#cause that was his thing in BOTW | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

amiharana · 2 years ago

Note

For the kiss prompt.. can't have revalink without ❦

(ask game from here)

you're so true about this anon what is revalink if not snow kisses persevering or however the quote goes (more under the keep reading)

Revali doesn't think he'll ever tire of looking at Link.

They're atop the Biron Snowshelf, having just permanently finished off the Guardian Stalker buried there, and after they had collected the parts of its destroyed corpse, it began to snow lightly. Not enough to warrant any concern from Revali, but enough for Link's eyes to widen at the event, looking around in quiet, yet delighted surprise. He holds out a hand palm up to the sky and when he catches a few snowflakes, he cups them in his hands and stares in wonder, eyes sparkling.

Beautiful, Revali thinks to himself, utterly besotted in an instant. You look beautiful when you're happiest, my love.

"Have you never seen snow fall before?" the Rito says aloud instead, rather softly. Link looks back at him grinning wide, his eyes bright with glee. Even in the merciless chill of the Hebra Mountains, Revali melts under Link's smile.

"Well, I mean I have," the blond says, rolling his eyes. "But it never gets old. It's incredible." He glances back at his hands and brightens when he finds more snowflakes have fallen in, and starts waddling towards Revali.

"Look how pretty," Link whispers, showing his cupped hands to Revali, who instinctively reaches a hand out to hold his mate's waist. Within Link's hands lies a group of small, but intricately patterned flakes. They were quite pretty, but—

"You're far prettier," Revali murmurs back, and Link snorts at him.

"You're such a sap," the blond says, but he's grinning. He's got snow in his hair now.

"I have no choice, you make it too easy which how much you endear me." Revali takes his other hand to tilt Link's chin up and presses their foreheads together. Gently, he nuzzles his mate's nose and lips with his beak, to which Link sighs in response and wraps his arms around Revali's midsection, returning the gesture.

"You dropped the snowflakes," Revali remarks softly.

Link hums. "I can always catch more. A moment like this with you is much more valuable." He brings his hands up to cup Revali's face and presses a soft kiss to the middle of his beak, the Rito's eyes shutting.

"If you desired so, I'd give you all the snowflakes this land could offer," Revali says under his breath. He's far too infatuated with the blond to be making such impossible offers, but he supposes that he would die trying to give his mate everything he'd ever want.

Link only giggles in response. "That won't be necessary," he says. "I already have you." When Revali pulls away to look down him, the blond's cheeks and nose are flushed pink, but his bright grin keeps the cold at bay, his eyes sparkling with mischief and fondness.

Yes, Revali won't ever tire of looking at Link, his most precious jewel. How could he ever?

#revalink #loz #botw #loz botw #legend of zelda #amihan's revalinkverse #ask #ask game #alright this was not a drabble and it's more like a ficlet if we go by proper definition #BUT IT WAS CUTE AND IT WAS SOFT!!!!#amihan don't write revali being completely whipped for link challenge: failed #let's pretend snowflakes aren't as microscopic in hyrule as they are irl and it's like animal crossing where they're huge #alexa play euphoria by bts jungkook because link is the cause of revali's euphoria #yeah if this post had a song you should listen to it with it would be euphoria #or maybe crystal snow bts #one thing about revali is he's completely whipped for link with snow in his hair #another thing about revali is he's extremely sappy when it's about link #thinking about an au where revali is the prince of winter and link is the prince of summer #and link thinks revali is so fucking attractive but he's winter and link is summer...... forbidden seasonal love 😔

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rotisseries · 8 months ago

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i don't read enough loz fic to know what the popular fanon is so maybe this already exists but there should be a revali and zelda besties agenda i think it would be good for them

#loz #botw #zelda #revali #i will be posting tonight like the champions never died #anyway just decided this. I think they would've initially bonded over having the same issue with link #cause they both initially don't like him bc they both view him as having had his destiny handed to him basically #while they work and work and work and still feel that they aren't seen as good enough #and then I think the fact that revali is really abrasive would be appealing to zelda tbh #cause she's a princess and often very composed in most of the memories she's having to sort of suppress a lot of her emotions #like she obviously gets very loud and angry with link but I really don't think that's her normal behavior #I think she does that both cause obviously he's the person it's easiest to pin all her frustration on #but ALSO because he's the only one she really CAN yell at. the people she's frustrated at are her 1. her dad #2. herself. and 3. link. other people around her would seem generally blameless for The Situation #she can't yell at her dad there's only so much you can do about hating yourself and no one ever wants to acknowledge that you hate yourself #you'd rather just hate someone else. and link is the easiest target of the three #and then on top of that link is generally very unreactive which pisses her off to no end initially #BUT does make yelling at him a thing with no consequences #anyway that was long winded but what I'm saying is that zelda is a person surrounded by very composed people #who has to be very composed herself. link being the one exception. but she's so angry and sad all the time #and not often able to vent her frustrations #BUT revali is so abrasive and rude like I think if zelda was friends with him it would be a great bitch4bitch moment #and then on revali's end like I think zelda would be SO fascinated in the science behind his flying technique #and he'd fucking preen at that he'd love it he'd be like she hates that twink too AND she appreciates my skill. ideal bestie material #and he doesn't seem like a very spiritual person. bird. bird person. so while I definitely don't think he's THE ONLY person #telling zelda “hey you don't need to be doing this much praying your other contributions are good also”#it's still always good for zelda to have more people in her corner #and I do think he'd acknowledge the skill she has in other areas bc it's something she worked hard on I think he'd do that #realizing 90 percent of that was “why zelda needs revali as a bff” and not the other way around #always thinking of my girl exclusively it's true. never beating the zeldapilled allegations

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jheselbraum · 1 year ago

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See I didn't get the "sacrifice is a core message of the game" thing at all during my playthrough. Sacrifice definitely exists and is present throughout the game in the examples you laid out above, but the larger theme of the story is community, not sacrifice. Rauru's sacrifice doesn't defeat Ganondorf it only stalls him long enough for Link to like. Be born. Before any of this shit in botw Link and Zelda both sacrificed their childhoods and it didn't fucking work. Zelda sacrificing herself and Link losing his arm to protect Zelda in totk doesn't work (edit: in defeating ganondorf, pre-final fight). Zelda's still lost in time. Link cannot fight effectively and pays very dearly for his decision to take the hit (a decision that he repeats later in the game, though under much different circumstances and with far better results). In totk, it's not Link and Zelda and the ghosts of their dead friends trying to atone for past sins this time, but all of Hyrule coming together to rebuild something better.

