed as he watched the clouds drift lazily by. “I’m starting to think that I was only sent to this group to heal them.” 

“Then why do you stay with them?” Link tilted his head. “Did they force you?” 

“Oh, no.” Hyrule shook his head, mildly amused by the prospect. “They’d never. It’s not in them to force someone along on a journey like this. I was actually dumped on them in someone else’s Hyrule, so initially I was just tagging along until we hit mine.” 

“But…?” 

“But I’ve learned something… Whether or not you’re a hero… it doesn’t define what you can and can’t do. You don’t have to be a hero to help people.” 

Hyrule looked Link in the eye. The man before him carried horrific scars. His Hyrule was wild and untamed, but Hyrule had hardly seen any people or settlements. And earlier, Link had spoken of a hero who was defeated. Defeated but not quite dead . For a moment, Hyrule disregarded the fact that the hero had been defeated over a century ago. He had a hunch, and he really hoped it wasn’t correct.

“What if I don’t want to help people?” Link challenged. “What if I’m just done with everything?” 

“Then be done.” Hyrule shrugged. “Look out for yourself and say to hell with everyone else.” 

Link turned to look at him with raised eyebrows. “Something tells me that’s not quite like you.” 

Hyrule smirked. “And how would you know? I’ll have you know I’ve got quite the reputation back home.” 

“Oh, really ?” Link grinned. “I may have a bit of one, myself.” 

“I’ll share a story if you do?” Hyrule proposed, sinking onto the grass beside Link. 

Link sat and pondered for a long moment. “Okay, so there was this one time…”

It was well past dark when Hyrule entered the Stable. Legend was the first to see him, and his shoulders relaxed upon seeing him unharmed. He looked like he was going to say something when Link walked in beside him, a smile on his face. 

“Wait, so you really just left them like that?” Link asked incredulously through his laughter, causing Hyrule to snort in amusement. 

“Oh, you should’ve seen the looks on their faces!” He snickered. “And Dawn! Oh, man, she was so pissed! Well, Aurora—the one who was asleep for a century—found it amusing, but Dawn can be a little… erm… stiff at times.” Hyrule winced as he recalled how unamused the princess had been at the prank. 

“But why green ?” Link persisted. 

“It’s what I had on hand.” Hyrule shrugged. 

The others stared at him with expressions ranging from shock to incredulity. Apparently the fact that he’d not only found the one person they needed to find, but got on friendly terms with him in only a few hours was something they hadn’t been expecting. 

In all honesty, it wasn’t something Hyrule himself had expected either, but Link was enjoyable to talk to. They clicked in a way that was different to everybody else. Legend was his mentor—his predecessor. The others were heroes who looked at him as an ally or comrade. But Link? They were just two regular people who happened to share a name. Together, they weren’t heroes, or failures. They were just… them . 

The two fell silent for a moment. Link had a resigned look in his eye and Hyrule knew exactly what decision he’d come to. 

“I’m sorry.” Link apologized to Sky. “I shouldn’t have run off like I did.” 

“It’s all right.” Sky shook his head. “I’m sorry if I was too forceful. I don’t have a lot of social skills.” 

Hyrule held back a snort. If anyone here had a severe lack of social skills, it was him . He’d spent the last half decade living in a cave , after all. 

“At any rate, if you’ll still have me, I’d like to help in whatever way I can.” Link stated, giving Sky a bit of a shy smile. 

Sky beamed and held out the Master Sword. Link hesitated, but took it nonetheless. The blade pulsed for a moment, assessing the supposed hero in front of her. After a moment, he handed it back to Sky. 

“I see… she’s given you a title, all right.” Sky grinned. “Welcome to the team, Hero of the Wild.” 

The newly dubbed Wild smiled at them, and he gave Hyrule a particularly wide grin. “I can’t promise I’ll be too helpful, but I can cook, at least.” 

“You can cook ?!” Warriors gaped, and Hyrule understood his disbelief. 

“What, you can’t?” Wild frowned. 

“None of us can cook.” Twilight groaned. 

“Hey! I can cook just fine.” Hyrule crossed his arms. 

“He meant something edible .” Warriors laughed. 

“Only I can talk to Hyrule like that!” Legend smacked Warriors upside the head. 

“Wild, do you need to inform anyone about your leaving? Perhaps your Zelda?” Time asked, looking at Wild seriously. 

“Er… I should probably tell a few people, but they’re all spread out. It’d take weeks to visit everyone on foot. If you’re cool waiting here, I can just use the Shrines to let them know.” Wild pulled his weird rectangle off his hip. 

“What is that?” Wind tilted his head. 

“It’s my Sheikah Slate.” Wild answered. “Ancient Sheikah technology. I can take pictures, store items, and even teleport across my Hyrule!” He grinned. “I can also make bombs, move metal stuff, freeze water, pause time—”

“You can pause time ?!” Twilight’s eyes were wide. “What kind of magic is that?!”

“It’s not magic.” Wild protested. “It’s technology .” 

“Right.” Four gave Wild a flat look, a violet gleam to his eyes. “Because freezing water and screwing with time isn’t magic at all.” 

“Exactly!” Wild grinned. Four gave Wild an odd look. 

“Anyways, so you can teleport over and let them know?” Twilight asked. 

“Yeah! Though Zelda’s probably over at Hateno. I was supposed to meet her at the castle today, but since I’m a little late, she’ll be looking for me at my house.” 

“We can come along and explain things to her, too?” Sky offered. 

“I could just bring her here.” Wild grinned. “She’s got a pretty fast horse, so if I let her know now, she’ll be here by sunrise.” 

“Are you sure?” Wind asked. “Isn’t that having her go out of her way?” 

“Nah, she loves traveling.” Wild laughed. “She loathes staying in one place almost as much as I do.” 

“A fellow busybody, huh?” Warriors grinned, sending a significant look towards Hyrule. 

“I’m a traveler . What do you expect?” He crossed his arms. 

“Oh, dinner should be ready.” Wild perked up before heading back outside. Hyrule idly wondered when he’d had the time to sneak off and make food.

“Dinner…?” Everyone shared a look. It would be the moment of truth. Could this Link… actually cook ? 

Hyrule took his bowl carefully. Sure, he could stomach pretty much anything, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t appreciate good food. And even just the smell told him it was a fantastic meal. 

He took a bite, and stilled. The stew—simple though it was—was familiar. He knew it. It was something his mother would cook all the time for him as a child. 

“Hyrule?” Legend asked quietly as the others started cheering and digging into their bowls with gusto. 

Hyrule belatedly realized that tears were streaming down his face. He tried to wipe them away, but they just kept coming. He hiccuped a little, which drew Wild’s attention. 

“Do… you not like it?” Wild frowned, and Hyrule shook his head, trying to convey that that wasn’t the case, but he couldn’t get the words out. 

He felt a pair of arms wrap around him, and instinctively flinched. He realized his face was pressed against a familiar red tunic. Legend held him close, the others looking on in concern and confusion. 

“It just…” He whispered out. “Tastes like home.” He turned his face into Legend’s tunic so as to muffle his next words. Only Legend made them out. “I just want to go home .” 

Thankfully, the others had the decency to return to their meals, making idle chatter to give Hyrule and Legend a semblance of privacy. 

“I-I’m sorry.” Wild apologized. Hyrule, now more composed, shook his head. 

“No, please.” He wiped the last few stray tears from his eyes. “You did nothing wrong. My mother used to make me this same stew when I was young.” He smiled at the warm bowl in his hands. “I haven’t had her cooking in a long time. It just… was unexpected. Not bad.” 

Wild smiled a bit. “Still, I’ll have to be more careful.” 

“I nominate Wild as our Cook.” Wind cut in, successfully changing the topic. 

“I’m good with that.” Wild smiled. 

“Yes!” Warriors cheered. “No more cooking rotation!” 

“Thanks, Leg.” Hyrule muttered softly to his predecessor. 

“Don’t mention it.” Legend ruffled his hair a bit, and Hyrule sent him a smile. “Idiot Traveler.”

Chapter Text

A/N: Welcome back! This chapter is more of a setup chapter, but Wild needed to get his story out there. This Wild is a tad closer to canon—a bit more trusting and not nearly as secretive as my Wild in Alone We Fight (or A Hero's Spirit, for that matter). So all it takes for him to tell the others is a nudge from Flora. :3 Enjoy this little bit of semi-fun before next chapter brings the PAIN. And no, I'm not elaborating on that one. :)

The next morning, Hyrule awoke from his pile of blankets on the floor. He'd tried the bed, but he hadn’t slept in one in years . It was just too soft for someone who’d adjusted to sleeping on the floor of a cave. So he’d migrated to the floor at some point in the night, much to Legend’s—who he’d doubled up with—confusion. 

“You sure you’re good?” Legend asked as Hyrule stretched. Four and a couple of the others were waking up, but Sky, Twilight, Warriors and Wind were all still fast asleep. 

“Yeah. The bed’s too soft for me.” He shrugged. 

“Too soft?” Four tilted his head. “Don’t you sleep in a bed at home?” 

“Er… not really.” He shrugged. “I’m a traveler, remember? I tend to sleep on the ground more often than not. Sometimes in trees, too.” 

“What about inns?” Legend frowned. 

Hyrule mentally floundered. How was he supposed to explain that whole towns kicked him out? There’s no way he could even reach the inn to get kicked out of unless he was in a disguise, but there’s no way Hyrule could ever feel comfortable enough around the townspeople of his Hyrule to sleep there. If they had even an inkling that it could be him, they may very well poison his food or drink—it’d happened before. 

The sound of distinctly femine laughter saved him from answering as he glanced outside. Wild was talking animatedly to a girl with blonde hair and green eyes. She wore practical clothing and looked more like an archeologist or researcher, but there was no doubt in his mind that this was Zelda. 

Well, Wild’s Zelda. He now realized just why they insisted on Hyrule nicknaming his Zeldas. 

He shrugged and drifted outside with the others to introduce themselves as Sky and the others began to stir, likely roused by the smell of food cooking or Zelda’s voice. “Oh, morning!” Wild greeted happily. “This is Zelda! Zelda, this is… uh… well…” 

“Pleasure to meet you.” Time came to the rescue. “I go by Time. Has Wild explained anything yet?” 

“Wild?” Zelda blinked, mildly offended. 

“It’s my nickname with them.” Wild explained. 

“Link.” She gave him a look much like how Hyrule’s older brothers would stare at him when he’d done something he shouldn’t have. 

“There’s eight of us.” Time started. “And we’re all named Link, so nicknames are a given.” 

“You’re all named Link?” She questioned before her eyes flitted from Time to Hyrule to Four and Legend. “Hold on…” She then looked behind them, where Sky and the others were groggily joining them, still rubbing sleep from his eyes. “That’s… the Sword that Seals… You’re all heroes?” 

“She’s a sharp one.” Legend smirked. 

“We’ve been gathered together to fight an infection. Monsters across all our Hyrules have been infected with black blood that gives them unreal vitality. We are all heroes from across time. And apparently alternate timelines, as well. I am Link, the Hero of Time. Just call me Time.” 

“You’re the Hero of Time ?!” Zelda’s eyes were aflame with passionate curiosity. “Your story has been passed down for thousands of years!” 

“Thousands of years?!” Time startled, but Zelda didn’t seem to noticed as she continued speaking. 

