#But we're back in Termina with Link!

[musical-chan]

Father of Time 2: The Ganondorf War Chapter 5: Night of the First Day

Despite having spent several days trapped in a dream, Link found himself spending most of that first day of freedom napping on and off.  When he wasn't sleeping, he was eating, cheerfully enabled by Kafei and a seemingly endless pot of stew. When Saria returned that morning, trailing a smiling Dustin with a plate full of food, Link ate just as much as he had at his first breakfast and the Kokiri teased him about his endless pit of a stomach.  Malon scolded her but Link laughed, a spark of warmth settling in his stomach that had nothing to do with the meal.  It was normalcy and that's what he needed.

Occasionally the dream would drift back into his mind and he'd huddle in on himself, trying not to dwell on the life he might have had with Zelda, the one he no longer wanted, and Malon would wrap her arms around him when she noticed, muttering comfort.  That was something he needed as well and Nocturne had known that before Link had, which was why their first stop had been to the ranch.  The young hero wasn't the only one who experienced growth in the past four years.

(Read the rest on AO3!)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64438891/chapters/170399407

[fandomtrumpshate]

Unlisted Fandom Challenge update!

At the top of our Unlisted fandoms:

Jeff Satur (9) and Zhen Hun / Guardian (7) continue to hang on to spots 1 and 2!

Beyond that, the ties have grown!

With 5 signups each:

Alien Stage

BBC Ghosts

Control

Dungeon Meshi

White Collar

4 signups:

Cabin Pressure

Dimension 20

It - Stephen King

Schitt's Creek

Transformers

With 3 signups in an 11-way tie:

Detective Conan

Dungeons and Daddies (Podcast)

Fire Emblem Awakening

Fire Emblem Fates

Iron Widow

Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint

Roswell New Mexico

Stand By Me/The Body

The Goblin Emperor Series

Voltron: Legendary Defender

Guardian RPF

WHEW!

If you can believe it, there are now so many fandoms with two signups each – 44 – that we're bumping those below the cut with the single-signup fandoms.

And THEN! There are one. hundred. sixty. one. write-in fandoms with just a single signup. 161! Giving us a total of 228 write in fandoms all together! So far!

Full list of fandoms with one or two signups below the cut:

The 44 fandoms with 2 write-ins each:

Animorphs

Avatar Legend of Korra

Biggles Series — W. E. Johns

Binan Koukou Chikyuu Boueibu (Cute High Earth Defense Club)

Bridgerton (TV)

Carry On

Cherry Magic

Conclave (2024)

Dangan Ronpa

Dead Boy Detectives RPF

Digimon

Dishonored

Due South

Dune (Villeneuve)

Fields of Mistria

Five Nights at Freddy's

Grantchester (TV)

Gravity Falls

Inception

Kingdom Hearts

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

Link Click (Shiguang Dailiren)

Lovecraft Mythos

Lucifer (tv)

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury

Nirvana in Fire

Pathologic

Princess Tutu

Sailor Moon

Slow Horses

Team Fortress 2

The Blue Wolves of Mibu

The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (TV series)

The Poppy War

The Stanley Parable

The X-Files

Tiger & Bunny

Tower of God

Universal Century Gundam

Valdemar Series

What We Do In The Shadows

When the Third Wheel Strikes Back

Word of Honor

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure

And finally, the 161 single write-in fandoms:

10 Things I Hate About You (1999)

A Court of Thorns and Roses

Among Us

Arctic Monkeys/The Last shadow Puppets

Around the World in 80 Days (TV 2021)

Babylon 5

Baseball RPF

BBC’s Musketeers

Bendy and the Ink Machine

Beyond Evil

Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei Bu Love/Happy Kiss

Black Doves

Black Sails

Boygenius (Band)(RPF)

Brilliant Minds

Britpop RPF

Brokeback Mountain

Bullet train

Canji Baojun De Zhangxin Yu Chong (The disabled tyrant's pet palm fish)

Cassette Beasts

Castle

Challengers

Charmed (1998)

Countryhumans

Criminal Minds

Danger Force (TV)

Dark Deception

Dark Rise

Dead by Daylight

Descendants

Destiny 2

Divergent (Movies)

Downton Abbey

Dr. Stone

Dragonball

Dragonlance

Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey

Emma - Jane Austen

Etta Invincible

Fangs of Fortune

Farscape

Fear & Hunger: Termina

Fields of Mistria

Finder no Hyouteki / Finder Series

Flight Rising

Formula 2/3 RPF

Frieren

Fruits Basket

Gangsta (Anime & Manga)

Generation Loss (Web Series)

Giselle

Grimm

Hatoful Boyfriend

Haven (TV)

Helluva Boss

Henry Danger (TV)

High School Musical (Movies)

Hikaru no Go

HLVRAI - Half-life VR But the AI is Self-Aware

Homer's Epics, Ancient Greece Religion and Lore, Epic The Musical

House MD

In Other Lands

In Stars And Time

IndyCar RPF

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Jeeves and Wooster

Jet Lag The Game RPF

Jurassic Park (Extended Universe)

Kamen Rider GotchardKane and Feels

Kraven the Hunter

Kuroko no Basuke / Kuroko's Basketball

Law & Order

Lays of the Hearth-Fire Series - Victoria Goddard

Lies of P

Life is Strange

Live A Live

Lord Seventh/Qi Ye

M*A*S*H

Malory Towers

Mass Effect 1, 2 or 3

Metaphor: Refantazio

Mononoke (2007 series and 2024 movie)

MotoGP RPF

My Time at Sandrock

Mystic Messenger

NBA RPF

Nerdy Prudes Must Die

Norah Grant Bruce's Billabong books

Oasis

Oh No! Here Comes Trouble

Once Upon A Time

Order of the Stick

Outlast games

Over the Garden Wall

Pacific Rim

Paradise Of Thorns

Peaky Blinders

Persuasion - Jane AustenPhandom

Pirates of the Caribbean

Power Rangers (2017 movie)

Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

Prodigal Son

Project Sekai

Psych (2006)

Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Qiang Jin Jiu (Ballad of Sword and Wine)

Quantum Break

Ranma 1/2

Resident Alien

Resident Evil

Rise of the Guardians

Riyria Revelations

S.C.I Mystery

S.W.A.T. (2017 show)

Saint Seiya

Saw franchise

Scooby Doo: Mystery Incorporated (2010)

She-Ra Netflix

Shipwrecked Comedy

Sonic the Hedgehog (Games)

Sonic The Hedgehog (movies)

South Park

Spinning Silver (Novik)

Spirited

Squid Game

Starkid Musicals (no hp)

Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical

Super Sentai

That 70s Show

The A Team (either the 2010 movie or the 1980s series)

The Coffin of Andy and Leyley

The Librarians

The OC

The Pairing - Casey McQuiston

The Paradise of Thorns

The Radiant Emperor

The Silt Verses

The Umbrella Academy

the vampire diaries universe

The Venture Maidens

The Walking Dead

The West Wing

Thousand Autumns

Tokusatsu

Tron

Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles

Turning

video games by Arkane Studios

Wander Over Yonder

Warriors / Warrior Cats

Watcher Entertainment/BuzzFeed Unsolved RPF

Wind Breaker

WNBA RPF

Wonka

Xenoblade Chronicles series

Yellowjackets

Young Wizards (Diane Duane)

Zatch Bell

บ้านหลอน ON SALE / Peaceful Property (TV)

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[zelbits]

Malink or Zelink? Which is better?

I think it's less of a question of which is better, but more which one makes more sense.

