I knew I'd end up writing something for this game. It was only a matter of time.
Hope some of you get a kick out of this like I did.
Enjoy.
"I don't know how I get myself in these situations."
Link resisted the urge to snap at the plant lying in front of him. He stopped himself before he did though; knowing his luck it was probably poisonous.
"Here I am, traveling the countryside in my wolf form. I'm looking high and low for the hero who's supposed to be saving the world from Calamity. I finally find him battling some great hulking creature that looks half horse half…cat…He destroys it even though he's about the size of its foot. And then, without even appearing to think about it, he jumps off the damn mountain."
He looked down that the huge lake that the Hero had dove into moments before. With his enhanced vision he could see the little shit reaching the land before jogging off to find some other way to get himself killed.
The great mechanical-looking beast in the middle of the lake let out a cry that was loud enough to shake the land he was standing on. The thing was probably the hero's next target, seeing as the boy seemed to have no value in his own life.
"I need to get to the Master Sword. If I touch it, it should be strong enough to break this curse."
And then he could…Try to find a way back to his own world?
He wasn't even sure exactly where he was. He only knew what he'd been told by the Hero of Time's shade after he'd woken up in a destroyed Hyrule castle.
He honestly couldn't remember how he'd found himself in the situation he was in now. He vaguely remembered finding something Shad called a 'time gate' and a bright flash of light before there was...
Pain.
Darkness.
And then he woke up, somehow in his wolf form.
"I'm too old for this horse shit. The Goddesses need to move on and leave me out of any more world altering destinies."
The wolf problem he was fairly certain could be solved by the Master Sword. He knew the hero he was chasing down had it because the few times the child had stayed still long enough he saw it on his back. The problem was getting close enough to the hero without having the Master Sword turned on him. Link had seen a fair amount of aggressive wolves in the area to know that he wouldn't be well received if he just walked right up to the boy with a wagging tail.
Link wasn't dumb enough to chance a jump in his wolf form, so he began the tedious task of making his way back down the mountain. At least then he could try to come up with a plan on how to approach the hero without getting killed.
His body wasn't exactly made for climbing down steep slopes, so instead he jumped into the water to ride the waterfalls down. It didn't matter that he got soaked, the non-stop rain already served to make him miserable anyway.
The waterfall was a good (albeit somewhat dangerous) idea that got him to the base of the mountain quickly. From there it was up the stairs alongside a giant dam to where he could hear the beast roaring beyond.
By the time he reached the top however, he still hadn't come up with any ideas and his patience was riding thin.
There was a small dock with a bed (?) and another dock that went further out into the ravine. He padded his way to the end, his eyes not missing how the hero was currently riding on the back of a large Zora.
Link actually stopped in shock when he saw the hero launch himself off the Zora, swim UP the waterfall flowing from the beast and then shoot a strange arrow at the mammoth thing.
"Am I even going to be able to get a chance to get close to this hero if he dies in this crazy battle?"
Link wanted to give the kid the benefit of the doubt though. In his younger days he'd taken on his share fair of giant monsters. The hero would probably be fine.
Probably.
When the beast started shooting out giant ice blocks he started to feel less confident.
It was strange though, seeing a hero of a different age (or world) taking on a task like this. He wondered if anyone watching the things he did would have the same reaction he was having.
"The old ghost was most likely in shock every time I showed up again to learn a new technique. He probably thought I had a death wish too."
Link silently cheered on the younger hero, not only because he needed him, but because he knew how hard it was. He cringed when a block of ice hit the two warriors, blasting the small boy off the Zora's back. He quickly recovered though, and they went back to their attack.
"The cycle really doesn't end I guess…Ganondorf was right."
The hero launched himself up again and shot another strange arrow at the armored beast. The responding roar it let out was louder than the previous ones and Link pinned his ears to his head in discomfort.
The ground shook violently again, but this time it was because the monster was lowering itself into the water, like it had lost the ability to stand. Link couldn't see the hero, but he hoped he hadn't been crushed under the belly of the giant.
It only stayed low to the water for a brief few minutes before rising back to its feet.
"So it's not over yet then? Maybe it's getting a second wind."
But the Zora who had been with the hero returned without him and Link felt his heart sink into his feet.
The red Zora jumped out of the water with a flip and landed on the dock with way more show than was necessary. Link briefly thought about running seeing as the Zora could attack him if he felt threatened, but the size of the fish made him freeze.