“So that means—!” She zeroed in on Sky. “ You must be the Chosen Hero! The one who forged the Master Sword and founded Hyrule itself! Oh my Goddess, this is incredible !!” 

“Here we go again.” Wild sighed, and Hyrule had the distinct impression that Zelda did this a lot .

“Is that the Foursword?! ” She abruptly turned her attention on the shortest of the group, who stiffened at the mention of his blade. Now that Hyrule was thinking about it, he really didn’t know what to make of the unusual magic rolling off that blade. He should probably ask Four about it at some point. 

“Y-yes?” 

“My goodness, does it really have the power to—”

“I’d rather not talk about that right now.” Four quickly cut her off, eyes flashing blue for a brief moment. Zelda startled, but she looked like she’d had her question answered. Hyrule, however, had felt an abrupt shift in Four’s magical energy. It was as if he had been an entirely different person for that split moment, and was now fading back to normal. He’d always felt Four’s magic as four distinct auras, and sometimes one was more pronounced than the others, but he’d never been actively watching it when it did so. 

It honestly left him with more questions than he knew what to do with, but he decided that if Four didn’t want to volunteer the information himself, he wouldn’t ask. Not unless it became necessary. 

“I’m Wind! I sail on The Great Sea of Hyrule!” How was that kid so chipper in the mornings? Didn’t he just wake up? 

“I think I’ve seen texts mentioning The Great Sea.” Zelda hummed. That was interesting. So this was the Hyrule that’d been buried under the sea?

“So you’re from Wind’s era?” Twilight muttered to Wild as he rubbed his eye. 

“Wait.” Zelda then turned her attention towards Twilight. “You wouldn’t happen to be the Hero of Twilight , would you?” 

“I-I… yes?” Twilight blinked, floored. “But I’m not from the same timeline as Wind. How could you…?” 

“Link! Do you think any of them could be the hero from—”

“No, I really don’t think so.” Wild deadpanned before she could even finish her sentence. She huffed and pouted, but he just gave her an unimpressed look. 

“Hero from…?” Hyrule trailed off, but his question was soft enough to go unheard.

“The last hero was a hundred years ago, right?” Warriors recalled, and both Zelda and Wild flinched. 

“You didn’t tell them.” She said, somewhat accusatorily. 

“I met them yesterday .” Wild defended. Hyrule could understand that. He had been traveling with these people for months and had hardly told them a thing about himself beyond being a traveler and not having been born in Hyrule. Hell, they’d only learned a handful of days ago that his birthname wasn’t Faron. And if he was being honest, his main reason for going by Hyrule was because it hurt to be reminded of Navi’s absence every time someone wanted to get his attention. 

“Fine.” She huffed. “You tell them or I will.” She held his gaze for a long moment before Wild looked away. Zelda grinned in triumph. “All I’ll say is that the last known hero was ten thousand years ago.”

“T-ten thousand ?!” Warriors choked, as even Time raised an eyebrow in surprise. 

“In that case, it’s entirely possible that Wild is so far down the line that the timelines have somehow merged together.” Sky hummed. 

“It’s possible .” Zelda nodded. “How many timelines are we talking about, here?” 

“Three that we know of.” Time sighed. “One of which I apparently died in.” 

“So I’m guessing, going off what I know from your journey written in texts, that there’s an Adult Timeline, a Child Timeline and… a Downfall Timeline?” 

Time’s journey was written in texts? He idly wondered if the others’ journeys were similarly preserved. Was the Downfall Timeline—Hyrule’s own—recorded somehow? He really didn’t see how such a beautiful and thriving land as this could possibly be connected to his own dying Hyrule in any form. But if it somehow was… if this was somehow part of a future he had, in some way, helped to cultivate… then perhaps he may not be as much of a failure as he’d always thought. 

“Is she always like this?” Legend asked, and Wild nodded. 

“She’s a researcher at heart. Loves building things and taking them apart to figure out how they work.” He smiled. 

“Hey, Wild, what’s for breakfast?” Wind asked. 

“Oh!” Zelda perked up. “That reminds me. You all must have Zeldas, too, right? Why not give me a nickname as well so things don’t get too confusing?” 

Warriors grinned. “Way ahead of you, Princess. My Zelda is called Artemis. We pick their names based off their characteristics, or play off our own Hero titles. So Wild should choose yours, unless you’ve got something in mind?” 

“I think it’s a wonderful idea.” She turned towards Wild with a coy smile. “Go on.” 

“You’re letting me pick your nickname.” He gave her a flat look. 

“You picked a good name for your horse.” 

“You aren’t a horse , you’re my friend .” He huffed, crossing his arms. 

“Oh come, now. You didn’t have this much trouble when you named Mipha’s pet do—” She suddenly stopped, as if she’d said something wrong. “I-I’m so sorry, I just…” 

Wild grimaced. “It’s… fine.” 

It was obviously not fine, and suddenly the easy air of friendship around the two dissolved into an awkward mess that Hyrule couldn’t even begin to understand. 

“You can reject the nickname if you think it doesn’t fit, but… How about Flora?” Wild spoke up softly, looking at Zelda with an uncertainty that hadn’t been there a moment ago. 

“I… rather like that name.” She nodded. “Thank you… Wild.” 

He smiled a bit. “I think Wild is easier. Is Flora easier for you?” He asked. 

“Actually, yes. It’s probably for the best if we just go by that.” She nodded before realizing that they still had an audience. “Well, I’m going to go for a quick walk. Li—Wild’s already given me some breakfast, so don’t worry about that.” 

“Will you be safe alone?” Warriors asked, a frown on his face. 

“Please.” She snorted in a very unladylike manner. “I’ll be fine.” She let out a gentle pulse of holy power from the palm of her hand. Hyrule’s eyes widened seeing such a casual display of powerful holy magic. He knew that the Zeldas were descended from Hylia herself, but he’d never seen the power before. 

“Oh, I haven’t seen anyone wield it so effortlessly since Sun.” Sky blinked. “That’s my Zelda, by the way.” He explained. 

“Sun is the literal incarnation of Hylia herself, so… that’s quite the compliment.” Warriors added on. 

“Ah, well… It wasn’t always like this. If you’ll excuse me.” Flora smiled sadly before sending a significant look at Wild and walking off. 

“What was that about?” Legend huffed. 

“Perhaps it’s best if we don’t pry.” Hyrule advised. 

“It’s fine.” Wild sighed as he handed out breakfast. “It’s just… there’s a lot of stuff between us.” 

“We could tell.” Warriors nodded. 

Breakfast was something that Hyrule couldn’t identify as anything other than delicious. If Wild was really going to be joining them, he dearly hoped they’d be able to eat like this every day. Oh, he was going to become so spoiled. He wished he could share this with Navi and his siblings. 

“I suppose the place to start is that… I only have three years of memories.” Wild’s words silenced the group. “I started my journey without even knowing my own name.” 

He was… an amnesiac? Hyrule’s entire motivation during his quests had been centered around his family. On those dark, lonely nights when his only company was the heavy grunting of monsters as they searched for his blood, his only comfort was the memory of his sister’s smile. His mother’s hugs. His father’s laughter. The teasing of Garet and Ren, his elder brothers. And the memory of the soft accepting gaze of Julian, his eldest brother. He didn’t think he could’ve survived his quest without his memories reminding him of what it was he was protecting. 

“Wait… how?” Four blinked, and it took Hyrule a moment to realize he was asking Wild how he lost his memories, rather than how the hell he’d managed to go on an entire quest without them. 

“Ah, that hero that was defeated a century ago?” Wild smiled sheepishly, and Hyrule realized with a jolt that his earlier hunch was right. “I said it was complicated. That… was me.” 

“H-how?” Twilight stuttered. “That was a hundred years ago.” 

“The Sheikah have a bunch of shrines in this land.” Wild leaned back as he spoke, eyes following the clouds as they drifted lazily across the morning sky. “A hundred years ago… no, it’s best if I start further back than that.” He shook his head. "Ten thousand years ago, the Sheikah created weapons to aid the hero in his fight against Calamity Ganon. An entire army of autonomous fighting machines were made to protect him and the princess. They called those Guardians. At the same time, they built four colossal ones that required one pilot each—the Divine Beasts. They were successful in bringing down Calamity, and left instructions for the future king to do the same should Calamity rear his head again.” 

The group remained quiet, listening to the tale. Certainly, the hero of ten thousand years past was none of them. But even so, Hyrule was starting to see where this was going. And his heart was slowly breaking for Wild, because he didn’t deserve this.

“One hundred years ago, I pulled the Sword that Seals the Darkness from the pedestal in the Lost Woods. This marked me as ‘The Hero’. Heeding the warning of our ancestors, the king dug up the Guardians and Divine Beasts and found four pilots from each of the main races of Hyrule. Zelda had yet to unlock her sealing powers, despite how desperately she prayed.” He sighed. “And then Calamity attacked. The Great Calamity. That’s what the people of my land call it. Ganon learned from his last defeat and took control of all the Guardians and Divine Beasts, killing the pilots and using them all to wreak havoc on Hyrule.” 

There was a breathless pause. “You mean… he just destroyed everything?” Wind gasped. It was certainly nothing like the Ganondorf he’d heard mentioned from Time’s journey. If anything, this Calamity Ganon sounded similar to Hyrule’s own Ganon—if a tad more intelligent. A bloodthirsty beast who wanted nothing but death and destruction.

“Yes. I… I tried to get Zelda to safety, but…” He gently traced the scars on his face, and Hyrule’s stomach dropped. “But the Guardians killed me first.” 

It was like a blow to the gut. This guy… Wild. He’d been killed . Actually, legitimately killed by Ganon. Looking around, the others seemed just as floored by this information as he did. 

“The Sheikah have a shrine up on the Great Plateau. It’s known as the Shrine of Resurrection. I was brought there while Zelda went to confront Calamity on her own. My death unlocked her sealing powers, which you saw earlier. She held him inside the castle for a hundred years before I woke up with no memories.” He tapped his slate, putting his cooking supplies—now clean—away. “And that’s that. I still don’t have my memories back. I have only a handful of them, and sometimes they just hit me out of nowhere, but…” 

Hyrule swallowed, digesting this shitshow of a story Wild had lived through. And Hyrule thought he’d had it bad. At least he hadn’t died. At least Hyrule’s family was still alive.

Wild looked up at Hyrule. There was something in his eyes that called out to him. He abruptly realized why he felt such a strong connection towards this hero—because Wild was assuredly a Hero, unlike Hyrule—he had that same shadow of loneliness in his eyes. 

“We’ll figure out a way around your memories.” Hyrule reassured. “You won’t be alone when you wake up.” 

Wild’s eyes widened as he caught the second meaning behind Hyrule’s words, and he mentally patted himself on the back. “Thank you… Hyrule.” He smiled. 

Wild opened his mouth to say something when his head abruptly whipped up. Hyrule was going to ask what he was looking for, when a portal suddenly swirled into existence. “You could sense that?” Hyrule asked. 

“Of course. Couldn’t you?” He tilted his head. 

“I suppose this is the portal, then?” Flora spoke up from where she’d been standing behind the group. She pulled Wild into a hug. “Be careful , Link.” 

“I’m more worried about you .” He hugged her back. 