This has been a long-standing debate with Zelda fans everywhere. Canonically, Twilight is Time's blood descendant, so he must have married someone. So let's talk about this.

Clearly, I'm not going to make everyone happy with this analysis. It's only my opinion based off of what we already know. Just to be clear, I like both OoT Zelink and Malink. I'm a sucker for both. So let's get started.

First, let's talk about OoT Zelink. To keep it simple, we're only going to talk about the Child Era.

There's not a lot about that. It's the less popular of the two theories in my experience, but that doesn't make it any less valid. Zelda is the only one who stuck by Link's side beside Navi, even though she was disguised as Sheik. When he returned to his child self and came to her, she knew he had clearly been through it, even if she wasn't particularly sure what it was. They had a connection.

Zelda is the only one who knew what he'd been through. She knew about Kokiri Forest and the death of the Great Deku Tree, she knew about his quests to find the Sacred Stones, all of it. Then Ganondorf attacked, and she was forced to flee. Link was imprisoned by the Master Sword until he was old enough to wield it, and their actions allowed him access to the Sacred Realm. For seven years, Zelda hung onto this guilt disguised as Sheik and hiding right underneath of Ganondorf's nose. She waited seven years for him when everyone else was sure that Hyrule was done for.

When it's all over and Link comes back, he has the Ocarina of Time. Zelda has been having dreams about this for as long as she can remember, and now he's really here? She realizes that he's been through more than anyone else has and understands this.

It's unclear what all happens, but in Majora's Mask, they have a moment in the beginning of the game when she entrusts the ocarina to him. He settles Termina's business, reliving days and days and days and stopping the entire moon from falling, then returns to find Hyrule in a state of pre-war. He probably has traveled everywhere trying to find his purpose and can only do so in Hyrule, fighting for his country, because he feels like that's all he can do.

Zelda and Link probably work closely together during the war and the subsequent capture and execution of Ganondorf. They have a profound connection by this point. Maybe he even is prompted to tell her everything that's happened to him when she wasn't there.

However, here's where things get a little fuzzy.

No matter what, if Twilight is Link's descendant, Time would have had to have had children.

If Link and Zelda had children, then that would have made them royalty or illegitimate, if Link and Zelda weren't technically allowed to be together because he's only a knight and she's the princess; nobody knows he's the hero, remember? In either case, Link ends up in the Lost Woods/Faron Woods area and ends up dying with regrets, becoming a stalfos. This leaves Zelda and their children without his protection, which may very well be one of his regrets. My theory is that, knowing that Ganondorf might one day return, Zelda sent her children away (either to farmlands if you consider only the game, or to the village on the desert border if you consider manga canon too) to presumably keep them safe.

What I'm saying is OoT Zelink works pretty well. Link and Zelda have an obvious connection that becomes romantic over time, and eventually (whether it's allowed or not) they have at least one kid that ends up being sent away to keep it safe after Link's untimely death. Maybe in his death, Link follows his descendants and tries to keep them safe, which is why he finds Twilight so easily.

Now for Malink.

Now, Malink works too and I love it, don't get me wrong. But. Link and Malon don't really have as much of a connection. Even in the manga, Malon makes a comment about how she missed her chance with Link because he's talking about Zelda all the time.

My theory for this is that after the events of Majora's Mask, Link returned to Hyrule and became a knight. He and Malon became friends, then something more. He may or may not tell her everything he's been through, solely because he fears it could destroy their relationship because it's a lot to take in. But they bond over their love of horses, and they fall in love without a shadow of a doubt. They get married, and have children, and Link still somehow ends up in the Lost Woods/Faron Woods area dying with those regrets. But, his children don't need to go into hiding. They're just farmers, nothing very conspicuous about that.

And whether you think the manga is canon or not, it works both ways too. If we lean closer to manga, we can say that his descendants wanted to follow in his footsteps and become knights, hence why Twilight comes from a long line of them.

My conclusion here is that both Zelink and Malink both work, they both make sense, and they're both good love stories, although I will be the first to admit that OoT Zelink is a more juicy one with more angst with a semi-happy ending before Link's death.

If you have anything you'd like to add or you want to be a part of the tag list, please let me know!

[minisculemars]

thinking out loud about happy mask salesman and his morality

this is one of those ever-lasting topics in the zelda community, especially if you're someone like me that has the happy mask salesman as your favorite zelda character... so here's my completely unprompted ramble about it under the cut:

for starters when I first really started thinking about this topic a couple years ago (possibly more?) I kinda sat right in the middle of the debate. he's not evil but he's not good either. well nowadays I definitely lean more towards him being a benevolent yet flawed character.

but it's not like we can pretend the "evil" interpretation of HMS was just pulled out of everyone's ass. so here's some points people bring up, and some things I've noticed that don't paint him in a good light:

even before you play the game, you know the context of the main story being that the moon falls in three days. I didn't realize until recently that LINK doesn't know that, not yet at least. but even before the mask lore drop after the first cycle, HMS says he has to leave in 3 days right when the first cycle starts. bit too coincidental to be leaving the EXACT SAME TIME the moon crashes. also... he reveals he KNOWS majora's mask causes chaos and "terrible things" to happen... if if the moon theoretically wasn't falling and gonna kill everyone, why would you leave without getting it back? he went through a lot to get it, it just doesn't make sense he'd ditch it.

if we follow the theory that this HMS is the same one from ocarina of time, I can't help but wonder if he intended on transporting himself back to hyrule before the moon crashes. imagine the guilt, oof!!

the most charitable read of all this would be to say he didn't want to freak link out but maybe letting link know he was about to be up against forces of evil beyond comprehension would've been a good idea...

now I don't need to tell you that choking a kid is bad, what I'm more interested in is what he says during this that no one ever brings up. he screams "what have you done to ME". not what have you done to termina, or the world... no he makes it about himself the very second he realizes link doesn't have the mask for him. this is more of a dick thing to say than it is a serious indicator of malice but still a peice of dialouge I find interesting.

oh and by the way, why DID he go through great lengths to get majora's mask in the first place... this could go any number of ways, the (NON CANON) manga definitely ran with this and was written to imply he obtained it for malicious reasons. if we're being generous we can say he wanted to protect the mask but we don't know if it was better off where he found it or if that was what he wanted to do with it. more on this later, but no matter how you spin it, you look suspicious tracking down an ancient artifact of doom!!

ok this point people bring up is slightly far fetched... at the end of the game he finally gets his mask back and notices the evil is gone. I think a lot of speculation from this line comes from the fact that this game has like 0 voice acting and these n64 era characters don't have much expression. I could totally see why people interpret him as being disappointed that the evil is gone and would be of no use to him. I could also see him saying it in a curious tone. it's not concrete either way. but those ellipses do make you wonder...

even tatl here can't help but point out how creepy she finds him-

and if that isn't enough, you have the devs themselves confirm that any scariness here was completely intentional (source)-

(I could have sworn i remember more chatter on him from the devs, I can't remember or find it though)

so the game is definitely trying to instill to the player that he's suspicious at the very least.