"That…Is not a normal size."
Link was short in his Hylian form (not that he liked to admit it) but he couldn't see himself coming up to the guy's chest. He could have been taller than Ganondorf.
The Zora smiled at him and crouched down to get a better look at him. "Oh aren't you a pretty wolf. I've never seen one of your kind so bold as to get this close to Vah Ruta before. You must be very brave."
Link could feel one ear bend back as he regarded the Zora with wolf confusing. Not only was the guy not attacking him or running in fear, he was standing there talking to him like he did it every day.
Still confused but not arguing, Link allowed his tail to wag a couple times in a show of friendliness before the beast roared again and the both of them flinched.
He turned his attention back to the thing known as 'Vah Ruta' and whined quietly. He didn't know what it meant when the spout on the thing's face started to move slowly.
The Zora seemed concerned though, he was standing straight with his attention fully on the beast. "I do hope he'll be alright. I don't think I would be able to sleep again knowing I sent the Champion to his death."
"Champion?"
That was different. At least he knew the kid was still alive.
He hoped the Zora would continue to talk, but the large man went completely silent. His eyes never left Vah Ruta, and if Link was being honest, the Zora looked a bit ill.
The two of them watched in silence, the only sound coming from the beast who moved its appendage every once in a while. At some point, Link thought he saw the kid climbing on the part that was moving before jumping off toward Vah Ruta's head but he hoped not.
Light from the setting sun finally made him realize just how long they had been sitting watching the whole thing. And it wasn't until the light had sunk far below the horizon and the moon rose high in the sky before another monstrous cry came from inside Vah Ruta and echoed off the mountain walls.
"Ah…" The Zora said quietly. "It seems as though the champion is now facing the beast within."
Link wasn't sure what that meant, but it couldn't have been good.
Quickly following the cries came the sound of a battle. If Link hadn't been a wolf he would have had a hard time hearing the sound of a sword making contact with something metal. He could also hear the monster that was screaming attacking with its own weapon.
And the voice of a…woman?
The battle lasted no more than ten minutes and he wasn't sure if that was good or bad. But then there was another cry and Link knew from experience that it was an agonized death cry.
The little hero was victorious.
The tension eased from the Zora standing beside him, and he heard the man let out a relieved sigh.
"I can't believe it," the Zora was grinning like a madman. "He did it! I must return to father and tell him the news!"
Link wasn't quick enough to dodge the large hand that found his head and ruffled his fur. He didn't even have time to snap at the boisterous Zora as he ran on his short legs down the length of the dock with another cheer, his excitement almost making him fumble and fall.
"Strange fellow, I hope he doesn't hurt himself."
A bright light emerging from Vah Ruta drew his attention, and as he watched it landed in the domain for the Zora. It was the hero, he was sure of it, but he knew he couldn't walk right into the home place of the Zora. The rest of the Zora were less likely to be eccentric like the large red one.
"I can at least travel to the entrance to the village and see if I can cross paths with the hero."
He still wasn't sure what would happen when they did cross paths, but at this point he was thinking of just winging it.
Luckily the hero, or champion as he was referred to, would probably be staying the night with the Zora so he knew he had enough time to make to the entrance with some to spare.
Link's stomach growled then so loudly he almost jumped. He needed to find something to eat as well.
There wasn't much to eat in the area unfortunately, he discovered as he climbed carefully down the side of the nearby mountain. The goats were built to run on the rocky ledges without trouble, something Link was not able to do. He also wasn't used to his wolf form, and it would take some practice to be able to run one down.
Frogs weren't very appetizing, and he didn't even know what the white spider-looking things were supposed to be.
He did however come across a camp of what looked like some Lizalfos creatures. They were grilling some fish next to the fire and Link felt his belly clench painfully at the sight.
Luckily the monsters were either dumb or just not quick as he ran into the camp and snatched up one of the fish. He took off like a damn thief and managed to burn his mouth on the steaming fish, but once he was clear away from the camp, he ate.
The rain had stopped when the hero entered Vah Ruta, so he was finally able to dry off, a luxury that he didn't know he'd appreciate. Now dry and less hungry, Link curled up under a patch of bushes at the end of Luto's Crossing.
If the hero was going to leave Zora's Domain, he would come across the bridge at some point.
So with his ears alert for any sounds, Link allowed himself to drift off.
