#blatchery plain posting

[zellink]

pink funeral

[hyrule-photos]

necluda // blatchery plain & ash swamp

[bahbahhh]

begin again

a lot of change happens in between Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. let’s fill in the gaps.

zelda pov | zelink | totk spoilers | rated T zelinkweek2023 | @zelinkcommunity [first] [ ao3 ]

Again, big shout out to my beta reader @zeldaelmo who is an amazing writer for the LoZ fandom and is posting for zelink week as well. I had the pleasure of returning the favor for this totk zelink oneshot and absolutely recommend it.

chapter 2

for the prompt “forbidden”

Link’s just publicly recommended they destroy the most valuable resources available for the restoration of Hyrule and Zelda has no idea how to save him. 

Everyone just stares, and with the company they find themselves in, it may as well be the very eyes of Hyrule itself that are on him. Zelda can’t find her breath. She’s back in Blatchery Plain, drenched in rain and despair, surrounded by a swarm of corrupted guardians. Link faced a sea of eyes then, too. He stands with his back to her, just like he does now, and she watches his silhouette light up with constellations of crimson. 

He’s about to be blown to pieces right in front of her. 

She starts to raise her hand to protect him like she did that day, only to remember she hasn’t felt the hum of power, nevermind summoned the glow of golden light to her fingertips, since they destroyed the Calamity six months ago. She’s a star burnt out with nothing to show of her once formidable brilliance, but an ugly scar on her hand.

“All of it?” Impa asks, calmly.

Link nods. 

“Even the Divine Beasts?”

“Especially those,” he asserts.  

He has yet to make eye contact with Zelda again since the smile; that red herring of a smile that had her daydreaming while he nocked a kill shot. She gives up on trying to summon his gaze with her mind and glances desperately at Impa. The keeper of their histories, a guardian of lost tapestries and lessons of the past, a voice of reason in the hundred year storm—

But Zelda sees none of the women she thought she knew in the way Impa considers him. She’s got her head tilted pensively, like she might actually be contemplating what Link has said, which is impossible because he is suggesting they dismantle all the ancient relics of her people. 

Impa rotates her gaze out to the crowd and extends her hands to welcome the discussion, looking like a statue of the Goddess herself. Zelda’s heart drops into the pit of her stomach with a splash. She wants to scream, at both of them, but the continued and calm silence of the crowd is starting to feel less like they are preparing to strike and more like Link’s found the hidden door they’ve all been searching for. An emotional outburst could compromise the cogendy of any argument she might make. 

Goddess, she can still hear her father’s voice in her head after all these years. 

“Where would it all go?” Reede finally asks. 

Link crosses his arms over his chest, thinks about it for a half a second –1 like they are talking about something as simple as mending a pasture fence – and offers, “Sheikah Slate has a limitless inventory. Load it all into the Slate and then get rid of it.”

“How do you suppose we do that?” 

“Smash it with a hammer?” 

Purah gasps. “That would be such a waste, Linky! We still haven’t unlocked a quarter of the Slate’s potential.”

“You’ll build something better.” 

“Like what?” Robbie says, visibly shaken and pale.

‘That’s your thing, isn’t it?’ Link signs.

“If I may, wouldn’t destroying the Sheikah Technology prolong restoration efforts?” says Hudson of Tarrey Town. 

Link nods. 

“Did you yourself not benefit from the technology during your travels?” Traysi asks in a strangely formal tone. She lifts a pen and paper out of her lap without looking away from Link.  

He shrugs and Traysi’s expression sinks. She must be remembering he’s Hyrule’s worst interview subject. She rolls her shoulders back and tries again. 

“Wasn’t it Sheikah Technology that saved you from death?” 

An unbearable amount of guilt seethes out from wounds deep inside Zelda. Questions she’ll never feel brave enough to voice echo in the silence that follows Traysi’s: Did I make the right call? Is it what you wanted me to do? She can’t see his face, but she imagines it is unsettlingly neutral, as it always is in crucial moments of outrageous tension.  

Do you resent me for what I did? She’s screaming inside her head, glaring at the back of his skull. Unbearable heat swirls in her chest like dragon’s breath. You must! Just say you do! 

“It trapped his soul inside his body,” King Dorephan says.

Link’s body flinches. It’s microscopic. Zelda only catches it because she’s so focused on him, but she sees it, and pain blooms in the very center of her chest. 

“Mipha’s soul was trapped inside Vah Ruta after all these years, too.” King Dorephan continues. He is a monolith of a presence and yet, when he speaks about his late daughter, somehow, he’s transformed into something smaller and broken. This is the price of a long life. The Rito who flew with Revali, the Gerudo who marched with Urbosa, the Gorons who laughed with Daruk; they have all since passed. If there is grief, it is distant and therefore, instinctively more bearable. Only the Sheikah can begin to relate and still, with the Champions, the Zora stand alone. Zelda’s here. The Sheikah’s Princess returned.

The title suddenly feels too heavy again. 

“Father, her body was gone,” Prince Sidon says gently. He has tears in his eyes. Unapologetically emotional as ever, and instead of responding with rage or shame, the great King of the Zora places a hand on Sidon’s shoulders. His eyes, set beneath the mighty crown of his people, swim with tears as well. 

Zelda wilts with envy. 

“The Zora second Link’s motion to destroy all Sheikah Technology.”

“We-we would be forfeiting artifacts that have withstood the test of time and have proven immensely useful,” Robbie proclaims. For the first time, he looks his age. Shaking where he stands, shoulders crested with fatigue, his hands braced on the back of Purah’s chair.  

“When they function properly,” Teba’s chimes in. He has the kind of call that booms across the Tabantha sky. A few Ritos whistle in consensus. “Vah Medoh terrorized our people for decades. Too many Rito warriors took their final dive after it claimed the sky for the Calamity.” 

“It didn’t get you though, Dad,” Tulin says. 

Teba grins, “Right. Thanks to Link. Kaneli?”

“The Rito soar with Link.” Kaneli flashes his massive wingspan. “Destroy it all.” 

“Forget a hammer, the Gorons will take care of anything that needs smashing,” Bludo grunts.

Yubuno clenches his fists and blows out a sphere of molten light around him. “Yeah, goro! We got this!”

“We passed many guardians and shrines during the march here from the desert. They are a map of tremendous loss across Hyrule. The Gerudo cannot remember a time when this technology was useful. We only know its devastation. It is time to let the past go. Hyrule is ready to move forward.” Riju sets her hands on her hips and nods in Link’s direction. 

“Our research…we would be throwing it all away!” Purah cries, and like Robbie, she’s looking her age. Six and completely devastated the grown ups are planning to take away her favorite toy.

“Correct me if I'm wrong, Purah, Robbie, but weren’t the shrines and the Slate originally created specifically for Link? For the chosen hero?” Impa asks.

“Yes, that is correct,” Robbie says.

“And we all believe Calamity Ganon is finally vanquished, yes?” Impa turns to look at the crowd. 

“Mipha’s Grace.” One of the elder Zora crosses his fins at the same time Buliara and the other Gerudo soldiers raise their spears. Teba whistles and the Hylian’s offer the sign of the Goddess with their hands. It is a resounding and unanimous ‘good riddance’. 

“So, with this in mind, have the shrines and the Slate not served their purpose?”

“Well, yes, I suppose that’s true,” Robbie says. Purah starts pouting. Zelda can see the defeat starting to take root around the Sheikah researchers. Feels it starting to wrap around her own ankles. She feathers a hand up to touch the spot where her voice is trapped in her throat. All those years resisting her father’s guidance and now, it’s the one thing keeping her from damning herself. To this group, so revitalized by new hope, united and rising from a hundred years of ruin, her proposal of clinging to their ashes might feel like poison. 

Like malice.

“I know it feels like a waste, dear sister. Robbie. But I ask that you both consider the possibility this is not another squandering of our efforts.”

“It’s the fulfillment of them.” Paya’s voice is exceptionally steady. She folds her hands over Robbie’s and helps him peel back his fingers from the back of Purah’s chair. 

“The Zora will continue to look to the Sheikah for guidance,” Sidon says.

“It would be foolish to ignore the knowledge of the Sheikah,” Kaneli agrees.

“Like Link said, this is our opportunity to build something new for Hyrule.” Yubono pumps his fist in the air.

“Something better,” Riju adds.

“We will all have a hand in rebuilding Hyrule. From the ground up this time.” Hudson rubs his hands together like he’s ready to get started.

Tulin lets out a cheer. His voice is youthful and hopeful and infectious. The perfect song for the future of Hyrule. A few out Rito echo him and then the Gerudo join in. Then the Gorons, and the Zora and the Hylians. Impa holds her arms out to Purah and both she and Robbie lunge forward to embrace her. Link claps a few times and then finally looks over his shoulder at Zelda. His eyes are brighter than luminous stones.

He has no idea what he’s done. 

The smile was just a smile. A pathetically desperate misinterpretation on her part. He smiles because he’s polite, not because she’s something special or they are together in any of this. 

Link died on the field that day. And with him–

The pages slip from her hands. Her proposal scatters across the grass at her feet. 

