Hey, all! Been a while, huh? Turns out trying to be a teacher and a writer at the same time is really hard. Also, I'm terrible at time management, but you knew that already. Anywho, today's chapter: I always wondered about the give-and-take nature of Tetra and Link's relationship. On the one hand, Link's an honest hero with standards and values, always doing the right thing regardless of how difficult it is. Tetra, meanwhile, grew up as a pirate on a harsh ocean. She probably has no qualms about doing some dirty work if she feels it's necessary. And so what happens if these two ever disagreed on how to handle a situation? Between Link's morals and Tetra's practicality, who would persevere?

Legacy

She was pissed.

She was normally quick to anger, given her tendency to wear her emotions on her sleeve. But it had been a while since she'd been worked up this much. And it was even rarer that Link was the subject of her fury. Right now it was taking all she had to keep her composure as the two of them stalked back to the ship, trying to hold her tongue until they were at least out of hearing range of the villagers. But once they were in the safety of her room, oh, she was going to let him have it. Despite her best judgement, she shot a glance behind her at the young man, glaring daggers as she did.

To anyone else, he would have appeared normal; there was no outward indication that he was upset. But she'd known him too long, knew what signs to watch for. His brow was slightly creased, giving him the appearance of slight discomfort, if nothing else. His hands were clenched at his sides, tight fists held at his waist instead of swinging forwards with his movement. And most importantly, he didn't meet her gaze, instead staring straight ahead as if she hadn't turned around. Yeah, he was mad too. Well, let him be. She certainly didn't care. All that mattered was unloading her anger onto the source of the problem.

They crossed the dock where the ship was tied and headed up the gangplank. She refused to glance around, but noticed in her periphery that her men were scattered around the ship, doing chores or performing their duties. Every pair of eyes turned to them as they stepped onto the deck, though no one uttered a sound. Everyone simply watched the young couple cross the deck and disappear below without a word of their absence.

She stomped down the steps and threw open her bedroom door, standing beside it while Link slowly made his way past her into the room. She tossed the door closed before rounding on him, her temper close to breaking.

"What the fuck were you thinking?!"

Link's eyes narrowed, and suddenly he looked far more dangerous than he had just a moment ago. Even she almost buckled under his cold stare.

"That's how you want to start, then? Fine."

Link closed his eyes for a moment, appearing to try and collect himself, before his eyelids fluttered open and his gaze met hers.

"Here's what I was thinking," he said with forced levelness, holding up a finger. "One, those were not run-of-the-mill bandits. They were dangerous. Far too much for these villagers to handle. Two," he continued, holding up another finger, "we can't ask civilians to throw themselves into a fight when they have no experience or training. It's unfair. They'll just get themselves killed."

"At least they'll die fighting to protect themselves, instead of living in constant fear!" she argued. "If they always rely on people like us to save them, they'll never grow. They'll never learn!"

"They aren't fighters," Link repeated slowly, as if she was a child. "It's not our place to force them into a decision."

"Right, of course," she spat with a roll of her eyes. "Instead you expected just the two of us to hold off against a raid of bandits without any help. We aren't miracle workers, you clod. We could have died!"

Link scoffed. "We were fine. Next time we'll take the others. We'll be a lot stronger."

"Oh, so it's okay to put my men in danger for these people, but it's too much to ask them to protect themselves," she laughed bitterly. "Way more fair."

Link bristled, glowering at her. "Your men are pirates," he said carefully, seeming to struggle controlling his own anger. "Yes, they do know how to handle themselves in situations like this. They're far more viable than the locals."

"And what happens when we leave?" she countered. "When the bandits come back again? What are they going to do? Just hide and hope for safety, lose everything each time until they die?"

Link's mouth clamped shut, and she felt a cruel satisfaction at shutting him up. Usually he was the one throwing logic at her; it was nice to be on the other side for once.

"We'll worry about that later," he said dismissively, turning his back to her and heading for the door. "We'll all deal with them the next time they return, and then figure out a strategy from there."

"Hey! I'm not done!" she cried, not believing her eyes. He couldn't just leave. They weren't finished!

"Link, stop!" she repeated, but he'd gotten to the door and was reaching for the handle. "I said stop! That's an order!"

The room fell silent as neither of them moved. She hadn't quite meant to yell, but she wasn't letting him walk away yet. There was still something they needed to discuss.

Link's hand, frozen in mid-air as it stretched for the handle, slowly fell back to his side. He turned round to face her again, and now she could truly see the fury on his face. It was only a handful of times she'd ever seen that expression, and never directed at her.

