Might I offer you some BOTW Link angst in these trying times?
Revalink and platonic Zelink. A hint of Miphza. Hurt/comfort. Selectively mute Link. Nightmares.
When Link was a kid, he dreamed of being a hero.
No, literally. His dreams were haunted by visions- or maybe memories- of fighting and monsters and villains. In his dreams, he fought and fought and fought and still never won. The monsters always came back.
He would wake up screaming almost every night. His parents were at a loss of what to do. No one knew what was causing these nightmares.
Sometimes, he would dream of things other than fighting. Golden hair, giant birds, an ocarina, lives that weren't quite his.
One night, he dreamt of a sword. It spoke to him. Not with words, but it spoke. It beckoned him. He knew he had to find it-he didn't want to. He didn't have any choice.
The next morning, his parents found his bed empty. He didn't return until late in the evening, carrying a sword and looking more drained than anyone ever should be.
And, well, everyone knows the story after that. The "chosen hero, wielding the sword that seals the darkness." The prodigy child. The knight.
He still got nightmares.
It didn't bother him as much as it did when he was a child. He stopped waking in a panic. But he would only get the bare minimum of sleep that he needed to function, and he never fell asleep around other people. He didn't need anyone else seeing him waking up in a cold sweat nearly every time he closed his eyes.
That got a little bit trickier when he became the princess's appointed knight. Because they were forced to travel together, they had to spend a lot of time together. But Link was always careful, never taking naps and always staying in a different room at inns.
Zelda didn't find it odd at all. In fact, sometimes Link wondered if she thought he was incapable of sleep. After all, weapons didn't sleep.
However, he did notice that he never saw Zelda sleeping, either. But she didn't like him very much, and probably didn't trust him despite him being her guard, so he didn't think too much of it.
But then time passed, and she grew to tolerate him. And then she actually apologized for her coldness towards him, and they became something like friends."We have a lot more in common than I originally thought," she'd said. And Link wanted to agree with her, but as always he'd kept his mouth shut.
They'd been traveling when it began to rain. This had happened many times before, and the only thing they could do was seek shelter in a cave and wait it out. Link was on edge. He and Zelda were both exhausted, but he knew he couldn't fall asleep. Not just because of the monsters in the nightmares, but also because of the ones that existed outside of his mind.
Zelda, on the other hand, needed rest. He knew that he could go days without sleep- he had practice running on nothing. But the princess was another matter entirely.
But, for some reason, she seemed reluctant to fall asleep. They both sat around a fire that Link set to keep warm, but she froze when he suggested that she go to bed.
"Do you ever..." She began, but she shook her head. "Never mind. It's silly." Fire danced off her pale hair and made it look gold. Golden hair.
Link gestured for her to continue, but he had a feeling that he knew what she was going to say.
"Right, um... Do you ever have..." Her voice was hushed, barely a whisper, and Link was almost sure that the wind would blow it away. "Nightmares?"
He exhaled softly as he nodded. Some of the tension eased out of both of them at that confession. "Ever since I could remember," he said, voice hoarse. He didn't use it much.
Zelda nodded as well. "It's like- I know it's strange, but the dreams feel like a past life. As though I'm seeing through the eyes of my ancestors."
They were both quiet. The silence was companionable, they were both comforted by the other's presence. They were fellow soldiers in a battle. Neither of them could really do anything to help the other- but at least they weren't alone.
"Not a single soul could figure out why these nightmares plague me so." Zelda admitted after a while of silence. "Eventually, my father ordered me to stop talking about it, so that people wouldn't worry for me. Or worse, think that the princess of Hyrule is mad." She looked up from the fire, green eyes turned gold. "What do you see?"
Link licked his lips. "Monsters." He said simply.
Zelda sighed. It was a sound of understanding. She turned her gaze back to the flames in front of them. "And you?" He dared to ask.
She shrugged. "Helplessness." Her voice cracked. "And- and monsters. A lot of fighting."
