Chapter Ten
"I can't believe you would do such a thing. To your own son!"
"Marella," the Hylian soldier tried to argue.
His wife only turned away from him, mortified to hear what he had done to Link. "Sign language has been part of Hyrule for a long time, longer than any of us have ever been around, and you dared to berate him over this!? What was the goal for that!? To make him feel more insecure than he already is!? What kind of father are you!?"
That was an excellent question.
He hadn't meant to lose his temper. He hadn't meant to make his son feel so small. He had been worried for Aryll and the princess, and after seeing the Lynel laying there dead he had thought for a split moment Link had died in trying to kill it. He lashed out at his son because there was no one else to do so and it ended in disaster. He felt horrible, and he wanted to take it all back.
And after hearing his son speak his apology in that defeated voice, it was hard to stomach what he had done.
When he got back to the Domain, making sure everyone was safe, he went to find his wife and told her about everything he had done. She, of course, did not take kindly to what he had done and had begun pacing as a result of her anger. He feared for a moment that she would leave and take Link and Aryll with her, but she wasn't about to do this so easily. As angry as she was, she wouldn't separate her kids from their father.
Not yet, anyhow.
She continued to pace in their room, arms folded and eyes wild with anger. "He looks up to you. He wants only but to make you proud, and you go and beat him down until he feels as small as an ant! Why!? What do you gain from this!?"
"I never meant to do anything like that." He spat back.
"Then why continue with it?" She demanded to know. "He's only seventeen, Gared, and he already has a lot on his shoulders! The Hero of Hyrule, the one who wields the Master Sword, the damned guard of the Princess, how much more can he take!? How much more of you can he take!? He doesn't need a captain or a general, he needs his father! He needs support! Why can't you see that as clearly as I can!?"
He knew this already. He knew he needed to support his son. But every time the lad went after a monster he worried Gared more and more, leaving him frustrated and exhausted most days. Link had always been special, had always given the man reason to believe he would be a great soldier. He just needed structure. He hadn't expected the boy would be tasked with saving Hyrule alongside the Princess. He just wanted Link to be normal.
And the more he thought about wanting that normality, the more he realized he wanted that for himself. He wanted his son to be normal so that things wouldn't be too hard on him and he could just live as he wanted. He knew his son well enough to know he didn't want to be a knight or even a swordsman. He wanted to see the world and travel without having an eye watching over his shoulder. And why wouldn't he want that? The lad deserved an adventure without having to worry about the world crashing in on him.
If it hadn't been for than damnable sword he could have had that as well.
Gared buried his face into his hands. "He needs freedom."
Marella let out a sigh. "Yes, I agree. But he can't exactly get that freedom if his duty is towards protecting the princess."
"Even more, he will be tasked with aiding her against Ganon. Which means he'll be on the front lines. But as it stands, he isn't exactly in it completely."
"What do you mean?"
Gared stood from his seat on the bed, crossing the room to look out the window. "The other Champions have all taken to their roles seamlessly. They know what's coming and have prepared themselves for the worst. Even Zelda, throughout her failures, has still been working diligently to prove her worth and unlock her sealing power. Link, however, seems to distance himself from the issue. Almost as if he feels he's unworthy."
"That's insane, he should know he's earned this. After all the training he went through…"
"He's trained, yes, but only because he was asked to. I get the feeling that he feels he doesn't deserve it, though. That's why I'm hard on him."
Marella gave another sigh, her arms unfolding so her hands could rest on her hips. "But he doesn't need you to be hard on him. He needs support and love. I've tried my best to give him this but he doesn't seem to understand. Gared, for the sake of your son, please stop jumping on every mistake you see. He doesn't need your criticism."
"I understand. Truly I do. And I aim to make an effort in mending this with him. When he returns I'll apologize to him and let him know he has me in his corner. I can't make this mistake again. I won't. He needs to know I'm here for him and that he can speak with me."
"I'm afraid you might have burned that bridge already."
Gared let out a breath. "Then I'll just have to build it up again. That's my punishment."
Link sat there, at the top of Shatterback point, with nothing but Twilight and the Master sword at his side. It was getting dark now and he was beginning to think about heading back to the Domain for some sleep. However, that looming thought that his father would be there made his stomach ache in ways it hadn't sine he first pulled the sword.