"I'm sorry," he almost whispered, cocking a brow at her. "You're ordering me around?"

She felt her face grow hot as a wave of shame washed over her. "I- That's not what I-"

"You think I'm just one of your crew to command?" he continued, ignoring her as he began to step forward. "That I'll do whatever you say because you're the captain? Is that where we stand now?"

He drew level with her, his eyes burning, but she didn't falter. Meeting his gaze with her own, she said, "Well, are you any better? You just expect my men to follow what you say? Or do you just assume I'll do what you say and they'll follow me?"

Link was silent, and she crossed her arms and turned away, content to let her accusations hang in the air. She studied him for a moment as he stared hard at the wall. He was still mad, but she suspected there was something else just below the surface. He seemed… just a bit less angry than he'd been. What else was it?

"Besides," she added, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye, "if anyone's to blame for this, it's you. You could've ended it all and truly saved those people, and you didn't. You froze."

His head snapped back to her so quickly she was surprised she didn't hear something break. The anger was back at full force, she noticed.

"How dare you," he spat. "I didn't freeze. I let him go on purpose. I thought you of all people would know better."

"On purpose?!" she repeated in disbelief. "He was their leader! If you'd killed him, they all would've left! They wouldn't have dared return!"

"You don't know that!" he exclaimed. "But that isn't the point. I don't kill unarmed opponents, even if they're monsters. It wouldn't have been right."

"Wouldn't have been- What the hell are you talking about?!" she cried. "They are monsters! There's no place in the real world for your stupid morals! You have to be practical! Otherwise you die!"

Link exhaled sharply, glancing away. "That's what this is for you? Just survival of the fittest? Do what it takes to win?"

She shut her eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm herself, trying and failing to unclench her hands. "Life is unfair, and sometimes it's cruel," she spoke carefully. "You have to do your best to fight back. It's the only shot you have at surviving." She pointed to her window. "It's the only shot they have at surviving."

Link shook his head. "They'd be slaughtered. All of them."

"Then why didn't you end it?!" she yelled, her frustration flaring up once again. "You could have saved them, if you weren't such a goddamn hero all the fucking time!"

He glared at her, an icy glare that would've upset her if she wasn't so angry. Silence stretched out between them until finally Link moved. He turned his back to her and marched to the door, throwing it open and then slamming it shut behind him.

She watched him go, no desire to stop him this time. After a few seconds she blew out a breath and fell back onto her bed. Why was he being so stubborn about this? It wasn't like him. Sure, sometimes they disagreed on how to handle circumstances, but never to this degree. Why was this different?

Could she be in the wrong? She was just trying to think practically; once they left the villagers would have to look after themselves. And wouldn't that be better in the long run? Letting them help themselves instead of always waiting for another to bail them out? It was the way things were supposed to be, in her eyes. You look after your own. And if everyone works together, there's a higher chance that everyone comes out alive.

Then again, she could also see Link's side of things, now that she'd cooled down a bit. Perhaps it was reckless to insist on throwing the villagers into battle. They'd have no idea what they were doing, and would probably buckle to fear. But there had to be a solution. Maybe if they both calmed down and discussed it rationally, they could come up with an answer that appeased them both.

After all, he was a hero. She supposed it was kind of shitty to attack him for acting exactly like he was supposed to. On the other hand, his inaction had essentially guaranteed another attack, and soon. The two of them had interrupted this assault completely by accident. The bandits were sure to return to finish their job, and the sooner the better. They had to be ready.

She sighed and swung her legs to the floor. Usually after a fight it was him who'd come looking for her to apologize and make up. But, given how she'd been acting, maybe it was her turn to make things right. Standing, she crossed the room to her door and hesitated upon opening it. Her eyes flicked back and forth between the two staircases before making her decision, descending further into the bowels of the ship to try and find him.

"Link?" she called softly into the darkness, trying to keep her voice light. "Hey, are you down here? Can we talk? Like, actually talk? Not just yell at each-"

She stopped at the foot of the stairs, staring into the barely-lit room. There he was, standing with his back to her and leaning against a stack of crates, his eyes covered by a tightly-clenched hand. Was he shaking? Or was that just a trick of the candlelight? She moved towards him, trying to gauge how angry he still was. If she approached and he blew up at her, it was only fair. How many times had she done it to him over the years?

She carefully moved up beside him, trying to see his face, but he was still covering his eyes. His jaw was set, she noticed, and he did seem to be shuddering a bit. With a frown, she slowly extended a hand to his shoulder.

