#just finished vah ruta

[emissary-of-the-moon]

How much can one person cry over mipha? The correct answer is a lot

[drawsmaddy]

[ID: A digital illustration of Prince Sidon and Link from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. They're posing for a selfie in the rain, Link is wearing the Zora armor. Link holds up his right hand and grins as Sidon crouches to be in frame next to Link, smiling. End description.]

Gonna go deal with Vah Ruta!

[nolongerapileofashprobably]

The sheer development of botw/totk zelink…

Zelda didn’t originally like Link. She outright avoided him at all costs and wasn’t particularly nice to him. And despite her own efforts, Link’s own determination and devotion to his role finally wore her down to the point where she realized how wrong she had judged him.

Link was a prodigy, he had the sword that would seal the darkness already (had since he was a mere preteen) and was known for besting adults in duels as a literal child. She was born with powers she couldn’t unlock despite all the effort she put in. She thought he was simply handed his fortunes in life with no consequences, while she struggled daily to uphold her father’s expectations for her and neglect her own hobbies.

But when Link steadfastly protected her in a place she had specifically gone to in order to escape him, she sees the truth behind it all. Link is determined. He never backs down from a fight. He’s also reckless and she understands this as she chastises him and worries over his well-being. He’s knowledgeable about horses and has good advice, always willing to share it when someone (aka Zelda) needs to hear it. She learns bit by bit about Link until she outright questions why he doesn’t talk much. And he genuinely hesitates but decides that he can share this with her. She’s the only one he ever has. Because she asked.

And he tells her. The sword on his back brings a great responsibility and massive burden to bare. He feels the need to be strong and to be the stoic perfect knight to take on the role everyone expects him to play.

They become much closer after this and there’s multiple times we see Link actually neglect his role as her protector in order to just be there for Zelda as her friend. Once in the spring memory where he turns after Zelda berated her inability to awaken her power and the second when they’re literally running away from murder bots and he doesn’t force her to continue when she slips but rather kneels, listens, and comforts her.

And to find out that Zelda’s love for Link is the reason she awakened her powers and that it’s canonically proven through Kass’ song? Wow. And that doesn’t even BEGIN their story and how it ends in totk.

In botw, the Japanese original logs are written by Link himself and it’s revealed that one of his motivators in saving Zelda was to see her smile once again. Just. Remember that.

Of course the game end and we do see Link and Zelda planning on traveling to investigate Vah Ruta. And we find out in ToTK that the two are inseparable, so much so that without Zelda by his side no one recognizes Link beyond the characters that genuinely know him through the story.

They’ve traveled across Hyrule and helped numerous people, no matter what it was. They live together in Hateno, where they helped to build a school and even teach the kids there. They founded expedition and research teams, reformed a guard, and even found the time to ‘vacation’ at Lurelin where they would go up to Lover’s Pond in the evening.

Zelda and Link create a home out of Hyrule. It’s no longer a desolate, sparingly populated land. It’s being reformed. It’s being cared for. It’s their home. They lost theirs 100years prior but they’ve steadily worked to make it a home once again. They were healing. Together.

So losing Zelda again, being unable to reach her, and also losing his sword. . . It’s a lot. But the thing he knows he must do— Find Princess Zelda. Despite knowing exactly where Zelda is after you finish the Tears of the Dragon Quest, Link does not complete it. Because he hasn’t found his Zelda. The one that rambles on about everything and gets excited about history and new discoveries. The one that tried to make him eat a frog (albeit she was on to something). She isn’t home.

Meanwhile Zelda. . . Zelda goes on about Link, enough for Sonia to know all about him and his tendency to worry over Zelda’s well-being. And then we have memory eight that has Zelda practically gushing about him to her pseudo-parents and promptly being teased for it. Then, as Zelda finally understands why she is in the past, she ensures Link has everything he could need in order to win. Because to her, Link and Hyrule surviving is a must. She sacrifices herself to ensure that.

And yet. . . Link is determined to bring her back. Hyrule won’t be the home they’ve worked so hard to make it so without her. He can’t quit until they find a way to revert her back. So when Rauru and Sonia channel their power through Link, it takes a moment for him to understand by when he does… WHOOH boy does the determination SHINE in his eyes.

And he gets her back. He reaches her. Protects her just as she did for him in the form of restoring the Master Sword. And she immediately rambles.

We don’t get to see Link’s reaction to any of this. But then we end with “Link, I’m home” and a SMILE. Because that’s all Link wants. For Zelda to be safe and smiling.

Ultimately, they just want to be home. And home is with the other.

[captainn-hook]

Character analysis on Prince Sidon (BOTW vs TOTK)

One thing I love about totk is how the game addresses Sidon’s trauma.

In botw you see how desperate he is for his father’s approval, it’s like Mipha set an impossible standard for dying not only for her domain and her people but for the whole kingdom of Hyrule. In their father’s eyes, she’s the perfect child, not only in personality but also in the way she’s honoured her family. Sidon sees how his father thinks of her, and although the king doesn’t do it consciously, he always put her on an impossibly high pedestal, and Sidon grew up believing that he HAD to meet that expectation, and that he would never, no matter how hard he tried.

When Link tames Vah Ruta and they both go to see the king, he tells his son:

“As your father, I am proud of you for fighting the Divine Beast alongside Link. You have grown much recently. I know you will be a worthy heir when your time comes.”

Then Sidon bows his head, as if he’s overcome with emotions because his dad tells him he’s proud of what he’s accomplished. King Dorephan isn’t a bad guy, don’t get me wrong, but the grief of losing his daughter (in this case, he thought she went missing and had been in the DB for 100 years, he didn’t know she died) made him sort of lose sight of Sidon’s achievements in those 100 years because he was so racked with worry and guilt. So although the king isn’t a bad father, he fails to reassure his son that he doesn’t need to do anything to make him proud (even though Sidon had definitely done stuff to make his dad proud over the years).

(Btw im pretty sure tripple digits in age is considered teens or early adulthood for Zora, so he’s still pretty young, I imagine around Link’s age if he were Hylian)

But that’s about all we get in botw.

So now we move on to totk. And oh boy do we get a load of Sidon angst. Some people might disagree with me but having read between the lines of what Lady Yona talked about (and just WHAT she actually said) in the first half of the water temple quest (before we find it, when we’re up in Mipha court), it really is angsty.

She’s aware of the fact that his sister’s death affected him a lot and still does despite knowing that her spirit moved on, and it (at this point) has started to affect their relationship.

Yona and Sidon have a disagreement before/after the battle with the Sludge Like, where they argue about him going with Link to this pillar of light that has suddenly appeared. It starts with Sidon saying: “Lady Yona! It is far too dangerous for you to be here” in reference to the sludge, but she has none of that.

She tells him that she wants him to go to the pillar with Link, and that: “For a long time, I have been concerned that you are holding yourself back and not acting as freely as I would have expected.” This has some credit because it’s mentioned somewhere how they were both childhood friends, and the Zora live long lives so it’s safe to assume their childhood is prolonged, which means that they’ve known each other for a very long time. Yona knows how he acts and behaves, his mannerisms and his fears, and that’s why she wants to push him to face them.

She tells him that if he goes with Link they’ll be able to overcome this problem, but he hesitates. She notices, asking him what is troubling him, and he hesitates again to speak what’s on his mind. This is when the Sludge Like comes in, and after the battle, the conversation continues.

Sidon hurries back to Yona and says: “Thank goodness. Lady Yona, if something had happened to you... I...” and there’s where it becomes clear just how terrified he is of losing her. He doesn’t finish the sentence, though, he changes the subject and tells her that she should go back to the domain in case more monsters show up. She tells him that he should focus on what Link said and that he can leave the court to them (Yona and the others that came with her). Sidon replies with: “W-well... Of course it would be best for me to accompany him. However, I cannot leave you alone in this dangerous place!” He’s ignoring what’s best and instead focusing on the safety of his betrothed, because of course he would! A monster just showed up and it took both Link and Sidon to take it down, imagine if neither of them were with her, what would happen? What would he do if she got hurt? And then the following dialogue happens (you dont need to read the whole thing, you can just skip to the bold parts):

Yona: “Did you not entrust this task to us already? We will not be on our own for long. We shall be just fine.”

Sidon: “But…”

Yona: “Sidon, my darling... I truly appreciate that you worry so for my safety. It speaks to the kindness in your heart.

But you are the prince of the Zora. One day, you will lead the people of your beloved domain.

I can see right through you, whether you want me to or not. You are yielding to the fear of losing someone you love again.

You must overcome your past and face whatever the future holds with courage.”

Sidon: “But... I...”

Yona: “Enough is enough! You are not acting like yourself! You must leave this place to me!

Sweet Sidon... Do not get lost in the past. You must keep moving ever onward. Just follow your heart, as you always do!”

Sidon: “Like my old self... Like I always do...”

Yona: “It is all right. I swear it. I am not going anywhere.”

Sidon: “I see... And there it is, clear as day... I was giving in to my fear of once more losing someone I love... I… I…

You are right, Yona! I will not give in to this fear! Nor forsake my trust in you! I leave this place to you, my love.”

[skip]

Yona: “All this time he was clinging to regret over being unable to save his precious sister, Mipha... My poor, tormented Sidon.

And to think he was unknowingly paralyzed from taking action because he feared losing me as well...

Yet he has overcome this trial and placed his faith in me. At last, the Sidon I know and love has come back to me.”

During this conversation, Sidon hesitates more than once and you can see it starting to irritate Yona because she knows the potential he doesn’t see in himself, because it’s not just fear of losing a loved one, but it’s his own insecurity from not being able to save Mipha.

He doesn’t care that he was very young and wouldn’t have been able to anyway, he just cares that he couldn’t. In his eyes, he failed to save his sister. And I’m not going to go too deep into this point but it’s clear that she was playing both older sister and mother, because we can assume their mother died a while back (she’s never mentioned and it’s just the two of them and their father even as far back as age of calamity if you want to include that).

What I’m saying is that with technically both the loss of his mother and his sister, it’s safe to assume that he feels some sort of responsibility for not being able to help, even if he was too young to do so, his disregard for the age he was at the time shows how much weight was left on his shoulders after Mipha died.

He never expected to be the heir to the throne, the sole survivor of his family (along with his dad), sure he’s a prince and princes have responsibility, but Mipha was always going to be in the spotlight (not that I’d imagine him jealous of this, it’s simply just a fact, and I think he might have actually even been comfortable with that), she was always going to be the Zora Champion and then Queen one day, so to have all of that suddenly dumped on him after the calamity as a literal kid would’ve undoubtedly had its effect on him.

Yona understands this, she tells Link, knowing he’s probably caught on, how he was “clinging to regret over being unable to save his precious sister, Mipha...”.

She has to reassure her love that she’s okay. “It is all right. I swear it. I am not going anywhere.”, she comforts him because she knows he needs it, he needs her to say it to him because that’s the only way he will believe she is in fact okay.

But his character develops. Sidon realises that in fearing for Yona, he has made her feel as if she isn’t trusted. He recognises the position he’s put them both in, him worrying relentlessly and stressing out about his loved ones because of his trauma, and her having to watch him fall down this never ending rabbit hole and being unable to do much about it because all he tries to do is shelter and protect her, even when it’s unnecessary.

