#impa being the only one you can tell about zelda being a dragon and her going oh no im gonna search for a way to bring her back- LOL NOPE

[ganondoodle]

wait i just realized... the mastersword isnt even important enough to warrant zelda doing to such extreme lengths to repair it bc its NOT EVEN REQUIRED FOR DEFEATING GANONDORF

idk about you but the mastersword being not just this weak after all this but also not even required is like ... hurting the whole plot SO bad for all that zelda knew she was basically killing herself by doing the dragon thing ONLY for the mastersword, which isnt even needed to reach the end why do the dragon thing at all??? she could have put it in some other divine place for it to recover (she knew where the springs are, she knew where the krog forest is, heck she even knew where the forgotten temple is BC THEY WERE ALL THERE* and im not going to belive any of them came into existence afterwards), in botw it took 'only' a 100 years to regenerate the damage it took in botws past which, while not as extreme as in totk, was pretty bad! yeah it gets outright broken in totk but like ... really? far over 10 000 years to recover it? through ZELDA? one of the most divine being IN THE FORM of one of the most divine beings aside from the very gods themselves?? whats the use of it being able to regernate if it takes THAT long?? feels easier to forge a new one for that matter?? and the excuse that "it needed to be able to resist miasma" is like .. why tho? yeah ok fine i could do the entire bossfight with JUST the mastersword, but again, its not required! i can do it with anything else!! and its doesnt cleanse miasma either, like the sword did in tp when you could do away the twilight stuff when it got the super glow stuff so its really like ... she did that JUST for the sword? really? the fact that her becoming a dragon is the way to get her back into her time isnt something she could have known and it working out like that makes it feel like a massive fail of the writers bc it makes it feel less like an actual decision she made for good reason and more bc its a decision the writers made bc the writers already knew where it would end, the writers knew shed be turned back in the end no problem so they had her do the dragon thing despite it being pretty senseless from her perspective

(wouldnt it have felt more in character and logical to put the mastersword somwhere safe where it can recover over all those centuries and search for a way to return to her time herself? like in these two games ZELDA feels like the more important thing that the sword, -zeldas prone to sacrifice herself for other- WHY! its better for everyone if you are alive rather than dead! you got to this time by yourself and also somehow not jsut shifted the time but also PLACE bc you sure as hell didnt appear in a cavern in the middle of the land, you have wielded incredible magic before and are a researcher, surely theres some way for you to at least TRY to return on your own?? how cool would it have been to find little markers and spots where clearly she has left you some sort of message, maybe like a way for you to do something that helps her in the past, USE THE WEIRD ASS TIME BUBBLES FROM THE TUTORIAL AGAIN!! send back something she needs to return! go and talk with impa and purah to determine what shes trying to tell you, help her along the way and in the end she makes her triumphant return, having grown and learned with what she did instead of regressing her chaarcter to the big eyed maiden that you get as a reward at the end through unsatisfying bs reasons and hurray she doesnt even remember, perfect little fairytale of no consequences wahoo- im salty about this let me be salty-)

you can absolutely combine a free to explore open world with good story without restricting it by much, like locking the bossfight behind aquiring the mastersword doesnt feel like that big of a change and its not making it a whole lot more linear, most people do it anyway right?

(also a thing im doing in my rewrite of it is locking certain things for some parts, it just makes sense if you are trying to tell a story, but its pretty clear now they werent trying to do that, just throw you into a box of virtual toys, and i think thats just sad)

*yeah actually whats up with the sonau/rauru putting their little nuclear super weapon storage room inTO THE ANCIENT RELICT OF THE FORGOTTEN PAST TEMPLE BEHIND THE BIGGEST STATUE OF HYLIA IN EXISTENCE?? you cant tell me all those ancient ruins (springs, forgotten temple) were made AFTER all of the shitshow that went down in totks past; putting it behind that statue? building it into there feels incredibly disrespectful, maybe it makes more sense if you just see it as the devs wanting to put somethign new there, but if you consider it in universe its just ??? also HOW is any of it in such a good shape??, it looks like they buried sonia there a year ago, the structures look like they just came out of a 3d printer despite supposedly being older than their recorded history??

on that note ... how does the room with the order and location of zeldas tears make sense .. are you telling me someone of the past ran around after dragon zelda recording where her fucking tears went down and what markings it made on the ground and then built a room next to the nuclear weapon storage room with the laughably unceremonial grave of the fucking queen just to put all that into statue form? also none of the geographical things changed in ALL that time?? the castle is drawn on there too so i guess that was super fresh then since it "was built above ganondorf as a symbol of royal blahbla" at least in botw you had the photos on your SHIEKAH stone to recover them once you found the place they were taken in, it felt so organically integrated ..

[theicarusconstellation]

zelda tangled au anyone?

genderfluid link. runaway princess zelda.

imagine ganon knows only link can defeat him so he kidnaps him as a six year old and takes him to an abandoned tower in hyrule forest with the intention of corrupting him and the master sword to get them on his side. zelda has been told all her life that the power of hylia is in her, but she hasn't unlocked it yet, and the pressure is getting too much so she sets off to find the "legendary future swordswoman" who went missing years ago because "if i can't unlock my powers, maybe she can help me."

one day, she finds the master sword (which ganondorf has been hiding near the tower because he's saving it for when he finally figures out a way to corrupt it, harness its power, and take over hyrule). she's like "oh my god what if the swordswoman is around here somewhere😱."

MEANWHILE link is in the tower with their gorgeous long hair (and maybe wolf link as a sidekick instead of pascal?), and every year on his birthday, the leaders of all the villages get together and hold a little mourning/prayer ceremony for her bc signs of the calamity are approaching fast, and they're hoping link shows up soon, especially with zelda's power not being awakened yet. link desperately wants to go see the ceremony (they don't know what it's for, just that there are a lot of beautiful lights and the dragons of hyrule all come together as well), but obviously ganondorf won't let him.

THEN zelda finds the tower and scales it. link is all "HYAH!!!!!!" and the scene where eugene is trapped in the chair with rapunzel's hair plays out between the two of them except it's just a lot of link being like 😡😡and zelda being like 🤭omg this guy's reallly good with a weapon...looks a lot like the descriptions of...WAIT OMG ITS THE LEGENDARY SWORDSWOMAN🤭 link is like "i mean 1/3 woman i guess."

eventually, zelda convinces link to leave the tower with a bargain like "if i take you to the swordswoman ceremony, will you tell me about ganondorf?" (she already suspects it's THE ganondorf ykyk), and link is hesitant because zelda is telling them that the person they've been raised by is evil, but he really wants to see the ceremony, so he goes. they cut their hair to its length in totk and it really validates her gender yk? and when zelda sees how happy link is in her newfound freedom and gender expression she's like "well i have to tell him the truth about who he is"

she doesn't want to because it'll shatter link's worldview and newfound peace, and she doesn't want to put a burden on their shoulders (bc hylia knows she knows what that's like), but she does it anyway. at this point, link is beginning to get flashes of memories from his childhood and realize what zelda is trying to tell her is true, so both of them go to kakariko village to talk to impa (and they plan to talk to the champions after), but once they get there, ganondorf is there waiting in front of the desecrated former village like HEY POOKIE. FOUND YOU. MISS ME?

he takes link captive again and accelerates his plans to take over hyrule. link is trying to find a way out, and zelda is trying to find a way to help him, but it's not working out very well lmao. meanwhile zelda goes to the champions and asks for their help, relaying everything she knows, and the champions make a plan to get link and stop ganondorf. they get to the area where the tower is, but ganondorf was expecting this and takes them captive

as this happens, link doesn't know what's going on and is alone in the tower. he finds the master sword and the secret tower staircase, but it's a trap laid by ganondorf to manipulate link into joining him because link escapes the tower only to find zelda and the champions all tied up and stuff. the bargain is like "join me and i won't kill your friends when i rule, but refuse and i'll kill them slowly and make you watch" (i came up with this on the spot i know it's a rough plot WORK WITH ME😭🙏)

link being link challenges ganondorf to a duel, and ganondorf accepts purely out of amusement bc at this point he thinks "link can't defeat me yet since he's been locked in the tower; he's only a danger if he's been trained." link whoops his ass, but ganondorf harnesses the power of the calamity at the last second (which he was planning to do just to teach link a lesson in obedience and whatever). he whoops LINK'S ass, but just as link is about to get killed, zelda's powers Come To Life, and she saves him. then they all work together to defeat ganondorf and they all live happily ever after

[bloobluebloo]

Imagine if Nintendo just acknowledged Ganondorf's depth and that's like... the eternal end of the series.

That's the ONLY way I can see them showcasing depth to him, when they decide to permanently end shit and well, end the cycle.

Honestly they don't really need to go to those extremes to show any depth to Ganondorf. Let's look at Ocarina of Time, for example, the game that TotK was attempting to imitate. In that game, Ganondorf is a malicious asshole who will do things like attack a child, feed Gorons to a dragon, and kill a forest deity. The game presents the Hylians as a race favored by the gods, their long ears a sign that they can hear the gods. It presents the Royal Family as the keepers of the gods' magic, from possessing the keys to the Sacred Realm to having music that can alter time and the weather. However, the game is littered with context that gives Ganondorf depth, and puts the claims of the Hylians under scrutiny. You learn that his surrogate mothers are 400 year old witches which explains his magical prowess. You learn that the rest of Hyrule shows distrust and has racist attitudes towards the Gerudo. When Ganondorf takes over, there are places that he does leave alone, the Gerudo desert being one of them. The other pertinent example that sticks to my mind is Kakariko Village, in which one npc tells Link essentially that the village was established by Impa for the poor. He does not destroy Lon Lon Ranch, but instead gives the reigns to Ingo who, for all intents and purposes, is the one who did the majority of the work and was bitter for that fact. The places he goes after are the ones that denied him and wronged him. Then, in terms of the Hylians, there's an npc who jokes that he knows about legend of the Hylians but had never heard the gods, just a small nudge that perhaps that claim is propaganda to prop up the Hylian race. You have places like the bottom of the well and the Shadow Temple which are proof that the Hylians have blood on their hands. You have the context of the civil war. You have Zelda spilling out accusation after accusation on a man you just saw through a window and you have the option (a moot point really but!!! it's still there!!!) to say that you don't believe her and that you will go tell others. There is plenty to glean, that under the black and white nature of your adventure there is a lot of murky gray to consider. LoZ has always had elements like this in its games. It doesn't make Ganondorf some kind of poor meow meow, but it contextualizes why he is doing what he is doing. Being capable of sympathizing with him doesn't negate his position as the antagonist. Giving him depth doesn't have to spell the end of the cycle, but it can be used to ask the player if challenging the status quo may have some merit to it. My very specific problem when it comes to Ganondorf is that he and his people, whether intentionally or not, are the worst victims of the imperialistic kingdom that is Hyrule, and to brush that under the rug and continue to insist that Ganondorf is bad because he hates Hyrule and hating Hyrule is the evil thing is just...I don't know, lazy? Uncomfortable? Does Nintendo not have the money or time to invest in what they have been perpetuating for this character for over 2 decades now?

[three-bunnies-in-a-trenchcoat]

"Hey, Zelda." Link gave the dragon a watery smile, sitting down and patting the fur next to him. "It's been a while, sorry. Penn needed my help with a story."

He blew a strand of hair away from his face, wrapping the wings of his glide suit around him as protection from the wind. "It's stupid that I'm doing this again, isn't it? I spent a year putting off fighting the Calamity, and now I'm just wasting time exploring the Depths and Hyrule again. I found Mineru three months ago, for Hylia's sake." He gave a weak laugh. "Although I don't think Josha would call it a waste. You'd like her."

"I know what you'd tell me– 'The Demon King dealt a great blow against you, Link.'" His voice shifted, mimicking her accent. "'Taking time to recover is not a waste, and if you throw yourself injured into a fight again I'll drag you back by the ear!'"

Zelda let out a low rumble.

"Yeah, yeah, I know you hate it when I do that." He sighed. "But I am nearly healed. Almost all of the gloom's effects are gone, my arm nearly always feels like it's mine." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, have I told you how the others are doing?

"Sidon and Yona are doing pretty well– the official wedding is coming up soon. Sidon's really growing into being king. Yunobo and the kids are doing good too, last I saw, but I haven't been over there in a while."

He rubbed the sages' rings with his thumb. "Tulin's been training pretty hard; I think Teba is getting worried. He reminds me a lot of Revali, actually, with that. I still don't remember much, but I do know that he was always training. Probably just to show me up, but still.

"Riju…" He picked at his nails. "I understand why she gave me access, but I miss being Link, Hylian vai, and not Link, hero of Hyrule and the princess's guard. I don't think most of them have connected the dots, but even if I do find my vai clothes again, it won't be the same. Now that they've seen me as a voe, they'd figure it out right away. 

"Is it… weird, that I liked being a girl?" He closed his eyes, leaning back against Zelda's mane. "It was… nice. I don't know how to explain it, but… I wouldn't have minded living in Gerudo Town. Being 'little Hylian vai' for more than just a few trips.

"What do you think Riju would've said if I told her that? Would she have allowed it?" He laughed bitterly. "I'm only telling you this because you can't understand me. Pretty messed up, right?

"I asked Mineru about draconification, if she had found a way to reverse it after all these years. She just looked at me. Probably would've talked me out of coming up here, if she knew. Seems like that type of person."

He sighed. "No more royal line, huh? I think Hyrule will be okay, though. They survived for one hundred years with the Calamity still hanging around, I'm sure they can find a new leader, especially with the groundwork you laid."

He smoothed a hand over her fur. "The kids in Hateno miss you. I haven't told anyone what's happened to you yet. Impa and Cado know, but only because I started crying when I saw your final memory, and they got– worried."

He ran his hands through his hair, dislodging the mask, and sighed. "Do you want to know something weird? I think I saw you before. Flying over Hateno, when the Calamity was still around. I thought it was just Naydra, but… it makes more sense if it was you. It was practically destiny for me to fail you again, huh?"

"Fuck. Fuck." He pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes. "I miss you. I miss seeing you wake up in a bed next to me, I miss hearing you and Purah talk about where the shrines went. I miss seeing you smile, hearing you laugh at my stupid jokes, watching you spend hours focused on your research."