She scurries to gather them up and Link immediately takes a knee to help her. Zelda snatches the pages back into her chest and recoils like the wounded animal she is. He blinks at her, a wordless question forming on his lips. The hand outstretched for the pages turns over slowly to offer his palm to her. He’s trying to help her up without any idea he’s the one who put her here.

“What says the Princess of new Hyrule?” It's Traysi’s voice. Probably ready with her pen, eager to draft a report and spit the plan for the restoration out to the Rumor Mill by sunset. 

Her hands are shaking. Dozens of eyes on her, fire in her throat, nothing but a scar on her hand. She glances down at the mark, a nameless cluster of triangles. In stasis, she decided they represented the holy Springs. For a time, she held all three in her hand, but Courage and Power only flowed through her. For some reason, predetermined by fate that has proven nothing but cruel, she is the vessel for Wisdom. 

And Wisdom tells Zelda her thoughts have no value. They never have.  She looks around at the faces of her people. Unknowingly, they’ve not only stolen her newfound sense of purpose–they are making it forbidden. 

And now they are asking for her blessing. 

She swallows what feels like acid and looks back at Link. At some point in her reeling, she’s risen to her feet without realizing it. He remains on his knees, looking up at her with an innocent tilt of confusion, Master Sword strapped to his back. Her body blocks out the sun and casts a looming shadow over his face. The pasture falls away from her. She’s surrounded by cascades of water and trees twisted with age and swarms of fireflies. Beneath her feet, an altar with a space for a traveler’s gift lifts her even higher above him. Zelda tries to keep the horror from washing over her face, but the restraint necessary only makes her feel like she might turn into stone. 

Is it a crown they want her to wear or a halo?

Zelda gathers herself and says the only thing she can summon from the depths of her panic, “May the Light of the Goddess shine upon you.”

—-

The Summit lasts four days. Link has all of the shrines, towers, and the majority of the remaining guardians already mapped out on the Slate, so it is only a matter of divvying up the work. Each group is responsible for their assigned regions and are free to do what they please with the guardian parts once the cores are removed. The Gerudo and the Zora verbalize their intent to destroy all the Sheikah tech in their territories, but the Gorons, Rito, and the Hylians (who stand the most to gain from recycled materials) plan to repurpose. 

The plan is to harvest the ancient cores and store them in the Slate. Link will travel across Hyrule to load the cores into Slate, along with any unwanted materials it has the capacity to absorb.  Once the guardians are taken care of and they figure out how to dismantle the shrines, they’ll destroy the Sheikah Slate, smother the ancient furnaces, and bury the Divine Beasts. They will reconvene as needed to collectively approve next steps. The Sheikah are tasked with what to do with the towers because everyone agrees there is value in preserving a modern mapping system as long as a new network is created.

It is Link’s task to figure out how to handle the shrines since he is the only one who can enter them. He disappears into the shrine near his house the first night only to emerge several hours later, circling it like a wolf. He eventually settles down and appears to just glare at the terminal until the sun rises. He does the same thing the following night and the night after that. Zelda knows this because she’s been watching him from Purah’s second floor window.

Seeing him struggle with it doesn’t make her feel better (okay, it helps a little), and it’s hard to stay upset when she sees how well-received his recommendation is; how necessary it feels for the rest of Hyrule to start planning their future. It’s just when this anger completely deflates, she knows she’ll be left to deal with what actually lies beneath it, as is often the case with her anger, and it’s a sorrow she’s afraid she will drown in. 

“He’s still at it?” Zelda jumps back from the window at the sound of Purah’s voice. 

“What? Link? I wasn’t–” Zelda sputters.

Purah waves her tiny hands and tip toes across the floor to a desk. “Don’t worry about it. He’s a fascinating subject.”

“Why are you up so late?” Zelda wraps her arms around herself. Purah gets a guilty look, but as Zelda draws closer, she hears a soft, excited hum coming from the researcher. Like Zelda’s presence alone lit some internal fuse and Purah is on the verge of bursting into sparkles. 

“If I tell you something, do you promise not to tell anyone else?”

Zelda knows this is a dangerous game, Purah used to say the same thing a hundred years ago, right before she launched into an explanation as to why the western castle wall was damaged, again.

“Did you break something?”

“No!” Purah sets her fists in her hips, insulted. 

“Are you going to?” 

“Princess!”

Zelda lifts her eyebrows. 

“Come on, do you want to see what I’m working on or not.” Purah stomps her feet very softly in an exaggerated manner, obviously trying to keep the noise level down. 

“Okay, okay, I promise.”

“Pinky promise! I mean it, I need you to have my back like old times. You were the only reason my research didn’t get shut down back then.”

“It was threatened.” Zelda smiles at the avalanche of memory that befalls her. It didn’t feel funny at the time, – lying to her father, tempting his wrath – but it felt good to protect something she was equally as passionate about. 

“I know.” Purah rolls her eyes. 

“Multiple times.”

“I know! So, so, so?” Purah holds up her pinky and wiggles it at Zelda. Zelda rolls her shoulders back and sighs. 

“Okay, pinky promise,” she says and loops her finger with Purah’s. 

Purah flings open a wide drawer filled with blueprints. She throws the top half of pages to the floor with enthusiasm, mumbling about how Symin can pick them up later, and rummages around the rest with a hushed frenzy. Zelda spots a copy of the new Hyrule map from the Summit with the restoration territories outlined. Purah’s already marked all the Sheikah tower locations and made notes on possible spots for relocation.

Even she’s found a purpose in the path forward. 

Purah fans out the papers hidden at the very bottom of the drawer out on her desk. “I’ve expedited my experiments with the Anti-Aging Rune. I just want to reverse this,” she gestures to herself extravagantly, “and then they can do whatever they want with the Sheikah Slate.”

“You’re going to return to your original state? You’ll be over a hundred and–”

“No. I just want to look old enough so people stop telling me I need to take a nap whenever I raise my voice.” A beat. “And I want to be able to reach the jar Symin hides the honey candies in.”

Zelda scans over Purah’s design, which calls for the Guidance Stone, the Sheikah Slate, and something called ‘cellular maturity milestone marker’ coding. 

“Does Impa know you're working on this?”

“It’s easier to ask for forgiveness than seek permission, Princess. And besides, I’ve already got ideas for a better Slate with an even better name, so that should buy me a royal pardon if I need it, right?” 

As if Zelda holds any authority in any of this. 

Zelda backs away from Purah’s desk and the ugly feelings of jealousy starting to bubble up inside her. She ends up back at the window and turns her face to the cool night air. Link’s pacing in front of the Shrine again. 

“Do you think he’ll figure it out?” Zelda asks.

“The shrines? Yes.”

“He’s always been good at puzzles.”

“Yeah, but so have you. Aren’t you going to help him?” Purah quips innocently. With the way her hushed voice carries in the night, it’s like she's speaking from Zelda’s shoulder.  

—-

Zelda hasn’t spoken to him since the first day. If he’s noticed, he hasn’t made it known. He’ll occasionally catch her eye and smile, but she’s learned not to read into that anymore and hardens herself to any tenderness that attempts to sidetrack her thoughts.

Purah asks her to retrieve the Sheikah Slate from Link when he’s done with it so she can run a trial on the Anti-Aging Rune before Symin wakes up. If nothing else, it gives Zelda an excuse to wander down to the shrine while she’s still deciding if she wants to help him. 

He’s sitting cross-legged on the terminal gate with his chin in his hand when she approaches. The Master Sword lays unsheathed beside him. Weathered and dull, unable to glimmer even in the moonlight. Like her, it hasn’t glowed since the final battle.

It takes a second for him to return from wherever his thoughts are, but she can tell he’s been aware of her somehow since she started climbing the hill up to the shrine. He paws his chin with his fingers and then flops backward in the grass at her feet with a frustrated sigh. 

“Can’t figure it out?” She asks. 

He puffs some hair into his bangs and signs, ‘Not yet.’

She sits down beside him. “Do you think there is a core inside?”

He crinkles his nose and shakes his head.

“You told me you think the Shrines, like Divine Beasts, run on some kind of spirit-based energy, right?”

He nods. 

“But when you clear a Shrine, the spirit of the Sheikah Monk inside disappears?”

“Right.” Link sits up on his elbows and rolls his head around his shoulders.

“But the Shrine stays semi-active, doesn’t it? Wouldn’t that imply a power source remains?”

Link shrugs. Zelda follows the curls of cerulean along the walls of the shrine up to the peak where the Sheikah Eye glows. The symbol always brought her comfort. The presence of a friend, the company of like minds—a buffer of protection against the unbearable amount of pressure building on her shoulders since the day she turned seven. But the symbol feels different now, as most symbols tend to do with time. It doesn’t bring her much comfort. It’s just another thing from her past she has to let go of; the sign of something else evolving without her. 

It stares unblinking and focused on some distance point she can’t see. 

He taps her on the shoulder to pull her attention back to him. A tiny pulse of electricity moves from his fingers down into her belly when he seems to appraise her face before he signs. 

‘Any ideas?’ He looks tired. Overdue for a visit. She can feel sleep reaching for her as well. Her attention drifts back to the Sheikah Eye and she imagines it closing shut. Resting like they both should. Like she could if she had a bed.