But she does what she can anyway, and it pays off, because he comes back to reality and understands that although there will always be the risk of losing her, he knows that she is more than capable of taking care of herself. He knows of her strength, it was just hard for him to see the situation from her point of view. But she pushes him to do so, and he betters himself for her.

I think he’ll always have some small hint of this trauma response hidden away, but after this discussion, he’s got a firm hold on it, and is willing to control his fears for the love of his life so that they can start to build a life together without the sense of utter doom and despair over his past looming over them both.

I’m glad the writers did this, and didn’t just make them seem like this perfect couple with no issues, it shows a real and healthy relationship, and it shows that Sidon isn’t this perfect person and that he indeed has faults of his own.

That’s my take on it, anyway.

[ner5y]

Some music idea's for tadc Carnival au

So in each of the guardian's themes from BOTW you can faintly hear the morse code for S.O.S at different points in their songs, right? (along with other morse code messages that I don't know the meaning of)

(It's a lot clearer in the soundtrack, especially for vah ruta but hopefully you can still hear it)

Listen closely, you can hear beeping in the background:

So what if WHAT IF Different songs in the Carnival au game's soundtrack had something like that? Like you open it up and the title screen's song has a catchy beat, but little do you know, IT'S THE GAME CALLING FOR HELP.

That was just a random thought I had, this post is mostly to headcanon what video game osts would fit what character, so here:

Pomni's Room:

Glitzville (Paper Mario: The Thousand year Door)

Does. Does anyone actually remember some of the weird (and sometimes racially insensitive) writing in this game? I still have a pretty fresh memory, because I first played it about two years ago (VERY LEGALLY). But did anyone clock those as a kid, or was it just a normal 2000s thing?

Pomni's Boss Battle

I think the choice is obvious...

THE WORLD REVOLVING (Deltarune)

Ragatha's Room

Petalburg (Paper Mario and the Thousand year Door)

(But if you wanted it to be more elegant, "The Night of The Ball" from Fire Emblem 3 Houses would also fit I think. Oo, OR" Lily's theme" from Pokemon: Sun and Moon might fit better.)

Ragatha's boss Battle

Battle! (Lusamine) (Pokemon Sun and Moon)

(I couldn't really think of a good one for her)

Kinger's Room

Soul Sanctum (Hollow Knight)

(Could also be "Victory Road" from Pokemon: X and Y, Or if you're looking for something more upbeat, Merlee's mansion from Super Paper Mario! that one might sound too evile, though [Fun fact: I was so scared of Mimi's spider form as a kid, that I didn't end up getting past the second door and finishing the game until I was FOURTEEN])

(It could also be a whole host of other Hollow Knight songs)

Kinger's Boss Battle

Mantis Lords (Hollow Knight)

(OR "Twilight of the Gods" from Shadows of Valentia, or maybe even "Time to Fight!" From Xenoblade Chronicles (*cough* Dunban is the goat *cough*))

OKAY, for Jax, since he's so fucked up, I think his themes would be DRASTICLY different when comparing sentitience and none-sentience:

Jax's Room (sentient)

Hellfire Follies (Bendy and the Ink Machine)

Jax's Room (Non Sentient)

Inkwell Isle One (Cuphead)

Jax's Boss Battle (Sentient)

Colossal Wonders (Bendy and the Ink Machine)

Jax's Boss Battle (Non-sentient)

Fiery Frolic (Cuphead)

Another fun fact, King Dice's song is sung by a woman named Alana Bridgewater!

Gangle's Room

Shopping (Pokemon: X and Y)

Again, struggled with this one. Not sure if it fits too well.

(A general theme for Gangle could be Dimentio, Charming Magician from Super Paper Mario)

Gangle's Boss Battle

I've Had Enough Of You (Billie Bust Up)

And would you look at that, Michael's at it again.

Here's a female cover cus y'know Gangle's a girl

(For ones without vocals, maybe "Battle Team Flare" from Pokemon X and Y, "Fracktail Battle" or "It's Showtime" both from Super Paper Mario)

Zooble's Room

Spirit of Hospitality (Celeste)

(Could also be Crystal Peak from Hollow Knight!)

Zooble Boss Battle

Confronting myself (Celeste)

(I was struggling to decide between Heartache, Metal crusher (Undertale) and Battle Elite Four (Pokemon: Sun and Moon) but as soon I heard this, I KNEW)

Bonus:

Caine Boss Fight

BIG SHOT (Deltarune: Chapter 2)

I think that's all of them!

@sm-baby

[tashacee]

YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW GOOD YOUR UPDATE TIMING IS I was literally JUST listening to the Prehistoric Planet theme and thinking abt the Ancient Hero (the actual Hero Against the First Calamity, who created the aspect that Wild’s wearing) and like imagining a WHOLE trailer type thing for an Ancient Hero game set 10,000 years ago with like. the following scenes:

Music opens: The Ancient Hero stepping out of the Shrine for the first time and standing right where Wild, 10,000 years later, will stand

Echoey/cello/violin section: Ancient Hero goes to Temple of Time & learns from priests/nuns abt his status as hero & his duty against the Calamity

Drums/flute/theremin(?) section: Ancient Hero finding his tribe in Faron and learning abt his culture/ppl/instincts/ideal combat style

Main theme refrain: begins his real journey across Hyrule & learns how to properly utilise Sheikah tech & command guardians, learns abt Divine Beasts (still being built at that point, including Master Cycle)

Violin/flute section: meeting Rito & Zora for the first time & helping choose the Champions

Heavy brass section immediately following: meeting Gorons & Gerudo for the first time & helping choose the Champions

Theme divergence section: passing the trials for his own Master Cycle, test-leading the Champions against monsters from the field (I hc that the reason the Master Cycle is so small/mobile is bc the Ancient Hero was a field commander & couldn’t be stationary)

Main theme refrain (heavy), in four parts:

First section: shots of Ancient Hero practicing with Goron Champion, Vah Rudania panning mega-shot from sky

Second section: shots of Ancient Hero practicing with Zora Champion, Vah Ruta panning mega-shot from sky

Third section: shots of Ancient Hero practicing with Gerudo Champion, Vah Naboris panning mega-shot from sky

Fourth section: shots of Ancient Hero practicing with Rito Champion, Vah Medoh mega-shot from below as music crescendoes (imagine: watching Vah Medoh as it takes off), then panning mega-shot from sky

Final section & close: high-speed slideshow of moments between Ancient Hero & Ancient Champions, ending with a backwards-moving shot spanning distance between plateau & Hyrule field where the Calamity is forming, viewed over Ancient Hero’s shoulder (Master Sword hilt visible in foreground)

Silence: black screen, glowing green text fades in in Zonai font:

The Legend of Zelda: ANCIENT

And lo and behold, just as I finish imagining this epic fake trailer set to a soundtrack of a series not even remotely related, what should update but the Ancient Hero’s Aspect AU!! Your timing is just incredible!

YEAH! This is so cool!

[mooshs-crack-headcanons]

Okay, I mean this in no disrespect about Miphlink, Miphlink shippers *mwah* love you guys, but me for me personally I like Miphlink but only with it in the context of it being one sidded AND Mipha being 100% completely aware of it's unrequitedness.

Why? Because I. Love. Angst. I thrive off it.

Like Mipha is a sweet, compassionate girl with a heart of pure gold - but she isn't stupid. She isn't oblivious to the blink and you'll miss it searching glances that goes on between Link and Princess Zelda, the devotion he has for her that goes well beyond than just a knight doing his job. She isn't ignorant to glimmering shine that lights up in the princess' eyes every time she looks at her chosen knight either, the genuine expression that melts across her face that is all devoid of the facade she presents wherever on official royal duties. Love. Clear and obvious love that is impossible to ignore even if it stabs and knaws at the Zora princess' heart each and every time she sees it.

How she wished deeply in her heart of hearts, how she wished and pray to the goddess that maybe one day... Link would look at her the same way. But then she quickly realizes how silly and selfish that sounds every time and that breaks her heart even more. It'd be so cruel to wish something like that because then it'd be hurting both Link and Zelda and she absolutely doesn't want that - both of them are very dear friends to her and she doesn't want to warm that because of some... silly feelings. Silly, deep, feelings.

For quite some time she sits up on Vah Ruta's spout and truly recollects on the matter. Each day she thinks, traces her slight taloned fingertips over the blade of her trident and staring back at her reflection on its blade. She really did love the hero, she knows her feelings are true and much before the realization that his heart actually belonged to someone else she... started making him the armor. Since then she's hiddened it, far from any eyes to see and is positively sure the only ones to know about its existence is her father and little Sidon - who'd actually helped a bit himself in the stitching of the scales which even now still brings a small smile to her lips. There's no reason to finish it now, surely, but on the other hand something ate at her to accompanied by a voice saying maybe it'll be important one day to fulfill at least some kind of purpose, even if it wasn't for its original intention.

Mipha pauses on the thought, her eyes scanning over through the mountains and towards the direction of the castle in the kingdom's heart. She heard rather recently from Urbosa that Link has been sneaking Princess Zelda out of the castle at night to continue her sheikah research, going the King's direct orders.

A knight disobeying the word of his king. He did that for her.

The Zora sighs. That sounds very like him, she admired that about him and even so she's glad to hear the princess had still continue her research, it was no hidden secret that one of her main interests so if she continue to pursue it than that makes her happy. And the princess happy obviously made Link happy, which in turn makes Mipha happy at the end of the day.

Her mind crawls back to the armor.

...maybe... she could finish it. Not as some token of engagement as Zora tradition willed it, though she is aware exactly how it will look to most Zora when she gives it to the hero, how they'll interpret it and try to spin it off as a romantic thing but... the creation of armor like this without a doubt is a very special an and intimate one, very personal. So it'd have to mean just as much if she were to give it as a... blessing, right? Her personal blessing for Link and Zelda's relationship. Her token of acceptance, even if it stung.

She very quickly went to work.

Every single night, even after long days of training and attending to her royal duties she takes some time to work on the armor. She pays attention to fine detail - making sure every row of scales that aline the sturdy fabric are in the correct shape and positioning that would make the set suitable to be worn even years and decades from now. Regal - she makes it, with every pattern melted in the pauldrons and the pretty eye catching glimmer of sapphires that danced in between the threads of the fabric. Perfect, she wants it to be perfect. To symbolic represent how much Link means to her and how happy she is with his happiness and love to the princess. She loves seeing him happy and wishes for everything in the world just to keep him happy.

Even if she has to watch him grow old, together hand in hand with the woman he actually loves and eventually... die. And Mipha will still be young, and live life long without him, that's the sad truth between human and zora lifespans. So this all is for the best.

Weeks and months leading through the armors creation process, even in the final hours until its completely finished and ready to present.

She still can't stop the uncontrollable tears streaming down her face.

