The Legend of Zelda:
A Link Between Dimensions
Author's Notes:
Hey everyone! So I've recently been pretty obsessed with the Legend of Zelda. I've been playing around with ideas to make a story about it, so I decided to make a story where Link portals between the real world and Hyrule.
A couple things before we begin:
This story is going to be very casual. I might not make a next chapter super quickly, but I'm going to TRY to keep it up. I also love to hear what you guys think. Leave reviews/follow if you enjoy it. I love hearing from the readers!
This story is not lore accurate. Think of this as a parallel universe to the Zelda world. Not every character will be exactly who they are in normal Zelda.
Link will be gay. If that's something you're not okay with, that's okay, just don't read it. I've thought on his sexuality a lot, but I've come to the conclusion that if I'm going to make a love story with Link, I'm going to make it with another guy.
And finally...
Yes, Link will be able to talk. It's a fun experiment to make a story without him talking (I made a few drafts myself with it), but there's a lot more freedom when he's able to communicate with other characters vocally instead of just body language.
Now, sit back, relax, and enjoy.
Chapter 1: The Night After
The clock continued its soft tick through the evening, showing 9:48PM on its display. It was a dark and stormy evening over Manhattan, the sounds of traffic echoing from the streets below. Link held onto the drape and looked out to the fogged city, it's lights still glowing through the clouds of the mist. He breathed out a sigh before moving his gaze to the avenue.
The traffic was lighter now that the sun had set, with most of the commuter traffic having already arrived home or left town. It was also a Tuesday in March, so not as hectic as the city would be in the summer or winter months from tourism. Still hectic, but not as hectic as it has the potential to be.
Link, in his long tan t-shirt and boxers, rested his forehead against the cold glass of the window for a moment before picking it back up, glancing onto the city once more before closing the curtains. He walked back to the entrance of his room, which was cluttered with dirty laundry, written journal pages and posters laying in heaps on the floor. Books like The Catcher and the Rye and Nineteen Eighty-Four, which was one of his senior reads, as well as others lied flat in a pile in the corner of the room for him to continue later. A bass guitar sat on the adjacent wall, one his uncle got him but he never used, along with a piano he had from his younger years of practicing – a passion he gave up around 12.
He made his way through the room, making sure to avoid any stranded toys or rogue LEGO pieces, as they certainly would cause his already bare feet to bruise should he walk over them.
He opened the door and headed out into the modern-esque hall of his apartment, passing his sisters room that was just a-ways down the corridor from his own. He peaked inside to see a dark, yet orderly room. His little sister wasn't home, having a band concert that evening, meaning he had the place to himself for the rest of the night. He leaned against the doorway to her room, pulling out his phone and checking the notifications.
3 Missed Calls from Aryll
2 Messages from Malon
Link looked at the screen with tired eyes, locking his phone and continuing to travel to his bathroom. He opened the door to find a mess of towels on the floor, water in a puddle next to the toilet, and the shower curtain lying on the base of the shower. Must be Raoul again. He looked at the shower curtain once again to see a lump moving around under it. He picked it up, seeing Raoul jump out and wag his tail, looking up at him. The little terrier looked like a wet rag, having pretended the toilet was a pool and the towels were toys. Link looked down at the dog, sticking his tongue out at it before watching it run off. He sighed, picking up the curtain and fixing it onto the rod of the shower, grabbing one of the stray towels and hanging it over the rod, slipping off his clothes to take a cold shower.
His body was beaten and bruised from earlier in the day. He rubbed the bluish-gray spots of his body and winced, feeling them ache at his touch. He ran the water over the marks on his chest and thigh, some sprinkling on the spots on his arms, as Link shivered from the coldness of the shower. He finished washing his body with soap and water, pouring some shampoo on his hand and lathering his hair up, his arms aching. He hurried to finish up, rinsing his hair and body once again before turning off the shower and grabbing the towel, cleaning himself off.
He stepped out, seeing his bare body in the mirror and cringing at how horrible he looked. He grabbed his toothbrush, brushing his teeth and throwing on some deodorant before heading back to his room.
He slid on some boxer briefs, stepping carefully over the piles on the floor of his room and sitting at the end of his bed. He opened his phone once more, debating with himself on whether he should address the calls and messages from earlier. He decided to, sliding the notification for his sister's calls first. The phone immediately called her as he looked down at his arm, curiously analyzing his marks. The phone buzzed for a few moments.