"Hey," she said quietly with a gentle shake, "can you look at me, please? Even if you're still mad at me, and you probably should be. I'm sorry about earlier, I just…" She trailed off. Link still hadn't reacted. "Link, please. Look at me?"

Still nothing. So, carefully, she moved her hand from his shoulder to his face, trying to pull his hand away from his eyes. To her surprise, he resisted, his hand not budging. Why was he hiding from her?

"Link," she pleaded. "What is it? Is it me? Please tell me if it's me."

She pulled a bit harder, and felt his hand begin to move away. She could finally get a clear look at his face. She hated bothering him, but they couldn't just sit on this. She wanted them back to normal, even if that meant facing the fury that was raging in his… tears?

He was… crying?

His eyes were clamped shut, but she could still make out tear trails running down his cheeks. She found herself at a loss for words. It had been years, literally years, since she'd seen him cry. Not really since they'd first met, when he was still getting used to being a hero. Early on he'd been overwhelmed so often, constantly stressed to his limit and breaking down over trivial failures. But he'd grown, and improved, and matured. She'd almost forgotten he was even capable of feeling down like this.

"Hey," she coaxed gently, placing a palm on his cheek and turning his head toward her. "What's wrong? Did I upset you because of what I said?" She flinched at the still-recent memory of the frustration she'd thrown at him. All of it seemed empty now. Why did she try and hurt him? He was just doing what he believed was right, the same as her! What in the world was wrong with her?

"Link, I'm sorry." The words spilled out faster than she'd intended, but she wasn't used to seeing him like this. "Maybe you were right. I was being callous. I'm sorry I yelled at you and hurt you and-"

She stopped short as Link slowly shook his head, eyes still closed. His mouth opened, but his voice caught in his throat. He coughed and tried to speak again, eyes still tightly shut.

"Not you," he choked out, and she blinked in surprise. He… wasn't upset with her? Now she was confused. If not her, then what?

She suddenly felt awkward, standing next to her upset boyfriend without providing any comfort. Carefully, she put her arms around him and pulled him into her. Link stiffened but didn't fight the gesture, allowing himself to be held against her. She began rubbing a hand up and down his back, trying to soothe him however she could.

They stayed like that for a moment, neither speaking. Link made no effort to move, which she took to be a decent sign. Sure, he wasn't hugging her back, but at least he wasn't trying to hide himself away anymore. All she could do was be patient and provide comfort. If he wanted to tell her, he would. If not, then she wouldn't press. She'd be the kind of caregiver he always was with her; it was the very least he deserved.

"It's too much sometimes," he whispered, and her attention snapped to him. She waited for him to elaborate, but he fell silent again.

"What is?" she asked quietly, still rubbing his back. Link let out a shaky breath and his eyes fluttered open.

"Being… a hero," he said quietly as another tear fell down his cheek. She waited again, sure that he would elaborate this time. He took a deep breath in an attempt to compose himself, and blew it out while his eyes stared out past her.

"There are so many expectations of me," he finally spoke, wiping away fresh tears. "Everyone expects me to save them, to help them, to be the shining beacon of hope on the ocean. But I have to be careful about what I do, or else people will lose faith in me. No one will put their trust in a murderer. No one will stand behind a coward. I always have to run in and handle a situation, no matter how dangerous it is. No matter how much I'm in over my head.

"Everyone expects me to be perfect. They think I always have an answer, or that I'm always the paradigm of justice to hold others to. I didn't kill that bandit because the people would've just seen it as one outsider killing another. I know how the people think. I've seen it enough to know how it'll go.

"But I've always had you at my side to help me through the hard times and tough decisions. But when it gets hard and you don't support me… When you think I'm not doing enough… Or that my way isn't the 'right' way… I can't…"

His voice disappeared as he began to shake again. Her heart plummeted into her stomach as the realization crashed over her. She'd let him down. Exactly when he'd needed her to stand beside him, supporting him, she'd simply critiqued him and accused him of being weak. She was a terrible girlfriend. He deserved someone far more than an awful piece of shit like her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered as tears began to fall from her eyes as well. She closed her arms tighter around him, desperately hoping that he'd understand through her actions where she'd failed so spectacularly with words. "Link, I'm sorry! I shouldn't be putting this on you! You're right, I'm terrible! I should be supporting you!"

Link shook his head against her. "I never called you that," he mumbled into her shoulder.

"I'm calling me that! It's the truth!" Tears were still running down her cheeks, and she angrily wiped them away. She was so disgusted with herself she didn't know how to process it. What in the hell had she been thinking?

