#in reference to the poll:

[puddlestories]

Fractured Beginnings

Shadow and Vaati

Idea: Shadow's creation was something Vaati wasn't sure about, something deep within him rejecting the idea of bringing another being into his mess, but the lure of power says otherwise.

CW: altered canon (head-canons available in previous post), implied childhood rejection, implied character death but no description, accepting yourself, Link being a bro etc.

Short drabble so not under a read more.

The tower groaned under the weight of the storm, outside, winds howled like grieving spirits, inside Shadow waited, silent in the storm’s rage, quiet within Vaati’s presence. He sat cross-legged on eroded cold stone, a small wooden box in his hands, within, sat on a thin pillow of velvet: a single green rupee, polished to a gleam- a gift, once, he remembered.

He had been smaller back then, not by much- Shadow was never meant to grow- but his dark eyes had been wide, glistening bright with newfound wonder, his steps unsure. He remembered the day Vaati had conjured him, not with malice, but an unsure, guilty wonder.

��I wonder,” Vaati had said then, ruby meeting garnet, “what the Hero’s shadow might dream of, if given a mind of his own.”

He’d smiled, a real smile, not the cold, curled sneer he wore now.

Those early days were quiet, peaceful- Vaati would show him how to shape illusions, how to slip through cracks of light and maximise his abilities, as well as how to listen to the whispers of magic in the wind- some admittedly more useful to his own purpose than others, be he grasped every opportunity to prove himself, to spend time together, though only for the praise, of course. They would walk the forests, and Vaati, still shorter than his final corrupted Hylian form, still holding to his Minish roots back then, the full power of the cap not yet digging deep roots in his entire being, would hum while scattering rupees into the grass.

“Magic isn’t always for power,” he had said with a melancholic smile, eyes lidded and shoulders falling slightly forward, his tailored tunic not allowing a dramatic slump, the threads taught, “sometimes, it’s for delight, surprise, the joy of an unexpected treasure.”

Shadow had believed him in his young, easily impressionable years, brain still attempting to form his view of the world, to understand, still simply a child placed at a large disadvantage.

Then came the fangs of the cap, replacing his nerves, controlling his actions and removing the shine from his eyes.

At first, Vaati simply stayed in his study longer, then the humming stopped, and then came the hunger: for power, for control, for something that even Vaati himself couldn’t name. He grew taller, thinner, his bones pulling at skin, walking on his toes, bones shattered and pulled apart, grew older physically and emotionally, though not in a positive way. The smiles vanished, replaced by orders, missions and punishments.

Shadow learned to disappear when Vaati grew quiet, he learned that silence often came before storms.

Tonight, he was called again- a familiar chill laced the corridors as Vaati approached, violet robes fluttering like torn clouds, lightning crackling in the wake of his striding steps.

“You didn’t complete the task I gave you,” Vaati said, not shouted, just stated with a lack of both emotion and tone, his face portraying no emotion either. However, his words crackled with restrained magic.

“The shrine maiden escaped,” Shadow said, “she was only a teenager, a child, she wasn’t worth--”

“She was mine,” Vaati hissed, his eyes, once soft like spring skies, now burned violet within the swirling ruby red, a vortex of hatred screaming within, “your purpose is not to think,” he snapped, hair flipping into a wild clump upon his shoulder with the dramatic fling of Vaati’s head, snapping to face Shadow who was subconsciously hunched lower away from his verbal firing line, “only to obey.”

The words struck harder than any spell, and they still burned a small part of him deep within his core, even after all the time that had passed since that moment.

Shadow stared at the box in his hands, the little dulled green rupee within it, a relic of a time he now wondered if he’d simply imagined it- was Vaati ever kind, or was that, too, just another illusion?

“I remember when you used to smile,” Shadow said, voice low, speaking to the still wind, unusual for how high he was, sat upon the edge of the highest balcony upon the Palace of Winds.

Vaati’s expression twisted, pain, possibly, or just irritation, “that part of me is gone, just as you should be, if you can’t serve your purpose.”

Silence. Then:

“I didn’t ask to be created,” Shadow whispered, expression unmoving, plucking the rupee between two scared fingers, running coarse fingers along buffed, smoothed edges.

“And I didn’t ask to be betrayed,” he snapped back, though the harshness of the words were known to be more of Shadow’s own twisted self-doubt, though now aware, Vaati’s actual words simply blunt and uncaring for Shadow’s response.

With a flick of his hand, Vaati turned away, cloak snapping behind him, “you’re dismissed.”

Shadow remained, legs twisted slightly into the banister, legs dangling, long after Vaati vanished, the storm outside had long faded, instead concentrated internally. A softer wind blew now, threading through broken, long abandoned windows.

He looked down at the box one last time, and then, with trembling fingers, he closed it. That night, long ago, Shadow left the tower, he took nothing but the clothes on his back and the green rupee tucked deep into his belt like a hidden wound he couldn’t stop touching.