Tears dripped from his hands, falling onto Zelda’s head, and she let out a low, mournful cry. A dam broke, and Link shuddered, resting his head in his arms as the tears poured out.

"I can't do this." He gasped. "I can't pretend everything is normal, when you're gone but you're right here and– and–"

His fists slammed down, but stopped before they could touch her head, instead gently smoothing out along her fur. "I hate this. I hate my arm, I hate how Tulin was forced to grow up, I hate how much Hyrule has changed, I hate how you had to give your life just to fix the sword I broke."

His voice broke. "You're always cleaning up my messes. You held back the Calamity, and now you did this. I should just– just go and find him, before all of this is in vain. Ha, who cares if I'm not ready? As long as that bastard goes down with me, I don't care. We all know I should've just stayed dead."

Zelda growled, long and low.

He wiped his eyes. "Probably just tired of me being up here, aren't you. It's not very comfortable, is it? It's not because you can understand me, I know you can't. Mineru made it very clear that even a moment of lucidity would be impossible.

"But… I'm still coming up here. Still talking to you, like as soon as I beat him everything is going to go back to being normal and fine, even– even though it's not. Even though you'll still be up here, forever. Just a dragon. Never Zelda again."

More tears replaced the ones he had wiped away. "It should have been me, stuck like this. I've always just been a failure, and I saw how strong you were, how your abilities started to grow. If I had– if I had just died fighting against the Calamity like I was supposed to, maybe then you wouldn't even have gone down there and he wouldn't have woken up!"

He sniffled. "Goddesses, what am I supposed to tell people? 'Sorry, Zelda turned into a dragon thousands of years in the past, and no, sorry, only like ten people in the entirety of Hyrule can see her, and yeah, sorry, it's all my fault again.' That's going to go over well."

Zelda growled again, tossing her head. 

"I'm sorry. I'll go now." He ran a hand over her mane, smoothing out a few windblown tangles. "...I'll visit you again before I go fight him. Say goodbye. I don't think I'll be coming back from that, and even if you can't understand me, you deserve to know."

He stood up, wiping his face one more time and securing the mask over his eyes, and leapt into the sky.

A low cry echoed from the sky above him, and Link's eyes burned.

[skyloftsword]

Sixth Playthrough of Tears of the Kingdom Done, Have my Thoughts Changed?

Short answer: NOPE. I still don't see how the entire package is bad. Every game ever has flaws, EVEN your precious Breath of the Wild was very flawed. This is still my favorite game ever and I do really like BotW a lot. Story is for the most part really great, excellent soundtrack, gameplay is incredible, wonderful cast of characters.

Long Answer (SPOILERS):

Okay so, when I first played this game, it made me look back at Breath of the Wild and feel kinda disappointed with that game. Breath of the Wild kinda didn't feel anywhere near as focused as this game does (ironic considering most people have been saying the opposite).

The Dragon's Tear quest actually was really connected and told a really, really interesting story that got me invested in the characters. The order should have been forced, HOWEVER, Impa notes that the order of the memories is on the wall in the room of the Forgotten Temple. The Regional Phenomena stuff is what the Divine Beast quests should have been. Only one Divine Beast quest had anything going on before the battle, all four regions have stuff going on in them with the Regional Phenomena. Not to mention the regions are actively being affected by the events of the phenomena going on, with the Zora being injured by sludge, the Rito being starved, the Gerudo being invaded by zombi- I mean Gibdos and the Gorons being mind controlled by Ganondorf's puppet. The Puppet Zelda quest could have been handled a lot better, however I have read people's posts about why Link didn't tell anyone about it and I choose to believe that (because a lot of this game is based around theory crafting, like Josha for example, she's all about making theories of the past). Purah not commenting on you having the Master Sword until AFTER you finish the Crisis at Hyrule Castle quest is extremely awkward, especially if you have it on your back. The Ring Ruins quest is also really good, needing to explore the Zonai Ruins to find clothes from the era of the Zonai. Mineru (my beloved)'s quest is genuinely incredible. Building a construct then being able to drive her around is such an amazing idea.

The cast of characters in this game is filled with really great characters. Yes, the ancient Sages are literal WHO? HOWEVER, outside of them, Impa and the Deku Tree, the rest of the cast is really great. Rauru's character arc is my favorite in the series, topping Groose's for me. Sonia is also a really charming character. Both of them are the parents that this Zelda deserved. Such excellent parents. Mineru's my favorite of the cast solely because I can relate to having VERY unhealthy hyperfixation and work issues. Tulin's a really fun character to be around. Sidon's arc is really, really good in this game and the fact that they tied it back to Mipha's death from the Calamity helps the ties between the games become even stronger. Yunobo went from a bottom-tier character to a very solid character for me in this game (partially because he wasn't associated with Scrapper Eldin quest 2.0 this time). Riju is an excellent leader for the Gerudo, willing to put herself in danger for her people. Purah is a bit awkward in terms of writing but she's still good (and thankfully not tied to a backtracking quest this time).

The music REALLY helps make this game's story stand out compared to every other Zelda game story (besides MAYBE Skyward Sword's). Remember His Name is such a powerful and emotional version of Link's theme. The theme from the final Dragon's Tear is what makes me shed a tear every playthrough. Seized Construct's theme helps make that fight hit harder since its a corrupted version of Mineru's theme. Hyrule Castle's theme is more somber than BotW's, which is fitting. The transition themes between the Sky -> Surface and the Surface -> Depths really help make diving feel even more satisfying. Each Sage's theme fits their personality perfectly.

The gameplay in this game is genuinely perfect. The dungeons (hot take) are extremely fun to do, every time I do them I learn a new method for at least one of their puzzles. The Shrines are FAR better in this game than they were in BotW. The Proving Grounds Shrines feel more like a test than BotW's Tests of Strength. HOWEVER, they, for whatever reason, decided to make MORE combat tutorial Shrines. Now for abilities... Ultrahand and Fuse are SUPER fun to toy around with. Ascend ruined gaming for me because I'm so addicted to using it. Recall is crazy and its incredible how they got it to work as perfectly as they did (also great way to reach the Sky Islands).

Now onto the new environments in this game. The Sky Islands are beautiful. While they aren't for the most part visually distinct, a LOT of them are extremely unique. Lightcast Island is especially a really fun island. Thunderhead Isles and Dragonhead Island are amazing as well. Dragonhead's theme is one of my favorite ambient themes ever, its so calming. The Depths is really fun to run around in, except when you run into a pile of Gloom, that really sucks. Construct Factory and Spirit Temple are literal perfection. Fire Temple is also such a really cool dungeon.

Alright, now that I'm done, did my opinion on this game change after my sixth playthrough? ...No. This game is still absolutely incredible and a masterpiece of a game. No matter how much I get harassed (which I have been harassed multiple times over this), my opinion still remains the same on this game. Yes it has its issues, yes I think there are aspects that could be very much improved, but I feel this way with literally every game ever. Thank you for reading my rambling, have a good day.

[mil-fan-4ever]

My Inner Life: The Continuation

Chapter Four

Waiting for Link

Waiting for Link We spent a week in Zora’s Domain before there was any word from Link at all. Zelda and I were playing with Little Link and Elyesia one afternoon, relegated to the indoors because of the chill outside, and though both of us were troubled about what we might have to do to the king, we were trying to ignore the dire situation while we still could.

It was as we were playing with my children—and Little Link was starting to mumble in something like speech, which I wished Link could be there for—that a man in a white uniform and red hat was allowed into the large cavern that made up Zora’s Domain. He attracted attention right away because he was not a Zora, and also because he was dressed so strangely.

He looked around for a moment, before his eyes caught mine. Zelda and I were watching him curiously. He smiled when he saw me and he hurried forward, practically sprinting across the length of the cavern’s walkway to approach me. “Are you Jenna Silverblade, wife of the “Hero of Time?”” He asked.

I had been sitting with Elyesia in my lap, but now I pulled her close. The baby looked around at the man. “I am,” I said cautiously. “Who wants to know?”

“The postman,” said the man, smiling at me flashing his teeth. He tipped his hat smartly. “Good afternoon, Mistress Jenna. I come today with a letter for you.” He reached into the bag on his hip and produced a large red envelope. As soon as I took it he bowed and bid us farwell. Before I could say anything at all, he had run out of the room and back out into the winter afternoon.

I frowned down at the envelope between my fingers. Ruto, who must have seen what happened, came up to us. “A letter?” Ruto asked. “Oh, dear… You must open it at once, Jenna!” She took Elyesia from me and held the baby close to her fishlike body, as I slipped one finger under the flap of the envelope and tore the envelope open. I read it first to myself and, when the others saw the big grin that happed across my face, they urged me to read it aloud. So I did so.

My dearest wife—I wish that I could be with you in these dark times, and I wish that I could be there with the children. I trust in the princess and I know that she has taken you someplace safe. I guess I should thank Ruto for that, too, and Impa, while I’m thinking about it. I cannot tell you where I’ve gone, but I can tell you that I am with people also dedicated to saving King Zelda and freeing Hyrule from Ariakas’s threat. Give my love to the children. Link.

After I was done reading, I hugged the letter to my chest. Oh, my husband was safe! He lived! And he was also going to help free my father! I could have danced, I was so happy. But I hadn’t had much energy lately. In fact, I had felt utterly exhausted since my escape from Drakeshade Palace. The princess assured me that I was only feeling the aftereffects of my delivery—which had only been a week ago—and that I hadn’t rested properly to begin with, so it might take longer to heal.

So be it, I had decided. But now that I knew Link was safe, a new surge of energy coursed through me. Through my veins, through my marrow. I was happier than I could ever remember being and I wanted to see him right away.

Only I knew I couldn’t. Not while Ariakas was sitting the throne.

We had heard news from Hyrule Castle Town, though I didn’t want to hear it at all. I had listened, though. I knew the king would want me to know. Castle Town was under the control of the Dark Lord and his Dark Knights patrolled the streets, while his Draconians flew above, looking out for dissenters and rebels. I thought of Ibsef and I wondered if his dragon was still alive, if they were both safe.

A chill ran threw me. How could they be, now that Ibsef had betrayed his lord so many times? And all for an enemy.

I said a silent prayer to the Goddesses, hoping beyond hope that Ibsef yet lived.

“This is wonderful news!” Ruto said, her eyes lighting up with joy. “Oh, Jenna, I’m so happy for you!”

“Yes,” I mumbled. “I’m happy, as well.” I felt something tug on my skirt, and I looked down. Link Jr was there, looking up at me with his big, sparkling blue eyes. The eyes that looked just like Link’s. Now that Little Link was getting older I was able to pick out unique features that he’d gotten from Link or me. And he definitely looked more like his father.

Biting back tears, I reached down and stroked his cheek. “Daddy’s fine, little one,” I cooed. “And we’re going to see him soon.” Little Link’s eyes lit up and he giggled, wriggling delightedly at my knee. I could not help but smile and the apprehension I felt before dissipated at once. I leaned down and picked up my little son, putting him in my lap as he struggled, half-heartedly, in my grip.

The mood of our little group changed dramatically. Ruto, as always, was talkative and lively. Zelda seemed to brighten considerably, certainly far happier than I had seen her in the time I’d been in hiding here. The news was not entirely reassuring, but it was something, and it was something dear to which we could all grasp. No matter how tenuous and temporary an assurance it might have been.

It was not long after that that we began receiving word from not only Zelda’s spies in Castle Town, but from the other kingdoms that surrounded Hyrule. Kalence was reporting that a resistance group had sprung up under the banner of a silver unicorn on a field of gold, declaring that some noble house or other was taking over the kingdom, all so it could mobilize its forces to stop the spread of Ariakas’s evil. Reports from Avalon suggested that the resistance had mobilized there, as well, though something about that made me perk up my ears. It mostly had to do with reports of a dashing figure in green leading a group of rebels against the Dark Lord’s agents that had tried to infiltrate Avalon’s government.

I smiled to myself when I heard that detail. That was my Link, I thought. He was always there, ready to fight evil when he could, to save people when he could. He was my “Hero of Time” and I was so proud of him I nearly burst from my pride for him.

As the days flew by my children began to grow like weeds. Little Link was crawling at top speed and he even occasionally managed to stand up and take a few toddling steps before he would fall back onto his behind. Sometimes he cried, sometimes he laughed, but I was always there to help him back up. Elyesia, my darling daughter, showed more and more awareness of her surroundings with each passing day and it was amazing to see the spark of comprehension light her face every once in a while. I was so proud I could hardly bear it.

I did grow bored with all of the waiting I was forced to do, however. And though Zelda had brought many books on ancient customs and the role of Silverlites in Hylian and other governments, there were only so many times I could read about the Silverlite Council before I just gave up and tossed the books aside. And Zora’s Domain was becoming less and less novel as I stayed there. How many times had I traversed it in my time here? Too many to count, surely, and far too many to care for it anymore.

However, not to long after the good news of the rebellions and other nations rising up against Ariakas came to us, we also received some news that made me very worried. Ariakas was apparently using some dark rituals to make the people of Castle Town his mind slaves. And he had sent Draconians to the Black Mountains, supposedly to eradicate the griffins, now that he had the power and money to do so. I was horrified. One of my friends, Dalamar, was a griffin, and this put him directly in danger.

But, I reminded myself, the griffins had been fighting the Dark Lord for centuries. Surely they knew how to defeat a few Draconians? I could only hope that they did. And yet I still worried for them. Worried that this time, they might not make it.

I did have one thing to keep me busy, I supposed. Or two, rather. Elyesia was up at the oddest hours of the night, wanting to be fed or wanting attention. I always indulged her, though Zelda told me—teasingly—that the girl was getting fat from my constant feeding. I retorted that most babies were pudgy, and left it at that. Though we did have a good laugh about it.

Little Link, on the other hand, was starting to use his first real words. He had been a very quiet child before then, choosing instead to communicate with his facial expressions and eyes rather than mumble or yell or shriek, as most small children were wont to do. I had been worried about it, but Link was always quick to comfort me by saying that our son was just special. He was unique and he would grow and develop at his own rate. And I knew it was true. Especially now that Link, Jr. was talking up a storm. None of what he said made much sense, but at least he was talking now.

