#after what Vaati did to him and those he loves

[sunfloweraro]

LUtober day 31: Final Boss

Featuring Four getting revenge on my favourite final boss (Vaati).

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 .

“Hello, my old friend.”

Four bared his teeth at the villain, so uncharacteristic of their Smithy. “Vaati,” Four spat. “You are not my friend.”

“You know him,” Time asked, eyeing up the villain—Vaati. The creature was unlike anything Time had ever seen before: long, purple hair trailing down his back; four blood-red eyes glittering with sadistic mirth; deep purple robes that concealed pale hands and likely many weapons, if Four’s unease was anything to go by.

Four growled. “He kidnapped Zelda, tried to take over the world. And then he manipulated Sh—my friend. I despise him.”

Time nodded. “He sounds intelligent. We’ll be careful.” But when he signalled for the group to attack, Vaati easily avoided all their attacks, disappearing into the shadows and reappearing on the other side of the chamber. Three attempts, and Time could see why the guy infuriated Four so much—and that was before Vaati began to cackle.

“You haven’t changed at all, Link. Still hot-headed, charging into battle. I can tell a certain blue side of you is leading.”

“Shut up!” Four snapped, lunging at Vaati, only to miss yet again.

“Ah, ah, ah! Not so fast. I’ve many plans for you once I—” Vaati’s words were cut off by a choked cry when Twilight’s boomerang flew in from the left, clocking him over the head. “Wha—who dares?!”

The distraction was enough for Four; he lunged at Vaati, crashing into him and knocking him to the ground. Vaati had a moment to shout in alarm before Four slammed his fist into the villain’s face. Vaati’s head snapped to the side, but Four didn’t give him time to recover before he punched him again. And again. And… again.

“Should we… do something?” Warriors asked, moving to stop Four.

Time halted him with a hand on his shoulder. “No, hold on… give him a minute. I think he needs this.” Four let out a furious, almighty shriek, his blows not letting up in the slightest. “Yeah,” Time surmised. “He needs this.”

[bokettochild]

I just saw a post asking which Link would make the best villain and....

It's Time guys

Like, I love the man, but let's be real; he's a second from snapping and committing atrocities.

Twilight is so thoroughly traumatized by the vision the spirits gave him and Fi's judgement of him that he literally can't stand messing with magic that isn't actually his own or connected to him. And while, sure, he doesn't need magic to be a villain, let's be real, it'd take something magical to force him to turn his back on everything he's ever fought for.

Similarly, Wild fought and died for his kingdom, and his people. There is nothing and no one worse than what he's already seen that could possibly make him turn his back on it all and throw his work down the drain just to destroy everything he'd built himself.

Legend is the same. he's been doing this far too long to ditch now. Granted, he's a grump, but if you look at his games, you see he's a highly empathetic and caring person. Unlike the others, who were tasked with saving the world by a mentor or friend, or had to go and save a friend or family member, or who where sworn to duty; Legend was literally some kid who was asked by an utter stranger to help, and did. Six times. No way someone like that is going to go and destroy everything.

And Wind! Wind is a moral guy, with a good heart. he set out for personal reasons and saw in his journey that there were bigger fish to fry, and he fried them. He had no reason to take it on, no call of the goddess, no responsibility, no reason for him, a child, to go and save the world as well as his sister, but he did it anyway.

Sky and Warriors are simply too devout. Warriors to the kingdom and it's people; with everything he suffered for them, you can't tell me the man isn't dedicated to serving his country. And Sky is loyal to Sun, who is Hylia, so he literally would never go against her. And by the law of the Zelda universe, villains are those who go against Hylia and Hyrule.

Four is an iffy one. Most people might say "but Vio was a villain!" but let's be real; if you read the manga, you know Vio was bluffing all along. If Vio, part of Four, didn't bow even under Shadow's influence, and Vaati's, and Ganon's, then again; who and what would drive this man to become a villain? Granted, the persuing of dark magic to bring back his lost friend could be argued, but is more likely to lead to his corruption than his attempting to take over Hyrule and kill innocents.

Hyrule is tough, since we have very little to work off of in cannon, but come on, even if Hyrule did turn to evil, he wouldn't exactly be able to do much. Hyrule's already in ruins in his time, and the monsters wouldn't hear of working beside him. He'd have everyone against him, and even if he does hold the triforce in it's entirety and thus could do all sorts of horrible things, he has neither motivation nor reason to turn away to becoming a villain.

Time though......

Time has watched the world burn and all his efforts be turned around and lost. He has lost everything so many times, usually with no reward or reason. In the end, Time, though a good man, cares more for the individual than the country. He cares about his wife and his boys, and based off the scars, we can only guess what lengths he's already gone to in order to accomplish his goals.

Time, if faced with the right issue, has every risk of dropping from defender to threat. Hyrule be damned, this man cares for his wife, his kids, his home, and if you threaten that, no matter who you are, he will go after you. He's one second away from going after Hylia and all she has done to him and those around him. He detests the Blade of Evil's bane, the symbol of Hylia's blessing. He borders every moment on the precipice of taking power beyond mortals to fulfill his own wishes, even if it is to help those he loves.

Put Malon in danger, heck, one of the boys, and Time won't let something silly like morals stop him from doing whatever it takes to protect what little that is still his and hasn't already been taken from him. He will fight tooth and nail not to lose anything else, and he won't let even the goddesses stop him.l

[im-totally-not-an-alien-2]

Spoilers for Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

I haven't actually finished the game but I was thinking, what if Zelda never returns to being a hylian and just remains a dragon forever? Who would be the next in line for the throne?

That's right.

Link. Why?

1. Link is from a long family of knights and one of the only known and confirmed nobles in the game

2. Link is one of the only people in Hyrule to know many classified secrets of the royal family (especially if he regains all his memories from his time as Zeldas personal guard and whatnot)

3. Link has saved and aided all of the different tribes on multiple occasions and united them under him.

4. He has personal friendly relationships with all the tribes leaders aka the chiefs and Zora king

5. Link is pretty good as descalating conflicts and finding middle grounds

6. Link is cononically just as compassionate and lovable as Zelda is and would be beloved as Prince

Theres more but I think you got the picture. Just imagine Prince Link, uncomfortable about this turn of events but willing to do what is best for his people.

So I propose a plot for the new DLC: Of course theres a new Big Bad (maybe a sorcerer like Vaati or something) who makes themselves a castle of thier own in the Depths and is trying to take over hyrule but in a different way than we've seen before. Sure they still create monster and cause havoc but they also do political stuff like scandal and slander

Link gathering alliances with the people of the different tribes and trying to clear his name after he's been framed for crimes he did not commit maybe? He, that doesn't really fit the vibe with what I'm going for, but what if the new Big Bad tried to make the people of Hyrule like him more and use thier love of him as a way into power?

Maybe disasters keep happening and the new guys servents/knights keeps saving the day but things keep getting worse and worse. Maybe there could be a new game mechanic where there's a ward or talisman that stops dark magic/ evil entities from entering the city and most of the disasters in that area stopping entirely and when the servent/knight tries to enter the city they hit a magic barrier and it sounds like a mosquitoe getting zapped by a bug zapper and they scream, revealing themselves to be a monster who had been the one causing all the disasters in the first place. The civilians freak out and the monster flees.

Link and the sage of that area believed in Link the whole time/was suspicious of the servant/knight follows the monster with Link and they find a maze like nest the monster has created

Cue dungeon

Cue boss battle

Rinse and repeat for all the sages people (maybe there are some previously unknown Zonai survivors that Minaru is awed and excited to find and she takes them in idk) maybe they were lost in time or something. Maybe thats where the big bad came from and the the Zonai children interrupted the Big Bads spell and thay wound up in the distant future, the children later running away in confusion and terror. So new tribe and dungeon? Just a thought

DLC features:

1. MASSIVE main quest to renovate the castle where you get to redecorate it however you want. Like you get to choose the furniture and decorations and have things restored to thier former glory. Granted you have to pay for repairs out of your own pocket (taxes can only go so far and thats going towards rebuilding the towns and stuff) and you get to put up your own pictures to replace those torn apart portraits and stuff you see around the castle in BOTW and TOTK. You can put up pictures of Hyrules former royals, the champions, the sages, ect. Or you can go the painting route where someone paints the photos you have on your Purah Pad like in your house in Terry Town. I would buy the DLC just for this to be honest

As you renovate the castle and dig out all the collaped pathways you get new memories of Links time as a soldier and get to see his family as well as memories with Zelda

I would throw so much money at Nintendo just to be able to renovate the castle to my liking. Like, so much you have no idea

2. Link getting a freaking crown and royal armor sets. One for prince and another after he's corinated as king near the end of the game

Armor sets based off of the new and old boss monsters

Armor sets based off of the mini-boss monsters including Gloom Hands (this one looks horrifying btw) and you get some kinda boost from each that represents that specific monster like a Hinox set giving you a food affect boost and Gloom Hands set boosts the power of the Phantom Ganon drops

Maybe a sage set that boosts the powers of the sages a bit

Forest dweller set that increases the durability of wooden weapons

3. Rebuilding the town ruins and creating homes for people all over hyrule like the Deya village ruins and Tabantha ruins and you can do it Lurelin Village style (I loved that side quest it was actually pretty fun)

Anyway, this is me officially releasing this idea to Nintendo it they want it so long as they credit me for the ideas they use from me. They don't even have to pay me (but hiring me would be nice)

Here's a poll to maybe help convince them this is a good idea

@nintendo :)

[ppeasants]

Hi. I saw you mention something about a villain Wind au and I was hoping that you would share something. Have a nice day

Hi! Thanks for sending in the ask, I'd love to share more! Keep in mind this might be a bit rambly, since this is the first time I've taken these ideas out of my head and put them into writing.

I think the one of the biggest things about this AU is that Wind did not start as a villain. He turned into one throughout The Chain's adventure. He chose to leave his path as a hero, leave his brothers, and become a villain. This adds a lot of connections to the other heroes and a lot more angst, which is why it's so fun.

What is my villain wind even like? I think he's a lot angrier than normal Wind. He channels his usual range of emotions into just one: rage, and his single minded goal. He's a lot more prone to angry outbursts at those around him. He's not afraid to be underhanded, his time as a pirate serving him well, using dirty tactics in fights and easily manipulating others in speech using his childlike face and by easily reading others and learning what makes them tick.

His fighting skills, aside from his already existing speed, get augmented from the skills he learns from the others. His wind magic gets a huge boost, as well as his general magic pool, allowing him to use to as an offensive tool, defensive shield, and overall speed increase, as he zips around (nearly flies) in fights. He also gets back his time stop magic in the Phantom Hourglass (but how he gets it back is another story [he kills Oshus])

So what turned Wind into a villain? There was no one singular event, but a lot of moments which slowly swayed Wind from his path of being a hero.

*cw character death*

In my head, the catalyst for everything is Wind's grandmother dying. He's distraught by it, but after a short funeral, he's basically forced to continue his journey, forced to stay stong, because he's a hero. But being a hero, going on his journey, is what made his grandma sick, is what killed her to being with. He starts to resent being a hero.

*cw end*

Other moments include when Wind learns about Vaati, showing interest in his wind magic, but being told that Vaati is evil. Is wind magic evil? Is he? Another moment is when he says some words of sympathy for his Ganondorf, a man trying to bring back Hyrule. They others tell him Ganondorf is always evil, but Wind just can't get himself to believe it (its an hc of mine that Wind feels sympathy for Ganondorf). There's the idea that he came from a world which shouldn't exist, with no hero (even though he's there), and the ghost of a true timeline in Twilight right in front of him. And, there's the fact that Wind wasn't a chosen hero. He forged his spirit, and the sword, but the Triforce was never really his; he isn't a true hero of courage.

All of these ideas slowly pile up, and Wind gets more and more resentful of himself, of heroes, and of Hylia. It doesn;t help that Wind tries to contact Vaati, and succeeds, and is slowly learning more wind magic from him. From his contact with Vaati, he meets up with the other villains in secret. As they support (manipulate) him, and The Chain gets further and further away from his own ideals, he wants to make one last decision - but he needs to talk to one more person about it.

This all culminates, eventually, into a moment where Wind and Tetra meet up, and they talk. Wind tells her all of the doubts he has, and he says that he thinks he hates Hylia. I haven't fleshed out exactly how their conversation goes, but in the end, they have a big fight, and Wind leaves the Great Sea, hurt, with Tetra no longer on his side and with his mind made up.

The next time they sleep, Wind leaves the group for the villains, and when they wake up, they can't find him, and his gossip stone isn't responding to the slate. Wind is now a villain.

But what is even Wind's goal as a villain? He wants to kill Hylia. Believing her to be the reason that his grandmother was killed, that his world was flooded, that all heroes have to suffer, that Tetra has to be someone she's not, he wants to kill her. In his anger, rage, and single-mindedness, he will stop at nothing to kill her. If his brothers get in his way, he will kill them. The only weak spot he has is his home, the Great Sea. He will never hurt his world, his people.

As a villain, he joins a new group, consisting of Dark Link, Ganondorf (undecided which one), The Lizard, and Vaati. he also has different relationships to the other heroes as they learn he's a villain, ranging from Wind's hatred of them, their hatred of Wind, regret at his turning, and even sympathy and a potential turning of another hero, which Wind is ready to use to his advantage.

In my head, I have many, many, many scenes of this AU, at various points in time, so if anyone has anymore questions about this AU, the relationships between the other heroes, or villains, or other specific scenes, please ask! I'd love to talk more and more about it!

[alexsgrimoire]

Plurality & Paganism: An Introspective

If any of you keep up with my main (@sinfulauthor), you may have noticed this post, along with my new pinned post. In short, I've come to the realization (after burying the thought of it for many years) that we are a Collective.

Now, how does this impact this blog and my craft?

