#never give in 33 | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

zarvasace · 1 year ago

Text

7/11/23

dazzling diamond danger (5/6)

Yay! We have an end goal! I think this will end tomorrow! :) This chapter is about 2.3k? Anyway I'll post it under the cut because of AO3 being down, though it'll go there when things calm down. You'll miss out on some italics, and there will be extra spaces between paragraphs, but oh well. Enjoy for now! EDIT: got it up on AO3, here's the link for future reference

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Warriors couldn't relax. The clock in the corner ticked on, as if to remind him over and over that three Heroes were missing.

Wind, Legend, and Four had a room in a separate portion of the castle, which made Warriors nervous, but he hadn't pushed because the staff was already harried with the ball and other guests, and with so many people around, he'd assumed that the three wouldn't be targeted as related to him. For all the work he'd done to clear out traitors and assassins, he knew a few sleepers remained that hated him.

He could only hope that those three hadn't run afoul of anyone like that.

As much as Warriors enjoyed socializing, balls could be difficult. He was a public figure, and generally copied Zelda at these things, staying rather aloof from all the guests with a glass of wine in his hand that he rarely sipped on. The glass made it harder to sign, but it also kept people from asking him to dance, where it was impossible to sign. He only enjoyed that with people he knew and trusted.

He didn't want to dance right now, anyway. A pit burned in his stomach. Those three wouldn't have gone down easily, but no guards reported hearing anything like a fight.

"Wars," someone said, and Warriors turned to see Twilight and Hyrule, who had volunteered to do some investigative work. His heart rose, then fell at the expressions they wore.

"We found this." Twilight raised the fabric in his hand, a pleasant spring green hat.

Warriors made a face and took the hat. Legend's. He glanced up at Twilight, eyebrows raised in a question.

Twilight shrugged. "Nothing else. It was shoved under a couch in a little parlor. Wolfie tracked them down to tunnels under the castle, but there was only a single path from there to the dining room."

"I think they're outside the castle," Hyrule added. He looked rather nice, if Warriors could say so. Warriors himself had handpicked nearly everything that Hyrule wore, though Hyrule had vetoed a few things based on texture and fit. The lavender and red didn't seem like they would work together, but Hyrule's complexion brought it all together.

His news didn't make Warriors very happy. Warriors nodded and pressed his lips together, thinking. He handed the hat back to Twilight and his glass of wine off to a servant.

'We need to find them, sooner rather than later. The others?'

"We need to find them, sooner rather than later," Twilight repeated for Hyrule. He nodded. "I agree. Time and Sky are off questioning people, and Wild's wandering the castle halls."

'Alone?'

"He has Impa with him," Hyrule added, anticipating the worry.

Warriors let out a breath. He nodded again. 'There isn't much else we can do right now,' he signed, with Twilight echoing him out loud. 'Someone needs to stay here in case they get back.'

"Twi and I can go back to the tunnels," Hyrule volunteered. "Find Wolfie again, maybe, and see if there's another clue."

'Check back in here in an hour,' Warriors told them. 'So if someone else goes missing, we'll know quickly.'

The other two left, dodging dancers and serving people. The orchestra played beautiful music that lilted over everyone's heads, but at the moment, it grated on Warriors's ears.

Damn it all. He'd wanted to give them a nice evening, with an excuse to dress up, eat some indulgent food, and forget about fighting for a while. Instead, three of their brothers were missing, and nobody could relax.

A determined-looking young woman in a sky blue dress stepped around a nearby group of nobles, and Warriors hurried to go get more wine from the servants around Zelda.

---

When Wind and Legend heard Four's call, they opened the closet door to see Four sitting on top of one of the noble Darby's bodyguards that had stayed behind to guard them. The bodyguard's chest rose and fell, but he didn't move.

Four, now full-sized (for him), smiled up at them like a cat, though Wind didn't think he'd appreciate the comparison. "Your bag's on the hook there, Legend," he said, pointing. "Can I get my chair back, please?"

