notes 1: omg, I'm sorry. writer's block again. I am trying, I promise.
notes 2: by the way, whenever I mention the Master Sword responding to Link's touch—that's Fi. I like to think she's always watching over him, even though he doesn't know she's there ಥ‿ಥ especially since Navi isn't around to watch over their boy anymore.
disclaimer: Zelda is not mine.
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The horse shifted beneath her, tossing his mane restlessly. Zelda squinted through the falling cinders to watch as the enemy army emerged from the haze. The sky above her was the color of blood. Soon enough, the ground would be red too.
She could hear the nervous breathing of her army, spread out behind her. Zelda feared for them, and for herself.
Smoke was rising from Death Mountain, and she could see the glimmer of lava running down its sides. The enemy was getting closer. Zelda watched as a figure appeared at the head of the army. Her armor was silver, her skin brown. A long dark braid swung behind her as she walked forward. Her eyes gleamed dangerously, full of malice.
When her gaze fell upon Zelda, her lips pulled back into a feral smile.
Zelda woke all at once, fear lodged in her throat. Her heart was hammering. Something felt wrong, like a sickness in the air. She pulled in a breath and shoved the blankets off her legs, scrambling out of bed and crossing to the door.
Just as her hand closed around the doorknob, the ground gave a great jerk under her feet. Zelda stumbled, barely managing to catch herself on the wall. The earth was heaving underneath her like a bucking horse. There was a low, menacing rumbling, and she could hear fearful voices as the palace awoke. The furniture creaked and groaned, and the jewelry and makeup on her vanity went tumbling to the floor. It reminded Zelda too much of the day her father had died, and she tasted bile at the back of her throat.
The door flung open and Impa rushed inside, grabbing her by the arms. "It's just an earthquake," she said loudly over the rumbling. "It will pass."
Surely enough, the shaking eased into trembling, the trembling into stillness. Zelda and Impa clung together until they were sure it was over. The bedraggled nobles whose quarters were nearby were spilling out into the hall, chattering nervously. Zelda pulled out of Impa's arms and went outside, curling her hands into fists at her sides to hide their shaking.
"Gather some other guards and sweep the castle," she ordered the two guards standing nearby. "Check for damages. If anyone is injured, see that they are brought to the infirmary. Report back to me when you're done." They nodded and set off, while Zelda turned to the nobles, who stared at her like wide-eyed sheep.
"All is well, my lords and ladies," she told them gently. "It was only a small quake." That was the same thing her father had said, on the day Majora's Mask had attacked Hyrule Castle and he'd been crushed in the debris. But there was no reason to tell the nobles that.
As they peeled off back to their bedrooms, she looked back at Impa. "This may be paranoid, but I want you to send out your scouts. Make sure the city is secure. I want to be sure this was really just an earthquake, not Majora's work."
Impa headed for the stairs, while Zelda slipped back inside her chambers and drew back the curtains. It was still dark, but the moon was low in the sky. Morning wasn't far away, and she wasn't going to get any more sleep at this point. Even though the earthquake was over, fear was lingering under her skin. She felt very cold.
Zelda thought of the woman in her dream and her sharp, vicious eyes, realization suddenly dawning on her. She'd been having prophetic dreams for as far back as she could remember. Her dream and the earthquake were connected.
She was still shaking as she splashed her face with water and dressed in the dark, wishing for the deft, reassuring hands of her handmaidens, but they wouldn't arrive for several more hours. The halls were empty when Zelda left her chambers, save for the guard posted at her door. He trailed behind her quietly as they walked, the only sound the clicking of their shoes on the floor and the crackling of the torches lining the walls.
Link was outside the door to his room when she approached, crouched down before a sobbing child with a mess of ginger hair. Link had a hand on the girl's shoulder and was speaking to her soothingly.
"What's going on?" Zelda asked as he stood up to face her.
"The earthquake scared her," Link said sheepishly, glancing down as the girl locked her arms around his leg with a vice-like grip.
Trying not to laugh, Zelda knelt down and pried the girl from Link's leg gently. "What's your name, little one?"
"Elise," she sniffled.
Frowning, Zelda pushed back her orange curls to reveal a familiar face. "Oh. Elise, this man is going to take you back to your mother, all right?" Getting to her feet, Zelda addressed the guard. "Find Lady Valerie, please. She must be worried sick about her daughter. I will be safe enough here."