[sombersummerskies]

A Champion's Love: Chapter 12

Chapter 12: The Princess' Plan Word Count: 5210 CW: None

Want all the chapters? -> Masterlist

~~~ <> ~~~

You were quite happy when the journey back to Zora’s Domain was less eventful than the journey up to Vah Ruta. There were no Lizalfos with shock arrows or Moblins with big clubs this time around. Just a peaceful walk down the mountain as the sun began to set in the distance, casting an orange glow over the land.

Zelda had taken charge of watching over the little bird you’d found while at the Divine Beast. She carried it happily in her arms, petting its feathers as it cooed happily in response. She hadn’t thought of a name for the bird yet, but she told you that she’d think of one soon enough.

You noticed that, as you all walked back together in a group, both you and Sidon lagged in the back and walked beside each other. You were able to catch him glancing over at you many times, but he’d also catch you looking up at him as well, which made both blush and feel a tad awkward the whole way to the palace.

Eventually though, you reached the Great Zora Bridge, and as soon as you stepped into the main entrance there were sudden excited shouts and the sound of feet running towards you.

You glance over and see the four Zora children from this morning, Tumbo, Keye, Finley, and Laruta, all running towards you from across the plaza. Tumbo is sprinting at full speed while carrying a box in his hands, and you have to catch him so he doesn’t trip over his feet and drop whatever it is that he’s carrying.

“_____!_____! We have your gift!” Finley exclaims, hopping from one foot to the other in excitement.

“It’s in the box! Open it, open it!” Laruta beamed, pointing at Tumbo.

Tumbo quickly lifts the box up for you to grab it. You took it into your hands and opened it curiously, noting that both Sidon and Zelda were peering over your shoulder to see what was inside as well. You pop open the top and smile softly when you see what your gift is.

It’s a pie. Baked a bit crudely, no doubt the children made it on their own.

“We made you fish pie! You gotta try it and let us know if you like it!” Finley cheered, bouncing up and down.

Gingerly, you used your hands to break off a piece of the crust. It certainly smelled good despite its appearance. You pop the bit of food into your mouth, and all four children are watching intently as you try it. 

“Oh wow,” you gasp, eyes going wide, “this is good. Like really good.”

You weren’t kidding either. You don’t know how the kids did it, but they’d managed to make a delectable fish pie.

“Keye baked it!” Tumbo says, pointing at his little sister who was standing behind him and blushing, “she wants to be a cook- we used some rock salt from our family’s shop and Finley caught a staminoka bass in the river!”

You can tell the kids want to stay to talk to you more, but soon their parents are coming over to tell them all that it’s getting late. You wave at the four as they run off to their homes before turning to Sidon and Zelda. “That Keye kid has a talent. She can work on her presentation but this is some damn good fish pie,” you laugh, offering the box forward so they can each have a taste.

As the three of you snack on the pie, Bazz walks over to let you know he has to leave to finish up his duties as captain for the days, Tottika and Dunma leave to take their posts in the front of the Domain, and Rivan bids you goodbye to head home for the night. 

“Well, I suppose we should head up to the throne room to speak with King Dorephan,” Zelda suggests, feeding a small crumb of fish to the bird, which it happily ate up.

You nod and close the box, deciding to save the rest of the pie for later. The three of you walk side by side up the stairs and towards the throne room where King Dorephan happily greets you after your day away.

“Judging by the blue light from the Divine Beast I assume you found success in fixing Vah Ruta, yes?” he asked with a smile, and Zelda stepped up to explain what had occurred to him.

“_____ found this little guy blocking the circuitry on the back of the Divine Beast. After clearing away the nest the power in the machinery returned back to normal,” she told him after talking about the Lizalfos and having to split up.

The king nodded as he listened, very intrigued by the story. “That little bird is what was causing all that trouble?” he replied with a laugh, chuckling as he sat back in his chair, “well, now that the Divine Beast is up and running once more, do you have any plans on what to do with it, princess?”

Zelda nodded with a smile, “yes, that’s just what I wanted to discuss with you. First, however, I need to find a place for this bird,” she continued with a little giggle.

“Yes yes, of course,” King Dorephan said, nodding his head thoughtfully, “I’m sure my son can help this new feathered friend of yours find a temporary home.”

Zelda smiled as she turned to look at you and Sidon. “Well, do you have any ideas on where to house this little guy?” she asked, targeting the question mostly towards the prince.

Sidon tapped his chin as he thought, before smiling and quickly nodding his head, “I think I’ve got the perfect place in mind! Follow me,” he grinned, turning and heading out of the throne room.

You glance over at Zelda and shrug your shoulders, letting Zelda walk ahead as the two of you follow behind the Zora prince. He heads to the lower levels of the palace and past the room that you recognize as his own chambers. Soon enough he pauses in front of a room that has the emblem of a bird embedded in the door.

You watch as he unlocks and enters into the room, and the first thing you hear is a chorus of chirps and coos. “Young one, do you remember how I told you about the birds that my family trains to be message carriers,” he asked from within the room, “well, this is the aviary we house our wonderful birds in.”

Your curiosity can’t be contained as you walk into the room with Zelda, and you gasp as you look around. The room is full of birds of all colors and sizes, some asleep in little nests and others perched up on pegs and various stands. You giggle as a bright lavender bird swoops down and lands on your shoulder, it’s feathers tickling your cheek.

“Oh, they’re all gorgeous,” Zelda grinned, setting the nest in her hands down on one of the shelves. The little bird in the nest hopped out and fluttered over to a feeder and started to happily eat up all the seeds and nuts that it could fit in its beak, chirping as it did.

“_____, I believe you may recognize this old friend,” Sidon said on the other side of the room. You lean over and look up to see him balancing a blue messenger bird on his elbow.

“Archimedo!” you smile, and the bird perks up at the sound of his name being said and he chirps, flying over to land on your other shoulder. You grin and pet some of his feathers and let him coo and brush his head against your own.

Sidon chuckles as he walks over, and at the same time a third bird, this one a sea foam green color, flies over and perches itself on top of your head. “Well they’ve certainly taken a liking to you. That one on your shoulder is named Vivaria, and the one atop your head is Fefaro. I’m sure this little bird that you found will be able to rest here comfortably until we find a more permanent home.”

You hear the sound of happy laughter and turn to see Zelda sitting on the floor, a multitude of birds sitting on her arms and head and legs. “I think they like me too,” she grins, tilting her head to the side so the two smaller birds atop her head could balance, “I’d love to stay and study all these sweet little birds but we do have to return to your father.”

You help get all the birds off of her, returning them to their nests and perches before leaving the aviary to go back up to the throne room. On the way up you’re curious- extremely curious. Normally, Zelda would inform you of all her plans and ideas but this time she was telling you nothing. This clued you in on the fact that it had to be something big, however.

Once back in the throne room, you notice that Muzu has joined the king once more, and you give the elder Zora a smile to greet him. “Welcome back, princess,” King Dorephan said with a grin, “now then, I’m very excited to hear about what you’d like to discuss. I am at the edge of my seat, so to speak.”

Zelda nodded and cleared her throat momentarily, clasping her hands together as she readied herself to speak. “Well, as we all know, my mother passed away when I was very young. And my father passed away during the calamity, along with our champions and many other people in Hyrule. This means that I, as the Princess of Hyrule, will someday soon have to be crowned and become the Queen of Hyrule,” she began, “however, we are all well aware of the state that Hyrule is in still, even a hundred years after the Calamity. Particularly, the state of Hyrule Castle as well. 

“For one hundred years it was left in a corrupted and crumbling state, housing Ganon as I held him in his place, along with hordes of monsters that had made their home there. It’s been cleared out now that Ganon’s been destroyed… but it is nowhere near habitable. Not even a shadow of its former glory. I plan on beginning a mass architectural project to rebuild the castle, along with Hyrule Castle Town south of it. Once that’s completed I want to extend the project to rebuilding villages and towns all across Hyrule and begin to welcome back all those families who evacuated a century ago.

“This is an ambitious project, of course. There’s no telling how long this might take, but the first milestone for this project is to rebuild the center of Hyrule castle. From there my coronation can be held, and once I’m crowned Queen the building process will only continue. I was hoping that with help from all the races of Hyrule, meaning you, the Zora, the Goron of the North, the Gerudo of the South, and the Rito of the East, this project will go on to be successful. I want workers and architects from all corners of Hyrule to contribute and have a part in the rebuilding.”

You glanced over at Sidon once she was done explaining her grand idea. He nodded his thoughtfully, clearly enthralled by the plans she had put forward. 

“I must say princess, that is ambitious indeed- However! I have no qualms in supporting you as best I can in this effort,” King Dorephan decided, giving her a smile as he spoke, “I’ll give you as many architects as you may need, and I’m sure that the other races of Hyrule will have no issue in doing the same. You’re the pride of the land, after all. We’ll do whatever it takes to help you.”

A smile reaches Zelda’s lips and she bows her head, holding back a bigger grin. “Thank you very much for this vote of confidence, King Dorephan. I plan on meeting with the three other leaders of Hyrule to discuss this further and put together a task force. I’ll likely borrow one of the messenger birds and send a letter to the Gerudo Desert, that’s where I plan on going next...”

The conversation went on like this for a few more minutes, with some suggestions from Muzu about who to hire from the Zora and how the rivers around Hyrule could be used to travel back and forth between Zora’s Domain and the castle, and Sidon would offer his enthusiastic input as well.

Not too long later you were sitting on the steps of the throne room. The sun had set quite some time ago, and many of the Zora had left to go home for the night. Zelda had gone to the library to do some reading before heading to bed for the night, and she was borrowing the Sheikah Slate to take photos of some of the book passages to keep as notes.

You stretched your arms out as you leaned back, looking up at the night sky with its twinkling stars. You perked up though when you heard the sound of footsteps approaching, and you didn’t even have to turn to see who it was.

“Hey, princey,” you said jokingly, tilting your head to look back at him.

He smiled and shook his head, sitting down beside you on the steps, “How did you know it was me without turning around, young one?” he asked curiously, still towering over you even when sitting down.

“I have my ways,” you say with a grin, shrugging your shoulders a bit, “and question, why do you still call me ‘young one’? I’m old.”

“Not older than me, young one,” Sidon quickly shoots back.

You squint your eyes at him as you lean closer, staring him down despite being the shorter one, “I’m one hundred and eighteen years old. How old are you?”

He opens his mouth to reply, but quickly shuts it, and you grin knowing that you’d won this little fight.

“How old are you, Sidon? C’mon tell me,” you egg him on, poking his arm childishly.

“Alright, alright, you little pestering champion, I’m one hundred and sixteen years of age,” he sighed as he answered, averting his eyes once he did.

“You’re a baby!!” you exclaim with a laugh, giggling as you see the blush spreading on his cheeks, “you can’t call me ‘young one’ anymore, I’m older than you are.”

The two of you laughed it off, and once the giggles and chuckles had settled you found yourself leaning on his arm comfortably. You settled down as you rested against him and let yourself take in the moment- it was practically quiet enough to be able to hear his heartbeat.

“_____… I have a question I’d like to ask,” Sidon begins, and you tilt your head slightly to look up at him as he speaks, “when you were in Hyrule Castle, about to fight that dreadful Calamity Ganon, were you… were you scared?”

“... yeah… terrified,” you answer quietly.

He was quiet for a moment before speaking again. “What did you do to calm your nerves?”

You thought about it for a moment. “I… I thought about who I was fighting for. The Champions who died fighting for the same cause. Saving the princess, saving Hyrule… saving you…” you mumbled aloud, sort of trailing off as you lifted everything that had come to mind.