The three most powerful moments in the game to me are 1) the puppet zelda revealed phantom ganon fight when the sages show up, 2) the moment when you're almost at the final boss fight and the sages show up (coupled with the sages taking on the boss rush as well as the sages reappearing to draw agro from the ganonclones, even if they didn't do much to actually damage the real ganondorf), and 3) when zelda shows up in the final phase of the ganondorf fight, and I'm gonna talk a bit about the first two before I go into the third.

So, for both the puppet zelda revealed fight and the approach to final boss, you as the player do not have the option to go get the actual sages to come help you with that. Both times Purah is the one to send word to them to like, you know. Get on that. But Link himself does not at any point ask for help in these fights. And like-- we don't have a ton of concrete information about Link specifically, botw and totk are both about Zelda and the game seems to be content with implying things about Link and letting players sandbox his personality from that. But not asking for help and going at it alone very much tracks for this version of Link. The Sages show up without Link asking them to be there because Hyrule is their home and they want to help. This is the part where Link repeats his decision to just take the gloom hit, but he survives this time because his community rallied around him to show their support.

Like, circling back to botw for a bit, it wasn't Link's idea to find champions to pilot the divine beasts and get all the guardians online. That was Zelda. Best laid plans aside, Zelda's the one who had the bright idea of not facing the ultimate evil or whatever alone. Rhoam was content pinning everything on as few people as possible

The only reason Link survives the puppet zelda revealed fight is because the sages showed up anyways. You know, the representatives from every corner of Hyrule, working together towards a common goal of, you know. Not letting Link die because he ran directly into a trap with zelda shaped blinders on.

And this is to say nothing of the actual plots of the regional phenomena questline (or the side adventures in tarrey town, hateno, and lurelin, which we'll be here all night if I get into those. I'll probably get into them anyways).

Tulin, like Link, wants to go it alone and fight something bigger than him with no allies. He resents what he perceives as rejection from his community until he and Link team up to stop the blizzard and after having learned to work with others is accepted as a warrior among his community. Side note, after you complete each race's regional phenomena quest, members of that race start showing up in Lookout Landing to help out.

Sidon is working himself to the fishbones to keep the water in Zora's Domain clean, on his own, because he can't stand the thought of anyone close to him getting hurt when he could've done something. Link shows up to help him find the source of the sludge of course, but the big moment here is Yona and her attendants stepping up to purify the water together in Sidon's stead, because they are a team and he doesn't have to go it alone.

The goron questline is the weakest in terms of the community messaging but that doesn't mean it's not present. Yunobo genuinely wants to do right by his people and help them out when they're struggling. He's come such a long way since botw (I loved that he was the first to jump into Death Mountain, a wonderful reversal of how Link jumped into Death Mountain in botw) and it's clear that he's only come this far because the gorons are just kind of chill like that, like. Like you don't need to add community messaging to the gorons because they already embody that pretty well just as a baseline.

While the goron questline is the weakest, the gerudo questline has absolutely the strongest community messaging of the four main regions. Aside from young children and the elderly, and the younger shopkeeper npcs, everyone helps defend gerudo town from the onslaught of gibdo. Usually by this point in the game, players have at least encountered Hoz's squad of the monster control crew, maybe done a few missions, and has absolutely seen how shitty sir bucket head and the guy who throws up after every fight actually are in combat. Maybe they've done the Hateno questline and have gotten to help Reede defend his precious pumpkins from. Stalkoblins. Even with the above questlines, when experienced legend of zelda players and players who have only gotten into the franchise recently alike get to this point in the game, their take on the quest is "okay, what I'm hearing is everyone is going to fight the gibdo. What's actually going to happen is I am going to fight the gibdo." This is not the case with the gerudo. While Link and Riju are absolutely the most capable fighters in the group, the gerudo warriors are no joke, and are more than capable of holding the approaching gibdo back and even killing some while the player fucks up their nests and cleans up any gibdo who break through the gates.

I'm going to take a break here to mention mineru's sage quest, because that one is less community oriented and is instead more interpersonal, and it shows in the gameplay, because the spirit temple is drastically different from all the other sage temples.

So, on to Dragon Zelda showing up in the final phase of the ganondorf fight.

Zelda showing up and fucking ramming Dragondorf was the coolest moment in the game, hands down. It's such a good payoff to the question of "how is zelda going to show up in the final phase of this fight, as is loz tradition." Zelda does more work here than any of the sages have done in the ganondorf boss fight itself, btw. Like I love the sages don't get me wrong, but they just draw agro from the ganonclones and even fully powered up they can't actually damage them faster than I can damage ganondorf enough to get into the next phase of the fight, where they're all out of commission. Mechanics and aesthetics of two fuckoff dragons fighting in the sky aside, the fact that Zelda is the most helpful sage in the final boss is not the reason this moment is so amazing and contributes to the community messaging.

I've said it before, I'll say it again, 90% of the time in a given Legend of Zelda game, Link and Ganondorf are playing Dungeons and Dragons while Zelda is playing chess, and in no game is that more apparent than Tears of the Kingdom.

The only reason Link is able to defeat Ganondorf is because of Zelda's actions, both before and after she traveled back in time.

Why do the original sages, including Mineru, know even remotely that they're supposed to give their secret stones to their distant descendants? Zelda.

Why does Rauru save Link? Zelda. (side note this is another example of community outweighing and mitigating the consequences of sacrifice because Link absolutely would have died if not for Rauru's help, Link would've given up his life the moment he was hit with the gloom blast)

Why is Hyrule in even the barest hint of a position to be willing and able to come together to help Link? Not just via the new sages but also via all the ways all the people of Hyrule help Link out during the game? Zelda.

In totk Zelda has expanded upon her original "don't fight calamity ganon alone" idea and improved it to such a degree that she can rely on not just link but all of hyrule to perfectly execute a plan that she knows she won't be aware enough to ensure they get back on track if even one thing goes slightly wrong, ten thousand years in the future. For a sense of how long that is, the Epic of Gilgamesh, the oldest story we know about, was written 4,000 years ago.