If only for a little while.
-(|-
The sound of someone moving carefully up the path toward him woke him from his sleep.
The amount of light blinding him when he opened his eyes confused him. The sun was high, which meant he'd been sleeping for a very long time.
"I must have been more tired than I thought."
It was understandable. He hadn't slept much since he awoke in Hyrule Castle, and his trip out of that death trap had exhausted him.
His ears swiveled in the direction of the footsteps. They were quiet and purposeful, like they were sneaking around. From his cover under the bush, he could make out what appeared to be a female traveler who was also using the bushes for cover.
"Strange."
Link didn't take his eyes off the traveler until he heard someone crossing the bridge from the other side. One glance confirmed it was the hero; he wasn't really alert, most likely not expecting trouble on the road.
But as the sound of a blade slipping out of its sheath reached his ears, Link caught on quick enough.
"An assassin? A Hylian assassin?"
Link wasn't sure what evil being this hero was up against, but he'd never really heard of Hylians joining the bad side.
"Either way, she has to be stopped."
The kid still hadn't noticed the assassin, even as he stepped closer to their position.
Link threw himself out of the bushes and onto the road before the hero got too close and growled loudly, hoping to frighten the hero into drawing his sword.
It worked of course; the kid moved like lightning, unsheathing his blade so fast that the metal sang in approval. The Master Sword gave off none of its usual glow, a thought that Link would have to save for later.
His sudden appearance didn't deter the assassin in the slightest. She flew past him so fast Link couldn't even catch her with his fangs as she brushed past him.
Whether the kid didn't see her due to her speed or he was just too shocked by his own scare tactic Link wasn't sure. The assassin swung her small blade at the Master Sword and knocked it out of the hero's hand easily and it clattered to the ground nearby.
The woman cried out with a rage that surprised him as she swung for the hero again, but the kid dodged easily to the side. He was quick, but he was unarmed, a position that was not likely to guaranteed victory.
The look in his eyes however, made Link think that maybe he could take her on unarmed and win.
Link didn't want to chance finding out; he ran for the Blade of Evils Bane and placed his paw on it with no hesitate. At once he felt the magic ripping at his flesh, tearing away the wolf from his body, leaving him Hylian again.
His hand only touched the Master Sword for less than a second, but it was burning like it was on fire. With no other option, he got to his feet and barely aimed before throwing the sword toward the kid.
"Heads up!"
He wasn't expecting the kid to catch the damn thing in mid-air. But with an ease that pissed him off more than it should have, the smaller man ran toward him and jumped in the air, plucking the sword like he would an apple from a tree.
The assassin lunged, taking advantage of the kid's open back.
"For the Yiga!" She screamed in a war cry.
She got no closer as the kid once again dodged the attack and with a speed that rivaled the assassin's, he closed the space between them and loped off her head.
Her sudden death startled Link. Of course he was expecting her to get killed, the kid had no choice of course, but he dispatched her with no hesitation. He never saw the Master Sword do harm to a Hylian like that before, it was mildly upsetting.
But then again, as he watched the smaller man start looting through the dead woman's pockets, he knew there were worst things to get upset about.
Link's hand throbbed painfully; he hissed and held it up to his face to observe the damage. It looked as if he'd grabbed a lantern by the metal grate, except his bare flesh was the only thing that got burned.
His gloves weren't even singed.
The sound of the Master Sword being sheathed made him look up from his hands to regard the hero wearily. The kid was looking at him quietly; observing as if waiting for him to do something.
"Nothing much fazes you, does it?" Link asked him. "An assassin attacks you, you cut her head off and pick through her pockets. A wolf turns into a man and you don't even say anything."
He got a confused head tilt as a response.
"Can you speak?" Link tried again. He wasn't sure if he wanted to hang around for too much longer. He got what he came for; now that he was Hylian again he could gather information. He could possibly find a way back to his home and his friends.
He had no desire to get caught up in any trouble that would no doubt be following this kid around. He fulfilled his destiny, and he had no intentions of getting dragged into whatever great battles awaited this hero.
The kid, who was now looking more curious and less murderous, started moving his hands.
At first, Link didn't quite understand what he was trying to do. But then he remembered there was a visible language that people with hearing loss used to communicate and he understood. Though he was not exactly sure how to use it at least he was getting somewhere.
"Can you hear me?" He asked the kid.
The kid stopped moving his hands and nodded.