You saw Sidon’s eyes light up momentarily once you mentioned thinking about him while in Hyrule Castle. “Thinking of me helped to soothe your worries before such a momentous fight?” he asked, a small smile meeting his lips as his gaze softened.

“Yeah… yeah, I guess so,” you reply with a soft laugh, “you are an encouraging ally after all. Your words and faith in me give me confidence… and I just… well I care about you…” you murmur, before blushing when you realize what you’d admitted, “well- I- I care about all of Hyrule of course! I’m a knight of the royal family, the protector of the land- I just- um- I meant that-”

Sidon chuckles, amused while he watches you stammer and try and explain yourself. He raises a hand to your face, cupping your cheek gently, and the feeling makes you immediately quiet down. Though his skin is made up of scales, they feel soft against your skin. You look up at him with curious eyes, neither of you saying a word while you just stare.

You don’t quite realize it, but after a moment you notice yourself instinctively lifting your head to be closer to his… and he mirrors that motion, moving down closer to you.

You can practically hear your heart thumping in your chest as your faces gets nearer to his, close enough to feel the heat ebbing off of him and-

“Sidon, _____, I’ve got something I’d very much like to discuss with you both!”

You both jump away from one another, wide eyed as you turn to see Zelda running up the pathway towards you.

“After speaking to the King about the reconstruction of the castle, some other ideas came to mind on how to rebuild the kingdom as a whole. It’s another big task to take on, but I’m sure that you and some others would be up to the challenge,” she says with a grin, hands on her hips and quite oblivious to the moment you and the prince were just having.

“Um, sure-” you mumble, coughing a little awkwardly as your cheeks practically burn, “what did you need, Zelda?”

You try to ignore how you already dearly miss the prince’s touch on your face.

“Well, it’d probably be easier to explain in the library, I’ve gathered some documents and books for this, so please follow me,” she smiled, nodding her head and spinning on her heels and walking away from the stairs.

Sidon glances over at you curiously, clearly confused by what Zelda’s motive was. You merely shrug, not exactly sure what the princess is planning either. But the two of you do get up from the stairs and follow behind her, blushing whenever you’d accidently bump into one another and trying to keep the awkward tension unnoticeable.

You had no idea what would’ve happened if Zelda hadn’t shown up. It was almost like you’d been close to… kissing Sidon? No, that couldn’t have been right. You were just sitting close to one another. Besides, you had doubts that a literal prince would want to be involved with you intimately.

You were so lost in your own confused thoughts that you had almost passed by the library, not focused on where you were walking. You were stopped by Sidon, who had grabbed your hand so that you wouldn’t continue to walk down the hallway.

“The library’s right here, little one,” he chuckled softly, and you blushed when you heard the new nickname. 

Little one.

“That’s my new name, since you can’t call me ‘young one’ anymore?” you ask with a chuckle, turning to face him as a grin spreads on your face.

“Yes, I suppose so, little one,” he repeats, though this time his tone of voice is considerably more sarcastic as he teases you.

You both laugh it off momentarily, and when the laughter dies down you both look down to see your hands still interlocked. 

You each pull your hand away from one another, and you cough nervously, rubbing your arm to try and ease some tension in your mind. Your fingers brushed over metal, and you realized you were still wearing the band he’d gifted you on his arm. Your eyes flick over to his hand, and you smile when you spy that the earring you’d given him was still on his finger like a ring.

For some odd reason, seeing that made a feeling of warmth blossom in your chest. Before you could continue to dwell on those thoughts however, you heard Zelda’s voice ring out, calling the two of you into the library.

“Are you two going to come in, or are you just going to loiter about in the hall” she asked with a laugh, peeking her head out through the doorway.

You stick your tongue out at her before dropping your arms to the side and walking in. Once inside the circular room, you look curiously at the desk in the center. The princess had laid out various books and papers and stacks of notes, and upon closer inspection, they were all referring to the Divine Beasts, both notes from a century ago and thousands of years back when the Sheikah first constructed them. Mipha’s journal was on the table as well, and it was flipped to the pages where she logged her experiences in trying to learn how to pilot Vah Ruta.

“Princess, may I ask what all of this is for?” Sidon asked curiously, walking over to the table and skimming over some of the pages.

“Well, it’s the other part of my plan in reviving and rebuilding Hyrule. The castle will be constructed, and so will many of the towns and villages scattered about the land. But, the kingdom needs protection. Ganon may be gone, but we never know when another foe may strike. I will, of course, hire a new royal guard once I’m crowned queen, but I’ve been bouncing around another idea as of late,” she began to explain, walking over to the table and picking up one of the papers laid out- a drawn picture of the exterior of Ruta.

“The Divine Beast Vah Ruta, created by the Sheikah long long ago and given to a brave and formidable warrior to pilot and use to fight off the forces of Ganon. One hundred years ago when I was charged in selecting four Champions for each respective divine beast, I chose Princess Mipha to pilot Ruta. I chose her for her kind soul, her wit, her role in the kingdom, and her tactical skills when it came to battle. One of the brightest and best Zora of the time, who is of course dearly missed.

“A century later though, Vah Ruta has been reclaimed from Ganon’s corruption, but lacks a pilot. In fact, each Divine Beast lacks a pilot. Rudania, Medoh, and Naboris. I believe that four new Champions can be selected and trained to be their new pilots, and be four pillars of protection for the land of Hyrule. I already have four people in mind, based on the stories _____ has told me about her journey and process of defeating Calamity Ganon. I will go to each person and discuss whether or not they’d like to take on the role, and once the castle is rebuilt I’d like to hold a ceremony for the Champions, just as we did one hundred years ago. Now then, you’re both smart and I’m sure you’ve figured out where I’m going with this whole speech of mine,” Zelda said with a little grin, making you and Sidon laugh.

The princess set down the paper she’d been holding up and pressed her palms together, looking over at Zora in the room. “Prince Sidon. You are a courageous and valiant warrior. You’ve grown up with a love for your domain and your people and I can only imagine that this same love and care extends out to the rest of Hyrule. You and your sister before you both share the same kind soul, which you of course inherited from King Dorephan. You’re a skilled fighter, you’re smart, and the people of this domain look up to you as a leader and future king. I, as princess and soon to be Queen of Hyrule, offer you a role. Would you like to be the new pilot of Divine Beast Vah Ruta and take on the title of Zora Champion?”

You look over at Sidon and smirk when you see him looking down at Zelda, mouth agape with stars in his eyes. He quickly composes himself and clears his throat, tapping his chin thoughtfully. “I- Well, this is quite a lot to take in, Zelda. It would be quite the undertaking, training and learning an entirely new set of skills, taking on both the role of a Divine Beast pilot and training in becoming the future king at the same time. I may have to think further on this, but don’t fret, as I do believe I will be taking you up on this offer. It would be… well it would be an absolute honor to become a Champion, and especially to follow in my sister’s footsteps and pilot the same Divine Beast as she once did.”

You could see the beaming grin form on Zelda’s face as she looked up at him, and you chuckled a little, knowing she must’ve been thrilled to have him on board with the plan. “So, since you’ve picked pilots based on what I’ve told you, I’m going to assume I know who the other three candidates for champions are,” you start, drawing Zelda’s attention to you, “Chief Riju of the Gerudo for Naboris, Teba of the Rito for Medoh, and Yunobo of the Goron for Rudania. Right?”

“Spot on, _____,” Zelda smiled, nodding her head, “I plan on going to each of the other races and talking to each candidate. If they don’t wish to take on the role, I won’t hold a grudge. We’ll just have to work hard on finding other well deserving pilots.”

You thought about it for a moment before nodding your head in agreement. “I think Riju will definitely be up for the task. She’s currently the chief of the Gerudo, just like Urbosa was, she’s confident, and wants what’s best for her people. I don’t know if Teba will agree to this, but Yunobo… well he’s a bit more reserved but he is a direct descendent of Daruk, and inherited his protection ability. I think with a confidence boost and some training Yunobo could be a great pilot for Rudania.” you explain thoughtfully, going over each person and their respective personalities.

“Yes of course. Well, I believe we can stay here in Zora’s Domain for a few more days to get started on your training, Sidon,” Zelda said with a smile, turning back to the prince, “we can do a few test runs, get you accustomed to Divine Beast and some of its mechanics. And after that, I think we can go to Gerudo Desert. I’d like to talk to Riju next, both about piloting Naboris and reconstructing the castle.”

“Sounds like a plan,” you grinned with a shrug of your shoulders, “I’d love to stay in the domain longer, so long as Sidon and his father will have us of course.” You glance over at the prince and quirk your lips up, giving him a cheeky little smile as soon as you mention him.

He immediately perks up and gives both you and the princess a beaming grin. “Why of course we’ll host you! Both you and Princess Zelda are welcome no matter what day of the year, we’ll have you here as a guest for however long you may need!” he exclaimed, spreading his arms apart in an excited manner.

“Brilliant!” Zelda cheered, “well, I suppose we can all retire to bed for the night. Here Sidon, these are your sister's notes about Ruta. I suggest reading through them so we can start on your training- oh, and we’ll of course tell your father about this in the morning.”

The princess picked up Mipha’s journal from the table, shutting it and handing it over to Sidon who gratefully took it into his hands. You noticed that there were several pieces of marked paper sticking out of the book in various places, probably to mark pages that Zelda had deemed as important.

“Would you like me to guide the two of you to your room?” Sidon asked politely as he carefully held the journal in his hands, “it’s on the way to my own chamber after all, and it is getting late.”

“Of course, let me just put these books away, I’d hate to leave them all out for staff to have to clean up,” Zelda quickly replies, starting to pick up all the books and papers she’d pulled off of the shelves.

You and Sidon work to help her clean up- and at one point your hands brush past one another as you try and pick up the same book, causing you both to blush and drop the book on accident. 

A few minutes later the three of you are walking down the hall together, idling chatting and all excited for what is to come in your lives. As soon as you get to the room, Zelda bids Sidon good night and walks inside, leaving the two of you to stand outside in the hall.

“Well- um, good night, Sidon,” you mumble a little shyly, clearing your throat as you look down at the floor.

You’re a bit confused when you don’t hear a response from him, and when you glance up you see him reach his hand forward to you. 

“Sidon-”

Before you can finish your sentence, his hand touches your hair, and you blush profusely until he pulls his hand back- and you see him holding a leaf between his fingers.

“Sorry little one, there was this small twig in your hair. I assume it’s been there since our little trip in the river, but I simply couldn’t leave it” he replied with a small laugh, “but, y-yes, I should be letting you retire to bed already. Good night, _____.”

You nod your head, still blushing a bit. “Y-yeah, night.”

Before an awkward tension can settle between you, you walk backwards into the room and give him a smile before shutting the door.

Zelda had already slipped into a nightgown and was getting into bed once you turned around to look at her. “Well… things are seeming a little tense between you and the prince,” she says, throwing you a playful smirk as she begins to untangle her braids.

You roll your eyes at her as you start to undo your armor, “Whatever, princess. It’s nothing-” you begin, only to get cut off by a giggle from her.

“Ah yes, nothing. Sure.” she grins, still teasing you.

You huff and ignore her as you strip off the rest of your clothing until you're left in the long blue tunic and your undergarments. You glance back and see that Zelda had already drifted off peacefully, so you strip off the tunic and slip into the same robe you’d worn the night before, deciding you’d bathe in the morning.

You shut the blinds and dim the lamps, setting the Master Sword down in a safe place before finally slipping into bed and getting comfortable beneath the covers. You struggle to fall asleep for a few minutes, your thoughts swimming and wandering to various places. But eventually you're able to drift, the fatigue after a day of adventure finally getting to you.

