Archive of Our Own ^beta

Wind swept the snow into dunes, piling against the rocks tall enough to peek through the blanket. The air was brittle, dry, and frigid . Twilight was thankful for his fur coat, padding across the surface of the snow on four paws. His nose pushed up a track in the snow, the rest of him following what he could find of Warriors’ smell.

The scent was scattered, the clear path blurred against the weather. Still, the wolf had a general direction guiding him to the west. Ahead of him, likely half a days’ walk as an animal, Wolfie could see the true summit of the mountain rising high into the sky. Its snowcap was almost blue beneath the pale sunlight, purple stone webbing through the snow like veins. There wasn’t a single tree that Twilight could see. They were too far up for anything to grow.

Raising his head, glancing behind himself, Twilight saw the smaller peak, the false summit, rising in a gentle slope. It was hazy now in the distance, one of its temperate caves sheltering the others. Time hated to let Twilight go alone, but none of the others could withstand the deadly cold for long except for Wild. But Wild only had protection from the cold and no other elements. Should the wind sweep away his trail, should a sudden blizzard befall the mountain, the champion would have no way to make it back safely.

Wolfie left out a small huff, licking melted snow away from his nose. He went back to work, trotting across the barren landscape. The top layer of snow was hardened into a crust, the glistening ice sharp against his nose and beneath the pads of his paws. It clung to his belly in clumps, accumulating enough that it refused to melt.

Finally, thankfully , Warriors’ scent became clear. Not fresh, but not as smeared as the rest of the trail. Wolfie squinted against the daylight, his blurry vision able to pick out shallow divots in the snow where the captain’s legs sunk into the stuff. He was getting close.

The smell grew stronger and fresher, the footprints clearer. Wolfie entered a small cave. The snow had splashed over a mighty rock like a wave, freezing into a shelter of sorts. It was warmer beneath its cover, the wind whistling around the little alcove. Near the back, shivering in a ball, the captain was bundled into as many layers as he had available.

Twilight came up on two feet, instantly feeling the icy bite of the air around him. His eyes burned against the dry air, the man one sneeze away from a nosebleed. Twilight hurried to Warriors, grabbing the captain’s shoulder.

Warriors startled, flinging a small push knife outwards. Twilight’s eyes went wide, the man throwing himself out of the knife’s arc to prevent having his throat slashed. Rather, Warriors’ knife caught the rancher on the chin, its sharp edge lacing open the pad of flesh over his bone.

“Twilight!” Warriors realized too late.

Twilight hissed in pain, clamping his hands over the wound. Warm blood thawed the ache the cold brought to his fingers. It seeped between them, steaming as it melted through a coating of frost on the cave floor.

“I-I’m sorry,” Warriors got out through chattering teeth. “You startled—”

“S’okay,” Twilight assured him.

Warriors pulled his pouch out, his fingers struggling through a shake to open the top. The captain fished through his things for his medical bag.

“Allow me,” Warriors said.

Twilight shook his head. “I c’n do it cap’n.” The rancher tossed his pouch to Warriors instead. “Get on as many layers as you’s able.”

“What about you—”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Twi—”

“You’re blue ,” Twilight urged.

Warriors frowned, unable to argue with Twilight on that fact. If one of the two men needed warmth just then, it was undoubtedly Warriors. Twilight’s curse left him with a higher body temperature than most, and he was able to withstand the cold more easily. That did not include the severe sort of cold of the mountain, but it was a slight edge over the captain. Besides, if Twilight was too cold, he could always don his furs again.

Twilight kept pressure on his chin, holding it until the bleeding stopped. As he did, he scrutinized the captain. Warriors sniffled, the tips of his ears grayish and his fingers turning blue. He was red in the face, his breathing unsteady. The captain struggled to keep his balance as he stood, sluggishly wrestling on layer after layer of the rancher’s clothes. Twilight mostly wore linen which did little to combat the cold, so Warriors at least began with the rancher’s sturdier wool items.

“You’s in rough shape,” Twilight grunted.

Warriors glanced up, shaking his head after a moment. “I’m fine, just a touch cold’s all.” The captain paused knotting his brows. “The others—”

“They’re safe,” Twilight said. “Wild gottem to a warmer cave to the east.”

Warriors nodded, finally tugging on the last layer he could without compromising his mobility. Twilight gave the captain a stern look. Warriors simply hand the rancher his bag back. Warriors was not about to sacrifice what precious defenses he could manage just to be a little warmer.

“Can you walk?” Twilight asked.

Warriors scowled stubbornly. He took one step forward, stumbling into the wall. He landed with his shoulder against a crag, resting his forehead on the icy stone. He panted for air as he did, curling and uncurling his hands.

“Yes,” he said despite the evidence.

Without asking, Twilight took Warriors by the arm. The captain was too weak to fight the rancher off, standing little chance even at full strength. Easily, Twilight was able to draw Warriors onto his back, hooking his arms beneath the captain’s knees. Warriors draped his arms over Twilight’s shoulder, trying not to sink so readily into any warmth he could find.

“Don’t fall asleep on me,” Twilight warned, his tone serious.

“Sleep?” Warriors joked. “In this weather?”

Twilight bounced the man as if chiding him for joking about something so serious. Warriors frowned, falling quiet again.