So when, at the end of the game about coming together to face a common threat, when Link Sonia and Rauru come together to turn Zelda back, because all three of them care about Zelda that much and want her to enjoy the peace that is only possible because of her, in a way that is in keeping with the established thirty-seven year long tone of these games, I can't really fault it for saying "you know what no Zelda's suffered enough she gets to enjoy the happy ending she created"

I could go into how Link Sonia and Rauru turning Zelda back was absolutely triforce babey but this post is long enough, I've already mentioned it elsewhere, and frankly I don't actually expect this post to actually change your or anyone else's mind about the validity of the ending Zelda got this is solely a "the theme of the game isn't sacrifice" post, so I'll refrain

Them restoring Link's arm was bullshit, but it was bullshit because that's a shitty way to write an ending for disabled characters, not because it's not "edgy enough" or whatever.

Like I'm sorry, this was mostly a theme post but more on the tone thing: if this kind of ending isn't your thing that's valid but I'm afraid that the Legend of Zelda series may not be for you, then. Maybe Ocarina of Time or Majora's Mask would suit you better if you're looking for LoZ games to play (notably I don't know if Twilight Princess, the 'edgiest' Zelda game, would suit you), but. Like. As a whole, these games have kind of always been a little bit edgy and a little bit silly with an at least 85% happy ending and a 90% chance of divine intervention to make that happen. This kind of ending is practically a staple of the weird niche "action/adventure, dungeon crawler, puzzle, rpg, open world, medieval fantasy, generally magitech, there's also aliens in one, mecha, they could've made the concept art game where link wears jeans and plays guitar and it'd still fit in" genre that the franchise has sort of carved out for itself. There's nothing else really like it, believe me I've looked I love it and want more of it. And like, you don't have to like it, I want to be very clear on that front, but this is kind of like watching a Gundam anime and saying "the ending would've been better if we saw the overall state of the world tangibly improve, even somewhat, as a result of the character's efforts. The fact that it doesn't makes the whole show seem like a waste of time." Like yeah maybe watch G Gundam if you want an ending like that, but overall this isn't the place you want to look for the kind of story it seems like you want to be told. The Legend of Zelda is not the game series you go to for sad endings. I wouldn't go as far as saying that it is the game series you go to for specifically happy endings, but it is the game series you go to for endings where the problem is solved. The problem in Tears of the Kingdom is that Zelda's fucking gone. The game won't end until that problem gets solved, ergo the game will end by Zelda returning.

Actually I’m gonna rant about the end of totk now. The core message of the game appears to be sacrifice. Rauru sacrifices himself to seal Ganondorf away, Zelda sacrifices herself to be a light dragon and to restore the master sword, and even tho Link’s arm wasn’t lost in a sacrifice, he still lost it protecting Zelda and himself and the gloom just got the better of him. But the message of sacrifice does not shine through with these except for Rauru, because none of these things have consequences.

The ending was super unsatisfying to me because everything was returned to normal, and that’s not how sacrifice works. If they wanted to have this message they should’ve kept Zelda as a dragon, and if they didn’t want to do that then they should’ve kept Link’s arm gone and all that.

With both of them being fully restored, it defeats the purpose of sacrifice. Like yeah none of them expected for them to be restored, Zelda didn’t think that she’d turn back. But it still feels kind of cheap you know? There are no consequences for any of this, it almost makes the game feel pointless.

Every ending to a story needs something to be different. In botw, the champions are dead, forever. Link and Zelda are in a world that they are unfamiliar with, with almost everyone they know gone from the calamity. Their world changed and their lives changed. But with totk, nothing changed. Everyone’s still vibing, everyone’s alive except for Rauru, Sonia, and Mineru but they’ve been dead for a long time so it doesn’t even matter, and Zelda doesn’t even remember what happened to her as a dragon so that feels completely pointless. I was expecting her to be traumatized for seeing things for that long but no everything was fine and dandy and it made it so :/

I wish that Nintendo wasn’t scared to do the risky move and kept Zelda as a dragon to show that she really did sacrifice everything for that. It sad, it’s tragic, and completely selfless and I would’ve loved to see an emotionally devastating ending similar to twilight princess. Imo Zelda turning into a dragon was the best part of the story (I hate the story) so it would’ve really made the ending for me. And Link having his arm back makes absolutely no sense me and is kind of lame. Dude lost his arm, full send or no send.

Idk, I’m just unsatisfied with the ending. It could’ve stuck with me more if they did these things. I have such an intense love/hate with this game and the story is the thing I hate. Just… ugh.

#totk spoilers #tears of the kingdom spoilers #oot the problem is ganon is taking over hyrule the game ends with that not happening #majoras mask the problem is skull kid has friend drama and is going to crash the moon into the earth about it and it ends #with him patching things up with his buddies and notably the moon staying right where it is #wind waker the problem was hyrule wanted oot link to save them yet a fucking gain and got bitchy when it didn't work like that #it ends with link and tetra being able to move on from that kingdom #link between worlds the problem is lorule is fucked and it ends with link and zelda fixing that #twilight princess the plot is the kingdom has been taken over by the twili and eventually ganondorf #it ends with ganondorf dead and the twili leaving #botw the problem is there is an ongoing apocalypse that you failed to stop the first time so you've gotta try again #it ends with the apocalypse fucking stopped #original loz game the problem is ganon is causing problems the game ends with ganon dead #notice how not all of those endings were 100% happy #these are games where the problem is solved

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aleakybiro · 10 months ago

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I am once again unhinged about botw cause of this line, this line

is so important?? And I feel so stupid cause I've seen it 437194 times but only now I've just realised.

Link's story is literally all about taking a different path. He gets the chance at life again, but without people's oppressive expectations of how he should behave, or to be this perfect knight all the time. I loved link's character in botw because the contrast of how he was in the memories vs who he is in the present time makes me so happy. He's much more carefree and happy, willing to joke around, it's like seeing someone grow and heal and it's great.

So link was at last given this chance at a different path, in a world where people saw him as just another traveller. He could act however he wanted, if he wanted to he could've rejected his duty and go on as just an anonymous dude living life.