~~~ <> ~~~

Previous Chapter

Next Chapter

[mamamittens]

Major Tears of The Kingdom Spoilers while I act a sentimental fool and nerd with a "what if" scenario

Okay, so I was thinking (oh God not again) about the Divine Beasts and the Light Dragon.

If you don't know about the deal with the Light Dragon yet and don't want to be spoiled, scroll away sweet summer child! Same goes for the final battle in Tears of the Kingdom!

So it really does bother me that the divine Beasts and the champions (baring Mipha) are just??? Gone??? Like, everyone acts like they never existed?!? And it's unclear if Link in ToTK went through BoTW cause so much of the landscape is different?!? The shrine of awakening is straight up gone, the ancient towers missing, and you don't have any of your shit but the horses?!? Why?!?!?

Like, Tulin (my precious baby who has done no wrong, ever) is referred to as the first Rito to create his own wind but like.... RIVALI DID THAT?!? Like, he had to be squat so maybe they mean in midair but still?!? And Yonobu has a slightly different ability from the shield, like he lost it or something?!? Why?!?

And the divine Beasts are totally gone, no one mentions them and it's not like they were small?!?

Where did they go?!?

Naturally, I had a fun idea for a little... Fixy fix.

Imagine if, when Hyrule Castle went up (again) and all that shit started up, the Divine Beasts were still parked right where they were when you defeated Calamity Ganon (maybe his spirit self and defeating the calamity is why hydrated Ganon has to hide his ass away under the castle on top of being bent over by Rauru for thousands of years--yeah I said what I said and I know exactly how that sounds.

But they didn't activate. They were totally silent while their respective people suffered. And because of that, the races assumed they'd been abandoned by their protectors (baring Mipha, who the Zora assumed she'd simply fulfilled her duty with the end of the Calamity and moved on). And that's why they don't talk about the champions aside from maybe a few hushed comments, a bit bitter that they'd been left to fend for themselves.

And as you fight the area's bosses, there is like, a midway point where suddenly the Divine Beasts jolts and fires a single attack, triggering the second stage before powering down again. When you beat the boss, the Divine Beasts shudder back online and trample over to the nearest chasm, diving in. Maybe a stray voice line from the previous champion about it not being over yet--referring to the round two fight below in the Depths.

And the Divine Beasts are understandably fucked up from the fall, eventually you find them near the boss area.

I thought it'd be cool if Vah Medo was partially frozen over by Colgera with one of the weak spots now over the engine and inaccessible to be hit, so it's left for last. And when you do go to try and bust it open, a sudden updraft sends you flying as it explodes, Ghost Rivali mocking you for needing his help. Beast defeated once and for all (the respawn is a normal variant), you receive the Rivali's Gale again accessed the same way as in BoTW so it doesn't mess with Tulin's Vow.

Vah Naboris is grounded, legs broken (RIP) and the Gibdo Queen almost sneaks up on you but a bolt stops her. Halfway part is the Queen lurching to his inside Naboris' chest cavity while shooting out spawns perhaps? And going in to kick ass until the health is gone triggers a cutscenes of Naboris powering up and electrocuting the shit outta here. Urbosa giving you her lighting attack, letting Riju's be a long range attack and Urbosa being close range area of effect.

Vah Rudania perhaps triggering a spray of lazers or trapping the Gohma? Maybe it skitters up a wall out of reach until Rudania skuttles over and slams it back down for a finishing blow before you're given the improved shield ability? Sounds neat to me, honestly.

Vah Ruta probably starts spraying water, giving the mud spots a time limit and perhaps slamming down the trunk when the Mucktorok tries to go inside to take over the Divine Beast? Finally, you get Mipha's ability again, requiring no button prompt.

They all have their cheeky little lines before stating that it's time they rest and let the Sages handle things from here.

As for the Light Dragon, you absolutely should have been able to tell at least Purah and Impa about Zelda. They both have no idea how to help but set up a station to observe her move through the sky, maybe tooling up towers for extra height to reach for additional research?!? And they decide to craft a gift to show Zelda that they believe in her and maybe see if there's truly nothing left--thats right, you make her a flower crown of Silent Princess's. Maybe with Champion fabric woven in alongside mini flags of the kingdoms, idk. And they're naturally upset when it appears to do nothing but produce a single tear.

This builds up to the boss battle where a cut scene plays just as Ganon takes off with Link. Purah and Impa turn their gaze to where Zelda previously was flying peacefully only to see her gunning towards Ganon.

"I-Is that?!?"

Sages might limp into frame, Riju and Tulin carried by Yonobu and Sidon, all beaten to hell and back but alive.

"It's her!"

And maybe the addition of the flower crown means you slowly heal while riding her to get a good vantage to kick Ganon's ass, idk.

Maybe she has the flower crown still when she turns back for extra points. Her bob braided with flowers and beads representing the crown in the end cutscene, the flower crown displayed in her study.

The Champions turn into Poes at the end, either drifting off as they finally move on or to be collected by link and given to the bargainer statues. Maybe for minis of the Divine Beasts with their Champions that'll be displayed in your house?! Or flags or something idk, something sweet and commemorative.

Anyway! That's just my thought for something that'd be really cool and sorta poetic. Really burying the past and letting it move on, perhaps with a few speeches from the different regions about the champions trusting them to handle hardships on their own now, giving the task of defending the realm to a new generation.

Or maybe I'm full of shit, idk. But I do gotta go to bed, so there's that 🤭

[nyxsbotwtapestry]

before after

did guardians nr. 6&7 today (out of 283)

i think i'm just gonna finish the bottom row of guardians before going back to vah ruta

did 462 stitches in just over 2 hours

20.8% done

[tnc-n3cl]

Fic Author Interview

Thanks for the tag @unmaskedcardinal!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

Five although one of them is really a rough draft of another fic.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

264,548! (There's way more on the way though...)

3. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

The Amnesiac Hero's Quest (T, BotW AU covering when Link leaves the Great Plateau until just after freeing Vah Ruta (and Mipha), 14 chapters, only finished fic so far) 50 kudos.

Link's Story: Finding Hateno Village (T, BotW AU, pretty much what it says on the tin, Link leaves Kakariko going towards Mt. Lanaryu by mistake and tries to find his way to Hateno Village. This is the one that spawned TAHQ, oneshot, the first thing I posted on AO3.) 21 kudos.

Shifting Tides of Fate (M, BotW AU picking up where TAHQ leaves off, Link and Mipha head to Rito Village to save Revali and free Vah Medoh, 6 chapters posted, WIP) 11 kudos.

The Ballad of Kass (M (originally T), BotW AU starting a week or two before the start of TAHQ, Kass sets out to find Link to fulfil his promise to his teacher, and his sister Kalia tags along. Second thing I posted, kind of the backbone to the whole The Realm Walker saga at this point [cause it intersects with the other stories so I have to time things out carefully], 15 chapters posted, WIP) 8 kudos.

The Tale of the Realm Walker (M, Wind Waker & Twilight Princess sequel with a ton of nods to the rest of the franchise (a LOT of ALttP). Chronologically the first story in TRW Saga, but I'm effectively telling it as an in-universe tale in BotW times, and it's the most recently posted fic of mine on AO3, only 2 chapters posted so far, WIP) 2 kudos.

The first two fics for sure got hit by the kudos bug a while ago. Kudos Georg I guess... Given that they've been up the longest I can see why they've got more than the others.

4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! If someone took the time to comment on my fics then I'm going to say something back. I'm am very much here for the community aspect. Even though I may not always comment on something I've read (or art I've looked at).

5. What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

Well the only one with an ending so far is TAHQ and it's fairly happy. Hm... How to not spoil plans? If it was finished then The Tale of the Realm Walker would be the answer. I'll uh... leave it at that...

6. What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

See above, The Amnesiac Hero's Quest.

7. Do you write crossovers?

Not anymore, I had some batcrap insane hypothetical video game ideas that were crossovers, but those have all mostly been tossed. Though I did salvage plenty of ideas from them. The Realm Walker Saga itself came from a LoZ/Final Fantasy crossover, "Project 47" as well. Untitled Castelvania Fanfic Project... Untitled Front Mission Fanfic Project...

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

No.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

No.

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware of.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, but that'd be pretty cool.

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No, but one of the stories in my Trek fanfic got an editor. Went by the username of USS Da Vinci (IIRC) on Subspace Comms Network (SCN, a now defunct Star Trek and Sci-Fi forum I was on).

13. What's your all-time favorite ship?

I guess Revalink. Or Picard/Crusher?

14. What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

At this point I've more or less made my peace with the death of my Trek and Stargate fics. Do I think about them still? Yes. (I'd give my aliens with the space whale ships Discovery style spore drives... Maybe throw in a Kelpian character or two...) (Had a blast rewatching most of the Ori arc of SG-1 not that long ago...)

15. What are your writing strengths?

Action scenes, quirky humor (I make myself laugh at least), describing what characters are doing in a scene.

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

Scenery porn. I so rarely mention time of day or anything. I have to really sit down and focus on all that, so lately I've just been hammering out an arc and then going back and fluffing all that up in edits. (Although I am particularly proud of a few scenes in The Ballad of Kass and Shifting Tides of Fate.)

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I actually tried this with a little teaser for my Castlevania fic idea. The scene takes place in Austria so I decided to have the opening few lines be in German then switch to English, cause while I did take a couple classes in college, I don't know nearly enough to write a whole dialog chain. So throughout the little snippet there'd be a German line or two. Used Google translate for things I didn't know, but it was giving me something weird for "My name is..." [Also stared at Google Maps of Graz for HOURS picking locations, even though the fic is set 1,071 years in the future after a society ruining cataclysm... I must have some accuracy!]

I have made up words for fics. I've got 11 whole alphabets for the Avestrens (bird people) in "Project 47" and a handful of words. A handful of Rito words. Back in my Trek fic days I was writing in script format and would just put things like [Cardassian curse] rather than trying to come up with something.

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Star Trek, it was script based and set 10 years after Voyager's return from the Delta Quadrant. Multiple spinoffs were planed spanning a period of 50 years. (I had started writing the sequel before finishing the first fic, and wrote a little bit of some of the other spinoffs.)

19. What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

I can't really think of anything. I'd like to do something with my Castlevania or Final Fantasy ideas but I'd need the right mood or inspiration to get anywhere. I'm not much of a shipper to be honest, at least with canon characters I guess? I like making my OC's kiss...