"Okay…so he can hear me but he's still using his hands to talk."
This wasn't going to work. He wasn't sure how to communicate, and he was having trouble concentrating when his fingers were starting to burn more painfully.
The kid sighed loudly and started walking toward him and Link found himself backing away faster than he would ever admit.
There was something about him that put Link on edge, his instincts were telling him to run.
The kid put his hands in the air to, signaling that he wasn't going to attack him. Link didn't fully trust it, but he allowed him to come close enough that he was standing in front of him.
Up close, he wasn't all that much shorter than him; maybe just a couple inches. His build though made him seem so much tinier. Link knew the hero's all roughly looked the same just by the appearance of the Hero of Time and Sky that he'd seen in books. But this hero, with his bright blond hair and baby blue eyes made him look so much younger than him and innocent than all of them.
Link didn't move away as cold hands reached out to grasp his injured one; if anything the cold felt good on his burning hand. The kid looked down at his hand, his brows fixed with worry.
"So you're less concerned about the fact that we look like we could be brothers or that I was a wolf." Link said with a teasing tone in his voice. "You're more concerned that I have a burn on my hand?"
The hero glared up at him and then pointed to his hand before using the same hand to say something else in his hand language.
Link growled softly and pulled his hand away. "I'm sorry, I can't understand you."
The kid let out his own frustrated growl and grabbed his hand again. In his haste to hold it up in front of his eyes, he almost smacked Link in the face with it.
"It's a burn…" Link said. He tried to pull his hand back but the kid's grip on it was like steel.
They had a small standoff, both glaring at each other and neither speaking.
And then with a sigh and a few nervous gulps, the hero finally managed to say, "It's not a burn. You have the blight."
"The…Blight?" Link replied. That didn't exactly sound healthy. He looked at the kid, hoping that he would just explain. It looked like he was uncomfortable with talking, but if there was something seriously wrong he should be told.
But another word was not spoken between them. The kid pulled him with him and didn't let go of his hand, even when Link tried to take his hand back. They continued down the road, holding hands until Link stopped fighting.
Only then was his hand released. He got the hint. He had to follow.
They walked down the twisty turning path in a comfortable silence. The hero only strayed from the dirt road when he found something of interest to pick up off the beaten path. He looked to be an avid collector of mushrooms and flowers and Link found himself wondering if the guy was a hoarder.
This 'blight' that was afflicting him didn't make him feel any different. Then again, Link had no idea what it even was. All his knew was that his hand felt like it was burning off, and when he pulled up his glove he tried not to freak. The grotesque purple tinted burn hand crawled up his palm and onto his arm. It was growing.
Cold hands were on his injured one again, startling him. He hadn't noticed that he'd stopped walking.
Light blue eyes looked at the wound intently before the hero clicked his tongue in what Link knew was frustration.
"Bad?" He asked him.
The kid's expression didn't change when he met his eyes; it was blank, like stone.
And then he shrugged nonchalantly.
Link wanted to beat him.
But when they started walking again, Link couldn't help but noticed that their pace had increased significantly.
By the time they reached the bottom, Link was starting to feel strange. It felt as though his head was in a fog, like his mind wasn't quite clear. He felt as though he was sleep walking, and the hero finally grabbed him before he walked off a cliff.
Cold hands were on his face then, shaking him, trying to get him to focus.
"I'm good," he heard himself say. But his voice sounded far away, like he was hearing it from the opposite end of a long hall.
"You have no tolerance to the blight," A calm voice said. "Have you never been in contact with it?"
"I told you," Link blinked rapidly, trying to clear his vision. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
The hands on his face left and he felt the blood fill his cheeks. He had a fever.
"There's a Lizalfos camp close by, do you think you can make it there?"
He tried not to laugh as the kid pulled a hood over his head with such a serious expression. Or maybe it wasn't funny at all and he was just a little bit loopy because of the fever.
"I can make it, just lead the way."
There was a snort in response and Link once again wanted to bet the snot out of him. But instead he followed as quickly as possible, trying to not die prematurely.
The Lizalfos camp was indeed close by. The kid didn't even hesitate as he approached, drawing his sword and charging in. He dispatched one monster quickly but the other looked a bit stronger.
Link heard a splash from the river and bare had enough sense to dodge out of the way before another Lizalfos was on him. He placed his left hand on his blade, not drawing it yet; he didn't have the strength for fancy footwork. He'd have to take it out in one blow.