It wasn’t often the heroes were separated upon traveling through portals, but it seemed to only ever happen at times of great duress. Sometimes they were separated only to fight monsters alone. Other times, one or more found themselves in bad conditions. Thunderstorms, thick jungles, small sandbars in the sea. Rescues had become Twilight’s bread and butter since the heroes came to band together. Rarely was there anyone he couldn’t find, and the rancher never got lost on his way back.

Warriors screwed his eyes shut, burying his face in the pelt over Twilight’s shoulder to protect himself from the harsh wind. The wind had come up since Twilight set out, herding dark clouds over the precipice. If Twilight dawdled, the two men would be stuck in bad weather. The wind scraped across the heroes, drying any skin left open to its touch. Twilight and Warriors could feel their skin starting to scale and crack and there was no reprieve.

Twilight trudged as quickly as he could. As a wolf, he was able to walk on top of the snow or only minimally sink into it. As a man, he broke through the crust, each step having to clear its own way. With Warriors on his back, Twilight was nearly up to his navel in snow. Warriors boots and shins dragged through the snow, the cold slowly chewing through the layers to burn his knees and toes. Twilight shivered, fighting to keep himself going as every step only exhausted him further and further.

“Cap’n,” Twilight rasped as he had periodically.

The rancher bounced Warriors gently when he didn’t hear a response. Warriors stirred, aimlessly curling his hands to take weak fistfuls of Twilight’s pelt. The captain was losing to the cold, fading with every howling gust. The clouds began to block the frail daylight, only bringing the temperature down further.

Twilight nearly cried in relief when he spied a familiar orange burn—torchlight marked the mouth of the cave Wild found. Slightly renewed at the sight, Twilight pushed himself ahead and buried the wailing ache in his muscles.

The rancher all but collapsed in the warm cave. The sudden rise in temperature seemed to shock him, his bad recoiling at the warmth. Twilight fell first to his knees and then to his side. Warriors slipped from his grasp, landing in a shivering heap on the floor next to him with nothing more than a weak moan.

“Boys!” Time cried, hurrying over to them. The eldest nodded at the others. “As we discussed,” he ordered.

Swiftly, the other heroes were in motion. Four warmed water by the fire, Wind gathered all the rags he could. Legend and Hyrule set out snow-free clothes as Wild and Sky helped Time with Twilight and Warriors.

Twilight drew in deep breaths, staring up at the cave ceiling. The cold had not been kind to him, and the rancher was only vaguely conscious as Wild and Sky began to peel away his icy, snowy layers. Warriors was not conscious, refusing to open his eyes and only replying to Time’s prods with a few groans as he was puppeted out of his clothing.

Once they had both men in dry clothes, Sky and Wild were able to get Twilight to his feet. Twilight staggered over his exhausted legs, his feet aching from the trek. He slouched between the two of them, allowing himself to be guided to sit near the fire. Wind was quick to drape a washcloth dripping with steaming water over the back of Twilight’s neck.

Legend, Time, and Four picked Warriors up by his legs and arms, laying him on a blanket by the fire. Wind lay a warm cloth over the captain’s face, Four put two more over the captain’s frostbitten fingers. Time pressed his fingers to the captain’s wrist, relieved to find a pulse even if it seemed weak. Slowly, Warriors breathing grew less shallow and the pale gray look of his skin warmed into something more alive.

Outside the cave, the wind howled, drawing the heroes’ attention to the dark weather. It was impossible to tell the time, the sun entirely blotted out by thick clouds. A blizzard swept over the cave, giving the illusion of a white wall just beyond the mouth. The heroes let out a collective sigh of relief, glad Twilight was able to find Warriors and make it back before the weather came in.

“Are you alright?” Sky asked Twilight, one hand working through the rancher’s thawed hair.

Twilight nodded languidly, flopping into Sky’s lap. “Sleepy,” he murmured.

“I bet,” Sky agreed.

Warriors roused from his cold slumber, cracking open his eyes. For a moment, he was in disbelief. It wasn’t right that he could just open his eyes, that his lashes weren’t fixed together with an icy glue. The captain turned his head, searching Wind absently. Wind smiled, taking Warriors’ hand in his own and giving it a gentle squeeze.

“I’m alive,” Warriors said, his voice distant.

“For now,” Legend agreed.

“We weren’t gonna let you freeze to death,” Four supplied.

Warriors nodded, his eyes swimming towards Twilight. The rancher looked as cozy as a bear, nearly curled up in Sky’s lap as the chosen hero drew his fingers through the man’s hair as if he were a dog. Warriors curled his fingers, grimacing at the pain nipping his knuckles.

“Don’t do too much,” Time warned. “We’ve done all we can, but the rest will be time and rest.”

Warriors nodded, tasting blood in the back of his throat. Wind helpfully supported the captain’s head, feeding him warm water with a wooden ladle. The relief was sudden and amazing, almost euphoric. The captain’s throat still hurt from the dry air, but the water seemed to rinse most of the pain away. He felt its warmth spread into his chest and settle in his stomach.

“Twilight told me not to fall asleep,” the captain mumbled.

Time nodded, brushing his thumb over Warriors’ cheekbone. “It’s alright now. You’re safe.”

Warriors frowned. “I fell asleep, didn’t I?”

“Cap’n,” Wind said, pressing his forehead to Warriors’. “It’s okay . You don’t need to survive anymore, alright? Get some rest.”

Warriors tried to put up some fight. He squirmed listlessly, struggling to gather the present. He tried to push himself upright, attempting to make himself check on the others. His back didn’t even leave the ground before he’d exhausted himself.