A/N: Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!


The full moon illuminated the vast desert, stars twinkled bright against the dark blue sky. A light breeze picked up loose sand and cast it away into lands unknown, swirling as it vanished into the night. Burrowing owls hooted at each other, they were hunting while being free from the oppression of the blistering sun. Scorpions ventured out of their confined holes, their barbed tails raised in warning when a potential predator came too near. The famous alqama cacti were in full bloom, they were well known for their beautiful luminescent flowers that only opened after dusk, because of that they were a common export from Lesinea. The Lizal River trickled calmly and the reeds along its bank swayed gently from side to side. It was a small stream that sprouted from a natural spring but its size grew immensely the farther west it went.

A trio of pronghorns drank from the river before bounding away. It was a peaceful scene. Ganon took Link to a secluded area near the river, it was nice to get away from other people on occasion. His family had been overbearing and nosey lately, that was one downfall of living communally. Most were ecstatic he decided to adopt a son, others were concerned with the situation due to his young age. Word had gotten around about what was said at the council meeting, a few of his peers speculated he'd only adopted Link to help him cope with his father's death. While that wasn't necessarily untrue, it wasn't the sole reason.

The last remaining members of his biological family, Maleeha and Jia, started treating him differently since he brought Link home. Maleeha constantly coddled over them and she gladly watched over Link when Ganon had to return to the construction site for work. Jia became distant, hardly even acknowledging him when he passed by.

Link slept in his arms peacefully, he was wrapped in used clothes. The temperature was lowering so he thought it best to go back home before the two of them froze. Over the past couple of months, Link's condition improved and he was deemed illness free so he could interact with the other children. He would have minor hearing issues to deal with and it seemed he would not be able to communicate verbally, other than that he was healthy. He knew how to sign a few more words now besides up; down, yes, no, hungry, book, and please to name a few.

Ganon took his time walking home, hopefully most people were sleeping so he wouldn't feel obligated to stop and chat. Little creatures scurried beneath his feet as he walked by. The buildings were surrounded by dimly lit torches and shrubs, each structure had their house gem displayed above the entryways. Once inside, he only had to pass the common area and climb one set of stairs before he reached his room.

Since bringing Link into his home, he reorganized practically everything he owned and ensured everything was child-safe. He built a large bookcase and placed it next to his couch, now he had a place to put all of the books Phura had sent him. He hung up various paintings his family made on the wall to liven the place up a bit. The dog pen he used as a makeshift bed was sent back to the kennels and Link now had a bed and room of his own.

Ganon tucked Link into his blankets and surrounded him with all sorts of stuffed animals. Link clung onto his yellow blanket and snored lightly. Once Link was situated, Ganon did the same and fell asleep.

The following morning he was woken up by the sunlight seeping through his window. He used to wake up at dawn, but now he found himself sleeping in until nearly noon. Until recently he had no idea how exhausting it could be to raise a kid. From the living room he could hear Link moving around. He quickly jumped out of bed and hoped Link wasn't doing something dangerous or destructive. Link was stomping around with stuffed animals in his hands. When Link turned and saw Ganon in the doorway, he immediately ran up to him and attacked with his lizard toy.

"Oh no, I've been hit!" Ganon exclaimed and he brought himself to the floor. Link climbed on top of him and continued to attack with the plush lizard. This continued on for a couple more minutes until Link slid down and started signing 'hungry please'. Ganon stood up and stretched, he was still tired. "Okay, let's go get something to eat." He picked up Link and carried him down to the dining hall. The smell of cooked sausages and fruits lingered in the air. Only ten people were in the room since it was late morning, so he took a seat near the counter. He dished enough food for him and Link to eat, it turned out Link preferred eating solids instead of milk.

"Hey, Gan." he turned his head and saw Jia standing behind him with an uninterested expression. "Don't forget you signed up for cooking duty tomorrow."

"I haven't forgotten."

"I'm also here to tell you there will be a council meeting a week from now at noon."

"Understood." Jia nodded and started to walk away. "Wait!" she paused and looked at him with an annoyed glance. "Mal and I are both free tonight, I was wondering if you'd like to join us for dinner. You could get to know Link better, you've hardly seen him. You're his blood aunt, after all." she considered him for a moment and looked briefly at Link.