The creature roared at him and charged, thinking that he wouldn't put up much of a fight. Unfortunately for it, just as it came in range Link drew his blade and used his mortal draw technique to cut it in half.
He knew he fucked up the moment pain raced up his back so suddenly he screamed and fell to the ground.
"This isn't from the blight."
He gritted his teeth and tried to make his body to relax until the spasm was over. He just hoped there were no more monsters in the area that were looking to kill him.
When he was rolled onto his back he let out a string of curses that would have made Telma blush. The kid met his eyes for only a second before he was poking at him, trying to find the wound that he probably believed was afflicted on him.
"I'm fine, it's nothing new," Link hissed. He barely had the strength to push the kid away with his back still in a spasm. "It's an old battle wound, there's nothing to be done."
When the kid finally stopped and settled for looking down at him, Link closed his eyes and groaned. "It will pass; just leave me to die until that happens."
The kid rolled his eyes and stood up, leaving him there to suffer.
With all the adrenalin rushing through him, his head cleared for a moment. But now that the fight was over, he could feel the same haze overcoming him again. He was only vaguely aware when his sword was placed on the ground next to him.
In fact, he wasn't aware he'd fallen asleep until he was being smacked back into consciousness.
"Can you stand yet?"
Link groaned painfully but pushed himself into a sitting position. He was dizzy, but his back had stopped for now.
He needed help getting to his feet, but he didn't have to walk far as the kid brought him over to the Lizalfos camp and made him sit on a blanket next to the fire. Honestly he didn't think he could make it any farther than that anyway.
"It would be better if we could make it to my home in Hateno." The hero spoke so quietly that Link had to flick his ears toward him to catch it. "But I don't think you could make it to Hateno so we'll have to do this here."
Link said nothing but he watched in fascination as the other man started pulling tons of plants and mushrooms from his pack. Then he began the task of cutting, grinding and peeling. The ingredients were placed in the pot to be boiled and Link tried not to cover his nose at the smell.
The hero pulled a pretty white and blue flower out of his pack last and added some petals both to the pot and to the salve he was making. With the mixture complete his next task was to undress Link who was less than agreeable.
Link had to struggle to get all the straps unbuckled and pulled off, and he almost couldn't untangle himself from his chainmail. When his tunic came off followed by his undershirt, his heart almost stopped when he saw that the ugly purple wound had crawled up his arm and was almost at his heart.
He tried not to freak out too bad, but when the hero muttered a curse that sounded almost like 'shit' in Gerudo, he knew it wasn't good.
"Think I'll make it?" He asked the other man. He was being sarcastic, but when he got smacked upside the head he growled.
The salve was applied to the areas where his skin was burning away and it burned worse than it was before. Link clenched his teeth and tried to not bite his tongue, but all he wanted to do was scream.
"Do you need something to bite on?"
Whimpering, Link shook his head.
The kid didn't look convinced but he continued to apply the ointment until it was covering every inch of diseased flesh.
Now exhausted and delirious from the fever and pain, Link slouched over and tried to breath deep. He'd been through worse he knew, he had the scars to prove it. This wasn't a normal pain though; it felt as though his flesh was falling off, leaving tissue and bone bare.
His suffering only worsened when the hero held up a cup of the hot stinky stuff he'd been cooking over the fire.
"Do you need help swallowing it?"
In any other situation, Link would have said a dirty response to that, but he didn't want to piss off the only help he had. He tried to take the cup in his good hand, but it was shaking so much he couldn't hold it. Instead the kid held the cup to his lips and tilted it so he could sip slowly.
"What…in the fuck is that…made of?" Link started to gag but a hand over his mouth stopped him from wanting to bring anything up. He was forced to drink two huge cups of the potion, and by the end of it he felt like death.
Once that ordeal was over with, he was forced to lay down with a cold cloth over his head. This felt wonderful at first, but he was only in his pants with no blanket covering him. The cold hit him so suddenly his whole body started to convulse in shivers.
"Bl-bl-blank-et-t-t." He said with his teeth clattering.
The kid nodded in agreement and then proceeded to cover him with a blanket that had been soaked in the icy river.
"Fuck!" Link sat up quicker than he thought was capable, but was quickly slammed back into the ground and pinned by the smaller man. He tried to fight him off, as stupid as that was. But the cold was so awful, so deep in his bones; he thought he was going to die before the fever broke.
