Hear No Evil
There's a reason Hylians have long ears.
Word Count: 966
Pairings: None.
Author's Note: Try to guess them all!
x x x
I can hear a voice.
Saria once told him that people always knew when they were dreaming. No matter how powerful it was, she said, there was always a little part inside each Kokiri that knew that their dreams weren't real.
So when Link stares up into that awful cold face and the rain stings on his skin, he knows that he's dreaming. He knows because he's watching himself crying and because time seems to stand still. He knows because he can't hear the rain or the wind or the evil king as he laughs and laughs.
He can hear the girl. He can hear her, and he can hear another voice- a golden women, wise beyond mortal means, telling him that this is just the beginning.
x x x
I can hear a voice.
Link rides hard but carefully, keeping in mind that Epona is still young- and so is he, in this new world where Ganondorf has not preyed on their naivety. The Lost Woods seems like a good place to forget about those sorts of things.
Epona scared, she says, through the way she trots and the way she shifts her head from side to side. Bad going to happen.
Link knows, of course, because his curse is to feel tragedy and face it alone. Without meaning to, he turns his head up to the sky and watches for the crushing weight of the moon about to fall. He can already hear it singing his doom.
x x x
I can hear a voice.
He has the faintest recollection of who he is or where he came from when he opens his eyes and finds himself in a bed, but he remembers his name and that he is in a stranger's house. A sudden wave of nausea washes over, giving him the distinct feeling that hours ago he was floating-
-is he dead?-
-In the middle of the ocean.
Far away, very faintly, he can hear the sound of singing. It's a muted but pure sound, not something made by a creature of the land; it rolls in waves like a song underwater. And though it's a beautiful ballad, he can't help but feel sadness- he can't stay here for long.
x x x
I can hear a voice.
Ordon is filled with voices, but when Link suddenly stops Epona midway through herding the goats, it's because he hears a voice that doesn't seem right. Maybe it's because she's spooked by the fading light, or maybe he is- but it almost seems like the golden sky itself is calling to him.
In the Sacred Realm, the sky is gold at noon- in Hyrule, the sky is gold at twilight. The old myth echoes in his head and travels to his left hand, throbbing under the burden of his unknown destiny; he closes his eyes, and waits until the twilight's voice disappears.
It will be back again, he knows. The twilight will always return to seize the day.
x x x
I can hear a voice.
He's certain that he can hear a voice, a strained sort of sound like crying from the ocean. It's dark now; he'll be coming of age tomorrow, and they'll give him the green tunic and hat that will give him the courage to live a life of peace. Maybe then the voices from the ocean will stop.
But until then-
He walks down to the docks, stretches out his body and bends his head down to put an ear to the water. The voices from the deeps can stay with him for one more night.
x x x
I can hear a voice.
He had almost cried when he had a moment to clear his head and take a look around (not that he can cry, but he imagines that is what it feels like). The Triforce is shattered, Ganon has Zelda in his possession, and the beautiful land of Hyrule is filled with monsters- everyone has either escaped, or is dead. The stench of rotting flesh is obvious as he dreams of Death Mountain, which seems to call to him with a promise of despair.
Not a soul alive, but for men and women, too old to run, in their caves below the ground. One had been so kind as to take him in- he imagines what a sight he must have been, eyes wide and body shaking, devoid of anything to protect himself (the Master Sword destroyed while trying to save Zelda); food for stray monsters.
Not a soul alive, but for him. He must save Hyrule and he must do it all alone.
"It's dangerous to go alone," the old man says. He thrusts something into his hands. It's too dark to see properly, but it feels like a wooden sword. "Take this."
x x x
Agnahim has come for her father, and Ganon has come for Hyrule. She can feel it in her heart- the mistakes that her ancestors made, and the duty she and all her children will have to ameliorate them if only for a few hundred years at a time.
Then her soldiers come for her. They have no qualms about attacking a little girl, and she manages some righteous fury until she sees the blank look in their eyes and mourns for their dignity. They are not of their own will.
So she struggles at first, of course, when Agnahim comes for her; any girl would, and she has to make it convincing. Once he sets her in the cell and leaves to his newly conquered castle, she closes her eyes, wipes away stray tears, and focuses her mind.
Far away, in a tiny house, a little boy opens his eyes and it all starts once again.
I can hear a voice.
x x x