A home. 

“You said you think the Shrines work like the Divine Beasts? So in theory, those stopped working because our friends—” Grief, unexpected and sudden, crackles in her voice. She clears her throat. Pivots. “You can’t use their gifts any longer, right?”

Link flexes his fingers slowly. Like he’s just missing something that keeps passing through his fingers. “I let them go.”

She thinks about what King Dorephan said about the Shrine of Resurrection and Link’s soul. How he had been unable to die because the Shrine kept his soul tethered to his body while the waters healed it.  She thinks about eyes closing and Tulin’s cheering and the sadness that comes with at last fulfilling one’s purpose. 

“Can I see the Slate?” She asks. Link unclips it from his belt and slides it over to her in the grass. Purah would slap him if she saw just how casually he handles it. Zelda wants to tell him to be careful, that Purah might be tall enough to reach his face soon, but she has a pinky promise to keep, and the Slate will be gone before too long, anyway. She weighs it with her hands a few times and then stands to approach the terminal. 

“How do you activate the Shrine if there isn’t a slot?” She feels Link come up beside her. He leans over and mimics holding the Slate over the Sheikah symbol with an empty hand. The hair on her arm stands on end in his closeness. Will this feeling ever go away? Or will it always feel like she is about to be struck by lightning whenever he’s near? 

“Have you ever tried to do it again once the Shrine is activated?”

“No.”

Zelda lifts the Slate up to the terminal. Nothing happens. The shrine glows calm and blue, the door stays shut, the Slate screen blank–as she suspects it would. She bites her cheek and hands the Slate back to him. “You try.”

The second he holds the Slate over the terminal, the light at the center of the Sheikah Eye blinks once, calling the Slate to life. He turns over and inspects the screen. The name of the Shrine, which Zelda assumes is the name of the Sheikah Monk whose soul powered it for thousands of years, has a check mark next to it. She assumes it is because Link completed the trial inside. 

Below the name is a single, pulsing command:

> Rest? <

They snap their heads up to look at each other at the same time. 

Link’s shoulders collapse. An irritated puff air escapes his nose. 

Zelda leans over him, presses her thumb against the word, and watches it dissolve into the darkness of the screen. The steel shifts under her feet, and they immediately scramble off the back of the entryway because the Shrine has started disintegrating around them. Link wraps his arm around her waist and pulls her flush against him so his body breaks their fall when they hit the grass.

They watch the last bit of light in the Sheikah symbol disappear into nothing. In a matter of ten seconds, the only evidence the Shrine was ever there is a round footprint of dirt. There are no materials to sort through, no cavern to fill in. She shifts and sits between his bent legs, frantically turning on the Sheikah Slate where, on the digital map of Hyrule, the symbol marking where the Shrine was is completely gone. 

“I…I can’t believe that actually worked!” She laughs, collects herself, holds the Slate out at another angle and laughs again.“You were right about the spirit energy,” she insists. Funeral pires, ashes in the wind, a deliberate letting go; one way or another, a soul needs to be put to rest. Otherwise, it just spins like a windmill blade even after the wind is gone. 

“How did you know?”

“I’m just good at solving puzzles.” Purah deserves a honey candy for reminding her of that. “It will speed the restoration up significantly if that’s all you need to do…” Her voice trails off slowly. He’s got his head next to hers, eyes fixed on the Slate in front of them. It takes everything inside her not to fold back against him, so viciously desperate for touch – for his touch – her hands start to tremble with urgency. The last drop of anger left inside her vanished with the shrine.   And as predicted, the misery left behind is deep and agonizing and it goes by another name:  

Loneliness. 

[unexpectedstormy]

I’ve always been conflicted when writing fics or posts about saying Wild “died,” because... did he actually though? He was still technically alive when Robbie and Purah put him in the Shrine of Resurrection and he came out of it alive, so did he actually die? But in this scene:

Wild portrays himself in spirit form like the Champions. He basically straight up admits “I died, we the Champions died, but we had too many regrets to move on so we didn’t, and I won’t let you either.” Yes, in Wild’s eyes, he died, because functionally he did--the old Link as the world knew him ceased to exist on Blatchery Plain, he was permanently separated from everyone he ever knew (except for Zelda), the new Link that exited the Shrine had an altered body and a new mind, and he entered a world completely different than the one his former self had left--yes, Wild died in every way except that his heart kept beating in his own tomb.

[linksthoughtbrambles]

On Awakenings in The Legend of Zelda, Part 3: Can't Fi Just Talk?

In the post On Awakenings in The Legend of Zelda, I argued Zelda awakened by finally demonstrating the courage of a true hero.

In On Awakenings in The Legend of Zelda Part 2: BotW Link, I argued Link needed to awaken in the same way to be able to hear Fi (and that in BotW, that moment would have been just an instant before Zelda awakened).

Why would Link have to be "able" to hear Fi in BotW? Can't Fi just talk?

I think the answer to that last question is "No." Here's why.

Before the awakening scene in the memory on Blatchery Plain, I've already outlined evidence that these two things are true: - Zelda does not yet have access to the Triforce. - Link cannot hear Fi.

This post is mostly about Fi and the Master Sword, but I want to point out one similarity between Zelda and Link in BotW: Zelda wields the Triforce and Link wields the Master Sword. These things are magical artifacts. The artifacts themselves have rules which allow them to be used (or not). These rules may be different from what allows Link and Zelda to access other abilities they have!

I think the exchange above was a hint that Zelda knew, at some point before this conversation, that Link was not yet able to hear Fi.

Can't Fi Just Talk?

There's an assumption I made in the Awakenings 2 post: in order to fully wield the power of the Master Sword and to hear Fi, Link has to be fully aligned with the Triforce of Courage.

Why would I assume that? Others have (correctly) pointed out Fi can simply talk in Skyward Sword. Link speaks to her before he awakens the hero inside him. So... why would it be different in BotW? Here's my evidence supporting that assumption, and much of it is regarding Fi no longer simply being able to talk whenever she pleases.

1.) In Skyward Sword, Others Can See and Hear Fi.

In several scenes in Skyward Sword, other characters can explicitly see Fi. Notably, Headmaster Gaepora is absolutely shocked by her presence and her words when Link first finds the Goddess Sword. The robot Scrapper flirts shamelessly with Fi. Even the Kikwis can see Fi (she frightens them). Zelda can see Fi, too, though that's less surprising.

What does this mean? In Skyward Sword, Fi somehow physically manifests, even if it's as an incorporeal spirit/hologram (I personally think of her as a "hologram" because of her computerized speech, but that doesn't matter for this post - I just find it neat!).

The punchline: Unlike in Skyward Sword, in BotW Fi is merely the 'voice in the sword'--this means something has changed.

2.) In BotW, Zelda explicitly cannot hear Fi unless her power is awake.

WARNING: Spoilers for the 'true ending' of BotW.

In the set of dialogue images above, Zelda asks if Link can hear the voice inside the sword yet. If Zelda could hear it... she could just ask the sword. This strongly suggests she can't hear it.

Then, immediately after Zelda's power awakens at Blatchery Plain, she can hear Fi without doubt.

Above, the Master Sword glows as BotW Zelda hears its voice for the first time.

In that memory, Fi instructs Zelda to take Link to the Shrine of Resurrection to save his life.

Note: there's still no evidence BotW Zelda can actually see Fi the way she's visible as a being in Skyward Sword. All we ever see is a glow.

In the 'true ending' of BotW (the one you get if you find all 13 memories), Zelda says she can no longer hear the voice in the sword. It makes sense to her that would happen if her power had dwindled after 100 years of continuous use. In other words, Zelda stops being able to hear Fi when her reserve of magic power is depleted.

The punchline: BotW Zelda can only hear Fi if she has access to her own magical power. Fi cannot speak to Zelda on her own.

The Princess and the Champions just before the photograph is taken.

3.) There's no evidence at all that any other characters can hear Fi - not even magical ones.

This is evidence of omission, but I believe it's extremely strong. We know of at least five characters other than Link and Zelda in BotW who are powerfully magical, and there's evidence for at least a sixth.

Pre-Calamity, we know Daruk, Mipha, Urbosa, and Revali all have magical power. (Interestingly, they each seem to have come about their power differently, but that's for another post). Based on Impa's monk garb and tattoo in BotW, there's a strong chance she was also magical like the shrine monks (if you take Age of Calamity to be true, she definitely was).

Post-Calamity, we know of only one character with innate magical ability, and that's Yunobo. (The other champion successors--Teba, Riju, and Sidon--show no signs of magic except when Riju wears the thunder helm, which itself is magical).

Not one of these characters speaks a word suggesting they could hear a voice within Link's sword. (One might think Revali'd hide it out of spite, but I doubt it--I think he'd lord it over Link if he could). This strongly suggests none of them hear her.

No non-magical characters say anything about hearing a voice from Link's sword, either.

Punchline 1: Fi does not speak to anyone on her own in BotW!

Punchline 2: Magical power alone is not enough to allow a person to hear the voice of Fi in BotW.