My fairy Lilly and Little Link’s fairy Aria were also a source of great amusement and joy during this troubling time. They were very good at taking care of the children when I was unable to be with them, and they kept me company when Zelda or Ruto could not. I was eternally grateful to them and to the Great Deku Tree for bestowing such wonderful gifts upon me and my family. Though I was starting to feel anxious for Elyesia. I had gotten my guardian fairy when I had been twenty-one, so I didn’t think there was an age limit on when someone could receive one. But Elyesia had been born a month ago, already. It was high time she got one!

“You are not leaving,” Zelda told me, “to entreat the Deku Tree for a fairy, Jenna.” She eyed me with her sharp blue eyes. “I know that it’s important to you, but think of all the danger you would put yourself and your child in. Come now. Be reasonable.”

I bit my lip, rankled at her words. How could she be so… so cruel to me? But I knew she was right. And the last thing I wanted to do was put either of my children in danger. And especially not when Link was abroad! I could only imagine the horror a parent must feel if he or she is gone for months only to come home and find out a child has died! So I sighed and decided to be diplomatic. “You are right my friend,” I said. “It was foolish of me to suggest such a thing.”

“Not foolish,” Zelda said gently. “Just rash, dear. There will be a time when you can do this freely, but that time is not now.”

I sighed again and nodded. I was miserable. It hurt to know that my poor daughter would go without a fairy for that much longer. And already I was thinking about the Blessing Ceremony we would have to have for her. That might not happen, though, not if the king was still…

Oh, Goddesses… the king! Grief and anger poured over me like hot magma.

“Princess,” I said. “You have a way to save the king, do you not?” Zelda’s mouth tightened a little. “I do,” she said. “Unfortunately I cannot go through with my plan until everything is in place…” She trailed off, looking very cryptic and serious. When I touched her shoulder, trying to get her attention, she only smiled distantly at me. “Worry not my friend. Father will be well again. It just might take a little longer than either of us want it to.”

I nodded slowly. Honestly, out of every bad thing that was happening, it was Zelda and her situation that worried me the most. If her plan went wrong in any capacity, she might be forced to kill her own father. And she had no husband, so she could not properly ascend the throne. That left me in the position of next in line for the throne, though I was apprehensive about that. I couldn’t lead a country if I wanted to!

Zelda sighed beside me. She looked as though she had more to say, or wanted to say something else, but she kept it to herself. I felt my eyes narrow as I looked at her, wishing she would just say it already. But if she wasn’t going to say it, there was no way I could force it out of her. So I kept quiet and simply watched as she and the others carried on with the conversation, and if Zelda was troubled by her upcoming role in upcoming events, she did not betray it.

Even more time passed and things just seemed to grow more and more bleak by the day. King Zora was taking in a few refugees from Hyrule Castle—very few, as it happened. I wished he would open his doors to more helpless, vulnerable people, but there was only so much space to spare and only so many resources for other hungry mouths. I hurt for my fellow Hylians but there was nothing I could do for them. Not when I needed to keep a level head for my friends and for my children.

One-day, I was sitting with my children, reading to Little Link from a picture book someone had managed to sneak into Zora’s Domain. Elyesia, who was now only about two months old, slept at odd hours, and I was always grateful for this because as much as I loved my children, watching two of them at once was quite a handful. She dozed on the bed and I sat propped up against it on the floor, Little Link snuggled up next to me and pointing at pictures as I turned the page. On every page he would point at a picture and declare what it was. I was so proud of my smart little son.

It was as I was sitting there reading that I felt something beyond my consciousness flutter in my mind. I blinked and at first I thought nothing of it; I must have been tired, feeling the effects of excessive boredom and an inconsistent sleep schedule. But then I felt it again, and I realized that I was feeling something that I had not felt in months.

Someone was trying to communicate telepathically with me. I knew who it was. There was only one person with whom I shared a mental connection like that. Tears welled in my eyes and crystal tears fell before I could stop them.

Link. My Link, my husband, my love, my “Hero of Time” was trying to contact me. After months and months he was finally close enough to me that we could connect mentally. I put a hand over my mouth, trying not to sob in happiness, because I did not want to upset the children.

I sent Little Link to play with a toy a traveling carpenter had crafted for us and had the fairies watch the babes while I picked myself up and went out into the common room. “Link.” I said metally. “Link, my love, can you hear me?”

I held my breath as I waited for a response. Seconds ticked into minutes ticked into an eternity. I was almost starting to wonder if I had false hope, when suddenly, I heard a response. “Jenna? Jenna is that you?”

I recognized the voice instantly. I laughed out loud. “Link!” I squealed internally. “Link, oh, Goddesses, I have missed you so much! Where are you? What have you been doing? Why were you gone so long?” He shushed me gently and I waited for a reply. Finally, he said, “Jenna listen my love I cannot say much. I cannot reveal where I am. I do not want to put my friends in danger. But I will say that I have been working to reverse Ariakas’s hold on Hyrule for the past few months. His outriders have tried to sneak into neighboring kingdoms but they have rallied their people and fought back against the dark forces of evil. People are coming, Jenna, people from Avalon and Kalence and even as far as Gahrell across the sea.”

“Across the sea!” I gasped. “His evil reaches so far?”

“Unfortunately yes my love.” Link said solemnly. “But do not worry. We are together with the other kingdoms in this and I believe we can defeat Ariakas if we accept help from outside forces like this. We’ll send Ariakas out in the only way he really deserves: outnumbered and alone.”

By this time tears were streaming down my face I was so happy. At that moment Ariakas seemed a distant thing, a threat long forgotten and unable to touch me where I was. I sobbed into my hand and thanked the Goddesses and the Mother Goddess Herself for allowing me such utter and uncontained joy.

Link was safe. He was coming back to Hyrule. And, best of all, he was going to stop Ariakas before the Dark Lord gained too much power, before he took the entire world into his vile grasp.

I could never imagine being happier than I was right then.

Though I was worried. I did not want Link to get hurt. But if he was able to escape Ariakas’s trap in the Forest Temple, and make his way to… well, to wherever he’d gone… then surely he was more than capable of taking down this threat? And it wasn’t as though he was alone. Not like Ariakas. Link had people to back him up, a veritable army, and then there were Hyrule’s own forces. They were scattered but if they could all unite under one banner, under one common cause… nothing would ever defeat us. Nothing.

“When shall you return to Hyrule, my love?” I asked Link.

“We are a day’s ride from there, my sweet heart,” said Link. “We should be able to reach the border of Hyrule by early morning tomorrow. After that… well. We’ll see what happens after that.”

I did not like the uncertainty in his tone. “Do you know what’s happened to Hyrule since you left, my love?” I asked quietly.

“I have heard rumors.” Link said. “I dislike what I’ve heard. But I shall change it. I have to change it.” In my mind’s eye I could just see Link sitting there, his hands bunched into fists as he wrestled his anger and turned it into determination. “Ariakas must be destroyed. He cannot be allowed to further harm the balance of powers in the world.”

“You are quite right my love,” I said. “I hope to see you soon and I hope you come back safely to me. Promise me you shall stay safe for me! For the children. Oh, Elyesia is such a beautiful child, darling, and Little Link…”

“Jen,” Link said, laughingly. “Jenna, I’m sorry my love but I have to go. I will speak with you again soon, I promise.” He paused, and then added, “I love you. Good night.”

“Good night darling,” I said back. Another tear trailed down my cheek before I wiped my tears away. I could not cry. Not after having just received such good tidings.

Link was coming back. He would be back in Hyrule tomorrow. Tomorrow! It seemed months away.

But he was coming home to me just like I knew he would. Link would never abandon me, he wouldn’t go easily into death either because he knew he would have to leave me. And I would never die easily, either, because I did not want to leave him or our children behind.

I put my hands over my heart. Link, my world, was coming back. And I was ready to see him, more ready for anything than I had ever been before. He would be delighted to see just how much our children had grown in just three months.

I closed my eyes and pictured Link again, only this time he was smiling at me and I was smiling at him.

[sister-dear]

For the DVD commentary: I Got You, chapter 6! How'd you come up with the ideas for all the different dress codes?

Thank you for the ask!

How is… a good question aslkfjsdf. It was a blend of things! But a major contributing factor was from a different fandom entirely, Dragon Age: Inquisition. There is a big fancy ball in that game, and one of the major characters has a line about how she loves the ball and talks about all the things you can tell about a person from details in how they dress. I expanded that idea into something done deliberately - and a little more literally - on a cultural scale. Because if any era would do something like that, it’d be Warriors’. (Or Hytopia. But Legend already had a focus chapter, Warriors and Wind needed the spotlight for a bit.)

As far as specifics! Warriors’ outfit was from seeing alternate ideas for outfits and fancy dress for him in fanart and fanfic. I went more military for him, (he's just in his equivalent of military dress uniform in this story) but also took the opportunity to stick him in a skirt - his culture would be far from the first to have those be formal or military dress. I also tried to tie in some canon elements (Warriors’ blue and green became a color combo only the hero could wear, and HW Impa’s in-game hair became an indication of sexual preference). Once I'd decided to use part of her hairstyle for "prefers same sex," it was just a matter of coming up with other styles for other preferences. A braid at either temple = bi/pan, the two purple hairpins meant sexually/romantically unavailable as a state of being rather than due to choice. As for the pendants, well, we already do that! We call them wedding rings. I just changed the form and exact circumstances in which they’re worn. Legend's look was inspired by the royal dress he gets in Triforce Heroes and the fan theory that he might be related to his Zelda; he's dressed as visiting royalty. And I... think that's all of them? XD

[loruleanheart]

Desired Fate, Chapter 11

Read on FF.net

Read on AO3

Fireflies glided through the air like green-yellow orbs of light. Zelda was grateful for the comfortably humid evening air of Damel Forest, welcoming it against her skin. 

She, along with Link and Impa, approached the entrance to the Spring of Courage, which was marked by the wide-open maw of a stone dragon, carved by an ancient tribe in the distant past.  Zelda pushed ahead of Link and Impa, ascending the stone steps and moving towards the spring at the end of the walkway, eager to get this whole ordeal out of the way.

Fallen leaves floated in the ankle-deep, crystal clear waters of the spring. Zelda looked back momentarily at her companions. Link had stopped some distance away and had his back turned to them, guarding the two women should monsters encroach on Zelda’s duty at the spring.

Impa gestured for Zelda to get in, giving her a reassuring smile. “Everything is going to work out.”

Zelda hung her head slightly. She made her way over the last bit of the walkway where it started to space apart, carefully balancing herself as she navigated the stepping stones. She began her prayers aloud, watching the water ripple out from her as she waded through the water.

“I will do whatever I can, as I am right now. Even if all I have to give is my faith that things will work out. This is the thread I have been following all this time.” Zelda hated the worn-down quality of her voice.

She came to a stop, directing her attention to the towering Hylia statue in front of her, and she absentmindedly wondered which had been carved first: the monument to the dragon Farosh or Hylia.

She stared up at the goddess statue. It had a simple smile carved onto its face, and Zelda couldn’t help but feel a tinge of irritation. It was almost like it was mocking her, as silly as that sounded.

She was already quite exhausted just from the journey itself. And there was a terrible ache in her heart, weighing her down.

What's wrong with me? Am I not enough or am I just a joke to you?

And Zelda can almost hear the statue whisper back. “It’s because you’re not trying hard enough... You’ve got a poor attitude... It’s because you’re wrong. It’s because you’re impure, not holy like all the royal girls of the past. You’re a stain…”

Every real or imagined slight she’s ever endured came to mind and she broke. Zelda unclasped her hands, letting them fall to her sides. “I can’t… I can’t do this…”

“Princess Zelda?” Impa’s concerned voice called out from the edge of the spring. “Why don’t you take a moment of rest before you continue.”

“But we just got here…” Zelda replied, a little embarrassed that she had lost her composure so soon.

The silent knight turned to give Impa and Zelda a pitying look but said nothing.

Impa clasped her hands, a look of resolve dawning in her eyes. “Okay, I want you to try this. You say whatever’s on your mind and know that there is nothing you can say that will make us think less of you. You can get whatever it is off your chest, and then you can try again with a clear mind. Need to scream and rage? Want to gush about something you love? Anything. No judgment.”

Zelda gave Impa a strange look. This was the most unorthodox suggestion.

“It works for Purah when she gets stuck in her research.” Impa nodded for Zelda to at least give it a try.

“All of the research into the relics - if I cannot awaken to my power -will have been in vain. Impa, you are carrying out your duties with such grace, just as much as Link and the Champions. I am the only one who cannot live up to her own potential...”

“I didn’t ask you to self-flagellate, and there’s no need to butter me up. I’m asking you to air your rawest and darkest thoughts and emotions. Come on, give the goddess a confession that will make her proud.”

“I don’t have anything to confess.” Zelda choked out defensively. If she didn’t know any better, she would have thought Purah had used a glamor spell to impersonate Impa. Zelda bit her lower lip, knowing there was no use trying to fool her closest friend and royal aide. “Well, I…” She took a steadying breath. “If you must know…. I can’t help but -”

The Princess’s expression went lifeless, being frozen in place as she was enveloped by a transparent dome characterized by a familiar feverish pink glow and constellations.

“Your Highness!” Impa yelled, noticing with alarm that Zelda’s eyes were glassy, the irises a faded green as if they were viewing something beyond their perception. Her lips were slightly parted as if in surprise.

Link quickly closed the distance between him and Impa, helping the Sheikah woman in her attempt to dispel the magical barrier holding the princess, but it was no use.

Impa pressed anxiously against the dome. “Is this the power? Please tell me it’s the power…” Impa’s voice went up an octave, although already knowing this was a ridiculous conclusion.

Link shook his head, pounding on the barrier with a look of desperation in his eyes.