"He's not my nephew." she left the dining hall quickly, the rest of the people in the room whispered silently amongst themselves upon seeing the display. A little bit hurt and a little bit embarrassed, he picked up Link and the food and went back into his room so they could finish eating alone. He didn't know why Jia was acting this way or what she had against him and Link.

In his frustration, he kicked a block that was lying on the center rug. It thumped harmlessly against the wall and rolled a few times. Link urgently signed to be put down and Ganon set him on the floor. Link rushed to grab the block and he ran to his room with it carefully held in his hands. With a sigh, Ganon set the food on the table and he went towards Link's room. By the time he got to actually eat the food it would probably be cold. Link was sitting on his bed with the wooden block cradled in his arms, he pouted as hard as he could. Ganon sat down in front of Link and smiled.

"I'm sorry, I'm not mad at you." Link shook his head and pointed to the block. Ganon grumbled to himself and stared at the block, nearly unable to believe he was about to apologize to an inanimate object. He put a fist on his chest and moved it in a wide circle. "I'm sorry I kicked you, block." that seemed to satisfy Link. He placed the block on his pile of stuffed animals and scurried back into the living room.

Link started eating the simmered fruit while picking around the sausages.

"You need to share and eat some meat." Ganon announced firmly. Link stopped eating and decided to hide under the low wooden table instead. "Fine, no more food until dinner then." Ganon ate his share of food and he made sure to save a few sausage patties. After several minutes of peace and quiet, he felt a small tug on his foot. It was expected since this was a common ritual that happened rather frequently. He reached under the table and pulled Link out, then he set him near his side. Ganon could grab things off the table while sitting cross legged, whereas Link had to stand to reach anything. In due time Link would grow to properly sit at a table, but for now he'd either have to stand or sit on a few pillows.

Link gobbled up the meat and he wandered off to play with his toys. Ganon wanted to leave the building so he could get his mind off of what Jia had said to him. The market was a possibility, there was always some form of entertainment whether it be from travelling dancers, painters, or musicians. The library was always a nice silent place to go, but Link might get bored and cause a ruckus. He was still young and didn't know proper behavior for different places and situations. Ganon remembered the first time he brought Link into the small library, the librarian joked that someone like Link was the perfect patron. Everyone in the library that day learned Link was gifted when it came to making a racket. Books and sitting pillows had been tossed around, a few pots tragically met their end. No, he wouldn't go to the library again until Link was a bit older and when the librarian stopped glaring at him every time they passed each other in the market. It was for the best.

After some thought, Ganon settled on the idea of going to the Lizal River for a nice swim. It wasn't too hot out now that the raining season was fast approaching.

"Link, do you want to swim?" he made sure to sign as he spoke. He wasn't fluent by any means, but he was proud with how fast both he and his son were learning to sign. Link nodded his head and smiled. "Let's get dressed then." they changed into their swimming clothes which was essentially a pair of patternless silky shorts topped off with a towel wrapped around their shoulders. He held Link's hand and guided him to the river.

In the distance, storm clouds churned and flashed with lightning. Spring was on its way, soon the crops would flourish and the animals would be giving birth to new life. It was a nice change of pace.

When the two arrived at the river, they were greeted by a few other families from different houses who had the same idea as him. He did see one of his sisters, Rhala, and he sat next to her. Ganon rested his feet in the cool water and watched Link splash around in the shallows.

"How've you been?" Rhala asked after she set down her drink.

"I've been good, I'm a bit tired though."

"Yeah, kids will do that to you. Here." she offered him a drink, which turned out to be a diluted palm rum. "You should bring your son out more often otherwise people will start to think you're hiding him on purpose."

"I do bring him out."

"In the dead of night when everyone's asleep." she covered her face for a moment when Link splashed a bit close to them.

"It's hot during the day, I don't want him to burn up."

"Bah, he'll be fine." Rhala splashed water at Link. He giggled and continued to romp in the river. "What I'm trying to get at is you shouldn't worry about what anyone else says. He's your son, you should be proud of him."

"I am proud." Ganon responded.