BUT ALL THIS TO SAY I DON'T THINK HE'S A BAD GUY!!

at the end of the day he's clearly distraught about the impending destruction, he helps link by guiding him and giving him the song of healing, and congratulates him for spreading happiness around termina. when it comes down to motivation, I just think that he's so obsessive about masks and his mask game so Fucking Crazy it overrode any sort of rational thinking on whether or not the majora fetch quest was a good idea. hes an irresponsible freak but not someone that means any intentional harm. 2 me.

that being said...

anyone who knows me knows I fucking loooove me an evil, weird, creepy character... and the fact that HMS has so many Sus ඞ things about him is definitely a big draw for me. And a lot of it being speculative puts him in this equilibrium where even though I lean more towards him being benevolent, I'm not completely against the idea of him being evil. there's certainly a very fun irony to be explored in the idea of this wacky seemingly harmless hylian mask salesman being capable of bad things. just depends on how it's done. although I do find it crazy when people put him at the top of their "creepiest zelda character" lists in a franchise that has genuinely terrifying enemies. at the same time... I do like him being recognized for his iconic ominous aura that people can't shake for over 2 decades now.

idk how to end this other than saying the reasons listed above is why he's my favorite in the zelda universe <3 oh and also what the fuck do you need 18 buttons for your silly little outfit isn't going anywhere. relax

[lightmothx]

My Top 5 Favorite Plot Twists from The Legend of Zelda series

*Beware of spoilers for the following games: The Wind Waker, Majora's Mask, Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword and A Link Between Worlds

5) The Mask is Alive - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

Majora's Mask has always been applauded as one of the darkest games in the series along with Twilight Princess. The story follows Link as he finds himself trapped in the land of Termina after being robbed by the Skull Kid - who takes his Ocarina and "gets rid" of his precious horse, Epona. Throughout the game, you are told that Skull Kid changed after stealing the evil relic known as the Majora's Mask from the Happy Mask Salesman and with it, has caused catastrophes around the four regions surrounding Termina. During the final confrontation atop the Clock Tower to stop the moon from falling, Link calls upon the Four Giants to halt the moon crash. There is a momentary celebration between characters Tatl and Tael, where Tael explains that Skull Kid is not to be blamed. While Tatl and Tael go back and forth about this argument of whether or not Skull Kid should be held responsible, Majora interrupts, saying "He had far too many weaknesses to use my power." it's then that Majora detaches itself from Skull Kid's face, refusing to admit defeat and challenging Link to face him inside the Moon. Not only confirming that Skull Kid wasn't entirely to blame for his actions, but that Majora's mask itself, is sentient.

4) The King of Red Lions (and Tetra's True Identity) - The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

Wind Waker is one of those Zelda games that got hit with - what I like to call - the "Pokemon Effect". Where a game is subjected to heavy backlash upon release but is heralded as a true treasure in later years. Despite the initial hatred for its cartoon art style and repetitive gameplay, Wind Waker is and has always been one of my favorite Zelda games in terms of lore. Wind Waker takes place in the Adult Era of the Timeline. Which - if you really follow the Official Timeline - is after the events of Ocarina of Time, where adult Link defeats Ganon and he is sealed in the Sacred Realm, thanks to Zelda and the Sages. After this, Zelda sends Link back in time to live out his childhood, essentially removing him from that timeline. But as stated in the intro cutscene of Wind Waker, Ganon eventually returns to resume its dark design and the Hero of Time is nowhere to be found. As a last ditch effort, the Gods flood Hyrule to seal Ganon and the Triforce. The Wind Waker follows Link - not a reincarnation of the previous one - but a Successor, who sails across the sea to save his world from the Resurrected King of Evil, Ganondorf. Accompanying him on this journey is his talking boat, the King of Red Lions. We know nearly nothing about the King of Red Lions up until after revisiting Hyrule Castle below the depths of the sea. It's at this moment that we are hit with two pretty big plot twists. Rewinding a bit to the start of Link's journey, we met Tetra - the leader of a fearsome pirate group who is somewhat responsible for luring a big bird to our peaceful island and causing our sister, Aryll, to get kidnapped. She's this arrogant, pretty bossy, little girl who we grow pretty close with as our journey continues. Now - we're revisiting Hyrule Castle after learning that Tetra's weird necklace resonated with Ganondorf's Triforce of Power, it's here that we learn the reason why. Tetra is none other than Princess Zelda and The King of Red Lions - is the former King of Hyrule.

3) Midna is the Twilight Princess - The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Twilight Princess was the first game I've ever seen completed, it was a core memory for me watching my father defeat Zant and Ganondorf at the wee age of 7 years old. It goes without saying that Twilight Princess is one of the most praised games in the series and every emo furry kid's utopia. If you're an older fan of the series, you probably recall seeing Wolf Link AMVs to Evanescence songs. The Golden ages. Anyways. This game follows Link (haha who would've guessed) - Descendant of the Hero of Time - as he journeys across the land of Hyrule, that has been shrouded in the amber saturation filter of Twilight. Accompanying him this time is the little Imp - Midna. Who we meet as a wolf while imprisoned. She says we can be useful on her quest to find the missing pieces of her headpiece, the Twili's ancient relic - The Fused Shadow. After partnering up with Midna, completing the pieces of the Fused Shadow, we learn that we need to go on yet another wild goose chase to collect the Fragments of The Mirror of Twilight. The Mirror of Twilight is the sole link between Hyrule and the Twilight Realm, and Zant has destroyed it. But because he isn't the true ruler of the Twilight Realm, it split into fragments instead of being destroyed entirely. The former Sages apologize to Midna, for it's because of their careless actions that Ganon was able to spread darkness to her world and that Zant is able to distort the land of Hyrule. They ask for her forgiveness, referring to her as the "Twilight Princess"

2) Ravio is Link's Lorulean Counterpart - The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

A Link Between Worlds, released for the Nintendo 3DS was one of the Zelda games that was heavily swept under the rug, overshadowed by Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask 3D Remakes. This game is set many years after A Link to the Past, this time, Link's goal is to save Zelda after she's been nabbed by an evil sorcerer named Yuga who plans on using Zelda's power, along with the power of the Seven Sages to resurrect Ganon. Yuga is from the land of Lorule, a world parallel to Hyrule that is only accessible through rifts. Link cannot travel through these rifts without the help of the magical bracelet that he gets from Ravio, a silly - albeit, very strange guy. Donning a purple bunny hood that covers most of his face, Ravio hails from unknown origin, and turns our house into his pop-up storefront. Throughout the game, we rely on the items from Ravio's shop to complete dungeons, with the sole rule that we rent them from him (but they can later be purchased for permanent use). Ravio is one of those characters where at first glance, you write him off as someone with little to no importance in the game's overall plot. That is until towards the end of the game. After freeing the seven sages, we finally go to save Zelda, only to be confronted by Hilda - The Princess of Lorule and Zelda's Lorulean Counterpart, who's been guiding us for most of our journey. She tells us that she's been deceiving us from the very beginning to get in possession of our Triforce of Courage to help resurrect Ganon. But we are interrupted by Ravio stampeding in and halting the tension, unmasking himself to be Link's Lorulean Counterpart.

1) Ghirahim is the Spirit Within Demise's Sword - The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Chronologically, Skyward Sword is the first game in the series' timeline, taking place before the birth of Hyrule Kingdom. The plot follows Link and Zelda, childhood friends and residents of a floating island above the clouds called Skyloft. The people of Skyloft follow a tradition where the students of the academy, use their large bird mounts - Loftwings, to race head to head and snag handkerchief from the leading Loftwing's foot. After this ceremony, the winner gets time alone with the maiden assuming the role of the Goddess Hylia, who is played by Zelda this year. Link, of course, smashes the competition and gets that oh so precious time alone with Zelda, Link gets a pretty cool sailcloth from Zelda and the two go Loftwing riding together. But unfortunately disaster strikes and Zelda is swept below the clouds by a dark tornado. Guided by the strange spirit within a sword named Fi, Link goes below the clouds and encounters Ghirahim, the servant of evil responsible for the dark tornado. Ghirahim is a reoccurring enemy throughout the game, as his goal is to use Zelda's Goddess powers to resurrect his Master. Near the end of the game, Link swats through an entire army of monsters to stop Ghirahim from performing his resurrection ritual. When Link gets there he must face Ghirahim a final time in his shiny "obsidian"-like look. After defeat, Ghirahim laughs, telling Link that regardless, his plan has succeeded and the end of the world is nigh as his Master has returned. Another reoccurring enemy, The Imprisoned, rises up from its seal and assumes its true form - The Demon King, Demise. Ghirahim welcomes Demise on his return to the world and is then hoisted into the air, allowing Demise to painfully pull his blade from Ghirahim's chest and absorb his power into his large dark version of the Master Sword.