Silence again. And then-
"Link, do you ever get tired of fighting?" Link looked up in shock. Zelda looked weary- a mirror image of what Link saw when he looked at himself. "Do you ever feel like we've done all this before, again and again?"
Slowly, as though careful to not break something in the atmosphere, he nodded. And he must've broken something anyway, because Zelda's eyes filled with tears and a relieved sob escaped her throat. Link moved closer to where she was sitting and wrapped her in a hug, and soon he was sobbing as well.
After that, sleeping didn't get any better. But he felt another wall between them fall away, and they grew more easy in each other's presence.
Sometimes, after a particularly horrid nightmare, they would do what they could to comfort each other. And while it still wasn't perfect, it was okay.
It was something.
Others around them noticed their newfound closeness. It didn't feel new. It felt old, like a bond that had been there since the beginning of time. Once, Mipha questioned him about it.
"Do you love her?" Mipha asked. She wouldn't meet his eyes.
He pondered the question for a moment, weighing the words in his mind. Eventually, he settled on an answer. "Yes," he replied, "but not in the way that you mean. Not like a lover, but... more like we understand each other. Kindred spirits."
He wasn't sure if Mipha believed him, or even understood what he meant. But she smiled at him- albeit weakly- and said nothing more on the subject.
Revali didn't understand him at all. Link knew this. That's why he chose to ignore his taunts and mockery. He didn't have to prove anything to him. If anything, Link agreed when Revali said he was under-qualified.
This only seemed to frustrate the Rito further. He might not have understood Link, but Link understood him. He wanted a reaction. Something, anything, just for Link to acknowledge him. Link gave him no such thing.
Link couldn't have been sure, but part of him felt like Revali was trying to impress him. Always showing off, watching Link's expression carefully for any sign of emotion.
Link tried not to care. He tried to ignore it all. To shut off his emotions, to become cold and lethal and uncaring- an extension of his own blade. Because that's all he was. A weapon.
That's what the golden light whispered to him in his dreams.
Link wasn't entirely sure how he ended up at the flight range with Revali.
He'd noticed the absence of the pretentious bird- it was hard not to- and happened to overhear some of the Rito villagers mentioning that he spent a lot of time tucked away in the mountains, honing his craft. So, with the princess's permission (after all, the Rito warriors were more than capable of looking after her safety for a while) he went down to the flight range to look for him.
After all, while the archer was an ass, he was the best at what he did. And while Link was a swordsman, he wasn't about to pass up an opportunity to learn archery from Hyrule's greatest archer.
It was cold, a thick layer of snow coating everything in white. Flurries fell gently from the sky. It was quiet.
When he got to the flight range, it didn't take him long to spot Revali. He was a blur of blue feathers, flying through the air and shooting at targets. He was completely focused on his training, not seeing Link walk up to the small house and climb the ladder to get inside.
Here goes nothing. He stood on the platform, raising a hand and waving to get Revali's attention. The Rito finally noticed him, swooping down and landing in front of him flawlessly. "Well, what brings the chosen hero to my practice area?" His words were coated with a thin layer of forced contempt that was easily brushed aside.
Link pointed to the bow on Revali's back, and then to his own bow. He carried a lynel's bow that he'd taken from a defeated enemy. The bow was heavy, but powerful.
Revali arched his brow. "What's that? You want me to teach you archery?" He was mocking him. Link nodded, and Revali seemed taken aback.
"Wh-what? The all-powerful hero doesn't know how to shoot a bow?" Actually, he did. Link was somewhat proficient. He wasn't the greatest, however, and knowing to shoot a bow well might prove useful in the future. He opened his mouth to say this, but like usual he found the words refused to make it past his throat. He closed his mouth and shook his head.
Revali regained his composure. "Hmph! Well, if the chosen hero needs my help, then I'll be glad to teach you!" Link relaxed in relief, but tensed again when Revali held up a finger. Feather? "On one condition!"