To start off, this blog's content will remain the same. It will still primarily act as an e-grimoire with some additional posts, but the people posting what content will change. Specifically, these people:

-Alex (they/them), the host (hi!). I'll generally do most of the talking/posting. Works with The Signless/Sufferer and Dionysus. ANP that the IRL coven knows. (I'm not open with them about being a Collective just yet.)

-Vaati (he/him), who works with Demise and focuses on divination. Writes solely in cursive and gets VERY frustrated when grimoire notes are in standard print.

-Ghira (he/him), who works with Demise closer than Vaati for Obvious Reasons™️. (Though he generally doesn't do any actual spellwork, just offerings, worship, and altar setup.)

-Karkat (he/they) on occasion, solely because Signless HAS shown himself to him and is very much a Dad™️.

-Toko (she/her) has not yet "awakened." She was a former kin heavily associated with our craft. Taking bets on her being a spellcrafter/writer.

So, now that the roll call is done, onto some other stuff regarding plurality and paganism, the introspection the title mentions. (This will be below the cut as it's not as integral to the "functioning" of this blog.)

So, coming to the realization as a system was... interesting. We first became aware of dissociative disorders through Danganronpa (Yes, Toko's horrible representation. We know.) and related to Toko heavily. At the time, we were heavily involved in the Fictionkin community and had "memories" of those "timelines." However, this relatability on the DID aspect was soon hidden under the guise of "I like to write, and so does she! Also super traumatized like me lmao," and then we didn't think about it for five more years.

Come 2023, we've relapsed for the first time in four years and are going through some pretty traumatic stuff again. At an Esbat in September, an argument breaks out that causes us to dissociate and brings up those really painful feelings from childhood. Nothing felt real, and the rest of the night was foggy. (The people in the argument have since apologized. It was also an extremely stressful night due to our old High Priest being ousted for sexual misconduct not even 4 hours before we started.)

At this point, this whole debacle causes us to realize, "Hey, this isn't really a normal trauma response. There might be something else going on." We have a lot of friends who are systems, and we went to them asking, "Hey, do you like. think we're a system?" and FIVE OF THEM SNIFFED US OUT YEARS AGO AND DIDN'T BOTHER TO TELL US??? Like maybe that would have been useful information, idk (We still love our friends to bits, though)

So, fast forward to 2024. Still in the process of diagnosis but receiving trauma-focused therapy to process things. It's been a long process of figuring out how to live/function as someone with a dissociative disorder, but we're learning.

Thankfully, having a good support network has been a great help. We have an almanac (specifically The Practical Witch's 2024 Almanac by Friday Gladheart) to track our craft/spiritual work, and it's interesting to see the input of everyone in the collective. It's a lot of taking things day by day and seeing how things go, but we feel the energy around us changing.

Anyway, ramble over. If y'all read this to the end, thanks for sticking around. I've got some other posts we plan on making, so keep an eye out for those, too.

Signing off,

Alex of the Magic Collective

[fourswords]

hi! a bit ago you made a post wondering where shadow's inferiority complex comes from and I wanted to share my personal headcanon and what (to me) is the simplest explanation:

link is shown to be very confident before pulling the sword and after putting it back, rushing into fights because he believes himself a very capable person (which he is but still)

shadow, being almost an opposite of link, would thus NOT be very confident right out of the gate. add to this that ganon might've given him some long monolog about how link is a serious threat (ganon's faced him before after all) while at the same time likely implying shadow ISN'T (since, compared to ganon and link, shadow in ganon's eyes is the weakest)

ganon summoned him only for him to summon vaati and distract link, to me it makes sense he'd form and immediately be utterly insecure

hi!!!!!! totally understandable, and thank you for sharing your headcanon! i loved reading through it! :D i will say a couple things though—shadow, throughout the manga, is stated to be link's reflection, not his opposite (using the viz translation here but he's also referred to as a reflection in the fan translation: "I'm your shadow, your living reflection in the Dark World."/"It is a 'Shadow Link'... ...A dark reflection of you, but more powerful than any mere shadow."/"And it wasn't that hard, because in the end... ...you're a reflection of us."), and he is quite similar to link because of that—his impulsiveness, his arrogance, his dramatics, his heart); he's just. y'know. Mean. because he's lonely and angry and lashing out (and having fun with it because. well. what else is there to do?). shadow is very confident in himself—he's aware of the power he wields and knows how to thoroughly use it to get his way ("Do I look weak to you?! Can't you feel my strength?!"/"I'm the one who woke Vaati up. It'd be just as easy... ...to seal him away again!"). it's being referred to as "just a shadow" specifically that turns shadow into an emotional glass cannon. and, as he later reveals, his issue lies with the fact that when he's just link's shadow, all he can do is follow. all he can do is stare at link's back as link leads the way. nobody looks at him and he's forgotten over and over again, which is why he considered bringing vaati down a big deal. and now that i think about it, since shadow explicitly states he was born from the dark mirror (he uses the term "came out of" in the viz translation but it means the same thing), maybe he was following link around in his shadow prior to the events of the manga before going to fuck shit up at the four sword sanctuary and that's why he points out what being a shadow is like specifically. hm. food for thought! but also i really wouldn't be surprised if ganon did hit him with some sort of monologue that demeaned him in some way that just added to this initial complex of his (because again, he either blew it up exponentially in his mind or something else happened. imo he just gets way too heated & emotionally fragile about it for it to be just about always having to follow and never lead). especially with the dialogue that happens between them when ganon dragged him back out of the dark mirror. nothing quite like begging for forgiveness and also begging not to be dragged back out into the light world only for the guy who created you to be like "you are NOT forgiven! GET YOUR ASS BACK OUT THERE AND KILL THOSE HEROES!"

and also i know the manga doesn't go into it like the game does, but fsa's ganon(dorf) is actually a reincarnation of oot's ganondorf, so this version in particular actually hasn't fought link before unless he somehow remembers him from his past life. but yes shadow would be the weakest in ganon's eyes (which is funny considering shadow IS very confident that he could seal vaati away again. i do wonder how he would accomplish that without the use of the four sword. what does shadow have up his sleeve.....)

[cloudninetonine]

*walks on in, pats Wild on the head, offers you tea, downs coffee like a shot, sits down tiredly * Heya folks, so how we feeling about that trailer huh Lu and Zelda fandom?

*reads what Hylia did to Prime, sips more coffee* So what you're saying is that Hylia straight up Pure Vessel'ed the guy like how the Radiance did the Pure Vessel in Hollow Knight, got it, even more reasons for Una and Player to body her, and me actually- *cracks knuckles* Time to put those age old judo lessons to good use and make some fried chicken, you know I'm half tempted to write some headcanons on that now Cloud- but this ain't about him for now, next ask maybe.

Now some Lora and Operetta shenanigans for the lols:

-There's this mechanic in Cadence of Hyrule that, if Link, Zelda or Cadence die, they can be revived by the Fates or gain strenghtment's and items by meeting them (which are highly implied to be less strong versions of Farore, Nayru, Din and Hylia, who Octavo bodies by stealing their Threads of Fate to make the Golden Lute, forcing them to move to it's rhythm like everyone else hence why I think Cadence of Hyrule is an inflection point between Legend's and Hyrule's time, since by Legend's they're slightly more forgotten but by Hyrule's they're not even mentioned, Octavo just did what we all arguably wanted: straight up vibe checked the gods, the one good thing Vaati's bloodline did besides giving us Four's Shadow Link), although you lose items upon death so you can't get too comfortable specially if you have really good gear like the Glass Weapons, so neither Lora or Operetta are really impressed by them and are also very casual about death, Player probably already knows this if they played Cadence of Hyrule, imagine if Lora or Operetta straight up die near the Chain, and either one or both plus Player are just, casual about it specially when afterwards (maybe midburial or the Chain trying to figure out what the heck they're going to do with the body of one of their own or with the Princess of Hyrule herself) they just, spring back up after a few hours.

------

Player, ignoring the freak out of the Chain as they casually snatch the weapons from Lora's and Operetta's downed bodies and neatly setting them inside, as well as a few supplies: Chill everyone, they're fine.

Wild, having flashbacks: What do you MEAN fine Lora just took a Guardian beam and Operetta got stabbed by a Lynel-!

Legend, glaring: Why the FUCK are you looting their corpses?!

Player, inching backwards with Lora in her arms when Hyrule tries taking him for a burial: It's not looting! They're fine, give them a few.

Lora, mildly annoyed as he wakes up and freaks out the rest of the Chain as Player sets him down: Alright, OW. *Looks at Wild* Was this what downed you the first time around? If so then I can definitely see why you don't like those things. Definitely not going to do a performance blunder like that ever again. Your monsters are officially the worst.

Four: What the- you were dead, we literally just saw you die!

Operetta, dragging herself out of the grave Warriors put her into, brushing dirt off her hair: Death is a social construct, now where is-

Player, handing her a spear: Here.

Lora, politely staying put so Hyrule can check him over, but scanning around for something: And what about-

Player, also handing him a sword: You really didn't think I'd let you guys lose those did you? Those are hard to get.

Lora, giving them a grin: And this is why you're my favorite dance partner.

Operetta, giving Player a considering look, before turning to Lora: Hey, Lora, you know I love you like a brother right?

Lora: ... Usually I'd say yes, but this feels like it will be followed by something I won't like to hear.

Operetta: Just answer the damn question Coloratura.

Lora, rolling his eyes: Yes yes, I know don't worry.

Operetta, nodding: Good, glad we have that covered. *Turns to the rest of the Chain with narrowed eyes* If none of you shape up and have the balls to confess and start a courtship with them, then either I'll help set them up with Link or add them to the royal family myself via marriage. Either way it's a win for me, you're heroes of courage! Show me that you fit the job description.

Lora, choking and dying again in the back with a stunned Player:

(No kidding she probably would just to mess with Lora or help things move along).

-Operetta would absolutely shank both of Villain Hyrule's Zelda's if Lora didn't already ballet or tango all over them just because they're her best friend's descendant, Cadence would help and persuade Octavo to help too, something tells me the Villain Chain and the Singularity would be very confused.

-Since Player is associated with Geese, and Swans are basically angrier versions of geeses (no joke, there's some black European Swans here in a park near my place and I've once seen those suckers body a man), Lora and a ballerina Player performing the Swan Lake Pax de Deux:

https://youtu.be/077BgT3h6As

Occasionally Operetta cuts in just to spice things up, taking the role of the prince for the giggles, also, can absolutely see Lora and a ballerina Player accidentally default to ballet moves mid battle to get each other away in his Hyrule, he'll lift them up, they'll tug him down, he'll spin them, they'll kick a bokoblin in the face middance (preferably with heels for maximum effect), or they'll tango with each other and they won't even realize they're doing it because they're so used to dancing with a partner they won't even get it, like they'll just straight up do the Firebird Suite or something: https://youtu.be/EC6MmmLKEmA

And literally any and all Links are just punching the air.

They'll also speak exclusively in musical references once Lora is all caught up with Player's musicals:

--------

Lora, deadpanning at Legend and his distrust of Player: You know, you keep calling them a witch, but I haven't seen them doing anything wicked yet.

Player, a little shit: I don't know I'm feeling a little Wicked right now, I could probably put you under a spell.

Lora, A Theater Nerd: Oh? Perhaps like nothing could bring you down?

Player: And I could probably do it non-stop!

Lora: You're like me, never will be satisfied by just a little huh?

Player: Not as long as you're mine.

Lora: Then how could I possibly say no to this?

Player: You couldn't, you got me helpless after all.

Hyrule, straight up stomping on Legend's foot, hissing: You just had to get them started again didn't you?

They're straight up unknowingly flirting with musical references (either platonically or not) and either some member of the Chain unknowingly joins in because they've been bit by the musical bug and delights the two theater nerds or the Chain straight up suffers until they run out of references to make.

-Lora definitely tries to set up Hyrule and Player every chance he gets, I don't make the rules.

I'll probably figure out more stuff for them later before this gets long.

On another note, Ancient Au crumbs:

-It's basically confirmed Fia/Seraph probably could use magic without the aid of a Sheikah Slate due to how his hand behaves, so he likely could do it on his own as well, I can definitely see him teaching Player how to tap into Zonai magic and, to escalate things further as she literally helped create it, Una teaches then how they can hack into Sheikah Tech since I headcanon it's a mix of Zonai magic and Sheikah magic and technology (Player riding into battle on a Guardian Una helped them hack into when the murder horse or their fluffy wolf buddy isn't nearby my beloved-)

-Dia (short for Ferdiad aka Fia's Ganon, named after one of the two warriors who could match Cú Chulainn) probably didn't stay with the Gerudo long after he earned his freedom in the coliseum, he likely met Fia after he earned his freedom as well and, after running through the same gladiator cycles, I feel like he'd snatch up any other unsuspecting and victorious warrior he could and form a mercenary band so they wouldn't have to return to that life again, probably asking Fia to tag along and Fia agreeing, because that way not only could he be near his shield brother but he could also keep finding strong opponents along the way which is a win-win, it was during one of those travels where they met Una who, after testing them both via what might have been a tech powered Lynel or a prototype of the Guardians, asked Fia to be both a bridge between her and the Zonai (since he's Macha's brother, Macha being his Aryll/Linkle and the Zonai leader through right of conquest) and her personal guard because that would give her more freedom to move around outside the castle and have the added bonus of no one trying to push guards on her and she having to come up with more and more ridiculous trials so she can turn them away, he agreed and they started traveling together or saw each other during their travels, until during one of those together Fia got the Master Sword, which is when Dia started getting worse due to Demise's curse intensifying and him being unable to resist after a while. Una tried separating him and Demise's spirit like how most Zelda's are separated from Hylia, but Hylia blocked her abilities off mid way when she saw what she was doing was not killing him, which caused the First Calamity. And for trying to go against 'fate' (but really just because Una defied her, rejected her and straight up tried to shank her because Una refused to kill Dia if there was any possible avenue of getting her shield brother back and didn't take well to Hylia trying to take over her body to do it or trying to have a go at 'encouraging' Fia), she blocked off her powers until she finally caved, when she saw that her shield brother was less Dia and more Calamity Ganon and after Fia/Seraph had to get a new arm and there wasn't much of a choice anymore. Plus I headcanon Una would be a history nerd the same way Flora is towards science, so she could probably trace back all the problems with all of the Links and Zeldas back towards Hylia and Demise if she kept digging, so she straight up loathes and dislikes them both equally.

