Salty Seas, Fearful Hearts
Wild loves water, loves swimming but only on her terms. This was not on her terms.
.
.
.
Link couldn't remember the last time she had entered a pool of water without her first acknowledging she would be—let alone without the Zora Armour.
So when the ground falls out from beneath her and she plummets straight into a body of water—she can't help it, can't help that instinctive reaction.
She panics.
She forgets; forgets how she has been travelling with the heroes of the past and alternate timelines; forgets Hyrule's comforting hand and soothing aura; forgets Warriors brotherly instincts to make sure she's well combed; forgets Legends snarky comments about her more obscure habits; forgets Time's easy and silent company; forgets Wind's contagious exhilaration; forgets Twilight's ease at comforting her after a nightmare; forgets Sky's soft and peaceful presences; forgets Four with their shared excitement over all the weapons she has…
All she can recognise is the water around her.
All she remembers is drowning.
The hazy memories always tucked away at the back of her head, shoved there by the trauma, coming rushing back.
She sinks back into that basin—into the Shrine's pool, water filling her lungs and the agony that comes for so, so long before everything slowly become numb.
She's in that void, in that enclosed tomb again.
She takes a gasping breath and—it hurts. Why does it hurt?
She couldn't move without a scream tearing free from her throat, but the sound is nothing but a gurgle as—can'tbreathecan'tbreathecan'tbreathecan'tbreathecan'tbreathecan'tbreathecan't—
Her lungs protest, convulse and her throat closes like a hand had clamped around it. She chokes, her airway burns and burns and burns—
Static invaded until nothingness creeps in from the corners.
.
.
.
"Wild!"
Any other time, Wind might have rejoiced at being back in his native Hyrule but that wasn't the case this time—not when as soon as both Wild and he hit the water and Wind quickly surfacing, he realises—Wild didn't.
Wind's hit with this—this pure panic.
"Wild?!" He searched but there was nothing, then that meant—
Wind dived beneath the water, saltwater stinging his eyes but, fuck it, Wild was more important.
He could see the faint outline of something, something that was convulsing and Wind swam, forcing himself against the water to go deeper and deeper into the depths of the ocean.
Wild! Oh Hylia, please don't die, please don't die!
He wrapped an arm around her waist, her back against his chest before kicking up.
They broke the surface and Wind coughed, lungs burning but—Wind became increasingly aware of Wild's body spasming but, no movement of the chest.
Wild wasn't breathing.
"Wild?" Wind whimpered, feeling his eyes burn, "Hang on Wild!"
Wind lay on his back, kicking and swimming towards the familiar shoreline of Outset Island. When he could swim no further, back hitting sand, Wind dragged Wild out of the water and onto the sandy beach.
He collapsed to his knees, panting for breath. As a sailor, learning CPR was a standard thing—he could remember Tetra taking those first few minutes when Wind had first joined her to search for Aryll to do just that.
But Wind had never been faced with a situation where he'd been forced to use it.
Wind swallowed, placing his hands on Wild's chest and began compressions, "C'mon Wild, c'mon."
One, two, three, five, six, eleven, twenty, twenty-five, thirty.
Nothing.
Wind titled Wild's head, pinched her nose and delivered two breaths.
Still nothing.
Absently, Wind was aware of shouting but it didn't make it passed the ringing in his ears.
He began compressions again.
"C'mon Wild," He begged and delivered another two breaths.
The shouting was getting closer now, the sound of feet pounding across the sand.
"Wind!" "Wild!"
More compressions.
Someone hit the sand the other side of Wild.
Hyrule, Wind noted.
Hyrule pressed two fingers to Wild's neck, then scrambled for her wrist.
Twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven—
Legend, Twilight—Warriors, Sky.
Twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty.
Nothing.
Wind gave a cry of anguish and delivered the third set of breaths then—
Wild choked, water spilling from her parted lips.
Hyrule rolled her, Wind was pulled back by someone and he went limply, choking on a sob. He was held against familiar armour, Time, and Wind could barely register all the movement passed his hypervigilant focus on Wild.
Hyrule supported her head as she, not conscious, no not wake but alive, she was alive, coughed and threw up water.
Blue eyes peaked out from behind eye lids, but no, Wild wasn't a awake, the hazy glaze was clear.
Oh, why couldn't she be awake? Wind needed to see her awake. Needed to know she was going to be okay.
A whimper escaped her and Legend gently ran a hand through her fringe soothingly, muttering quietly.
"Wind?" Time's quiet voice brought him back.
"Yea…Yeah?" Is his breathless response.
"Do you know where we are?"
Wind nodded, adrenaline finally beginning to taper off, "My home's not too far away."