He glared down at the blade, feeling an overwhelming anger come over him. He didn't want this. He never wanted this. The only person that did want this for him had been his father. A chance to prove himself as a proper soldier and Knight of Hyrule.
He heard someone sit beside him but his mind was on the blade before him. His eyes couldn't be dragged from the sheen of the sword or it's colourful hilt. He learned to hate the colours of the royal family because of this sword. He was sure his father would scold him for believing this, the man kissing arse since he first swung a sword for those royal bastards.
He heard Sidon clear his throat. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. Your father should not have been so cruel to you. Countless people practice sign language and he had no right…"
"He's correct." Link interrupted, silencing Sidon. "I'm not normal. I speak just fine and yet I have the gall to use a language others desperately need more. I use it because I'm too afraid to speak, too cowardly to say what's on my mind."
He looked over to the zora. "You're the only one I can speak to and it's only because you won't judge me for what I have to say. You and your sister accept me and all that comes with me." He lowered his head now. "But I can't handle this anymore. I can't handle the silence or keeping things to myself. I can't handle how easily people thrust me into a hole I don't fit in. And every day I have to look into the eyes of people who see me as their hero when I've done nothing to earn this title. I hate it. I hate every moment of it."
Link gripped onto the sword tighter now, Twilight whining at the new tense atmosphere.
"I wish I could cast it all away and run off."
The wolf suddenly perked his head, ears flicking at what Link did not know.
Sidon rest a hand on Link's shoulder. "I understand, my friend. Things are difficult for you. But you do understand you are well loved, yes? We would hate to see you leave so abruptly."
Sidon gave him a pat. "Stay here if you must, but please do not think about leaving. I'm sure everything will be fine in the morning and all will be sorted out. I promise you this, my friend."
Link leaned into Sidon's touch, distantly wondering how long it had been since he last had contact like this. His father hadn't been this close with him in a while, and he rarely got to see his mother and sister anymore. He missed this kind of closeness with people. He missed having an opinion.
He missed himself.
Sidon stayed for a little bit but stood up all too soon for Link. He wanted the Zora to stay and comfort him some more, but he supposed the man had other things to do than to make him feel better. He was a prince, after all. He had his people to care for.
Now Link wished he were a Zora.
Silence followed after Sidon left. The air was still and the sky got darker. Against his better judgement and Sidon's pleas, Link found himself wondering what it would be like to just get up and leave. To abandon his place here in Hyrule and just go on with the wind. What did a sword know about who was a hero and who was not? What did it have to say? He could abandon it here and never look back. The Calamity can be fought without him. The champions knew more about what they were doing anyhow.
He suddenly heard a low bark from behind him and he turned to see Twilight was up and looking back at him. The wolf's blue eyes seemed to shimmer almost, like they had a knowing behind them.
Link stood up, eyes narrowing in question.
Twilight took a few steps forward, looking back once he stopped again. Was he trying to tell him something?
"You… want me to follow?"
Another low bark, the wolf stepping forwards again.
The Hylian decided to do so, if only because he knew this wolf well enough to know he was too smart to be just any other wolf. He was unsure that this was a good idea, but he came to trust the animal as if he had known him for some time.
In actuality… he truly felt he had known him for a lot longer.
Twilight led him away from Shatterback point. Away from the water that was far below them and away from Zora's Domain altogether. It wasn't until they got to the cliff's edge near the north-western side of the domain did Link stop and take a moment to think about what it was this beast was trying to show him.
He thought about the princess and his family, about them waiting for him to return to the Domain to fulfill his duties. And for a moment, just one moment, he thought about what they would think of him should he leave now when they expected him so. But that other part of him, that angry and morose part of him that had slowly been building ever since the Master Sword was first in his hands and he had to become a hero, had won over his heart.
He had to leave.
No one said he couldn't. No one had tied him down and forced him to stay. He did that because he wanted to prove himself. But as it stood… he wasn't proving anything. He was only making things worse for him and those around him. His mother and sister barely saw him, his father treated him like a soldier, and the rest of the Champions could se he wasn't happy. Even Sidon knew there was something wrong with him.
He climbed down the cliffs after Twilight, feeling a strong pang in his soul about leaving. He felt bad. No one would believe it, but he felt terrible for leaving like this. But what else was there to do? Speak his mind and be berated for that as well? Tell off the King or his daughter and have his head cut off? No, he didn't want that. He just wanted his freedom.
And now he had it.