20. What's your favorite fic you've written?

Oh that's hard! The initial version of The Tale of the Realm Walker has a special place in my heart, but gods it's all walls of text! How did I ever keep track of everything?! The Ballad of Kass is a place for me to go nuts with Rito headcanons and have fun with the birbs until I can get the Revali centric fics really going. I'm proud of actually finishing The Amnesiac Hero's Quest (I love moment where Link finally meets Purah and is convinced that there's something in the water in Hateno that makes everyone a weirdo and she put it there. He's getting his red string and nails ready...).

I guess just for semantics sake, since "written" is past tense, I'll go with TAHQ as my final answer (this time around) since it's finished.

No Pressure Tags: @critical-birb, @zeawesomebirdie, @readwritebeawesome

[karume-selfshipper]

Tides that Bind: Weighted Release

Emotional scene, Selatoh spills... most under the cut

Ever since sludge started raining from the sky, a sense of dread filled the air. Seeing their comrades affected by such thick, purple/brown gunk was severely off-putting. Even with Sidon doing his best to filter the water…

Selatoh could only wait, hope that Link would be able to fix this the way he had fixed Vah Ruta. Sidon had come back so quickly after leaving to help Link back then, so why…

In an attempt to shove all of that into the back of her mind, Selatoh approached a weakened Tottika, Seggin once again attempting to talk sense into the younger Zora male. By convincing him that a few Splash Fruit would be good for him. Clearing her throat calmly, Selatoh didn't want to risk anyone else becoming infected.

”L-Lady Selatoh!” Seggin stepped back, “What are you doing at such an hour?”

Tottika couldn't help the guilty feeling deep in the pit of his stomach, he did miss many training sessions with Selatoh and she would likely be upset with him for that. Among other things of course.

”I can't bring myself to sleep at the moment.” Her voice was calm, even, “I can keep watch over Tottika for the night Seggin, please go get some rest yourself.”

”My Lady…”

There was no denying Selatoh tonight however, both Zora men could see it across her face.

“Of- of course Your Highness.” Seggin bowed before shuffling off to the communal pools, “Please don’t hesitate if you need something.”

“Thank you  Seggin.”

Tottika stared down at his feet, uncomfortable with the situation. He should have been more alert, should have avoided the sludge as it rained from the sky. Instead here he was, visibly sick and being tended to by others. First Seggin, and now…

“Have you eaten anything lately?” Selatoh had settled a few feet away, just far enough that she could speak softly and not be infected with the sludge, “Link has shown me a few things about cooking. It should help, but you shouldn’t overeat. That won;t help-”

“I have not Lady Selatoh.” Tottika looked away guiltily, “I deeply appreciate your concern but I will be-”

Tottika pulled his head back, slightly avoiding the nearly five foot fork with a bizarre dish on the end. 

“You should attempt to.” She gently insisted, “At least a little. To keep your strength up, hopefully expel some of this sludge.”

As much as he wanted to refuse; the soft, deeply concerned look across her face couldn’t really be argued with. Falling silent, Tottika shyly accepted the oddly shaped rice ball; chewing slowly, hoping that Selatoh would need to leave for some reason. 

Yet Selatoh couldn’t bring herself to leave, patiently stabbing the little, half grilled sushi rolls. The long fork she’d made, more a mini trident than a fork if she was honest, was slightly unwieldy. Having busied herself with all these smaller things, unable to keep herself from thinking about how Sidon once again took off with Link to solve an issue for the Domain. 

Her mind refused to leave anything alone. Especially someone she felt close with… And just as Tottika was nodding off, nearly finishing off the stamina sushi rolls that may or may not actually help, Selatoh turned her face upward. The sludge was slowing down, not nearly as much fell… They were doing something up there and Selatoh was stuck here on the ground. It felt like Vah Ruta all over again.

“This is crazy,” Seltoh whispered under her breath, glancing around. 

Tottika’s slowed breathing was the opposite effect that stamina boosting recipes should have. But given the laborious breathing he’d been subjected to, the sludge sticking to his body, creeping close to his gills and making breathing difficult over all… 

“Why does it feel so hopeless? Link returned twice, Father is safe in the Pristine Sanctum…”

Selatoh didn’t fully register her voice raising slightly, but Tottika did. And for as much as he wanted to be the person Selatoh would confide in, this wasn’t the way to go about it.

“After all, with the cloud barrier having been broken and Link assuring us that there were ways to reverse most if not all of the damage… Then why-”

Unsure how else to break the ice, Tottika coughed; causing Selatoh to whip her head around. That was some sort of answer right there, wasn’t it? She didn’t want to confide in him, just speak and feel that she is heard. 

“My apologies Tottika,” Selatoh made to stand, “I didn’t mean to disturb your rest.”

“Ah-! No, please stay Lady Selatoh.” Tottika couldn’t physically reach out but… “I only meant to inform you that I was awake. I don’t mind listening, if that’s what you need.

It’s all I’m good for at the moment after all.” 

Selatoh’s face crinkled slightly, unsure just how to tell Tottika he was wrong. Yet she settled back into her seated position. Similarly uncertain if she should continue. Her problems were hers alone, burdening others…

Shaking her head, “I wouldn’t want to trouble you Tottika. It simply feels too… specific to voice to someone else.”

“Tell me anyway. I may not be able to help more than merely listening, but that is my duty as a guard. To assist you in whatever way you deem fit.”

“I hardly know where to begin.” Selatoh leaned back, eyes flitting right back to the islands over their heads, “Everything feels… overwhelming.”

Following her gaze, Tottika could only wait. He didn’t know how to coax Selatoh into speaking her mind, he couldn’t even keep up with her during weapons training. All of this was out of his depth.

“I can’t help but worry about how Sidon has been fairing these last few months. From the sludge, to being in an arranged marriage, the sky islands appearing, Father disappearing… It all happened so fast, everything all at once…”

Looking at Selatoh, Tottika could barely read her expression. She had the same forms of responsibilities as her brother and yet she acted as if she were completely detached. 

“If Mipha were still here… What would she do in this situation? She was far better at water magic than I will ever be. Perhaps I should have spent more time training in that aspect, I know I should have done something.”

A deep breath escaped Selatoh, yet the weight of her guilty conscience was increasing, “I should have been the one to leave, not Father. I should have done more within the Domain. I should have been able to defend my kingdom better than this.”

It was torment to sit through, the way her voice was beginning to quiver only made Tottika squirm. He would have squeezed her in a tight hug, anything to help ease her pains and tell her she shouldn’t feel this way. But he couldn’t, not only because of the sludge but because Selatoh would ultimately hate him for it. He basically had to beg her to sit and talk this out, to be the one she confided in and yet…

“Now my people are suffering, my father is off recovering away from his home, my brother has gone on to fight an entity that could very well kill him, and all I’m capable of doing is this!” Selatoh lurched forward, hiding her face in her hands, “I feel as if I’m losing everything and there’s nothing I can do about it. I can barely even help you Tottika.”

Turning slightly, expecting a hurt or disappointed look from the male Zora, Selatoh could barely bring herself to peek from between her fingers. Yet she was met with the glimpse of an extremely sympathetic expression, someone clearly fighting their instincts just to protect her from the physical threat they posed. It was a little too much for Selatoh and she jerked back into her hands, hiding as best she could and continuing to pour her soul out to the only other person she was even remotely comfortable saying any of this to.

“I… I’m so sorry Tottika. I should have been more prepared for what would happen.” Selatoh’s voice was so low and deflated, “I know I’ve failed. Every attempt to help, to make things right has backfired to an obtuse degree. Assisting Sidon care for the Domain, protecting everyone, even my attempt to talk sense to Yona ended in a screaming match where I threw a temper tantrum. One that no one should have had to witness, such a disgusting lack of judgment on my part became Sidon’s problem to tend to right before he went…”

Gesturing up to the sky islands, Selatoh felt the tears she’d been holding fly outward, streaming down half her face as she could only stare up at the sky.

“You haven’t failed anyone My Lady.” Tottika said slowly, trying to be as reassuring as possible, “There is no feasible way to prepare for an event such as this. Please, why do you feel as if so much of this falls to you?”

Unable to look him in the eye for more than a couple seconds, Selatoh’s eyes lowered to the floor, the tear stains between her feet. 

“I know I should have been the one crowned.” She muttered quietly, “Sidon was chosen due to his ability to socialize properly. But I was supposed to be the one next in line. Yet after Mipha… and especially being her mirror image… I can’t stop myself from constantly wondering what I’m doing wrong. How can I be more like her, more like Sidon. No one ever says it directly, but I can tell they judge. Hold me to that standard Mipha set. And I… I…”

“You don’t need to be like either Lady Mipha or Prince Sidon.” Tottika keep his eyes trained on Selatoh, hurt by the words she spoke, the tears she was shedding over the matter, “No matter what you may overhear, what others might think. You do so much for the Domain as is, just by being yourself. There are things you do which others are truly envious of, myself included.”

Looking away as Selatoh managed to look at him, “And not just your incredible fighting abilities. You are quite possibly the strongest among the Zora, amid Hyrule at large, simply because you shoulder so many hefty burdens alone. The emotional fortitude required given how much you do resemble Lady Mipha alone would hold a fortress for centuries. Please My Lady, don’t allow those degrading thoughts to haunt you. You are someone the young Zora look up to, because you show your strength in many ways.”

The emptiness Selatoh felt, just sitting there after getting most everything off her chest, hearing someone praise her for the things she fought to keep hidden. It wasn’t a fully good, nor bad feeling. It simply… existed. Though she could say she felt better for having gotten it all out in the open, this hollow feeling, releasing that immense buzzing in the back of her mind… it helped.

[mooncrisisdepression]

I had this theory about the connection between the Zonai and the Sheikah and I think Sidon might have proven me right??

Theory and spoilers below the cut!

After you finish the main quest for each of the four races across Hyrule you can recive an additional side quest from the four Sages.

Each one follows the same idea, solve a riddle and find the helm matching one of the Divine Beasts corosponding to a Sage.

The item description states that each helm was once worn by a warior "in a time beyond memory".

I first assumed that the game was talking about the Champions from 10,000 years ago, rather the Sages from the Age of Legends. Though they look similar to the helms worn by the orginal four Sages, they seem to be Sheikah in origin and were also available in Breath of the Wild. What I concluded was that the Sheikah took inspiration from the Zonai and this is just a small nod to the missing Divine Beasts.

But I had this theory that maybe the Sheikah and Zonai technology are one and the same and the almost bone like design of the Sheikah technology wasn't intentional, it's actually the foundation of everything made by the Zonai. The turquoise and gold falling away from age. All of this was based on the fact when you wear the helms, the sages spirit wears a matching helm but in the design of the Ancestors.

Like I said just a theory, until I did the quest for the Vah Ruta helm and Sidon says this.

Either Sidon has bad eye sight or this is the developers trying to hint at far more direct conection between the Zonai and the Sheikah.

There are some more examples that I'm not going to include here but I have to say this is the one that I think adds the most credence to the theory from everything I've seen so far. I'm excited to see what else I find!