"Yeah." Legend put his hand on the textured wallpaper to steady himself as he reached up to pick his bag off the hook by the closet door. He rummaged inside.

They were very lucky it had been dumped so close by. Wind had worried for a bit there. He went to check the bodyguard's pulse.

"You got him good," Wind said. Strong pulse, oozing head wound.

"You'd be surprised what lengths someone will go to to get a mouse out of their hair." Four sounded distracted, and accepted Legend's help getting back into his wheelchair. He didn't often use the buckle across the hips, but he did them up tonight.

Wind smiled. "That's what you did?"

"Harder than it sounds," Four laughed. He tugged the tie out of his hair and ran his fingers through it, smoothing it down somewhat. "Where to now?"

Legend shook his cane out of its collapsed state and pointed down the dim hallway. "There's noise the other way, so I say that this way is a study. We need to be stealthy."

"Oh, don't worry," Wind said as they started to move. "We're so stealthy. Did you put your cane in your bag, too?"

"Right before getting grabbed, yeah, I didn't want them to take it or break it. I put way too much effort into these enchantments."

"At least we have one weapon," Four sighed. "I'm such an idiot for leaving my sword. I should have realized that I wouldn't be able to keep my mind off of it."

Wind reached into his jacket and pulled out one of his knives, the one he'd purchased in Skyloft. It had a beautiful handle inlaid with cloud-shaped opal. "Two weapons."

Legend tucked his cane in his belt to rummage through his bag. "What do you want, Four? Fire rod? Oh, wait, Wars still has that."

"I thought we decided against arson anyway."

"We decided against heavy arson as a solution," Wind said. "A bit of fire won't hurt."

"Boomerang?" Legend asked, pulling out a yellow one.

"Sure." Four took it, hefted it, and Wind was scared now.

The three of them crept through the mansion, mostly following Legend's lead. Wind wasn't familiar with big houses like this, with dark wood paneling and themed rooms, but he figured that Legend had a bit more experience with them, since he chose doors and hallways confidently.

Wind had worried a little about Four's wheelchair being loud, but he shouldn't have. The noise came from a few jingling bits and squeak of the wheels, no more than Legend with his cane charms or Wind with the wooden click of his foot.

His stomach rumbled. He smiled sheepishly at the halfhearted sharp look Legend sent him.

They seemed to be alone in the mansion, or at least in this part of it, so Wind dared to speak.

"Hey. Legend. You mentioned a cake in your bag for a week," he whispered. "Why did you carry a cake in your bag for a week?"

"Got caught up in a fetch quest for a witch," Legend whispered back.

"A witch wanted a cake?" Four asked.

"No, she wanted frogs."

Wind grinned. Legend had a lot of stories, but he could very, very bad at telling them sometimes, especially when distracted. Like right now. "So why did you have the cake?"

"Hilda made it."

"Legend," Four sighed. "Could you start at the beginning?"

Legend glanced at him, eyes shining with a bit of mischief. "I was born on the day that cherry blossoms—"

"Legend!" Wind covered his mouth to keep in his snort.

"Okay, okay. Hilda made a cake for Zelda. Some girl friendship thing, I don't know why. I was on my way to deliver it when the witch of the woods landed right in front of me and said she needed frogs, or she'd turn me into a frog. Now, it's a documented fact that I dislike being small animals without hands—"

"It is?" Wind asked, confused.

Legend barreled on. "—and that witch can be nice but also fickle, so really, I had no choice but to leave the cake in there for a week while I found her the requisite number of frogs."

They approached a large, dark wooden door carved with stags.

"That's a fun story," Four said. "But I'm confused about the, and I quote, 'documented fact that you hate—'"

"This is the study." Legend interrupted, putting his hand on the brass door knob and turning. "We'll find our evidence in here."

Wind and Four exchanged a look. They'd press him later.

The study was dark, like most of the house, and not just because of the light. The decor itself seemed to exude an aura of malevolence, for all that it was deer- and nature-themed. Wind would have thought that it would be pretty and cute inside, but the paintings were all a bit gory, and two taxidermied deer heads hung on the walls. That in itself wasn't bad, but combined with everything else? Weird.