“I’ll be fine, you dolt. And if necessary, I can stay with Sidon or Teba.” 

“All right.” He smiled. “Take good care of Echo, yeah?” 

The horse nuzzled Wild, as if saying his own farewell. “Don’t worry, I think Echo and I will be just fine.” 

“Well, then…” Wild smiled, turning towards the group of heroes. “Let’s go.”

Chapter Text

A/N: Well, it's technically Tuesday, and I've got work in about eight hours. So instead of finagaling with mobile, I'll just update it now. :3 Something special to note. I have only ever cried (I use this term very loosely, as in shed a tear or two) twice from my own writing. This chapter contains one of those.

So grab your tissues, and get ready for a ride, because I'm hoping to wrap this story up in the next five chapters or so! :D

Alone in the Darkness, We Find A Light

Strings of Fate Unwind

New Faces Emerge, Unveiling the Questions

That Once, we Left Behind

Secrets Kept Close, Guarded by Grief

Will Never the Light of Day See

But Fate has Her ways, Harsh though they may be

Of Rendering Useless Your Key

Hyrule sighed as he sat at the edge of camp. It’d been a month since they’d picked up Wild, and everyone was pretty much settled in with one another. And while Hyrule loved traveling with these people, some days, he just... missed Navi.  

Okay, most days, he missed Navi. But usually, he could ignore it enough that it wasn’t something that visibly bothered him. Today was not one of those days. 

“What’s troubling you, Traveler?” Hyrule looked up to see Sky sitting down beside him. “You look down.” 

“Just missing someone.” He sighed a bit as he gazed up at the sky. Sometimes, he could almost imagine the tiny blue light flickering on the edge of his vision.

“Oh… you did mention a fairy when you first met us, didn’t you?” He tilted his head. 

“She…” He sighed, running a hand through his hair. His fingers caught on the little braid he kept by his face—the same braid Navi used to do, which was now part of a daily morning routine for Time to fix up. 

“She’s your friend, right?” Sky looked up at the clouds. “She helped you on your journey.” 

“No. I met her after I completed my quests.” Hyrule corrected. He was always reluctant to call them journeys, because that’s what the others called their quests. If they were heroes, and they called them journeys, then what Hyrule went on had to be a quest. Because he wasn’t a hero, so he most certainly hadn’t been on a journey like them. “I knew her for about a year…” He nearly choked on his words. Speaking of her in past tense felt so wrong . 

Sky placed a hand on his shoulder, and he couldn’t help the light flinch. “Sorry.” Hyrule apologized quickly, his voice melding with Sky’s as they spoke the same word at the same time. 

“What’s she like?” 

“Navi?” Hyrule asked, tilting his head back. He turned to stare at the seemingly endless seas of Wind’s Hyrule. 

“Is that her name?” 

“Yeah.” He smiled. “She’s a little spitfire. Full of spite and snark, but she cares. Always telling me to listen , but guiding me away from danger and stupid stunts. She never lets me forget to bundle up when it’s cold, and always reminds me to tend to my injuries whenever possible.” He let out a breathy laugh. “She once threatened to punch a guy who was about six hundred times her size because he said something rude to me.” 

“She sounds amazing.” Sky laughed. 

“She is.” Hyrule nodded, a wide grin on his face. “Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised to find her as a Great Fairy one day.” 

“I can’t wait to meet her.” The Skyloftian beamed, and Hyrule felt his spirits brighten. 

Talking about Navi like this… it was nice. He’d been keeping a lid on it because it’d hurt too much to talk about, but now he realized that once he got over that initial sting, talking about her really wasn’t that bad. If anything, it made it feel like he was closer than ever to finding her. And who knew, maybe he’d catch a break for once, and Navi had already found her way home. Perhaps she was flitting around their cavern worriedly, searching every nook of Hyrule to find him. Faron didn’t do optimism, but perhaps he could be a little less pessimistic as Hyrule.

“We’re moving out!” Time called suddenly, drawing their attention. “Wild’s picked up signs of a new portal to the East.” 

“Again? But we got here three days ago!” Wind pouted.

“We’ll come back eventually.” Warriors grinned, ruffling the boy’s hair. “Just think of it as a way to make more stories to tell your sister when we get back.”  

Despite the abruptness of having to pack up a camp they’d just made , the group was moving out within ten minutes. He winced. Every time they leapt through a portal, some small part of him prayed that it was any Hyrule but his own.

He dreaded the day they saw his failures with their own eyes. He was ashamed of his land and that even after completing two quests, Ganon’s power still reigned supreme. That even after he’d done his supposed job, it had changed nothing . So obviously, he must’ve done something wrong. 

“You good?” Legend came up beside him. Hyrule turned to look at him and gave him a small smile. 

“Yeah.” He lied with a small smile. “Just… Having a day, I suppose.” 

“Well, if you need anything, let me know.” Legend smirked. “I can always cause a distraction so you and Wild can run off and explore for a bit.” 

Hyrule snickered. Wild got along just fine with the others, but he and Hyrule were especially close. They loved sneaking off to explore and get away from being heroes for a bit. Twilight, who’d taken a rather fond shine to Wild, nearly had a conniption fit the first time they’d come back—covered in mud and grime but grinning ear to ear at the nest of falcons they’d watched hatch. It was small, but every life was a gift—Wild understood that. And despite his aptitude for hunting, Wild never let anything go to waste, nor did he overhunt. It was something Hyrule appreciated on a personal level. They often snuck off together to find little things to brighten their days and remind themselves of what they fought for.

Wild was unusually perceptive, especially to Hyrule’s moods. He always seemed to know when his mind was taking him down a rabbit hole it had no business wandering down, and Wild always snuck him away to go do something to take his mind off it. It made him happy, and Hyrule always tried to keep an eye out for Wild in turn. Though it was hard to return the favor when Wild was just so damn good at hiding his discomfort. 

They followed Wild in the direction he felt the portal. Why he could sense them was anyone’s guess. Was it because he’d died before? Did he have some unknown ability to sense them? Had Hylia just decided to give them a break for once and just make it happen ? He didn’t know. But so long as the ability worked reliably, they wouldn’t have to worry as much about being sucked in if they missed one—which was what Hyrule strongly suspected happened each time they had a sudden Switch. 

They all grimaced at the sight they came upon. The portal was being guarded by monsters. From the looks of them—and knowing their luck—these guys were infected, too. The Lizalfos prowled the sands of the beach, watching for movement. Hyrule had a feeling that they were waiting just for them. 

“Now what?” Four whispered, looking at the others. 

“We don’t have much of a choice, here.” Legend huffed. “We’re on a time crunch.” 

“We could just make a break for the portal…?” Sky suggested. 

“Too risky.” Twilight shook his head. “Running for it could open some of us to attacks. What if someone gets caught?” 

“Plus, we have no idea what would happen if it closed behind half the group and left the rest stranded here.” Hyrule added. 

“Can’t we just make a distraction to lure them away?” Wild tilted his head. 

“That could work.” Warriors mused. “I imagine that something loud and attention-grabbing would lure a good number of them away.” 

“Like an explosion?” Wild perked up. 

Time pursed his lips for a moment before slowly nodding. “This once , you can blow stuff up.” 

“ Yes!” Wild did a little happy wiggle from where he was crouched with the others. Hyrule thought he looked a little too excited at the prospect of using bombs. 

“You said your slate can hold bombs, right? How many do you have?” Twilight asked, eyeing Wild. 

“Oh, it doesn’t hold them. It makes them.” Wild corrected with a wide grin, pressing a button on the screen without so much as looking . Obviously, he used this option a lot . A small square bomb appeared in his hand. Hyrule noted that it didn’t seem to have a fuse. Even so, a few of them flinched on reflex. 

“Wait… so you’re telling me…” Four’s eyes went wide. “That you have access to an infinite number of explosives?” 

The group stilled as Wild cheerfully nodded. “Yep!” He grinned. “I can make as many as I want, but only two can be active at once. To make another, I have to blow up the first one. But since I can make two kinds, I can just swap back and forth.” He laughed quietly. 

“Right.” Time eventually stated. There was a look in his eye that screamed he was sorry he asked. “Either way, we’re going to need a huge explosion to distract as many of them as possible. Wild, I want you to take Warriors and Legend with you—you are to distract and retreat , do you understand? I do not want you to engage in combat. Come back as soon as you’ve ascertained that the distraction worked. The rest of us will clear the path to the portal. Then—and only then —will we go through together .” 

Everyone shared a look and nodded. “Be careful, Vet.” Hyrule looked at Legend, who smirked back. 

“No worries, Traveler. I’ll be just fine.” 

He watched them go with a sinking feeling in his stomach. It was just his anxiety. That’s all. He was just overthinking things, like always. What would Navi tell him if she was here? 

Hey! Listen! Stay focused, Faron! We’ve got this! Just a few monsters, right? Nothing we can’t handle. Be careful, though. There may be more lurking nearby!  

He smiled softly, making a mental note to keep an eye out for any hidden foes nearby. If they’re smart enough to set this trap for them, then they’d be smart enough to keep a few of their number laying in wait. 

There was a tense hush that befell them as they waited for the signal. Just when Hyrule was starting to think that something had gone wrong, a massive explosion shook the very land beneath them. Wind and Four toppled over into one another with a yelp that was drowned out by the following cacophony of continuous explosions. Dust flew into the air hundreds of meters, and Hyrule was certain that that hadn’t just been bombs that’d caused such ferocious destruction. But either way, it had the desired results. 

More than half the monsters jumped and scurried off in the direction of the commotion, leaving eight lizalfos for the group to deal with. “Now!” Time cried out, and everyone jumped into action. 

Hyrule’s blade clashed with the monster before him. It felt strong, and its analytical gaze confirmed his suspicions of it being infected. It snarled as it pushed his blade back, and Hyrule barely had the chance to bring up his shield to parry. 

He stumbled in the sand, unused to such soft ground when fighting. He rolled to the side, barely dodging the blade of his foe. The Lizalfos gave a nasty grin and flicked its blade to the side, hitting Hyrule with a painful spray of sand. He blinked rapidly, temporarily blinded by the grains that found their way into his eyes. 

On instinct alone, he brought up his shield, and was instantly rewarded with a clang that reverberated throughout his body. Hyrule grit his teeth as he squinted, able to make out the basic shape of the enemy through the blur of his tears, even as his eyes twitched closed. 

He thought he saw it swing its blade, and brought his shield up again, but it moved too fast for his watery eyes to follow, and he let out a soft cry as he received a painful slash to his abdomen. He cursed softly under his breath as he tried desperately to get the sand from his eyes. 

“Hyrule!” That was Wind. “I’ve got you!” He could make out the light blue fabric of the sailor standing between him and the lizalfos. 

“Thanks.” He reached into his pouch and pulled out his water canteen. The Lizalfos let out a screech as Hyrule quickly rinsed out his eyes. They still burned, but they were no longer painfully twitching closed or watering like mad. 

Now that he could see clearly, he ran right back in to aid Wind. “Thanks, Sailor! I owe you.” 

“No worries!” Wind chirped, a grin on his face. He looked rather worn from his own fight, and had a nice cut on his upper shoulder, but he looked a lot better off than Hyrule did. “Let’s double-team this guy.” 