And yet, he didn't. He was given the chance to choose a different path - no memories of the past, but he chose to be a knight. It shows that some things endured across the 100 years and the amnesia. Even after all he went through, link is still willing to bear responsibility, has a sense of duty to his kingdom, and cares deeply about Zelda. I think that's pretty cool honestly.

#botw #breath of the wild #still insane about this game #its so good that even after 3 playthroughs im still realising stuff #loz #loz link #botw link

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askmerriauthor · 1 year ago

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Homie. Darling. Muchaco. Please help me. You're an animator. You've worked in the video game industry. When you get to That One Memory in TOTK (you know which one I mean and if you don't, you will),

Please help me figure out what the fuck is going on with Ganondorf's face rigging

Man, I didn't even need to look anything up: I knew EXACTLY what you were talking about as soon as you said it.

Short Answer: Need more polys.

Long Answer: It's simultaneously a case of limited model structure and potentially some degree of intentional design choice specific to Ganondorf's presentation in this particular game.

Discussion below the jump, just for the sake of not stretching out people's dashboards. No worries about spoilers: none of this is story-relevant.

So! To give a very broad strokes bit of coverage on the wide and varied nonsense that is 3D modeling, this is a case of Topology. The basic thrust is that topology is the overall structure and layout of the mesh that makes up the 3D model's various shapes. The lower the polygon count on that mesh, the more angular its structure and the less capacity for deformation it has. The higher the polygon count, the smoother its structure and the greater its capacity for deformation. The trade-off, however, is that low-poly models are easier for a game engine to render. High-poly models are a massive drain on processing power, to say nothing if they're built inefficiently with a bunch of wasted geometry bogging things down.

Here's an example of a low-poly model on the left and a high-poly model on the right.

So when you want to make a character emote, you're basically grabbing a bunch of those polygons around the face and moving them around to shape the face into the desired expression. If you don't have a lot of polys to play with, it causes folding and tearing issues where the model and its textures do some pretty wonky shit.

Something both BoTW and ToTK have going for them is that they're actually very low-poly games, which is extremely helpful in making the games run as smoothly as they do given the world size and seamless loading. The lighting and texture work do A TON of heavy lifting to make the game look as good as it does. Really look at these models closely and you can see how angular they are. Look at Zelda's outstretched hand or how sharply light falls across the character's features. In the bottom right, notice how you can see the sharp points that make up Zelda's shoulders? They're not rounded; they're angled just enough to give the general illusion of a curve at a glance. Same goes for her eyes; you can count the angles that make up the shape of her eye but, at a distance and at a glance, they look big, round, and doleful.

Something you can also notice is when characters talk, a lot of them have little to no facial deformation. Mineru, for example, basically has a one-hinge Muppet mouth outside of pre-rendered cutscenes. A lot of characters' eyes are basically painted onto their faces and switch between static texture shapes as opposed to being fully rendered and animated orbs modeled into their heads.

Ganondorf actually has a fairly complex character model, especially compared to Link or Zelda, but he doesn't have a lot of model deformation. Basically the only parts of his head that move are his eyes/brows and mouth/jaw. If you look closely around his eyes you can see they're rendered basically as triangles. There's only two or three points along their shape the model can deform at. Further, since the rest of his face doesn't really deform when he emotes, it means the only thing that really moves are those small key elements. Which yields moments like this:

The animators are basically pushing his expression as much as they are actually capable of with this model's limited structure. See the hard fold in the lower eyelid, or the fact that his teeth aren't attached to anything inside his jaw? It does the job though; it overall looks good and, in the moment this scene happens, really adds something to the unsettling nature of what's going down.

I mentioned before that there may be a certain intent as well. Something specific to Ganondorf in this iteration is that, more than ever, he's become an Oni. Ganondorf's character design has slowly been leaning toward more Japanese-specific visual concepts over the past few appearances but he's gone full yokai for ToTK. Not just in his build, but in his clothing and weaponry. Dude is swinging around a kanabo for the first time ever in the franchise.

In Japanese mythology and Noh theater, a Red Oni basically functions as the embodiment of all the worst parts of mankind. They're greedy, brutal, cruel monsters who revel in causing destruction. If you want to look at their good aspects, it's traits like passion, ambition, and a wild spirit. But, overall, they're the bad guys. Ganondorf is 100% depicted as a Red Oni in ToTK. So when you keep that in mind, add in the implications of what Ganondorf just did in that scene, and consider the traditional appearances of a Red Oni...

...then that face-breaking grin makes a lot more sense.

#totk #botw #ganondorf #legend of zelda #animation

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suniix · 1 year ago

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one bed | (botw) link x reader

synopsis | you and link stop by an inn to rest, but there’s one small problem

word count | 1.3k

note | thought about it too hard so i wrote a fic about it (based on this little comic! pls look at it it’s so cute)

As the moon rose, the world beyond your hotel window fell into a peaceful slumber. The faint sound of crickets could be heard singing their calming melody. The peaceful night ambiance would’ve been enough to put you to sleep had it not been for your frantic beating heart.

In front of you lies your traveling companion, Link, whose back was practically against the wall, arms wrapped around himself as if afraid to accidentally touch you.

The silence in the room was deafening, neither of you knew what to say in this situation. After sleeping on the hard ground for weeks the two of you had agreed to spend the night at The Great Ton Pu Inn. The rain that quickly followed your decision only fueled your excitement for a comfy bed as the two of you rushed up the hill leading to Hateno Village. What neither of you expected was for every room to be booked, every room but one with a single bed.

Despite both of you being tired from traveling, neither of you could fall asleep because of the awkward tension that hung in the air. Ignoring it was proving to be impossible, someone had to say something, but you were hesitant to break the silence for fear of making things awkward (as if they weren’t already). You had been traveling with Link for weeks, months even! The two of you have shared several nights close together under the comfort of the stars, what makes now so different?

Maybe it was the smirk the front desk lady had given you both after handing you your key, maybe it was because despite how much you prayed for a room with two beds to miraculously become available you were secretly happy to share a bed with the Hylian boy, or maybe it was because despite you looking everywhere but him you could feel his eyes on you.

Just say something, anything!