"Good. Ah, look, there's my troublemaker." a small girl who looked to be a bit older than Link ran towards them, she was carrying cattails in her hands. "Riku, say hello to Link."

Riku turned her head and saw Link playing in the river. She dropped her collection of plants and she shoved Link so he face planted into the water. She laughed and ran as fast as her legs could carry her.

"Hey!" Rhala shouted as she stood up. "We've talked about this, get back here! Ugh, I don't know where she gets this from." she gave an apologetic smile before she chased after her daughter. As Ganon recalled, Rhala won second place in the Lesinea Wrestling Championship this year, but he decided against bringing that up.

Ganon pushed himself up and made sure Link was okay. As expected he cried and he put his hands in the air to be picked up. He lifted his son and rubbed his back in an effort to soothe him. Rhala came back while holding onto Riku's hand.

"We don't push people, what do you say?" Rhala asked her daughter once they were in front of Ganon and Link. Riku crossed her arms and stared at Link as he was set down in front of her.

"I'm sorry." she said and then she handed Link one of her fallen cattails. Link grabbed it and signed 'good' at her. She likely didn't understand sign language, but Rhala nodded and led her daughter back home, likely to give her a proper reprimanding.

Ganon offered his hand to Link and they walked home. Despite the minor harassment from one of his older sisters, Link seemed like he had a lot of fun swimming. He felt a bit ashamed that he'd been driven to the point of being too nervous to take his son around with him. It was ridiculous and it wasn't a mistake he'd be making again. Link excitedly waved at his aunts as they passed by, most of them responded with a hello and a smile.

Once they were in their home, Ganon plopped himself on the couch while Link played with his toys. Later he'd bring Link to the dining hall again and the market too. But for now, he was exhausted, there'd be no harm in taking a well deserved nap. Without much thought, he closed his eyes and let sleep overcome him.


Black smoke filled the sky, it seemed to enshroud the world with dread. The hilly field he marched upon was unrecognizable, but there was a feeling of familiarity when he gazed upon the buildings in front of a massive castle. The massive fires were giving off a terrible odor, he feared for the worst. People hardly gave him a second glance as he passed by, they were either too busy weeping or arguing. No children played in the streets, there were no sounds of innocent laughter.

He was let in at the castle gates and he somberly made his way into the throne room. The royal family of old had vanished during the Calamity many years ago, the king sitting before him bore no similarities to the surviving portraits of the past rulers. The king was surrounded by dozens of ornately dressed guards, servants were frantically bustling around.

"What have you done?!" the sound of his own voice booming throughout the chamber startled him for a moment.

"We cannot have the chosen summoning the Calamity once again." the king responded.

"I told you he simply must be located, I did not call for this massacre."

"We took extra precautions to ensure the safety of our kingdom."

"This is madness!" he blurted out and ignored the guards who held him back.

"Enough!" the king exclaimed and he held up one hand. "I have done all I can to protect my land. Guards, bring him out." a small boy no older than ten was led towards him in chains. He was covered in filth, his clothes were in tatters and he had a scar on his arm that looked fresh. The child struggled with every step and he fought against the chains to no avail. The boy was set a few feet away from him, his face was full of defiance. "Well, is this the one?"

He looked at the boy before him, and while he looked fearless, his rapidly falling and rising chest spoke otherwise. On his hand was the unmistakable symbol he had been searching for. This was the child he sought. If he answered truthfully, surely the boy would be struck down with the crime of being born. If the boy was allowed to live, then his own curse would awaken and consume him along with the rest of the country. He closed his eyes, not sure what should be done next.

When he opened his eyes, Ganon was somewhere else; home. Link was frantically hopping on his chest and tugging at his beard. Ganon rubbed his eyes and yawned, it had only been a strange dream. He hugged his son to stop him from jumping on him.

'Dad scared?' Link signed when Ganon finally got up from the couch.

"I was having a bad dream, I'm not scared anymore." the dream was odd, he felt like he was the man in the dream, but it wasn't him. The boy had also looked familiar, but as far as he knew, he'd never met a Hylian child of that age. He'd certainly never seen a castle in his life either. Nothing about the dream made sense, perhaps he shouldn't delve too deep into it. A knock on the door startled him out of his muddled thoughts. "Come in."