That concludes my list, my friends. And before you ask "what about the Sheik reveal", I purposefully refrained from putting that on the list, as it's kinda spoiled for you in a different media "Super Smash Bros". I'd like you guys to tell me what are your personal picks for Zelda plot twists, I know Zelda has a lot so I'm curious. I really did a lot of senseless yapping in this post but I hope it was a nice breeze of comedic relief nonetheless. Until next time. May the Goddess Smile Upon You. 💛

[flangst]

Link and Beginning the Hero's Journey

So the hero's journey usually starts with a "call to adventure"- an inciting incident of some kind that leads the hero to leave their home and embark on the journey. The call to adventure can be anything from an official summoning to an attack on one's hometown, but that's not what we're talking about here. Every LOZ adventure starts with a Call to Adventure, but not all start with a commonality that I've noticed among the games, which I'm going to call the Blessing to Leave.

What's the Blessing to Leave? Basically it's a moment early in the game, usually after the tutorial and the Call to Adventure, where someone from Link's hometown or someone who's been guiding him through the tutorial section gives him "permission" to go out and save Hyrule. I'm mostly focusing on the 3D games here and there are 2 that stand out as not having this moment: Majora's Mask and Twilight Princess. And those two particular games, unlike most, Link almost returns to the original status quo at the beginning of the game rather moving into the new status quo established in the end.

Here are examples of the Blessing as I'm talking about it:

Ocarina: Saria gives Link her Ocarina, tells him not to forget her and wishes him luck as he goes to meet with Zelda. At the end, Link goes to Zelda to tell her about Ganondorf, which creates a new timeline. Now this Link is a bit of an oddity but I'll come back to him.

Wind Waker: Link is given the shield from his grandma after Aryll is captured, and in the end he journeys with Tetra to find a new Hyrule, with the implication that the people from the Great Sea will join them after they do.

Skyward Sword: Link is given permission by Kaepora to go down to the surface to find Zelda. At the end, Link and Zelda choose to stay on the surface and they're probably going to found the kingdom of Hyrule.

BOTW (and TOTK): Link is guided in the tutorial by the King and Rauru respectively, after which he receives his paraglider and the map of Hyrule is opened up to him. At the end of BOTW, Link and Zelda set out to explore Hyrule together and at the of TOTK Zelda, Link and the Sages kind of prepare to take up the mantle of Rauru and the former Sages to protect Hyrule.

Majora's Mask: Link is attacked by Skull Kid and ends up falling into Termina. He does not get his "blessing" here and in the end, he goes back to the status quo from the beginning of the story where he's looking for Navi. We know he never finds her, and while this Link may have found fulfillment in life, he still became Hero's Shade to wait for the next Link, unable to move on until he can train his next incarnation.

and speaking of Twilight Princess...

Twilight Princess: Link is violently abducted from his town and imprisoned by Zant, after which he and Midna immediately start the journey to save Hyrule. No one from his home town gives him the "Blessing" though you could argue the Light Spirit giving him the hero's gear and telling him about his destiny is kind of a blessing. But no one from his home town gives him permission-- in fact, Ilia straight up tells him not to "do anything out of his league." These goat herders are holding him back. Clearly Link thinks so too because at the end of the game, Link returns to Ordon... and then leaves on Epona again, and it's kind of implied he's not going to return.

The Links who don't get the Blessing to Leave don't ease into the new status quo, rather they have to leave, usually alone, and figure it out themselves. The Hero of Time ultimately becomes a shade waiting for the next Link to appear, and the Hero of Twilight strikes out on his own, his fate ultimately unknown.

It's just an interesting pattern I've noticed. Happens in a lot of 2D games too (Link gets the Blessing in LttP and ST for example but not in Link's Awakening). I'm tired and I have a headache so feel free to tell me if I mistyped anything.

[crownshattered]

|| (no banner yet for her so just bear with me here...) Fun little detail about Linkette that was added in the "2025 revamping" of her... She takes a LOT of personality influences from the "original Link" (from the oneshot manga in Hyrule Historia). This is actually really important in her Skyward Sword verse, but nevermind that for right now~

I've already mentioned before that she's a more "serious" Link than what we're used to, much like the original Link. Linkette also doesn't see her destiny as a burden that was forced upon her by the gods; it was her duty, and it was her choice to pick up her sword again and again every time.

Though she's very serious, beneath it all she still has so much love for her home (which, in her main verse, isn't Hyrule but Termina, but the same idea applies XDD). All of Termina could turn their back on her and she would still save them again and again. Because that's just the type of person she is. Dutiful to a fault. No one else can do it, so she will gladly take on the danger however many times it takes.

[bleachanimefan1]

The Forgotten Promise Part 7

A Race Against Time,

Talea turned around several corridors, looking for Link but she didn't see him anywhere. A few minutes ago, she had lost him in the crowded streets while he was being chased by the dog. 

"Link! Where are you!?" She tried calling out to him again. As she rounded another corner, Talea had bumped into someone and stumbled back.

'I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention. I was looking for someone-" Talea's eyes widen when she saw that it was Skull Kid who she had bumped into.

"Skull Kid!"

"What are you doing out here? You promised to never leave the hideout." Skull Kid crossed his arms angrily.

"I was looking for you." Talea told him. "You got to change Link back. And you need to take that mask off! I don't know why you are doing this, but this is not the way! It's controlling you!"

"See. She's trying to get rid of me. We're so close. Do something about her now!" Skull Kid heard the mask talking to him.

"Link, Link, Link! That's all I ever hear from you!" Skull Kid shouted. "And now you're telling me to take off my mask..." Talea cut him off.

"But it's the truth!" Talea pleaded to him.

"And where did you hear this from?" Skull Kid asked.

"The mask salesman that you stole the mask from. He told us that any who wears that mask will bring catastrophe upon the world."

"I will never do that to you. I promised to grant your wish. Why would I lie to you?" the mask spoke.

"Very unlikely story, if what you're saying is true." Skull Kid dismissed.

"It's controlling you! You have to believe me, please! We're friends, aren't we?" Talea insisted to him. Skull Kid tensed up but stayed silent. "I promised that I wouldn't leave you and I won't." She reached a little closer almost reaching the mask. Skull Kid's hand shot out, grabbing Talea's wrist. A dark gleam appeared through the eyes of the mask.

"How about a front row seat, so you can see what I'm about to do?" Skull Kid spoke.

"No!" Talea screamed and the two vanished.

The woman took Link to her home which was an inn called the Stock Pot Inn. Link learned that the woman's name was Anju and she lived with mother and grandmother and that she was also to be engaged in the next few days. Anju set Link down and started to clean up his cuts. 

"Hey, are we in Hyrule?" Link asked her. Anju blinked at Link in confusion.

"Hyrule? I've never heard of it. This is Termina. And this place is called Clock Town." She told him. Link went silent. He had gone through a dimension entirely different from his. This wasn't his timeline. 

