Chapter Text
Malon woke up that morning to find that Link had already left the bedroom. Odd , she thought, she usually woke up when he was moving around, and he slept like a log well past dawn. She pulled back the curtains to see the sun just peeking above the horizon and frowned. What had he gone and done now? She made her way downstairs, quietly so as not to wake the boys, and found her husband leaning against the counter with a pile of mail beside him and an opened letter in his hand. “Good morning.”
“G’mornin’ to you too love. What’s all this?” She pecked his cheek, partly as a chance to look at the letter he was reading. She caught only a sentence ( I hope this letter finds you well… ) before he smirked and folded the page over.
“Letters for the boys, mostly, a few asking about buying one of the yearlings-”
“-That’s a hard no on that. Those horses are stayin’ here.”
“And this year’s tax forms.” he frowned at a thick brown envelope off to the side of the pile.
“Ah, I was wonderin’ when that’d show up,” she said, “actually, it’s been a long time since we got any mail here. I wonder what’s up with the postman?”
Link looked critically at the envelope, and Malon idly picked up one of the already opened letters. It was addressed to Link and Malon Lon . She smiled as she read the first few sentences of the letter, it was from her aunt who lived in Castletown who she rarely saw despite them not living that far away. Link picked up her discarded envelope, “What if the postman is delivering all these letters to me since my name is the first on the address? That would explain why you haven’t been getting anything, and we’ve hardly stayed in one place long enough for him to find us.”
“You’re probably right about the address,” Malon sighed. “That’ll be a pain t’ sort out.”
“I can try and head to the post office before another portal comes,” he hugged her gently, “in the meantime, I think we should wake the boys before they accuse us of reading their mail.”
In a few minutes, the kitchen was swarming with half-asleep teens and Malon went out to the cucco coop to pick up some eggs. When she returned with a basketful, Wild had been put on breakfast duty, and the others were chatting idly around the newly lit fire in the hearth. Link was sitting at the far end of the table, away from the conversation, holding yet another letter and reading it with a far-off look on his face. He looked old, far older than he was physically, or even mentally. She came and stood behind him, massaging his tense shoulders, and running her fingers through his hair. After a while, she leaned her head on his shoulder and read the letter that he had dropped on the table. It was from the Major General of the Hyrulian army. She raised her eyebrow and reached for the page, but he took her outstretched hand in his. “I’ve been offered a promotion,” he said hesitantly. “I’m not sure why, but they’re making me a Captain.”
“You’ve served in the army for three years an’ you were the hero before that. I think you were overdue for one, what’s t’ be confused about?”
“I’ve been away so long-” he started, then changed his mind, “I only hope they don’t expect me to come to work for a while, given the extenuating circumstances.”
“I’m sure they’ll understand, they already cleared you when this quest began, and they chose to promote you now.” She looked down at his face, at the slight frown and worrying lines that wrinkled his forehead. “What’s botherin’ you, hon?”
“Something that Twilight said. Ages ago now.” Link paused, his gaze drifting to their descendant by the fire, “He said he was trained by a past hero, a captain of the Hyrulian army.” Malon stiffened. She had just had this conversation, not two days ago. She bit her lip, Do I tell him? Is it my secret to tell?
“It makes me wonder. How many of us are there, really? How many of us were raised in a life of violence, forced to grow up too fast, and could never escape it?”
“Hon…”
His voice was rising now, “How many of us went back to the front lines? How many lives were lost prematurely because we didn’t know anything else?!”
“Link, hon-”
“I don’t want to accept this!” he threw down the letter again. “How can I command men -boys- to their deaths? How can I condemn them to this?! And for what? I went to the army, Malon because it was all I knew how to do! They have their whole lives in front of them! Lives to do anything with! Lives where nothing is set before them, no quests, no battles, no wars!”
“Hon?”
“How can I drive them to their deaths, when their lives are meant to be their own?”
The whole house had gone silent. From the kitchen, sounds of Wild slicing something picked up suddenly. Warriors coughed. Malon looked around at the boys, all silent, staring at the couple, and patted Link on the shoulder. “How about we take this elsewhere?” She picked up the letter and the brown tax envelope and went upstairs. As she walked, she looked down at the envelope with a frown. As much as she understood and agreed with her husband about the promotion, she couldn’t help but dwell on the fact that the Ranch was barely breaking even. Some months were better than others, and the milk production and sales were still high, but keeping the horses fed and boarded took its toll. She loved the horses, and when Link was away, off with the boys on this new adventure, or out by the front with the Hyrulian army, the horses were what kept her going. Epona’s foals had become like her own children. The tax envelope lay heavy in her hand. She sat down on her bed, Link coming to sit beside her, and sighed. “I’m sorry, hon.”