Maleeha entered with her arms open in preparation to catch Link as he darted for her. She spun him around a few times before setting him down, he stumbled a bit in his dizzy state.

"You weren't nearly this affectionate as a child." she remarked as she made herself comfortable on the couch.

"That's because you were always picking on me." he'd been the youngest of three, often when his father had to leave, his older sisters would watch him and routinely cause trouble.

"Eh, it builds character. So, what have you been up to?"

"We went swimming earlier." he contemplated on telling her about his dream, but that wasn't important. "We also ran into Jia, she seemed upset, do you know what that's about?"

"No, I haven't see her in a couple weeks now." she shook her head and started playing with Link on the floor. Ganon thought carefully how he should word the question that had been festering in his mind for some time now. There really wasn't a nice way to phrase it, so he blurted it out.

"Does Jia hate Hylians?"

"What?" Maleeha gave him a confused stare.

"She hates Link, I don't know why." sure there was a valid reason for the general distrust of Hylians, they had caused his people many pains over the years. Link, however, was a toddler who did not yet even have the capacity to understand what war or prejudice was.

"I don't think she hates him. If she did, then why would she have voted to let him live here?"

"That's what I'd like to know, too." his oldest sister's motives were confusing to him.

"Don't dwell on it too much. Link will have plenty of relatives to give him attention."

"He gets enough attention from you." Ganon joked heartlightedly. "Anymore and his ego will make his head bigger."

"That way he can be more like his dad." Maleeha responded with a sly grin.

"Hey!" Ganon exclaimed. Link stopped running around and attacked Mal with his favorite lizard plushie. "Good job, Link!" Link giggled and continued with his onslaught by jumping on his adversary.

"I forfeit!" Maleeha manage to say between laughs. Once Link calmed down, she placed him on her lap. "He'll be a mighty warrior someday with that technique of his. Okay, I don't know about you, but I'm starving."

"It's about that time," he agreed, "let's get some grub then." the three of them went to the dining hall together and ate to their hearts' content. While Link was rather sociable and friendly, he did seem nervous in larger crowds. He stuck to Ganon's side and occasionally held onto Maleeha's hand when they were eating and when they visited the market.

They eventually went back to the Adinaya building and parted ways for the night. Ganon tucked Link in bed and he prepared to read the book Link had picked out for tonight's bedtime story. The book had a beautiful orange and black cover, its title was 'The Sun and the Moon'. The book had been given to him as a gift from his mother when he was five, it was something he cherished and kept safe in a chest in his bedroom.

With great care he flipped to the first page and admired the beautiful artwork. His mother reading this book to him was one of the few memories he had of her, and reading it now to Link almost felt bittersweet.

"The Sun Goddess was beautiful and loved by all. People and animals basked in her warmth, the plants grew tall in her light." the art depicted her with dark freckled skin and black flowing hair that was reminiscent of the sun's rays. "She danced and laughed with the people. They offered her many temples and prayers, though she refused them all. Their happiness was all the reward she needed.

The Moon Goddess, however, was jealous of the Sun." the art of her was a dark woman with vitiligo and silver hair. "She tried to sabotage the Sun by covering the earth with a dust cloud. Crops died and the people began to suffer. The wind spirits caught on to the act and blew the dust away. They informed the Sun of Moon's mischievous actions. The Sun waved them off and told them she bore no ill will against the Moon.

The Sun shone upon the land once again and every living thing rejoiced. The Moon was angry that her plans were foiled. The people feared her as they feared the night. All she wanted was the same respect the Sun received. Plants did not bloom for her, people and animals hid in fear when it was her time to shine on the world. No one would love her.

The Moon was lost in despair, she hid herself from the view of the world below. Surely now the people were happy now that she was gone from sight. For months she hid, her back turned on the world she was supposed to be watching over. One day she found herself blinded momentarily by a golden light. The Sun was standing in front of her with a bright smile.

'Moon, why are you hiding yourself?' Sun asked.

'Because no one finds me beautiful.' Moon said.

'That is not true, I find you very beautiful. The truth is, I've always been jealous of you.'