Yunobo flies through the air, blasted from a cannon to strike Divine Beast Vah Rudania. Encased in his magical protection, he'll land unharmed. Fi never speaks to him despite this extraordinary power.

Gathering those punchlines from this section: i.) Unlike in Skyward Sword, in BotW Fi is merely the 'voice in the sword'--this means something has changed. ii.) BotW Zelda can only hear Fi if she has access to her own magical power. Fi cannot speak to Zelda on her own. iii.) Fi does not speak to anyone on her own in BotW. iv.) Magical power alone is not enough to allow a person to hear the voice of Fi in BotW.

Looking at these three punchlines together already leads to some other conclusions.

v.) Even Zelda having magical power is not enough to allow her to hear Fi--she must also meet at least one other requirement.

...leading to the even more critical conclusion:

vi.) Even Link having magical power is not enough to allow him to hear Fi--he must also meet at least one other requirement.

There is some rule beyond having magic to allow interaction with Fi by the time of BotW.

Wow. Strict requirements! Tough to talk to Fi, these days.

You could get away with saying the rule is that only Link can talk to her since he's the only person who can wield the master sword, right? Nope! Zelda hears her, too. So... that's not it.

All this supports the idea that Link needs to be magical to speak to Fi, but also that he did need to be fully aligned with the Triforce of Courage in order to do it - he needed to demonstrate the courage of a True Hero (and see post 2 for that one!).

The Master Sword in its pedestal before Link pulls it post-Calamity.

The next question is, of course... why can't Fi just talk?

But this post got so long, I decided to break it up. So that next bit will be in part 4, which is now out, and you can follow this Link to read it.

------

Edit: One little thing I'd like to add. Some folks asked why I'd expect Fi to talk at all, since the only game she'd spoken in before this was Skyward Sword. The answer? Because Fi does explicitly talk in BotW. She talks to Zelda!

------

Follow this link to return to my lore post list.

Follow this link for my lore and fanfiction masterlist.

[respheal]

WIP Wednesday

I was working on this Legend of Zelda post-TotK fanfic to get myself back into writing. It was workin for a bit, and I need to find the time spoons to finish it. I might just start posting it on Ao3 to see if engagement can maybe goad me into finishing it. It's post-totk and an excuse to dump some of my lore headcanons in a not-totally-expository way.

Elements include time travel, Majora's Mask and Hyrule Warriors shenaniganery, and Link being a traumatized little king. Also an OC of a sort.

Mid-story snippet after the cut (Progress: 6/10 chapters drafted):

The once-green fields and marshes of Blatchery Plain were covered in viscous red-black puddles. Like maggots on a corpse, Gloom-laden blin of all varieties crawled over the plain, more than Link had seen in years—in a century. Smoke, fire, and dust obscured their forms.

Captain Hoz and his squad had rushed to the plains as well, and they were already at the bridge, rushing towards the monsters with their weapons bared.

Darker shapes stirred in the heart of the plains, reflecting the evening light strangely—emitting their own light. Glowing purple lines traced their forms. One turned, revealing a bright blue eye.

Guardians.

Link choked. He fell off his horse and backed up against the mountain. He was certain the Guardian’s laser sight was already on him, despite the distance. Not again. Not again.

“Link!” Zelda yelled, snapping him out of it. “Please, we need your strength. Look at the Sword.”

Forcing himself to breathe, Link drew the Sword from her sheath. She was glowing, a cool white-blue light wisping around the blade.

The Sword only glowed in the presence of her enemy.

Link could taste Malice in the air, like copper and sulfur. But something else caught his attention, a dry feeling like the finest sand, a smell like frost.

“Do you feel that?” Zelda asked. “That’s time magic.”

Link’s jaw clenched. He was certain whatever was causing that would make itself known at an inconvenient time. He took the slate back, pulled out his paraglider, and wrenched it open with his hand and teeth. “I’m going down. Get to the big rock near the bridge and keep the river to your back. Stay near the roads no matter what.”

“We will. Be safe.”

“You too.”

Link launched himself off the cliff, holding the paraglider above his head. It yanked at his arm hard as it caught the wind, its shoulder brace—for his lost arm—dangling free in the wind. He couldn’t steer more than to adjust the angle downward with one arm, but it would have to do. The battle was ahead of him in all directions, after all.

[blueskittlesart]

was having some thoughts last night about how great aoc could have been if it was actually a for real prequel to botw like imagine playing through and getting to know these characters and seeing their relationships to the world and to each other and knowing that they're all doomed to a century of haunting their divine beasts with ganon lite as their only company and knowing there's nothing you can do about it? that would have been SO good. they could have ended the game on blatchery plain and the secret post-credit ending could have been the first part of the first botw cutscene where link wakes up to zelda calling his name but instead we got bad time travel and a dumbass egg with a boring antagonist

LITERALLYYYY A BOTW PREQUEL COULD HAVE BEEN SOOOOO INSANELY GOOD. LIKE. THE INHERENT TRAGEDY OF IT ALL. but noooooo we need a fucking hyrule warriors game

[strawberrycircuits]

so i saw your post about zelda and “expert in a dying field” and listened to it a billion times in one day. (thank you!) anyway have you considered the title itself in relation to zelda? the obvious answer would be her interest in the ancient tech BUT in another way, she literally becomes an expert (finally gets her sealing power) in a dying field (blatchery plain,,link dead in a field lmao). you might’ve already thought of this, but i thought it was interesting!!

ofhfhf this ask. i am taping it out and pinning it to my bedroom wall i LOVE TALKING ABT BLORBO SONGS and this one specifically. its so. ofhfjgg..

anyways YES i did think of that but i also thought of it on multiple layers!! because it can be seen as;

-shes an expert in ancient technology, a field that her father was actively trying to suppress her studies of (and was a field no one had much knowledge on until recently in BOTW's timeline (AND all those efforts she put into ancient tech only for it all to be dismantled and replaced once it was clear they were far too vulnerable and far too dangerous to outside intervention [ie the Calamity] ))

-like you said. her, the expert on ancient tech and ecology and hyrulean history and everything academic, in a dying field-- blatchery plain, full of dead guardians and the place where link died.

-her having to be the expert on her own sealing power when all the information about it has faded into legend even 10,000+ years before BOTW starts

-her, the expert on her own fate and the powers it has granted her, in a world that (at the time directly after botws ending) no longer needed it once the calamity was destroyed.

theres so many ways to look at that title ALONE in relation to her which is why its SO so sooo her song. tysm for listening to it just bc of my silly little post and ty even MORE for asking me abt it and letting me ramble aaaaauaa!!!!

[ten-thousand-year-elegy]

Lorepost: Chapter Nine, “The Board of Directors”

By popular reader request, TTYE lore posts are companion pieces for each chapter of the story breaking down all of the Legend of Zelda lore and references made in each chapter, for readers looking to learn more about LoZ or just refresh their knowledge. This chapter contains explanations for: The Sheikah Slate, Blatchery Plain, and The Guardian of Proxim Bridge.

The Sheikah Slate

In Chapter Eight, Kaiba helped Purah build a Sheikah Slate to match the one that Link already has. The Sheikah Slate has numerous useful functions: a camera, a map, and Runes. The Runes are as follows: Magnesis, which acts as a magnetic tractor bream; Stasis, which freezes an object (and any force applied to the object is stored up and then released in one burst); Cryonis, which can freeze water; and Remote Bomb, which generates bombs that can be detonated remotely. Because Kaiba and Purah were recreating a very complicated bit of technology without the original Slate to guide them, they didn’t really bother with some of the more extraneous functions - however, in a rare nice gesture, Kaiba later on adds a function similar to the Compendium so that Yuugi and Eri can enjoy cataloguing all of the interesting critters and plants they see along the journey.

Blatchery Plain - the Guardian Graveyard

Eri mentions that a shortcut they take to the Dueling Peaks stable has an unsettling atmosphere. A hundred years ago, this was the site of a massive battle between Hylians, Sheikah and Guardians that resulted in catastrophic loss of life - Link’s included. It was here that he made his final stand to protect Zelda before being spirited away to the Shrine of Resurrection.

The Guardian of Proxim Bridge

His actual name is Brigo. He’s one of my favourite NPC’s, he’s so weird and has so many dialogue options. Fun fact: if you stand on the edge of the bridge, he’ll beg you not to jump and try to talk you down.

[michpat6]

fic author self-rec

I was tagged by @aheavenscorner to participate in the fic authors self-rec! thank you for the tag friend <3

When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers (if you would like to!)

aftermath - my baby! my first fic that spiraled into the madness that is my ao3 page. a post-calamity botw zelink fic that turned into my predictions for botw2/totk

2. your obedient servant - another baby! the fi rights agenda, going through fi's story and her experiences with all of the links <3

3. with every drop of rain singin' - I completed this guy a couple weeks ago! a botw zelink fic where zelda loses her memories after sealing the calamity and link has to deal with the repercussions of not getting the answers he wants regarding his own amnesia.

4. as the sun sets on this world - a botw/tp fic where zelda, fresh from blatchery plain, has to return the broken master sword to korok forest. a certain wolf helps her out.