(Not pictured:

Una, on her own murder horse with Craein, sharpening her spear, towards Fia, Player and the Villain Chain, in a Mean Girls tune: Follow me folks we're commiting deicide and vibe checking a goddess.)

She probably feels bad for Flora, because she feels it's her fault she wasn't able to get her powers earlier, but is also proud of her for doing it eventually and is super supportive of her scientific pursuits, also snorts at the whole 'praying to Hylia to figure out how to unlock her powers bit's because, and I quote "And what does your father know? No Zelda could hear her, she won't help you with that, you're a scientist aren't you? So do like I did, think like one, experiment, go wild, you didn't do anything wrong or aren't worthy or anything, you just need to look at it with a fresh perspective."

-Remember when I mentioned the Grettir thing? Grettir the strong was a warrior in an Icelandic Saga, know primarily for his many ghost punching feats, one day he killed an specially corrupted undead being (sound familiar?) Who cast a curse on him, the undead saying that while he couldn't take his current strenght away he could do other nasty stuff after the ghost wrestling with his second dying breath, declaring that Grettir would never be as strong as he was when facing him (Glam the undead by the way), that all his good deeds would turn sour and foster hatred and rejection towards him, and for bonus spice Glam nightmarish eyes will haunt him forever from within the dark and that Grettir's life would spiral into torment and isolation until he eventually died alone. By the way that's the etymological root of the word glamour.

That but it's Fia after the Calamity is sealed under the Castle, maybe he was either cursed or corrupted and, after tying up as many lose ends as he could with Una so Wild would have an easier time (not that it worked), and it motivated him to kill himself beneath Hyrule Castle to keep Dia down a bit longer, where Wild would eventually find his body and arm (and presumably where Player may meet him for the first time), just really ramp up the angst, maybe he did that so hopefully Wild would be spared that.

-Context on Craein, they're Ancient Au Player aka The Player with the no good, awful, very bad day of instead of being transported to the Chain and the Hyrules we know, they were Isekaied to Ancient Au with little to no context to help them with. Like think about it, Player, as a Zelda fan, was lucky to be transported mid LU and to Hyrule's we know, Twilight Princess, Ocarina of Time, even BOTW which is arguably the most dangerous one, they know them like the back of their hand due to playing a lot, they were lucky not to end in times we know little about like First's or the Hero of Men's, Craein didn't have that luck and so they had to adapt quickly and alone before running into Fia (well, more like he chased them down while they cursed him out because they were trying not to get involved in the plot, it's a whole story for another ask if you're interested), even joining a group of Gerudo bandits as a bard/distraction because Player probably would know a lot of stories (be they Hylian or myths from our world), they eventually get close to Fia, Una and Dia and help things run along before dying some time after Fia/Seraph lost his arm from getting corrupted by Malice and Hylia refusing to allow Una to heal them because Dink was interfering, they become a blight and either Fia or Una put them out of their misery, after their work is done presumably Player's Aid happens, Craein means 'Crane' and they're essentially the equivalent of 'guiding birds' in Irish Myth for being associated with knowledge and Lugh. They're essentially a more feral version of Player that, while not very good at fighting, can definitely hold their own, they're still a gremlin and besties with Fia and Una, but much more jaded due to the nature of Ancient Au, also probably was touched by Zonai magic rather than Sheikah magic.

(Not pictured:

Player, mildly horrified: Who the heck are you?!

Craein, laughing hysterically as they finger gun back from atop Fia's murder horse, after having ridden them straight into Dink and their hood fell off: You but more ✨Traumatized!✨~ Deck Hylia for me if you do see her alright? Also, stay away from any Malice you see, capiche?

-------------------

Villain/Yandere Chains: Oh by the goddesses, ♥️Player♥️, I have fallen for you-

Craein, slinging Player over their shoulder and going towards Fia on the murder horse, the man unamused and cracking his knuckles and Una straight up pulling a knife from her dress: Well don't. Stand the fuck up and leave them alone. Stand up!

Craein would straight up body any of them and Hylia, they're on their thirteeth reason after the Ancient Au and fear nothing anymore)

And that's that for now, tired and my brain is failing me, more Ancient Au and Cadence of Hyrule crew shenanigans another day, hope you're having a good day!

-Just a Tired Summertime Musician.

HEYA SUM GOOD TK SEE YOU DROP BY AGAIN!

First, I would like to start off that this version of Hylia is basically the version who just went "Ya know what, free will is for losers." And become known as the Tyrant Goddess in hopes of making the Golden Three proud by demanding complete obedience of everyone by deciding that she'll only let things considered "good" be part of her perfect little world. (She forgets that our Golden girlies don't care and she's just fucking over her people)

I'll be calling this version Martinet- girly almost completely tippes the scales of balance because she's got this deluded belief that she's doing the right thing by oppressing everyone and making them live under strict rules- Demise is literally the only thing keeping Martinet for turning not only Hyrule but the entire world into a police state.

Bro is still affliated with darkness too, all the Ganons are, he's just trying not to have the golden three wipe the entire face of existence because Hylia doesn't know how to behave.

So yeah, love that for her /s

ANYWAY

I feel with Player knowing that the two would come back from the dead it would still make them have a mental break seeing their corpses collapse onto the floor- sure, with age comes desensitisation but it's not stopping Player from flinching each time.

Also Player after Operetta's words just "🫢🫢😶😶🔇🔇"

Also also- Let Lora and Player be drama needs, they deserve it and a ballerina dance? Perfect for them, enough doubt Player can bend that way they'll certainly still try NFMWMDMSM

LOVING THE RETURN OF OUR FAVOURITE PREQUEL WILD CHILD 🫶🏼🫶🏼🫶🏼 HE HAS BEEN MISSED AS HAS UNA AND DIA

Also loving Craein, give Player their protector, they've had enough, they've put on 20 years while still being 19 going on 20 NDNNQNXJW

[thelegendofhino]

While i do enjoy zelda games and zelda lore and whatnot i have only played 6 zelda games... i know there are a lot more than 6.

Obviously ive played breath of the wild and tears of the kingdom. I dont really know what made me want to play breath of the wild. It was very unlike other games id usually play. Especially since i tend to just play the same few games over and over again... but im glad i did, because i enjoyed it immensely, to the point where i played it twice, my first time being on the wiiu.

I think one of my earliest attempts of playing a zelda game that i can remember was wind waker on the gamecube. I never managed to beat it partly since the console was at my grandmothers house and partly because i got stuck at dragon roost island because something odd had happened with the collapsing stairs that i was unable to progress. I dont know if i had gotten actually softlocked or if it was just a skill issue on my part. I was kinda young at the time. I did end up playing and beating wind waker hd later on. Then i tried to play it again on the gamecube but for some reason i lost interest at the part where i had to find the iron boots to progress.

Ive played four swords adventure way too many times. More times than id care to admit. More times than i can count. For no reason other than it was the only zelda game we had for a while and i just loved playing the gamecube and it was not a very difficult game (there was one time when i was younger i did get stuck on one level for. Possibly hours, driving my parents insane because i just kept going back and forth trying to figure it out) and it was just a fun game. As much as ive played it i absolutely would not consider it my favorite zelda game. Its a fun game but its also boring at the same time. Probably just because ive already played it so many times.

Ive attempted minish cap twice and beat it once. My first attempt i couldnt figure out how to beat vaati, but in my defense, everything else in the game with singular eyes youre supposed to shoot them with arrows. So naturally i never once thought to swing my sword at vaati because he is just eyes. And eyes = arrows. And it just never occured to me to try and hit him normally until i replayed it earlier this year. Other than that, its a fun game, and i love how it looks.

I played links awakening dx. I dont remember much about that game actually. I enjoyed it. It looked cute. I had no means of playing the original. Thats all i have to say about it.

Now. Those are games that ive finished a playthrough of. Ive also attempted twilight princess. Unfortunately i attempted it right after having played botw for a while, so i had to get unused to being able to climb things. And... embarrassingly enough, i got stuck at the very first temple of the game where you get the boomerang. I just couldnt figure out where to go. And being very aware that this was so early in the game and i already got stuck did make me feel discouraged. Not that i thought the game was too hard, but that i shouldnt be struggling as much as i did... nobody was watching me play but i was still embarrassed anyway. So, perhaps in the future ill give it another shot.

Now i am playing ocarina of time and will hopefully play through majoras mask. I have a feeling i may not end up ever beating majoras mask, but... i will at least try.

[raviotherabbit]

royal pain in the ass - chapter 7

Chapter 7: Era of Force Princess Zelda heads to the forge.

[first] - [previous] - [next] read it on ao3!

  △ ▲△

“Is the peppermint tea alright?” Zelda asked her companion sitting across from her on the picnic blanket. “I thought we’d try something a bit more herbal this time.”

“It’s lovely, thank you,” Hyrule smiled at her past his cup. “In fact, I’m tempted to start growing peppermint myself.”

Ever since she found out the Hero of Hyrule liked tea, Zelda had begun setting aside certain flavors for him to taste whenever he visited. Though he was older than the two of them, he reminded her a bit of Link just a year or so ago. A bit brash, always buzzing back and forth… they both needed to be reminded when to relax.

“I’m glad to hear it,” Zelda responded. She sips at her own tea, deeply sighing as its warmth settles in her stomach.

What a beautiful day…

“Excuse me, Princess Zelda?”

Looking up from her drink, Zelda was a bit surprised to see the Hero of Warriors. He stood above the two picnickers, ignoring how Hyrule’s gaze narrowed on him.

“Why, hello hero!” Zelda happily lifted her teapot to show to the captain. “Would you like to join us? Today’s choice is peppermint.”

“Maybe some other time,” Warriors waved the pot away. “I had some questions about the castle’s security.”

Subtly, Zelda met eyes with Hyrule. His lips were pressed together tightly, and his grip on his teacup seemed almost desperate. But the moment he saw her, she swore he forced himself to act natural.

“Go ahead, Princess,” he hesitantly nodded. He brushed himself off before he started to head towards the castle gate. “I need to stock up on potions in town, anyway. We can talk more later.”

“If you’re sure,” Zelda stood, taking Warriors’ nervous hand into her own. “Come with me, brave knight.”

Wordlessly, Warriors allowed himself to be guided into the castle. Zelda looked back towards the gate one last time. Despite his words, Hyrule was still there, leaning against the stone.

Then the door closed.

One step at a time, Zelda walked Warriors through the castle’s defenses. The armory, the barracks, even the throne room. But wherever they went, it seemed the hero grew even more nervous. He eyed the knights with suspicion as they passed by, and every time Zelda looked at him, he was even more fidgety than before.

But there was no reason to suspect Warriors of any ill intent. He’d been nice on all of the Links’ previous visits. Better than nice, really. Always courteous, opening doors ahead of her, even joining in with ribbing Four a bit. So if he was a bit nervous about her safety, Zelda would do anything to assuage those fears.

“You’re kind for your concern,” Zelda told Warriors, leading him into one of the empty banquet halls. “But we’re safe here. With Vaati sealed, there’s no longer any threat to Hyrule.”

“What about threats from within Hyrule?” Warriors asked the second they were alone.

Zelda couldn’t but gasp at the accusation. “Are you speaking of traitors?”

“Soldiers can be… easily manipulated,” Warriors explained warily. “It’s happened before, hasn’t it?”

“Yes, we… we did have an issue with mind control,” Zelda admitted with a frown. “But again, Vaati is gone for good. None of our soldiers will harm us.”

“What if… what if it wasn’t just any soldier?” There was a paranoid gleam to his eyes. “What if it was someone you know?”

Warriors was taller than Zelda, that was true. But the wrath of a princess is not feared just for her height. Zelda’s hands tightened into fists, and Warriors almost seemed to cower from her rage. “Just what are you suggesting, hero?”

His shock wore off, and Warriors righted himself again with the rigid composure of a knight. “If Four turned his blade against you, what would you do?”

“Stop!” Zelda commanded, silencing him with a single pointed finger. “Don’t speak of my four that way. He… none of them would ever do that!”

“But what if he did?!” Warriors suddenly grabbed onto her arm with a vice-like grip. “Can you honestly say that you would fight against him?!”

Zelda yanked against his hand. “Let go! Let go of me!”

“Stop it!”

There, silhouetted by the hallway’s light, was Hyrule. He rushed past the doorway, shoving Warriors away from the princess.

“Wars, you need to control yourself!” Hyrule shouted. “What’s wrong with you?! Why are you all acting like this!?!”

Warriors blinked is confusion, as if waking up from a dream. He spotted Zelda, helplessly clutching to her aching arm behind Hyrule.

“I didn’t mean…” he started, but his words drifted away.

“Just go,” Hyrule sighed as he dropped his head into his hands.

Stunned into silence, Warriors left before Zelda could stop him, scattering as quickly as he could and leaving the door open.

“I’m so sorry, Princess,” Hyrule turned to her. “I knew he was acting off, but I didn’t think… Anyway, are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” she said breathlessly. The light spilling in from the door only twisted her stomach further. “I’m fine.”

  △ ▲△

With her head held high and her steps confident, Princess Zelda Lucille Hyrule passes through the town gates.