"Link?" said his sister, sounding a tad worried on the other end. "How have you been? Have the bruises gotten any better? I was worried you'd still be out. Doctor Marie told us that you'd probably be groggy as you recovered. We expected you to wake up at noon today, but you've been out like a light. Groose really did a toll on you. Is the nurse still there? She's supposed to be looking over you."
Link looked up for a moment, realizing the nurse must have been here the whole time, probably sitting downstairs in the living room. He looked back down to his arm, rubbing another mark on it and focusing on it intently. "Yes Aryll, I'm fine. The bruises haven't really changed. I woke up a little while ago and no, I haven't seen the nurse. She's probably off in the living room watching Spanish soap operas crying into a bowl of popcorn." Link heard Aryll giggle on the other end. "How was the band concert? Did you do well?"
"It was great! You know how I've been practicing the violin the last 2 months?"
"Oh, that was you practicing? I thought there was a cat stuck in the AC that kept screeching." Link said in a sarcastic response, smiling at his cleverness.
Aryll responded in a lower, annoyed tone. "Ha ha, very funny Link. I'll have you know I did superb tonight all because of that extra practice the conductor asked from me. Mom was so proud of me, and even brought me flowers! Grandma said she cried, but between us two she's already a little emotional about everything as is." For a moment, there was muffled talking from the other end, with Aryll coming back to say, "Hey Link – Mom wants to talk to you real quick, so I'm gonna hand the phone over to her."
Link's eyes had already traveled from his arm through his hand to his leg and finally his foot, seeing a bit of lint stuck between his toes. He bit his tongue and held it out to the side of his lip as he tried to get the dirt off his feet.
"Honey! Oh, my goodness. I'm so happy to hear you're okay! Aryll winked at me and gave me the 'okay' hand signal, and I've been trying to grab her phone ever since. Are you hurting still? Do you need me to pick you up some medicine as we're heading back? We're stopping at Wendy's too, so we can grab you something to-go if you'd like."
"I'm doing okay ma, we have stuff at the house. I have enough medicine too. Don't worry about me, I'm doing okay. Just focus on Aryll, this is her big night and she should get some praise for all her practice." Said Link, grabbing his old toy lizard and flinging it across the room, it landing on his beanbag.
His mom sighed with relief. "I'm glad you're doing okay, Link. Just take it easy tonight. There's some ramen and hot-pockets in the fridge from the other night. Feel free to grab a few if you're feeling hungry. Bye honey!"
"Bye ma." And with that, Link hit the "End Call" button. He laid back and started closing his eyes before remembering the forgotten messages. He tried to forget about it, but his consciousness told him to look at it before he slept. He unlocked his phone again and read the messages.
Malon: LINK! Are things okay? I saw what happened between you and Groose. Looked nasty. Ruby said she saw Groose taken away by the police officer. Rumor says he's been suspended for two weeks. (12:17 PM)
Malon: Fairy boy, you better message me back the moment you wake up. I don't want to be freaked out all week if you're okay and just don't wanna text. I know how you are with texting. "It's the whole principle of the thing, Malon. If I have something to say, I'll call you, Malon." Yada yada. Just let me know you're okay. (4:36 PM)
Link stared at the keyboard for a moment, wondering whether he should use any more energy on texting her back. He was so fatigued, he could fall asleep within the minute. He decided to, since he knew she would give him shit for it if he didn't.
" n. y." he typed, spacing every letter to make the message more sarcastic. He sent it off and laid his phone on his chest, staring at the ceiling.
Something in the window caught the corner of his eye. He looked over, seeing a blue glow letting off a luminescent halo. It was soft at first, nice to look at. Must be the train giving that off, he thought. However, the glow grew brighter and brighter. It seemed to light up the entire room, and cast a bright light through the glass. Link was confused first, then began to get frightened the brighter it got. It cast a light in the room as if the sun itself was trying to get through the window.
Link sat up and crawled backwards to his wall, his lip quivering in fear. The light emanating from the window was blinding. It started to dim, and the waves of blue light eventually pulled back beyond the window. He sat in silence for a moment before getting up, creeping slowly to the window to look out on the courtyard below.
Nothing was there.
He blinked a couple more times and rubbed his eyes, making sure his sight was being honest with him. He gulped for a moment and walked back to bed, pulling the covers over him and staring up at his ceiling once more. Probably nothing. He thought to himself. Maybe it was the train. Maybe the medication is making my mind loopy. Despite reassuring himself, he couldn't settle his worried emotions. He decided to try to sleep it off, turning his lamp off and laying on his side, staring at the wall for a moment before closing his eyes, falling asleep.