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Language:
English
Series:
Part 5 of Tashacee Oneshots , Part 9 of Links in a Chain
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Published:
2024-01-22
Words:
1,757
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1/1
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60
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373
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What's Left Unsaid

Summary:

When Link first went to Castle Town, it was a shock to realise that hardly anyone understood sign. When Shad met Link, he was more than happy to translate for him.

Slowly but surely, they get to know each other.

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Work Text:

When Link first went to Castle Town, not many people understood sign.

It was a culture shock, if he was honest. Everyone in Ordon had known the language and it had never really occurred to him that there would be places in the world where he wouldn’t be understood.

His first experience of this had been with Midna. The imp hadn’t understood a word he tried to sign to her and had looked at him in bewilderment when he tried. Link hadn’t been too alarmed by this, though. After all, she was from a completely different dimension, why would she understand his sign? As far as he was concerned it was a minor miracle that she spoke Hylian at all! But she had been eager to learn - if only, she claimed, so that she could insult him in his own language - and she was making good progress in their nightly lessons.

Castle Town was different. With Midna she was one person who was with him all the time, who had the time to learn his language and to puzzle out what he was trying to say.

The merchants in the city weren’t the same. Sure, most of them nodded politely and waited patiently as he pointed to what he wanted, or offered him a scrap of paper to write on if he had any questions. He didn’t miss the odd and sympathetic looks flung his way, though, or the way some people treated him like he was stupid, or worse, spoke about him as if he simply wasn’t there. His cheeks burned at the attention and his stomach curled in on itself as he realised just how Other he was here.

Link wasn’t used to feeling lonely. The sensation was bitter in his chest.

Finding Telma’s bar had been a relief, if only because the eponymous owner had a rudimentary understanding of Hylian sign. It wasn’t enough for any extended conversation; she was limited to a few common phrases used by her deaf of mute customers when ordering or renting a room for the night, but to Link she was a lifeline.

And then he met the Resistance.

Link wouldn’t deny that he floundered at first. When he first joined their table he sat quietly beside the bookish looking man, as far away from the frankly terrifying girl as possible as he shrank into the shadows, trying to figure out what he was supposed to do. Link was not a naturally shy person, he enjoyed being in the middle of a conversation and had plenty of opinions that he liked to share. Back in Ordon it was a running joke that he was the loudest one in the village despite his lack of voice, but here he just… wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do. How he was supposed to act now that he was essentially just a spectator, despite all of his experience and ideas.

So he sat there quietly as these people discussed the protection of their realm, nodded where appropriate but otherwise didn’t contribute. The others gave him a few curious looks but must have assumed that he had nothing to say and let him be, which was galling, really. He had so much that he wanted to add and yet no way of telling them. He was going to have to buy a pencil and notebook if he was planning on coming back here again, there was too much vital information that he had to share. Ugh, and that would mean trying to find someone who would even sell such things and figuring out how to buy them and-

He paused and looked around. The others at the table were in an animated discussion about different defence techniques and it would have been nice to be able to join in.

Unless…

The bookish man next to him - Link hadn’t caught his name and wasn’t sure how to ask, but he had large milk bottle glasses, a swoop of red hair, and annoyingly pretty eyes - wasn’t actively participating in the discussion and had several large books with him, and there was a pencil tucked behind his ear. Maybe Link could mime to him to borrow it? Just for a few minutes?

Mind made up, Link nervously tapped the man’s arm for his attention.

He looked around, clearly a little surprised but smiling nonetheless. “Hello there, old boy! Everything alright? I hope we aren’t boring you.”

What- no! Link shook his head and then did his best to mime writing, pointing to the pencil behind the man’s ear.

His very pretty eyes widened behind his glasses as his mouth made a little ‘o’ shape. Then, unexpectedly, he lifted his hands to sign.

“I am sorry, old boy!” He signed. “I didn’t realise! Do you need me to translate what they’re saying?”

Link blinked, astounded. This man knew sign. He knew it perfectly, in fact, his gestures clipped and precise formal Hylian rather than the more languid Ordon dialect that Link was used to. He felt himself slowly start to smile.