They sat there for a long time, just being together, leaning up against each other. It was so quiet that they could hear each other’s heartbeats. Finally, he spoke up. “I’m sorry too.” They were sitting back to back now, each dangling their feet off opposite sides of the bed. “I’m sorry it’s come down to this, either the job or the horses. It’s not fair to you and Talon. I wish there was something-”
“But there isn’t, not with quests from the Goddess. I know how hard losin’ the horses will be, but I also know that you can’t take the job.”
“Honey, Malon, it’s ok, you don’t have to.”
“No.” She turned to face him, “I do. It was an unrealistic dream to begin with, keepin’ all the horses with us forever.”
“But even if we sell the yearlings, that won’t solve the financial problems, only delay them for a while.”
“Who knows, maybe it’ll buy us the time we need for the quest to be over, for you to come home for good.”
“Will my being home solve this though?” Link stood up and walked over to the small window. “Let’s face it, Malon, my income from the army is not a substantial amount compared to how much we’re paying. We did fine for the first few years because of your father’s savings and having no one to compete with. So many dairy farms have popped up over the past few years that the price of milk has gone down significantly.”
“So what do you suggest then?” Malon also stood up, slightly frustrated. Link was silent, staring out the window.
“I should take the job.”
“No. Don’t you dare do that!” Malon stood up, frustration turning to anger. “Don’t string yourself up like that, not again!” Link’s face took on a stoic, masked quality. “We’ll figure it out, but you will not take that promotion, Link! We’ll sell the yearlings, we’ll offer to board horses, and we’ll find other alternatives. Sure, they migh’ be temporary, but if a temporary fix is what will save you from that, then so be it!”
Link looked like he was about to retort, but instead, he turned to look out the window again. Malon remained standing at the foot of the bed, her mind spinning. After a moment, a quiet knock came from the door. The door was open, neither of them had bothered to shut it when they came in, and Sky was standing awkwardly outside the door with one hand raised. He must have just knocked on the wall. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but breakfast is ready, and we were wondering if everything was alright. We heard raised voices.”
Malon let out a breath, “Yes, everythin’’s alright. We’ll be right down.” Sky’s eyes darted between the pair and he nodded before departing downstairs. Malon could smell a savoury aroma wafting up from the kitchen and heard the clattering of plates and utensils as they were being set out on the table. “Are you ready to go?”
“Of course.” His face was blank.
“Don’t get terse with me, I’ll make you fill out the tax forms all by your lonesome.”
He smiled, “I would never dream of it. Let’s go eat.”
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After breakfast was over, and the dishes were washed and put away, Malon kicked the boys outside to do some of the chores, and she and Link sat down at the kitchen table to do the tax forms. Several quiet minutes of papers rustling and pens scratching passed, and Malon’s hand felt heavier and heavier every time she signed her name and wrote the date. Idly scanning the long parchment for another dotted line to sign, Malon noticed a section entitled Dependents . Link had hovered over this for some time, judging by the large ink blot in the upper left-hand corner. She held it up and looked questioningly at him.
“Oh,” he laughed, “just debating.”
Malon looked from him to the paper and back again. “I doubt the boys count as dependents if that’s what you were debatin’.”
“No, no,” he laughed, gesturing to the paper, “but imagine if they counted, think of how much less we’d have to pay!”
“Think of how much more we’d be spendin’ to feed them all.” Malon chuckled. “It would tip the scales in the opposite direction.”
There was silence as Link bent over the parchment again. “We don’t need more of that, do we.” His tone was heavy.
Malon bit her lip, “Look, I know you’re still thinkin’ that takin’ the promotion is the best way out of this, but I’m tellin’ you it’s out of the question. We’re still doin’ alright financially, an’ as long as this adventure goes on, any amount of plannin’ and grumblin’ won’t do us any good.”
He sighed, “I know. ‘Stop being so grumpy.’” The slight smile he gave her was strained, he knew she was upset, and was treading lightly. That worried her. She grabbed his wrist, looking into his face with what she hoped was a loving and concerned expression.
“I love you. You know that, right?”
He brushed her hair out of her face, “Of course.”
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Malon waited until lunch was all prepared and set at the big table before calling the boys back inside. “It’ll stop them eating things off the trays when I’m not lookin’,” she said to Link, who was addressing the envelope containing their completed tax forms. He nodded sagely.