Zelda’s eyes focus on the Prophet of Doom. They are both standing within an expansive luminous pink dome with its constellations creeping across its surface. Outside the dome, there is nothing but darkness. He’s not facing her, but he looks like he’s waiting for her. Zelda gives a sigh of longing, relieved that he is still alive. He is the one who consumes most of her thoughts. He was the first person she thought of when she woke up in the morning and the last she’d think about before she fell asleep. He had summoned her for some reason, and her heart skips a beat wondering what he could want. He’s not facing her, but he looks like he’s waiting for her.

“Good evening, your Highness...” There’s something about the tone of his voice that sets her at ease. It’s far less antagonistic.

Astor turns to her, and she’s not sure what to make of his expression, but it’s different from the way he looked at her before. She can feel his eyes on her, and she doesn’t move to cover herself, letting his gaze fall over her. His pale complexion does nothing to hide a massive bruise on his cheek, and Zelda’s hand goes to her chest.

Astor’s fidgeted with his hood, trying to hide his face from her. “Oh… You’re wondering how I came to be in such a sorry state? A certain Princess ordered her champions to attack the Yiga Hideout and Kohga’s right hand took exception to that…”

“I did no such thing! I was trying to protect you. I begged you to stay, but you wouldn’t listen.”

“Hmph! It is not befitting for you to fear for my safety. I have seen the future and you have not. I am far more powerful than a mere Yiga footsoldier. Ganon would not allow me to fall, for I have his resurrection and victory to ensure. 

Zelda recognizes doubt in his voice, she has heard the same pained inflections in her own prayers.

“Ganon’s chosen or not, you are mortal. I can’t imagine Ganon to be a merciful master who would revive you if you were to fall. Did Ganon even punish those who did this to you?”

Astor didn’t answer, her point having landed.

“So… What are you going to do now?”

The question catches Astor off guard, but he responds with what comes naturally and makes him most comfortable, not ready to feel disloyal to Lord Ganon. “Continue my purpose without them, of course, and when the Calamity returns the Yiga Clan will face the full brunt of Lord Ganon’s wrath.”

“Just tell me… Does my seventeenth birthday mark the return of Calamity Ganon? Is it true?”

Astor nods, giving her a taunting smile, “It is fated by Lord Ganon himself, so you won’t awaken your power in time to stop the Calamity.” He doesn’t know why he persists in torturing this poor girl; not being able to help but fight against Hylia’s plan for him, set in his devotion to Ganon.

“Then… I’ll just have to go to the Spring of Wisdom early. I don’t care if I get in trouble or what happens to me as a result - if my father wants to punish me, that's fine. At least no one could say I didn’t try… not even him.” Zelda thought back to what Impa said, but she wasn’t confessing her most personal thoughts to Hylia, she was telling them to Astor.

“Naughty Naughty... Breaking Lanayru’s decree, are you? Nice try, Your Highness, but you don’t stand a chance of holding back the Calamity, even by going up to Mount Lanayru prematurely.” Astor couldn’t help but admire her devotion to her duty. Perhaps she wasn’t that different from him.

The princess sighs. “Maybe you are what’s wrong with me.” A sad, introspective expression crosses the princess's features. “You… being the reason I can’t find my power… Does that give you some satisfaction?”

Astor blinks. Was she even listening to him? It is like she is in her own little world as she looks at him… And Astor knows he has already lost to her. He is overcome at how vulnerable and beautiful she is at that moment, and he is stunned into silence by her admission. He had summoned her to shake her companions to the core and make a show of his power, or at least that is what he convinced himself of to not feel like a failure before Lord Ganon for wanting to see her so badly, but it is the princess who breaks down all his defenses with her words and her gaze. He can see the weariness and desire in her eyes. A Desire for him?

“What do you want from me? Why did you bring me here?” She asks.

“I- I don’t know…” He says, sounding… afraid? Zelda’s heart melts. Was she actually getting through to him?  

“Astor… I hope you will allow me to give you what Calamity Ganon cannot…”

The seer panics, losing all control of the illusion, and the dome that held them shatters violently. Zelda screams, shielding her eyes as she reaches out for him.

Zelda blinked a few times and then looked to Impa and Link with surprise. “Oh…”

“Your Highness, you’re not hurt are you?”

It takes her a moment to fully come to. “Oh no, I’m fine,” she said, managing a melancholy smile. “I… I think I’m ready to continue.”

Link and Impa exchanged suspicious looks.

“Wait a minute. Aren’t you going to tell us what that was?” Impa demanded.

“Oh… That was… Astor.” Zelda said, trying to keep her voice serious in tone, although not being able to hold back a dreamy look in her eye.

“What? That was him? He didn’t hurt you, did he? What did he say?”

“Calm down, Impa. I’m fine, really,” Said Zelda, gently.

They stayed for about an hour more. The Princess eventually grew increasingly exhausted from her training and the group returned to Hyrule Castle.

After a day of rest, Zelda proceeded to the Spring of Power in Akkala, once again going through the motions of what was expected of her. 

Her seventeenth birthday was closing in. She was growing more and more disillusioned by the day, although not willing to give up.

Zelda recalled when she’d first began her training at the age of seven. Urbosa had accompanied her to this spring during the winter months. The idea was to push her mind and body to the limit by standing in freezing cold water, and she had done just that for hours growing weaker and weaker. Urbosa had rescued her when she noticed the young girl begin to sway. Zelda had become very ill from that incident.

Now she stood in that same spring nearly a decade later, although thankfully it was a much warmer time of year.

Would prayer really awaken her power? She was questioning it more and more these days.

She thought of her mother, trying to recall memories that were growing dull with age.

Mother promised that her own power would develop within me… But she was wrong…

It was becoming harder and harder to return to the castle unsuccessful, mostly because her father was looking at her like she had disappointed him.

When she returned from the Spring of Power, King Rhoam issued the decree to evacuate Hyrule Castle Town, instructing his citizens to take shelter in villages that were furthest away from Hyrule Castle.

Zelda went to her chambers and collapsed into her bed, quickly falling asleep. 

Zelda looks out over what she assumes to be the Spring of Wisdom, which is completely taken over by gelatinous red-purple matter... Malice. And she sees the eyes, like the one she saw in The Lost Woods; like the jewelry Astor wears to signify his role as Calamity Ganon’s chosen, that stare up at her as she calmly steps into the malice, wading through the waist-deep, undulating plasma.

She stands there a moment in silence, just accepting the state of things, and then she perceives a light growing above her. She looks up to see the goddess… Or at least the same woman from her dream before, the same one she had seen playing a harp and singing silently, as Zelda could not hear her voice.

The goddess was looking right at her, trying to speak to her, but again, no matter how urgently she spoke the goddess was silent. Zelda focused, trying to read her lip movements.

“Wake up” or “Don’t give up.” That was what she seemed to be saying. “Go now!”

[volganic]

Song of Communion

[part 1] [part 2] [part 3] [part 4] || [AO3]

sorry this one doesnt have as much volink but :^) ive written a good chunk of the next few chapters ahead of time 

Volga was right when he had predicted that Link would have to adapt to any situation and learn to harness the power of magic.  It took a few tries to point the flames that were bottled up within the fire rod in his hands, but in the heat of battle he learned to at least point it away from himself.  Their current mission in Faron Woods would end in failure if he had set the entire forest alight.

With word of a "small" horde of monsters headed to the castle and their previous squadron dwindling down to only a handful of men left to ward them off, Link and Impa joined in the fray alongside the last of their forces.  They learned quickly that they weren't the only ones fighting off the horde -- a blue-haired spell caster had taken charge before they had arrived, simultaneously taking out wave after wave of Bulbins here and there while tending to the injured.  The captain and general shared a doubtful glance between them; questions could wait.  

The morale improved among Hyrule's soldiers with their leaders now fighting alongside them, and soon the incomprehensible number of enemies had dwindled down close to nothing.  Link held the fire rod in his hands with a tight grip -- it wasn't as effective as his white sword, but it proved to be of some use.  He made a mental note to thank Volga for the earrings later for sparing him the brutal fire magic that could have burned him, but quashed the thought to point the red sphere of the rod at the smiling stranger approaching him.  Impa took her place behind him, staring at her through narrowed eyes.

"My name is Lana, and I'm here to help!"  Her coy smile wavered as she looked to Link for a split second, unable to meet his eyes.  "And to warn you about Cia."

--

"Cia?" 

Zelda tilted her head inquisitively.  She turned her gaze to her general and captain at her side for guidance, but they only offered a baffled shrug in response.  The Sheikah was hesitant to bring Lana back to the castle, but to deny any information could cost them the war that lingered outside of their borders.  Still, it didn't stop her from taking any necessary precautions as the silence among them broke with the rattling of Lana's bindings.  It made it difficult for her to properly curtsy before the princess, but it didn't seem to bother her.

"Yes, Cia!  She's a sorceress of tremendous power, but... she hasn't made it here yet?"  Purple eyes diverted from the trio's judgmental stares to look skyward at the ceiling.  She leaned her weight from one foot to the other, even going as far to do a little spin.  "I wonder why that is?"

"The witch was pushed back by the dragon that resides in Death Mountain," said Impa flatly.  Her stare turned cold; Lana moved around too much.

Their prisoner spun back around to match Impa's glare with a fearsome pout.  "Sorceress," she corrected through clenched teeth, but soon relaxed with another smile.  "It's surprising!  I thought he didn't choose sides," she mused out loud, eyes back up to the ceiling as she did another spin in her place.  The soldiers kept her chains taut as they could -- if she did another twirl, she surely would fall flat on her face.

"Volga still doesn't choose to align himself with anyone!" Proxi interjected.  The blue fairy flew away from Link's side to draw Lana's attention.  "We are lucky that Link has come to an agreement with him!"

"An agreement?"  The blue-haired girl blinked owlishly at the words -- even she knew that the dragon knight wasn't keen to take any sort of bribe, much less an agreement.  She finally turned to acknowledge the Hylian in question with a faint blush painting across her pale cheeks.  "Oh no, this is all wrong... So wrong!"

"What's wrong?  Hello?" Proxi moved to keep Lana's attention on her.  Lana was suddenly acting so frantic!  The fairy opted to keep her distance and returned to the Hylian's side, subtly noticing how Impa and Link's hands were reaching for their weapons.  Zelda, however, remained collected and tapped her manicured nails against the arm of her seat.

Lana sighed loudly, seemingly exhausted from the tension that hung in the air in the throne room.  Her posture went back upright, eyes shining bright as ever.  "Nevermind it!"  She laughed heartily and brought her bound fists up to her chest.  "Without my help, you guys are doomed!"  She opened her palms to reveal nothing, but by some force unknown to any of them, the chains that held her wrists together came loose and dropped to her ankles.

A collective gasp was all she heard as she paid them no mind, stepping out of the pile of chains and kneeled down to reach for her oversized book that was unceremoniously dropped to the ground.  She gave the soldier who had dropped it a small wink, even with the tip of his blade pointed between her eyes.  Link took his place to shield the princess while Impa took charge of the escalating situation.  

"You conniving witch!" she roared, raged laced with her words as she marched up to their prisoner.  The fury in her eyes would have sent a thousand of her soldiers running back to their homes, but Lana was unphased, holding a hand out to halt her in her place.  She paused as so ordered -- if it were up to her, Impa would have mounted her head on a stick by now.  However, the princess was still present.

"I don't want to correct you for a third time, so remember: it's sorceress.  We don't like being called --"

"We?"  Zelda spoke up suddenly.  She finally stood from her throne and motioned for Link to lower his guard.  It was now his turn to look to her for reassurance, but lowered his blade with the guards following suit as the princess descended down the stairs. Still leery of Lana's true intentions, her feet came to a stop behind Impa.  "Who is 'we'?"

"Oh-" Lana's defensive stance crumbled.  Flustered, she held the book to her chest tightly and dropped her gaze to the floor.  "I... I didn't want to have to say it so early, but Cia... Cia and I are from the same magical clan."  Zelda placed a gentle hand on Impa's forearm to keep the Sheikah calm, having grown rigid with the idea that she herself had let something malicious breach their defenses.  Lana's figure trembled, but she willed herself to meet Zelda's eyes, pleading for a chance.  "But I'm not like her!  I want to help save Hyrule!"

"Can you tell us what her intentions are as to start a war?"

"No, but--"

"Then why bother helping at all?" Impa seethed.  "If you cannot -- or will not -- offer any more information than we know already, what good will you do for the kingdom of Hyrule?"

"That's enough, General Impa."  The Sheikah turned behind to look at the princess, dumbfounded.  Her expression fell from cold to turmoil, nervous with this idea that she knew Zelda was hatching.  "Princess... Princess, you can't be serious!"

"I am," she nodded affirmatively, smile spreading across her lips.  "Though Cia's intentions have not yet come to light, I truly believe that Lana has come this far to assist our forces to spare our kingdom from suffering at the hands of a war."  The royal broke the distance between them and placed her hands over Lana's, giving them a reassuring squeeze.  "You do not have to reveal everything at once, but I speak for the kingdom of Hyrule and say that we would gladly stand on your side in these uncertain times."

Lana looked as if the weight of the world had fallen off her shoulders.  She nodded enthusiastically despite the few tears rolling down over the curve of her cheeks.  "Thank you, Princess Zelda!  I... I could never thank you enough!"  The two women then shared a laugh, bubbly and full of mirth.

The Hylian cautiously approached his commander who was still left in a state of shock over the princess's ultimate decision.  Impa refused to show that her pride had been hurt to anyone lesser, folding her arms across her chest to face Link.  "I suppose we'd better get used to seeing her around when it comes to our discussions and the like from here on out."  Her voice was back to its flat tone.  Link nodded in agreement, choosing to side with Impa's distrust toward their newest ally.  "Thank you, Link.  If there's nothing you'd wish you say, you and the other two men can join the rest of the troops for a moment's rest."

"I'm starting to learn I don't like politics either," he signed meekly.  The Sheikah scoffed.  "You'll settle in fast."  She patted him on the shoulder and waved him off.  Link finally allowed his posture to relax when given the green light for dismissal, completely unaware of Lana's fixed gaze on him as he exited the throne room.

--

"Fire rod?"

Link had taken another detour to the Eldin Caves on their next excursion outside of Hyrule's province -- needing time to clear his mind from the political side of war, he claimed -- to reunite with his self-proclaimed ‘mentor’.  Volga looked less than ecstatic at the sight of the bulky item.  The Hylian still seemed proud of it, finally learning to master at least one element of magic on his otherwise empty belt of experience.