5. that parting need not last forever (it's dangerous to go alone) - another zelink amnesia fic, this time that link wakes up in the shrine of resurrection with an equally-confused zelda by his side. it's on a brief hiatus due to the taxing nature of how I write it but it's not abandoned!

ummmmm idk who to tag so if you see this and want to participate consider yourself tagged!

[fatefulfaerie]

Beasts

Zelink Week 2021 prompt #2/7 @zelinkweek2021

Word Count: 822

Incarnation: Breath of the Wild (post)

Additional Prompts Followed: Dragons

No Trigger Warnings

It was the calm, chalky slither of a pencil that helped her remember that Link was still alive today, that he had indeed rescued her from Calamity Ganon, and that she would not wake up in the blood-soaked and corpse-ridden Blatchery Plains with all this being an illusion.

She pinched herself and it hurt.

This was real. She was being silly.

Paranoid, even.

And so she relaxed into the moist grass of Farosh Hills, staring at out at the large yet weathered bridge that Link was sketching in detail, one of the hobbies he had picked up since he put the sheathed Master Sword down in their Hateno home and never picked it up again.

Zelda didn’t say a word when he did, only noticing silently. She wanted to ask how they would defend themselves if they ever met danger again but she didn’t and they didn’t. Link must have known—or just wanted to assume—that no more enemies were in Hyrule except for the Yiga. Both Link and Zelda used a bow and arrow for hunting but other than that, there had been no skirmishes save for a couple small spiders in the house. Either the Yiga had given up in light of Calamity’s Ganon’s defeat or they had something big up their sleeve. Link insisted the former and Zelda insisted the latter.

But she laid in peace nonetheless, comforted by the songs of the birds and the scent of the breeze, even the serpent-like green dragon on the horizon, with electric emanations that they were safely distanced from.

She looked at Farosh like it was nothing new, and indeed it wasn’t. She saw the dragons years before the calamity struck, but seemed to be the only one. Her father and the soldiers around her always insisted she was imagining things but when she did some research, she found that only certain Hylians can see the dragons. The distinction between those certain Hylians was unknown.

From that point on, to avoid people thinking she was strange, she always assumed that she was the only one who could see them. In this moment, she merely admired the grace and elegance of the beast.

“Zelda?” Link inquired.

“Hm?” Zelda hummed in acknowledgement, lolling her head over to where Link sat.

“I’m putting on the finishing touches,” he said, eyes completely focused on the parchment before him. “Do you want to stay at the stable or are we finally sleeping under the stars tonight?”

Zelda smiled.

“I think the stars will do fine,” she said, standing up to take the blanket rolls from their packs.

As she set out their accommodations on the flat section of the large hill, she couldn’t help but steal a glance at Link’s art, the bridge of Hylia copied in almost perfect posterity from end to end, the hills behind it, the water below it, all…

Zelda’s eyes widened. She shook her head and a smile encroached across her lips. It soon grew into a chuckle.

“You can see them,” she said.

“I—,” Link started. “What?” He looked over his shoulder at her.

“The dragons,” she said, pointing at the drawing, particularly where Link drew Farosh. “You can see them!”

Link furrowed his brow and couldn’t help but laugh a little at her enthusiasm.

“Yeah…is that not…normal?”

“No, actually,” Zelda said. “Apparently it’s rare to find someone who can. When I was little, I was the only one I knew who could.”

Link smiled.

“Are you saying I’m a rare find?” He asked. Zelda rolled her eyes.

“Yes, Link, you are definitely one of a kind.”

Zelda pecked his cheek and he blushed as he continued the final touches on his drawing, thinking to himself how much he loved the young woman in his company.

Perhaps he should tell her, say those three potent words he’d never brought himself to.

He looked up from his drawing and saw her, a restless cricket sitting calmly in her hand like it had nothing to fear, nowhere to go, and not an impatient cell in its body.

“Zelda,” he said. His heart thumped so loud he swore Zelda could probably hear it. She looked up and the cricket hopped away. Link felt bad but she didn’t seem to care.

“I…” he stammered. “I…I-I…”

Zelda tipped her head to the side, her hair like honey spilling down her shoulders. Goddesses, was she beautiful, enchantingly beautiful, her green eyes bewitching and her softness enthralling.

“I’ll, umm…”

She was perfect and what was he? What was he even doing? They had been getting closer, even kissing every once in a while, but love? He couldn’t admit it to her. What if she didn’t want that from him? What if it was too soon for his honesty? After all, she hadn’t said anything about love.

“Never-mind.”

He wondered how many of Farosh’s scales he would need to harvest in order to muster the courage of a beast.

[zellink]

rist peninsula to link is what blatchery plain is to zelda.

[aurathian]

This oneshot is inspired by this post by @boyzoi . This oneshot was written with permission from the artist. This post just made me feel so many things all at once and the emotional impact was just incredible. I am so grateful to @boyzoi for letting me put it into words! I hope you enjoy what I came up with.

Rain & Memories

It was raining again.

It was always raining.

It came down in cold sheets, slamming against the grass and pounding against the puddles there from the previous rainfall. The sky was dark and grey, the sun shrouded by the ghastly, thick clouds above.

She jostled back and forth on the horse while Link, now an expert in horseback riding, held steady. His knuckles were white against the reins. She held tight to him save for the occasional hand that drifted up to adjust her hood.

She did not remember the Blatchery Plain looking like this. It was once bright and green and sunny, with herds of horses grazing and roaming about, the children from the local stable often playing in the field. Now, it was lonely and deserted, touched only by the decaying bodies of Guardians that she herself had destroyed.

The Guardians she destroyed with a power that had awakened too late.

As his horse galloped over a specific spot in the middle of the Plain, she felt something in her heart stop. It took hold and crushed it as hard as it could, a twinge in her chest, and she removed a hand from his stomach to clutch it.

This is where I watched you die.

She remembered all too vividly the way the Guardian had set its sight on Link and the way it shuddered after she released her power. She remembered much too well the way he collapsed on the ground and the way she pleaded and cried for him to get up. Sometimes, she wished she was the amnesiac.

She didn’t say anything because she knew he remembered, too. Her hand moved back to his stomach after the pain subsided and gently, ever so slightly, she squeezed him closer to her. She needed him.

He noticed. Taking a short, sorrowful glance at the princess sitting behind him, her eyes downcast and body slumped, his hands loosened on the reins. He took his left hand and placed it softly atop one of hers. Just like her, he grasped it ever so carefully, his thumb running back and forth over her soft, delicate hand. They were different, two worlds clashing, but they were the same.

They remembered, and they would never forget.

They rode on through the thick rain in the hopes of finding a better tomorrow.

[loruleanheart]

Desired Fate, Chapter 18

Read on AO3 

Read on FF.net

I wanted to post this tomorrow, but I couldn’t wait any longer. Here it is! Warning, this chapter is coming at you with razor blades and lemon juice. You were warned.

Revali drew back the string of the Great Eagle Bow, preparing to deliver the killing strike to Windblight Ganon as it had grown more and more languid in its movement, and while it was still distracted by Sooga.

“This is it!” Revali called victoriously, letting the bomb arrows fly.

Sooga dodged the incoming explosives and they collided with Windblight in a grand explosion. The creature’s resounding bestial shriek was like a reward for a battle well fought.

Lowering his bow, Revali watched, savoring the moment as the blight hemorrhaged malice. He had faced the most grueling battle he’d ever experienced, and he would live to regale his fellow Rito of his triumph. 

He turned his attention to the Yiga, still at a loss for their motivations. What had possessed them to turn against Calamity Ganon?

Well, whatever…  Revali thought. At least it wasn’t the vexingly silent knight wielding the sacred blade who came to save the day. He’d never live it down if it had been him…

Revali alighted before the two, holding back any outward sign of exhaustion or weakness. He regarded the Yiga with a hard look of suspicion.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I must thank you for coming to my aid. But just as a warning, if you do anything to make me question this...alliance, I won’t hesitate to -”

“Your threats won’t be necessary,” Sooga said simply, resheathing his dual blades.

Sooga’s words were clear despite the mask he wore, yet Revali paused, contemplating his words, not fully believing the situation. Revali braced himself for a surprise attack that never came as the moments passed.

He stared into the inverted crimson eye painted on Sooga’s horned mask and the long crack that ran across it, slightly unnerved that he could not see the man’s eyes or facial expressions. He’d have to rely on the man’s body language and tone of voice for assurance that he was not a threat. 

Kohga approached, having remained a safe distance away during the fight. “Well done, Sooga! That was quite the display of Yiga bravado.”

Revali opened his beak to say something more, but before he could form the words, their attentions were drawn to the thunderous and deliberate footsteps of a Divine Beast.

He lifted off the surface of Vah Medoh to see which of the other Champions had come to his aid. Kohga and Sooga likewise rushed across the mossy stone that stretched the wingspan of Vah Medoh to look out into the distance.

“This should be interesting…” Revali remarked as he watched Vah Naboris approach.

“Urbosa’s coming….?! ...That’s our cue to leave!” Kohga blurted before retreating into a cloud of smoke and falling talismans.