"This might sting a little."

Link jumped, hissing a little in pain when Anju placed a cotton ball on his cut. "Ow!"

"Most years the town would be really buzzing. But now, everyone's a little upset because of the rumors." Anju spoke.

"Rumors?"

"The rumor is that in three days, during the carnival of time the moon will fall."

Link's eyes widen in shock. What!?

"The town can't decide on what to do. Some want to evacuate, and some want the carnival to go on." Anju said and she closed up the first aid box and smiled. "Okay, you're done."

"Aren't you going to run?"

Anju shook her head. "I'm not leaving."

"Because of Kafei?" Link questioned, recalling Anju's mother saying something about him. "Is he your boyfriend?"

"My, my, aren't you a grown up!" Anju replied before her smile dropped a little. "We were supposed to get married, but he's gone missing. We planned to get married at the carnival. But I'm sure he'll come back! I know he will!" Link saw Anju hug her arm, nervously. "But to tell you the truth, I'm a little scared...I'm sorry. You're too young to understand such things."

"Yeah. Don't worry I'm sure he'll come back. There's no way he'd break a promise to a great girl like you!" Link said. Anju blinked in surprise, looking at Link. Then she smiled and picked him up, hugging him.

"That's sweet! I feel better already!" She told him and set Link back down. "Besides, there's still three days left."

Link nodded. "Right!"

Tatl fluttered furiously. "Hey! Why are you taking it easy!? We're supposed to find my brother!"

"We will. Now be quiet." Link shushed the fairy.

"You know the moon's been looking a little creepy. Like someone's face..." Anju spoke. "We say that little demon is calling the moon."

"Little demon?" Both Link and Tatl asked wondering before they realized who Anju was talking about. Link's eyes widen in shock when he saw Skull Kid suddenly appear behind Anju, who didn't notice him.

"Skull Kid!"

"I told you! There's nothing I can't do!" Skull Kid said. Anju turned around, startled, now noticing him behind her. Skull Kid laughed. "I'm bringing down the moon on the very day she's looking forward to! It's going to be quite a carnival! And that's not all, friend stealer, there's a special someone waiting for you." And he quickly left through the window, jumping out of it. Link blinked in confusion. What did he mean by that?

How was Skull Kid going to make the moon fall?

"Special someone? Friend stealer? Link murmured to himself before his eyes widen. Skull Kid must have found Talea! Link and Tatl quickly followed after him. Anju tried to stop Link, but he was already gone.

"Wait! How do you plan to do that!?" Link shouted. Skull kid ignored him and continued to run, darting across the rooftops. Link tried to follow him but it was difficult because of his little legs. He saw Skull Kid float upwards to the top of the Clock Tower in the center of the town. Link quickly chased after him and ran up the stairs. As he reached the top of the tower, Link saw Skull Kid floating in the center with Tael flying behind him, nervously. A little to the left him, Link saw Talea was tied up in ropes.

"You really are stupid to actually come here by yourself." Skull Kid spoke.

"Give me back my ocarina!" Link shouted at him.

"O, Majora's mask, hear my wish!" Skull shouted and then he looked up towards the moon and let out a scream. The moon began to fall down, faster.

"Skull kid! Stop this! Please, this is just another one of your jokes, right!?" Tatl shouted. Skull Kid didn't answer.

"Sis! There's four people! Bring them here! One from the swamp, mountain, sea and valley!" Tael shouted. Skull Kid smacked Tael, swatting the fairy away.

"Keep your mouth shut, you stupid fairy!"

"Hey! That's my brother! Is this how you treat your friends!?" Tatl shouted, furiously. The ocarina fell out from Skull Kid's pocket and he quickly caught it before it fell. He looked down at Link, mockingly tossing the ocarina up and down, catching it.

"Even if you got it, you still couldn't beat me! Think you can stop me? Then do it!" He shouted.

The moon fell faster!

"What are you waiting for!? Stop him!" Tatl shouted.

"How!? I don't have any special powers!?" Link shouted.

"Link! Blow a bubble!" Talea shouted.

Bubble? Link's eyes widen and he quickly turned back to Skull Kid, aiming at the ocarina. A blew a bubble out from his mouth and it knocked the ocarina out from Skull Kid's hands. Link quickly dove and caught it just as it fell. 

The Ocarina of Time! He'll play the song of time! Then suddenly something happened. The ocarina began to transform into a tuba, with several wrapping around Link. Link quickly blew into the instrument and began to play the song of time. The princess had taught him this song. This has to do something! Goddess of Time. Zelda...Give me your strength!

Little by little, time slowly began to reverse back.

Link and Talea both blinked in shock, along with Tatl, as they found themselves back inside the clock tower, hearing the grinding gears. Skull Kid was nowhere to be seen.

"How did we end back here again?" Talea asked, really confused. Then she turned to Link giving him a suspicious look, backing away a little. "Who are you, Link? You're not just an ordinary person, are you?"

Before Link could answer her, the Happy Mask Salesman appeared from the shadows and slowly walked over to them with the same creepy grin on his face.

"Ah, so you've returned!"

[turbofanatic]

I recently replayed Ocarina of Time 3D in it's entirety and I have THOUGHTS. Are they smart thoughts? No. But I had them.

-I genuinely prefer the old N64 aesthetics. Yeah, they're janky as hell but it feels a little more coherent and in some ways I think it's charming to see artwork strain against the limitations of the medium. Also they took away Link's big nose. How could you do this to me.

- At the end of the game that boy is a tank. I got nearly all the hearts and with the increased defense and fairies I just steamrolled through Ganon's attacks. Nokia brick phone of a boy. This is even with me forgetting to use Nayru's Love.

-Speaking of Nayru's Love, it's interesting how you need to kill Dark Link before getting it. Fascinating parallels to the Adventures of Link killing his shadow to save the princess. Bad Moon Tiny doesn't kill Dark Link on his second chance, I think he never gets Nayru's Love. He could probably get to the desert, but I think the great fairy just says "nah."

-You can get magic, Din's Fire, and Farore's Wind just as a kid. So Tiny gets those, plus the Termina stuff. He wandered around a little after being sent back and saved the Gorons and Princess Ruto. I'm gonna say he couldn't use them in Majora's Mask because that's not Din and Farore's land!

-The Great Deku Tree kinda sucks as a dad. You can't even see him without permission, which I guess is understandable since he can't run away and has dozens of kids. Maybe the fairies are doing most of the "parenting," which again makes Link borderline feral even by feral woods children standards.

-I like how he can and will cheat at games. I don't think he even understands what he's doing. He's just a little boy doing stuff. He probably tried to bite Ganondorf at one point.

-On that note, wow yeah there's a sad underlying plotline that this guy is nine years old and everyone thinks he's an adult and the world is shit. People say creepy things to him that he does not understand, and the juxtaposition between twee-as-fuck Castle Town and the zombie gibdo hellscape of seven years later is perfection. That boy is nine and things keep trying to eat his face. It's very similar to the original LoZ in that way (a ten year old doing too much), but the ability to have more details makes it more harrowing. There's probably something in there about a sweet spot of detail where it's realistic enough to convey specificity and simplified enough to invite the audience to add their own details, I'll ponder this more.

