Hello my lovely readers! Here is the new chapter for you, as promised. Thank you all for being so patient and understanding, it really makes me appreciate all of you and love you all even more. *hugs* Thank you all for reading, following, favoriting, and reviewing.

The idea for the gift of tongues came from Hylian Harmony. So thank her for that input! My other two muses, moonsamuari and Sombra helped a great deal as well. Sombra doesn't have a FF account, but Moon does. So go check out moonsamurai! Or I will eat you...
-WingedIceWolf

~THANK YOU MOON AND SOMBRA FOR GIVING ME MOTIVATION TO WRITE AND FOR BEING SO SUPPORTIVE!~

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE LEGEND OF ZELDA OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS!

DISCLAIMER 2: THIS IS NOT A LINK X LINK STORY!

Wild nodded gently at the offer of chess, though his eyes still sparkled with fascination at the tale of the Hero's Shade. Link knelt upon the wood floor that gave off a slight creak, Wild keeping his place on the couch, though he pulled his feet up so he was sitting in a criss-crossed position, brushing a lock of his hair behind his ear.

"Alright, I'll just kneel here. You can take the couch. It's much more comfortable," Link smiled, gripping the handle of the lantern that swayed side to side as the Hero placed it closer to the board upon the table, the firelight casting irregular shadows against the walnut wood. "Do you know how to play chess?"

Another nod from the young man made Link feel a bit better about the situation, smiling brightly. Not that he wouldn't mind teaching Wild how to play chess, but he felt that their combined knowledge of chess at least allowed the two of them a better chance at connecting.

"Which color would you prefer? Black, or white?" Link asked, hands on the sides of the board to rotate it, should Wild have a preference on color. Wild then leaned forward, gently taking the white painted knight off the board, rubbing the head of the horse with his thumb almost longingly as sorrow settled in his features.

The Hero hesitated to ask, noticing Wild's eyes shine with unshed tears, fingers curling into a fist around the knight until his knuckles turned the same hue, but he remained otherwise un-moving. Link gently spoke up, "Do you prefer the white set?"

Wild's ears twitched and he blinked, snapped from his moment of stupor. He yet again bat tears from his wild-blue eyes, but they lingered upon his closed fist, his hand slowly relaxing as he carefully set the piece upon the board where it belonged, as if it would shatter, nodding gently.

Is it the title of the knight that brings him such pain...? Or is it the figure of the horse…? Link pondered, hands leaving the edges of the board. "Would you like to go first? I mean, you're doing the white set, so it's kind of required."

The young man yet again nodded, raising his right hand and moving one of the white pawns across the board, swiftly, then looking back up at Link expectantly. Link smiled a little before too taking a pawn and moving it across the board.

"Do you like apples?" Link asked as Wild moved yet another pawn. Wild perked up a little at that, nodding. "Maybe when you're feeling better, you can come help me pick some apples in the meadow behind the ranch. It shouldn't be too strenuous with your injuries. You don't even have to climb the trees, seeing as you're injured."

Wild set the pawn down on a square and held both hands out flat with his palms up, raising one hand and lowering the other almost in a seesaw motion, repeating the process but switching hands.

Perhaps…

"Anything you want to ask?" Link asked, moving a second pawn in a way that his next turn would allow him to move the bishop to the side. Wild nodded, moving yet another pawn before bringing his left hand up to his face, making a motion as if he were pulling an unseen object from his chin, doing that twice before pointing at Link.

How old are you?

"Don't you know it's rude to ask someone their age?" Link teased, Wild perking his ears back and suddenly finding interest in the floorboards. "Hey, I'm just joking around! I am seventeen. What about you?"

Wild tensed and hesitated, squeezing the pawn between the gaps in his fingers. He released a heavy sigh, then looked up, ears laid against his head, raising his hand so his fingertips touched his forehead, then quickly turning his palm toward Link, shaking his head gently.

I don't know…

"You don't know…? How…?" Link began disbelievingly. "You don't know your birth date?"

The young man tensed more before gently shaking his head. Link frowned and sighed heavily, brushing the bangs from his face as he tried to take in the information. The young man didn't know his age, not how to read Link's note, he didn't speak. Perhaps the only thing he knew was his own name. This all sounded familiar to Link.

Amnesia.

Ilia, when captured by the Bulbins and struck with an arrow, had too gained amnesia. Link could recall the pure wave of relief he felt when finding her safe within Telma's bar, watching from afar in his beast form. His tail had wagged and a small smile came across his face.