Sooga turned to Revali and shook his head. “Master Kohga can be a bit of a coward when it comes to the Gerudo Chief. “Uh… Don’t tell him I told you that!” And with that Sooga followed after Kohga, leaving Revali alone.

----------------

The was a sterile, stillness that belied the Champion’s victory over the blights as Hyrule Field was cast in a dreary grey. There would be no breathtaking sunset to behold, nor the comfort the moon’s brilliant glow could bring, only the world darkening as night crept in.

The four that had seized the bokoblin camp for a moment of rest could sense the encroaching storm from the dark clouds above, but none spoke of it aloud.

Robbie cleared his throat. There was no longer a levity in his voice. “Where are you headed next?”

Astor didn’t meet Robbie’s eyes as he smoothed Zelda’s long golden hair with his gloved hand. It took a moment for him to respond, too focused on her downcast gaze. 

“Fort Hateno... That’s where she is fated to awaken her inner power.”

“Then I wish you both luck.” Robbie offered, humbly.

Zelda hung her head and Astor squeezed her hand in comfort. The bleak refrain of Zelda’s court came to mind. 

Heir to a throne of nothing…

She said nothing in response, and he wondered if she was thinking the same. She seemed to have retreated inward, having cried herself out.

Purah leaned forward to address Zelda. “Princess, I have faith in you, I do. You are not alone and we’re not going to give up trying to turn back the Calamity. I think we could all benefit if we set up camp here and call it a day. And if any monsters come by, we’ll beat them with our flails.”

“No… I must go to Fort Hateno right away.” Zelda replied shakily.

“I hate to be blunt, Princess, but you aren’t in any condition to operate the Master Cycle.” 

“I’ll be fine, Purah.”

She didn’t sound fine. 

Zelda quivered in his arms, and Astor’s chest tightened with unfamiliar apprehension. 

Purah’s earlier antics would have made Kohga proud. Just like Kohga, she was perceptive, yet Astor was relieved to see a more serious side to her - as the situation demanded. He just hoped Zelda would heed Purah’s warning.

“A rest wouldn’t disturb fate, Zelda. And you do need the rest,” said Astor.

Purah and Robbie observed the couple pensively, and Astor felt like an oddity under their analytical gaze - as if they were trying to ascertain what Zelda had done to tame the Prophet of Doom himself - something Astor was in awe of as well.

“I won’t rest until I awaken my inner power,” Zelda said with as much determination as she could muster looking up at him with reddened, weary eyes.  “We don’t have a moment to waste. Let us be on our way.”

Astor followed Zelda. Despite his fatigue, despite his trepidation about getting back on the Master Cycle, he couldn’t fathom not going with her.

“Astor!” Robbie called after him.

“Hm?”

“Take care of her.”

-----------

Their journey to Fort Hateno proved to be miserable and treacherous as it had begun to rain not long after they departed. As they neared the West Necluda region, the moisture laden clouds above spilled their cold tears on the Goddess’s descendant and her elect. The rain slicked the grass and turned the packed earth roads to mud. The Master Cycle was at times buffeted by strong winds that made it difficult to maneuver. Visibility was low. Bridges became slippery.

Astor’s grip on Zelda’s waist tightened. Dread and guilt crept in as she began to second-guess her decision.

Why are we doing this? All my previous attempts to awaken my power have failed. What is it about Fort Hateno that will suddenly change everything? Ugh, I can’t allow myself to think like this.

The Master Cycle traversed through Dueling Peaks, and Zelda felt as though those towering cliffs were pressing in on them. The cliffs gave way to a vast plain, and the mountains in the distance were barely an outline in the night sky.

Zelda took care as they crossed the Big Twin Bridge, breathing out in relief when she had made it to the other side.

Almost there…

Even as Blatchery Plain stretched out before them, Zelda felt no closer to awakening the power within herself, and she didn’t know what recourse she had if this too did not work. These thoughts lingered as she pressed onward.

Blatchery Plain lay in ruin, desolate, and devoid of life - or so it seemed. A figure appeared in the immediate dim horizon, and Zelda’s heart froze as she swerved to avoid colliding with it. The Master cycle dipped a little too far for comfort to one side. Her heart thumped rapidly as she struggled to keep it upright. The tires squelched through the mud as they veered off the path and then returned.

“It keeps finding us…” Zelda said worriedly.

“Ganon always knows where we are…” Astor replied, trying not to let fear enter his voice.

Zelda looked back over her shoulder, a pit opening in her stomach when she realized the Harbinger wasn’t as far back as she expected. No, it was following them at a speed unlike other Guardians.

“Astor, whatever you do, hold on tight…” her voice was nearly muffled by the rumble of the engine.

A chill ran down Astor’s spine as he perceived the words of Calamity Ganon. It was a voice he knew all too well from prophetic dreams, the one that had urged him so fervently to kill the princess.

You are nothing, my wayward prophet without a prayer.

“Leave me alone!” Astor screamed, tearing his circlet that bore the eye of malice from his forehead. He turned and pitched it at the charging Harbinger. The red and yellow stone was crushed under its rampaging claw the next moment.

Do you think you can rid yourself of me that easily? That was merely an outward symbol of your devotion to me. Nothing more. You’ll never be able to wash the taint of malice away. Everyone is going to know who you are and what you did. You belong to me!

With the Harbinger closing in on them, Zelda pushed the Master Cycle to its limit. The engine chugged. Her stomach soured as the cycle struggled to gain speed.

There was a dreamlike sensation of slow-motion despite her rapid heartbeat, beating in time with Astor’s against her back. She felt as though -

The Harbinger’s laser is trained on them and after what feels like a silent eternity it fires. The high-powered beam of ancient energy tears through his back and exits her chest. They are enveloped in a blinding blue light as that final scream of failure is ripped from her.

She snapped herself out of that grim vision, still awash in panic. It had been easy to outrun the Harbinger in the Lost Woods, but there was nothing to slow its chase out in the open plain.

Her panic-fueled delirium reached a fever pitch. She didn’t dare look again, but she could hear the gurgle of malice and the mechanical whirring of the automaton itself.

Goddess Hylia... It’s right on us...How is it so fast? It’s somehow running at full tilt on three mechanical legs just to get at us. The effort alone should cause it to break down. It wasn’t designed to go at that speed.

Zelda despaired, thinking of how something her mother made so long ago with loving care had been corrupted by Calamity Ganon.

This was her final thought as the Harbinger swung its distended bladed arm, colliding with the vehicle’s back tire. The Master Cycle wavered pathetically from the force of the automaton’s slap, and then went down, skidding through the mud.

The sky and ground spun as she felt herself hit the ground, narrowly missing becoming pinned under the fallen Master Cycle. 

The falling rain on her skin brought Zelda back to a vague awareness. Groaning, she opened her eyes. She barely registered that they were lying in a crumpled heap, but when she did, she reached for Astor as he stirred slightly. Her hands moved over him as she fought to regain her bearings.

“Astor… Please say something...” She could only mumble as her fingers stroked the braids that draped the side of his face.

Astor sucked in a breath, wincing. “I... think I’m still in one piece…”

There was mud all over her dress and numerous scrapes on her exposed shoulders and arms. The rain stung her open wounds, but that was only the beginning of her pain.

Lifting her head weakly, she saw that the Master Cycle was a complete loss - and the Harbinger loomed over them, its corrupted red display ebbing outward hypnotically as it regarded them.

“Zelda, run....” Astor urged her, helplessly.

She took in the glowing blue of the Harbinger’s many blades. It was toying with them, taking its time as a predator with prey.

“I can’t outrun it any more than you can. I won’t leave you.” Zelda gripped his hand, her voice resigned and weak.

The Harbinger began to emit a discordant tune. 

To Zelda, it sounded so familiar in her mental haze but deeply wrong. However, Astor knew it all too well.

There were times when the Harbinger used to play a strange song. Even Kohga and Sooga had heard it ‘sing’ at odd intervals. They didn’t know what to think at first. Then, Astor learned the origins of the Harbinger and he realized its significance. The tune was little more than a malfunction - simply the machinery morbidly regurgitating a lullaby meant for the princess out of key. Kohga and Sooga’s howls of laughter carried through the Yiga Hideout on the day they came to the same realization, much to Astor’s annoyance. The toy Zelda had once cherished was now possessed by the most malignant spirit in the realm and Astor was hanging on its every instruction.

“I’m sorry this happened to you, Terrako…” Zelda said numbly.

And then Astor heard her make a seizing sound. The alarm and pain in her voice turned his stomach to rot. 

Zelda stared at her feet in horror. They were as black as a decomposing corpse. She held them out as if paralyzed with pain. The same concerning blackness had appeared on her cheek, and others were appearing elsewhere, spreading.

“No, not her!” Astor screamed, taking hold of her in his arms.

Malice licked and traveled her body like a flame. It had started at her feet, blackening her skin and sandals, and traveled up. The malice infected her body, consuming her dress, her hair, and finally blooming in the whites of her eyes.

He cradled her in his arms, her darkened eyes staring back at him in wide open agony, and he wished the malice would consume him as well. She opened her mouth to say something, but the only sound that came forth was a terrible gasping sound.