“You got it.” Hyrule grinned. He charged in, ignoring the pain from his abdomen. He’d ascertained that it was not a fatal wound. While painful and bloody, it wasn’t overly deep and hadn’t hit anything important. He got lucky that traveling with the others had put some fat on his body, otherwise that could’ve been a serious injury. “I’ll distract it, you go for the kill.” Hyrule called out. 

“Aye!” Wind’s enthusiastic voice sounded, and Hyrule felt himself grin. With the two of them, the fight was much easier. The black-blooded monster fell to their combined strength in no time. 

“Hey!! Let’s go!” Wild called out, leading the distraction group back across the beach at a run. Hyrule noted that everyone had finished up their fights, and felt a wave of relief. 

“Be careful! There might be more hiding somewhere nearby.” The memory of Navi’s voice rang in his mind, and instantly all relief left. His eyes widened as he realized that everything felt… too easy . His paranoia—a constant companion of his—reared its ugly head. 

A soft voice… a memory of himself, uttered a reminder. 

‘It’s not paranoia…’

The bushes nearby rustled, and Hyrule spun around. Who was closest to the foliage?! Legend and Wild were running by the rustling bush, but… 

‘...if they’re really out to get you.’

No . He realized abruptly. Lizalfos are aquatic.  

He didn’t question his abrupt paranoia, nor did he question himself when his feet ran towards Time and Sky, who were waiting by the portal for everyone else. “Look out!” He called, realizing he was going to be too slow, even with his magic pushing his feet faster. 

Time spun around without question, shield out, showcasing years of experience and a finely honed sense of danger. The boomerang bounced off his shield, creating a resonating clang that echoed across the deceptively calm beach. 

Sky drew his blade instead of his shield, and the boomerang only barely clipped his protection. He shifted to a fighting position just as Hyrule felt the portal’s magic start to swirl and pulsate. They were taking too long. It was starting to destabilize.

“No time!” Wild called out, obviously sensing the same thing. “We have to get through the portal.” 

Time nodded. “Go, we’ll follow!” 

“What?! You’re crazy! No, we can’t just—” Twilight tried to protest, but Time cut him off.

“ GO! ” There was a certain tone of authority to Time’s voice. It was something that none of them could argue against. They all grimaced before running through the swirling vortex one after another. 

Hyrule hesitated, knowing he could withstand the portal’s tugs more than the others due to his acute magical awareness. “Hyrule, come on!” Legend held out a hand. 

He looked at Time and Sky, who were holding back the literal army of Lizalfos. Hylia, there must’ve been thirty of them at least, and more were still coming from the water! 

There was also something off to the way Sky was fighting... Damnit! Hyrule realized. That boomerang must’ve hit him after all! He swallowed hard and sent an apologetic look to Legend. “I’ll follow you!” He promised before dashing off, ignoring Legend’s cries for him to come back. 

“Hyrule, go!” Sky growled out through gritted teeth as Hyrule joined him and Time, sword blocking a hit that Sky would’ve been hard-pressed to block. There were now nearly forty lizalfos, and a few were attempting to go for the portal. 

“I’ll hold them back.” Hyrule said, pulling on a good chunk of his magic. “I can freeze them for seven seconds.” 

“You can what ?!” Time spared him a sharp look. 

“That’s the most I can do right now. We’re out of time. The portal is destabilizing as we speak.” He shook his head. “When I give you the signal, run .” He shot them a look. 

“Fine.” Time conceded. “But you run, too.” 

“All right.” Hyrule promised.

He gathered his magic and made sure to specifically target the area that the monsters were in. “GO!” He called out. 

Time and Sky both instantly disengaged, and Hyrule let loose a wave of pure, raw magic. The monsters literally froze in place, unable to move amidst the thick blanket of power. He counted the seconds in his head as Time and Sky booked it towards the portal. 

He dropped the spell the moment they were close, at four seconds, pushing his own abused, injured, and now magically exhausted body in the same direction. 

The monsters took a few more precious seconds to gather their wits before chasing after him. He wasn’t going to make it. He could feel the hot breath of a Lizalfos on the back of his neck, and he no longer had the strength to use a speed-boosting spell. 

He was so close . 

And then Time, who’d been about to head through, grabbed his hand and pulled . The two of them were thrust into the turmoil of the portals with all the ferocity of a tropical storm, and the only thing that grounded Hyrule was the bruising grip Time had on his arm. The next thing he knew, the ground was coming up to meet him and he kissed the dirt with a painful oomph . 

“You two okay?” Wind asked, offering Hyrule a hand up while Wild offered Time one. 

“Yes, thanks to Hyrule.” Time nodded towards the Traveler. 

Hyrule gasped as he felt his injury throb. That trip through the portal had definitely made it worse. Wind helped Hyrule sit up, only for his eyes to widen upon seeing the bloodsoaked area of his tunic, which the others had yet to see. Wind was about to say something when Warriors’ voice carried over to them. 

“Guys, Sky’s hurt.” 

Hyrule looked over to see Sky in fairly rough shape. “Idiot!” He cursed under his breath as he quickly stumbled over to Sky’s side. The Skyloftian was panting and looked to be in a fair amount of pain, if the glazed look to his eyes had anything to say about it. “You fought like this?!” The injury was worse than he’d anticipated. He immediately started using magic to heal it up, but an abrupt wave of nausea had the magic on his palms sputtering out before much could be done. 

“Hyrule?” Legend frowned, only to notice his injury. “You’re hurt, too!” 

“Hold on.” Hyrule fished out a magic replenishing potion from his bag and downed it in one gulp. It wouldn’t do much considering how much magic he used to freeze those lizalfos, but something was better than nothing. He shook himself and went back to healing Sky. “That was my last magic potion.” He grimaced. “I won’t have enough to heal him completely. Wild, do you have any elixirs?” 

“I’ve got one.” He nodded, holding it up. “I’m out of fairies, though.” 

“I don’t need a fairy.” Sky sent Hyrule a glare. 

“As the healer, I decide what you do and do not need.” He put his verbal foot down. “While I’d prefer a fairy, so long as we can get this properly treated, you should be fine.” He nodded. 

“I’m out of potions.” Twilight winced. “I think Wild’s is the last we have.” 

“Damnit, that portal just had to drop us in the middle of an uncharted island.” Wind cursed. 

“I have a potion.” Legend held it up. “It’s my last one, though.” 

Hyrule winced as his magic sputtered out again. He let the orb of light die out. “His injury is just barely closed, but I managed to stem most of the internal damage. He’s out of immediate danger.” He sighed. “Right now, I can’t use any more magic without risking my own health.” 

“Then that’s enough for now.” Time nodded. “And thank you, Hyrule. For coming back for us.” 

“Of course.” Hyrule sent him a smile. “Even heroes can use a hand now and then.” He turned his attention towards the others. “Is anyone else hurt?” 

“No. But you are.” Four frowned. 

“Here.” Wild handed Hyrule the Hearty Elixir. 

“I’ll take the potion.” He shook his head. “I said Sky was out of immediate danger. My injury may look bad, but it didn’t hit anything important. Sky’s did. Give him the Hearty Elixir.” 

Wild frowned, but they’d all come to an unspoken agreement that Hyrule’s word was law when it came to injuries. And despite the general theme of people underestimating their own wounds, they’d quickly learned that Hyrule was a fair and honest self-critic of his injuries. For the most part.

As promised, he took the red potion without complaint, letting Legend wrap him up as Time and Twilight patched up Sky. 

“Hey, anyone have any idea where we are, because this place is… definitely not mine.” Four spoke up. 

Hyrule looked around for the first time and paled. There was a thick woods to their right that was mostly obscured with an unnatural miasma. It was deathly quiet and not even insects dared disturb the fog. To their left was a rocky mountainous terrain that leveled out in the distance to a barren wasteland of cracked dry soil and parched dead trees. There was a river separating them from the forest, putting them closer to the mountains, but the waters frothed dangerously in some areas. 

“Not mine. Think we’ve got a new hero?” Legend peered around. He had a grimace on his face that made Hyrule wince. 

“I’d say no, but Wild came in after a long gap, so…” Warriors frowned. “But whoever this hero is isn’t doing a very good job.” 

Hyrule flinched a bit at the comment, and Wild gave him an odd look. “Hyrule?” 

He looked down, hand grasping at the familiar dry, decaying soil on which he sat. There was the familiar slight pulse of dark magic that still poisoned the land. “This is my Hyrule.” He spoke quietly, but everyone heard it. 

“Wait, what?” Legend blinked in shock. 

“Ganon had control for a while. He’s gone, but there isn’t much I can do about the land.” Hyrule sighed, climbing back to his feet with a wince. Though that potion had helped a fair bit, he was still injured. If they were in his Hyrule, then he’d need to be extra careful, and most importantly, they needed to move . 

“Is there a town nearby?” Time asked, supporting a woozy Sky. 

“Not really.” Hyule shook his head. “I mean, there’s one about a half-day’s walk, but..” He glanced at Sky. 

“Right. Anywhere safe that’s closer?” Twilight asked. 

He almost said no. Almost said they could just camp here and wait for another portal. But here was out in the open. Here was by the river.  And that meant monsters. A lot of monsters. He was honestly surprised that they hadn’t encountered any yet. 

“Yeah. My… place is nearby. I’ve got a small stash of medical supplies we can use, too. Don’t expect potions or anything, though. My Hyrule is pretty barren… as you can see.” He gestured out towards the badlands.

“Right.” Wind winced. “Oh!! I think I can see the castle!” He grinned as he ran ahead a bit. 

“Be careful!” Hyrule warned, leading the group towards his home. “There are monsters everywhere . Don’t let your guard down, especially near water.” He eyed the river with distrust. “And never drink water here unless I tell you it’s safe. Even the rainwater is tainted.” 

“It’s that bad?” Wild stared. 

“I think Ganon used the water sources to distribute his influence.” Hyrule explained, keeping his guard up. He scanned every shadow, analyzed every sound, and followed even the tiniest of movements. With a group this large, his usual evasion tactics wouldn’t work. 

“So what’s the plan?” Twilight asked, looking between Time and Hyrule. He couldn’t help but wince at how loud the Ordonian’s voice was. 

“We can talk about that later.” Hyrule shot Time a look. The older hero gave him a confused one in return. “The Eyes of Ganon are everywhere.” 

“Eyes of Ganon?” Legend questioned. 

“You’ll—”

“Hey! Link!” 

Hyrule’s head whipped up faster than a canon, hand on his weapon instantly. Nobody called out to him that cheerfully aside from a handful of people. Each one of those people were nowhere near his cave. He recognized the man as someone from the nearby village, half a day’s walk away. 

“Someone you know?” Warriors asked. 

“Maybe.” He frowned, keeping his hand on the hilt of his blade. 

“Thank goodness I found you, Link! The village was attacked!” He looked battered and bloody and exhausted, like he’d been running around trying to find him. He had a pleading look to his eye, and appeared mildly injured.

Hyrule didn’t believe it for a second. He drew his sword, pointing it at the seemingly defenseless and frightened villager. 

“Hoi!” Warriors and a few of the others took a step forward in shock, as if to stop Hyrule. “He’s just asking for help!” 

“P-please! I know we never really got along, b-but surely you’ll help! I-I’m begging! Money! Food! Potions! I’ll give you anything, just please save my family!” He was practically in tears. The other Links were obviously gearing up to help this man, but Hyrule just slipped into a fighting stance, eyes flickering to the shadows in case this was an ambush. 