There she had been, sitting alongside a Zora boy, Prince Ralis, in her torn clothes, a blanket over her shoulders, squeezing his hand gently in worry. Telma, a woman about a foot over Link's height, tan skinned with red hair in cornrows, lips red with lipstick and a piercing in her nose, placed a hand on Ilia's shoulder, trying to reassure her that Ralis would survive.

Link had hurriedly collected the tears for the Light Spirit and rushed to see her, pushing the bar door open only in time for an angry doctor to scream back at Ilia and storm out of the bar. Ilia had rushed after the doctor, the same Doctor Borville who had brought her to the bar, fists clenched at her sides as she begged that he aid Ralis, but to no avail. The door slammed shut, her eyes meeting Link's, a smile spreading across his face as he reached out to her, but she took one look at his hand, turned away quickly, and stormed back to Ralis.

There had not been the slightest glimmer of recognition in her forest green eyes. Link could see nothing but cold, hard hatred and fire in those once gentle, free, playful eyes. For a few split seconds, his blood ran cold. Link had seen the bad side of Ilia occasionally in his lifetime, so he knew it was not uncommon for her to hold such hatred against someone who refused to aid an injured child, so he hoped perhaps he had jumped to conclusions.

But when Telma had confirmed Link's suspicions, his heart sank and for a few moments, his entire world came to an abrupt halt. Link could clearly recall the stabbing pain in his heart when learning she did indeed, have amnesia, but it didn't matter. She was alive and well.

The Hero recalled how much of a struggle regaining Ilia's memory had proven. There were many obstacles in Link's way, such as an arrogant doctor, Stalhounds who were gnawing on a wooden carving, Bulbins aiming their flaming arrows at his heart within the forgotten village, and all in all, the occasional, bitter rain that refused to settle while he hunted down clues for her memories.

All the while, he had to refrain from overwhelming her with what he knew and what she did not. At times, he wanted to take her hands, look her in the eyes, and beg her to remember, though he knew it would do nothing to help. Other times, he wanted to scream out in frustration for feeling so helpless.

A gentle tap to Link's hand made him jump, his attention reverting to Wild whose ears were perked back, looking down at the untouched board, then back at Link. Link's gaze flicked to the front door, his left hand coming up to rub the back of his neck, muttering, "Sorry..." under his breath.

There was silence between them for several seconds before Link spoke up.

"Sorry, I just..." Link began, tilting his head into his hand as he ran his fingers through his soft hair. His bangs fell over his eyes, the flickering of the lantern illuminating his face. "I just reminisce over the past… So many have suffered with me standing by… watching… It's just not something I can forget..."

For what would not be the last time, nor was it the first, there was silence between the two. Wild hesitantly raised his hand to his head, bending his index finger, the tip of his index finger touching his thumb. He then flicked his index finger upwards, as if he were pointing at the ceiling. I understand…

Link's ears twitched, mouth opening slightly, though his ears yet again lied at the sides of his head. How could he know…?

Maybe he became mute due to trauma… The Hero thought to himself sadly. It was not uncommon for a soldier who once carried a bright, gentle smile with a melodic laugh to fall as cold and silent as the Gerudo sands, forever a prisoner to his own mind.

Link shook his head and continued on with chess. By the time their game was coming to an end, the fireplace had died down to nothing and the wind rattled the trees outside. To the Hero's surprise, even with years of practice against Rusl, the Hero found his king cornered by none other than his guest. To be fair, Rusl most likely let him win a few times… but Link prided in his abilities at chess. He was well known in the village for being an unbeatable chess master. And now, he was about to lose his title.

Wild looked up, smirking slightly, drawing a check-mark in the air with his finger. Checkmate. In one swift move, the white knight felled the king. Link stared at the board in awe, Wild's melodic laughter filling the air.

"By Hylia, I underestimated you," Link admitted quietly, getting up slowly, his head bowing over his knees in the process. The light within the lantern had dimmed noticeably, the entire house darkened, only illuminated by a pale glow of moonlight shining through the window. "Alright. We better head off to bed. I can-"

Suddenly, Wild broke into a violent coughing fit, curling in on himself as his hands rose to cover his mouth, shoulders trembling and a grimace filling his face. Soft wheezing came between the coughing, followed by slight whimpers of pain. With Link's keen eyes, he could have sworn he caught sight of a small shimmer of red, glinting in the lantern light, dripping between the gaps in Wild's fingers and hitting the floorboards.

Link panicked, practically leaping over the table to get to Wild, taking his warm hands and yanking them closer to the lantern without so much as a warning, jerking the rest of the young man's body with them. Wild grimaced, turning away to cough into his elbow, his amber blonde locks shadowing his eyes.