“No… No…”

He pressed his face into the exposed skin of her shoulder, feeling the blighted flesh against his own. Her body gave no warmth, just a husk of her former beauty.

The anguish crashing down on him was unbearable as his raging thoughts took over - Hylia’s words turning over and over again in his mind, and all the things he wished he’d told Zelda. 

I was supposed to die that way. Not her… I can’t let her die believing she’s a failure.

Hyrule’s future lay in ruin along with his own. What was fate if even the prophecy of the Goddess could be undone?

The Harbinger watched the prophet grieve, viewing the scene in the red tones of its censor. Certain the princess who bore the goddess’s blood would soon pass away, it turned to retreat.

Astor raised his head, hearing himself utter words he never thought possible.

“I love her… Know this, Calamity Ganon...I love her!” His voice shuddered in horrible defeat and desolation. “And I always will...”

Zelda grit her teeth as she shakily held her wasted right hand high.

The Harbinger had stopped in its tracks. It had ignored its former prophet’s confession, but now sensed a holy power brewing within the nearly lifeless girl.

A golden light had manifested in the palm of her hand, and in the next instant intensified into a brilliant and blinding dome that eclipsed the field.

Astor lifted his arm to shield his eyes, still embracing her with the other.

The dome of light faded out. Astor opened and closed his eyes, his vision coming back into focus.

“That light… It's…”

She held her arm out still, rigidly. Astor could only stare in awe at the unmistakable triangular mark on the back of her hand, and when her extended arm began to falter, he clasped her hand before it could fall limply to her side.

Zelda serenely closed her eyes. Astor thought he heard her exhale softly as she sank back into his arms, going limp. The black malice receded slowly, beginning at the sacred mark on her hand. The skin beneath had an otherworldly immaculate quality to it. And though the malice departed from her body and hair, it was plain to see that her clothing and jewelry would remain corroded and black.

The Harbinger was gone. Astor could only imagine it had retreated. There was nothing but the calming sound of rain falling as it began to taper off, and the dark clouds began to break, leaving nothing but the starry night sky and the moon. Astor’s gaze rested on the soft rise and fall of her chest.

There was the clanging of armor and Astor turned his head to see two Hyrulian soldiers approach.

“What was that light?” The soldier let his gaze fall on the girl in Astor’s arms and then the wrecked vehicle, going silent.

“Who are you? What did you do to the princess!?” the other barked.

“I... I’m her seer. I helped her awaken her sacred power.” Astor gave them a tired, elated smile, too thankful to Hylia that Zelda was alive to demand respect from these two lowly Hyrulean Soldiers.

The soldiers glanced at one another skeptically, not sure whether to take the strange, suspicious man at his word, but there was no denying the light shining dully from Zelda’s hand.

“Should we believe him? I know of no royal seer in attendance to the princess. Where is her appointed knight?”

“He certainly doesn’t look the least bit royal to me… Anyways, we need to get Her Highness to safety. Alright, Sir, you’re going to carry Her Highness to Fort Hateno, and you’re going to mind your hands while you do.”

Astor bit back a scathing insult and gathered the princess in his arms, following the soldiers in the direction of their destination. It wasn’t long before his arms ached terribly, and he didn’t think he would be able to carry her any longer, especially in his condition.

“Just a little further,” the first soldier said, not unkindly.

Astor adjusted his aching arms, Zelda still not stirring, and he pressed on.

They passed by countless broken-down Guardians.

“That light… It seems to have disabled the Guardians in the vicinity.” The soft-spoken soldier remarked.

They passed through the raised iron gate and the stone-faced soldier directed Astor to a tent.

“She can rest here. You rest over there,” the soldier ordered testily, pointing to another tent some distance away.

“You must be joking... We haven’t been apart during the entirety of the Calamity.”  Astor felt the words leave his mouth helplessly. 

“I care not! And I’m going to be keeping an eye on these tents to make sure nothing untoward happens until she can be reunited with her rightful appointed knight or advisor.”

Astor’s chest tightened, furious and in disbelief at the soldier’s callousness. “Just what are you accusing me of? We were attacked! Listen to me, you presumptive scab, there’s a very dangerous Guardian still out there and it's not done with us. I can’t leave her side. She’s incapacitated and defenseless.”

The soldier drew his sword. “Which is exactly why I won’t let you stay by her side,” he spat. “I’m not going to let you take advantage of the Calamity and sully her reputation, whoever you are. You expect me to believe your tall tales? I’ve yet to see a Guardian I couldn’t handle. Now, do as I say. I’m already granting you far more accommodation than you deserve!”

Astor shut his eyes in surrender and hugged the girl in his arms, knowing he could not afford to escalate the situation any further. He laid her in the tent and then turned to tiredly lurch toward the other, grumbling under his breath about how he was going to be sleeping with one eye open.

In his dreams, they stand under the Blood Moon hand in hand. The sky and land are awash in a scarlet glow. As her right hand clasps his left, he can sense her power resonating. Zelda stares up at the beast circling her home, undaunted, and smiles.

[yourenotacat]

i loved your link headcanons post! do you have any for zelda?

uh-huh lol

I only did BotW for her, but I somehow lost control again 🤭

* While I do love t4t zelink (OoT is god-tier), Zelda is bi and cis in BotW. Though, that doesn't stop these dorks from completely sharing a wardrobe post-calamity. Your tunic? No, our tunic.

* Always taller than Link and usually around 5'10", but BotW Zelda is one of the shortest at 5'6"

* Constantly infodumping, and if not, she's definitely thinking out loud

* Will do anything in the name of science. Just as much—if not more—of a gremlin than Link.

* Doesn't have a bad temper! She's a literal sweetheart. Anxiety just makes her easily irritable :c

* Rebellious in small ways pre-calamity: sneaking books out from the restricted section of the library; staying up too late to tinker with Sheikah tech; hiding a vivarium full of critters under blankets in her study to secretly research. It gives her a sense of control when she feels like she doesn't have any.

* Post-calamity, she moves to Hateno with Link and goes by Zee. They live that full cottagecore experience for about six months before traveling again. Each region is hard to visit, especially Gerudo, but seeing how much the world has changed fascinates her to no end.

* Needs a lot of physical touch (no matter how small) after being detached from her body for 100 years.

* Link gives her Rhoam's diary, though she can never bring herself to read it. While Zelda did love her father, she finds it very hard to forgive him and I haven't decided if she ever does.

* When she first chops off her hair, it comes out ridiculously uneven. Like one side is at her chin and the other at her shoulder. "It's not very good, is it?" she asks. Link takes the blade from her, cuts off a large section of his, and shrugs. "Could be worse." (Eventually I will write this scene for you-know-which-fic sjfhsdf)

* Hateno's elderly host a weekly tea to shoot the shit, and since they're the first generation born after the calamity, Zelda frequently attends to listen to their stories. While she feels immense guilt for their hardships, she loves hearing about them falling in love, having children, and genuinely enjoying life. It makes her sacrifices feel worth it.

* She avoids the Blatchery Plains for years, but eventually there is a clean-up effort to restore the land and deconstruct guardians for their resources. Link cautions her, and she tells him it'll be fine. It isn't.

* And finally, it's a popular hc that Zelda is less experienced than Link, and I hate it so much. She spent plenty of time in Gerudo Town, where discussions about sex are much less taboo, and Urbosa definitely gave her The Talk (Rhoam could never). Before her training got so rigorous, Zelda occasionally had tea with other young noblewomen, and there was a mutual curiosity with a handful of them. She'd tell her attendants, "Lady Whomever and I will take our afternoon tea in the conservatory" which actually meant "We're going to make out." While it always stayed age appropriate and she didn't have any feelings for anyone until Link, she did learn a thing or two.

* However, Link is the first 'boy' she's ever been with and even he's like, "I don't really think that counts."

[linksthoughtbrambles]

Why Fi Started Talking in Link's Thought Brambles

In Link's Thought Brambles (my whopper of a 56-chapter, 200,000-word BotW AU fanfic), Fi is silent until chapter 48. Some have asked why - here's the answer, and also the answer as to why it has not been explained explicitly in the fic.

This is why I'd started making all those On Awakenings posts in the first place!

WARNING: Spoilers for my fic Link's Thought Brambles and the entire Adventure Log+ AU.

Conclusions from the On Awakenings posts I take as canon in that fic:

(From the analysis posts I put up--links at the end of this post).

a.) Fi can't talk to anyone on her own anymore after Skyward Sword. The person she's talking to... ......... must have their own magical power ......... must be fully aligned with the Triforce of Courage

b.) To be fully aligned with the Triforce of Courage, a person must have demonstrated the courage of a true hero by selflessly sacrificing their own life for someone else. Clarification: ......... The person doesn't have to actually die, but they must believe, at the time they make their sacrifice, that it's very likely they're about to die. It's that willingness to give their life entirely for the sake of the other person that makes them a true hero. ......... Recklessness and bravery are not the same as the courage of a true hero. Recklessness is selfish. Bravery is wonderful but you don't have to believe you're about to die to be brave. The courage of a true hero is a level up from that--the final, most significant form of bravery.

c.) Until that memory on the Blatchery Plain, neither Link nor Zelda in BotW could hear the voice of Fi (and couldn't hear Hylia's voice, either).

d.) There is a difference between Link and Zelda being able to wield magical artifacts (the Master Sword and the Triforce) and being able to use their own innate abilities. Artifacts have their own rules determining when and if someone can access them.