In the years to come, he would tell himself that Vaati had never been kind, that love was a lie, and that the only truth was betrayal.

But sometimes, when the wind whispered through tall grass, he would remember a day in the forest and a Minish’s smile.

And it would hurt all over again.

Yet here, and now, the ruins of the old tower still stood, though time had worn them smooth.

Stone crumbled beneath his boots as Shadow stepped into the remnants of the place he once called home. The wind blew gently through broken arches, no longer howling with rage, just present, as though it, too, had softened with time.

He stopped in what used to be Vaati's study, the window once draped in dark purple velvet, was open to the sky, moonlight poured in like a quiet blessing, the only available light, with stumps of wax long melted and warped into the wooden desks and crooked shelves.

For a long moment, Shadow stood still.

He didn’t know why he had come here, curiosity, perhaps. Closure, maybe. Or some echo of the child he used to be, drawn back to the place where he’d first learned to use his magic, and where he'd first been told he was nothing more than a tool.

He reached into his cloak and pulled something out, holding no visual importance nor flair to the regular individual.

A small, wooden box.

It still opened with a soft click. Inside, the green rupee lay exactly as it always had, though now gleaming faintly in the moonlight, slightly shined with a damp cloth on lonely nights of nightmares- it held an energy, not magical, nor powerful, just... kind, in a way he could never describe, simply the cool touch of the moon after a long walk with good company, the cold of the wind through his fingers.

He smiled.

Not the crooked, guarded grin he used to wear like a mask, but a real one- small and hesitant, but genuine, because for the first time, he could look at this thing, not as a relic of pain, but as a memory of possibility.

“I used to think you were the only one who saw me,” he murmured, as if the wind could carry his words to whatever remained of Vaati’s spirit, “but maybe I was wrong.” He knelt and set the box gently on the floor, among the moss and rubble, he didn’t need it anymore. “You weren’t a god,” Shadow said quietly, a prayer for acceptance of himself, not forgiveness to others, this was for him, “you weren’t even the worst monster I’ve faced, just another who was broken, and I let your cracks define me.”

He stood.

“I’m not your shadow anymore.”

He turned, and there was someone at the edge of the ruins, a figure in green, waiting patiently- Link, arms crossed, eyes steady, he didn’t speak, he didn’t need to.

Shadow walked to him, and together, they left the ruins behind.

As they passed through the tall grass at the forest’s edge, something shimmered near Shadow’s boot. He stopped, knelt, and picked up a rupee- a green one, not worth much to anyone, but something small enough to bring a smile to those who needed it- a symbol, an ironic symbol of generosity and kindness.

Link chuckled deep blue eyes swirling with colour, “lucky?”

Shadow turned it over in his hand, then tossed it back into the grass with foggy eyes, “maybe,” he whispered, voice crackling through the tightness of his throat, “maybe it’s just someone trying to make someone else smile.”

Link tilted his head and nodded forward, a small question without words nor pressure.

Shadow shrugged, foot dragging circles into the loose soil beneath at the grass boarder, “someone did it for me, once.” He looked away into the tree canopy, eyes distant but shoulders squared with feigned confidence, the emotions still raw and confusing.

They walked on, the moon trailing behind them like a guardian.

For the first time in his life, Shadow was more than just a creation, more than a reflection, more than the leftover thoughts of a corrupted mage.

He was someone who had chosen to grow.

Someone who had become something greater.

---

Hello all, thank you for reading, criticism is welcome as always! Just a short drabble since I'm busy this weekend and onwards, I have decided it's better to space content so it seems like I'm gone for less time not like y'all would miss this bad writing /lh so hopefully the scheduled post works.

Fun fact:

I know that Shadow wasn't necessarily created before Vaati breaks the Picori blade since this was when he discovered Link's existence and heroic attempt to save Zelda, therefore, leading to further interactions, but for the sake of head-canons of Vaati's influence in Shadow's lie and him going from good to bad, we can excuse this fact.

I currently have many drafts and ideas for a full fic (Shadow x Reader) meaning there may not be a post next weekend or even the next, depending how I cut up the pieces as it is extremely likely to be a multi-part fic, however, I shall add a poll below related to this:

[eldritchsquared]

because i’m curious

^ for reference

[composeregg]

edit (10/23/2024) now that the poll is over: Original version, with 10 questions, from April 2023 here

And, given that the original is from April 2023, that means I can very easily say:

No, this was not an ISAT reference!

Just because I use parentheses and 2nd person pov and love the same concepts of what a time loop can do to a person doesn't mean it's ISAT

(Yes, I like ISAT, the original poll is why I was recommended the game! But if you look at the original, you can see all the origins of the options to choose from, including what spurred me on with the moss option from the replies)

If I were going to make something for ISAT, I would never be so vague, you can simply look at my ao3 for proof of that

[goldandrosered]

I LOVE MOUTHWASHING

*throws mlp tulpar crew at you*

closeups:

[deanpinterester]

OK CANADA'S TURN how many canadian provinces and territories can you name in 5 minutes

(link to quiz!)