-A little off topic but this has been bothering me for a while, people have told me that Link in A Link to the Past is also nine or ten, and like, please think this through better. There are implications here and they are Bad. In the pamphlet accompanying ALttP (which is where most of the story was delivered in ye olde video game days) both Zelda and Link are similarly aged and clearly teens (officially, Zelda is 16 which feels about right, and ALttP Link looks exactly like AoL Link, who is canonically 16, not LoZ Link, who looks like a kid and is ten). And if you consider any romance with either Zelda or Marin in Link's Awakening (who we're told looks enough like Zelda to be mistaken for her) at all then you're dealing with a romance between a ten year old and a sixteen year old treated as a good thing. Even if it's a few years later in LA that's still a thirteen year old and a nineteen year old. That's not good! Anyways, I know a lot of people don't know these details so consider this a PSA.

-Getting back to OoT, I wish people used the fact that after both MM and OoT, Link just takes half damage. It's not related to magic or armor, he just shrugs things off.

-What is up with the forest temple. Seriously. Phantom Ganondorf is wearing a mask that looks a lot like the skull mask, which in turn looks like the forest totem the deku worship... something is going on here.

-Something suspicious is also going on at Hyrule Castle after Ganondorf attacks. Most of the guards outside the castle don't know what is happening, nobody is out looking for Zelda publicly... Honestly I think Ganondorf helped foment a coup or something and wanted to take the triforce in the chaos. We know there's a lot of messed up things in Hyrule and the peace is tenuous at best.

-WHAT HAPPENS TO BONGO BONGO IN THE CHILD TIMELINE?! Oh boy, there's some fun possibilities there! I should draw that thing.

-I still have no idea exactly when Link gets sent back to when he returns to the past. It's clearly before Zelda left the castle so he probably shouldn't have gotten all three spiritual stones, but he's in the chamber with the sword... how does he get out if it's sealed? Better minds than mine have pondered this for ages.

-If OoT is about a child trying to grow up before he's ready, and MM is about being given the time Link needs to start to grow up, I think the Hero's Shade in TP is about actually being an adult and doing what adults are supposed to do, help the next generation. I really do think that the Hero's Shade is intended to evoke both the Fierce Deity and Dark Link. The former for Link actually growing up, like c'mon the wolf spirit implies he even had white hair. And the latter because TP is about darkness not being evil.

Your true face... What kind of... face is it? I wonder... The face under the mask... Is that... your true face?

[musical-chan]

Father of Time Chapter 19: The Goddess's Green Blessing

This was going to be the best week. 

Link enjoyed being on the beach. He was reminded of the Great Bay and felt a strange sadness that he had never had a chance to enjoy the places in Termina for what they were. Maybe with no monsters and no masks, it might have been fun. This place was certainly nice. The Sacred Realm had saved them so much travel, there was finally time to relax, no matter how much of a grump Aevum was being.  So he played in the waves and looked at seashells with his father and took time to enjoy himself. 

Their second evening there, he stared over the ocean, his feet just on the edge of the surf.  The sun set along the coast, off to the west, but there was something about seeing the light reflecting on the water before it could sink below the horizon.  He hummed a song that washed back and forth like waves and sparkled like light on the water. Some part of him wished Navi was here to enjoy this with him; she never really did get to relax when they were together.  He hoped she was happy wherever she might be.  The water lapped at his toes and he thought of home.

Without conscious decision, he hummed Saria's song.

Hey Link! How are you!?

"Oh hey Saria, sorry! I didn't mean to call."

It's no problem at all.  It sounds windy where you are.  Is it still cold?

"Oh, no! We kinda took a shortcut. I think we're pretty far south now.  I'm on a BEACH! It's all sandy and there's a ton of water. Did you know about the ocean?"

I don't think so. Is it nice?

"Yeah, it's nice and kinda scary at the same time. It's a lot of water and super deep. All I can see is water all the way to the horizon! I wish I still had that Zora tunic, haha.  Didn't have to worry about drowning in that thing."  He blinked, remembering he still had the mask in his bags. Oh, he probably could have used that to go swimming.

I bet you could go get another when you get back, right?

Link paused, thinking about going back to the Zora city, wondering if he wanted to risk running into Princess Ruto again.  It would be nice to have something for swimming again. The mask was okay but transformations were never entirely pleasant on his body.  Well, he'd have to think about that more.  Surely Ruto wasn't still obsessed with him. He pretty much turned her down cold accidentally the last time.

"Yeah, maybe I could.  I should."

If you're south, does that mean you're closer to home now?

"It sure does!  Dad says we'll definitely be back by winter now!  I can't wait to see everyone again. How's your fairy doing? Any sign of bad things with the Deku Tree?"

Oh Link, that's so great! You come and see me as soon as you get home, okay?  My fairy is fine! It's so nice of you to ask.  She says your house fairies are lonely and they miss the treats.

"Oh, right.  I thought they would have left when we didn't come back."

No, they decided it's their home now.  Oh right, you asked about the Deku Tree. He is fine!  Sometimes we get more Moblins trying to get to the Temple but I think they've started to give up now.  I've heard some worrying things from the edge of the forest though.  When you get back, maybe you can find out what's going on?

"Of course!  Man, it has been a while, hasn't it?  I got a letter from Malon but haven't heard anything else."

I don't think it's too bad but there seem to be more monsters pushing at the edges of Hyrule.

"Thanks for the warning! I'll check it out as soon as we're back. I can hardly believe we'll be home soon.  Maybe a few more weeks, right?  Let me know if anything happens though, okay? I can get to the Temple pretty quick if I need to."

I definitely will.  I should go though. We'll talk again soon, right?

"Right after I talk to the last Goddess!"

Bye Link! Later!

(Read the rest on AO3!)

[roy-dcm2]

Zelda Theory - Saria is Missing

I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who believes this, but I'm still going to put it out there. It's my headcanon really, I believe that in Majora's Mask, Link is actually looking for Saria, not Navi.

Of course, Nintendo's official stance is that he was looking for Navi, but keep in mind that Nintendo used to say there was only one Link in all the games. What I'm saying is that they can change their mind whenever they want.

Really, there's only two data points to back up my theory.

First, let's consider how vague the instruction booklet is about why Link is looking for someone:

"Done with the battles he once waged across time, he embarked on a journey. A secret and personal journey... A journey in search of a beloved and invaluable friend... A friend with whom he parted ways when he finally fulfilled his heroic destiny and took his place among legends..."

A beloved, invaluable friend that he hasn't seen since the end of Ocarina of Time. That could refer to Saria or Navi.

But, I find it hard to believe Navi could be called Beloved. How long did he know Navi? A month? Three months? And he very clearly sees Navi leave at the end of Ocarina. Are we supposed to believe that she left without saying a word? I mean, if they were close enough that Link thinks of her as Beloved, she would have told him something.

Meanwhile, imagine that Link goes back to the Sacred Forest Meadow and Saria is gone without a trace. She's not in her house, and not even in the Forest Temple.

Remember, Saria says that it is destiny that they cannon live in the same world. Sages become Spirits when they're awakened. (The Japanese call this Kamikakushi - spiriting away.)

Now, the second data point is at the end of Majora's Mask. At the end of the game, the Skull Kid says Link -

What a weird way to cap off the game, don't you think? I mean, according to NIntendo, Link was looking for Navi this entire time and we end with "You smell like a sidequest."

We're supposed to assume that this is the same Skull Kid that appears in the Lost Woods that you can "teach" Saria's Song to.

But, here's the thing, that doesn't happen unless you do that Sidequest. You could completely miss it if you don't go exploring.

So, my stance is that it was Saria herself that taught the Skull Kid the song, since she spent so much time in the Lost Woods. It would make more sense, narrative wise, that Link was looking for Saria, and the game ends with "You smell like Saria. I was friends with Saria. We should be friends!" (Obviously, I'm reading between the lines)

Majora's Mask is a game about the little things. It's about how people affect each other's lives, and no matter how isolated we may seem, we're all connected. Just like Link left an indelible mark on Termina, Saria affected those around her, too. Even in their absence, the people we care about still affect us today.