“Princess!” one of the guards shouts after her. “It’s dangerous to go alone! Let us come with you!”

“I’m just going to visit Smith!” Zelda calls back, keeping up her quick pace. “I’ll be back before you know it!”

The soldier says something, probably about her father or the minister. But to be honest, Zelda couldn’t care less. A little time out of the city could never hurt, after all, and someone has to check in on the old man.

Once she’s out of hearing range of the guards, Zelda takes in a deep breath. The morning air is still fresh, a bit of a chill hanging onto it. It’s the perfect day to spend out in the world, not cooped up in the castle.

The walk to Link and Smith’s house is rather short. Zelda lightly knocks on the door, pushing it open as she does so.

“Smith? Are you home?”

But when she peeks inside, Zelda’s surprised to find she’s not Smith’s only visitor today. There are five girls seated around the room, Smith delicately balancing glasses of water as he delivers them to his guests.

“Princess!” Smith grins when he sees her at the door. All eyes turn towards Zelda, embarrassingly enough. “Come in! You’re right on time.”

“Uh, who are all these people?” Zelda asks, slowly stepping into the humble home.

“Friends of Link! They just stopped by asking about him, so I thought I’d offer the poor things some hospitality,” Smith moves behind her, guiding her to one of the chairs by her shoulders. “How’s your arm feeling, by the way?”

“I’m fine, not even sore anymore!” Zelda waves her arm up and down to demonstrate. She eyes the two ladies across from her, one in a simple pink dress and the other in a long black cloak. “So, you all know Link.”

“Well, we know the Links!” one of the girls sitting against the wall, wearing bright blue, amends, putting emphasis on the ‘s’.

“Plural,” her short friend with the bandana clarifies.

“And you,” the cloaked one leans forward, folding her hands on the table. “You’re Princess Zelda.”

“Yes, I am,” Zelda’s eyes narrow at the strangers around her. This has got to be the most suspicious way she’s ever been approached by potential crooks, that’s for sure.

“Well then,” the tallest one, wearing light pink, pushes herself up from the floor. “Welcome to the club.”

  △ ▲△

Of course, once they explain the situation to Dot, she sweetens right up. Her suspicious glares and crossed arms melt away, and by the time they’ve stayed their welcome at Smith’s home, she’s walking in tandem with Tetra along that path back to town, all while Flora takes notes in her journal.

“So, you and your Link have known each other for quite a while,” Flora remarks as Dot finishes a story about the time Four lost his first tooth. He’d cried so hard that day, the whole town was complaining. But in hindsight, it’s incredibly funny.

“We’ve been friends since we were kids,” Dot explains, a fond smile on her face. “His grandfather is friends with my father, and his dad is one of the kingdom’s best knight’s. We’ve always known each other.”

“That must be nice,” Flora comments, speaking as she writes. “I didn’t meet Wild until we were twelve, and it was a bit of a rough start.”

“Yeah, well, Wind I met two years ago,” Tetra chimes in. “But unlike Four, I don’t think he grew up out of his crybaby phase.” She snickers to herself. “Still my best friend, though.”

“Oh, same here,” Flora twirls her pen.

Dot giggles. “Ditto.”

“When was the last time you saw them?” Dusk suddenly asks from the back of the group.

When Dot turns back, Dusk has stopped in her tracks. There’s something about the way she looks at her, desperation mixed with something else. Regret? Guilt?

“It’s been about two months,” Dot reveals. She looks to the one of them standing next to Dusk, Artemis, concern clear on her face. “Your hero is Warriors, right?”

Artemis startles, perhaps a bit shocked by the shift of conversation. “Y-yes,” she confirms.

“Well, he was-” Dot suddenly glances down, fidgeting with her hands. “He- Did you see him after me? Because he seemed very upset, so I was wondering if-”

“Woah, hold on,” Artemis interrupts. “He was upset?”

“Paranoid, more like,” she amends. “He wanted to know about the castle’s security, he was convinced that… that Four would turn on me.”

Artemis gasps, covering her mouth with a hand. “His paranoia came back?”

Flora gently closes her book, moving to place a hand on her fellow queen’s shoulder. “Artemis, are you alright?”

But before Artemis can respond, someone else speaks.

“Sky was also acting strange, when I saw him,” Tetra says.

Suddenly, all of the group’s attention is focused squarely on the pirate, particularly Sun, whose eyes are wide.

“What?” Sun questions. “Something’s wrong with my Link?”

Tetra snaps suddenly. “Oh, he’s yours! I’m not the best at keeping track of all these guys.”

“Tetra, now isn’t the time,” Flora reminds her.

“Right, right,” Tetra leans back on her left foot. “Well, I found him all alone, and he asked me about the flooding… About who died when it happened.” She sighs. “Called it the legacy he’d left the world, shamed the faith the people had in the Goddesses.”

“He… what?” Sun brings a hand to her forehead. “He said that?”

“Twilight was also angry, when I last saw him,” Dusk reveals abruptly. “He… he snapped at me, said that protecting Hyrule had always fallen to him when I should have… But we-we’ve talked about it before, I don’t know why he…”

A deafening silence hangs over all of them. After so long, so much work to get close to normal again, Warriors was somehow convinced once again that there was a traitor around every corner. Sky, always so brave, so dedicated, now believed that faith in the Goddesses could only bring sorrow. And Twilight, the loyal farmer, who’d always listened to his friends, used words spoken in confidence against Dusk.

What had happened to their boys?

  △ ▲△

After so long on the road, being welcomed to Hyrule Castle feels like a dream. Nice soft beds, clean clothes, and the first bath Flora’s had in a week at this point. The grime of seawater and city filth washed away like nothing. Afterwards, she sat on her bed in one of the castle’s guest rooms. It’s much smaller than she expected, in fact, she and Artemis would be sharing a room. It reminds her a bit of their first night together, back in the Era of the Sky.

Idly, Flora doodles in her journal. Silent Princesses have always been her favorite, and their curled leaves and five petals are practically engrained in her mind with how much she draws them. One hundred years ago, whenever she was stressed, it was always these small sketches that helped calm her.

Flora’s stomach twists, the deep dread from before their arrival to the castle returning. So far, none of them had mentioned Wild, but if something had happened to her dear hero again…

So she writes it in her journal. Everything she knows, from what Dusk, Tetra, and Dot have shared. She may not know what’s wrong, but for Hylia’s sake, she’s a researcher. If anyone’s equipped for putting mysteries together, it’s her.

Luckily, just as she finishes her writing, the door creaks open. Artemis steps in, her hair damp from her own bath. She’s wearing a robe the castle staff so nicely provided.

“Artemis,” Flora smiles. “Thank goodness you’re here. I’m going to figure this out.”

“Oh, are you?” Artemis quips, though she’s missing some of her spark.

“I’ve just finished writing my own account of the last time I saw the Links,” she taps her journal. “And we know that you saw them next. So-” she pats the spot on the bed next to her. “Tell me everything that happened. Leave out no details.”

Artemis’s smile is weak, maybe even a bit forced. But she sits down by Flora’s side anyway.

“Alright,” she says. “Their portal appeared in the courtyard, early in the morning…”

  △ ▲△

By dinnertime, Flora has managed to collect a statement from everyone she has available.

Flora (me) -Last saw the Links 3 months ago. -The Links spent an afternoon at Hyrule Castle. -Four and Legend were allowed to investigate the library, but to be careful. -Wild and Wind took a trip into town. -Twilight was concerned Wild would get into trouble, but I told him they’d be fine. I got some drinks for us, and I asked him about his time period (refer to prior notes). Same questions were asked of Warriors later. -I’m not sure where Time, Sky, and Hyrule were. -Everyone left before the evening. Wild said goodbye, promised to let me know as soon as he returned.

Artemis (Era of Warriors) -Last saw the Links 2.5 months ago. -Heroes went through a portal right into the castle courtyard. Artemis let them know they were welcome to explore Hyrule Castle and the town. -Wild wandered off with Sky and Legend, though Artemis noted he was leading that pack. -Warriors brought Wind to visit some of his fellow soldiers he hadn’t seen in a while. -Time came to her with concerns about group morale, so she suggested spending time with some of their loved ones (including the Zeldas! This bodes well for future statements). -They left the next morning. Other than Time, nothing seemed off. -Artemis wants it known that their army has had troubles with traitors in the past. This caused much paranoia for Warriors for quite some time, but she was sure he’d worked past it by the time he began travelling with the heroes.

Sun (Era of the Skies) -Last saw the Links a little more than 2 months ago. -Arrived at the Sealed Temple late in the day. Sun and others helped make them feel comfortable (classic Skyloft hospitality), they let most of them sleep in the temple that night. Sky slept in Sun’s tent. -They were all very tired from traveling, so she didn’t see a lot of them. -Sun found Legend staring up at the Goddess Statue. He was wondering what the point was of defeating evil if it always rose again. Sun told him a story about the First Hero (reminder: ask for THAT later), which seemed to calm his nerves. (Is this strange for him?)

Dusk (Era of Twilight) -Last saw the Links less than 2 months ago. -Four told her at some point before arriving, Legend said something rude and Twilight had to tackle Wild to stop him from pouncing on his fellow hero. -At the castle, Four made a comment about the armaments available to the guards. Something about this made Twilight explode, saying how they couldn’t even protect the castle. He turned on Dusk, asking why she couldn’t have stopped the Twili invasion on her own. She tried to reason with him, but he stormed off. -Dusk took Four to the armory to try and calm him down. He noted that all of them seemed to be tense. -The next day, Time went to Ordon Village (Twilight’s hometown) to look for him. The rest of the Links followed in the afternoon.

Tetra (Era of the Great Sea) -Last saw the Links 1.5 months ago. -They were staying on Outset Island (Wind’s hometown), so Tetra decided to drop anchor and spend some time with Wind. They were there for several days. -Wind was excited to see Tetra. He babbled on and on about his adventures with the heroes. She asked if he’s done any exploring, and he said he had in Wild’s time. Got very quiet. -One the second morning, she found Sky alone in the woods of the island. He asked her about the flooding that created the Great Sea and wanted to know how many lives were lost. He was dismayed by the “legacy [he] left the world”, wondering what faith brought the people.

Dot (Era of Force) -Last saw the Links about a month ago. -They were only passing through the area. Four and some of the others had stayed back at his house to talk to Smith. -Over time, Dot has made friends with Hyrule. Apparently they both like tea a lot. -While she and Hyrule were having a picnic, Warriors approached with questions about the castle’s security. Hyrule said he’d go get supplies and catch up with her later. -After Dot showed how secure the castle was, Warriors began questioning the procedures for traitors (see Artemis’s statement). He then asked what she would do if Four betrayed her. -This part, Dot has asked me not to share with Artemis: Warriors grabbed onto her arm with enough force to hurt her. The bruise lasted for quite some time. -Hyrule suddenly appeared and stopped Warriors, asking what was wrong with him. Dot thinks he implied there was something wrong with the others, too. Warriors left, seeming confused. -Four came to visit with Wind, later, to say goodbye. She didn’t mention the incident to him.

Several red flags stand out to Flora. The first being Time noticing tension amongst the group. If their issues started small and built their way up, then perhaps what he saw were the beginnings of whatever happened to him. He’s not specific, though, about where their problems were originating from, much to Flora’s dismay, but whatever happened must have been not long after they left her castle.

Sky was definitely acting strangely, but truthfully, Flora has no idea if Legend’s actions were out of character. She can only hope they’ll make it to his time soon, so she can ask his Zelda herself.

By the time they visited Dusk, though, there was clearly something wrong. Wild apparently almost physically attacked Legend at some point, which Flora can barely believe. Wild would never hurt his fellow Hylian, let alone another hero. And Twilight’s respect for his queen apparently going out the window? What was up with that?

If what Artemis says is to be believed, though, Warriors has regressed. He’s lost a lot of the progress he made towards himself after the War Across the Ages. If he’s so out of line, Flora can only imagine what’s happening to the rest of them.

Flora’s stomach grumbles loudly. Right, dinner is soon. A full stomach will definitely help her thinking, and Dot already made the rounds to let everyone know her father will be attending. Whether he knows anything or not, she has about a million questions to ask him anyway.

Closing her book, Flora carries it with her to the dining hall.

  △ ▲△

The whole world, all of it, is coated in shadows. They hang from the sky like drapes, and never before has Zelda felt more alone.

“Link?” she calls out to the darkness, raising her torch just a bit higher. “Link, are you there?”

WIth her limited light, she almost runs right into a small statue. It comes up to Zelda’s hip, depicting a bird with its wings outstretched. But the top of its head is caved in, revealing a pile of kindling.

Right, it’s a torch.

Zelda lights the bird torch, which does nothing but provide a little more light. Perhaps on a whim, she decides to follow its directions, walking where its beak points.

“Link?” she shouts again. “Please, answer me!”

Again, Zelda comes upon another bird torch. And another, and another. Each time she finds one, she lights it, and she changes her path to follow its point. In the back of her mind, she remembers an old fairytale about finding your way back home.

As she travels more and more through this darkness, Zelda can see other things as well. Just on the edges of her torchlight, there are ruins. Buildings, torn apart or decayed, suffocated by the pervasive shadows. But she can’t stray from her path, not now.

Then, her light finds someone.

“Link?” Zelda asks. “Link, is that you?”

When he turns to her, Zelda is relieved. It’s Link, it really is! They can go home now, together, and-

The torch’s light gleams against the Master Sword. Blood drips from its hilt.

“Link, what did you do?” Zelda demands.

He says nothing, just takes a step closer. In fear and betrayal, Zelda steps back.

“Stop it,” Zelda says shakily. “Link, I’m warning you.”

Link still doesn’t respond. He darts towards her, raising the sword in a swift motion, and Zelda-

And Artemis wakes up in bed, gasping for air.