"Used it against an army of monsters off in Faron Woods."

"In a forest of all places?" Volga scoffed.  The boy was either brave or just plain stupid.  "I'm appalled it still stands in its grandeur and not in a bed of ashes."

"I'm only doing as you had instructed," he retorted, pointing the end of the rod in the dragon knight's direction.  "Getting used to magic and adapting to situations, remember?  I made do with what I had!"

"I'm sure your general thoroughly enjoyed the idea of her army's pride and joy leaving his weapon in the barracks."  Now he was being insulted.  Link frowned and, despite how tempting it was to let the rod swallow Volga in a wall of flames, thrust the rod in a direction that wouldn't harm anyone.  The small burst of fire dissipated against the wall of rock.

The dragon clicked his tongue.  "Pity."  He pulled Link in and cast the sad excuse for a magical item aside.  Volga anchored him in place with his hands on the boy's shoulders, bringing his head close to the Hylian's ear.  Link's instincts told him to run but with Volga kept him in a vice grip.  It was too late to escape as the roaring sound of Volga's throat releasing a jet stream of flames in the cavern filled his ears and nearly setting his scarf on fire.  Reds and oranges and even blue caught his periphery, instantly running his blood cold despite the heat it radiated.  In reality it was a short display, flames no longer burning in his ears when the dragon knight shut his mouth, but it felt like an eternity.  

Link changed his mind on thanking him for the earrings -- he wouldn't dare feed the ego that bled into Volga's voice.

"Come back when you have something worth sharing."

[pansexualseaanimals]

Zelda fic excerpt 1 - Scorpion fight

As promised, I’ll finally start posting some excerpts of my Zelda stuff, while I’m in the process of rewriting the first chapter and editing everything else. 

Some notes: These are not edited (other than running through it to fix spelling mistakes made in my 500-mph NaNoWriMo typing), so some things may be changed in the final version, which will be posted at a later date. Until then, enjoy 

In the “Piece of Heart” project, my Link is a woman and my Zelda is a man. Most representatives of other canon characters, such as Impa, Malon, Tetra, etc. won’t undergo this change. The reason for the swap is, 1.) I’ve been wanting to write a fic with a female Link for ages and 2.) A few years ago my friends and I were joking about one of them being “The main character”, and how glad the other was to not be considered “The main character”. So I randomly made the joke “<Link friend> is Link!” and someone else said “Does that mean <Zelda friend> is Zelda?” Everybody seemed amused by the idea, so I was like well why not make a fanfic of <Link friend> having to journey across Hyrule and save all of us. Like we’re all sages and <Zelda friend> is the prince and is rescued in the end! And... I took that idea and worked with it and it eventually evolved into this project, which is so much bigger than just that now. Maybe someday I’ll write a more straightforward, simple fic of just that friend going around saving all the rest of us and it’ll not be so gargantuan and everyone can have a good laugh at it. But for now, I’m focusing on the huge story Piece of Heart has become. And Look Alive, Sunshine, of course. ^__^ 

That’s enough blabbing from me, please forgive me, you know it takes me two hours to tell a two-minute story. XD Enjoy~

The Scorpion Scene

“I heard it, too,” Link said, following carefully. They could hear the footsteps of the scorpion, too close for comfort, especially considering they couldn’t see it. “I think it’s on the roof.”

“Part of it definitely is,” Tavo nodded.

CRASH!

“AAAHH!

The end of the scorpion’s tail pierced the stone roof as if it were dirt, crashing into the floor below before it wriggled a bit and was pulled back up and out of sight.

“Yeah, that part,” Link said, running out of the house and turning around to see the gigantic creature. It was standing behind the house, but now that it was sure where its “prey” was, it started walking on top of it, crushing more of the ceiling.

“We have to protect the library,” Tavo shouted, flying toward the scorpion in a wildly twisting pattern. “Who knows what kind of knowledge could be kept in there?” Unfortunately, the gargantuan arthropod wasn’t interested in the tiny speck of light dancing in front of it; it aimed its stinger at the juicy animal it saw on the ground instead.

“Yaah!” Link roared, trying to muster up all the energy she could while rolling out of the way. The tail was so fast - yet it obliterated the wall of the building across the way.

“How can something so quick be so strong?” she asked, tensing up in preparation for another strike. This time, she rolled forward, hoping to get a chance to attack. The stinger barely missed her, and she could feel it pierce the wind just above her as she rolled. She came out of the roll with a fierce lunge of the spear, but it glanced off of the scorpion’s exoskeleton without doing any damage.

“You’re going to have to find a soft spot,” Tavo said, batting at the creature’s claw with her rapier, which finally got it to pay attention to her, even if only to swat her away. Before it could try, however, she grabbed on to its arm and hung on for the ride. “Well, I regret this instantLYYY!” The tail came down again, ripping a huge tear in Link’s outer tunic but missing her flesh. She fell to the ground and raised the spear up with both arms in defense as she saw one of the gigantic claws come at her, wide open. She closed her eyes…

CRUNCH! The scorpion had misjudged its attack by some lucky miracle, and its claw, while destroying the wooden handle of the spear between Link’s hands, had completely missed her. It rose back up into the air, and before it could strike again, she scrambled through the doorway of another building and out of the creature’s line of sight.

“I honestly should’ve seen this coming,” she murmured before shouting so Tavo could hear. “Do you have a plan?”

“Not throwing up, at the moment,” Tavo replied from outside, where she was still holding on to the claw. “How about you?”

“Think, think, think…” Link dropped the broken pieces of the spear and examined the room she was in, searching for something that could help. She saw nothing of use but a rope lying on the table and several kitchen utensils. Her gaze went to the knives, to the rope, then to the broken spear at her feet. “Maybe… Tavo, hold it off a bit longer!”

“YOU THINK I’M HOLDING IT OFF? I’M A FLEA COMPARED TO THIS THING!”

The young woman didn’t reply to this, but went right to work tying the rope to the broken handle still attached to the curved spear blade, leaving the lasso on the other end of it. She then took the knives and tucked them into her belt at her back, before grabbing one of the chairs and rolling it out of the doorway into the street.

“I’LL SAVE YOU, TAVO, JUST HANG IN THERE!”

“I’m hanging, babe, I’m hanging.”

She ran right after it, and when the stinger came down instinctively to crush the chair, she jumped and grabbed onto the tail and held on for dear life.

“Oh, so now we’re BOTH taking this ride, huh?”

“I have a plan,” Link shouted, reeling from the sheer speed with which the tail returned to its original position. She wasted no time, and jabbed one of the knives into the unprotected flesh of the tail. The bug screeched in pain and flung its tail back and forth, and Link held on as tight as she could. Eventually the tail slowed down and she took a few slow, deep breaths before continuing her plan. She grabbed the rope at the spear end and whirled it around in a circle at her left-hand side for a moment before aiming and releasing. The rope flew through the air and wrapped around the scorpion’s right arm - the very same arm with the Twilight Thorn Tavo was hanging on to.

“I GOT ‘EM, TAVO, YOU CAN LET GO NOW.” Without any verbal acknowledgment, the Faerie released her grip on the claw and flew right to the ground, puking up rainbows and faerie dust.

Link pulled the rope taut on her end, and the scorpion jerked violently, suddenly aware it was being constricted. Link tied a good length of the rope around the tail before dropping from her perch above the stinger and swinging toward the wrangled claw, pulling the tail with her. The scorpion yanked its tail away a bit, but Link held on tight. She climbed up to the top of the claw as fast as she could and, throwing the lassoed end of the rope, caught hold of the right claw. After taking a moment to catch her breath, she pulled the tethered tail, along with the claw, just a few more inches closer.

“Okay, so what’s next?” Tavo panted, glancing at all parts of this strange situation her Hylian companion had created.

In answer to this, Link nodded and grasped the remaining rope with both hands. She took in a deep gulp of air, letting it out in a hissing breath as she turned her entire body around, pulling the claw and tail just a bit farther. Another deep breath. Another exhale and turn. Just a bit farther. Deep breath. Exhale and turn. Just a bit farther! On the fourth tug, Link pulled violently, yanking the tail and right claw so hard that she flipped the creature over on its side.

“TAVO, THE ORB!”

“I got it!” The Faerie summoned all her strength to zip through the air in a flash, flying into Link’s bag while the Hylian was flipping through the air between the scorpion’s claws. She grabbed the magical orb and burst out of the rucksack as Link grasped the Twilight Thorn stuck in the creature’s left claw and pulled, pushing against the hard exoskeleton with her legs.

“AaaaaaaAAAAAA-GOT IT!” The Thorn came loose without any blood or exit wound, just as the first one had with the dragon. Tavo swooped in and covered the Thorn, as well as Link’s hand, with the orb, right as the farm girl fell to the ground, right shoulder first.

“Sorry I couldn’t catch you, Link,” Tavo panted as her companion released her hold on the Thorn and pulled her hand out of the orb.

“It’s okay,” the Hylian panted, rolling onto her back and lying there. As the two caught their breath, the scorpion started shrinking - much more than the dragon had done.

“I got it,” Tavo said, rising into the air again to grab the scorpion, who seemed to be stunned for the time being. Link opened the empty jar they had brought from the village, and her friend dropped the arachnid into it unceremoniously.

“Two down,” Link said, screwing the jar back closed before dropping back down onto her back.

“One to go.”

“Yeah… But let’s sleep first.”

And they did.

[the-delta-42]

The Pirate Prince Chapter 13

The Pirate Prince

Chapter 13: The Calling

Link stared at the wooden floor of the house, unable to look up at the crowd. Link barely acknowledged the foot steps coming towards him, until he felt them pull him into an embrace. Link automatically knew who it was, as he had done the same thing when Link was younger.

Ganondorf said nothing as he held his son, Impa was informing the group of the events that had passed, how She, the Princess and Aryll had escaped, how they had been found by Link and how Aryll had died. Bunoora had clung to her mother when Aryll’s death had been mentioned, Ganondorf quietly noted that Link had stiffened when Aryll’s name was spoken.

“On the brighter side of things,” Said Impa, leaning back, “This Dotour had a master, whom, we believe, is responsible for the corruption of the Colossi.”

“Makes sense,” Said Nabooru, “Such peaceful beings, like Skyloft and Tempus, wouldn’t attack anyone on a mere whim.”

Ganondorf slowly let go of Link, noting that the boy had a grim frown on his face.

“Whoever it was,” Said Link, making everyone look at him, “Sent a Ghoma into a cave near the Cove, the town that was built a few months back, but it had a bone-like armour to it.”

“Like one of those Stal monsters.” Said Impaya, her tone making it clear that she was making a statement of fact.

“Yeah.” Said Link, before his shirt started smoking, “Oh, for the love of Nayru!” Link pulled his shirt off and shook it a couple of times, before a small dragon fell out. Link quickly pulled his shirt on and grabbed the dragon, “Volga, what have I said about sleeping in my shirt.”

The dragon hung his head, before Link sighed and placed him on his shoulder, he then reached into his pocket and pulled out a green gem.

“I was given this by a goddess statue after I beat the Gohma,” Said Link holding out, “Zelda, told me that it is one of three keys that can be used to access the Temple of Heroes.”

Ganondorf fold his arms across his chest and frowned, “Link, can I have a word outside, privately?” Ganondorf’s tone left no room for argument. Link huffed and threw Volga and the pearl to Impa, who raised her eyebrow at the sight of the dragon.

Ganondorf led Link up to the shrine that acted as a halfway point between A great fairy fountain and Kakariko.

“Please tell me that you don’t intend on finding all of those pearls.” Said Ganondorf, as soon as he stopped.

“Those pearls can give us access to a weapon that can help us kill the thing that killed Aryll.” Said Link, his arms folding against his chest.

“Aryll was killed in the aftermath of an explosion, the same explosion that killed its own source.” Retorted Ganondorf, turning to face Link, “even if you do find all of those pearls, the blade that is kept within the confines of that Temple is not something to take lightly.”

“The Master Sword, despite its ‘lore’, is still a weapon,” Protested Link, throwing his arms out, “it can be conquered, like anything else.”

“Okay, fine, let’s say that you are able to ‘conquer’ the blade,” Said Ganondorf, his hands resting on his hips, “what do you then intend to do with it?”

“Kill the thing that Dutour was serving.” Said Link, without any hesitation.

“So, revenge,” Said Ganondorf, “tell me, what would stop you from carrying out side revenge?”

“Nothing,” Said Link, narrowing his eyes, “I would rather kill anyone or thing in my way before stopping.”

Ganondorf was unnerved at how quickly Link had responded, “Then what would stop you from being any different than that thing?”

Link blanched, “I would be killing a monster.”

“Only to become one yourself.” Said Ganondorf, glaring at the boy, “You may kill this monster, but the people will fear you as they fear it and then, someone will turn up to kill you as you would that thing.”

Link’s expression faltered, before he looked to the ground, “I-I only want to-to-” Link’s voice broke and Ganondorf closed the distance between them and held his son.

“I know what you want to do and why you think it is right,” Said Ganondorf, as Link dissolved into tears, “but if you kill anyone who stands in your way, it will consume you and warp your mind. If you want to kill this monster, you’ll have to prove to the people that you can be trusted and your fighting for them as well as yourself.”

Link quietly sniffled, before Ganondorf sighed, “I have already lost one child, I don’t wish to lose another.”

Link rubbed his eyes, “I need to go back to Termina, I need to find Epona.”

Ganondorf laughed, “I had been sending scouts out to look for you, one of them came back with Epona.”

Link couldn’t stop the laugh that came from his mouth.

TPP

Zelda quietly excused herself after Ganondorf and Link left. Zelda intended on visiting the grave stone dedicated to the Princess that held back the Calamity and the Hero of the Wild. After the Hero had defeated the Dark Beast, he called in all of his favours from the different species and settlements around Hyrule, in an effort to rebuild everything that had been lost. The response had been astounding, as everyone flooded to answer his request and, after twenty years’ worth of nonstop constant labour and hard word on the surrounding villages, Castle Town and Hyrule Castle. The surprising part was that other Countries, like Holodrum, Labrynna, Calatia and Termina, had sent as many people as they could, with Calatia being absorbed into Hyrule. The following decades only strengthened the bonds between Hyrule and its neighbours.