You clear your throat, shuffling nervously under the blanket. “Um.. Rupee for your thoughts?” You asked in a hushed voice, an awkward smile making its way onto your face.

Link blinked rapidly in response, likely surprised by your sudden question. He continued to stare at you in silence, now tense as his cheeks turned a bright red.

Thinking you made him uncomfortable you quickly rise out of the bed. “Sorry! You know what maybe I should just sleep on the couch—”

Before you had the chance to remove the blanket from your body Link quickly sat up in bed and reached out to grab your wrist, shaking his head furiously. You stop when he does, slightly surprised to see how fast he had reacted when he looked so tired earlier. Your eyes fall on his hand which, despite the quick reaction, holds your wrist just tight enough to keep you from leaving but loose enough for you to pull away if you so wished. Realizing what he did he slowly pulls away. You immediately miss the warmth.

He looks down, blush remaining on his cheeks as he nervously fiddles with his fingers. “Don’t go, I..” he pauses, unsure if he should finish his thought. He looked up to see you staring at him patiently, waiting for him to finish. That was one thing he loved about you; you were always so patient with him. Although he was more talkative than he was 100 years ago he often found himself struggling to express what he wanted, likely an unconscious habit that stayed with him through his century-long sleep. Despite this you never hurried or pressured him into talking, allowing him to do it at his own pace. Taking a deep breath he continued. “.. I like being close to you.”

As soon as the words left his mouth you felt your cheeks burn. Did you hear him right or was it just a hallucination caused by the late hour of the night? You thought about pinching yourself, but the way he nervously played with his fingers (a habit you found adorable) and the way the ends of his hair curled up just a bit revealing a small scar on his shoulder made it too real to be a dream.

After a few moments of silence Link looked up, seeing your shocked expression. He quickly backtracked, thinking he made you uncomfortable with what he said. “Unless you don’t! That’s fine!—”

“I do!”

Link freezes upon hearing your response. You awkwardly clear your throat. “I-I mean, I also like being close to you..” you nearly whisper, feeling your ears burn with the embarrassment of blurting it out earlier.

Then the room went silent. Your heart was frantically beating against your chest; you hoped Link couldn’t hear it.

Your fear was proven false (unbeknownst to you) as Link was currently lost in his own mind. Link had become so accustomed to seeing you in that golden campfire glow that the current sight of you left him breathless. He thought you looked even more captivating in the moonlight.

He slowly nodded his head, eyes refusing to leave your form. “Ok.” He responded in a daze. It was the only thing Link could think to say as his mind was still elsewhere.

“We should probably sleep now..” You looked past Link and out the window, seeing the moon high in the clear sky. “It’s getting late.”

Link hummed, snapping out of the trance he was in and nodding his head in agreement. You settled back under the blanket and he followed your actions. Despite your earlier conversation, there was still a good chunk of space between the two of you on the small bed.

Wanting him to come closer, you begin to think of a way to convince him. “You know, it’s kind of cold in here.” You whispered (a small lie, it was the middle of summer), but you knew Link heard you when he looked back at you. Deciding to take a chance you scoot closer to him and you hear his breath hitch. “So I wouldn’t mind if.. you came closer.”

Hesitantly, Link listened and with a smile scooted just a little bit closer. You breathed out a sigh of relief you didn’t even know you were holding, moving closer to him again. Beneath the blanket, your hand slowly moved to reach his. As your fingers slowly grazed his he flinched. You were about to pull away before he intertwined his hand with yours. There’s that familiar warmth.

He pulled your hand close to his chest, gently tugging you closer. You complied, wordlessly moving closer to him once again. The distance between your bodies was minimal now; you were so close you could see the faintest freckles gracing his cheeks.

“Are you still cold?” He asked in a low whisper. You nodded your head (another lie, you were already beginning to feel sweaty). You couldn’t help it, now that you’ve experienced what it’s like to be close to him you crave more. Being greedy just this once wouldn’t hurt.

Link lets go of your hand, wrapping his arms around you to bring you against his chest. Your eyes widen at the sudden action, but you don’t pull away.

“Better?”

You nodded, slowly wrapping your arms around him in case he flinched away. When he didn’t you fully wrapped your arms around his torso and snuggled into him, a painfully large grin stretching across your face when he did the same. Your palms were sweaty as they tightly gripped his shirt. He smelled earthy, like damp dirt with a hint of smoke. You sighed in contentment, not caring that the two of you would likely wake up sweaty tomorrow. You didn’t release your grip and neither did he.

You silently thanked Hylia for not answering your prayer earlier before falling into a deep sleep.

thank you for reading till the end! :D

masterlist

#link x reader #link x y/n #link x you #botw link x reader #botw x reader #loz x reader #link imagine #link fluff #botw #breath of the wild #[📝 sunni writes]

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ziskeyt · 2 years ago

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I reblogged this before and I do agree with the premise, Zelda is the main power to stop the encroaching evil of Demise/Ganondorf/whatever the game’s evil is that she is in. HOWEVER she is not the main character in the game. The games are about Link. The games are about going in to save her and save Hyrule and all that, yeah, but the games are also about helping out the people of Hyrule. (Or well, wherever Link is in the game I’m looking at you, dreamwhale)

Zelda is powerful. If course she is: she has the blood of the goddess and therefore the power of a god at her disposal. The conflict between her and Demise/Ganondorf is a fight of divine power, of epic proportions. But we’re playing as a kid, or a teenager, with no particular special power except he’s got the spirit of courage, he’s not backing down when the enemy is a thousand times more powerful than him, when it’s a hundred times bigger, he gets up when he’s knocked down because he is stubborn and brave. These games are about being that little elf guy in green or blue, about having the courage to keep going when things are rough to do what is right, and they are also about stopping to help people where you can. Of course Link is the main character.

Zelda is the main character in the telling of the battle with the Great Evil. Zelda is the important being in this fight so of course she is the main character when this story of the fight and triumph over the usurper, over the Demon God or the Demon King is told. But she’s not the main character of the games. That’s conflating the most powerful characters in a story with the protagonist, and she isn’t. And tbh, as long as she’s a divine weapon, for the tone of these games, she kinda can’t be. The games aren’t about that. They’re about what it’s like to come into this fight in the third act, when the divine power requires the help of a mortal hand. They’re about helping people find mushrooms, or learn how to cook, or get their ranch back, or build up a town. They’re about what it’s like to live in this world of epic divine battles and be a nobody and have to worry about monsters killing your livestock. They’re about the people,(and also the land, I mean who couldn’t fall in love with the land of Hyrule in BotW) and when you play as Link that is a huge part of the experience, and it’s why he’s the main character because through him you see why this place and these people are something to fight for.

and I think that’s pretty special.