'What?' Moon asked. Sun was jealous of her? That couldn't be right.

'People cannot look long at me without suffering. They can admire your beauty for as long as they'd like and not feel pain in their eyes. Come with me.' Sun held out her hand and when Moon grabbed it, they descended to the earth. 'The people told me you have not been seen in many months, they miss you dearly, as do I.'

The ocean next to them was motionless, boats were beached on the shore.

'Without you, the tides stay still, the boats can't leave. The people can't use your light to travel the land at night when you are gone.' Sun said and she led Moon to a forest. Gorgeous glowing flowers bloomed as Moon walked by. 'These plants only open at night under your light. The people miss admiring them.' Sun picked a flower and placed it in Moon's hair. They returned to the sky and watched the stars twinkle in Moon's domain.

'The stars love you, the plants love you, the people and animals love you, and most of all,' Sun drifted back into her domain as daytime was approaching the world, 'I love you.'

Moon stayed still in her shock, the stars twinkled brightly behind her. She was loved. She went after Sun as fast as she could and embraced her when she caught up.

'I love you, too.' Moon said, her smile was just as bright as Sun's. When they kissed, a shadow crept across the earth, but the people were not afraid for they knew it was the return of Moon.

Moon returned to her position and lit up the world more bright than before. The tides continued moving, her flowers bloomed in her light, and the people danced under her gaze. Now when it is a new moon or solar eclipse, the people do not despair, for they know the Sun and Moon are embracing and watching over them all."

Ganon closed the book and sighed. Link's eyes were closed and he was snoring lightly. He couldn't count the times he'd fallen asleep when his mother read the story to him. Something about it felt serene.

"I love you." he whispered to his sleeping son before going into his own bed.


Ganon feared only two things: Abnormally large centipedes and bony joints jabbing him in his personal areas. He was none too pleased when he was awoken by the second thing. He growled in pain and felt the offender crawling on his chest. The sky was dark, save for a few violent flashes of lightning. With each flash and deep rumble of thunder, Link shuddered and attempted to burrow under the blankets.

Ganon fumbled his arms around until he felt a candle and promptly lit it. Link was tightly wrapped around him, his little body was shaking.

"It's alright, it's only a thunderstorm." it then dawned on him that Link had never experienced a storm before with his hearing. He could understand why his son was so frightened. "The storm won't hurt us, it'll help our food grow." Link didn't seem convinced, he kept his face hidden in the blankets. He was going to have to get used to thunder since it was now the rainy season. "Okay, I'll tell you another story. Once upon a time there was a hero named Link." Link peeked his head out of the covers upon hearing his name. Ganon was doing his best to improvise a story on the spot.

"Everyone loved Link, they saw him as a courageous warrior. One day, an evil beast trampled upon the land, destroying everything in sight. The princess told Link to slay the beast and he set off on his journey. In all truthfulness, he wasn't as fearless as people made him out to be. There were lots of things that scared him, but he also didn't want anyone to get hurt.

He travelled to the forest to seek advice from the Goddess of courage. Along the way he was faced with a massive dragon made of lightning, it created thunder as it flew through the forest valley. Link readied his sword, but the dragon was peaceful and did not attack him. He made it to the Goddess' shrine and prayed for her to arrive. Her spirit appeared before him and she asked what it was he sought.

He told her of the evil beast that ravaged the land. He told her he needed to fight it so he could save the land and everything that lived in it. He also told her that he was afraid, she needed to grant him the courage to complete his task.

The Goddess simply smiled at him and told him he already had courage. It is okay to be both frightened and brave. She told him those who were the most courageous were the ones who were scared but fought for what was right despite their own fears.

Link went to the beast and challenged it. It roared and charged at a town. Link ran after it and cut it off so it could do no harm to the citizens. He was scared, but he also felt strong, he couldn't let the monster destroy the land. With one fell swoop, he struck down the beast and destroyed it.

The people rejoiced and called him the fearless hero who saved them all. While he wasn't fearless, he was courageous, and that's all that mattered."

Ganon looked at Link and saw he had fallen asleep again. He moved Link so he was laying against his side rather than on his chest, then he blew out the candle.

"Goodnight my little hero."