[pupika-samika]

A King is Nothing Without His People

Chapter 9

Dive into the Unknown

CW: None

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Spoiler alert. It did not work out. At least, not how Link hoped it would. He could have predicted about a hundred things happening before he predicted what was currently happening! He stood in front of King Dorephen and Prince Sidon, mouth much too dry considering where he was. "W-What did you say?" The two Zora towered over him, making the mighty hero feel small and powerless. A mere worm compared to the giant sharks in front of him. They- he can't be serious? There's no way she planned this far!

Link looked over at Mipha, the small Zora standing next to her younger brother. She looked surprised as well but unlike Link, she was much better at hiding it.

Link looked down at the parchment paper again, letting the words sink in as he memorized the contents. He knew what they said, he knew they were important but he couldn’t get it in his head that it was real. "Father, are you sure about this? This hasn't come to light in over a century, are you sure you still want to honor that kind of contract?" Sidon asked his father, looking as shocked as Link felt. 

Now you might be wondering, Link, how did we get to this point? To be quite honest, Link was wondering that himself. It started at 6 am, the time Yunobo woke up. The Goron woke up later than Link, which gave him plenty of time to make breakfast for them both. Two rockroasts for the Goron, and three omelets for the Hylian. 

"Good-" a yawn broke through the sentence. "Morning, Goro! Do you always wake up so early?" Yunobo asked as he sat beside Link, picking up one of the offered roasts. The Hylian had to admire Yunobos cheerfulness so soon after waking up, even he didn't feel so happy right after waking up. Link didn't answer the question, instead watching his friend's reaction as he ate the rock. 

Yunobo took one bite of the roast and lit up, chewing the rock much more enthusiastically. Taking another, much bigger bite he asked, "woah Link! Where'd you get this roast from, Goro!? It tastes delicious!" He praised, taking more chunks out of the rock. 

"Oh I made it. I found the recipe somewhere and wanted to do something nice for you." Link lied. It was much easier saying you found a recipe than explaining you had your friend's dead grandfather explaining how to make it step by step. "Is it really that good? I should've made one for myself." 

"It's delicious! Here, you can have the second one! You shouldn't miss out on a meal as good as this! You need strong rocks to grow big and durable, Goro!" Yunobo praised as he held out the rockroast. As tempted as Link was, he had to decline.

With a shake of his head, Link held up a hand to stop the offending rock from entering his personal space. “I already ate Yunobo, but next time I’ll make sure to make one for me too. I made those for you so you should eat them.” He explained, giving his friend a smile. With much convincing, Link was able to get Yunobo to finish both the rockroasts by himself. 

They finished eating breakfast at almost 6:30, the perfect time. If he planned everything correctly then his meeting with Dorephen wouldn't take too long. Hopefully less than an hour if it could be helped. Then he could spend the rest of the day in Vah Ruta, maybe spend the night in the machine if- 

"Oh, Link! I forgot about the promise I made last night!"

Yunobo cut Link out of his thoughts. Promise? What promise- Oh! 

"There's been some really, really strong monsters hanging around lately! They even have gold pelts, it's crazy Goro!"

"What?" Link asked, dumbfounded. Gold pelted monsters? That's ridiculous, there's no way there's golden pelted monsters…Right? "Where are they? I'll see if I can clear them sometime soon."

"We've already gotten rid of most of them, there's just that one Lynel near those whale bones up north but no one ever goes there so it shouldn' be a problem. You shoulda see them Link, Goro! They're so strong, it's takes two Gorons to take down a golden Bokoblin!" Yunobo raved, excitement sparkling over him. If it were any other race, Link might've been worried about how many monsters were in the area. But knowing how strong the Gorons were, Link felt he could put this issue on the backburner. At least for a few days. 

Link gave a hum in acknowledgement as he thought over the monsters. He could leave those be for a few days, until the next blood moon. The two spent a few minutes watching the sunrise, the sky becoming more blue and orange then black and red. 

“Well, I guess it's time for me to get going. Thank you again for the gift and information Yunobo." Link smiled, briefly glancing at the crimson ribbon inside his slate before switching to his map screen. He wouldn’t wear it now, only because his current hair tie was almost broken. He’d wear the ribbon when the tie finally broke. His fourth hair tie lasted much longer than the others, being bought during the last leg of his quest and seeing less hardship than his other three. "I'll visit again really soon, in about a month. I'll even stockpile on some rock-roasts for everyone to try." 

"Be careful, goro. And if you ever need help, I'll be right there! Just- give me a warning if you think you'll need my help with something," he paused, seeming to work himself up to say something. He waited, allowing Yunobo to gather his words. “And Link? You’re always welcomed here. Not just to my house but to the volcano, to the city, goro.”

Blinking in surprise, Link stared at Yunobo. The Goron looked away from him, seemingly embarrassed. “Thank you, Yunobo. I promise to come visit more often.” He promised, shooting a smile at the Goron. Yunobo fidgeted for a few seconds, making Link wonder what else he had to say. “Anything else on your mind?”

It happened so fast that Link thought he had gotten attacked. One second Link was standing, staring at Yunobo with his slate in hand, and the next he was being awkwardly smushed into a rocky chest.

The feeling of being hugged by a talus lasted for only a few seconds, not nearly long enough for Link to wonder if he should hug back. Yunobo let go and pushed Link back, stuttering out apologies for the hug. "I didn’t- I don’t- that was- I’m sorry for-" Yunobo was cut off when Link let out a laugh before giving Yunobo a hug back. While his arms couldn’t reach all the way around, Link hugged the Goron as best as he could.

"If you wanted a hug, you could’ve asked for one, big guy.” He said, not letting go until he felt Yunobo hug him back. “Thank you, Yunobo. For everything you’ve done.” He thanked as he let get of his rocky friend. 

Link dragged the cursor over to the Lanayru region, then zoomed in until he saw the Ne’ez Yohma shrine located in Zora's domain.

Yunobo, watching Link get ready to leave, smiled at him. “Make sure you visit soon! We can make rock roasts together!”

"I will. Stay safe Yunobo." Link bided before clicking on the Ne'ez Yohma shrine. He looked down at Fostri, watching as his friend floated up to grab a few strands of his hair. Would that be enough contact to teleport? Hopefully it was because Link already pressed the button. 

---

Link's world blipped into millions of blue particles before he was deposited on the base of the Ne'ez Yohma shrine. It had barely been a minute but Link was quickly regretting going from boiling hot to freezing humid. He threw on his Zora armor, barely registering the crimson leather that greeted him until he saw the Zora of the group floating up the overflown, watered stairs. Link looked down at his Zora armor then looked to the others of the group, two of which seemed amused by his silent panic. “Is this too weird? I could go to Hateno and redye it." He offered, feeling like his color choice could have a different meaning other than pretty colors.

"Why change it? You've already shown the Domain. Plus, I think you look good in red." Urbosa complimented, a mischievous smile on her face. Link was not reassured by that smile but seeing as he was already here (and she did have a point. Hell, Dorephen and Sidon said he looked good in red which, now that he thought about it- you know what. He’s just going to stop thinking) and he only had a few days till Impa reached Hateno. He needed to use his quickly dwindling time wisely. An annoyed huff later and he began making his way up the stairs, looking up to the sky. Unlike the first time he had been here, the sky was clear, not a cloud to be seen. The suns’ rays were beating down, gleaming harshly on the water. If he wasn’t here on borrowed time he’d consider going for a swim in such nice weather. Unfortunately, that will have to wait as one of the people he has to meet with is currently bounding his way over to the Hylian. 

“Fostri, you can go explore if you want, I’ll come get you when I'm done.” Link quickly and quietly whispered to the Korok who had fixed its seating arrangements and was now sitting on his shoulder. The Korok shook his head, only clinging onto a few strands of hair to voice his refusal. 

"I wonder, why does Mr. Link want me to leave so badly?" he started, standing on Link's shoulder to get a better view of the incoming Zora. "Could it be that Mr. Link doesn't want to introduce me to his friend?" He asked almost sadly. 

Link sucked in a breath, thoughts conflicting with each other. "It's not that, it's-"

“Link! It’s so good to see you again!” Sidon boomed as he stood near the stairs, shark tail slowly wagging behind him. 

“I can’t believe he hasn’t gotten over that habit, it’s been over a century. Surely father would’ve tried correcting him.” 

“Well it took you being dead to fully correct that, I’d say it takes time. Even then, sometimes you still wag your tail when-" 

“Hey Sidon,” Link greeted his friend, ignoring the loud conversation in front of him. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“It has been! What are you here for today? Some fishing? Do you want to go on a swim? Oh, maybe we can go fight that Lynel up on Ploymus Mountain! I’ve heard from some of the warriors that they’re saying it’s turned into a golden Lynel, that must be exciting to fight! So how about it, Link? What are we doing today?” Sidon excitedly asked, tail swishing faster and stars lighting up in his eyes

Link frowned and looked away from his lo- his friend. With how excited Sidon was, he was beginning to feel guilty about the topic he needed to bring up. "I'd love to but I really need to talk to you and your dad about something. It’s important- I’d rather not talk about it down here.” He explained, motioning around to the very open area they were in. 

Sidon momentarily froze, before composing himself. “Ah, this wouldn’t happen to be about why Vah Ruta fired a laser about a week ago, would it?” Sidon asked as he backed up and began walking up to where his father resided. Link followed after him and nodded, idly waving to the shopkeepers and weaving around giggling groups of guppies. 

“It is. That’s why I have to talk with your father. And you- since you're a prince. Don’t worry, I’ll answer any questions you have when I’m done.” Please don’t give the sad eyes. Please don’t give me the- damnit Sidon. Link pointedly did not look at Sidon as he could see the slight pout on his face from the corner of his eye. The conversation died out as the two climbed up the overflowing stairs, King Dorephen being easily heard from the bottom of the steps. 

The Zora proudly stepped into the chamber, eyes flickering briefly between Muzu, who had already been in the royal chamber, and Link, before greeting his father. “Father, we have a visiter. Link requested a private conversation about Vah Ruta,” Sidon paused, glancing at Muzu. At the older Zora’s refusal to move he added, “he asked it be held privately.” Muzu looked to King Dorephen for permission to refuse but grumpily left when Dorephen asked him to leave. He left the chamber room, grumbling on how he’d be back. 

Alright, I got this. Just- explain what happened. It’s not that hard and you’ve done this before… his thoughts trailed off as he saw the expectant look on King Dorophens face. He took a deep breath to steady himself before he started. “A few days ago Vah Ruta fired a laser aimed at the castle. You probably noticed by now that Calamity Ganon isn’t surrounding the castle anymore. That’s because I was able to defeat him with the help of the beasts and the princess, they both had incredibly important roles in the fight. After the battle ended, the princess was infected with too much malice to survive. Her body was safely taken to the place where I was resurrected but only time will tell if she will survive.” He summarized, thinking over if he missed anything. 

“Tell them how you're king now- but don’t make a fool of yourself like you did with the Rito.”

“Revali I’m sure he was going to say that next, don’t rush him.”