This comment made me shift my perspective on Zelda, no joke. I’ve always been annoyed (and still am) that there isn’t a game where you actually play as Zelda, but this does a nice job of showing WHY she’s always getting attacked first, and why Ganon/Demise are always defeated not long after Link reunites with her: she’s the true source of power to defeat them.

#Loz #playable Zelda would absolutely be cool #In terms of how loz stories have gone she can’t have her powers then cause what is the journey #She’s the gun in the final act. She can’t be cocked and ready to fire in act one #Botw is the story where she could’ve been playable but don’t have Link in the picture yet #He hasn’t found the sword he’s some unknown farmer’s kid in the post apocalypse #And this is the story of a Zelda who’s lost everything because she couldn’t awaken her powers and her journey to do so #And in the final act she awakens her power and goes to the castle to fight ganon #And finds the sword of the previous hero and its divine energy are the only things that have stopped the beast from destroying everything #And maybe Zelda isn’t great at melee so she’s teamed up with some rouge guy who is unbelievable with a sword and he’s come along to fight #The monsters leading to the palace #And when they find that sword he knows it is his despite never seeing it before #And they agree he’ll draw it to unpin the beast and Zelda will unleash her power and take it down #Or something

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komoriiis · 10 months ago

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༊*·˚ 𝐁𝐀𝐊𝐔𝐆𝐎𝐔 𝐊𝐀𝐓𝐒𝐔𝐊𝐈— 𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐦

˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆ 𝖕𝖔𝖘𝖙 𝖙𝖞𝖕𝖊 :: drabble ( SFW )

“There’s no way in hell I’m letting you do that.” Your boyfriend 𝐊𝐀𝐓𝐒𝐔𝐊𝐈 huffs as he shoves past you with his hands in his pockets.

“Oh come on babe!” You whine, following right behind him as you wave your eyeshadow palette around. “It’s only a little! I swear I won’t post it anywhere or show anybody, it’s just gonna be between us. You would look so cute!’

Katsuki snorts as you say that, swirling around with his arms crossed as he glared down at you.

“Shit, if I got anything out of it maybe I’d agree. What’re you willin’ to do? Cause I for sure ain’t gonna do it without something in return.” He says, a smug smile appearing on his face.

You cross your arms back at him, lifting your head up and looking him straight in the eyes.

“…I’ll get you that new Zelda game you’ve been wanting. Tears of the kingdom, is it called?” you say, knowing he would never back down from such an opportunistic moment. ( Off topic but i headcanon that bakugou is a HUGE botw fan. Horikoshi told me himself! )

You see his face falter a bit as he stares at you in shock.

“Wha—you know thats like $70 right? You would waste $70 just to put some shit on my face that Imma wipe off anyway?” He replies, not thinking you’re serious.

You nod your head. “Yes. I would! Now will you let me do it or not?” You say, swinging makeup brushes in front of his face.

You can see him contemplating everything for a moment before giving in, sighing loudly and scratching the back of his neck.

“Fine. But you better get me the game after like you promised.” He groaned.

You squeal loudly in excitement as you take his hand quickly, dragging him over to the couch to get things started.

Katsuki was layed on the couch comfortably as you were sat on his lap, carefully applying some bright pink eyeshadow on his lids. Every time you tapped something on, his face would scrunch up and crinkle, ruining your ability to do it precisely.

“Katsuki, I swear if you move one more time! You’re making me mess up!” You huff at him.

He rolls his eyes, pushing the brush away from his face as he tried to sit up.

“Its not my fucking fault that thing is itchy as hell. Why d’ya gotta add so much?” He complains.

“Its all part of the process! Now just stay still and look pretty, I’ll do the rest.” You say, pushing him back down and dabbing more eyeshadow onto your brush.

You can hear him sigh in annoyance as he lays back down, grumbling to himself.

“You’re lucky I love you…” you hear him say.

You try not to smile at his comment but a small grin takes shape as you mix in some glitter with the pink.

𝐇𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

[ masterlist ]

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valictini · 2 years ago

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I was watching a video analysing how the Yiga clan were handled in botw and how the person analysing it lamented the fact that Kohga was a joke character who totally destroyed the much more threatening image the yiga clan had all throughout the game. Although I do understand the sentiment (I felt that way for a long time) I’ve come to realise that we might not be viewing it in the right perspective. I ended up writing a comment under that video explaining how I saw things, and realised that maybe it could interest people here too? So here is the fleshed out version of it:

I think part of why they made Kohga extremely goofy compared to a way less goofy clan of literal assassins is to emphasise how even though the clan originally held some understandable beliefs, it has become a cult of personality over the years, and like most cults, the leader is way less charismatic than his followers make him out to be. Indeed, from the outside, it seems absurd how anyone could take Kohga seriously, let alone kill under his command, but from the inside, Kohga is the Beloved Leader That Guides Them Towards Victory, and anyone threatening him deserves to die.

In a way, yiga clan members feel like vulnerable, impressionable people who were enrolled into a cult and given a Big Family and a purpose (and a lethal weapon) by their lovable Master Kohga who wants the best for them… Except if you want to get out, then you’re a filthy traitor who also deserves to die. It’s especially visible when you beat him and they all get personally mad at you for killing him. They didn’t care about Ganon, they didn’t seem to actually understand the bigger picture, they only cared about Kohga.

It also shows how, like the rest of Hyrule, the Yigas are very much disconnected from their own history, seemingly holding on the grudge their ancestors held more as an excuse to continue to enact violence and perpetuate the cult of personality than fighting for a “noble” cause. Only Kohga seems to actually care about Calamity Ganon, and the rest of the yigas seem to be just tools to him. Wether or not he’s actually conscious of what he’s doing is unclear. Is he a fully aware con artist, or is he purely another product of Yiga indoctrination?