"I know you're right," he spoke again, and her attention returned. "I know we should be getting them to fight for themselves, so they aren't dependant on us. But I can't just order them into battle. They aren't soldiers! They're farmers! If I do, they'll all die, and it'll be all my fault."

She shook her head and pulled away, forcing him to look at her. She felt a fire burning within her again, but her anger wasn't for him this time. He needed to know the truth.

"Link, listen to me. You're the Hero of Winds, remember? You went toe-to-toe with the King of Evil and with a parasite of darkness. You've already saved more people than anyone will know. You don't owe them anything, do you hear me? Not a goddamn thing. The whole frickin' ocean should be on their knees thanking you for all you've done. You don't deserve to feel like this."

"There's more expected of me," Link said quietly, eyes cast downward. "The King knew that when he appointed-"

"Screw the King!" she shot back, then regretted her choice of words. It wouldn't do to start up another fight right now. "I mean," she corrected, "you're still human too. No one can do everything. Certainly not alone."

"But I'm the hero," he mumbled. "Like you said: the Hero of Winds, successor to the Hero of Time. I'm supposed to be continuing what he started. That's what I was chosen to be. I have to be more than others."

"You choose your destiny, not higher powers," she argued. "You're still you. And you need help just as much as anyone else does. Please don't think you can't ask for it just because you're a hero."

His gaze remained on the floor, so she tilted his chin back up to her. After a moment of coaxing, his eyes travelled up to hers, and she gave him a sad smile.

"I want to be your partner," she said as she grabbed his hands in her own. "I want to be the one standing by your side and supporting you in everything you do. That's nothing less than what you deserve, understand? You help me through my shit all the time. I would never have made it this far without you. I want to be that foundation for you, the way you've always been for me."

She stepped in close to wrap him in another hug. "And I don't ever want you thinking that I don't support you. I swear I do. I'm sorry I made you think I didn't care. And I'm sorry I wasn't thinking about your situation. I just made it worse by arguing with you and fighting."

"It's okay," Link whispered over her shoulder. "It's-"

"It's not okay," she refuted with a shake of her head. "And it won't happen again, okay? I promise I'll be a better partner to you. We're supposed to work together, not just snap at each other when things get hard. I'm sorry I got frustrated with you and your ideas."

"I know," he whispered. "I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have gotten angry at you. I just felt…"

"Stuck," she finished with a nod. "I won't put you through that again. I want to help you, not fight. We should be working together to find a solution."

He seemed to be considering her words before finally nodding, the corner of his mouth pulling up into what might've been called a smile, if she was desperate.

"Okay."

He still seemed unhappy, and she knew he probably would for a while yet. After all, it's not like she was ever quick to drop her anger. But that was okay. She'd be here helping him feel better until he was. Just like he always did.

"I guess we should come up with a plan," he spoke, slowly pulling away from her arms and awkwardly wiping his face dry. "Figure out if we're staying or leaving."

"Oh, we're staying," she said with certainty. "And I actually have an idea on what to do."

Link looked at her expectantly, a shadow of his usual curiosity flickering across his features. She fought the urge to smile; it was a start.

"You didn't want the villagers to fight because they were inexperienced," she began. "So what if we trained them how to fight? They have a lot of tools lying around. Between you and me, I bet we could make decent warriors out of them."

Link actually did crack a small smile at that. "That way they learn to take care of themselves," he said with a nod. "And we aren't putting the boys in unnecessary danger."

"Win-win," she answered with a shrug. "What do you think?"

Link was silent for a moment, staring down at his hands while deep in thought. After a moment he glanced up and asked, "Would you mind staying here until the next attack? That way you and I can lead them in their defence? I just think it would help their chances if there were experienced fighters helping them. I'd feel better than just leaving them on their own to the bandits and-"

She placed a finger on his lips to stop him. Sometimes he talked too much.

"You don't have to justify yourself, hero," she said with a grin. "Of course we'll stay. You're right, it gives them the best chance to learn and to survive."

Link smiled and pulled her into a hug. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me," she whispered as he hugged him tightly. "It's what I'm here for."

They held each other tightly, the animosity from earlier gone. She felt Link exhale and sink into her, and she fought the tears that began to prick again at her vision. No more tears; it was time to get to work.

"C'mon," she said, pulling away and grabbing his hand. Leading him back up the stairs to her room, she squeezed his fingers and ran her thumb over her knuckles. Despite herself, she looked back at him with a warm smile. "Let's go work out a plan."