The other Links looked like they were going to stop him, so Hyrule finally called the bluff. “Drop the act.” Hyrule’s voice was low and cold. “Or I’ll gut you here and now.” 

“Hey! There’s no need—” Twilight’s protests were cut off when the man started to chuckle. 

“Was I really that obvious?” He looked up as his face dissolved into black tar, melting and reforming into the familiar monster he knew was hiding beneath. The others cried out in alarmed shock. 

Hyrule snorted. “You could’ve picked something at least slightly believable.” He continued colloquially, as if he wasn’t casually holding a conversation with a monster he was holding at swordpoint. “I mean really —the village ?” He raised an eyebrow. 

“That’s fair.” The monster grinned, showing off shiny white fangs. The blue of its fur shone in the light, and Hyrule would’ve thought it a rather large and pretty keese if he hadn’t encountered enough of these beasts. “Though I do wonder—”

Hyrule didn’t let it finish that statement, running it through with his blade. A moment later, it vanished in a puff of smoke, dead. He glanced around once more to make sure there weren’t any other monsters following them, waiting to attack. Finally, he sheathed his sword.

Normally, he’d have attacked while the monster was still in its disguise, but the others would never look at him the same way if he’d done that. 

“The hell was that?!” Warriors stared at the spot the man had been in shock, and Hyrule sent him a glare. 

“Quiet down, would you? Or are you trying to attract more monsters?” The Captain had the decency to look a tad sheepish. “That was one of the Eyes of Ganon.” Hyrule finally answered his question. “They can shapeshift into people.” He explained as he led them further up the mountain. He kept close tabs on Sky’s condition as they walked. 

“For a minute, I really thought you were…” Twilight looked down, ashamed. “I’m sorry.” 

“Sorry? For what? I’ve told you I’m not a hero.” Hyrule shook his head. Legend looked like he wanted to argue, but Hyrule cut him off. “I’d recommend keeping quiet through this area. It echoes a lot, and I’d rather not broadcast our position to every monster in a three mile radius.” 

They walked in a tense silence after that. He knew the others were judging him—judging his Hyrule. He didn’t blame them, but it still hurt. Even Legend… even Wild . It hurt . 

It only took them ten minutes to walk through the canyon area, but the group remained silent even when the mountainous terrain started producing hardy foliage that was scarcely scraping by. Either way, Hyrule had no intentions of breaking the silence that had settled over the group like a curse. 

Finally, after another twenty minutes, they rounded the edge of the mountain towards the entrance to his cave. It wasn’t visible unless you knew what you were looking for—and where to look. The ‘door’ was a mixture of petrified wood—painstakingly carved to match the texture of the rock that surrounded it, but significantly easier to create a door from—and actual stone. 

He placed a hand on a particular rock, pushing some magic into it. A soft click was heard as the door swung open. He glanced at the others, gauging their reactions. Time looked a bit startled and the others were outright confused. Wild and Wind looked somewhat excited by the ‘secret entrance’. He stepped inside, letting them decide if they wanted to follow him or not. 

Inside, the cavern was rather spacious. There were torches around the room which were lit by magic, embedded into the rocky structure of the wall. They let off no smoke, and kept the cavern at a somewhat cooler-than comfortable temperature, but a great deal warmer than the chill of the oncoming winter he could feel outside. A small cooking pot was set up in one—badly burned—corner, and a pile of blankets was set up in a small alcove he’d carved out of the stone. 

There was an old rickety wooden table he’d snatched from the village ages ago along with a couple of chairs. A few other odds-and-ends things were set up here and there. Cracked or mildly broken pots, a few animal pelts, nothing overly extravagant. Some bones were chiseled down into utensils or other tools and sat on a shelf he’d created on one wall. 

Other than the torches, the only thing mounted on the far wall—well, set into a carefully chiseled shelf—was a simple wooden sword.

Hyrule felt his heart clench in disappointment. Navi was nowhere to be seen, and he hadn’t realized how much hope he’d been holding onto that she’d somehow found her way home. He blinked back tears, swallowing thickly as he heard the others slowly entering after him. 

“It’s not much, but it’s home.” He said quietly as the others stared around in shock. 

They’d been to Twilight’s home—a simple treehouse like structure. They’d visited the Ranch that Time and Malon shared. They’d seen Wild’s house—an actual house —in photos Wild showed them. They’d stayed with Wind and his grandmother in their simple and loving home. Warriors had his barracks, and spoke of a house he hardly used. Legend had a place he’d inherited from his deceased uncle. Sky lived on Skyloft in the Knight’s Academy lodge, and was building a house for himself and Sun. Even Four had his own house and forge. 

Hyrule felt his cheeks burn in shame. All he had was a cave. He was now fiercely regretting bringing them here. “I-it’s safe, at least.” He briskly walked across the cavern towards the opposite wall. While there were no defining markings on the wall, it was directly below the wooden sword that the Old Man had given him on his first journey. He kicked it harshly, twisting his foot just right, causing the hidden door to open. He immediately busied himself with gathering his very limited medical supplies, smiling a bit when he realized he had a potion. “I’ve put up a ton of magical protections around this place to make sure monsters and people can’t find it.” 

He turned around to find them all staring at him. His face burned a bit more, but he powered through and went over to where Time had gently set Sky down in the pile of blankets he called a bed. “I-I found a potion. It should finish sealing up that injury. He won’t be in fighting shape until I can replenish my magic and get him healed up, but it should help.” He was rambling. He knew he was rambling. But at least he didn’t have to listen to that awkward silence and know that he had eight other people that he begrudgingly cared about standing in his cave and—

Dear Hylia he was a mess. 

“Hyrule.” Legend’s hands were suddenly on his, and Time’s was on his shoulder. 

“I’m sorry.” Hyrule apologized. 

“For what?” Time asked, frowning. 

“For…” He vaguely gestured around them. If his face burned any hotter, he’d start sizzling. 

“You can’t control that.” Legend huffed. “You really think we think less of you because you live in a cave? We’re worried about you, Hyrule. Not… whatever you think we are.” 

“I… I-it’s just that you all have homes and… and houses , and I-I just… have my cave.” He rubbed his arm as Time fed Sky the potion. The Skyloftian was awake and aware enough to have understood the entire situation and smiled at Hyrule. 

“It’s a lovely cave.” He said. “If anything, we’re grateful that you’re sharing what you have with us.” 

“I think it’s cool.” Wild agreed. “The door was pretty awesome, too.” 

“Hey, did you make this?” Wind abruptly asked, toying with the secret door he’d grabbed the supplies from. 

“Yeah. I’ve got all kinds of hidden compartments in here. Some only open with magic, others require specific actions. Despite my protections, it is a cave. If I just left all my stuff sitting here, I’d be begging for someone to steal my things.” That was a much easier topic. He mentally thanked Wind for the brief reprieve. 

“Can I use your cooking pot?” Wild asked, looking at his shabby excuse for a kitchen. He didn’t say anything about the obvious scorch marks that reached even the ceiling. 

“Sure?” 

“Great! Then I’ll get started on dinner.” Wild grinned. And just like that, the tension left the group. People started investigating everything around them, just like they always did when they entered a new Link’s home. Hyrule felt his shoulders sag in relief. 

“Did you dig out these shelves yourself?” Four asked, standing on his toes to get a closer look. 

“Yeah. I happened across some old mining tools and figured I’d put ‘em to good use.” 

“Hey, at least you don’t have to pay taxes.” Warriors grinned as he eyed the wooden sword. “This seems important.” 

“That was my first weapon here.” Hyrule recalled. “The monsters of Hyrule are known in many kingdoms as particularly vicious and powerful. Most people stay far away unless they’re Monster Hunters or merchants desperate enough to cut through. So the weapons made in other countries don’t usually hold up well against… say… an angry mother Lynel.” He winced. “She got my sword, but I managed to keep my shield. I met someone who gave me that sword. It was the only weapon he’d owned. He told me ‘It’s dangerous to go alone, take this’.” 

“Is he okay?” Four frowned worriedly. “I mean if this was his only weapon—”

“Oh, he’s fine.” Hyrule grinned. “I see him every now and then, but he’s even more of a recluse than me . He hardly ever leaves his cave, unless it’s gambling night.” 

“So there’s more people living in caves like this?” Twilight asked, gazing around. 

“A few.” Hyrule shrugged. “Most of us are outcasts for one reason or another. You can’t camp out in the open, here. Monsters are everywhere , and I mean it. They won’t just stomp into your camp, they’ll sneak in and kill you in your sleep.” He sighed. 

“So this land has no trade because the monsters make the area too dangerous.” Warriors realized. “Hyrule is a dying kingdom.” 

“Exactly.” Hyrule nodded. “No trade, no commerce… the land has been bled dry of all its resources. Between the infections of dark magic in the land and the people trying desperately to produce crops and meat, the very soil itself has pretty much refused to support life.” He shook his head. “I’ve been to many other kingdoms before I came here, and Hyrule is by far the one that was hit the worst by Ganon’s magic.” 

“So he affected other kingdoms, too?” Sky asked, wincing as he sat up. 

“Careful, you’re still in bad shape.” Hyrule reprimanded. “Yes, he did. His monsters spread as far as they could, but the further they got from the powersource—Ganon—the weaker they became over time.” He explained. “Only a handful of kingdoms fell to Ganon when he rose, and after he was defeated, most of the monsters stuck to Hyrule.” 

“So you defeated him, then?” Legend tilted his head. 

“Yes.” He nodded. “Or, at least, I think I did. But taking him out did nothing to stop the monsters or the dark magic.” He sighed. 

“Stopping my Ganon didn’t deter the monsters or Blood Moons of my land, either.” Wild shrugged. 

“What’s a Blood Moon?” Wind asked. 

“It’s when Ganon’s power reaches its peak. It revives all the monsters slain across Hyrule under a red full moon. I think the name came from its first appearance. Nobody knew what was occurring, and a lot of people were killed because they thought areas were safe—they weren’t.” Wild explained. 

“That sounds like actual hell.” Legend deadpanned. 

“I can relate.” Hyrule sighed. “The dark magic that’s soaked this land has these monsters breeding at unreal speeds. The numbers climb faster than I can get them down.” He shook his head. “I can take out an entire nest of monsters and come back in a few weeks to find another one springing up nearby. It’s maddening.” 

“Dinner’s ready, by the way.” Wild announced, pulling out bowls from his slate. The hearty stew was passed around, and Hyrule ate gratefully. After the long, hellish day they’d all had, the warm stew was a welcome luxury. Part of him had trouble believing such good food could come out of his cooking pot.

Even so, the cave didn’t feel right without Navi flitting around. The small alcove he’d chiseled out of the wall next to his bed to be her bedroom was cold and empty. He missed her dearly. His ears kept straining themselves to listen for the sound of her wings fluttering happily about, or the familiar chime of her faespeech that he, himself, could speak fluently. 

“Are you okay?” Legend asked, and Hyrule shot him a halfhearted smile. 

“I kind of hoped my friend had made it home.” He admitted. 

“I’m sure she’s fine!” Four grinned. “And you could leave a note here in case she comes back while you’re gone!” 