Legend lit the oil lamp on the desk.

"I'll check the desk," Wind said as the door closed behind them.

Legend headed for the back wall. "I've got the cabinet."

"So I'll look at everything else." Four started on the chest of drawers by the door. He opened one drawer, then picked out something tan and threw it at Wind, who caught it with his face. It smelled like coffee. "A bag to throw everything in."

Wind pulled the fabric off his face and gave Four a dirty look, receiving another catlike smile in return. With a shake of his head, Wind unfolded the conveniently-shaped tote bag and sat down in the very fancy leather armchair to look through the desk.

He saw a lot of old pens, miscellaneous scraps of paper, a few logbooks… and lots and lots of suspicious-looking receipts. He ended up piling as much as he could into the bag, feeling it get heavier and heavier with paper. Legend dropped a stack in there, too, tied with a bit of twine.

"I think that's all I can carry," Wind said once the pile in the bag reached the lip. He looped both straps over his elbow. Heavy, yes, but not to the point he couldn't carry it.

"I didn't find anything immediately incriminating." Four shut a trunk under one of the gory deer paintings and shot a distrustful look up at the frame. "Besides these. I'm weirded out."

"Let's go, then," Legend said. He left Wind with the bag and opened the study door again.

A woman stood on the other side, dressed in a servant's uniform, with narrow shoulders and a sharp chin. Her hand hovered over where the doorknob had been. She and Legend stared at each other for a moment, and then her eyes roamed around the study.

Legend slammed the door in her face and threw the deadbolt, swearing.

"Roberts?" Four guessed, his voice a hiss.

"Yep. Great timing."

Wind's heart rate rose, and he swallowed. The motion scraped up against the bruises. "Other door, then." He spun around and threw open the smaller door to the side, revealing a wide servant's staircase down to what looked like a door to the outside.

"Actually?" Wind said. "Score. We're out."

"Stairs?" Four winced, looking down.

Legend bumped the hand of his cane against the doorframe, collapsing it again, and he shoved it into his belt. "Wind, hand Four the bag, we're grabbing his chair with him in it."

"Uh…"

Wind nodded, seeing what Legend did: they didn't have time to do anything else, and Four was light enough that it would work. He dumped the bag in Four's lap and squared his shoulders.

Four engaged the brake levers on the front, locking the wheels in place, face pale but set. He wrapped his arms around the bag in his lap. "Be careful."

The big door to the study behind them clicked as, presumably, the woman worked the lock with a pick.

"Ready," Legend said, finding things to hold on the back and bottom of the chair. Wind did the same and nodded. "Go."

They lifted. The whole thing was heavier than the bag alone, but manageable with handholds and a partner. Wind had to step carefully, looking where he placed his feet. Legend called out every stair step so they descended evenly.

With two steps left, the door above them opened. Wind glanced upward to see the woman thief, Roberts, standing at the top of the stairs, face twisted. She started down the stairs after them.

Wind swore, just a bit louder, and he and Legend fell out of sync for the last few feet. Four grunted as they all but dropped him.

"Sorry, sorry," Wind said. "We gotta go."

"At the risk of sounding cliche and rude," Four said, pulling his brakes off, "duh."

Legend pulled out his cane again, yanked open the door, and shuffled the two of them out into the courtyard. Wind grabbed a nearby garden chair and wedged it under the door handle to buy them a bit more time.

"Come on, come on, come on!" Wind called, and the three of them dashed across the grassy courtyard into the dark stone city, a probably-murderous thief that abetted insurance fraud right behind them, her white servant's bonnet floating in her wake like a bird.

#my writing #linked universe #disability au #never give in 33

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gingermintpepper · 3 months ago

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I saw it in your tag game post that you're also fond of the Apollo-Heracles conflict 👀 for a myth that appears in only a couple of sources, it sure has a lot of presence in the vase paintings (no seriously, everytime I think I've seen the last of it, I find ten more)

SO do you have any favorites among the paintings that represent this story??