He cried out, tears streaming down his face and his teeth clattering so hard he was scared they would break.
"I'm going to die. I'm going to die."
A soft humming sound helped him focus; he tried to listen to it and not to his shaking body. It was a pleasant sound, a tune that he recognized easily once his mind took two seconds to focus. The kid was humming Epona's song. How he knew it, Link had no clue, but the familiar song soothed him more than he thought it would.
Somehow he fell asleep. He woke only when the salve was applied to the burn and the pain jolted him awake. The kid also woke him up a few more times to make him drink more of that awful potion.
Link thought for sure he was more likely to die from the potion than from the blight.
But at some point in the middle of the night the fever lifted, and he finally fell into a deep sleep.
The hero watched over him all night, not moving from his side.
It was a comfort at least.
-(|-
When he finally woke up for real this time, he felt completely back to normal.
Well, he still felt like ass since he'd slept on a cold damp patch of ground, but he was alive.
Link sat up and glared at the kid who was sitting next to him. He had a nice, warm blanket over his shoulders. Link wasted no time pulling it off him so he could attempt to warm his aching bones. "My old bones can't handle the cold like that anymore. You damn near killed me, kid."
He received a scoff in answer.
Link glared at him but honestly he was grateful that the brat had saved him. "Um…I want to thank you for aching bones though. I would be dead if you hadn't done what you did."
This time he received a shrug in answer and Link sighed and turned away from him. If he looked at the kid any longer he was going to beat the shit out of him.
He sat still, trying to regain his strength as the smaller man moved around the camp, packing his supplies away. Link wasn't aware the brat was cooking breakfast until the delicious smell hit him. His stomach growled so loudly he was sure the sound traveled back to the time gate in Hyrule Castle and back in time so Shad could hear it.
He heard a chuckle from his companion and Link stuck his tongue out at him. He worked on getting dressed as the food was cooked. His joints were indeed stiff; it definitely felt like his body had worked off a fever. He was able to get dressed though, and he didn't have to have eyes on the back of his head to know the scar on his back was being stared at.
Link strapped his weapons back on and sat in front of the cooking pot, pulling the blanket back over him. He could tell the other man wanted to ask just by the way he was avoiding eye contact, so Link decided to spare him.
"I got it in the final battle with my enemy," he said with little emotion in his voice. "The guy had a powerful blade, I tried to dodge but I underestimated his reach. He opened my back to the bone. I had no idea it happened until after he was dead and the panic left."
Link watched the food sizzling on the frying pan. He was cooking bacon and eggs, he could feel himself drooling.
"I've been told I wasn't supposed to make it," he continued, trying to distract from the hunger. "I pretty much bled out, and the blade had cut into my spine and damaged a lot of nerves in the area. Even if I lived I was not expected to walk for sure."
The kid didn't flinch, and Link figured he'd probably had his own share of injuries.
"I did live though, and it took me a year to heal, and then another to teach myself to walk again. The only side effect I have now is a crippling pain that hits me if I move my back in just the right way. It doesn't happen often, but it's still a pain in the ass."
Link fell silent, not sure if he should keep talking.
But then the kid spoke.
"You're…A hero of the goddess, aren't you?"
"I guess," Link flicked his ears awkwardly. "I doubt you've heard of me though, my story wasn't that interesting…"
"Actually I have," the kid replied uncomfortably. "I recognize your story."
Link was slightly shocked but tried not to get his hopes up. "Do you know how the story ends? Do I get back to my world?"
His companion shook his head and he looked almost guilty. "I've seen a lot of things in my dreams. Sometimes I relive the memories of past lives, but I've never once had dreams of the Hero of Twilight." He poked awkwardly at the food while he spoke. "I had read the story before the Calamity; it was Zelda's favourite story since she admired the queen of that age. But I've not once dreamt of you, and that's probably because it's not possible, since you couldn't be a past life as you're alive and in front of me now."
He paused and added, "That must be why you have no immunity to the blight, as you've never been exposed to it. It's in the air you breathe, the water you drink and the earth you stand on. I'm surprised you didn't get sick sooner."
When Link continued to look at him hopefully, the kid shook his head. "The story ended with you leaving Hyrule and never returning. That's all I remember."
Link tried not to let those words crush him, but it was hard. He was so far away from home and he missed his people. He didn't want to accept that he'd seen Shad for the last time on the day he was drawn into the gate.