“I’m starving!” Wind greeted her as she opened the door, “Is lunch ready?”
“What took so long?” a dry voice piped up, Legend probably.
“Sky nearly fell asleep!”
“Did not!”
Soon enough the food was devoured, and the company sat in cheery and comfortable satisfaction around the table. Malon smiled as she looked at them, all in various states of food coma. She herself was stuffed full of bread and cheese and was in no mood to move anytime soon. Some of the boys -Wild and Four- were showing signs of wanting to get up, and deep down she knew that once they started to rise, the rest would follow and the table would have to be cleared, the dishes done, and the rest of the afternoon work begun. Thinking quickly, she posed a question to the room, “How long have you usually been able to stay in one place? With the portals an’ all?”
It was a successful question, because Wild spoke up, and all signs of getting up were gone. “We were in Four’s Hyrule for around two weeks before coming here.”
“And five days in Hyrule’s Hyrule before that.”
“More than enough time there, if you ask me-”
“I second that.” Sky said, then added sheepishly, “Sorry Hyrule.”
“And before that, we had two days in Wind’s Hyrule, and before that, we had a week where we all got sick in Legend’s Hyrule, and before THAT we-”
“Yes, thank you, Wind.” Malon cut in, “I guess what I’m tryin’ to get at is how much time do you think you’ll have here?”
“Well, we’ve never been in one place longer than a month.” Legend drawled, “which makes undoing the damages caused by certain renters to the cleanliness and organization of one’s house somewhat difficult.”
“What organization, Vet? We all know your house is a few animals away from being a pigsty”
“You charge Ravio rent?”
“Look, in my defence, it’s hard to keep a place clean when people keep puking all over it!”
“And sometimes we’ll get less than a day before the next one shows up.” Four chimed in, “So we really don’t know.”
Malon frowned. “So what I’m hearin’ is that you’d best not get too comfortable.”
“Sadly, yes.” Warriors said, “But we’ve been lucky a few times. Once we ended up in Sky’s Hyrule for a few weeks and that let us rest and regroup before we were thrown back into the fray.”
Malon noticed Sky perked up, and a far-off look drifted across his face before he spoke. “I believe that Hylia has been-”
But Time cut him off. “-If Hylia cared for our wellbeing, as you claim, she would have done far more than allow us time to rest and heal every now and then. Everyone knows that tools are only effective when you take the time to clean and repair them, and that’s all we are to her.”
There was silence for a moment, and Sky dipped his head to take a long drink of his tea. His ears were pink. Malon looked with concern and no small amount of perturbation from him to her husband, who had also reached for his cup. “That seemed a little uncalled for,” she stated bluntly.
“Best leave it,” Twilight said softly from beside her. “They need t’ work this out between them. It’s been brewin’ for a while now.”
Malon bristled at that but tried not to show it, she would need to talk to her husband later, in private. In the meantime, she stood up and began to take the boys’ dishes back into the kitchen. They all followed suit in uncomfortable silence. She assigned Sky and Wind to wash and dry the dishes and shooed the others away to do various tasks before pulling her husband aside. “What was that about?”
To his credit, he wasted no time beating around the bush. “Malon, you know my opinions on Hylia and her involvement in all of this…”
She did. He often came to her in the evening when the group was resting here to grouse and complain about divine injustices out of earshot from the others. She had assumed this half-secrecy was to maintain his stoic image as a leader, but now… “Yes. But they are your opinions. You know my own stance on the goddesses an’ the divine is not particularly strong in either direction, but to take out your frustrations on someone who earnestly believes in the goodness of the higher powers is cruel an’ downright petty! I am perfectly fine with you takin’ your grudges to me, but to force them on other people, not the least the other chosen heroes, is-” she grasped for the right word “-is childish!”
“So what you’re saying is, ‘grow up’?” Link’s blue eye was cold.
“Yes!” Malon was flustered now. “Grow up an’ apologize!” She started to walk away from him, back to the kitchen, when he caught her hand, and she grew even more flustered. “What?” she snapped before she could help herself.
Instead of saying anything, he just pulled her in and hugged her tight. She looked up into his face and saw the hurt in his eye. The coldness was gone, replaced by a bitter ache that she felt in her heart too. “I’ll talk to him,” he said. “And I do try.” He gave her hand a squeeze, “I’m still trying.”
She hugged him back. “I know. I’m sorry, I should have phrased that better.”
“And I should have handled that conversation at lunch better. I’m sorry.”