.
.
.
He woke sluggish, lids crusty and limbs heavy. He was tempted to return to sleep, but that was before he remembered everything that happened and it snapped him wide awake. Wind sat up, blanket falling, in a wild frenzy, scrambling to find Wild.
Time clamping a hand on his shoulder stilled him however, "Easy there, Wind."
Wind only sucked in a breath, slumping under the firm hand.
"You crashed," Time smiled softly, "Once we'd made sure Wild was comfortable, you pretty much passed out on us."
Wind was sure had this been any other situation, he would have been embarrassed but—he let out a breath, eyes searching the room to see Hyrule was spawled out on a bedroll at the foot of his bed and Legend was sat in a chair beside his bed where Wild had been set.
He could heard the quiet and soft wheezy breaths and he silently thanked Hylia.
Legend, who had been engaged in the book he was holding, looked up, "She hasn't woken up yet, but Hyrule and I are confident she'll make a full recovery. We're just keeping watch to make sure she's not going to choke on any water that might be left in her lungs."
Wind nodded, but it didn't help the sense of dread that still lingered in his chest as he climbed to his feet, shifting awkwardly. Wind wanted to help in some way but knew there wasn't anything he could offer.
He ruffled his head in annoyance and instead asked: "How long have I been sleeping?"
"Three hours," Time filled in, "Your sister came up not too long ago to say your grandmother had started preparing dinner."
At the mention of food, Wind's stomach rumbled. Legend snickered and Wind flipped him off.
"I'll go see how that's coming along then," and maybe find some way to keep himself occupied otherwise Wind would drive himself crazy worrying about Wild.
Something that they had all noticed about Wild was that—she showed her maturity a lot, showed her true age but, there was also a sense of immaturity, like a part of her had mentally regressed alongside her body. Her antics could be childish and topping some of those things with her adult-mindset, could result in pure chaos.
If someone took their eyes off Wild for too long she'd sneak away to do, well, wild stuff, she had a habit of talking both Hyrule and him into joining her. So yeah, she could get into situations, however, Wild was more than capable of handling those situations nine times out of ten. She's learnt and grown so much in the two years she'd been awake, she's told them; Madius and Zelda had told them. Learnt and worked in harmony with the world around her in ways unexpected, she paid keen attention almost twenty-four seven and it was hard to sneak up on her or catch her by surprise.
So it was surprising and horrifying to see her like this.
Could she not swim?
No, no, she must be able to. She had the Zora Armour, Wind doubts Madius would allow her to be crippled like that in any way. She had shown no fear when the group had been around other bodies of water, albeit those were not an ocean.
Had the portal disorientated her so much, she had no time to act before she was submerged and—
No, no, thinking about all this wouldn't help Wind in any way. He'd just have to ask once Wild was awake.
It's only the next day does Wild show signs of waking, twitches become more common, a sense of restlessness even in her sleep and Wind is sat on the edge of his bed, eagerly waiting. None of the others would talk him out of staying by her side! Hyrule and Legend were allowed! Wind knows Twilight spent most of the night sitting beside Wild so there was no pointing in denying it, Twi!
When, finally, Wild's eyes crack open and she takes a deep breath, only to cough, Wind and Hyrule both do their best to sooth her.
"Easy Wild," Hyrule brushes her fringe out of her face as Wild tries to breath without coughing, discomfort twisting onto her face as she struggled to do so.
Wind shuffled anxiously and helped her take a drink of water once Wild had stopped coughing.
"How are you feeling?" Wind questioned.
Wild blinked, "What 'appened?"
"You almost drowned," Hyrule answers as he helps her sit up, "Wind had to preform CPR on you."
Wild paled and her fingers trembled.
"Hey," Hyrule called softly, takes her hands into his, squeezing gently, "Breathe, Wild, you're safe."
She nodded mutely and thankfully the glaze of panic eased up.
"Can—Can you not swim, Wild?" Wind asked.
Wild startled, "Can, I can," she insisted with wide pleading eyes, "I can swim, promise!"
"Calm," Hyrule reaffirmed, "Don't work yourself up, Bugaboo."
Wild wilted and pressed the palms of her hands into her eyes, "Was sudden."
"You didn't expect it?"
"Bad memories," she chokes out with a nod, eyes turning distant, "Don't like 'membering."
"Then don't force yourself, okay?" Wind tugged at her shirt, bringing Wild back with a blink.
"Wind's right, we're not going to force you to tell us, not when something like that's traumatic and reminds you of something you'd rather not remember, yeah?"
Numbly, Wild nodded, "'kay."
She was quiet for the rest of the day, haunted by the experience, Wind knows, and there was nothing they could really do to help her.