As the guard took the little girl by the hand and led her away, Zelda wrapped her arms around herself and looked up at Link. His hair was tousled with sleep, and the torchlight glinted off the many scars marring his bare chest and arms. Something in her gaze made him frown. Wordlessly, he put a hand on Zelda's back and propelled her gently into his quarters.
Link's room was small and simple, furnished only by a bed and a dresser. The Master Sword leaned against the bed, where he always kept it as he slept. He'd chosen this room years ago for the wide window overlooking Castle Town and the field beyond it. Zelda remembered her father's annoyance when she'd told him she was reserving a chamber for the little boy from the forest.
My father, she thought. She was remembering him everywhere tonight—dying in the earthquake, lying for the nobles' sake, grimacing at her naivety. He'd looked down on Zelda for her whole life, but still she hoped the Goddesses had granted him peace, wherever he was.
She sank down into the window seat and leaned her back against the wall, drawing her legs up to her chest as Link went to the dresser and pulled on a shirt. When he was done, he sat down opposite her and looked out through the glass. Zelda could see dark circles under his eyes, and she pressed her lips together, wondering if the nightmares had kept him awake as they so often did. There was a moment of silence as they watched the first bit of light appear in the eastern sky, young and blushing like a maiden girl.
"There's a chill in the air," Link observed, voice low.
"Yes," Zelda agreed softly. "I had a dream."
He listened in silence, his blue eyes trained on her face the whole time. When she was done, he pulled in a long breath and let it out in a rush. "The woman you saw is Majora," Link said grimly.
She nodded. "I thought as much. This dream paralleled the one I had five months ago, just before you arrived here. But Majora wasn't there back then." Her eyes widened as part of the dream came back to her. "Death Mountain…it was erupting."
Link swore under his breath and reached for his boots, tugging them on his feet. "When Volvagia was living in the volcano, there were always tremors before each eruption. We have to go to Death Mountain today."
Zelda pressed her lips together. "I have matters of state to handle," she admitted. "I can't go, I'm sorry."
A funny crooked grin quirked up Link's lips, and he leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. "Don't apologize for ruling your kingdom," he said as he stood and buckled his sword belt onto his back, then fixed his shield there as well.
Zelda felt her face flush with heat and smiled. She would've thought that being a queen put her above blushing, but she was still sixteen. "Be careful," she called after Link as he swung the door open. He gave her a wave and strode out the door.
Zelda stayed for a few minutes longer, gazing out the window. The sun was rising, and it warmed her back, chasing away the chill of the night.
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By the time they reached the summit, Link was drenched in sweat. It seemed to get hotter and hotter with each step, and he almost wished for the red tunic that had protected him through the Fire Temple. Next to him, though, Darunia was barely even panting.
"Not much use in going up any further," the big Goron rumbled. "The earthquake made us suspicious, and now I can feel the heat from here. Death Mountain will erupt very soon."
Link didn't doubt Darunia's judgement, but he had to see for himself. Careful of where he placed his feet, he climbed up as far as he dared, until he could lean out over the craggy rocks. Sure enough, the lava blazed red-hot on the walls of the cavern, dangerously close to the top. Even from here the heat seared Link's face, and it was hard to breathe.
He shoved himself off the rock and clambered down back to where Darunia was waiting, where the footing was more even. "It's bad," Link admitted. "I have to get back to the queen as soon as I can."
On their way down, they had to stop to rest in a cave on the mountainside. Link coughed, trying to clear the ash out of his lungs, and took a gulp from his water skin. "What can your people do to contain the eruption?" he asked Darunia.
"Start digging trenches," he grunted. "We'll do our best to keep the lava from the going too far. In the meantime, I'll see that my city is ready to evacuate if need be. Kakariko too." He clapped Link on the shoulder, nearly knocking him over. "Do not worry, Brother. The Goron have lived in the volcano's shadow for centuries. We know how to combat it."
"I'm sure Zelda will help," Link assured. "I'll see if she can send troops to—"
He was cut off when the dirt behind him exploded and Darunia gave a shout of alarm. Link drew the Master Sword and whirled around, using the momentum to power his swing. The blade met thick, unyielding flesh. Link looked up, the fear rising in his throat the way it always did, to meet the cold black eyes of a Dead Hand.
It had been a long, long time since the last time he'd fought one of these things, but he still remembered the paralyzing fear and the chill of its bite. Teeth bared, it lunged towards him, but Link threw himself out of the way and yanked his shield on his arm. Fire blazed somewhere behind him, casting light that danced wildly on the walls of the cave—that would be Darunia, but he didn't have time to turn around. He could see many long arms rising from the earth, thin pale things with immense strength. The Dead Hand sank into the ground and was gone.