She released him. “Now, you’d better tell that to Sky.”
“I will, don’t worry.”
Despite that, she couldn’t help but worry. Twilight said this had been brewing for a while, so maybe it would take more than one apology to make things right between the two. She hoped it wouldn’t.
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As they lay in bed that night, Malon couldn’t sleep. The boys were all situated in their guest rooms and the living room and were hopefully all asleep. Link lay beside her with his back to her. His breathing was slow and deep, and he was also probably asleep. The house was quiet, and the night noises of insects and wind were just audible through the window. It was all very soothing, and yet she couldn’t sleep. She lay there, growing more and more frustrated with her unexplained wakefulness. It wasn’t as if she had had a nap, or just wasn’t tired. She was worn out after a long day, just like every day. Still, she couldn’t drift off, so she quietly got out of bed and pulled on her slippers and robe to go stand at the window and watch the sky. The stars were peeking out from behind the clouds, and the shadows of the barns were deep and solid. In the darkness, she could not see Castletown, but she knew where it would be, small in the distance, and yet looming over everything it could see. Her mind drifted back to the letter Link had received from the Major General, and the offer that had been made. Had she been wrong to encourage him to refuse it? No, she thought, he would be miserable, commanding those soldiers, those boys, to bleed and die for a cause that had no real reason for being. After the whole disquiet of Ganondorf’s coming and the nearly-averted disaster that Link had personally had to live through to undo it, the King had decided to use the time of prosperity to subdue the Gerudo and expand Hyrule’s borders. This was a decision that was near-universally loved by the citizens of Hyrule, with the exception of Link, the Princess, and herself. The army was off in some distant land beyond the reconquered Gerudo desert, fighting an unnecessary war. Link had been a part of the invasion of the Gerudo, joining the army out of restlessness and, as he had said before, it was all he knew. He tried to be a dairy rancher, he tried to raise cattle and horses as her Father had, but something drew him back to the uncertain life of a warrior. He can never know peace, she thought. And she felt a deep sense of loss well up inside her, thinking of the boy she could just remember, like a dream, who came to her in the Castletown Market and agreed to help her find her Father. They had been so young, and he had been so carefree, so enthusiastic. She shivered. It was getting chilly out by the window, but still, she gazed out. What will become of us? she wondered. Would any child of ours be loved as he should, when there is so much hurt we are already bearing? What about Twilight? He is our heir, he grew up far from Hyrule, separated from his parents. Who were they, these descendants of ours? What happened to them? Where did it all go so horribly wrong?
She turned to look at Link and found that he was awake, looking at her from under the covers. She met his gaze, her weary eyes locked on his, and he got up and made his way over to her. He hugged her from behind and pressed a kiss to the crown of her head. She held onto his arm. “You couldn’t sleep?” he asked.
“No. I hope I didn’t wake you.”
“No,” he said, “I couldn’t sleep either.”
They stood a moment by the window together, his hand around her shoulders, hers wrapped around herself like a safety blanket, neither of them really looking at the beautiful clear sky with its torrent of stars like scattered petals after a windstorm in spring. Malon shivered, and Link’s hand left her shoulder for a moment before returning with one of the blankets from their bed. He wrapped it around her with that anxious sort of prodding awkwardness he had always had in their early years, never entirely sure if he was doing it correctly. She leaned back into his chest and he leaned into her. She smiled up at him, “I love you, Fairy boy.”
“I love you too.” He sighed and wrapped his arms around her, “I just wish I could do more. Be here, where I belong, not off on some adventure.”
“You’re not the only one who feels that way”
“Well, It’s nice to know I’m missed around here.” Link chuckled.
“Not, me, silly.” She batted at his hands, “Twilight.” She turned back and sat down on the bed again. “He was tellin’ me that he has missed the majority of his little sister’s life due to these adventures. She hardly knows him, let alone sees him as a brother!”
“He told you that?”
“He told me a great deal, but I don’t want to break his trust.” She paused, and he came to sit beside her. “He’s already had such a difficult time of it. All of them have.”
“And yet, Hylia demands more from us-”
“And you answer! Don’t pretend like it’s not a choice you make.”
“If you would have me chose otherwise-”
“No. I wouldn’t dream of it.” Malon lay down, heart aching. “You’ve said yourself, this is all you’ve known. You could never be at peace knowin’ that there was something more you could have done. That goes for all of those boys downstairs as well. You give an’ give an’ give, an’ I can only try to give you somethin’ in return.”