  △ ▲△

There’s one last thing Dot wants to do before she leaves with her fellow queens and princesses. A job that’s all hers, as Princess of Hyrule, and one she wants to make sure is done before she’s away for who knows how long.

“You’ve all met my Link,” Dot explains to the group as they make their way through the woods. Her pack is already full, “And you’ve seen his sword, the Four Sword.”

“It’s a remarkable blade,” Dusk comments. “From the legends I’ve heard, it could give the Master Sword a run for its money.”

Sun humphs at that, crossing her arms and sticking her chin up.

“Not as you’ve seen it,” Dot reveals. Just then, they come across an old stone sanctuary, with pillars standing proud. Everything is covered in moss and vines, except for one item. At the center of it all is a sword, its hilt gleaming a pure white.

“The Four Sword that my Four carries is a fake,” Dot continues. “A recreation, with the power Four needed after his journey. This is the real Four Sword.”

“Oh, wow!” Flora marvels at the blade. “I can’t believe it! To see such a historical artifact up close like this…”

Dot tugs on her cloak, stopping her from running. “I’m only here to check on the seal,” she states with exasperation. “We don’t want to disturb Vaati, now, do we?”

“Oh, don’t we?”

As the Zeldas were distracted, none of them noticed the shadows behind the Four Sword twisting and gaining shape. The being behind the sword was a perfect facsimile of Link, but with pure red eyes and darkness all over his body.

“Shadow?” Dot can’t help herself but reach out. “Is that-?”

Tetra suddenly grabs onto her shoulder, pulling her back. “Whoever you think that is, Princess, you’re mistaken. He’s no friend.”

Of course, Tetra’s right. Shadow never had such malice in his eyes, and he would certainly never hover over Vaati’s seal like that.

“I’m hurt, Princess,” Dark Link fakes a pout. “I’ve always been a friend to her grace.”

He turns to Sun, a wicked grin suddenly on his face.

“Isn’t that right, Hylia?”

All eyes turn to Sun. The progenitor of their bloodline, the founder of their kingdom. The first Queen of Hyrule.

The… Goddess Hylia?

Flora is finally the first one to speak. “What?”

[shekorla]

Linked Universe Zeldas

So last December I decided to draw my idea for the Zeldas on a whim. Found the WIP recently and decided to finish it.

Also, I typed up all my headcanons for them because I have a lot. They are below the cut. 

And I put down nickname ideas, because I'm bad at naming things, and I think the LU discord has already decided on a set of nicknames that they like. Personally, I really dislike most of those though.

❖Corresponding Link: Four

     o Age: Teen, just older than Four. Not a major difference, just enough that she can tease him about it.

     o Status: Officially still holds the title of princess, acts more like a queen. Her father is extremely protective of her, but after Vaati he conceded that he couldn’t protect her forever. Since then she has been learning to fight, forge (not good at it), and taking over more and more responsibilities from her aging father

     o Nickname ideas: Light, Picori, Force

     o Fighting style: Mostly fights with a sword and shield. Has extremely strong innate light magic. (light force, although weaker now) Doesn’t necessarily know how to focus it yet (magic bomb, some healing). If you are going to be on the battlefield stop running around like that.

     o Current relationship to Link: Best friends, practically siblings. When they were kids there was definitely some major crushing going on. Then everything with Vaati happened and things got… complicated. Neither she nor Link really knows what type of romance they want for the future. They still play lots of pranks on people. She helps keep him stable on the days when his colors get a little too wild.

     o Random stuff: Hyperactive and cheery. Always something new to see or learn and she wants to do it. hates sitting still, she is always moving somehow (got turned to stone). Top is hers; Link made the sword (gift), rest is extras from four’s parts (stolen). Hair is naturally extremely curly, lets it down for formal things, tied up for adventuring. Helped four get back to functioning as Link after being four people. Will attack him to get him to take care of himself. Is taller than both four and wind.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

❖ Corresponding Link: Hyrule

     o Age: At least a hundred. Was 18 when she was cursed to sleep, no one is exactly sure how long she was asleep.

     o Status: Was a princess before falling asleep, offered the crown once woken up. Really over being royal. Link helped her get a job and lodging on a farm at the edge of Hyrule. Really likes that.

     o Nickname ideas: Legacy, Farmgirl, First, Ancestor.

     o Fighting style: Healer. Lots of bandages to patch everyone up. Doesn’t like to fight, but will stab a man if the need arises. The world is cruel, be kind. Has weak magic, a little bit of healing, and lots of prophetic. Knows the best places to hide on a battlefield.

     o Current relationship to Link: They are good friends. He checks up on her from time to time, and she makes sure that he always has a place to rest and relax in safety. Their world is a little bit of a mess, everyone needs a support system.

     o Random stuff: Has insomnia. Afraid of not waking up. Extremely wise, or maybe just world-weary. On tense but good terms with current queen Zelda of Hyrule. Forgives her brother, has come to terms with her fate. Taciturn and calm, probably depressed. Extremely sensitive to dark magic. (like an old burn wound) Dislikes people who use it to forcefully get their way. Doesn’t outright hate the principle of it, but will actively shy away from the presence of it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

❖ Corresponding Link: Time

     o Age: Adult, mentally/physically the same age.

     o Status: Queen of Hyrule. She is married and has a daughter.

     o Nickname ideas: Destiny, Sheik, Queen, Lyre/Harp (what is that thing?), Sage.

     o Fighting style: Fights mostly with magic. Uses the harp to play songs (ironically fights like HW sheik) has basic sheikah skills. Has only been training to fight for a short time, is still fairly physically weak. One of the most proficient magic users all round. Can take down the basic mooks, but won't last long against a bigger enemy. Knows how to fight alone.

     o Current relationship to Link: Strained. Not OOT sheik. Is MM Zelda. Only knows link as the boy who showed up to save the day, then left. Has had occasional interactions, she visits the ranch, he works with the guard. Only in the past year or two, she has had dream glimpses of the alternate timeline. She knows that she and link killed Ganon side by side, that she helped link disguised as sheik. Does not know about the seven years or most of the trauma. Basically, seen like five cutscenes and nothing else.

     o Random stuff: Prophetic dreams. Knew she would be leaving on a quest. Kingdom is well set up to work in her absence. Loves her family, is an idiot who doesn’t know the importance of checking in via letters for anything other than politics. Snobbish, proud, put too much stock in titles. Best manager, not a great leader (doesn’t have the personal skills for it). Sees the world as extremely black and white.

❖ Corresponding Link: Twilight

     o Age: Young adult.

     o Status: Newly coronated queen, has been running the show for a few years now, it's just barely official

     o Nickname ideas: Dusk, Dawn, Shadow

     o Fighting style: Uses mainly rapier to fight. Also, a great archer. Because of temporarily sharing a soul with Midna, has access to powerful twilight magic. Not as strong as Midna, still strong. Has goddess magic (channel through weapons). Tries to hide twili powers mostly since it's “dark magic”, but only technically. She knows it's not true dark magic and really just wants to avoid a lecture (does not get along well with time’s Zelda). Knows her way around the edge of a battlefield.

     o Current relationship to Link: They barely know each other. Only really interacted through saving the world things. Then they went separate ways. She considers Midna a sister and wants to slap both Midna and Link for not realizing they like each other. Once she knows Link better, she will probably tease him a lot.

     o Random stuff: Unlike most of the other Zeldas, sees the world as being mostly shades of grey, rather than stark black and white. Somber and stoic. Secretly a massive gremlin. Has a few habits picked up from Midna's soul along with the magic. Is awkward around ‘normal’ people. Has spent almost her entire life in political settings. One of the best politicians. Rather open about her feelings, it's just small and easily missed. Feels guilty for the troubles that befell both Hyrule and the twilight realm. Hates having to stand back unable to help. Screw rules she is going to help.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

❖ Corresponding Link: Wild

      o Age: 118-120ish(?) I don’t know how long it has been since the events of BOTW.

      o Status: Technically queen, currently is focused on rebuilding Hyrule. Has no intention to take up the throne any time soon.

      o Nickname ideas: Scholar, Architect, Champion, Urbosa, Scientist, Little Bird.

      o Fighting style: Not a great fighter but she is learning. Decent with a sword. Gets a crossbow from twilight and then makes her own out of sheikah tech. (currently has no magic and good riddance). Learning to navigate a battlefield.

      o Current relationship to Link: They are good friends, but it's awkward. Neither of them are totally sure how to act around the other. Basically, either gremlin adventures, or awkward small talk. Past the first road trip, only interact a few times a month. She is caught between trying to mourn her knight and accepting her new hero. Cooking shenanigans.

      o Random stuff: Loves learning new things. Can and will study and find the effects of every plant. Knows poisons, antidotes, elixirs, potions, and everything else. Still trying to come to terms with everything that happened. Frequent nightmares. Claustrophobic/minor insomnia. Knows all the languages. Loves studying sheikah tech, and finally gets the chance to as much as she wants. Hates the castle. So many things change culturally over 100 years and she has no idea what to do. Awkward, but sincere.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

❖ Corresponding Link: Wind

     o Age: Teen

     o Status: Technically the queen. Hyrule currently consists of a single town on the mainland, and lots of plans. Queenish. Anjean is teaching her how to politics.

     o Nickname ideas: Name is tetra that’s it.

     o Fighting style: Uses a pirate saber as well as the phantom sword. (IDK if spirit tracks is part of Wind’s story, but I was not passing up the opportunity to give tetra a massive sword). Decent archer, and can channel light magic into weapons…. most of the time…... It’s a work in progress. Also has general goddess magic. Big explosion of light. Knows her way around a battlefield

     o Current relationship to Link: Serve on a crew together. Best friends and partners in crime. There is a lot that needs to be done to start a country, they will do it together. It’s not going quickly. They keep getting distracted. Why do paperwork when you can steal things.

     o Random stuff: Smol. Link hit puberty and got a growth spurt. She did not. Not a politician, this child should not be in charge, whose idea was it to let a pirate child run a country. Great leader. All the social skills. Shoot first… that’s it. Sassy. Trying her best to be a good princess and live up to her lineage. It's hard. There is no book. Feels like she is letting everyone down. Hates big birds. Occasional nightmares. Really hates being cold. (turned to stone)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

❖ Corresponding Link: Legend

     o Age: Older teen

     o Status: Queen. Has ruled for a while. Amazing support system. They regularly keep things running when she gets kidnapped. Good relations with all surrounding countries.

     o Nickname ideas: Maiden, Sage, Hilda.

     o Fighting style: Doesn’t. Pacifist. She can attack with light magic, chooses not to. Healing magic, team buffs, defense. Just because she doesn’t fight doesn’t mean she will let her team die. Strongest support magic. Does not know her way around a battlefield.

     o Current relationship to Link: Good work friends. They get along well enough. No massive personal relations. She asks him for help with killing monsters, he asks her for help with laws. It works for them. Occasionally they will get lunch together and catch up. (aka make sure he didn’t get himself killed.) Can use telepathy to contact Link at any time. Keeps it to emergencies only. Because he finds it massively annoying, and a little creepy.

     o Random stuff: Massive romantic. Currently single. Misses being able to gossip with Hilda. Kind and compassionate. Does not stand for injustice. Will forgive until the end of time. Just because she is kind does not mean she is weak. Strong-willed. Good politician. Loved by her people, even if Ganon has attacked like five times. Ganon is the only person on the list of people she would happily shank. So much paperwork. Give the girl a break. Keeps craft supplies on her for long imprisonments. Scrying magic, and a little bit prophetic.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

❖ Corresponding Link: Warriors

     o Age: Adult. Older than warriors, younger than time or his Zelda.

     o Status: Queen of Hyrule, and commander of its army. Her Hyrule has been in turmoil for a while even before the war with Cia.

     o Nickname ideas: General, Commander, Tactician.

     o Fighting style: Best fighter. Can use all the weapons. Summon a bow or rapier of pure light magic. Strongest understanding of how the goddess magic works with weapons. Mostly fights as Zelda (basically her gameplay style), still uses her sheik disguise sometimes (ironically fights similar to smash bros sheik because of extensive sheikah training.) Lives on the battlefield.

     o Current relationship to Link: They work seamlessly together in battle and are friends outside of it. They haven't actually known each other very long so it's awkward sometimes. She still has to occasionally remind him that she doesn’t need a title. If they were two kids in a village then they would probably date. But they are not, and things are complicated. Duty to the kingdom comes first.

      o Random stuff: Best makeup. Amazing, if ruthless, politician. Best historian. Blunt. No time for crap. One of the best leaders doesn’t have the pure charisma to outdo warriors though. Resting B Face. 90% of soldiers are scared of her. Comes across as harsh, rude, cold. Really, she is just a bit awkward and hides behind a mask. Can’t do people, can do basically anything else. Minor prophetic magic.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

❖ Corresponding Link: Sky

     o Age: Old teen/young adult. Older than Sky.

     o Status: Technically the queen, but Hyrule hasn’t been founded yet. Officially goddess Hylia reincarnated. She doesn’t go around flaunting the title, but sometimes the memories of Hylia she gained will overwhelm her. Full goddess mode. Doesn’t stand for dark magic.

     o Nickname ideas: Hylia, Sun, Swallow.

     o Fighting style: trained at the academy and knows how to fight with a sword. Not a good fighter. massive bursts of power usually win her fights. Sometimes she can channel a little bit of her power, but usually, she just gets overwhelmed by all of it. General goddess magic, cannot channel through weapons. Thinks she does, but in fact, does not know her way around a battlefield

     o Current relationship to Link: Do I need to explain? These two are head over heels. Sappy love birds all the way. Childhood friends. Everyone is surprised they're not engaged yet.

     o Random stuff: More adventure-ready style to reflect working on founding Hyrule. Fierce and determined. Kind. But she will get her way. Struggles to balance her mortality and newfound divinity. Feels bad that Sky had to fight for her. Loves her bird. Beautiful singing voice. She is trying her best but is in fact very bad at being an adventurer. Good at sewing. Loads of people skills, working on leadership skills. Best with children. 6th sense type prophetic magic. (aka see a shot before it is taken, but not a coming calamity.)