[linkedhearts]

🎮

Traveling with Link was... Trying at the worst of times but the longer you spent time with him the more he mellowed out. ...now if only you'd not wake up to frogs in your blankets thanks to the little gremlin.

Regardless, you'd grown fond of the kid even if he wasn't quite the sweet little kid you thought he'd be. Oh well. It was to be expected after... At least two adventures. You're sure it's two now. You just don't know if he's been on that third one or not yet. Heck, the only reason you know he's been on the first two is because Navi isn't here and you've already seen him mumbling to the Fierce Deity mask. So he's at least been to Termina.

So when you stop at Kakariko for a supply run and overhear one of the evidently many newly posted guards talking to Link about the strange sounds coming from the well again and how they're too scared to check it out and would the little hero mind taking a peak?

Well, angry is too light a term to put it at. Furious is far more like it since you practically see red. Shoving past one of the other villagers you grab a little green clad shoulder and pull Link back towards you. He'll probably hate you for it but it's not his fucking responsibility to take care of everyone.

"Absolutely not!" You start, uncaring of how loud you either are or aren't. "You're a royal guard aren't you? Isn't it your responsibility!? Why are you pestering someone you don't even consider old enough to go up Death Mountain about this?"

"But he's-!" The guard starts.

"A kid!" You harshly interrupt. "If you're so worried about the well than either do it yourself or fill the thing and dig somewhere else for a new one. I doubt the water from it would be safe to drink anyways. Especially if there's strange sounds coming from it."

Especially considering all the bodies and blood. ....and the Dead Hand you know is down there.

"Look he's not just some kid he's-" The guard starts again which only prompts you to pull a still frozen gremlin behind you and get in the guard's face.

"A kid." You insist again. Uncaring for how the guard has decided to try and raise his spear at you. With the kind of carelessness that comes from just never having a spear pointed at you and being on the warpath you grab the pole and shove it to the side.

"Hey! Back up!" Oh great another chicken has decided to join...

"Fine! We're leaving and don't you ever talk to me or my little brother again!"

Ta Da???? Lol. I've no idea what's going on in little Time's head right now. ... I'mma call him Pocket Watch from now on. XD

I'm guessing he's frozen and just imagining the Dead Hand that's down there and having to fight it. Either way having you defend him might go two ways. Either he's gonna be mad you for treating him like a kid or considering what they were asking him to do he's probably going to be... Emotional to say the least. I know not which one.

- 🎮

Surprisingly he’s not angry. No one’s ever done that for him before. Everyone always tells him to be brave, it’s his responsibility. And when the guards asked him about the well, he felt the dread of having to face more unknown monsters. But, you stood up for him. You said what he’s always wanted to say. HE’S JUST A KID. Maybe he has been a bit too mean to you. Maybe he should lighten up on the pranks. Just a little bit.

[kintatsujo]

LOZ AU- The Courage of Running Away PART ONE

warnings: Parental abuse, fantasy religion, fantasy religious abuse

So the original grain of this concept was actually a dream I had once but we'll get to that.

A major aspect of this idea that makes it an "AU" as opposed to "just" a "game pitch as fanfic" concept is that it has a worldmap that looks something like this: 

[Image Description: A map of a continent.  In the center is Gerudo Desert, ringed by mountains that extend from the bottom to top of the continent.  On the west side of Gerudo Desert, from north to south, are countries labeled "Termina," "Holodrum," and "Labrynna," while on the east side are countries labeled "Hytopia," "Hyrule" and "Lorule."  Hytopia is indicated to be a sky island above a territory labeled "Drablands."  Hyrule and Termina are more directly east and west of one another, as the Drablands are the northernmost country of the continent and Labrynna is the southernmost country.  There is an indication of another continent to the east, and off the eastern shore is a sky island labeled "Sky Temple."  To the south of Labrynna is a proper island labeled "Windfish Isle."  There is a legend in the upper left corner that reads "Really generalized AU map.  Proportions not to be taken too seriously and most of the sky islands besides Hytopia just aren't there because it would get too busy."  End Description.]

Lorule as a physical country to the south of Hyrule rather than a mirror version of Hyrule is because I am weak for dumb puns.  Also in general you can describe this as "this is my AU and I do what I want."  

Also the map of Hyrule itself in this AU should be considered to be heavily similar to the Breath of the Wild map because that's what I want shh.  Does this mean the other countries are similar in scope despite being based on countries from earlier and smaller games?  Well, yeah.  

I actually tried out making this worldmap in RPGMaker btw but to get something I was happy with I'd at LEAST need a nicer worldmap tileset for MZ.  Do I have the skills to make that?  Yep.  Have I got the time to make that?  Nope.

Anyway so as noted there's actually a NUMBER of floating sky islands in this version of the setting, and its version of Link was raised here, in the sky temple monastery/commune/abbey don't look at me:

[Image description: A floating island with a round temple, some sort of pillars arranged in a circle, and a few other buildings, one of which might be a dormitory.  The temple has a statue of the Triforce nested in Hylia's wings on the roof.  End description.]

A couple notes here since it's the only good place: In this Hyrule there are Loftwings because I said so.  There is also a Rito run mail service and there are also balloon-based airships.  Again, because I said so.  The Rito are the main people who run supplies to the Sky Temple, but there's also a number of hylians with bonded Loftwings living there.  The Loftwings are a little less mysterious in that they clearly roost nearby riders they've bonded with; note the large archways kind of indicated on the side of the dorm building.  Link, at this point in the story, does not have a Loftwing, which is important for reasons that will become clear by the end of this post.  Also, I'm not sure how obvious it is but I do intend that there's a cucoo/chicken coop set up near the dorm; this is for the eggs but the monk or whatever in charge of them is definitely a crazy bird person and probably also keeps messenger pigeons.  There would also be a garden somewhere and as one can possibly tell there's a graveyard.  Basically this Sky Temple is what I thought Skyloft was going to be a little more like until I found out it was literally a Boarding School Town.  Anyway.

The thing is that this Link was discovered to be the Hero of the age sometime in his infancy.

And this is the person who discovered him:

[Image description: On one half of the page is an establishing shot of a hylian man in blue and white (light gray) robes and a hat, with long hair in a braid and graying at the temples.  He's approximately middle aged by the lines in his face, tall and slender and moderately attractive.  He is wearing heavy gold diamond shaped earrings to match the symbols of Hylia and the Triforce on his clothing.  He is frowning, and he is labeled "Astramorus."  On the other half of the page are a series of comic panels: In the first, a young Link is hiding from a Rito behind Astramorus's cloak.  Astramorus asks, apparently fondly, "Come now boy, where's your courage?" while the Rito sheepishly assures him "Th-that's quite all right, Lordship."  In the second panel, a very small Link dressed in the Hero of Hylia's traditional green outfit is wiping his eyes while holding a sword too large for him.  There is blood on Link's clothes.  Astramorus, standing so that only the hem of his robes are in shot, asks "Come now boy, where's your courage?"  And in the last panel, lit as though by fire, Astramorus now has a much older Link by the back of the neck in a controlling manner, once again asking, "Come now boy, where's your COURAGE?"  End description.]

By the way the manner in which Astramorus is holding the back of Link's neck in the final panel is a sneaky thing my dad used to pull sometimes; basically if you squeeze just hard enough to hurt nobody but the person you're doing it to can actually tell so you can even do it in public without people necessarily noticing.  It took me ages to go "wait that was actually really fucked up that he used to do that."  Shoulder touch is good, neck touch bad.