“And in the end. What are we left with?” Link eased himself down beside her. “Two people, so desperate to give everything they have, that they are left with nothing for themselves.” His voice had returned to that sad monotone she had hoped he’d left behind him after the war was over.
“I wouldn’t call us together nothin’. Nor the ranch.” She propped herself up on her elbows, “an’ what about Twilight? I wouldn’t call a hero of Hyrule nothin’.”
“No,” he agreed, “and I’m honored to be his ancestor. It’s just that…” he trailed off, and Malon watched him run a hand shakily through his hair, “It’s not the future I had hoped would come of all of this. Saving Hyrule, and the work here, and all of it won’t matter in the end. We’re still a long ways off from the peace we want for our child, or children, and I know now that once it comes, it won’t last. Another disaster will come, another Tryant…”
“But Twilight will put an end to it. He already has, in his time.”
“But after that! How do all nine of us fit into this? How many times will our efforts be in vain?”
“Not in vain, Dear! There was a long era of peace before Twilight’s quest! At least, I think there was.”
He was silent for a while, lying there beside her, blue eye fixed on the ceiling. “If there is peace,” he began slowly, “at the rate it’s coming now, it won’t be here for our children. Grandchildren, maybe, but…”
“Hon?”
He ignored her, “No. No child of mine will take up arms. Especially not in this stupid campaign.” He got up and walked to the window again, Malon followed, concerned. “I won’t let them.” he muttered, “it won’t be an option.”
“How will you be sure of that?” She questioned, reaching for his hand, “Any child of ours will be jus’ as relentless as you. Just as driven to serve.”
“Then I’ll end the war myself, before he’ll have the chance.”
“That’s mighty determined of yourself. But you’ve done much harder than that already, so I don’t doubt it.” She leaned against him. He was warm, and the sleep that had eluded her for so long was beginning to overtake her. “What’s your plan, then?”
“I’ll take the promotion.”
The statement took a moment to register. “What!?”
“If I do, I’ll have command of a small force. If one hylian can single-handedly free the land from Ganondorf, then imagine what twenty or more can do to end an invasion.”
“You’d be directly opposin’ the King!”
“It wouldn’t be the first time.”
“You could be imprisoned!”
“AND IF I DON’T DO IT, MANY MORE OF US WILL DIE!” he roared suddenly. His voice seemed to shake her to her core, rattling the rafters above them.
“Oh, Hon.” She threw her arms around his neck. He was stiff, muscles tensed.
“I’m sorry.” His muscular arms wrapped around her, and he buried his face in her shoulder. “I shouldn’t have done that, the boys-”
“-Have probably heard and slept through much worse.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be, that was probably brewing for some time. Best to get it out now, and not when you’re away.”
“I will do it though.” he said, “end the war.”
Malon felt like crying, “Be careful, hon.”
“As soon as this… quest- is over, I’ll take up the position, and start lobbying for the King to call it off. The soldiers can see how pointless it is. If the whole army refuses to fight, the King will be forced to concede.”
“That sounds a lot more peaceful than what you implied the first time.”
“This is the optimistic version.”
“I don’t know if I want to hear the pessimistic one.”
He gripped her tight, and she felt the tiredness return. Stifling a yawn, she looked up to see him doing the same. “We should get some sleep,” he said,
She nodded. “The boys will probably want another big breakfast tomorrow. I’ll need to get up to start that.”
“You don’t have to, they’re big boys, they can-”
“It’s the least I can do. You can’t convince me otherwise.”
Link was shaking his head. “I love you. Get some sleep.”
“You’d better do the same, Fairy boy.”
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It was two days later when the portal arrived. It was a yawning black and purple maw that opened up in the feild without warning. It made no sound, but the boys seemed to hear it calling to them, urging them onwards. Malon held back tears as she packed fresh provisions for their bags, and helped Wind pack up the freshly laundered bedding and clothes.
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It was evening when she hugged the boys goodbye, and let the tears fall in her husbands arms as they embraced. The boys were all geared up, swords sharpened and gleaming on their backs or at their sides. Some of them had their shields at the ready.
“Be safe.” She said firmly to all of them. Various affirmations came in response. With the sun bathing the field in fiery dusk, they turned and went, in groups of two or three, into the swirling mouth. As soon as they were all through, the portal snapped shut as quickly as it had come, leaving Malon alone in the orange light.
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It was four days of quiet before Talon returned from Castletown, and three days after that when he left again to sell more milk at the market in Kakariko, leaving Malon alone once more.
It was just a day after that when she realized with sudden nausea that she was not alone, and would not be for some time.