“I’ll try that. Thanks.” It was a fairly good idea. He’d need to do that before their next Switch.

All things considered, dinner was a lively affair. Warriors was on dish duty, and grumbled the entire time. 

“I can help?” Sky offered. 

“No, you will not.” Hyrule glared. “You will rest and take it easy until that injury heals up more.” 

“Fine.” Sky held up his hands in surrender.

“I know you said potions are difficult to come by here, but what about ingredients?” Wild spoke up. “I know how to brew elixirs.” 

“You do ?!” Four cried out as the rest of them gaped. 

“Yeah. Where do you think I get all my Hearty Elixirs from? I brew them myself.” 

“Well I’ll be damned.” Twilight laughed a bit. “Okay, what do you need to brew one?” 

“Well, I’ve got plenty of everything but the Hearty Lizards.” Wild sighed. “And I’m starting to think they’re native to my Hyrule.” 

“You put what in those?!” Legend choked. 

“I drank a lizard ?” Sky echoed, face pulled into something between disbelief and disgust. 

“Didn’t you once say you had to get all sorts of weird ingredients for potions in your world?” Four frowned towards Sky. 

“Yeah, but it’s different hearing that an entire lizard went into what I just drank.” He pulled a face. 

“I think I can make something close with the right ingredients, but I’d have to look at a shop or something to really see what my options are.” Wild explained, completely ignoring the group’s reaction to his choice of ingredients. Hyrule was quite sure he never wanted to find out what the rest of the ingredients were. 

“You said there’s a town half a day away, right?” Legend tilted his head. 

“Er… yeah. But…” He pulled a face. “We’ll have to be careful. I’m not well liked by the people there. I have a disguise, but they’ll be really curious about travelers—as I’ve said, we don’t get them often.” 

“You have to disguise yourself to go into town?” Time frowned, eyebrows raising in disbelief. 

“Yeah, they’ll run me out otherwise. Refuse to sell me anything. I remember one time this drunkard came at me with his sword.” He chuckled a bit as the memory crossed his mind. “The other villagers were pretty angry with him for it. They don’t want a single drop of my blood spilled anywhere near their homes.” 

“I fail to see the humor in an entire village chasing you out. Didn’t you defeat Ganon and save their asses?” Legend steamed. 

“I mean, everyone was fine before…” He winced. “The rumors started.” 

“Rumors?” Legend had a sharp look to his eye. “What rumors?” 

“Ah…” Hyrule scratched the back of his head. It was better they heard it from him, after all. “Well I don’t know exactly what started it, but a few years ago, the Triforce mark showed up on my hand. There’s an old story that the blood of the Fallen Hero—Time, in this timeline—had the power to resurrect Ganon in his full ‘glory’.” He explained. “Because, when I defeated him, he was just this animalistic beast with a lot of power but little intelligence. The stories say he used to be cunning and manipulative. Thing is, those same rumors also state that only the Hero’s blood can produce the Triforce.” 

“I know for a fact I could not have possibly had children during that time.” Time grimaced. 

“I never said you did, but people believe what they’re told.” Hyrule countered. “And the stories say that only someone with your blood can carry the Triforce. Since mine appeared—or at least, my Triforce mark—everyone took that to mean I was your descendant. And because of that same rumor… They also believe that my blood can ressurect Ganon. Ever since then, villages have refused to have anything to do with me, and monsters have been tailing me like bees to honey. I’m essentially this world’s biggest monster magnet, and someone very dangerous to be around.” 

“So they kick you out and refuse to help you because they think you’ll bring the monsters upon them!?” Warriors scowled. 

“I’ll give them something to fear.” Legend promised darkly. 

“I mean, it’s not unfounded.” Hyrule sighed. “I once tried to leave Hyrule and continue my travels, but the monsters followed me.” He shuddered a bit. “I’d been staying in a small village just within the borders of a neighboring country… Very few people survived that night. Among a horde of bokoblins, moblins, and lizalfos, a Lynel had shown up.” 

The group winced. “So the monsters have basically trapped you here, in Hyrule.” Sky confirmed, and Hyrule nodded. 

“I try to stay away from people as much as I can.” He shrugged halfheartedly. “You guys are the first consistent hylian interaction I’ve had in… Goddesses, I don’t know how many years.” 

“Didn’t you say you had a family?” Wind looked heartbroken. 

“Yeah. They’re fine.” His smile felt shaky. “Actually, according to the last letter, my mother’s expecting again. So I’m going to have another little sibling to write to.” He tried to keep the bitterness out of his tone, but it still seeped through. “Or maybe I’ve already got one.” 

“It’s okay to be angry.” Four spoke up. “You have every right to feel bitter over your lot. I mean… for Din’s sake, you’re living in a cave , unable to leave this Hyliaforsaken dying land and being hunted down every waking moment of your life! That’s no way to live.” He huffed, eyes flickering between different colors in the firelight. 

“You’re right.” Hyrule said softly in the quiet that echoed. He felt something welling up inside of him, years of pent up frustration and a longing to have someone to rely on. Now that he was here… and these people were willing to listen—to care —he found himself unable to stay his tongue. “I do feel bitter. I miss my family. My country. My home . And I know that I’m going to die alone in this cave one day.” He furiously blinked back tears from his eyes. He’d started this journey expecting to die. He just never realized it would take so long. “But that’s what I signed up for when I became a traveler. I knew I was probably never going to return home. But at least I’ve been able to help my family. I think… that’s enough for me.” It was a lie. He wanted to go home. Letters weren’t enough. He missed home.

There was a somber moment of silence amongst the group. A quiet realization of the truth behind the mask that Hyrule always wore. 

“You don’t expect to survive this journey with us, do you?” Time spoke up suddenly, and a few people’s eyes widened as they understood what Time was trying to say. They looked at Hyrule, as if begging him to deny it. 

“The life of a traveler is a short one, but filled with beautiful experiences.” Hyrule finally said. He hesitated a long moment before he continued. “I would much rather die with you all by my side than die alone in this withered land.” 

Legend looked like he wanted to say something, but pulled Hyrule into a hug instead. “You idiot .” He hissed in his ear, but his voice echoed throughout his cavern nonetheless. “I don’t ever want to see you throwing your life away, you hear me?! You… You are worth so much more than that!” 

“He’s right.” Wild spoke up, a strangely serious expression on his face. “You may not think of yourself as anything but a traveler, but… to me… to us you’re our friend. Our brother . I don’t know what I’d do if you died.” 

Tears built up more, and he couldn’t stop them from leaking out. “Hyrule…” Time stopped himself. “ Faron .” Hyrule startled at the sound of a name he hadn’t been called by in months. “You will always have family here.” There was something in Time’s voice. It reminded him a lot of his dad. A dad whom he’d looked up to, and loved, and cherished. He realized abruptly that he missed his family. But he had another equally important one right before him. And the dam finally broke. 

The first sob was quiet, but it built slowly but surely into the raw screams that he’d been holding back since his first goodbye. Instead of looking away, the others gathered around him in a giant hug. He sobbed and for the first time in his life, he didn’t give a damn what he looked like. He didn’t care that all it had taken to break his carefully constructed mask was a few simple words. Because right now, he needed this. 

He was in pain and the sudden realization of the depth of that pain only seemed to make it more intense. There was an empty hollowness in his soul that’d become a gaping maw of a beast throughout his lonely travels. That part of him that he’d ripped out and tossed aside in an attempt to feed his family. He’d never truly wanted to leave home, but all the same he felt like he’d had no choice. The abyss inside him screamed as it forced him to finally stare at himself—at what his life had become. 

Lonely. Bitter. Forsaken. Abandoned. 

He was sick and tired of surviving . Sick and tired of just waiting to die , too stubborn to just let it happen. He wanted to live . To go home and help raise his siblings. To have his idiot older brothers mock him for his crappy swordsmanship and tease him over his first crush. He wanted his father to yell at him for being such a reckless fighter and his mother to help him learn to use more magic. 

He missed his baby sister and how she used to toddle after him, begging him to play. He regretted every time he turned her away, despite the fact that he’d simply wanted some space. He hurt for the baby brother he’d never met, and the fact that he’d never know him. 

There was this horrible gut-churning regret that ate away at him. The knowledge that he’d never see his sister grow up and get married, or his baby brother become a man. That he would never get the chance to thank his mother for all the magic she’d taught him, or his father for teaching him how to survive in the woods. 

His family… he missed them so terribly. Just like Navi. Just like everyone else he’d ever cared about. And that regret and loneliness and pain ate away at him like a parasite, devouring him from the inside out until he was nothing but a bitter empty shell. He felt hollow and brittle and so tired.

But the arms around him felt nice. They were warm, and safe, and they reminded him of those nights his eldest brother Julian would sit there and hold him as a child whenever a storm rolled through. And the gentle hand rubbing soothing circles into his back reminded him of his second eldest brother, Garret, and how he’d always sit and listen to him whenever he’d had something to say. The fingers braiding his hair were like Navi, and helped to ground him to the reality around him instead of the demons in his mind. The soft whispers of reassurance that surrounded him soothed the frayed edges of his soul into something bearable. Because here, in the now , he had a family that he could be with. A family he could trust. A family that would be okay.

And he finally let himself relax as the screaming abyss started to fill itself with a strange warmth, easing the raw edges of his wounds like a balm. His eyes started to drift closed as he relaxed against Legend and whoever else was holding him.  

The last thing he was aware of before finally tapering off into sleep, was the soft humming of Sky—a gentle sound that matched the equally soothing chimes from Fi… it was almost like she was singing with him. 

And then, Hyrule knew no more. 

Chapter Text

A/N: Wow, a fourth LU update? On the same day? This can't be legal! This chapter has been sitting in my indecision box for months. I edited it over the last week, but the story is reaching the final leg. I'm thinking it's got about four chapters or so left, so things are about to get heated. :) Keep an eye out.

Alone in the Darkness, We Find A Light

Strings of Fate Unwind

New Faces Emerge, Unveiling the Questions

That Once, We Left Behind

Secrets Kept Close, Guarded by Grief

Will Never the Light of Day See

But Fate has Her Ways, Harsh Though They May Be

Of Rendering Useless Your Key

As Truth Comes to Light, And Journeys Unfold

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Hyrule wasn’t sure what woke him up. It could’ve been Sky’s soft snoring, or Wind’s sleepy fidgeting; either way, he didn’t mind. 

He was warm and comfortable. Looking around, he instantly understood why. The other Links were snuggled around him in a giant nest of blankets, with Hyrule placed solidly in the middle with Legend. It made his heart warm as he realized that they’d been worried over him. 

His cheeks warmed slightly as he recalled his crying fit from the night before. It was a bit embarrassing, but it still made him smile. They cared . It was… a nice feeling. 

“You ‘wake, Rule?” Legend muttered sleepily as he cracked open an eye. 

“Yeah.” He smiled softly. 

“How’re you feeling?” 

“Tired. Dehydrated, but better than yesterday.” He replied honestly. He realized belatedly that he was awake earlier than even Time or Wild—the earliest risers of them all. 

“You scared us, yesterday.” Legend paused a moment. “I didn’t know you were hurting like that.” 

“I don’t think I knew, either.” He admitted. “But I do feel better, emotionally. Just… a bit physically and mentally spent.” 