Small, dark droplets of crimson spotted Wild's scarred palms, seeping between the crevices in his hands, filling the swirls in his fingertips. His eyes widened in unison with Link's when he dared look, though his hands slid free from Link's grasp, rising to cough more into them.

"Oh Gods, that's blood…" Link stated discernibly. "You're coughing blood!"

Wild nodded gently, simply holding his hands a few inches from his face to gape at them.

"Did you tear open an injury?! Are you bleeding anywhere?!" The Hero demanded to know, searching over Wild for any patches of blood. Despite the darkness, he could see rather well with his canine vision. However, no injuries could be seen upon the young man, nor could he smell his now recognizable scent of blood, with the exception of what Wild had coughed up, of course.

Link crouched next to Wild and placed his own hand to his forehead. The young man flinched, shutting his eyes tight, Link gently releasing before pulling the blanket off the couch and wrapping it around Wild's shoulders. He then hurriedly stepped to the kitchen, snatching up a wet rag and returning to Wild, wiping the blood from his hands, the white rag becoming stained with red.

The young man's hands trembled more, ears perked back as far as they could go as he watched Link pace around the house, mumbling incoherently to himself. Finally, Link stopped, gripping tight onto the locks of his hair as he took a few deep breaths. He rushed to the bathroom, pulling the tap in the bathtub, then shoving a glass beneath the faucet. Soft, cold, glowing water filled the glass in his hand. He snapped the faucet shut, returning to Wild and placing the glass before him.

"I'll go get help… Okay? Just breathe… Take slow sips of this water. It will help…"

Wild nodded gently, reaching out to the glass and raising it to his lips, though he turned his head at the last second to release another series of coughs into his hand. Link's ears perked back, watching Wild, wondering if he should take him with.

If I leave him here, he could die… but he's not coughing up a lot of blood… just a little bit here and there… Right…? I've seen Rusl cough up more blood than that… He can make it for a bit longer. I'll go ask Ordona what I should do!

Link walked up to his guest, crouching before him so they met eye to eye. Wild-blue eyes met sapphire blue eyes. "Stay here… Please… I'll hurry. I promise. But before I go, do you hurt anywhere? Besides aching?"

Wild nodded gently, allowing the cold water to pass slowly between his lips. His eyes shut, taking slow deep breaths, chest rising and falling in a slow, steady pattern.

"Where? Can you show me."

Wild gently touched his chest, eyes remaining shut as he took deep breaths, breaking into coughing fits here and there.

"Do you think the pain is from coughing?"

With a slight nod from the young man, Link sighed. "Alright… I hope it's nothing too serious… You're just coughing a bit of blood…"

Well, enough to make it drip onto the floor… He shook his head and continued. "If you start vomiting, grab a bucket and use that. If you don't make it to the bucket, that's okay, I can clean it up. Just stay calm…"

Wild set the glass down on the table, shivering violently, pulling the blanket tighter around him. He rubbed his arms gently, whimpering ever so slightly.

He's cold…

Link immediately rose, bounding to the fireplace. He reached out to the pile of stacked oak, taking one of the rough logs into his hand, setting it inside the fire, then repeating with his other hand. He then grabbed twigs from a woven basket, placing them between the aperture in the logs. In an instant, he struck a match, setting the sticks ablaze with a sharp hiss of the flames. Very quickly, the scent of pine filled the air and a bright glow lit the abode.

Link discarded the match and stepped over to the entryway, slipping his sandals on, taking a cloak from a crate beside the door, and none too gracefully hurling it over his body. He threw open the door, an icy gust of air sweeping into the house, biting his nose and stinging his ears as it whipped his dirty blonde hair in his face. The young man only curled up tighter upon the couch, throwing the blanket over his head to defend himself from the cold.

As Link stepped out of the house, onto the small grassy ledge serving as his porch, he called back, "Stay close to the fire… but not too close. Warm up." Before pulling his hood over his head, shutting the door, and descending down the ladder.

He knew these woods by heart, so he didn't think having a torch would be necessary. But he had learned from past experiences that it was better to be safe than sorry. He took up a stick lying upon the ground, stepping to the entryway to Ordon and holding it to the torchlight within one of the braziers. Warm heat met with his hand as he rose the stick from the flames, starting his walk toward Ordona.

As he passed his abode, he glanced up, hoping Wild would be alright, but he hung his head and kept walking. Anger started to burn inside him.