So yeah, to me it feels like a parody/critic/mockery of cult dynamics. It shows that this gang of assassins are indeed a real menace, but for seemingly no reason other than “that one lunatic they admire told them to” and “if they go away they get killed”. The reason why the clan was originally created becomes almost anecdotal. Under the current leader, no one is required to actually know what they’re doing, they just need to follow orders.

In the end, I think it is the intention the developers had because cults are a rampant problem in Japan. At the very least, even if it’s not a actually conscious critic, it’s a concept that is much more present in their cultural landscape than ours and that almost certainly influenced how they handled the Yiga clan. Basically, cults are not cool and can even be dangerous both for the public and their members. Cult leaders especially are not cool and often are con artists. Therefore, Kohga couldn’t be badass, he had to be a doofus getting beaten in the most unexceptional way possible.

#botw #breath of the wild #master kohga #yiga clan #kohga #loz #the legend of Zelda #tloz #meta analysis #i purposefully didn’t talk about kohga’s change of heart in AoC because to me this game is not canon #one could argue it proves that Kohga is actually not aware of how catastrophic enabling Ganon would be #but for the sake of keeping it focused on botw I didn’t mention it #cult mention #valictini talks

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justpoliteconversations · 8 months ago

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Apple Merchant [BOTW!Link x Isekai!Reader] (Part 4)

Link learns some things. And so do you.

Yet another for the ever growing pile of self-indulgent garbage refuse. Enjoy the process of decomposition with me for a while.

Part 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6

Alternate Extras: Embrace

Masterlist

TW: Choosing not to display warnings. Read at your own discretion.

Disclaimer: Don't own The Legend of Zelda franchise.

---

The yiga. A faction of Ganon worshipping traitors formerly of the Sheikah clan, whose main objective is to kill the Hero known as Link (in other words, himself). Known for their distinctive red body suits and white masks. And, strangely enough, their love of bananas.

They were also currently at the very top of Link's (until recently non-existent) shit list, because AM had deemed their threat level too great to allow them to meet each other freely. As Blue had told him, AM's profession placed them at greater danger than the average citizen to the assassins' blades. What that profession was, Link was not told (despite his pleading and intense stares and even one memorable attempt to bargain for the information), but it was deemed necessary to maintain distance because of this.

There were plenty of other useful things in the book too. Not a letter or a note or even a small bundle of documents. A book. An honest to Goddess book. Because there was nothing else the ridiculously thick, neatly piled collection of leather bound miscellaneous papers, maps, diagrams, notes and documents could be. It was the thickness of Link's hand for goodness sakes.

Thankfully, Blue had taken mercy on him (and his desire to get moving as soon as possible) and bookmarked the pages and maps that would be most useful to him. All while giving him that bland, graceful smile of hers and explaining that AM was a very proactive information gatherer, but that they didn't always consider that not everyone wanted to know the exact region Sneaky snails bred in or where the highest priced wheat could be found.

Link very deliberately didn't tell her that he did, in fact, find those very interesting topics to learn about (and that he would be reading through the entire book when he got the chance. later). Because he was still stung that she'd given him a condescending little smile (smirk, it was a damned smirk and Link knew it) when he'd tried to bargain with her for more information on AM.

In total, he'd spent three days in Hateno, gathering information (as though the book wasn't enough), gathering supplies (because as many as were in the slate, it didn't have everything a warrior would need to maintain his gear. Blue's words, not his) and getting to know the people around the area.

Also, armor. Costume fitted (Link didn't think too hard about how Blue had gotten his measurements) as to AM's specifications before they'd left town. The order arrived a little later due to his (apparently) small size causing complications with some of the straps.

Honestly, it felt good. It felt familiar with a hazy kind of comfort that spoke of his body's remembrance of such armor resting upon it often. And suddenly, in that moment, the thought that he had once been a knight didn't feel so far off, despite having no memory of it and very little desire to become as such again.

Ready to go (finally) he put on his boots, tightened the straps of his new (fitted. maybe he'd see about getting his Sheikah armor fitted as well if he was in the area) hyrulian armor set, and took one last shot before departing.

"Where can I get more bananas?" Link tried, going for casual but coming off far too intense for it to be anything but prying. "For the Yiga problem."

Blue just smiled (small and condescending, and so frustrating) before replying evenly. "AM has that well in hand I'd imagine." The knowing glint in Blue's eyes put a pout on Link's face. "It's best you focus on your mission, Courageous One." Then she smiled genuinely. Just a bit, but enough to ease Link's heart as she continued. "Fear naught for your beloved AM. No harm shall befall them while my sister haunts their shadow."

Link believed her. And with that little bit of reassurance, the Hero of Hyrule set out into the world once more. With courage in his heart and his goal ever at the forefront of his mind.

Defeat the Calamity guy. Meet AM. Travel this vast, wondrous world with them for the rest of their days. Or, maybe one day settle down more permanently in Hateno and open a food stand.

Anywhere life took them. Whatever you wanted. This was the beginning of his new life after all, and he was so eager to spend it with you.

---

You stared up at the quickly growing pile of bright yellow fruit with something like regret stabbing at your heart. Just thinking about how much rupees you were about to drop on this one purchase alone was enough to put a hitch in your throat. It was enough to have you contemplating a long walk off that equally long (absurdly long) wooden bridge just next to the stable.

When you'd stopped at Lakeside Stable for the night and told Adino you'd pay him market price for any bananas he brought back to you before you left. You hadn't expected him to take that as a challenge. You hadn't expected Skims to get involved in it as well. And you most certainly had not expected Red to show up out of nowhere with a pile rivaling (and maybe even surpassing) Adino's.

And thus, within the span of a few short hours, you were suddenly several thousand rupees poorer (not that that pantry amount even scratched the surface of your accumulated wealth, but you digress) and many, many bananas richer.

At least they tasted good.

"Not that I'm against your presence. But why are you here, Red?" You asked the red clad woman after (with a heavy heart) passing out everyone's pay for the bananas they'd brought you. (Skims and Red didn't even have the grace to look ashamed for muscling in on the quick profit either, the jerks.)

She didn't even pause from where she'd been fingering through her newly acquired (ill gotten) gains when she hummed playfully. "Oh. Gran thought it'd be wise to send along a little extra protection to ensure The Hero's benefactor remained unmolested during these most crucial of times."