Until the Colossi rose from the earth. When they were first spotted, Hyrule responded by reactivating the Divine Beasts. Then started a game of cucco, as to who would fold first, Hyrule or the Colossi. The game went on for a decade, with Hyrule being silent to all of its allies, before Holodrum sent a small band of soldiers, believing there had been an uprising. Needless to say, that they received quite the shock when Spiritum deposited them in the middle of Castle Towns central square.

After that incident, it had been agreed that a summit would be held every year at Hyrule Castle, with many researchers looking to examine the Colossi. They found that the Colossi spoke in an ancient language, with a few able to understand them.

That was how they learnt their names and why they were here. These beautiful, ancient creatures had been woken by a terrible creature that would ruin Hyrule in an instant. They made only one request. That a Temple be built around the Great Hyrule Forest and the Lost Woods, in order to protect the Master Sword so that the next hero could claim it when needed.

After the Temple had been built, each Colossi went off to their own place in Hyrule, Ventus to the shores and Skyloft to the Tabantha region. Other Colossi would appear from time to time, each going back to sleep, while the great Colossi guarding the Temple of Heroes, with Tempus and Crespeculum guarding the gates.

Zelda was broken from her musings when she walked into the tree that stood in front of the grave marker. Zelda quietly grumbled, rubbing her nose, which had taken the brunt of the impact. Zelda looked at the grave, before frowning.

Zelda had been up here multiple times during her childhood, which was why she was confused as to why the Tri Force etching on the grave was glowing. Quickly steeling herself, Zelda walked up to the grave and pressed her hand against the Tri Force.

Nothing happened. Zelda’s heart was hammering.

One beat.

Two beats.

Three beats.

Then the ground opened up beneath her and Zelda fell down a hole.

[iwroteinapastlife]

Zelink Month Day 8!

Week 2: The Flow of Time is Always Cruel...

Day 8: Sacrifice

“Link… What do you want?”

The knight turned his attention from the rice and mushrooms sizzling in the cooking pot before him to look at her with that trademark open, curious expression he wore so often. “What?”

Zelda sat with her back propped up against the tree outside their house in Hateno, her eyes heavy with thought. Up until that point, she had just been sitting quietly, enjoying the gentle breeze on her skin and watching the sun set behind Link as he prepared dinner. But as the night had grown darker, so too had her thoughts, moving from the light and mundane—the beautiful blue and purple dragon they had seen that morning, Naydra, must not be the only one, right?—to the more solemn portions of her mind.

“Back before Ganon awoke, I never asked how you ended up where you were. I never knew if you really wanted to become a knight, or if you just did because it was in your family. And even now that you’ve been granted almost a whole new chance at life…” her voice caught in her throat, a small part of her scared to speak aloud the thoughts that had hung on her for days. “From the moment you awoke, you’ve been serving others. In everything you do. You went to fight Ganon because my father wanted you to. You sought out your memories because Impa wanted you to. It seems that everywhere you go, people are asking things of you, from collecting rushrooms to fighting monsters, and you always accept.”

He was watching her with worry laden in those blue eyes, patiently listening to her every word. “It just seems,” she continued, “that you’re constantly sacrificing yourself for what others want, and I can’t help but wonder… What is it that you want?” She tried to keep her voice from shaking then as she asked, “A-Are you here with me because you want to be, or do you stay because you’re too nice to leave?”

Realization suddenly washed over his features and those eyes—those eyes that were so beautifully expressive in this new life—looked so sad as they stared back at her.

“I want to be here,” he whispered, but his troubled expression and the way his body was frozen in place told her there was more to it than that.

“Link,” she began. She immediately paused to swallow a nervous lump in her throat, steeling herself for the words she was about to say. “You’re not the man who took the job of being my personal guard over a century ago. And now that Ganon is gone, I-I don’t—,” she cut herself off, and the way his eyes were slowly growing fearful almost made her lose her voice completely. “If you don’t want to be my personal knight anymore, you don’t have to be. You can live a normal life—your own life.”

She thought she was saying something nice. Something for him. She was trying to tell him that he was free to live his life how he wanted; that he didn’t have to constantly sacrifice himself for others or for the good of Hyrule or any of that. So why—why—was he looking at her with such distraught? Why did she feel like she was stabbing him with every word? Why did he look so…so heartbroken all of a sudden?

Why did those beautiful, expressive eyes have to be looking at her like that?

He didn’t say anything. He just sat there, staring at her with wide, fearful eyes, body completely rigid, for such a stretch of time that black smoke began to rise from the cooking pot beside him.

When it made a loud pop and a hiss, Link finally tore his eyes away from her. His distress didn’t fade as he tossed the burnt food into the dirt and cleaned out the pot, but it calmed, simmered. As if his thoughts had begun turning again after freezing in fright. Finally, as he set the clean pot back down over the fire and sat still again, he spoke.

“I bought this house for me,” he admitted. Those blue eyes raised to look at her again and this time, she could see the heavy weight of guilt sitting atop his shoulders. “When I was on my way to Purah’s, they were in the process of tearing it down. I had no reason to buy a house, no use for it. But there was a part of me that thought…maybe I ought to have a place to call my own, where I could…settle down.” He looked away then, drawing his knee up and resting his chin on it. “It was selfish and didn’t have anything to do with battling Ganon or saving you or anything, but I bought it in this moment of thought that maybe I wasn’t everything they said I was; that I was just a normal Hylian who needed a place to live.

“I didn’t know I would be bringing you back here with me at the time. All I knew was that I wanted somewhere to return to when everything was over. But,” he looked up again, and that fear was suddenly back in his eyes, “now that Ganon is gone, and you’re here, I…”

He trailed off, and Zelda didn’t know what to make of the look on his face then. He was staring at her in such strange sorrow and she knew there was still more to it than he was telling her.

Logically she knew that there could be anything swimming behind those blue eyes, but her mind could only think that her fears were true—that he really didn’t want to be her knight anymore, and that she was selfish for staying with him and dragging him along in her travels taking care of the kingdom. He wanted to settle down here in Hateno and not have all of this responsibility on his shoulders anymore. That was, after all, what had once driven away his voice, was it not?

“What?” she asked, a weight like no other sitting heavy on her chest.

“I want…” He looked back and forth between her eyes, hesitant. He opened his mouth and breathed in to speak.

Then shut it again.

“I want to continue being your knight,” he finally said, and the resoluteness of his tone told her it was true. “I thought I wanted to settle down after battling Ganon, and I’ll admit, that idea still appeals to me. But if you’re traveling and taking care of the kingdom, then I want to travel too, so that I can keep protecting you as…as your personal knight.”

Zelda knew there was still more to it. “Are you sure?” she asked, insecurities gnawing at her insides.

“More sure than I’ve ever been in my life.”

He smiled then, and it didn’t quite reach his eyes, but it was real nonetheless. Almost convincing.

“Okay,” she said, and she smiled back in the hopes of putting him at ease. He didn’t want to tell her what it was that tortured him just yet. She would simply have to wait.

[pocketseizure]

The Legend of the Princess, Chapter 27

What It Means to Fight

In which Zelda weaves the threads of the past into something new and different.

(Chapter 27 on AO3) (Story Tag on Tumblr) (Cover Illustration)

* * * * *

“Turn away now,” Daphnes ordered. “Help us calm the rebellion, and we will forgive you. We are not unmerciful.”

Ganondorf scowled at him and prepared to respond, but Zelda preempted him.

“There is no mercy in this,” she proclaimed. There was power in her voice, and it propelled her forward. She stepped in front of Ganondorf, leaving Link behind her.

“Father, if you know what this man is, then you know what you’re doing by provoking him. You will get everyone in this room killed, including yourself.”

“He’s a monster, Zelda!” Daphnes objected. “You have no idea what he’s capable of.”

“Actually, I do. I know exactly what he’s capable of.”

Zelda took another step forward, and she felt the very stones of the temple resonate with her determination.

“Zelda, I know you’re exhausted,” Daphnes said, attempting to placate her. “And I know… I know you care for this man. You’re still young, and your entire future is ahead of you. Please, let us protect you.”

Zelda laughed, remembering how Tetra’s eyes had sparkled in the mirror of the underwater castle. She took another step forward, and she remembered how glorious it was to be a goddess flying high over Hyrule. She remembered the girl on the sacrificial altar, Hylia’s mortal reincarnation and her distant ancestor. Was that altar somewhere in this very temple? Zelda thought it just might be. She could feel the energy of this sacred place flowing through her.

She thought of the glamour Ganondorf had cast on his clothing, and she realized that she knew exactly how the spell worked. She cast it under her breath, using it to clothe herself in the pure white dress of the sky goddess, and she delighted in the touch of the warm summer air on her skin as her Sheikah clothing faded away. Her feet were bare, connecting her to the earth of this ancient ground. A horrible sacrifice had been offered to the goddess long ago in this very place, soaking the soil at the center of Hyrule with the blood of the god who loved it.

She understood that she was meant to be a sacrifice as well. People would fight for her, and people would die for her, as people had fought and died for her in the past. Hyrule was Hylia’s legacy, and her role was to represent this legacy, trapped within the beautiful crystal of her fate so that she could suffer nobly for her kingdom. Her father and her friends and Link and even Ganondorf were all fighting for her, but no one ever asked what she wanted.

Zelda smiled as she raised her bow. It was no longer the small Sheikah reflex bow Impa had given her but a glowing arc of pure silver. The arrow she fit against its string was a bolt of radiant light.

“I can protect myself,” Zelda said to Daphnes, and then she shot him.

The ray of light struck him exactly where his right arm joined his shoulder, severing it completely. He won’t be touching the Triforce anytime soon, Zelda thought, feeling no guilt whatsoever.

The king’s wound cauterized instantly, but he passed out from shock and collapsed. No one moved or spoke as Zelda hopped lightly onto the dais, knelt by her father’s body, and removed a white baton from an inner pocket of his robe. Still kneeling, she slung her bow over her back, and then she stood. She held the Wind Waker in her hands and snapped it in half. It was much easier than she thought it would be. When it broke, the baton dissolved into faint particles of light, and Zelda felt its magic surge into her.

“I’m glad that’s taken care of,” she announced, clapping her hands together.

“Now on to the next order of business,” she continued, summoning another silver arrow to her fingers.

She turned to Darunia. “You’ve been like an uncle to me, and I thank you. My father will need your support as he recovers,” she said. “But you have to give me that ruby. Your people don’t owe this kingdom anything, and you have nothing to lose if the volcano erupts. Lava is the lifeblood of the mountain, and I have no doubt you can tame the dragon that flows through it. It’s still a child, after all. It may even become your son’s companion after he gets better. When I am queen, I will see to it that whatever is amiss on Death Mountain is settled to your satisfaction.”

She held out her hand. Darunia, looking sheepish, dropped the Goron’s Ruby into her palm. She struck it with the silver arrow, and it shattered.

Next she turned to Makar. “If you’re going to become the next Deku Tree,” she began, “we need to get something straight right now. I will do everything in my power to protect your forest, and I expect you to do nothing less, but I will not tolerate people getting lost in those woods. Your territory has served as a barrier cutting Hyrule off from the rest of the world for centuries, and that has to end. We will both see to it that no one will threaten the forest, but this kingdom cannot remain isolated.”

She pointed at Link. “Give me the Kokiri’s Emerald,” she commanded, and he removed it from his pouch, awestruck. She threw the arrow like a dart, and the gem burst into pieces in his hand. Makar did not respond to any of this but only watched her, a thoughtful expression on his face.

“I believe I’m next,” Ruto said, the Zora’s Sapphire already shining between her fingers.

“Ruto, I’m sorry,” Zelda began to apologize, but Ruto cut her off.

“Give me another one of those arrows,” she said. “I want to do this myself.”

Zelda did so, and Ruto plucked the silver arrow from her hand before driving it down violently onto the blue stone, which exploded into a shower of shining dust.

“Sweet Nayru, that felt so good,” Ruto sighed, handing the arrow back to Zelda. “I’ve wanted to do that for years. We’ll talk about this soon, I promise,” she added, winking.

Zelda winked back and then faced Impa. “You’re fired,” she said simply. “You and your entire tribe, you’re all fired. I don’t know what happened to the Sheikah in the past, but I have a pretty good idea. What my family did to you wasn’t right then, and it isn’t right now. Of course I would never object if you were to stick around, but only if you decide to stay as my friend and as my equal. And as my advisor, not as my assassin. Think about it, okay?”

Impa nodded in acknowledgment, and Zelda turned to Nabooru, who raised an eyebrow when Zelda met her gaze.

“You,” Zelda said, “are perfect. You should visit Hyrule more often. As long as I’m in this castle, the Gerudo will always be welcome here.”

“I’ll consider it,” Nabooru responded. “I only hope there will be a castle left for us to visit.”

“I was just getting to that,” Zelda replied.

She stepped over her father’s body and walked to the pedestal at the back of the dais before turning and facing Link.

“Listen, you’re not bound to me,” she said. “I appreciate the gesture, but I don’t need a chosen knight. Your destiny is your own, and you don’t have to be a hero if that’s not what you want. If you wouldn’t mind listening to my advice, though, you should really stop being so quick to follow orders. And you’ve got to put that sword back where it belongs before anything escapes from the broken seal.”

“I thought I wasn’t supposed to follow orders,” Link said, already stepping forward to join her.

Zelda rolled her eyes. “Just do it,” she said. Link grinned in response.

“And finally, you,” she said, looking directly into Ganondorf’s face. “You are an idiot. Did you really think you could just touch the Triforce and fix all this? That is the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard in my life, and you would know that if you actually talked to people instead of trying to do everything on your own.”

“With all due respect, Princess,” Ganondorf answered, crossing his arms over his chest, “isn’t that what you’re doing? Trying to fix everything yourself? Issuing commands while shattering gems and breaking political arrangements that have been around for centuries? But I admit, I admire your courage. If you have an idea for how to end this cycle, I’m listening.”