Link crossed his arms. Well, go on then, he thought. Revali smirked. He leaned close, his face tilted down. His eyes were inches away from Link's. Link was suddenly very aware of his breathing. The very air in his lungs froze like the water in the cold mountains.
And then Revali moved away, and he could breathe again. "I want you to admit that I am of superior skill!" He said smugly.
Link exhaled through his nose. Some other men might refuse, but he didn't care much about his pride. He raised his hands and signed, You're the better archer. Then he paused and wondered if Revali understood sign language.
For a moment, it seemed like he didn't. The archer stood there, staring at Link. Dammit. He should've just written in the snow, or-
"You could speak HSL all this time?!" Revali said incredulously.
Yes, Link hesitantly replied, I didn't think that you could.
He made an offended noise. I'll have you know that I learned many languages from a young age! Revali puffed out his chest. I likely know more than you!
The knight was relieved. Most people didn't know sign language. Revali spoke it a little bit differently than Link, since he had wings instead of hands, but not so differently that it was incomprehensible.
And so that was how he ended up at the flight range with Revali, practicing shooting and bantering almost like friends.
Well, it wasn't really bantering. More like Revali mocking Link and Link responding with short answers. But he gave genuine critiques, and his insults seemed more half-hearted than usual.
And then the next day, Link went back to the flight range. And the next day. And the day after that.
Link and Zelda stayed at Rito Village for a few weeks. In that time period, the two warriors trained together.
And after a while, the insults stopped altogether.
Link and Revali sat together beside the cooking pot in the flight range shack. They'd nearly collapsed out of exhaustion after a long day of training.
Revali signed, When are you and the Princess leaving?
Tomorrow.
Revali turned away, but not before Link caught a frown on his face. A frown he was concealing.
If Link didn't know better, he'd say he looked disappointed.
Link didn't have the mental energy to unpack that at the moment.
He sighed and leaned his head back against the wall. He wasn't going to fall asleep, as much as he would've liked to. He just needed a moment to rest his eyes before going back to the village.
He was not going to fall asleep. No matter how soothing the crackling fire was, or how heavy his eyes were, or...
Against his will, his eyelids began to flutter shut. Just resting for a moment... he thought.
His eyes shut. The nightmare began.
He found himself in a temple- the Temple of Time. He'd been here many times before. In dreams and in waking, he'd been down these halls.
He strode up to a glistening white pedestal, glowing with holy light. There was a horribly familiar sword. It greeted him like an old friend.
He hated it more than anything.
His body moved on its own accord. Up the pedestal. His hand reached out and he wrapped his fingers around the hilt. He couldn't do anything to stop it.
Then, still against his will, he pulled the sword out of the pedestal and-
Fire. Monsters. Darkness. Red eyes. Malice. Golden light. Green. Triangles. Demon. Boar. Beast. Fighting. Dying. Dying. Dying.
Open your eyes, Link!
Link!
"Link, wake up!"
"Link, you dolt, wake up!!"
He jolted awake.
He clutched at his shirt. It took him a moment to become aware of his surroundings. He hadn't had a nightmare that bad in a while.
He was breathing heavily. Hyperventilating. That wasn't good. He inhaled slowly and deliberately, calming his heart rate as much as he could.
"Link?"
...Oh. Fuck.
He avoided all eye contact with Revali. He cursed himself for his stupidity. How could he have fallen asleep here? In front of Revali- who'd now witnessed Link's weakness firsthand.
Stupid. Weak. Pathetic.
"...Link?" Revali's voice sounded different than usual. Link hated it.
He abruptly stood up, catching Revali off guard. Feeling something on his cheek, he reached up and found tear tracks. When did he cry?
He harshly rubbed away the tears. His movements were jerky. He grabbed his weapons in the corner and headed for the ladder.
"Link- hold on, you idiot-!"
Link ignored him. He marched out of the range in shame, and Revali didn't follow him.
The next day, he and the princess left Rito Village.
I've been meaning to post this forever-
Anywayssss angst right now but the next chapter will be fluff!
Happy reading!