The hands shot towards Link at an impossible speed, reaching out with black fingernails. He sliced through one, severing the hand from the wrist, then another and another, but each one he felled was replaced. He could hear Darunia yelling and caught a glimpse of him, entangled in grey hands, his voice drowned out by the roar in Link's head. A hand latched around Link's leg, corpse-cold; another seized his shield and wrenched it from his arm, sending it crashing to the ground. Then they were everywhere: wrapped around his middle, restraining his limbs, grabbing a fistful of hair and yanking his head back.
That was when the Dead Hand burst from underground right before his eyes and slid forward, its eyes blank and unfeeling. Its acrid breath washed over him in waves, and he struggled in the vice-like grip of the hands holding him still.
And then the years of experience flickered away and Link was ten again—not a man, not a hero, but a terrified boy struggling through the dark dank horrors that lurked at the bottom of the well. Panic shot through him like wildfire as the Dead Hand's teeth widened, preparing to tear into Link's flesh. Navi, he thought frantically. Navi, I need Navi, what would she do, what would she say—
The Triforce of Courage gleamed brilliant golden light as he wrenched his sword hand free with all the strength he had, hacking through the hand that held his arm back as the Master Sword hummed with life. The Dead Hand was shooting forward, teeth aimed for Link's bare throat. In one powerful upward swing he drove his sword through its neck, feeling the sharp steel cut through skin and sinew and bone until the monster's head thudded to the ground, severed from its body. Warm blood spattered Link's face as the body fell, the hands holding him releasing their grip.
The Master Sword clanged to the ground. He staggered away, sucking in desperate gasps of air and stumbling over the hands lying on the ground until he was at the opening of the cavern, under the blue blue sky. Link fell to his knees and vomited up the contents of his stomach. Then he swiped at the sticky blood on his face, scrubbing the skin harshly with his gloves. It wouldn't come off. It wouldn't come off. He choked down something that felt half like a laugh and half like a sob.
"Easy, Brother," came Darunia's gruff voice, and then there was a big hand on his back, surprisingly gentle. "Breathe, lad. Breathe."
Link obeyed. In, out, in, out. He stared at the sky, watching an eagle circle far above them until his hammering heart slowed to a quieter pace. He tried to swallow around the thick, tight feeling in his throat. Darunia pressed a skin of water into his hands, and Link rinsed, spat, and drank deep. He handed the skin back, trying not to look at the smear of blood his hands left behind.
"I'm sorry," he said finally, voice dull. "I…" He shook his head, pressing his lips together.
"Sorry for what? You saved my life by killing that thing," Darunia said. "Those hands had me tied down, strong as I am. I don't know how you broke free, but it was incredible."
Navi would tell me it was because I'm brave, Link thought, but he didn't feel brave, and Navi wasn't here. He let his eyes fall shut for a moment longer than the standard blink, then opened them and got to his feet. He didn't want to turn around, but he did. The Dead Hand's headless corpse was sprawled over the rock, its neck still leaking the last bit of blood. The head's eyes were open and staring, that jaw and those terrible teeth gaping wide. The arms were piled up around the body. Link stepped past all of it to get his shield and fasten it to his back, then pick up the Master Sword. The hilt warmed at his touch, a soft greeting. He exhaled and slid it into the scabbard, then turned his back on the carnage.
"Let's go," he said quietly as he walked back out of the cave and past Darunia, halting when he realized the Sage wasn't following.
"Brother," Darunia said when their eyes met, "You don't have to talk to me, but talk to someone, yeah?"
Link nodded, and turned to go back down the mountain.
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Zelda had just returned to her study after sitting through a criminal's trial when he returned. Link looked worn, she saw that immediately, and haggard. She dismissed her people with a wave of her hand; the scribes and nobles went easily, whereas Impa cast a backwards glance before shutting the door.
When Zelda stood up from her desk and opened her arms, Link went into them willingly. He smelled surprisingly clean, like the river. He pressed his lips to her hair, his arms going tight around her.
"Death Mountain will erupt any day now," he mumbled into her shoulder.
Zelda shut her eyes briefly, then opened them again. She wasn't surprised. "I see." When he didn't say anything else, she rubbed his back in slow, gentle circles. "Is there something else wrong?"
Link let out a long, ragged breath. "Zelda, I am so tired of being afraid."
She brought a hand up to rest against his chest, feeling his heart beating strong and relentless, and didn't let him go. "I know," Zelda whispered. "I know."
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