"How long ago did my legend take place?" He asked him.
The kid shrugged, "fifty thousand years maybe? That's a question you might have to save for Zelda."
"And none of this weirds you out?"
The other man went quiet, as if he was contemplating his answer. He dished up the food on a plate for each of them. He didn't speak again until they both had started eating.
"I've seen weirder."
Link raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh like what? There's nothing weirder than you talking to a hero that saved Hyrule fifty thousand years ago, traveled through time and is now sharing breakfast with you."
"Well…" The kid paused to gather his words. "I died fighting the Calamity along with my friends and then Zelda put me in a resurrection chamber to save me. I slept for one hundred years and lost all my memories while she fought the Calamity. And now that I'm awake no one remembers me and every day I have to resist going to Hyrule Castle to fight the Calamity with a tree branch."
When Link said nothing the hero grinned at him, "So sharing breakfast with a guy that traveled through time sounds pretty normal to me."
Link's only response was to say "I can turn into a wolf."
This was met with a laugh. "Well then you're the weirdest guy who's ever traveled through time then."
"Whatever," Link grumbled. He bit into another piece of bacon and tried not to weep. It was so good. "My name is Link by the way," he said after a few more mouthfuls. "I don't think I've ever said that."
The other hero didn't even bat an eye. "Mine too, welcome to the club. We meet every night of the blood moon."
-(|-
The name thing wasn't awkward until Link tried to call his new friend by his name, which just happened to be his own name. It made him feel like he was talking to himself, something he thought would only happen when he became old and senile.
"I think I'll call you kid." Link said as he helped pack up camp. "Calling you Link is just too weird for me."
That earned him a dirty look but he wasn't deterred. "I guess it's less awkward for you because you don't like to talk. So you won't have to say your own name often, but that doesn't help me."
This was ignored as the kid started walking away, leaving Link to follow.
Link snickered and followed closely behind him. "So kid sounds like a good option, since you are a snot-nosed brat."
"I'm one hundred and eighteen years old, I think I've got you beat."
"But physically and mentally you're eighteen, and I'm twenty eight, so I have you beat there," Link replied. "So 'kid' still works."
He stopped getting responses after that, even when he really poked and made up all kinds of names for him. In fact, the brat started replying in the hand language he'd been using before, so Link had no idea what names he was being called.
Once it became apparent that he was not going to get the boy to talk again, Link settled for the thoughts in his head to keep him occupied. He still had no idea what his next move was. Even though he was now human, he was still lost.
He could try to return to the time gate; maybe do some Shad level research and see if he could figure something out. He knew for certain he did not want to follow the kid on his journey. He was a borderline cripple thanks to his back, and he'd done his share of life risking battles. He was retired from hero duty as far as he was concerned.
As they finally made it to the end of Zora territory, Link was torn on what to do. He could part ways with the kid (at least the name dilemma would be over with) but he had no idea where to go. He didn't even have a map.
The kid veered off course suddenly, shaking Link out of his thoughts. He watched as the smaller man walked quietly over to a ledge of rock and started to carefully climb up it.
Link had no idea what he was up to, but he had a feeling that it had something to do with the loud…snoring sound that he could hear nearby.
Grumbling, he followed the fool, climbing up the cliff to see what he was planning.
He didn't have to wait long as there was a rumbling roar and he made it to the top of the ledge just as some hulking…thing chucked a whole tree at him.
Link didn't have time to curse as he dove to the side, narrowly avoiding death for the second time in the last two days.
"Why do you do this shit?!" Was the only thing he could yell out as he drew his sword and hid behind the nearest tree.
He could hear the monster yelling in pain as the crazy brat fought it off. Link hated to admit it but he was not even close to having his strength back. His body was still weak from the fever and even now his sword arm was shaking.
So even though he doubted it would help, Link sheathed his sword and pulled out his bow. The monster was a big blob on legs with one huge eye; he knew if he shot the eye with an arrow he'd probably do some damage.
He knocked an arrow and aimed carefully, waiting for the perfect moment. When the huge monster bent down, drooling and spitting at his friend, he took the shot and hit its eye, blinding it. It screamed and fell on its ass, big clumsy hands rubbing at its eye.
The kid took the opportunity to slice a deep wound from one end of the monster's stomach to the other, spilling its innards.