That's it. Congrats on making it to the end. You get a cookie. 🍪

[silverdragon-imagines-blog]

The Light’s Downfall - Chapter 1 - The End of the Beginning

[It’s past the 1 year anniversary of this fic, and I’ll be posting chapter 2 tomorrow as well, so I thought I’d finally post chapter 1. Though I guess more importantly it’s the 3 year anniversary of my grandmother’s death tomorrow who in a way got me to write this as a way to cope with the loss. Please let me know if I need to tag anything. I really don't want to upset or trigger anyone accidentally. With that being said, expect this fic to get dark.]

Read it on AO3

Warning(s): Major Character Death of two characters, grief and dealing with the aftermath of death.

The air was nearly suffocating, oppressively heavy as Link made his way up the staircase to the room above, his body still bruised and bloody from the Guardians’ onslaught. The end was in sight, Vaati was within reach, and then this would all be over. He could finally go back to how his life was before this happened. Link could feel his heart beating frantically in his chest as the platform came into view. The wind mage, standing with his arms raised in front of the petrified form of Zelda, smiled as the bell tolled a final time.

“We’re too late,” Link could hear Ezlo’s despair, his own heart stuttering in response to those words.

He gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, knuckles white and shaking. He refused to give up here. He charged at Vaati, Four Sword raised with the intent to kill, only to be blown back into the wall. Vaati laughed, newfound power easily lifting him into the air, as Link was forced to watch his childhood friend crumbled where she had been.

“Now, I can finally dispose of you annoying pests!”

A burst of magic flew towards him, Ezlo squawking loudly as Link rolled out of the way before it made contact. Link glared at the mage, anger and barely contained fear causing him to shake.

“Vaati,” Ezlo’s voice shook, “Please, see reason. This isn’t you, you need to stop this.”

“No, it’s been too long since I’ve felt truly powerful, too long since I discovered what I could truly become. And you, dear teacher, were merely a stepping stone in my path to become who I truly am.”

Vaati’s form wavered, dark magic surrounding him on all sides, obscuring him from view. Link stood on shaky legs, using his sword to support his weight as Ezlo whispered reassurances, though it was obvious that he was just as scared as Link was.

They had lost, there was nothing left for them to do but to wait for the inevitable, but something inside him forced him to keep going, to keep fighting. And as Vaati appeared again, bathed in a glowing purple light, eyes now bright yellow against a shadowed face, magic gathering at his fingertips, Link charged once again. He cried out, in pain and anger as he aimed for Vaati, sword slashing through the air instead of the body of the smug Wind Mage.

“Link, look out!”

He barely registered the weight leaving his head, barely felt the corrupted magic brush at his back. He turned, just in time to witness Ezlo jumping in front of the shot that was meant for him. His breath wavered, watching as his companion screamed in agony, the sound echoing, piercing through his mind, then stopped, falling limp to the floor.

He fell to his knees, reaching out towards his partner, his friend , faint hope that the other was still alive despite the wounds he had suffered. But before he could so much as call out to him, Ezlo crumbled into dust before him, taking what little confidence and hope Link still had with him.

“Such a shame,” Vaati spoke, Link only managing to look up at the slowly approaching mage, “His fate was his own decision, he chose to save you above saving himself. Pitiful really, his sacrifice won’t make a difference.”

Link leaned heavily on the sword still in his grasp, standing once again to face down Vaati, eyes bright with rage and determination.

“This is just sad, you think you can still fight me? Stupid boy, you’ve lost! You’ve doomed your entire kingdom!” Vaati spread his arms, face twisting in malicious glee, “Look around you! I’ve won! There’s nothing left for you now! So just die!”

He blocked the spell hurtling towards him with his blade, it bursting against the holy weapon upon impact. Link refused to give in, he wouldn’t give up without a fight, not after everything he had gone through, everything he had suffered through just to get to this point.

Vaati grew angered, eyes glowing, piercingly bright as the air crackling around him, fingers growing into sharp claws in response. He rushed at Link, slashing at him over and over, each blow being blocked by sword and shield as they backed closer and closer to the edge of the platform.

Link kept his eyes on the mage, staying on the defensive to avoid the corrupted magic from hitting him dead on. Until his foot hit the open air. With a gasp, he fell back, grasping for the edge of the platform desperately as he saw Vaati standing above him, smiling gleefully.

“Seems I’ve won, little hero.”

Link growled, pulling himself up and kicking at Vaati, the mage laughing as he stepped away. Link held out his sword, panting and hoping that he could gather enough strength to finally finish him off. If only it were that easy.

“I grow tired of this game,” Vaati sighed, summoning pitch-black magic into his palm, “Goodbye, Hero of the Four Sword.”

Link watched the spell get closer, raising his blade as though to parry it back at the mage, and with a swing, all he felt was agony. Pain filled his mind, screams tore from his throat until the world finally faded away to black.

====

He could feel the surface below him, cold and hard and uncomfortable. He could hear the familiar calls of birds in the distance, their songs calming and grounding as they continued. He moved his hand, grasping at whatever was underneath him, only to feel coarse dirt below him.

‘Wait, dirt?’

He sat up quickly, eyes snapping open to see a stone wall before him. He was in a cave, at least, he assumed it was a cave with how light drifted in through the tall opening at one side. The birdsong was clear, but as the noise caught up to him, quiet breaths began to reach his ears. The cave was small, shallow, and it seemed that he wasn’t alone here.

“Oh, you’re finally up,” he turned to see a boy dressed in a fiery red tunic, a small almost grin on his face, “I was wondering when you’d join the land of the living.”

He flinched at the word choice, the grimace on the other’s face betraying his actual feelings about the joke. He slowly stood up, taking in his surroundings more to see two other boys leaning against the cave wall. One dressed in ocean blue was looking around lost, eyes unfocused, and staring off into space. The other donning an amethyst tunic had his arms holding his legs close to his chest, face hidden where it was pressed against his knees. He had a feeling they looked the same as he and the red one did like the copies Link could create with the Four Sword.

“What happened?”

“I had an idea, but I don’t know if it makes sense,” the red one spoke, shrugging, “I think Vaati’s magic did something to the Four Sword. We all have identical looking blades now, besides our faces anyway, so it only makes sense.”

“So we’re all Link… that's confusing.”

The red boy laughed, though it sounded unsure, falling and fading quickly.

“I figured, based on the elements we put into the sword anyway, that I’d use the name Blaze,” he gestured to the other two, “the blue one chose Wave while purple over there called himself Terra. He hasn’t spoken since then.”

Worry bloomed in his mind, but it wasn’t the time to deal with that, not yet. Shaking his head, he looked down at himself expecting some sort of appearance change like the other three, only to find nothing. Just the same green tunic he had started the adventure with, dirty and slightly torn up from the fights he had been in. He recalled the elemental stones that he had forged the blade with and it was really quite obvious what name he should choose.

“Call me Breeze.”

With that decided, Breeze motioned for Blaze to follow, trying to figure out just where they were. All that was visible from the front of the cave were trees, tall enough to block most of the sky from view. The clearing was small, but not claustrophobic. Blaze had rushed ahead, looking around quickly until he stopped and turned back, gesturing to the forest around them.

“Let’s try and climb up, maybe we can see further, figure out where exactly we are.”

It was a good idea, and they had been lucky, the trees, while tall, were easy enough to climb. Each branch pulling the two boys up and up, further and further away from the ground. When they had reached the top, gazing at the land around them, all went still, the sounds of nature around them stopping as the two boys took in the sight ahead of them.

They could see Hyrule Town, their home, surrounded by a dark cloud stretching far across the land. The Minish Woods were consumed and not even the peak of Mt. Crenel was visible through it. It was as though all Light had been stripped of the land they had called home, the people they had known, those he had befriended and loved, lost in the darkness. There was nothing left now. Vaati had won.

[aiden-png]

to celebrate the end of 2020, I’ve decided to share the highlights of the writing I did this year! I’m going to share a few of my favorite snippets from 2020, and I think this could be a fun tag meme to invite friends to join in on so they can appreciate their progress and hard work too! I couldn’t have written so much if it wasn’t for the great online community supporting me and all my wonderfully talented friends!!

I’m gonna tag @freshie-writes @silverdragon-imagines-blog @st0rmy-writes @fuckit-hero-of-trains @no-themes-just-memes @timeturner-jay and anyone else who wants to join in, feel free! you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, but you all wrote amazing things this year and I’m gonna appreciate you for them!!

snippets below the cut (please do this or make a new post if you wanna join, just so we don’t flood everyone’s dashboard lol!)

it’s difficult to count for certain, but across 7 google docs from April to December 2020, I wrote 324,782 words just of Legend of Zelda fanfic! it’s been a crazy fun year and I think my writing has improved a ton since I started writing fic again in April! thank you all for supporting me through the last 9 months!! <3

here’s a highlight of some of my favorite excerpts from fics I wrote this year! Smoke on the Wind and Dream With Me are two of my favorite pieces I wrote this year for angst, while Four Feet of Pure Flirtation and Lessons in Love are my favorites for crack/fluff :D the other snippets are featured bc I’m proud of how the fics turned out !

Dream With Me: June 28, 2020 Legend and Hyrule sat on the beach, a mere two feet separating them. It felt like much more. Farther than they’d ever been apart before. The other heroes stumbled onto the sand, frozen in shock as they took in the scene before them. Legend, knife drawn and hands shaking dangerously. Hyrule, knees buried in the sand and hands held over his chest, trying desperately not to reach out again. The sun was rising, pinks disappearing into vibrant gold and crushed purple and bright blue. As dawn broke, their vision wavered. Hyrule gasped, Legend blurring before him, the sand beneath him fading, the roar of the waves diminishing. Magic hour was ending. “This isn’t a dream,” Hyrule whispered, and Legend’s shoulders shook with silent sobs. “I’m real. I’m here. Legend, come with me.” Hyrule stretched out his arm, fingers splayed, eyes begging. Legend flinched back, dagger slipping from shaking fingers. He stared, disbelieving. Vertigo consumed Hyrule’s senses, his vision clouding with black dots. “Take my hand, Legend!” Hyrule cried, and Legend jumped. He sprung forward, hand grasping. Hyrule felt nothing as Legend’s hand passed through his. “Hyrule!” He blinked, and found himself in an unfamiliar field, reaching towards sunrise.

Smoke on the Wind: August 7, 2020 Wind hadn’t always had this ability, but before his second adventure, before the ghosts became tangible to his skin and visible to his eyes, he still had a sixth sense of sorts to rely on. Back then he’d called it instinct, but now he called it a curse. It never helped him do better on his adventure, never showed him the way, never allowed him to prevent someone’s demise--only forced him to bear witness to it in all its excruciatingly gory detail. Some spoke of death like a mercy, others like a boon. Wind knew death like an old friend and he despised it with all the rage contained in his tiny body. Some feared death, some prayed for its delay. Wind feared no man, god, or figment of imagination. There was no reason to fear something he couldn’t prevent, there was no reason to pray to something that would never hear or listen. Some ran from death, some hid. Wind stared death in the eye and spat in its face. He thrust a magical fucking sword through its head and banished it to a watery grave.

Four Feet of Pure Flirtation: June 26, 2020 Maybe he should have shared just a tad bit more with them, but that was a regret for future Four to deal with. And really, he hadn’t been expecting it himself, so they couldn’t exactly blame him when Dark Link materialized in their camp one morning and sent Four’s heart racing in an unfamiliar-familiar way. Four felt the heat crawl up his chest, felt his tongue loosen, felt his eyes trail over Dark’s lithe form just a bit too slow to be innocent. No one had told him Dark was attractive. Although, Vio reminded him, we are the only ones attracted to villains. We are most decidedly not! Four shot back. The denial was empty. They most decidedly were.

Hero Through the Ages: June 19, 2020 Wild sighed, chin resting on his knees. He glanced over at Sky, feeling anxiety buzz within him as a question pushed at the back of his mind. “Hey, Sky… does the sword still recognize me?” Sky froze at the unexpected question, eyes searching Wild’s carefully schooled expression. Wild felt his anxiety rise but he held his ground as the older hero tentatively reached back and unsheathed the Master Sword. He closed his eyes for a moment, and Wild tried hard not to notice the new eyes on them as he waited for Sky’s response. He knew what the answer should be, but when the other slowly opened his eyes and held the sword out for Wild, it was still conflicting to feel the familiar weight of it in his hands. Not too heavy. Not burning. Perfectly at home, as if he’d just begun his adventure and still had many years left before the Calamity struck. Wild felt a pit in his stomach as he handed the sword back, Sky’s concerned gaze not helping. “How old were you when you pulled the sword?” Sky asked quietly, and Wild stared at his hands as they trembled slightly in his lap. “Too young.”

A Shower to Remember: July 4, 2020 Enter Twilight and Wild. TWILIGHT     I can see thee up th’re.     Come hither.     I simply wish to speak with thee.

Enter Legend to Shower Crashers. LEGEND     all’s well that ends well, I believe our plan hath been a success. cheers to thee all. FOUR     didst thou not see     Wild running     for his life not     a minute past? LEGEND     that is’t his problem, not mine.