Magical artifacts have rules determining who can use them, when, and how. Above, Link appears to commune with the fully powered Master Sword after completing the entire Trial of the Sword.

I took the following things to be true in the fic, though they aren't necessarily canon:

e.) Pre-Calamity BotW Link is less aligned with the Triforce of Courage than any Link who came before him because of immense social pressure, pushing him toward conformity and recklessness. Clarification: ......... He couldn't hear Fi even if other incarnations of him after SS could hear her because of this. He has to re-awaken. He's been pushed out of alignment even though he had already met the courage of a true hero requirement in previous lives.

f.) Link has access to all of his own innate magical abilities regardless of how aligned he is with the Triiforce of Courage. (So does Zelda!). Those abilities are simply due to his unique soul.

g.) Link has subconscious access to his experiences/memories from previous incarnations of himself. He doesn't remember clearly, but he does, for example, naturally know how to be a total badass with a longsword, and he's a fantastic archer. He requires little training to be an excellent fighter (though training means improvement).

h.) "Alignment" with the Triforce of Courage is on a spectrum. Full alignment comes with all the abilities of the Master Sword, including hearing Fi. Someone courageous but not fully aligned could still interact with the sword a little. (I mostly decided this because I liked it, but there's evidence for it in BotW: Zelda's dream in which she interacts with Hylia but can't hear her).

Why is Fi slient at the beginning of the fic?

Fi is silent at the start of Link's Thought Brambles for the same reason she's silent in pre-Calamity BotW: Fi cannot simply choose to speak to whoever she pleases on her own, and Link is not fully aligned with the Triforce of Courage.

Why can Link do other cool stuff like the flurry rush and spin attack?

Because those abilities have nothing to do with Fi or the Master Sword! That's simply magic Link has by being his awesome self.

When in mid-air or after a well-timed dodge, Link can move so fast he effectively slows time around him. (I like to think of this power as 'time-dilation' because of the lengthening effect we see here and because of the slate's physics-themed runes).

What makes Fi "start talking" in Chapter 48?

I'm putting a huge WARNING sign here because below this is a major spoiler for the fic.

The idea that Fi "starts talking" isn't quite right even though it's how Link himself sees it/phrases it in the fic (he doesn't know exactly what's going on). To him, it seems like she suddenly starts talking, but she's actually been talking to him the entire time (being very snarky about it in the background, too), but he couldn't hear her.

In Short: The moment Fi "starts talking" to Link in the fic is the moment when Link demonstrates the courage of a true hero (just like he and Zelda both did at the Blatchery Plain in BotW). But she doesn't start talking. He suddenly is able to hear.

It was easy for readers to think Fi suddenly started talking because it was an "emergency situation" like she had no choice but to speak (kind of like on Blatchery Plain, where her speaking to Zelda has a chance of saving Link's life), but that wasn't it.

Fi speaks to Zelda for the first time right after her awakening in BotW.

The fic's text provides a clue that Fi didn't simply choose to talk to Link at that moment because of the emergency:

[Link screams because he just saved someone else by choosing to take a potentially mortal blow in their stead.]

-STER CEASE YOUR MOTION, REMAIN STILL-

That 2nd line in all italicized caps is Fi, shouting at Link immediately after he's severely wounded. The clue? Fi's already mid-word when he first hears her.

She was already shouting at him before he could hear--that's why that first word--"MASTER"--is cut in half.

She'd been shouting at him a good deal of that day, trying to warn him about magic she sensed, and while he could feel something was off and she even managed to communicate a direction to him (Fi's dowsing ability), he couldn't hear her words at all.

She'd tried shouting at Zelda, too, but to no avail.

After the first time Link hears Fi, he can always hear her when she speaks, but Zelda still cannot (because she is not yet fully aligned with the Triforce of Courage).

Wait a minute. What about the Melee in Chapter 19?!

Something similar happens in Chapter 19, in which Link is fighting to defend the Princess' honor. It's very brave of him, and noble, and all that, but it does not demonstrate the courage of a true hero for two reasons:

Link didn't believe his fellow soldiers in the melee were intending to kill him. (Beat the snot out of him, yes--though later he comes to think some did try to do him in).

Link wasn't saving someone's life. Sorry, Zelda. Your honor's great, but it's not life itself.

What about before then? Doesn't Link go monster hunting?

Yes, he does, but he doesn't believe he's going to die and he's not doing it to directly sacrifice himself for someone else.

Also... it's a bit reckless and vengeful, both things that fall into that selfishness category. It's reckless because he starts out as a kid going after bokoblins that have killed adults. It's vengeful because he starts doing it because the bokoblins killed people he knows.

Neither of those things is aligned with the courage of a true hero requirement.

Why doesn't Fi explain this to Link in the fic?

Fi absolutely under no circumstances can explain this to Link yet. It could ruin everything if she did.

Why?

I'm putting another blaring WARNING in here because it spoils something that hasn't happened in the ongoing fic Adventure Log+ yet.

Fi can't tell Link why he was able to start hearing her... because....

It would tell Link how to awaken Zelda's power.

Yes, you read that right.

Link absolutely must not know how to awaken Zelda's power.

And if you've been reading the fic, you may now be confused for two reasons: 1.) Wait, isn't Zelda's power already awake in the fic?! 2.) Why wouldn't Link be allowed to know how to wake it up?!

Hoooo boy. Here we go.

1.) No, Zelda's power is not already awake in the fic.

If you've read it, you know they've discovered some things about BotW Zelda in this AU: - She's unnaturally strong. - She has unnaturally high stamina. - She's essentially a perfect archer. Things in the environment can mess with her shot, but her aim is always perfect.

In the fic, once they discover these things, they assume Zelda's had her "sealing power" all along and they simply had misunderstood its nature. They have a whole festival and stuff to celebrate.

Oops.

What they're seeing are Zelda's innate magical abilities (and they haven't even discovered them all, yet). These are like Link' spin attack and flurry rush--they're things Zelda has access to simply because of her unique soul.

But just like she cannot yet hear Fi, she also cannot yet wield the complete Triforce (which is what shows up on her hand in the Blatchery Plain memory).

The power Zelda seeks to awaken in BotW is access to the complete Triforce. Only a person with a balanced heart who has awakened the hero within themselves is able to wield it.

2.) Link can't know how to awaken Zelda's power, because if he finds out, Zelda's pretty much guaranteed to find out.

But... wouldn't that be a good thing? Isn't the whole issue in those BotW memories the fact that they didn't know how to awaken Zelda's power? Isn't the problem that Zelda's mother died before she told anyone how to awaken it?

NO.

Because even sacrificing yourself to save someone else becomes a selfish act if you do so in order to awaken your own power. The courage of a true hero must be selfless. It mustn't be done with some additional goal in mind.

Zelda MUST NOT know how to awaken her power. If she knows how, she won't be able to awaken it.

I strongly believe that's why her mother never told anyone how.

[Note: SS Zelda doesn't tell Link that he had to awaken the hero inside him until he already had, either, for the same reason.]

The issue with Zelda's mother dying so early isn't that she never told anyone. It's that she didn't live long enough to make sure her daughter was exposed to situations in which she had the option to display such courage. King Rhoam and all the Champions play it safe with Zelda's life. They don't allow her to put herself in physical danger to protect anyone else.

Zelda's mother would have.

I can imagine a tradition of royal Hylian mothers and grandmothers taking their young princesses on grand tours of Hyrule, or perhaps to regions where they know help is desperately needed, to grow their princess' characters and give them ample opportunity to awaken the heroes within themselves.

As Princess of Hyrule, BotW Zelda should have discovered her power through connection to her people--and demonstrating willingness to give her life for them. On Blatchery Plain, she finally does thanks to her connection with Link.

That did not happen in BotW, so she fails to awaken it until Link is at death's door.

Back to the fic--okay, so Zelda can't know how to awaken her own power. Why isn't Link allowed to know?

Link can't know because if he does, Zelda will know very soon afterward. Either she'll read it on the Slate, or he'll tell her because now that he's talking to her, it's hard for him to keep his trap shut around her. 😂

Poor Fi. She has to keep this close to her metaphorical chest.

Thanks for reading!

If you stuck with me this far on a meta post about my own fic, WOW! Thank you!

Here are links to the On Awakenings posts drawing conclusions about how Link and Zelda's powers awaken (or fail to) in BotW and other Zelda games: - On Awakenings in The Legend of Zelda - On Awakenings... Part 2: BotW Link - On Awakenings... Part 3: Can't Fi Just Talk? - On Awakenings... Part 4: Why Can't Fi Just Talk?

They're more general Zelda lore, not just for Link's Thought Brambles.

If you like this stuff, check out my fic masterlist. The lore's interwoven in a lot of it (though some of it is pure comedy, which I love).