OMG OMG THIS ASK IS A GIFT. IT IS A GIFT THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR LETTING ME TALK ABOUT THIS

I also think it's extremely interesting that it's a story so popularly portrayed by vase paintings and in such a variety of ways!! It's certainly one of the stories that gets left out of written compilation of Heracles' legend a bit (which is a shame, I think it's a fantastic story) but Apollo had a very peculiar relationship with Heracles in general that I just kind of find amazing (and very, very funny).

Apollo is not a god with any legitimate grudge against Heracles, but he does argue with the mortal a bit like he argues with his favourite brothers 😂Part of why I love the story of Apollo and Heracles fighting over the tripod so much is that it is such a little brother thing for Heracles to be upset with the proclamation his elder brother has given him and so, he throws a great fit, taking up the chair and declaring that he'll just give himself a better prophecy! And Apollo, instead of being a marginally professional big brother, decides to fight him for it until their father has to break up their cat-fight. Like was that not just the plot of the Homeric Hymn to Hermes? Is this not exactly how Apollo treated Hermes when he was a child and now those two are inseparable? 💀

Because of this, my favourite vase paintings tend to be the ones that highlight the personal squabbling between Apollo and Heracles the most. There are some very elaborate ones that have the full host of them - Athena, Heracles, Apollo, Artemis, usually a dog and a doe, I've even seen a couple that had birds and plants etched on them, but the simplest ones that show Heracles about to bonk Apollo with his club out of frustration or depict Heracles nyooming away from Apollo while Apollo (presumably) yells curses about how he's going to fling Heracles head first into Tartarus for daring to take his things? Yeah, those are the premium big brother/little brother things I'm looking for.

(Photo. Marie-Lan Ngyuen)

(Photo. Museo Claudio Faina)

Also the one in the Theoi.com archives is a real classic - perfect energy.

#ginger answers asks #Thank you SO much for letting me talk about this even a little it always makes me smile #Despite their disputes - if you ask me Apollo was quite fond of Heracles #And I think a big part of why I ultimately come to that conclusion is that Apollo never hinders Heracles or withholds blessings from him #He simply calls him a bitch every time he sees him and then makes his life marginally more inconvenient #like any good older brother let's be so fr #It's extremely charming to see him so playful with a mortal he's not in love with/that is not his son #Other moments of Apollo teasing Heracles includes him trying to convince Artemis not to let Heracles catch her doe when he comes #to fulfill that particular labour (again he doesn't actually try to stop it he just puts up a bit of a fuss about it)#and perhaps another of my all time favourites #Personally luring Heracles into Admetus' house so Heracles can wrestle Thanatos while Apollo rescues Alcestis #I DO NOT KNOW WHY MORE PEOPLE DON'T TALK ABOUT THE LUNACY OF APOLLO'S ADMETUS/ALCESTIS PRESERVATION PLAN #He really said “No yeah I know a guy don't worry about Death Incarnate” and then Heracles shows up at Admetus' door like this is a sitcom #The laugh track that plays in my mind every time Admetus opens that door sees Heracles and then looks back at the disguised Apollo like #'HIM?? HERACLES?? Heracles who can break me in seven pieces with a thought Heracles???'#And Apollo just gives him a thumbs up and says “feed him well pookie <33”#Genuinely some of the funniest shit I have the pleasure of reading in greek myth #Another reason I don't think Apollo has any ill will against Heracles though is how Apollo reacts when Heracles #loses Hylas in the Argonautica #Or well some versions of the Argonautica - this is also a story that changes wildly depending on the source/compilation #But Apollo is incredibly sympathetic to Heracles' sorrow and kind of decides there and then that Heracles losing one love #should be the return of another and asks that Zeus let Heracles free Prometheus when he makes his descent into the underworld #Similarly it is Apollo who anoints Alcaeus/Alcides the name Heracles (also dependent on the myth source)#They just had a very fun relationship and it's a serious shame that it's not acknowledged more #apollo #heracles #greek mythology #(Also people do not talk about the fact that Apollo grappled with Heracles to a standstill enough actually)

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