Faron healed him… Why is he coughing blood?! Did the spirit lie to me?! His grip around the makeshift torch tightened. I'll get answers… There's something familiar about Wild… And I'm not going to let him die off after all the hope and effort I've put into his recovery.

Link's toes began to turn purple from the cold, sinking into the mud. He patiently clomped through the earth, finally coming to the Spirit's Spring that threw a golden glow across mossy rocks and wet mud, easily seen from a distance. As Link approached the gates, able to hear the waterfall pour into the spring as the trees shook with the breeze, he held the torch up to them. A silver lock in between the two gates prevented further progression.

"Locked?!" He snarled in frustration, slamming his hands against the bamboo gates. They only clattered slightly, but, as one would expect, the lock did not break, nor did the gates open. "Guess I'm going to have to crawl through the tunnel, huh?"

He growled under his breath, sulking back toward the path, winding around the corner. Just as he was about to reach the tunnel, he could hear a soft thump and the doors to the spring swing open. He froze in his tracks, straining his ears for further sound, but he could hear nothing but the rushing waters, chirping crickets, hooting of owls, and the rustling of the trees.

Unbeknownst to him, a red, glowing eye watched him closely from the shadow of a tree, taking its leave.

Link cautiously stepped back to the path, the spring now open to him. He rushed inside, stabbing the end of his torch down into the earth and placing his palms together in prayer. The Triforce upon the back of his left hand glowed gently before a bright light filled the spring and a glowing orb shot out of the center.

Around the glowing orb, horns formed, then the head of Ordona, the legs and body following pursuit. The Light Spirit, bearing likeness of a goat, bowed its head in greeting, long tail swishing gently.

"It has been long, Hero..." the spirit greeted, voice melodic and ancient as it echoed around him. Link rose, his eyes slowly adjusting to the bright light. He tore the torch from the ground and held it up, more for the comfort of its warmth than its light.

"Why is my guest coughing blood?" Link demanded to know, tone sharp. "Faron healed him, I saw! Why is he still coughing blood?!"

The beast was un-phased by his sharp tongue, the swirls upon its body glowing in sync with the swirls etched into the rocks of the spring. It rumbled gently.

"There is only so little we Spirits can do, young one. However, Faron promised to heal what it could of the damage. It kept its pledge to you, did it not?" The Spirit asked. Link bit back his tongue, but nodded. "Your companion will survive, so long as the will to survive burns deep within him and you remain at his side…"

"Then why… pray tell… is he coughing blood?" Link growled.

"The blood he coughs is blood that had once filled his lungs," Ordona answered simply.

"So he's not going to die?" The Hero asked gently, the tenseness in his body beginning to fade. Ordona's eyes fell shut, bowing its head slightly.

"That is not for me to decide, young one. The last portion of blood will leave his lungs."

Link sighed heavily in relief, taking a few deep breaths. The water beneath his feet splashed his toes as he sat upon a rock, gazing up at the spirit hopefully.

"Ordona… Faron told me he is not of this era, but of this world… What does that mean…? Please, tell me… Why can't he understand my writing, yet he can understand me?"

The Spirit went quiet before answering, "Your companion was gifted the ability by us Light Spirits to understand your tongue, as it is not his native tongue. Language has changed much between this era and his."

Link's eyes widened. "He's from an era in the future?"

Ordona nodded. "It would not be wise to fill him with questions when he barely knows enough information regarding himself. You have faced this same trial with your previous companion, Ilia, have you not?"

Link nodded, though he ran one hand through his hair. "That… explains why none of us could tell where he came from… His clothing looks so much more different than ours…" Link's ears twitched, continuing. "Why is he so familiar…? Is he… a Chosen Hero…?"

The Spirit again fell quiet, as if confirming Link's question. The hero yet again refrained from screaming at the beast. Why couldn't they just tell him what he wanted to know?

"I must take my leave, Hero… I cannot reveal to you what you must unveil for yourself… My ability to answer your questions is limited..." Ordona spoke, beginning to fade away. "Your companion will live… Allow him rest and patience."

"Stop! Why won't you tell me anything?! Who is he?! Is he a Chosen Hero or not?!"

"Farewell..." The voice of the great beast echoed before the spring fell dim yet again and silence fell over the land. Link yelled out in frustration, kicking a stone at his feet into the water. It landed with a small plop, sending ripples across the spring.

But one thing echoed in the Hero's head.

One word.

One name.

One title.

"Link."

Any idea who the figure watching Link is? :3

Don't forget to friend me on discord so I can add you to the fan server! ~EdwardElric`#6784

Bai!

-WingedIceWolf