“Yeah.” Legend snorted softly. “A breakdown will do that to you.” 

“Morning, traveler.” Wild smiled as he yawned. Somehow, he managed to disentangle himself from the mass of heroes without waking anyone up—quite an achievement considering the way everyone was piled atop one another. He took a moment to take in the adorable scene of Sky snuggled protectively up to Time, as if he could chase away the one-eyed hero’s nightmares. 

Wild silently padded over towards the cooking pot. “Any requests?” His voice was hardly a whisper, and Hyrule took a moment to appreciate Wild’s aptitude for silence.

The traveler thought for a long moment. “Pumpkin stew?” He’d loved it the moment he tried it. It was one of his absolute favorites ever since Sky first requested it. 

“Bit heavy for breakfast, but okay.” Wild grinned and lit the fire. The smell of the food quickly filled the cavern, rousing the rest of the group. By this time, Legend and Hyrule had managed to seat themselves at the table without stepping on anybody’s faces.

“Morning.” Legend smirked from his seat at the table. 

“Mo’ngn” Sky muttered, still not entirely awake. 

“How’re you feeling?” Time cracked his back as he stretched, causing Wind to wince. 

“Better. Exhausted, but better.” Hyrule answered. “How about you, Sky? How’s your injury?” 

“It hurts, but not nearly like it did yesterday.” He lifted the edge of his shirt. 

“Come over here and let me change out those bandages.” Hyrule gestured, and the Skyloftian obeyed. 

He inspected the fresh skin that’d grown over the injury with a critical eye. It was dangerously thin, but between that and the carefully applied herbal paste he’d made, it looked like they’d avoided any kind of infection. “Looking good.” He smiled. “I should be able to heal it up almost completely, now.” He held out his hand and his magic flared to life. Sky relaxed as the aches and pains faded. The fresh skin also faded into older and stronger scar tissue. “There.” 

“You good?” Time asked. “I know you said you were low on magic yesterday.” 

“Yeah, but it was healing nicely. I didn’t have to use that much—I wasn’t manually healing the wound this time, just helping Sky’s body do it faster.” 

“That made no sense to me.” Wind announced before going back to exploring the cavern. 

Hyrule snorted in amusement. Wind seemed to make it a personal mission to discover all the hidden secrets of his home. So far, he’d only figured out how to open the door to his medicine cabinet. 

He sat with the others on the floor as they shared their breakfast amidst laughter. Warriors was telling them some story about a stupid stunt he’d pulled that’d ended up with his Impa covered in mud. 

“Hey, what’s this?” Wind eyed Navi’s little bedroom. He went to poke the small bed he’d made her, when Hyrule gently placed a hand over Wind’s to stop him. He belatedly realized that neither Wind nor Wild knew about his friend. 

“A while ago, I met a fairy who became my good friend. She lived with me for a while. That’s her room.” 

“What happened to her?” Wind tilted his head. 

“She and I were separated when I went through my first portal. I’ve been looking for her ever since.” 

“Oh… I’m sorry.” Wind frowned. 

“It’s okay—I have a feeling I’ll find her eventually.” Or, at least, he hoped he would. 

“Yeah, with the number of places we tend to end up at, I have no doubt we’ll find her.” Legend placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey.” Hyrule called out towards Warriors, Four, and Wild, who were sneaking away. “Where are you going?” 

“Well, you mentioned the town yesterday. Since it’s dangerous for you to go, I figured we could take a look ourselves.” Wild answered sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. “I mean, since we look nothing like you, there shouldn’t be any confusion, right?” 

“Plus, we figured we could gather some supplies.” Four added. 

“I really don’t thin—” Hyrule must’ve spoken too softly, because Warriors started speaking over him. 

“I mean, if it’s just monsters we’re worrying about, then it should be fine. And if we don’t talk to strangers on the road, then there shouldn’t be a problem with—”

“HEY!” Hyrule shouted, gaining Warriors’ and the others’ attention. “ Listen .” He idly noted that Time flinched at the tone he’d taken, which was almost exactly the same one Navi used on him. “My Hyrule is dangerous . I mean that. Literally everything here is out to kill you .” He stressed, staring at the three idiots. He’d honestly expected better from Four. “If you’re going into town, I will be coming with you.” 

“I thought you said it was dangerous for you.” Legend frowned. “Didn’t you say the villagers tried to kill you?” 

“He was drunk.” Hyrule shook his head. “Like I said—they don’t dare risk a single drop of my blood near any of their homes. So if you’re set on going to the village, there’s a few things we need to do. I’ve got myself a disguise. They know me by said disguise, but I’ve only got one. So you will have to pose as travelers.” 

“That’s fine.” Warriors nodded. 

“They’ll get curious. They’ll want to know where you’re from.” Hyrule tapped his chin. “Normally, I’d say Calatia, since that’s where I’m from, but it’s a very prosperous well-known kingdom. You guys definitely don’t look like Calatians.” 

“Should… I take that as an insult?” Twilight tilted his head. 

Hyrule chuckled. “No. It’s just that blond hair is a rare color in Calatia, and so are blue eyes. A single person is odd enough but a whole group like this? No. Darker hair colors and orange, purple or red eyes are common where I’m from.” 

“Not green?” Wind asked, tilting his head. 

“No, but it’s not unheard of. It’s a sign of strong magic.” He smiled softly. “Comes from my mom’s side.” 

“So blond hair and blue eyes makes that a no go.” Wild pursed his lips. 

“Well, in other places we just say we’re from Lorule.” Legend said. “It’s a place that—as far as I know—only exists in my Hyrule.”

“Lorule, huh…? Not entirely sure, but I feel like I’ve heard of it somewhere...” Hyrule hummed under his breath as he walked over to a corner of the room. He kicked part of the wall while hooking his fingers behind a small crevice and turning. A click was heard and a secret door swung open, much to Wind’s glee. He pulled out an old map and rolled it open across the table. “The average person won’t know much geography. Like I said—Calatia is a very prosperous kingdom. The average citizen can read, write, and even do basic maths. Even a poor farm boy like me can read and gain access to maps like this.” 

“Impressive.” Warriors whistled. 

“Well, I’ve picked up a few other things over the years.” He shrugged. “The average Hylian won’t know much beyond the countries that border theirs. Which would be Brudasia, Grenmorth, Treythfauner, and Yennorbu.” He tapped his chin. “Four other bordering kingdoms fell, so those are out. They’ve become monster-infested wastelands. But further up this way…” He pointed up across Yennorbu’s borders. “This small kingdom is typically peaceful, but has a lot of monsters. Not nearly on the same scale as Hyrule, but enough to warrant your weapons. It’s called Faerora. They also worship Hylia, but place much more emphasis on Din, Farore, and Nayru.” 

“Wait, what do you mean ‘Also worship Hylia’?” Sky frowned. 

“Many kingdoms worship other gods or deities. Some just let their people believe in whatever. These days, only a handful still place faith in Hylia and the goddesses. So if you were to come from… say, Brudasia, you wouldn’t say things like, ‘Dear Hylia’, or ‘goddessdamnit’. They believe in one god, so you’d say “Dear God’, or ‘goddamnit’. Saying something on reflex about Hylia would instantly call your bluff.” 

“That’s… confusing.” Wind huffed. 

“Which is why Faerora is our best option. They tend to have fair hair and brightly colored eyes. So you guys would fit right in. Honestly, when I dropped in on you guys, I really thought I’d landed in Faerora or something.” Hyrule chuckled. 

“Right, is there anything we need to know about this… Faerora before we head out?” Time asked. 

“Not really.” Hyrule hummed. “Oh, and also call me Faron while we’re here. Nobody would be cruel enough to name their kid ‘Hyrule’, and they know my disguise by that name.” 

“Right.” Legend nodded. 

Faron trailed a hand along the wall of his cavern by the door, finding a small groove that he stuck his index finger and thumb into. A quick twisting motion and a pull had a door swinging open. He grabbed his rupee pouch and turned towards the group. 

“Well then, let’s go.” 

They left the cavern and headed out towards the badlands. Most people didn’t use this route because of the vulnerability the open plains presented, but Faron was far too used to these lands to let that bother him. Because if they could see him from a mile away, then he could see them . 

“Are you sure this is a safe route?” Wind piped up, a tad unsure. 

“There’s nothing safe about it, but it’s far away from the water. It’s much less dangerous than the other sections.” Faron explained. 

He easily spotted the bokoblin nest, and Wild heard them long before Faron could even see them. “If that’s what you call ‘less dangerous’, then I’d hate to see the other routes.” Warriors winced when he saw the group of thirty. 

“You can leave those ones be.” Faron gave a wicked smirk as the bokoblins caught sight of them. A few started to approach, and Faron gave a sharp whistle. Instantly, they scampered back, afraid. “I clean out that nest often enough that they’ve become scared of me.” He explained. 

“You mean they remember you?” Wild tilted his head. 

“My monsters don’t revive like yours.” Faron shook his head. “But I tend to leave a survivor or two to warn the next group that moves in. It seems to work pretty well. They typically only bother me if I look hurt or weak.” 

“That’s handy.” Time hummed.

They were able to see the edge of the badlands, now, and the rolling field of weeds that surrounded the fields. A few shoddy crops were being grown in the distance, and Faron pulled out his cloak. “And this is where I put this on.” He smirked as he pulled the cloak over his shoulders and pulled up the hood. The group startled badly. 

“You—you just changed !” Wind cried out, staring at Faron. “Like… your… everything !” 

“I’m actually curious.” Faron chuckled. “I’ve never had anyone tell me what I look like with this on.” 

“You’re… very forgettable.” Legend looked intrigued. “If I had to describe your disguise, I’d say… middle-aged man. Brown hair—not too dark, not too light—brown eyes. Soft features, a tad ruggish, but nothing that isn’t expected from a traveler. You look like someone I’d pass by without another thought.” 

“Well, the magic is supposed to make me forgettable.” Faron grinned. “But if my hood falls, the illusion will dispel. Thankfully, if that does happen, there’s a secondary spell that keeps the disguise separated from myself, so I can still use it.” 

“It’s happened before?” Warriors grimaced. 

“Yeah. Should’ve seen Navi when that guy insulted me. She looked ready to deck him.” Faron laughed a bit as Time froze mid-step. He suddenly looked rather pale. 

“Old man?” Twilight turned to him in concern, but his sharp blue gaze was locked onto Faron. 

“What did you say your fairy’s name was?” 

“Navi?” Faron tilted his head. 

“Navi…” He whispered it with a familiarity laced with disbelief. “Was she… was she blue ?” Time had a somewhat desperate gleam to his eye as a smile started to creep across his face. “A tad annoying? Always says ‘ Hey! Listen!’ ” Time had replicated her tone precisely. 

“Y-yeah.” Faron’s own eyes started to widen a bit. “She… once told me she was…” He breathed out. “It was you.” He realized abruptly. “She said she traveled with someone named Link once before. That was you . She was looking for you .” 

“She was searching for me?” Time gave a breathy laugh. “After all this time, she hasn’t given up? How… you must be centuries after my time. How can she be… here ?” 

“I don’t know.” Faron shook his head. “She was so shocked when I told her about the Fallen Hero. Now I understand why.” 

“I’ve been searching for her since I was a boy. She vanished after my first Journey and… I never understood why.” Something about the oldest hero relaxed, as if he’d finally received an answer to a question that’d plagued him for decades. Perhaps he had. 