The look on your face must have been confused enough to spur Red to explain. "Gran told us to keep you in the dark about our motivations, but I like you. So I'll tell you the truth, since you seem like the reasonable sort." She finally put the rupees down and turned to face you, eyes hardening into a serious shade of near black as she explained.

"The Hero is without his memory, and until recently, was without motivation to see his mission through with the urgency it requires. Had he been as he was before, just the mention of the Princess would have been enough to send the guy running, if you believe the rambling of nostalgic old gossip crows." Her lips twisted into something too complicated to decipher before it was neutral again.

"But he's not the man he used to be. He's not the princess's knight anymore for all his destiny would push him to be. And so, he needed a new motivation to get him moving." She gave you a smile, but it wasn't a nice one (it was one full of spite and pity, though only the pitying part was directed at you). "That's you. The guy loves you already. Call it situational stockholm or just that damned knightly instincts of his, but you are the apple of his eye." She tried to soften her smile into something humorous, but it fell short.

"Bottom line. You're the replacement motivation. Just until he gets enough of his memories back to get invested in the Princess' wellbeing." She flicked a rupee off the stump she'd gathered them on, expression very closed off as she continued.

"Whenever Mr. hero gets a little too comfortable playing house, we're supposed to dangle you in his face and get him interested again. That you seem invested in his success was just a bonus. Be it the Will of Hylia or just simple coincidence, doesn't matter. You're useful, and if it gets the Princess out of that Hell, we're willing to use that."

Another smile, sharp but honest. "It's our duty after all, to serve the royal family. I'm sure you understand." Despite the way the information settled sourly in your stomach you nodded, keeping your expression as even as possible.

She noticed though, and suddenly her hand was on yours (you hadn't noticed it tightening into a fist). "Don't fret, Apples." She smiled again, softer this time. Eyes lighted with a compassion that held such raw honesty despite her earlier words. "My sister and I are not going to let the elders use you like that. You might have asked yourself why Bluey isn't here instead, since, you know-" She smirked, side-eyeing Adino who'd gone some distance off to try to find more bananas (to take more of your rupees, the little bastard).

"We will fulfill our duties. For the protection of Hyrule and everything we love. But not at your's or your dear Hero's expense. At least, not like that. You see, Bluey has something I do not, and that is a gentle touch. She'll take care of the Hero in the way he needs, not the way that'll get the fastest results." Her smirk widened. "And she's got more of a rebellious streak than me too. Trust in her. She'll protect your dear Hero. Even if she has to spit in the elders' eyes to do it. She never could put her heart aside for the sake of duty."

You were silent for a time, digesting her words with the weight and attention they deserved, before looking back to her. A smile on your lips, and your hand out before her in the gesture of a shake.

"I look forward to doing business with you then, Red." You began, letting the edge of your resolve sharpen your eyes and embolden your words. "Let's do our best to protect Link and save Zelda. We'll give it everything we've got."

Red grinned, full and bright and smug (so unbearably smug, like she had won the lottery. which they didn't have here, and you were not interested in introducing any time soon either). "I knew you were gonna understand. The Goddess wouldn't choose just anyone to guard her chosen's heart."

You blinked. "What?"

Red picked up another rupee, flicking it at you. "What~?"

---

Now, off to work! And then the shadows to rest.

#botw link #botw x reader #link x you #link x reader #isekai reader

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blueskittlesart · 7 months ago

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if dark link was in totk how do u think he'd be handled ?

badly

sigh ok hold on ill be serious. i don't really think a dark link in totk would ever be necessary because totk is already doing everything that dark link did in oot, just via different methods. environmental things like the silent princess memorials and the spirits of dead soldiers offering up weapons in the depths give us a sense of the guilt link must feel over his past actions, as well as the fact that the inciting incident of the game is a similarly-framed failure in the face of an enemy which takes zelda and causes widespread destruction to hyrule. i've said it before, but link literally carries proof of that mistake and the guilt from it with him for the entire game in the form of rauru's arm--a reminder that his OWN arm wasn't good enough to prevent all this.

I think there are a few fights which cumulatively have similar narrative weight for totk link to the oot dark link fight, one of them being the gloom hands/phantom ganon (and yes, there is at least one required instance of this fight in order to get the true ending of the game, it's in korok forest.) the gloom hands are imo representative specifically of link's fear of failure and his guilt over his past failures. there's a reason they manifest initially as hands, and when they chase him they perform that reaching motion that's so reminiscent of him reaching for zelda and ultimately failing to catch her. they also cause a "midday blood moon" effect when link approaches them, which is strikingly similar to the way the sky changes when you approach calamity ganon in botw--his first major failure. once you fight and defeat the gloom hands, they reveal their true form--phantom ganon. if the hands themselves are symbolic of link's guilt and percieved failure, phatom ganon is the truth behind it--it was never link's fault in the first place. ganon is the cause of the destruction. link is blaming himself for something that he is not at fault for, and only after he faces his own guilt and fear head-on will the actual truth (phantom ganon) be revealed.

the other fight that i think sort of occupies the same narrative space as dark link in oot is the puppet zelda/phantom ganon fight in the castle sanctum. similarly, this fight deals with illusion and memory, and is explicitly ganon manipulating link using his trauma and guilt. There's a reason ganon leads link up into the sanctum, a place which obviously holds a crazy amount of significance for him. there's a reason puppet zelda turns the ruined room pristine again, and there's a reason she specifically mentions "memories" multiple times as she does it. ganon is attempting to break link down by poking at what he knows are sore spots--link's guilt over the way that hyrule was destroyed during his hundred-year absence, the fact that he doesn't remember much of his life pre-calamity (if you watch his face during that cutscene when she says 'memories'... agh. anyways.) his guilt over specifically what happened to zelda. All of this comes together so that ganon can force a vulnerable and unprepared link into a difficult battle in the hopes of taking him out. When link defeats phantom ganon, the sanctum returns to its ruined state, and puppet zelda disappears completely from hyrule. she's not even in the blood moon cutscenes anymore. Metaphorically, this is link coming to terms with the fact that she's really gone, and that he has to keep going anyway.

#asks #zelda analysis #tldr i think he IS there in spirit :)

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