“You know what? I’ve seen things you wouldn’t believe, and I don’t have time to deal with another one of your monologues. As it happens, I do have an idea. Stop standing down there by yourself and get up here so you can help me.”

Ganondorf didn’t move, and for a moment she thought he was going to reject her, to turn on his heels and leave the temple on his own. Please, she begged him silently, hoping against hope that he would trust her. She understood how difficult it must be for him to stand alone with all of them looking down on him, especially since none of them had done anything to help him when he’d asked. Please, don’t make me fight you, Zelda thought, struggling not to cry. As she waited for Ganondorf to make a decision, the power she’d felt when she destroyed the sacred stones deserted her, and once again she felt vulnerable and helpless. Were they really so bound by their fates that she could come this far and still have him walk away from her?

He must have seen something in her eyes, because he dropped his gaze and shook his head. “Don’t make me regret this,” he muttered, and a second later he had teleported onto the dais beside her.

Zelda smirked. Ganondorf may have done what she asked, but he still had to show off while he did it. Hopefully that meant he wasn’t too angry at her. She certainly hoped he wasn’t – she had almost killed her father for his sake, after all.

“Darunia,” she said, “can you take the king back to the castle? Tell everyone that he was injured in battle. Everyone else, can you leave me and Link and Ganondorf here? I’m counting on you to get everything under control before we return. Make sure all the combatants are retained in the front courtyard. I’ve got a speech already prepared, and I need an audience to make it effective.”

“I thought I was fired.” Impa scowled at her.

“For Din’s sake.” Zelda clicked her tongue in an unconscious imitation of Tetra. “Nabooru, can you help?”

“Come on, everyone,” Nabooru spoke up, tugging at Impa’s ear as Darunia hoisted Daphnes onto his shoulders. “It looks like it’s up to us to get this situation cleaned up. Let’s go.”

Zelda smiled gratefully, and Nabooru returned her smile before turning away from her. Zelda knew that there would be repercussions for sending everyone off to settle matters at the castle while she remained at the temple to conduct this last bit of business in secret, and she wasn’t looking forward to the conversation she needed to have with her father, but she would have to worry about that later.

“All right, it’s just us now,” Link said after the group had left. “Zelda, do you want to explain what’s going on? Or did you just want to clear the stage so that I can fight him in peace?” he added, pointing to Ganondorf with his thumb.

“You wouldn’t stand a chance,” Ganondorf growled.

“What was that?” Link glanced at him out of a corner of his eye. “I’m sorry, I don’t think I caught what you said. I couldn’t hear you over the sound of having the Master Sword in my hand right now.”

“I’m sorry, Link, but you’re really going to need to put that back,” Zelda cut in. “Ganondorf is wrong about a lot of things, but he’s right about the sword acting as a seal on Demise’s curse.”

“When did I say that?” Ganondorf asked, shooting her a sharp look.

“Sorry, wrong timeline.” Zelda shrugged. “I guess I owe both of you an explanation, so here it is. Basically, my father used the Triforce to amplify the power of the magical artifact I just destroyed, which flooded Hyrule. Ganondorf, you stayed in the castle and started kidnapping people. Meanwhile, I think I escaped and had a child with Link. Maybe? I’m not sure. Anyway, just about everyone in this kingdom died, but I learned something interesting about the Triforce.”

“Which is?” Ganondorf prompted.

“We had a kid?” Link asked. Zelda ignored him.

“If someone whose heart isn’t in perfect balance touches the Triforce, then it breaks into its three component parts, each of which lodges within a chosen bearer. When Daphnes touched the Triforce, it must have split, because Ganondorf got the Triforce of Power. I got the Triforce of Wisdom, and Link, I think you got the Triforce of Courage, although I’m not entirely sure what you did with it, because it seems to have fragmented even further… But that’s beside the point.”

“So what you’re saying is that it’s possible to split the Triforce without destroying it,” Ganondorf concluded, rubbing his beard.

“Wait, hold up. I’m still not over this thing about us having a kid,” Link interjected, and Zelda continued to ignore him.

“Based on what happened because of my father, I don’t think it’s a good idea for any one person to touch the Triforce. Ganondorf, I know you think the solution is to destroy the thing altogether, but I’m not so sure about that. I think we need more time to figure out what the Triforce is and how it works, because I don’t want to do anything that can’t be undone.”

“But – ”

Zelda cut him off. “I promise, you don’t want to touch that thing. At least not alone.”

“So we should all touch it together, is what you’re saying,” Link suggested.

Zelda snapped her fingers. “Exactly! If we split it between the three of us, then it will continue to exist, but no single one of us will be able to use it without the full understanding and consent of the others. This should also remove it from the control of my family, at least partially. Hopefully that will forestall Demise’s curse and prevent the return of Ganon.”

“That’s the second time you’ve said that word,” Link broke in. “What’s Demise?”

“I’ll tell you later,” Ganondorf said.

“No, I’ll tell him,” Zelda insisted, knowing exactly how Ganondorf would spin that story. An instant later she corrected herself, ashamed that her first instinct had been to assume the worst of Ganondorf’s intentions. “Or actually, both us of can tell him together. The point is that we need to touch the Triforce, all three of us at the same time. But before we do, I need to make sure that the Triforce won’t choose one of us as its master.”

Zelda paused, unsure of how to phrase what she was trying to express. “Um, this is a strange question, but neither of you has a pure and balanced heart, right?”

“No,” said Ganondorf flatly.

Link laughed. “Oh goodness no. Listen, I could tell you things that – ”

Zelda waved a hand to cut him off. “I’m pretty sure I don’t either. We should be good then.”

“So how do we enter the Sacred Realm?” Ganondorf asked. “You destroyed the three sacred stones that were supposed to be the keys that open the gateway.”

“About that,” Link answered for her. “The sacred stones didn’t open the portal. It’s complicated, but their purpose was to reveal the pedestal where the Master Sword slept. This sword was forged and blessed by Hylia herself, and it’s the key that opens the Sacred Realm. The gateway was briefly accessible when the sword was drawn, and I think it will open again when it’s replaced on the pedestal.”

“Are you sure?” Zelda asked. She had a feeling that this was indeed the case, but she needed to be certain.

“I can’t explain it,” Link replied, “but it’s like the sword has a voice, like it’s singing to me, telling me things.”

“You do understand how strange that is, don’t you?” Ganondorf said in a sour tone.

Zelda shot him a look before addressing Link. “I believe you,” she assured him. “Like Ganondorf, I’m concerned about what will happen if that sword remains drawn, but I don’t want to force you to do anything that you’ll regret later. Based on what you’ve told me, you’ve spent most of your life searching for the Master Sword. I don’t really understand what happened, but now it seems that you’ve bonded with it in some way. Are you willing to give it up?”

“I most assuredly am,” Link replied. “Nothing would make me happier. I’ve always wanted to become stronger, but not… not like this.”

A look of pure relief spread across Link’s face as he regarded the Master Sword’s empty pedestal, and Zelda couldn’t help but smile at the purity of his happiness. Their eyes met, and for a moment – just for a moment – Zelda could envision herself leaving the temple with Link and setting out into the brave new world of a future that no longer existed.

Ganondorf cleared his throat. “Once the gateway to the Sacred Realm opens,” he said, “I’m not sure how much time we’ll have. I’d like to act quickly, so we need to decide what wish we want granted when we touch the Triforce. I don’t think we have much room for error.”

“What do you mean?” Link asked.

“Say that each of us wishes for Ganon to be defeated. That wish could be misinterpreted, with one of us becoming Ganon precisely so that they can be defeated. Or say we each wish for Hyrule to have a prosperous future. That would mean something different to each of us, so the Triforce might end up creating three different worlds to contain each of our wishes. We don’t know how the magic works, so it would be best to be as precise as possible.”

“Then it’s simple enough, isn’t it?” Zelda offered. “We each wish for one part of the Triforce, nothing more and nothing less. What part we get doesn’t really matter – at least, not from what I’ve seen. It only matters that each of us gets one piece.”

“Fine by me,” Link assented, and Ganondorf nodded in agreement.

“All right.” Zelda took a deep breath. “Link, are you ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Link answered. “Ganondorf? What about you?”

“I’ve been thinking about this moment for years. I couldn’t be more ready.”

“Zelda?” Link turned to her. “Are you ready?”

Zelda opened her mouth to respond, but then she glanced at Ganondorf. He was regarding her with an intent expression. Link may not have fully understood what he was asking of her, but Ganondorf did, and he was clearly concerned about the decision she would make. If there was a time to turn back, it was now.

Zelda considered Link’s question. Was she ready?

It was very early in the morning of the day when she was to have been crowned as the newest queen of Hyrule, an event she had been preparing for her entire life. It was true that her castle was currently under siege, but this conflict could easily become an opportunity to establish herself as a strong monarch whose reign was marked by an auspicious beginning. By divine right, the Triforce belonged to her and her alone, and there was still time for her to claim it as her own. If she made a pure and selfless wish for the benefit of Hyrule, then it was entirely possible that she could become one of the greatest queens in history. When she was queen she could travel throughout her kingdom, bringing peace and prosperity to her subjects. Link could be her knight, and she might even be able to unite her people with the Gerudo by marrying Ganondorf.

Did she truly possess the courage to give all of that up, to relinquish all of the power and potential that she could achieve as a wise and compassionate ruler?

“Absolutely,” she assured them. “Let’s do this.”

( Link to Chapter 28: The Legend of the Queen )

[sunnidaydreamer]

Bringing this over from my old account

Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition.

THESE ARE MY OPINIONS. I just felt the need to get ‘em out. And, yes, I know some of them probably fall under ‘We know already!’.

Combat

The combat gets repetitive after a while. But it’s a hack-and-slash so what can you do?

The Ganon bosses though…oh my god I hate fighting them.

The Imprisoned sucks, that red lightning or whatever it uses after it’s health hits a certain point. There’s an Adventure Mode battle where using Fi is mandatory, and because of that red lightning I can’t get the best rank. There’s also the mission to unlock one of Volga’s weapons where you face it, and it took me like ten times to unlock his weapon.

Phantom Ganon is just awful. I almost always miss the prompt to start the deadman’s volley so it takes forever to start damaging him. Then he does the thing where he splits into four(I think) and is just aggravating.

Ganon has so much health, but he’s also the Final Boss so, yeah. But the prompts to use certain items, I always miss the one for when he charges across the field then glows. I can never remember what to use. What boss did he rip that move from anyway?

Manhandla is just all around annoying. That stupid bullet seed move always gets me even if I think I’m out of range. And the poison field too.

Zelda as Sheik

I really don’t get why Zelda became Sheik. There’s no ‘gotcha!’ moment EVERYONE knows that Zelda is Sheik already. And in the story it only serves to hurt the Hyrulean army. They all look up to Zelda and Impa and there’s no way Zelda didn’t know that. Having Zelda disappear, implying to her army that she’d been possibly abducted, would only hurt their morale.

She would have to have known that!

And it makes no difference in the end, as she goes back to being Zelda with no issue. She says she feared for her safety, but she’s perfectly fine being Zelda from there on so what was the point? If you wanted Sheik in the roster just add Sheik to the roster! Toon Link, Toon Zelda, Medli, Young Link, they all added nothing to the story but they were added as fighters.

Lana

As someone else put it, Lana feels too anime for the game. Her design looks more in place in a magical girl anime. And her summon gate is awful to use!

Linkle

Her design is meh, but her crossbows are very fun to use. But the whole ditsy, ‘I’m super bad with directions lol’ thing puts me off her. Same with her thing about cuccos. Like cuccos have a bad enough mechanic as it is, since it’s way too easy to piss them off if neutral and they have SO much health when silver or gold. And the escort missions are easy to fail too.

I think she was either originally a female Link or Link’s sister? Either idea would have been cool, in my opinion. The only Link I can think of that has an actual family is Windwaker Link with his sister and Grandma. Breath of the Wild had a concept art of Link’s dad and sister, but all we get in game is a line about how he was a knight.

Also, Linkle? That’s the best you could do?

Character Development

A handful of characters were added for the game and nothing is done with them!

Lana stays firmly in the ‘nice girl’ category. It’s a nice balance to Cia’s borderline yandere attitude toward Link that Lana can accept that Link doesn’t HAVE to return her feelings, but she never shows other traits. She’s just nice. Supportive. Well, she kinda shows more personality, but it’s always clearly in the context of third wheel. Whenever Zelda expresses her support and she and Link are having a moment expect Lana to pop in and voice that SHE also supports Link. Or the one scene where Zelda and Link are looking at each other and she’s framed in the middle looking between them.

Third wheel Lana, everybody!

Wizzro is just an asshole. Even brainwashed he’s a traitor! And I think he wanted to rule the humans? Something along those line was mentioned in The Dragon of the Caves, which is why he betrayed Cia the first time.

Also what happened to him? He gets put back in the ring and then what? They just leave him where the ring fell? Did someone pick him up?

Volga we also know little about. Before the brainwashing he wanted to be left alone, and his people are very loyal so we can assume he was a good leader and treated them well. But that’s it. After Cia brainwashes him he’s a berserker with a battle-boner, who goes out of his way to find the strongest fighter(as that’s what Cia programmed him to do), he’s arrogant, and has a huge ego.

Are we to believe that he was always like that and Cia made it worse? In Adventure Mode he’s not that bad, though, to his allies at least. And he has a few comments that point toward respecting his challengers.

So which is it? Is he an arrogant ass? Or respectful?

(I will also die on the hill that he lived and went home after the final battle with Cia. You will never convince me otherwise.)

Cia

I want to like Cia, I really do. She’s gorgeous, and her play style is fun.

But really?

I’m not well versed in ALL Zelda Big Bads, but from what I can tell there are few female ones. And, yeah, we KNOW that the story is going to get Hijacked by Ganon as many Zelda stories do. So I know she doesn’t count as the MAIN Big Bad. But still. You couldn’t have her motivation be ANYTHING else?

It had to be that she wanted Link?

I know she wants the Triforce pieces, but that came later. The thing that got her possessed by Ganondorf was that she wanted Link.

The first notable female Big Bad and her motivation is Lust?