[amystarrstuff]

so, this is something i've noticed in fandom spaces and want to see how people ~generally~ feel regarding genderbends & genderswaps, especially if they are transgender themselves!

if there's a reason for why you like/dislike genderbends please share in the tags, this is something that genuinely interests me

[iri-desky]

Doof: "You see Perry The Platypus, about a few weeks ago I entered The Tumblr Sexyman Showdown. It's a contest for only the sexiest of men-- now now, Perry the Platypus, before you roll your eyes at me, it's not the conventional kind of sexy, no, no! It's the pathetic, the silly, the unconventional! Only for the acquired tastes. Like me~!! So I joined in, and you wouldn't believe it! I plowed through the competition! Bracket after bracket, I dominated the votes. That is, until the final round... when I was put up against Stanley Pines of someplace called 'Gravity Falls'-- for some reason, even though he claimed to come from a place called Gravity Falls and I come from the Tri-State Area, the competition listed me to come from someplace called 'Phineas and Ferb', and I have no idea where that is or who those people are--I was kicked to the curb! He won by a landslide! Well, not literally though, that's a metaphor--that's how Bill Cipher won against Jack Frost from Rise of the Guardians, and I KNOW that place doesn't exist--b-but anyway, Stanley won and I only got second. And it doesn't make any sense! Sure, Stanley is similar to what the true Sexyman is, but he's not the greatest! For one thing, he's not that pathetic--jeez, if anyone is the most pathetic here, it's me! He's not that tragic-backstory-able, or anything, he--and worse yet, he's HOT! I mean, he's not that much of an acquired taste! Sure, he's older, but that's it!! Clearly, the people are biased! Which is why I made...THIS!"

Doof: "BEHOLD! THE UNHANDSOME-INATOR!!!!"

Doof: "With this, I can make anyone ugly--so ugly that their ugliness is JUUUST too ugly to be a Tumblr Sexyman! But too handsome to be truly ugly...and I can also tweak it to make myself just a little more handsome, hehe! With this, I will make the ENTIRE TRI-STATE AREA Sexyman ugly, and shoot myself so I will be the most acquired-taste-handsome out of all of them, winning the love of all of the TRI-STATE AREA, AND ENACTING MY REVENGE AGAINST THE TUMBLR SEXYMAN CONTEST!!!"

Doof: "--Or wait, come to think of it, this isn't really revenge, I mean, the contest's over and it won't come back until next year so this scheme prooobably should've been postponed until then... not to mention this inator isn't exactly that tweaked, it's a rushed job and has some...ahaha...side effects...unless I CRANK UP THE RANGE OF THE INATOR!"

Doof: "Yes, Perry The Platypus, I will become the most tumblr-sexyman handsome by proxy in all of the tri-state area AND GRAVITY FALLS, OREGON!!!"

| Meanwhile In Gravity Falls |

*Stan, reading the paper, suddenly looks up.*

Stan: "Something just happened."

*beat*

Stan: "...Eh. Who cares. Worse has happened in this town. It's probably the heebie jeebies from that German guy from a couple days ago, eugh."

Stan: "Worth it for the prize money, though. I'm still the sexiest man on all of Tumblr! Ahaha!"

*beat*

Stan, still grinning: "...whatever that is."

*A beat. Then the door to the Mystery Shack slams open. It's Ford.*

Ford: "Stanley! I'm back!"

Stanley: "Hey, sixer. Back from another one of your little adventures?"

Ford: "I suppose you could call it that! Ever been to the tri-state area? There are hundreds of anomalies there! Did you know that all the platypuses are teal there?"

Stanley: "Yeah, yeah...well, make sure to tell me later. I'm reading the paper."

Ford: "Well, don't get too absorbed. We're going to Italy tomorrow, remember? We're visiting the Vatican! Lots of great things to explore there! We might even see the pope!"

[andry-di]

cough... please, don't percieve me ever again

[staticchoir1]

; they pmo bru how do i make them explode

[thevoidstaredback]

Doesn't matter the power you get, I'm genuinely curious. Explain your answer?

[janglyjusticeforall]

"edgeworth shouldnt have gotten 1st place" "edgeworth isnt even in the aj trilogy" who do u think pays rent for that office hm? u think phoenix had that damn whale paying retainer? u think that 16 year old girl was making rent between her algebra homework? be so fucking serious

[front-facing-pokemon]

[need-him-pregnant-poll]

Things are getting rather heated, so here's a gentle reminder to everyone that every blorbo is special to someone. Please don't insult the competition, just do your best to lift your own blorbo up without putting others down. At the end of the day, this is a silly tumblr poll.