“We’ll find her, Time.” Faron stated firmly, just as the others had told him. “And you and Navi can have a big reunion.” 

“Same with you!” Warriors grinned. “But seriously, who would’a thought that Time’s old companion was the same friend you lost when you met us?” 

“Some things happen for a strange reason.” Time sighed. “I’m sorry for freaking out.” 

“Don’t apologize. I would’ve done the same if I could meet…" Twilight shook his head. "Well, anyways we should get to town, right?” 

They came upon the town gates rather quickly, and Faron tightened his cloak around himself. A few booth runners waved in greeting, but most of the attention was on the group of heroes. 

“Well, here’s some new faces.” Zachary, the man who owned the brewery, leaned against his counter in interest as they walked in. “Welcome. We don’t often get travelers here. Where are you from?” 

“They’re from Faerore.” Faron spoke up. 

“Ah, Faron. I haven’t seen you in months.” Zachary was a crafty bastard. He never forgot a face, so Faron’s disguise was someone he would recognize easily, even when the others would struggle to place him. 

“I’ve been away. Right now, I’m guiding these travelers.” He explained. 

“ You, playing guide? Never thought I’d see the day.” 

“Never said I’m doing it for free.” He smirked, and Zachary laughed. 

“So what can I do for you today?” The brown-haired weasel grinned. “I’ve just brewed a new batch of that magic-replenishing potion you like so much.” 

“I’ll take some of those, but my friend here was more interested in ingredients .” He gestured to Wild, who stepped forward. 

“Well, now. A brewer never reveals his secrets.” Zachary dismissed instantly. “No matter if you can brew yourself, I cannot share what I use.” 

“Actually, back home I use a small creature with a strong healing ability. I seem to have run out, and there aren’t any around these parts. I just wanted to know if there were any creatures I may be able to substitute.” Wild spoke up. 

Zachary frowned tersely, eyeing Wild like he was some kind of possible foe. “If you use such things in your potions, then you won’t find them here.” He finally said. “I have to import all my ingredients as it is; nothing grows in these lands. But because I’m the only potions brewer on this side of Hyrule, I can make enough to get by.” 

“More like charge up the ass.” Legend hissed as he eyed the outrageous prices. “600 rupees for a single red potion?” 

“Come now, sir.” Zachary grinned at Legend. “You must understand. I’m the only person who has access to the ingredients and knowledge to brew such high-quality potions. Hyrule is dangerous, you won’t find another potion in this monster-infested land until you hit Castle Town.” He turned back towards Faron. “You wanted some potions?” 

“How much for a set of four?” Faron relaxed his stance and crossed his arms. 

“For the magic replenishers…? About 1600.” 

“They were 1200 when I last came.” Faron narrowed his eyes. 

“Yes, but ingredients aren’t easy to come by these days.”

“I’ll give you 1300.” 

“1520, don’t you haggle with me.” 

“1350, and I’d rather haggle than get robbed .” 

“1400, and I won’t go lower.” Zachary and Faron glared at one another for a long moment before Faron sighed and fished out the pouch. He handed over a sizable chunk—nearly all —of his rupees to the grinning shopkeeper. “A pleasure doing business with you.” 

“Yeah, yeah.” Faron sighed, scratching his hair through his hood. “I’m practically the only person keeping you in business.” 

Zachary handed over the four green bottles. Faron analyzed them before accepting them. “I’ll see you next time.” 

“Try not to rob me next time.” Faron muttered as they left the shop. 

“Those prices were outrageous! ” Warriors ranted. “ Six hundred rupees for a single red potion?! They’re worth 20 back home!” 

“Yeah, but he was right. You can’t find anything else until you hit Castle Town—a full week’s worth of travel through monster infested land away.” Faron shrugged. “He’s the only supplier on this side of the river, and he can charge whatever he wants. There’s a reason he can afford to import shit. Most traders would rather take the extra few months and tolls to go around Hyrule. It takes at least an extra 10k rupees to convince someone to import goods on top of the base price.” 

“That much?!” Wind gasped. 

“Let me put it this way.” Faron sighed. “With what you saw thus far, would you trust a normal knight to get through that? Let alone a trader ? They have to hire entire platoons to escort anything being imported. Plus hazard pay.” 

Warriors whistled. “He’s making bank, then.” 

“Yeah,” Faron agreed, “off me .” 

They bought a few more items—each was overpriced, but not nearly to the same degree, before a few of the others went off to go explore a bit, under the promise of coming back within the hour. Faron didn’t like being in town longer than necessary, but knowing that Time, Wild, Warriors and Four would be in one group, and Faron himself would be with the others was a weight off his shoulders. 

Faron sat down outside a cafe, taking a moment to enjoy the taste of clean fresh water—something he rarely had the opportunity to indulge in. “You holding out okay?” Legend asked as he sat beside Faron. Twilight was keeping an eye on Wind as he joined them. Sky took a seat on Faron’s other side. 

“He looks like he’s enjoying himself.” Twilight grinned. 

“Considering the fact that this is a new town, I can imagine he is.” Faron smiled sadly. “I wonder how Aurora and Dawn are doing?” 

“We should probably explain things to them.” Sky sighed. “I’m sure they’ve noticed your disappearance.” 

“I doubt it.” Faron shook his head. “I haven’t been to Castle Town in years.” 

“That long? Why not?” Sky startled a bit. 

“It’s a dangerous road, and while the knights in Castle Town actually like me, that doesn’t mean they enjoy the monsters that follow me. Things are more peaceful for everyone if I stay in my cave.” 

“I say we head for Castle Town.” Twilight decided. “It’s all well and good to keep to yourself, but you obviously miss your Zeldas. Do something for yourself for a change, Hy–Faron.” He corrected himself quickly. 

Faron sat on that thought for a moment. “I suppose with a group as large as ours… and my old gambling group tends to meet up at Castle Town around this time of year, too.” He hummed. 

“Did you say gambling group?” Wind popped up from beneath the table. When had he gotten there?! 

“You gamble ?” Twilight raised an eyebrow. 

“Yeah. Old Man and Old Woman have a small group, and I managed to rope Blin into it, too.” Faron chuckled. “I haven’t seen them for a handful of years… I hope they’re still alive.” 

“That settles it.” Legend gave a firm nod. “We’re going to Castle Town.” 

“Did someone say Castle Town?” Warriors asked with a grin. Faron frowned a bit at that. It was the sort of grin that told him he’d done something he probably wasn’t supposed to do, got away with it, and was very pleased with himself for doing so. Wild and Four wore the same grin, and Time , of all people, had a small satisfied smirk on his face. 

“I don’t like those looks. What did you do?” Faron scowled. 

“Nothing we’ll get caught for.” Warriors laughed. 

“Don’t know what you’re talking about?” Four smiled innocently. 

Wild cackled madly, pointing him out as the most honest. “Don’t worry, traveler! I’ll tell you all about it when we get back.” 

“You let them get away with something?” Twilight raised an eyebrow at his mentor. 

“I did no such thing.” Time denied. “I only saw a bit of karma unfold.” He gave a wicked smirk that Faron was quite sure he’d given more than once in his youth. 

“Uh huh.” Faron nodded slowly. “Well, then. Let’s go.” 

It didn’t take them long to leave town, and once they were a fair distance away, Faron let his hood drop. 

“It’s so strange knowing it’s you, but seeing a stranger.” Twilight shook his head.

“The villagers seemed nice enough.” Wind frowned. “Would they really treat you that badly?” 

“No matter how nice they are, fear does horrible things to people.” Twilight answered darkly, and Faron was quite sure he didn’t want to know the story behind that look. 

“So what did you guys get yourselves into? Should I be worried about Zachary’s shop?” Faron shot the three heroes a look. 

“Nope!” Warriors laughed. “But a few people might get a little chilly.” 

“The minish won’t be leaving gifts for that town for a long time.” Four agreed. 

“Minish?” Faron tilted his head. 

What followed was an engaging lecture on what Minish were, as well as what they did. Faron found this fascinating. “So they’re still here? In Hyrule?” 

“Oh, yes.” Four nodded. “Not as many as in my time, but they’re definitely here. I can speak their language, so they told me a little bit about this time. They’re helping the magic return to this land. Hyrule may look dead, but it isn’t. The Minish will make sure of that.” 

Faron felt a small bit of hope bloom in his chest. “So… this land will recover?” 

“Hey, Faron?” Wild spoke up suddenly, pointing to a mountain in the distance. “What’s that?” 

“That’s a mountain range that was part of one of Hyrule's neighboring countries. It fell when Ganon attacked.” Faron explained. 

“And that hole?” 

Faron gazed upon the giant hole that was taken out of the peak of the mountain, almost as if someone had punched right through it with a giant’s fist. “I believe that’s from Ganon, before I defeated him.” 

“Faron…” Wild reached for his slate, swiping through images before he came to rest on one in particular. It was a mountain, and it matched the one before him almost perfectly—right down to the hole in the side. Faron felt something lurch in his stomach. 

“Is that…?” 

“The Hebra Mountains in my Hyrule. Nobody knows why there’s a giant gaping hole in the mountain, but it’s been there for well over ten thousand years.” 

“Ten thousand years is a long time.” Legend frowned. “Surely, it would’ve eroded by then? Or collapsed? Hell, the mountain may not even be a mountain by that point.” 

“But it looks the same.” Faron whispered in awe. “And if the timelines merged… and they didn’t merge until somewhat recently, then… maybe it hasn’t been ten thousand years since the mountain was damaged?” He blinked back a wetness in his eyes. “Does that mean… this land… my Hyrule, will become that beautiful kingdom in Wild’s time?” 

Legend gave Faron a soft smile as he put a hand on his shoulder. “Yeah. No worries, your land will recover.” 

Wild also sent him a smile. “You didn’t fail , Faron. You did save Hyrule. It just takes a bit of time for the land to recover, is all.” 

“Thank you.” He smiled a bit as they entered his cavern. 

“So about that thing…” Warriors grinned, and Faron’s smile dropped. 

“What did you do?” 

Wild lifted his slate and tapped a few times. Faron stared in shock as items started piling up in his cavern. Rugs, chairs, a new table, an actual bed , bookshelves—dear Hylia, was that a magical storage chest?! 

“Wh-what is all this?” Faron asked in bewilderment. 

“Well, those villagers are nasty to you.” Warriors started. “So we thought it was only right for us to… erm… return their generosity.” 

“They treated you like shit, so we’ll take their crap.” Four elaborated. “Nobody should be treated like what you described, and by asking around a little, we learned exactly what they thought of you.” 

“You asked about Link ?” Faron’s eyebrows shot up. “You brave souls.” 

“I mean, that one lady did go on one hell of a rant.” Wild rubbed his ears. “I still think I have hearing loss from that.” 

“If that’s how they thank the person who saved them, then they’re only getting what they deserve.” Time nodded. “Don’t worry, we’re not freezing anyone out over the winter, but winter is coming, and you need to be prepared, too. I know you can’t afford luxuries like rugs, but cavern walls don’t trap in the heat as well without something hung up.” 

Faron wiped away a few tears. “Thank you.” 

“Well, then, let’s redecorate.” Legend beamed. 

Faron nodded. “Let’s.”