“Naw I’m not deaf, but I can’t talk.” He raised his chin a little and gestured to the ugly scar across his throat. “I didn’t know anyone else here understood sign. Seems like no one in this town does. I was wondering if I could borrow some paper and a pen so I can say stuff?”

The man grinned and nodded, hastily passing over his pencil and a notebook, flicking past a few pages of writing and diagrams to find a blank page.

“By all means!” He signed. There was something nice about that - he didn’t have to sign, Link could understand him just fine, but he was still making the effort. “But I’m happy to translate for you too- if you want?”

Link paused, considering. He’d never had a translator before. It was the kind of thing a grand lord might be offered when visiting a foreign land, not something a mere ranch hand like him might have. Midna would tease him relentlessly for such a luxury.

He smiled broadly, for once not worried about how sharp his teeth had become since he first transformed into a wolf.

“That would be real nice of you. Thanks.” he felt himself blush, but what the hell. “I’m Link.”

“Shad.” Shad said aloud, and was that a flush on his cheeks? He turned to the rest of the group and pounded his fist on the table. “Alright everybody, you’ve all been talking so much that poor Link here hasn’t had a chance to introduce himself. Want to tell us what brings you to the resistance, Link?”

Link beamed.

-

Things got easier after that. The next day it turned out that none other than Rusl had secretly been a member of the resistance this whole time. With either him or Shad always at the meetings, Link was never short of a translator. It wasn’t long before the others began to all understand him a little, and then a bit more, and then near enough everything he said.

Still, Link gravitated towards Shad. The academic was unerringly patient when asked to translate and frequently accompanied him to the different shops and workshops around the city where he still had trouble being understood. After a few weeks a few of the shopkeeps were used to Link showing up and could understand a few of his most common requests - arrows were something it was hard to misunderstand, after all. Some people, though, were still unfriendly and didn’t particularly want to deal with him, or worse, spoke over his head to Shad as if he wasn’t there.

That didn’t last long. They both made sure of that.

Shad was cute when he was angry.

It was funny though, too. Shad had the most formal, received Hylian pronunciation Link had ever heard, yet he made a concerted effort to translate Link’s sign accurately, ‘y’all’s and ‘darlin’s and ‘howdy’s and all. It was kind of sweet, that he put so much effort in, and very, very entertaining.

And no, Link definitely wasn’t leaning heavier into his Ordon dialect when he asked Shad to translate. That would have been rude. He just happened to always sign ‘y’all’dn’t’ve’ when the academic was about.

:)

By the end of his journey, Link didn’t need a translator any more. At least, not among the resistance. Most of the merchants were now familiar with him and had learned to adapt to his way of ordering things, and those that didn’t he was able to work around.

Link still spent most of his time with Shad, though. Not because he needed a translator but because… well. The two of them just seemed to fit together. They’d gotten to know one another in those long months of the war, had gotten used to each other's company.

Link knew what the others said. Rusl teased him about his crush mercilessly and Ashei glared and told him to say something and stop mooning over him and do something. Telma slapped him on the shoulder and told him he had good taste.

Link just flushed furiously and shook his head in denial, even if they all knew he was lying. Yes, he liked Shad a lot, in a way that reached beyond friendship. He had no hope or expectation that the academic felt the same way, however, and didn’t want to ruin the relationship they already had by bringing it up.

Some things were better left unsaid. Link could manage well enough on his own, and after everything that had happened on his journey, he just couldn’t risk losing anyone else.

The others scoffed and bet him that he’d change his mind someday, which Link accepted with a good natured smile. It was nice, that they all wanted something so sweet for him, but he was confident that this was one bet that none of them would ever collect on.

-

Several years later, when Link and Shad both signed their ‘I do’s, Link happily passed out fifty rupee pieces to each of the resistance, his new husband - his husband - laughing into his shoulder.

Sure, it had taken a few years. Both of them had taken a while to admit to themselves how they felt and even longer to admit it to each other, but in the end gravity had taken its natural course and drawn them together.

And sure it meant that his wallet was a bit lighter, but as it turned out this was one bet that Link had been happy to lose.

Notes:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARCUS!

Have some Shadlink First Meeting to brighten your day! Technically this is the same universe my Links in a Chain 'Verse, but is also standalone.

I just love these funky lil dudes so much.

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