Not only that but after being corrupted she got sexed up too. Her shirt is cut to show a lot of skin, and she has exactly one pant leg.

If she had dressed like that before that’d be one thing, but it only started after she got corrupted. Does being evil mean a mandatory sexing up? A female villain within a certain range of attractiveness HAS to show skin?

Then there’s her boss intro; ass shot, tit shot, good look at her legs.

No one else gets this treatment.

Also, her hat is dumb looking. The mask is kinda cool. But her hat looks dumb. Yes, even as Guardian of Time. Yes, even on Lana. It looks like Gary Oldman’s hair in the first half of Dracula.

And her skin tone change! Why is she darker as a villain? She’s rather pale when ‘good’. Did Ganon make her get a tan to fit his evil checklist?

Wasn’t there backlash about Tetra being made pale as Princess Zelda in Windwaker? Did they learn nothing?

Something else that bothers me is the fact that some people(I’ve seen only a handful but still) try to use a throw away line to say that in canon Volga was getting feelings for Cia.

In context: their base is being attacked by Ganondorf, and Cia has linked her magic to her life-force for a power boost. Volga, who is implied to be getting free of the brainwashing but is still brainwashed, comments that she should take it easy.

That’s it. A comment that she should be careful because she’s using a lot of magic and it’s linked to her life-force. (I’d have to replay the level to get the exact comment).

And I’ve seen people use it to say that he was falling for her. He was BRAINWASHED up until recently! He wanted nothing to do with her, which is why she brainwashed him! If he had any romantic feelings for her, it stands to reason that SHE put them there!

Why would he suddenly be in love with her if he wanted nothing to do with her?

I’m not saying you can’t ship it, but saying it’s a canon thing bugs me.

[theorangestar]

Skyward Sword Thoughts Part 3! Spoilers below.

- Welcome to Eldin! The only place to be consistent in all the games. It’s just one big volcano.

- How come I don’t need any special armor or potions to be here? So far I’ve only found one place that’s so hot I’m set on fire.

- WHat are these guys?! These aren’t Gorons! Why are there no Gorons here? Where does Gorko live when he’s not traveling?!

- And then what happened to these mole people later? They and the Kikwis don’t appear in other games that I’m aware of. What happened to them? D:

- Motion controls with these bombs are very stressful.

- The torches in the Earth Temple are shaped like elephants, but the rest of the temple is based around dragons. I disappointed; I wanted an elephant themed temple. :(

- Found my first Lizalfos. It’s amazing how drastic the design change is between Skyward Sword and Breath of the Wild. They’re practically two different species! Also, I don’t appreciate the spiked balls on their tails. No I don’t.

- Rollin. Rollin. Rollin in the lava.

- So is rolling around a giant ball like a dancing bear a skill Link learned at the Academy?

- Oh look. Ghirahim’s here with his anger issues.

- Scaldera - I DON’T LIKE IT! I DON’T LIKE IT! Too many legs, it moves weird, it’s crusty shell makes me itchy. I don’t like it. That being said, he sucks in bombs like Fireblight, so once I figured that out killing it was easier.

- ZELDA!! :D

- Excuse you, Impa! You try beating that giant flaming hair ball with a shitty stamina gauge, and then you can complain about my punctuality! You couldn’t have helped at all? Asshole.

- It seems like Zelda has really gone on her own whole adventure here. I’d love a version of this story from Zelda’s pov. What did she think when she made it to the surface? Where’s her loftwing? Has she been following a voice this whole time? What’s it been telling her? Where’d she get that white dress? How did she meet Impa? What did she tell her that made her leave Link? She keeps getting captured but then escaping; I want to see all that.

This part was much shorter. I’m getting a lot better at the motion controls, even thought I do have to constantly be recalibrating.

[goron-king-darunia]

Tagged (by vague gesture of “if you wanna do it, TAG!”) by @biophilie like, 2 years ago, so I’m finally doing it. Rules: Choose any three fandoms and answer the questions, then tag 10 people you want to know better.

My Three Fandoms: Legend of Zelda, Tales of Symphonia DotNW, and One Piece since those 3 have taken up big chunks of my attention over the years. Would do Darkwood since it’s a current interest but since there are so few characters, it would make the meme here harder so... Darkwood will have to wait.

The first character you loved: LoZ: I was a slut for Link as a kid, TBF I liked most protagonists, but I liked Link a LOT. DotNW: I actually liked Ratatosk a lot at first because he was cool and mysterious and tough! My first impulse was really liking Richter’s design but the first character I loved/really liked based on gameplay and actual characterization was Ratatosk. One Piece: I really liked Red Haired Shanks and was sad when he didn’t really show up again for a LONG time.

The character you never expected to love so much: Loz: There’s a few so I’m gonna cheat a bit. In OoT and MM, Ruto and Skull Kid were just kind of characters that existed but I didn’t like much. Didn’t actively dislike them but didn’t really bother taking an interest in them. But I like them a lot more now, especially with how they’re characterized in “non-canon” material like the Manga and Hyrule Warriors. The only other character I can recall from the game series that I was surprised that I liked was Peatrice from Skyward Sword. At first it was just like “Oh, yeah, she’s just the girl who stores your items, whatever. She’s neat I guess.” But then she started changing. She got more cheerful when Link came around more and showed an interest in him and when she asked if he liked her I just couldn’t say no! And then she just became so obnoxiously bubbly and happy about it and I LOVED THAT SO MUCH. Unironically I ship Peatrice and SS Link because, like, Link and Zelda are great friends but they don’t interact much since Link has to try to save her and Zelda has goddess things to worry about. Peatrice is just always there and unlike Zelda who already has a good rapport with Link at the start of the game, you get to SEE Peatrice warming up to him and I am SO soft for that! SO SOFT! Actually, one more also from SS. Groose. He’s an obnoxious, selfish, gloating bastard man, but by the end of the game with all the changes he went through, he totally grew on me as a cool dude. Especially with how he and Impa got along.  DotNW: Slight cheat here too since the character didn’t debut in the game but... Colette. I honestly didn’t like her that much in Symphonia. I just kind of viewed her as an object that motivated Lloyd for a while and the impetus for everything happening in the game and it wasn’t until the end of Symphonia that I really started thinking of her as more than just a ditz that Lloyd happens to like. I’m not really sure when it happened but I started really appreciating her after DotNW, and not really because of anything she did. I guess I just eventually noticed a lot of her finer points and all the ways she contributed and how her kindness is actually super refreshing and hopeful and how soft that is considering what she’d gone through. See also my next point on Nami because hooo boy I was kind of a shitlord kid and needed to get through some things... One Piece: Nami. I HAAAATED her when I was young. Partially because of internalized sexism (probably shit I learned from sexist media, my dad, and just the lack of trust I had for any girl that wasn’t my friend because of massive bullying as a kid, but I digress.) and partially because one of the biggest parts of Nami’s arc early on was her utter betrayal of the crew. Like, we find out WHY later, and obviously I TOTALLY get where she was coming from now and all but as a kid that was just UNCALLED FOR. I also HEAVILY viewed her as the “no fun allowed” type that was actively impeding my new fave, Luffy, from having all the fun he could want because that shit costs money and the money is HERS. As a broke Millenial, I now 10000000% get where Nami is coming from and her financial responsibility is honestly hella impressive because she absolutely DOES NOT withhold the treasure from the rest of the crew, she fucking BUDGETS it. In general, I tended to dislike a lot of leading females for being catty or killjoys or a lot of other things when honestly, they were just being completely normal humans. Glad I grew out of that shit because while Nami still isn’t my fave, she’s fucking amazing.

The character you relate to the most: Loz: It’s changed over the years. I relate to Ruto a lot more now because yo, I would also just fuck off into the gut of my people’s patron Deity if my dad was being a pain and trying to marry me off (okay, so this is Manga exclusive, sue me) and 10/10 would give a precious family heirloom to a cute boy that rescued me. But more than that, IDK, she’s just... a lil’ spoiled but in a cute way, a lil’ tomboyish, but overall, for a Princess, she’s just kind of doing her thing, she’s responsible when it matters. But for OoT, y’all KNOW Darunia is my patronus because DAYUM. Chunky but strong (I’m a wuss but shut up), Grumpy butt but cares about his people, actually totes a fun dude when he’s not stressed about a food crisis, says “fuck you” directly to a fucking evil asshole despite the consequences, treats a fucking 11 year old kid like a full human being (I do not agree with leveraging a kid to fucking fight a dragon but... Link could handle it so...) names his own kid after Link because why the fuck not, befriends anyone that does him a favor and treats them like family. Dude’s just got chill old man vibes and I dig that shit. 10/10 relate to just being a fat dude that is grumpy but also wants to befriend everyone. HOWEVER, I think my top tier relatable character is Midna from Twilight Princess because that bitch is just me. Cursed to be a hot bitch trapped in a cute chunky body (I am working on myself. XD) 10/10 spoiled and bitchy as fuck, cheeky lil’ asshole who’s actually very sweet, think’s Link is dumb but also cute, cares about her world but ALSO cares about Link’s world, a lil’ selfish but also HELLA selfless because she cared more about Link and Zelda than her own life and cared more about her people than her own safety because she just fucking WENT TO FIX THAT SHIT when Zant started causing trouble, even though she didn’t have to. She’s everything I am or aspire to be. 10/10 one of the best Zelda characters. DotNW: Hard to say. I identify a lot with aspects of Richter, Aster, and Emil. I don’t have a lot of self confidence and am a bit of a shy bean, lil’ grumpy, but also a complete goober and an idealist, 10/10 would walk into hell for someone I love without thinking twice and would make deals with demons to try to save someone I care about because I am a dumbass. I love the DotNW boys because the DotNW boys are me. One Piece: Chopper. I just really fucking vibe with the whole “nobody likes me EXCEPT HOLY SHIT SOME PEOPLE SOMEHOW LIKE ME, WHAT THE FUCK DID I DO TO DESERVE THAT?” thing he has going on, as well as the whole glutton for praise but telling people to shut up when they praise me thing he has. I for real wanted to be a doctor when I was younger BECAUSE of Chopper. I’m just a weird little bean that doesn’t fit in anywhere very well while also being a slut for praise and wanting to take care of others and help them because other people have cared for me. Low key also vibe with Usopp because dude absolutely gels with kids, is a huge fucking wuss but deals with it anyway, will literally fight someone over petty shit and then come back and fight side by side with his bud’s again.

The character you’d slap: LoZ: Mmmmm. Hard to say. Like, obvs the villains but IDK who else I’d really want to slap? Does it count if I want to slap Anjuu/the Cucco Lady but, like... gentle and on the butt and in a sexy way? IDK, man. I’d feel bad but maybe Slap Mido? He looks like a kid so I’d feel REALLY bad for it, but aren’t Kokiri literally just kids forever? Asshole could be 100 years old, man... Either way he’s kinda a brat. 10/10 would slap early-game Groose from Skyward Sword also, but I’d feel bad about it because he ends up being a decen guy later. Also would slap Ghirahim for being both sexy and evil. DotNW: Alice for deciding that “never being weak again” means treating everyone else like garbage, even though I 1000% get where she’s coming from. Richter for being a fucking dumbass and not asking for help and deciding that demons were a good option and manipulating a child older dude with a magic core was a great idea even though I would do the exact same thing in his shoes. Ratatosk for being a murderous prick and starting the whole thing even though I absolutely understand where he’s coming from and I would also probably accidentally smite someone if I was a fucking spirit and in a shit mood because the only thing I really cared about was fucking ripped away from me. Honestly, mostly just me slapping people that remind me of me for doing exactly what I would do. Sensible me slapping actual me because actual me is a fucking dumbass emotional bitch with violent tendencies. One Piece: The fucking villains, obviously, Dr. Hililuck/Hiriluck for being a fucking bastard in the manga, holy shit was he an asshole! And also FUCKING SANJI. Jesus fuck, I am not over the pervy shit he does, what a creep.

Three favourite characters (in order of preference): LoZ: This is gonna be REAL hard because I love a lot of characters so... Midna, Link, and Darunia? It’s hard man. I love a lot of characters SO MUCH and it’s really hard to pick faves! DotNW: Richter, Emil, Aster. Emil and Aster share the same level of favoritism, but Richter is my number one. One Piece: Chopper, Zoro, Luffy. I used to like Luffy way more than I do now, but he’s still a fucking dork and I still like him tons.

A character you liked at first but don’t anymore: LoZ: I can’t really think of any, but I guess the character I waffle on a bit is Malon. Sometimes she’s like “Heck yeah! FAVE!” and sometimes I’m like “Eh, she exists...” IDK, I really like most of the characters. DotNW: I used to like Zelos a lot, but not anymore. Yeah this is kinda cheating since he ALSO didn’t debut in DotNW, but he’s in it so... TBF I like him in DotNW BETTER than in the first Symphonia, but not as much as I used to like him overall. One Piece: Fucking Sanji. I used to like him before the creepy factor set in. What really hit home for me was the Thriller Bark arc where he outright says he wanted the power of invisibility to creep on girls. Fucking nasty. The womanizing thing was just a quirk before that. I don’t think I’m ever gonna be over it. So gross and creepy now knowing he actively thought about creeping on girls using a special power. I know guys say this is a common thing and just how dudes are but no. That’s fucking sick. It’s one thing to say “yeah, I want to oggle women because tiddies are sexy” or whatever. It’s another thing to say “I WANT TO SPY ON WOMEN WITHOUT THEM KNOWING SO I CAN SEE TIDDY.” and it’s a third thing to say that IN A WORLD WHERE IT IS PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE TO BE INVISIBLE that you WOULD USE THAT POWER TO STARE AT WOMEN WITHOUT THEM KNOWING.

Three otps: LoZ: Link and basically everyone, but let’s narrow that. Link and Zelda is a classic, Link and Ruto is a guilty pleasure, Link and Peatrice is the underdog ship that I dig a lot. DotNW: Every combo of Richter, Emil, and Aster, enough said. One Piece: Luffy and food because he’s Ace, just let him fucking eat. Zoro and whoever he ends up liking. Tashigi maybe. Chopper and Milky.

Tagging: Anyone that wants to do it~