The smell was unbearable.
Link held back his vomit, there was no way he was losing the best meal he'd had in weeks.
He only looked back long enough to see the idiot start scooping guts into a container of some type before he had to look away. He was really starting to wonder exactly what was in that potion he drank.
The situation was only made worse when a familiar voice boomed through the clearing.
"Link! You are still here my friend." The big red Zora had come out of gods knew where to meet up with the kid. "I had hoped I could personally thank you again before you left the region!"
Even from a few feet away, hiding behind the tree, Link could see the way the Zora man was looking at the hero. The tail on his head was wagging so fast it looked ready to fly off. As the big guy took in the scene of carnage and destruction that the kid was looting from, he had a look on his face that could only be 'love'.
Link turned away and threw up.
-(|-
As it turned out the big red Zora was actually the prince of the Zora, Sidon.
Link couldn't even focus on introductions until they were clear away from the area where the Hinox (as he was informed by Sidon) was killed. The body hadn't stayed for long before disintegrating, but it was long enough for the hero to gather what he needed. And even with the body gone, the smell was stuck in Link's nose and it took dunking his head in a nearby river to clear it.
"You two could be father and son!" Sidon said with way too much enthusiasm. "This is incredible."
"I'm not that fucking old," Link snapped at the prince. He was no good around sunny people like Sidon, but it was hard to pretend to be nice when his stomach was still turning.
They were still at the riverside where Link had collapsed. Sidon was in the river grinning at the two of them while the brat was standing on land beside him, cleaning the Master Sword off with a cloth.
"Forgive me," Sidon said quickly. "I am ashamed to admit, but I am not familiar with subjects that must be sensitive to Hylians."
The kid put his sword away and moved his hands, telling the prince whatever he needed to tell him.
Whatever he said, Sidon nodded in understanding before turning back to Link. "I see…a tale for another time then." The Zora grinned at his companion and Link wondered if he should leave the area or something.
"I just had to thank you again, and if you need anything at any point of time, please come see me." He then did some weird pose with his arm and Link wondered if he was trying to seduce the other Link with his huge muscles.
Which didn't seem probable but if he kept it up, he might take fish boy up on his offer.
"How would that even work? Do they even…this is too weird, I've never once in my life considered having sex with a Zora. Now I have questions that I'm sure as hell not asking someone to get the answers."
He wasn't sure if the smaller man was aware of the subtle flirting, but Link filed it away in his brain for later. He'd use it on a rainy day if he needed something to bother the brat with.
Sidon didn't hang around for much longer. He said his final goodbyes and wished them both luck on their journey.
Link half expected Sidon to blow them a kiss but thank gods that didn't happen. His friend was oblivious enough; he didn't need any more confusion in his life.
With all the excitement gone, Link once again had to figure out his plans. He was considering asking for a map, at least with that he could figure out what direction to take. He had no idea that he'd continued down the wrong path until a hand grabbed his to stop him.
Link looked at the kid. The indecisive look on his face must have said everything; the smaller man motioned for him to follow and smirked at him.
It wasn't until he was halfway up a hill headed towards Death Mountain before he realized that he'd followed the hero.
"Zelda…She might have the answer you seek."
Link made a whining sound in the back of his throat. In his experience, Zelda wasn't as helpful as everyone liked to think she was. "It still doesn't solve our name problem, am I Link or are you Link?"
The kid actually stopped walking so he could turn around and give him another dirty look. "If it's going to be such a crisis for you, then call me Wilhelm when we're alone. Don't ever say it around anyone else, okay?"
Link grinned at him. "Does that name mean something to you?"
There was a silence that wasn't uncomfortable, if anything…it was sad.
"I think…it was my father's name."
Link remembered what the kid had said about losing his memories and he immediately felt bad. "I wouldn't be that mean to you, kid." He clapped the smaller man on the shoulder. "How about you just call me Twilight and you keep your name. You're the current hero anyway, you deserve to use it."
Link (as he now would refer to him) shrugged and turned away, walking up the path like nothing happened.
But Twilight could tell the little shit was grinning.
So either he just got duped or he made the kid happy.
"Oh well, either way I guess I know what I'm doing."
If anyone has anything they'd like to see in this fic I'm open to ideas. I'll try my best to fit them in :) I have no update schedule, I basically write whenever the pain in my back isn't too bad and post whatever amount I've written. Just check back every once and a while!