A note on Astramorus's costume: It's basically an evil version of the costume worn by the priestly guy from the Sanctuary in alttp.  Astramorus himself, well, I had the idea for him well before Age of Calamity came out but yes he is basically named after Aster, so you can guess that he's more than just a terrible father.

Astramorus has been training Link since he could lift his sword, including trials he should have been too small for and acquiring things for him to fight-- and kill.    Link isn't allowed to speak to anyone unless asked questions or told to by Astramorus, not even the other members of the monastery (although perhaps many of the people there have taken their own vows of silence.)  

And he's not allowed to have opinions, and he's not allowed to back down in a fight or say that he's too tired to keep training, and this has been going on since Link was six.  Astramorus tells him this is the ideal.  That never backing down and never stopping is what courage means and what being the hero means.  That starting from a young age is only proof of the hero's purity of heart.

And when Link is nearing seventeen, Astramorus tells him that he's going to present him to the royal family of Hyrule, and that at last the HARD part will truly begin.  (Keeping in mind that he was putting a six year old through trials MEANT for a seventeen year old.)  And Link breaks: 

[Image Description: A comic.  Link is putting together a paraglider not dissimilar to the one from BotW.

He narrates: Tomorrow we're supposed to set out so that I can meet the king of Hyrule.  Which means that this is my last chance to run away.

Link grinds his classic hat into the ground with one boot, and leaves his sword stabbed into the earth behind him.  He leaps off the sky island and toward the sun on the horizon.

Link narrates: I don't care if this is cowardly anymore.

End description.]

And THAT one page is what the dream that started the concept was about; some people might remember me talking about it as long as three years ago and it's just been stuck in my head ever since!  (Also: I love the idea of there being a Link who starts out wearing the classic outfit and THEN switches to other costumes.)

This is obviously not the end of this AU, lol, stay tuned for where Link finally crash lands (spoiler: He makes it pretty far and you might be able to guess from the map >:3c)

#AU August

#LoZ AU: The Courage of Running Away

Bonus: 

[Image description: A headshot flat color sketch of this Link, who has short fluffy light blonde hair and green eyes.  He is yelling, with tears in his eyes: "I am NEVER wearing that STUPID hat again!"  End description!]

[linktheacehero]

Precious

Here's my contribution for @behind-the-fic MFC! I hope you enjoy it Fate!

A loud crash of thunder made Link and Talt stop dead in their tracks as they traveled through the grassy fields of Termina. Link looked up to the sky and noticed huge dark grey clouds above him.

“We need to find shelter before the rain catches us!” he informed Talt, who nodded in response.

As they looked around to find a place that could serve for protection against the oncoming rain, Link noticed a huge log near the tree where Skull Kid drew himself with Talt and Tael.

“Over there!” he yelled, and ran towards the log.

As they settled down inside, the rain came, pouring so heavily that it was nearly impossible to see through.

“It’s a good thing we found shelter,” commented Talt “otherwise we would have been stuck in that”

“Yeah” Link agreed

The hero rested his head against worn down wood, and let out a long sigh. It had been a chaotic week, or had it been days?? He didn’t know, he felt like he never had any time to rest, an irony in itself with what he’s able to do with the Ocarina of Time.

"So," Talt began, shaking Link away from his thoughts "now that we're going to be here for a while, do you mind me asking some questions about you?"

Link looked at her quizzically. In all the time he's been with Talt, he'd never figured her to care about him, in a "who are you" sort of sense. He supposed she only cared about getting back to her brother as fast as possible, which he didn’t mind….Sort of.

“Why are you looking at me like that?!” Talt questioned “I’m just trying to make conversation”

Link chuckled, “I’m sorry, I just wasn’t expecting you to ask me that”

He looked out towards the howling rain, letting his mind wander before saying

“What do you want to know?”

“Well,” she began, “first things first, have you done this before? Like, the whole fighting monsters and being a hero thing?”

Link gave her a small smile, “Yeah, you could say that.”

“What do you mean?”

He sighed, “It’s a long story. Let’s just say that it involves me becoming a legendary hero, time travel and saving a princess from a tyrannical, power hungry man.”

Talt flew back with amazement, “Oh wow. You really have done this before”

“You have no idea,” he remarked, “ alright, what’s you’re next question”

“The first time we met, what were you doing in the forest?”

“Oh, I was just looking for an old friend.”

“In the forest?”

“She’s a fairy,” he explained, “She was my companion for most of my journey, but left after it ended.”

“Oh, well I hope you find her” she told him

“Thanks”

There was a mild silence between them, with only the wind howling between them before Link spoke up

“So, are there any more questions you have for me?”

“Welllll,” Talt began tentatively, she seemed almost nervous, as if she didn’t know if it was a good idea to ask her next question, “there is one, but I don’t know if it’s too personal”

“What do you mean?” Link asked her

“It’s about your ocarina”

‘Oh’

He supposed it made sense why she would ask about the instrument. After all, he had managed to reverse time itself, and healed himself from his curse.

“What do you want to know about it?”

“The Happy Mask Salesman mentioned it was precious to you. What exactly did he mean by that?”

Link’s face flushed, he was definitely not expecting Talt to ask him why the ocarina meant so much to him. How it worked, sure, but not the reason he worked so hard to get it back.

“W-well,” Link stammered out. He couldn’t even talk about her without getting flustered.

‘Focus Link! You can do this, just calm down.”

He gazed out towards the falling rain, letting the sounds of the storm clear his mind and took a deep breath before allowing himself to answer.

“The ocarina was a gift from the princess of Hyrule, Zelda .”

His tone, Talt noticed, became softer and reminiscent. She guessed that whoever this princess Zelda was, she definitely had a special place in Link’s heart.

“Zelda,” he continued, “was the princess that I saved from the tyrannical man on my journey. We met early on in my adventure, and became really close friends.”

“Just really close friends?” teased Talt, causing Link’s cheeks to turn a deep crimson

“Oh, be quiet!” He told her, but the blush remained on his face. “We worked together to try and stop him, but some things happened and we were separated for a while.” He took in another breath. “We went through a lot, more than what anyone should have gone through, after my journey was over and I decided to look for Navi, my fairy friend, she gave me the ocarina as a parting gift. She said that it reminded her of us and of everything we had gone through together.”

The rain had begun to die down, letting Link realize that they would soon be able to continue on their quest towards Snowhead. He got up, and walked towards the log’s entrance and stood there for a few moments before looking up at the sky.

“I made her a promise that day” he said, “I promised her that I would return. That, no matter how long it took, I would come home, I would come back to her”

Talt flew there silently, not knowing what she could say that would help comfort him. She realized in that moment, that there was more to this boy than what she originally thought. He wasn’t some kid who foolishly helped people because he wanted to, he was a warrior on a mission to find his friend so that he could return to the person he cared for most in the world.

“This ocarina is the only thing that I have of her. That’s why-”

He choked back a sob, tears began to flow silently down his cheek. Talt flew near him, gently resting herself on his shoulder to show her support. He turned to look at her, a sad smile on his face, but appreciation and acknowledgment showing in his eyes.

“That’s why it’s precious to me.”

“I understand,” she said, “and I’m sorry for stealing it in the first place”

Link sniffed, and wiped his eyes with his palms, “it’s alright, you didn’t know”

“But still, I'm going to make it up to you by helping you return back to your princess! So come on! We don’t have all day hero!”

Link laughed at Talt’s words and together headed towards Snowhead Mountain.

‘Don’t worry Zelda. I promise I’ll come back to you’