Lessons in Love: July 9, 2020 The offer though, that’s what truly made Legend pause. Show you the ropes, he’d said. He should be insulted that Ravio thought he was that hopeless, but the man wasn’t wrong. Legend was absolutely, positively hopeless, evidenced by the situation he now found himself in. Should he say no and move on? Should he accept--and then what? Maybe he should laugh it off, say he was joking, or perhaps he should come clean now and tell Ravio how he felt? But he still didn’t know if Ravio felt the same, those dark eyes betraying nothing in the fading light of sunset. So, naturally, Legend continued to panic. “What do you mean by ‘show me the ropes’?” Legend asked, quick, defensive enough to pass as insulted. Ravio snorted, tasting the hot chocolate, and Legend’s eyes were drawn to his lips once more as if under a spell. “I mean no offense, Link,” Ravio laughed, seeming not to catch the blush on Legend’s face as Ravio used his name. “I just figured you might want some pointers. Flirting, hand holding, relationship advice, y’know? You don’t have to accept the offer by any means!” Flirting? Hand holding? Legend gulped. He was already an idiot. Maybe he could play dumb for a little while longer…

Scars: June 2, 2020 “I used to try and cover myself in public--I didn’t like the way people would whisper or stare when they saw. But eventually I came to accept the scars as part of me. I remembered how I got them, and I realized I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the journey that led to me getting these scars. And I like who I am…” Wild trailed off, sifting sand through his fingers as Warriors listened. “I’ve come to love my scars, because they hold such important memories for me. Even if some of the memories aren’t so great, I wouldn’t be who I am today without them, you know? And I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”

Beneath the Surface: July 13, 2020 For the first few months he had lied to himself, blaming the others or the weather or Shadow or Vaati or anything rather than admitting he had a problem. But Blue did, in fact, have a problem, and fighting and yelling it out wasn’t the healthiest solution. For the others it was easy. Green had Vio, for Wind could rarely move Earth, and Red got along with everyone he was so full of love to give. But Blue wasn’t good at teamwork, he wasn’t good at strategizing, and he wasn’t good at showing affection--he was good at being angry, and that was it. He was the protector, the toughest of them all in strength and will; but when you’re always protecting others, no one protects you. Not like Blue made it easy for the others to approach him, and he didn’t blame them for giving up. They were all struggling, they all had their own issues, and while Wind was a gentle breeze and Fire a warming comfort and Earth a steady rock--Water was impossible to hold down. He was forever changing, flowing, and while it meant that he could adapt well to new situations, it also meant that every time he felt close to getting a handle on his emotions they would slip from his grasp once more. His magic ebbed and swayed and his emotions followed their tide, not his, and so he pushed others away rather than admit he couldn’t handle himself. If protecting them meant distancing himself, then so be it.

The Point of No Return: June 19, 2020 He turned back to Four, brushing the back of his hand across his cheek. He’d wanted to share a meal with his partner. He’d wanted to see Four’s small smile--just for him--as he tried Hylian food for the first, second, hundredth time. Long ago, they’d promised to travel the world together. Four wanted to share everything with him; wanted to show him the forge, wanted him to meet his Grandfather, wanted to take him to see the Minish. After the adventure, Four had promised. He’d be free to go and do whatever he wanted, right by Four’s side. Well, he was at his side now. And this was not what they’d promised each other.

A Major Test of Strength: May 7, 2020 Even being worthy of the Triforce of Courage didn’t mean he was brave enough to act on, or even think, about how he felt about Sidon. He reasoned it was better not to say anything, especially now. He was going off to a battle he may not return from. Even if he burned to know if Sidon felt the same, it would be selfish to ask knowing he may be leaving for the last time. Link would rather go to the grave with his feelings then leave Sidon alone with them. At least if he died before confessing, Sidon would be able to move on, he hoped. Sidon was his best friend, and that was enough for now.

[mysterious-prophetess]

Review- Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity

I’ll admit this here: I’ve never played a regular warriors game. 

I played the previous Hyrule Warriors, but I’ve yet to beat it. I’ll get around to it...eventually.

I also played the CRAP out of Breath of the Wild. It’s now my favorite Zelda game, knocking poor Ocarina of Time of its pedestal.

Ok, they share it, to be perfectly honest. 

Twilight Princess  has sentimental position up with the others because it was the first Zelda game I ever beat. 

The first one I played was A Link to the Past and I was far too little to understand it at the time. 

I digress, I’m here to talk about Age of Calamity. 

I’ll go through a non-spoilery section and then move on to the spoilers in the next bit.

The gameplay was actually pretty fun. Hyrule Warriors could get repetitive, something I’m given to understand is an issue of the main Warriors series. 

Age of Calamity is actually more fun. Yeah, it’s still a similar game style but they implemented enough of Breath of the Wild and Zelda into it that it doesn’t feel anywhere near as same-y to play as Hyrule Warriors could be. 

I’m not saying that Hyrule Warriors had too much in the way of same-y game play but it definitely felt way more repetitive to me. 

Each character has their own way they play and if you don’t click with them, you’re not going to enjoy playing them but those you do click with can then be a lot of fun in Age of Calamity.

The Divine Beast sections were not a highlight for me. I just am not a fan of them. Three out of four felt epic. The fourth was not.

Yeah, I’m talking trash about Vah Rudania. Would not recommend that Divine Beast. Which is a shame because of the Champions, he is easily the one I handle the best in combat. Or he was untilI figured out how to play Mipha. 

The story is much more a Zelda story this time. The other story just kinda felt....not. 

Hyrule Warriors’s story just sort felt like a massive crossover fanfiction. 

And, this won’t be the last time I reference fanfiction either but that’s for the spoiler section.

The game was pretty cohesive and the incentives for 100% the side quests (aside from leveling) are nice enough and easy enough to obtain that it’s not a total grind to do it.

Speaking of leveling, I did have a bit of an edge for that. You see, I got the demo and it transfers save data and I’d max-leveled Link for that demo (level 20 in case you were wondering) which meant if I found enough rupees, I could instantly get most of my crew up to that level. Zelda and Impa were mid to high teens whenever I was done with the demo btw. 

In Hyrule Warriors, it did feel a bit grindy at times but I didn’t have that nice 20 levels from my demo advantage. 

There are relatively few buggy moments in this game but once when I was playing as a character I can’t mention without spoilers, they got caught in a sort of loop where they’d do a move and I couldn’t get them to stop.

Sometimes the camera angles would fight me when I was up against bigger foes like the final boss or Hinoxes. 

Beyond that, the game runs fine. 

I enjoyed it but for those looking for a straight up prequel to Breath of the Wild, the only non-spoilery thing I can say is-it’s not this. It does touch on a few things and we do get to play the Champions but it’s not the game you think it is if you want to see what happened before Link ended up in the Shrine of Resurrection in the game this spun-off of.

Tl;Dr-I do recommend this game if you like Zelda and want a game where your weapons don’t break every five minutes and you like feeling like a BAMF as you mow down enemy after enemy. 

If you don’t like Warriors games or wanted that dark prequel-you might want to pass on this.

Now leave if you want to avoid spoilers.

Ok everyone who wants to avoid spoilers is gone?

Good. 

First, I’m just going to say it: This is a total Fix-It Fic of a game with its plot.

As Nine’s gif said, Everybody lives.

The Champions and the King and the soldiers (whose asses you’ve been saving this whole game so really no big deal), Hyrule in general. 

Everyone lives. 

This was already in AU territory with the little guardian-it’s name is Terrako- time traveling back to fulfill Zelda’s wish that she could have saved everyone. Parts of Calamity Ganon go with it and posses its past self. 

That means this isn’t just a Fix-it Fic, this is a Time Travel Fix-it Fic.

That’s one of my favorite kinds of Fix-it Fics, so naturally, I was biased to like this plot.

It is a bit schmaltzy that everyone gets to live? A little but a Fix-it Fic tends to be more on the sweet and fluffy side of things. 

I did not see the future champions coming. Yeah, I knew the little egg-guy was a time traveler but I thought Link and Zelda together were going to save each champion one by one. When out of left field, here comes the future Champions.

I was very happy to see Adult!Sidon appear. 

I was just expecting this

and got this too

It does, however, confirm this is a total Alternate timeline. 

Wouldn’t be the first time for the Zelda series.

The Four Future Champions were pulled from Canon Breath of the Wild, and likely Post-Canon or Near the End of Canon since they know Link. 

I knew it was an AU from the fact Link didn’t have the Master Sword when he should have. I own the book Creating a Champion and it mentions that Link of Breath of the Wild found the sword at some ridiculously young age. I’d look but that book is in a pile of stuff and I don’t feel like digging it out.

Best I can figure is Zelda’s wish also affected the whole timeline beyond when Terrako arrived allowing for her and Link to form a bond without resentment on her end. Which, we actually don’t know when Terrako and the Pieces of Calamity Ganon arrived in the past. They could have showed up five years prior with Terrako inactive and Harbinger Ganon using his crazy proxy.

Would explain why Astor was so bat-shit insane at that point.

Since I’ve mentioned him, this would be a good time to talk about Astor, or Not-Vaati as I called him before I learned his name. 

Astor is every evil cultist serving some destructive force that is shocked that betrayal comes. 

Especially, after he backstabbed the Yiga Clan causing even their leader to switch sides after the Yiga clan served Ganon for 10,000 years.

Astor is boring. He’s just another purple wearing evil dude who is serving a dark master who doesn’t actually need him after a point and gets a sort of comeuppance. 

In this case, it was possession/assimilation. 

I just beat Monster Boy and the cursed Kingdom and -spoilers-, in it there is a purple wearing evil guy who backstabbed others and was then backstabbed by the evil entity he served. He was just cursed into a ridiculous form instead of assimilation, though.

So, yeah. Astor was boring. The VA did what he could but Astor was just not compelling to me.

I did like the form that resulted of Harbinger Ganon absorbing him, though. 

It was a very nice change of pace from the Blight-like form Calamity Ganon had in Breath of the Wild. I actually almost wish this was his form instead-though with the stringy hair all the Blights and Calamity Ganon had. Maybe as a between form? Either way, I liked it. 

And that’s my opinion of the whole game; I liked it. 

There were times I’d get frustrated (mostly having to do with time limits and characters I don’t enjoy controlling). I may not have liked the Divine Beast Sections but they weren’t enough to ruin the game nor was their inclusion to the point that it could ruin it for me. 

The story, while a bit over-the-top with the wish fulfillment of everyone living, was still enjoyable for me and had its poignant moments. Especially with the Future Champions going back to their own(likely the canon) timeline where the Calamity wasn’t averted. Getting this glimpse of what could have been but isn’t for them.

All the younger Zelda flashbacks were bittersweet since we sort of saw how happy she was before her mother died and saw her father start his terrible parenting routine.

I don’t care that it was for her that he did it, it was still bad parenting. I sympathize with Rhoam, but that won’t excuse that he wasn’t a good father. 

He loved his daughter and was trying his best but he still did damage in his attempts to defy destiny.

I just have a lot of feelings about this game. 

I’ll just end this post here.

Age of Calamity was worth it, in my opinion.

[singingvio]

So I’ve got a FS+ Lab Experiment AU where Green, Red, Blue, Vio and Shadow are lab experiments with different powers at an illegal research facility and Zelda, Erune, and Vaati are detectives working on the case about the facility and are tasked with taking care of these kids they found.

I’m going to talk about it under the cut, but it’s a little dark so uh be warned I guess? There’s death mentions around every freaking corner.

So first of all Zelda, Erune, and Vaati are adults who work together at a detective agency. The agency is very famous, and Zelda’s dad owns it. Zelda and Vaati’s parents used to be business partners before Vaati’s father died and he moved in with his uncle, Ezlo, so they’ve been very close their whole lives despite their personalities clashing drastically with each other.

Erune and Zelda were roommates in college and became best friends extremely fast. The trio planned to start training to be detectives at Zelda’s dad’s agency since they love solving mysteries and have always been interested in work like that. Eventually they became some of the best detectives there.

Zelda also has a housemate, Link, who’s training to be a doctor and is a part-time volunteer at an elementary school, where he helps out in the nurse’s office and is also a hall monitor. Vaati had been his English tutor in college and had convinced Zelda to let Link live with her after I... think he got kicked out of his house? For some reason? It’s never really explained and Link avoids the subject like the plague but that’s everyone’s guess.

((Oh yeah by the way Vaati is Minish Cap Vaati, little-bit-nicer Vaati, not giant-purple-ball-of-evil Vaati from Four Swords. That’s Ezlo’s actual son and Vaati’s cousin. We never really see him.))

So Zelda, Vaati, and Erune get assigned to work on a case about an illegal facility doing illegal experiments on living people. They’re supposed to find out where it is, what’s going on, and what type of experiments, and then after that they have to shut it down, possibly by force, and save as many experiments there as they can.

So, when they go to literally storm the place with a bunch of guards, it immediately turns into a battlefield and Zelda, Vaati, and Erune find a room full of almost every experiment in the building. Sort of. There are over thirty experiments in there, all of them dead and hanging from the ceiling, most by branches that impaled them. About a third seem to actually have been killed by the branches, a few are burned, and a lot of them are turned to stone.

They find one of the surviving experiments and they infer that he was one of the ones that killed the other experiments based on his abilities, which are nature-based. This is Green, a nine-year-old who is very scared and can speak very little, extremely broken English.

He introduces them to Red, who is a nine-year-old fire sprite experiment and was the one who did the burning. He’s very nice and immediately hugs Zelda as a greeting. The two tell them where the other three living experiments are and the detectives meet Blue, who is eight years old and unlike Red and Green can’t speak at all and instead just kind of hisses at them angrily until he accepts that they’re not going to hurt any of them. He’s a sea monster experiment whose most defining physical feature is that his skin is blue, he glows in the dark, and his hair is made of octopus tentacles. He’s also got fins on his arms and back.

Finally, they find Vio, who is a gorgon-siren fusion experiment who can turn people to stone and has a singing voice that can hypnotize people. His eyes are covered by a blindfold so he can’t see, though he has excellent hearing and the snakes he has for hair try and help him get around. He doesn’t understand what they’re saying yet, however. He can speak fluent English because one of his powers is voice-based and therefore he should probably know how to speak.

He then says he’s not a very good teacher because of how little English he was able to teach Green and Red, and then Shadow appears! Yay! The two have a very strange argument about how Vio’s actually a great teacher, and while Shadow appears to be fluent in English, his sentences are very short. Shadow is eight, and Vio is seven, making him the youngest. After an interrogation from Vio about their true intentions, Zelda convinces them to also let them take them to safety away from the facility.

They round up the five kids and have to make their way through a pretty violent fight in the entrance hall, because those workers weren’t going down without a fight. Green and Blue are pretty slow and Vio can’t see, so Vaati, Erune, and Zelda carry them out while Red and Shadow are behind them. They make it out of the facility and soon find out that Shadow’s right wing has been shot and it’s basically shredded from the bullet. They use Vio’s blindfold, making him keep his eyes closed so he won’t accidentally turn them to stone, to slow the bleeding and drive back to the agency. Shadow falls asleep before they get there from exhaustion and Vio makes Zelda carry him instead of waking him up, insisting that Shadow waking up would result in him being in a lot of pain and that it was better to let him sleep.

((RAVIO IS THE RECEPTIONIST AT THE AGENCY AND IS PROMPTLY TERRIFIED OF THE EXPERIMENTS UNTIL ZELDA EXPLAINS THAT THEY’RE LITERALLY CHILDREN))

So they get to the agency and meet with Zelda’s dad and agree that since Zelda and Link’s house is the largest and Zelda’s already befriended the experiments, it’d be best for them to stay there for the forseeable future.

So they get to Zelda’s house and Link immediately befriends the kids because he’s really good with kids and then he freaks out because Shadow’s still bleeding quite a lot and immediately goes to stitch his wound up and bandage it. Vio goes with them. Shadow absolutely refuses to let Link numb his wing beforehand because he hates losing control of anything, including his nerves, so Link reluctantly agrees because Vio’s basically giving him a death glare despite his eyes being shut and he’s kind of scared of them both. So Shadow just keep’s Vio’s hand in a death grip as Link stitches his wound shut without any numbing and Zelda scolds him later, which Shadow promptly ignores and insists it wasn’t that bad.

Link and Zelda discuss going shopping for them all the next day and how that would work, because they really want to bring them along but only Red and Vio look somewhat normal, and Red’s skin is grey and Vio has snakes for hair. They also really want to send them to school at some point, but they decide to hold that conversation off for a later date and instead help the kids all get situated, which results in a pillow fight that Link lost and no one knows who one but they assume either Red or Shadow.

That’s kind of where it’s left off for now but like. I worked pretty hard on this and I’m probably going to post more later, all tagged with warnings because again, this AU is a bit dark.

[ombraventi]

Ghosts

He didn’t know why he’d gone down the road less traveled.

As much as he would resist and reject his past, Vaati would always be drawn to the forests. They were a part of him- no amount of magic and sorcery could change that. His connection to nature would always exist, and though he often ignored it, it would never simply go away.

It was familiar. Something warm and inviting, and yet…cold, in a way that was different from the snow that covered the ground. A separation existed- a firm line between him and the life he’d had, one that he tried so hard to upkeep.

Eventually, he’d wandered into a small clearing. At the center of the clearing was a single stump, illuminated by the mid-afternoon sun. It was almost like a spotlight, intended to highlight where he already knew he should go.

It was just a normal stump. Nothing interesting, nothing magical- it was no portal to another world. No gateway to the world he’d once known so very well… he could chant the incantations that had once made him big until his throat ran dry, and it would do nothing.

Not that he wanted to turn back. He liked his current form very much, after all.

He sat there in silence for quite a while. He didn’t mind the cold, he’d dressed warmly enough- and it was quiet, away from the constant noise of other people. Deep within the forest, he wasn’t constantly bombarded with the sounds of voices. It was just him and the trees and the wind, nature carrying her voice to him in a way he’d long since tried to forget.

“Ah, who are you?”

The voice was timid, shy, speaking a language he tried so hard to distance himself from. But of course, he never could- try as he would to be a hylian, he could never forget the forest tongue. The minish language came easily to him, more easily than hylian did. It was a language he hated- one that would bring him comfort. A part of his past he could never leave behind.

“Who said that? Show yourself.”

He looked around, but saw no others in the clearing. After a few moments, he forced himself to accept why he saw nobody.. and turned his eyes to the ground. The snow was only a few inches high, it was no issue to a hylian… but to a minish, it would tower far over their heads. The only saving grace was being so light, light enough that they could scurry across the top of it with minimal issue.

However, the little rat that he saw wasn’t some unknown face. It wasn’t a being he’d never met before- no, the child was all too familiar. A tiny minish of the sky, with violet fur and piercing red eyes. One eye was rendered near-blind from an accident, one he remembered far too well.

This was him.

Without thinking, he lowered his hand for his past self to climb onto. The minish obliged, walking onto his palm and then shaking himself, brushing the snow from his fur the best he could.

“You can speak our language? I’ve never met a big person who could do that before! Or even one who could see me!”

“I… why I can do those things is irrelevant.”

He didn’t know what he was doing. Why was he even talking to the little rat? How was he even here? He wanted to hide the child, to prevent anyone from ever seeing him. To hide himself, in the most literal sense of the word, because the less people who knew what he was, the better.

The child stared up at him with those big, innocent eyes. Vaati hated looking back at him- had he truly looked like that at one time? Had he truly been so… naïve? He remembered it differently. He remembered being frightened, timid�� a worthless existence.

But that wasn’t fair, was it? Things hadn’t always been that bad. He hadn’t always been scared. He’d been only a child, one who had good days and bad, one who’d been curious, so curious, always driven to learn and see and grow.

For better or worse.

“Is something wrong? Can I help you?”

So innocent. So determined to do the right thing. He was a minish, through and through- always trying to help the big people, even when he was nothing more than a miniscule rat. It was what he hated most about his people- why were they so selfless? Why spend your life trying to always help people so much bigger- the lives of the minish were infinitely harder than those damned hylians! They didn’t understand how easy they had it! Every damned day was a struggle when you were the size of a thumb, and still the minish cared more about the hylians than themselves-

“…Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Worry about your own damn self. Don’t you have any pride?”

“I don’t know what you mean… what’s wrong with wanting to help?”

What was wrong. Nothing, technically. Nothing at all. It was honourable to want to help others. It was the right thing to do. And he hated it. He despised that, that idea of selflessness. No hylian was that selfless. No big person cared that much about others. But minish were selfless to a fault, with not a selfish bone in their tiny little bodies.

“Nothing at all. But you shouldn’t help others at the cost of yourself.”

He wanted to yell. To scream. To get angry at his past self, to demand WHY he had been such a FOOL, but he couldn’t. It would solve nothing, and he knew that. And… as much as he hated his past, as much as he loathed how weak he was… when he stared at the little minish, looked at who he’d been… he couldn’t get angry. He couldn’t just yell. Because that was him, as much as he loathed it.

“But, you… just look like you need a bit of help.”

“…Perhaps that’s true. But there’s nothing you can do for me. It’s… not that simple.”

“Oh…”

The little minish lowered his head, and Vaati could only frown. That empathy, that compassion- another thing he hated. Another thing he’d tried so hard to quell, because empathy only led to pain and compassion only lead to betrayal. That’s what he’d told himself. How he’d let himself cope with things.

“You… should not lose faith. Not everyone can be helped- not everyone wants help. But… someday… you may figure out what it is that you can do to make an impact on the world.”

He couldn’t tell the truth. He couldn’t tell the child that they were one and the same- that he would grow up to carry this same burden of hurt and pain and loneliness. He couldn’t tell the child that he didn’t know what their fate would be- if he would claim glory and power and live as a god in a world that hated him, or if he would die in his attempts. Or, perhaps something else entirely… a punishment worse than death, or a forgiveness that he didn’t deserve. His fate could be any of those things or none of them, it was something that only the goddesses knew, and they certainly would never tell him.

“Do you understand, Vaati? Do not let the world restrain you. You… you will go farther than anyone would ever imagine.”

The child looked at him, surprised for a moment, before smiling. There one moment, gone the next- whatever magic had allowed the two to meet for a brief moment in time was gone, the ghost of his past back where he belonged once more. The past.

However… that didn’t make the feelings go away. The pain, the conflict in his chest. But… still, he could not stop. He refused to give up what he’d claimed for himself, and he refused to go back to who he’d once been. He would never go back to a life of struggling each and every day for a people who didn’t even know he existed.

He was resolved. Resolved to continue on as the man he’d chosen to become.

But in his heart, deep within the darkness of his soul, things warmed… just a little bit. A little spark of compassion, willing to open up once more. A flicker of warmth and hope within his damned soul. A reminder that... he had changed. He’d become a person who could accept friendship, who could could accept the love of those he cared about, and offer it in return.

And though it wasn’t much, perhaps it was still enough.

[mememan93]

too 10 zelda games and why?

an ask? sick!! ok top 10 zelda games with reason coming up! (why cant i tag asks??)

1: skyward sword (duh)- Everything about this game is amazing, the soundtrack, the Npcs that feel like people, the puzzles, the controls, just everything! The storyline was linear, but really worth it! This might seem unpopular, but i also loved fi, from her aesthetic to her theme, hell i didnt mind her tips, no matter how many times i play through the game! People say they dont like having to fight the imprisoned/ghirahim 3 times. I loved the ghirahim fights and didnt mind doing it 3 times. And while the imprisoned was annoying, it was there because of plot consistency. The old woman says that too much power will draw it out, and if that didnt happen every time yall would be complaining about plot consistency. Skyward sword also had some of my favorite characters: Ghirahim and this version of Zelda!

2: Spirit tracks (wii u virtual console): this was my first Zelda game, I used to play it at family events with my cousin on his ds because social anxiety. You might think that i have it so high for nostalgia, and while that was the case for a while, i recently got the virtual console version, and played though it twice (you know when you do something recently it loses its nostalgia?) the soundtrack was great, i loved anjean, and zelda in that game was incredible. Taking the form of a phantom to help you, literally all of zeldas and links interactions were adorable. People said hey didnt like the touch controls and while they did take some getting used to, i adjusted kinda quickly, and when i played phantom hourglass afterwards, i kept dying cause the rolls were different.

3: Ocarina of time (3D): yes i didnt have an N64, fight me. Oot is a fan favorite, and for good reasons. It basically invented the zelda formula (if i have my release dates straight?) not counting alltp. Shiek is one of my favorite characters in anything ever, and admittedly, i did get a little sad when navi left. The soundtrack is good, but short when compared to other zelda games (that and it keeps getting taken off of youtube gdi!) again, ive never had an n64, so idk what the water temple was like back then, (i know about the iron boots gear screen) but from some of my cousins reactions, it seems to be a LOT better in the 3ds version

4: A link Between worlds: This is a really solid entry in the zelda series. Its got just enough difficulty that i dont remember literally everything, but easy enough that i can listen to something like TAZ while playing and understand whats happening in both. Ravio is a good character, though i wish you could steal for him. The items system was really cool, but i like that feeling of “whatre ya gonna get in this temple” that most zelda games have.

5. Minish cap (virtual console wii u): the minish cap is an all around pretty game. The graphics are just beautiful, the soundtrack is amazing, specially minish woods! And its got another of my fave characters, Vaati! Ezlo was also a great character, and sure the kinstones are annoying if youre tyring to 100% the game as are the figures, so this is why we dont 100% things! /s

6. Majoras Mask (3D): Disclaimer: i havent finished this, i was in ikana when my sister lost our copy of the game. But i know the story. MM is a game with only 4 dungeons, so it would seem short right? No, because of the 3 day system it takes longer than expected and wants you to plan out what youre doing. It had a lot of memorable sidequests and the masks were really fun as well. The soundtrack takes those OOT sounds and creates a whole new feel and its a heckin good time!

7. Twilight princess (wii): another game i havent finished! This time because spider scary, and im worried about encountering another one. Midna is super awesome, as is the wolf form and twilight sections, but on the wii, the controls are… awful. Anyone who complains about skyward swords motion controls has obviously never played this version of the game. Zant was cool, but then he was immediately overshadowed by ganondorf with little explanation. At least in Skyward sword ghirahim makes it clear that all he wants is demises resurrection. 

8. Wind waker (HD): for a lot of people this is their favorite, but idk it just never really clicked with me. Maybe its because i saved in the wind temple and Makar vanished so i had to reset my game? The soundtrack was good, but not really my fave, and i didnt like the king of red lions all that much. But other than that, it was a pretty solid game, just not one of my faves.

9. Phantom hourglass (wii u virtual console): after i beat spirit tracks i just HAD to play phantom hourglass, and i gotta say, i was pretty disappointed… the temple of the ocean king was like the tower of spirits, but the time limit. Oh the time limit. Also they fucking nerfed tetra in this game cmon! Ceilia made navi nosies, which i found funny for some reason. Honestly, the only saving grace is linebeck. his theme is amazing, he did grow on me, and the final boss fight against him was *chefs kiss*

10: Botw (both wii u and switch): yeah i just dont really like botw all that much. Half of the soundtrack is pretty decent, but the other half is * 5 piano notes* “what you want MORE???” I didn’t like botw Zelda. At all. At best she was quirky and kinda annoying, and at worst she made me wanna slam my head into the wall. I also didnt care about the champions, no matter how much the game wanted me to. The divine beasts were pretty bad, and the shrines were just kinda tiresome. The graphics were pretty cool (THANK GOD THERE WERE NO SPIDERS) i mean its a cool game, just not a cool zelda game, ya know? Also this is the only game thats made my wii u crash. And it wasnt just one time. Do with that what you will