Link was trying to ignore them, he really was. It was taking everything in him to not turn around and ask what the hell they were talking about this time. He must've made a face as Sidon asked if he was alright. He waved the concern aside, thinking over how to word his next statement.

"During the princess' last moments she had one request for me. She asked that after her death, in her steed I become-"

"King of Hyrule,” King Dorephen cut in. “Ah, such a shame those precautions must be used." He frowned, heaving a sad sigh. Prompted by their confusion he continued, "the princess had come to me over a century ago, months before the Calamity, and asked that I sign a contract with her. If, by some chance, she and her father were to both fall to the Calamity then I was instructed to help the next King of Hyrule. Which would be you, Link. In return I, and by proxy, the Zora, will get more contacts with the other races. Especially the Gorons, us two races have climates that challenge the other so it's difficult to arrange meetings." He rambled on, clearly forgetting the important matter at hand. "I've only met a handful of Gorons in my life, all surely dead by now. The first time I met a Goron was-"

"Father, can you please get back to the topic at hand? You said you formed a contract with the late Princess?" Sidon intercepted, deciding the rambling was not important enough for this conversation.

King Dorephen took a moment to orientate himself, abruptly realizing he had gone off topic. He cleared his throat and nodded. "Yes, as I was saying. The late Princess Zelda had come to me and we signed an agreement. If you'd like to see it, it's in the chest over there," he pointed in the general direction behind his throne. Sidon and Link made their way to the chest, King Dorephen twisting his upper body to watch them. There was indeed a chest behind the throne and inside there was a parchment paper. It was aged and yellowing, plus water damage was clearly eating at the edges. But the ink was still legible. From the signatures to the clause, even the fine print was readable. Link blinked in shock. There wasn't- she couldn't. That was the princesses handwriting, he spent too many nights up late reading her work to not recognize it. 

Now that you're all caught up, let's continue.

There Link stood, Link looked down at the parchment paper again, letting the words sink in as he memorized them. He knew what they said, he knew they were important and the signatures weren’t forged but he couldn’t get it in his head that it was real. "Father, are you sure about this? This hasn't come to light in over a century, are you sure you still want to honor this kind of contract?" Sidon asked his father, looking as shocked as Link felt. 

"It's a signed contract between two nations. As a King and as a friend of the late Princess it's my duty to not only honor her last wish but her last contract. Besides, no one has as much time nor experience to teach you as I do. So Link, will you allow me to help you? Will you allow me to fulfill the Princess' last wish?" King Dorephen asked, keeping leveled- as leveled as he could- eye contact with Link. 

He thought over this… could it even be called an offer? It seemed more like a demand- or even a plea to him. Nonetheless, Link had to accept. Except…

"I'd love to take your help, but Lady Impa from Kakariko already offered to teach me everything. She's headed to Hateno as we speak, she should be there in around five days. I could try to bring her here so you can both teach me at the same time but-" Link started, a slight pressure building behind his eyes as he thought over how to solve this problem. He wasn't even an official King, yet he was already becoming stressed like one. He’ll be grey before he even reaches a hundred and twenty at this rate.

King Dorephen, seeing the spiral Link was headed into, cut him off. "There's no need for that. I'm sure Lady Impa can handle your training on her own. Though, before you leave for your next destination, come back here. I'd like to give you a letter for Lady Impa." He requested. If someone else offered to teach him, especially someone as close to the royal family as Lady Impa, then he figured he could offer some breathing room in his schooling.

Link nodded at the request, figuring it wouldn't be too much of a hassle especially as he would’ve come back before he left to say goodbye. Besides, he couldn’t feel the smallest bit of annoyance when the pressure to learn so much so quickly was lessened slightly. Only slightly. Not a lot. Just by a tablespoon. Or teaspoon? Whichever was smallest. 

"Don't worry, Link. Even if this proves too much for you, don't forget that we're here to help you. While you might not have any memories from a hundred years ago we do." Mipha offered comfortingly, a hand moving to rub his arm but stopping just short of touching him. While the comfort never made contact it still did its job in calming him down. 

"Thank you for offering to teach me. If I ever need help I'll be sure to come to you. Lady Impa is still a few days away from Hateno so while I'm here can I look at Vah Ruta? I'd like to fix him up a little, just enough to get him running if he needs to."

There was barely a second's hesitation before Dorephen nodded in approval. "I don't see a problem with that. Be careful, some Zora say they hear monsters within the beast. Who knows what's made its way inside since the last blood moon." 

With little else to go over, Link was ready to bid his goodbye. “I think that's everything I needed to talk to you about. Unless either of you have anything you want to ask…?” He trailed off, looking between the two Zora to see if they had anything to say. King Dorephen is the one who speaks up, a somber look on his face. 

“How did she die?” He asked softly, as if he knew the question could set him off. Sidon yelped out a quiet ‘Father!’ in response to the question, yet they knew he was curious too. 

Next to him, Urbosa winced at the question, looking at him with pity. That was a sore subject for everyone, especially with how recent it was. “Well, better to be forward and get a straight answer than dance around the topic and get a misunderstood answer. I’d say that’s a terrible way to deal with a trauma victim but a good way to get information.”

“It’s also a good way to make him cry.”

“You… are an insufferable bastard. Do you know that?” 

Setting aside the twos’ bickering- were they always arguing? He’s only had them around for less than two weeks and it’s already gotten old to him, was this what Mipha and Daruk had to deal with for a hundred years? He thought over what Urbosa said, specifically the last part. Him? A trauma victim? He wasn’t a trauma victim! …Whatever trauma was, he wasn’t a victim of it!

“She died- she died in my arms. She was infected with malice and wouldn’t have made it. She begged me to kill her as soon as The Calamity was taken care of. I put her in the shrine I was revived in, so now all that’s left to do is wait and see if that helps her. It may not help her but… I’ll remain hopeful until the end. The shrine worked a miracle once, I’m hoping it can work one more.” Strangely enough, he almost didn’t feel the pain in his chest whenever he thought of Ze- the princess. Nope- he still can’t even think of her name without feeling choked up.

He bit his lip as he waited for someone to speak, anxiously looking between Sidon and Dorephen. The two Zora looked at each other, the two having a silent conversation only heard to them. After waiting a while for either to acknowledge him, he slightly bowed his head and turned around, careful not to make Fostri fall while making his way out of the chamber. Right as he got to the entrance he heard King Dorephan speak up, causing him to pause his walking. “Don’t doubt yourself Link, they would be proud of you. All five of them would be incredibly proud of you, especially her.” He vaguely stated, not specifying who ‘Her’ was. That confused him- which Her was he talking about? He didn’t let himself think over it too hard, letting his body go on autopilot. He heard faint chatter from inside the chamber but he tried not to eavesdrop, he was no longer a part of that conversation. 

He idly listened to Mipha talk about Ruta as he pulled out his slate, moving it from the Ne’ez Yohma shrine to the Vah Ruta teleporter. Fostri had sat himself on Link's head, his tiny feet kicking back and forth to keep himself entertained. They occasionally hit Link's forehead but he couldn’t find it in him to care too much. 

“I can’t wait to see Ruta again, I’ve missed him terribly these past few weeks. I wonder if-”

"Link! Wait up!” An excited, familiar voice cut the small Zora off. "Link! Would you mind if I accompanied you to Vah Ruta? I would feel awful if you went to fix that beast by yourself while I sat around doing nothing." Sidon had jumped off the top of the stairs and landed slightly in front of Link, easily righting himself. 

Link stumbled back as the large Zora jumped in front of him, almost falling over from the surprise greeting. If it wasn't for Sidons hand quickly grabbing his arm he had no doubt he’d be absolutely soaked, more than he already was. Once he could stand on his own he lightly tugged his arm away from the Zora, giving an appreciative smile. “You want to come with me to Ruta? Are you sure?” Though the question was directed at the prince he sent a side glance to the four champions now crowding the two. 

“He can come with, you could use the extra set of hands. And it’d do you some good to talk with someone who isn’t dead,” Urbosa pointed out. He didn’t want to admit that she was right. The past few weeks he hasn’t really talked to anyone unless he had to- or they were a ghost who followed him around when he didn’t want them to. He gave the idea a bit more though before reluctantly nodding, Sidon cutting himself off at the action.

“Ok, you can come with me. But it will take us a while to get up there- I usually teleport there but I’ve never brought another person with me.” He explained as he looked over the area surrounding Ruta, his sentence growing quieter as he thought. How long would it take to get up there? He’s never walked up that mountain before, only glided down it and occasionally scaling the smaller cliffs. 

Luckily he didn't need to think too hard for too long because the small voice of his best friend piped up. “But Mr. Link, you always teleport me with you. Can't you do the same with Mr. Prince Sidon?" 

If Link knew what a lightbulb was there would have been one blinding everyone. Unfortunately I don't think lightbulbs exist in the Zelda universe so a metaphorical torch appeared above his head. Fostri was a genius! Link wanted to send a grateful look his way, to hopefully convey every positive emotion he was feeling, but he thought it'd be weird if he did that in front of Sidon- who he was sure couldn't see the Korok. 

"Actually, give me a minute to check something over and I'll take you to Ruta. I'll be back in a little bit, wait for me by the shrine- '' Link quickly told the Prince, pausing just long enough to see the nod of confirmation before he felt the dizzying yet familiar feeling of being stitched and rewoven into reality. He opened his eyes to the sight of Vah Ruta looking worse for wear. He openly frowned at the beast but didn't have the time to openly study it like he wanted.

Faint chatter was heard somewhere off to the side yet he didn't want to eavesdrop. If he was meant to hear that conversation they'd be louder. He gently picked up the Korok from his shoulder and dropped him in the air. A startled yelp was heard before faint twirling replaced it, the Korok holding its trusty leaf to hold him in the air. "That was rude Mr. Link!" Fostri whined, making his way back to Link's shoulder.

"No Fostri, you have to stay here. I don't know how many people I can take at once and I don't want to risk it." He tried reasoning, thinking of anything to try and distract the Korok. "Why don't you go with the others and try to survey the damage? Then I can get to work right away and we can leave sooner. So stay here while I go get Sidon?"

The sound of rushing water, birds and faint chatter was all he could hear for a few moments, the Korok in front of him seemingly deep in thought.

A tiny, reluctant huff sounded from his friend. "I'll stay here, but I expect an apple in return for my troubles Mr. Link!" He said with a laugh and zoomed over to the now hushed group of champions who were openly watching the pair.

I'll bring so many apples. I'll even get the biggest, juiciest ones from the Hateno Orchid. He thought as he went back to the Ne'ez Yohma shrine, double checking that the Korok wasn't going to try and sneak back with him. He closed his eyes as blue consumed his vision and opened them when he felt the hot humidity of the domain surrounding him. 

Sidon wasn't there yet but he couldn't be too far away- nevermind, there he is. Was it just Link or did the Prince look more handsome than two minutes ago? The Zora looked ethereal. Divine even. The sunlight streaming behind him, the soothing dripping of the water streams, his bright smile. Link had to pause, his brain refusing to process anything other than pretty Zora standing in front of me what do I do Hylia help. Luckily he was saved from further embarrassing himself by Sidon speaking up.

"You beat me. I was hoping to make it here before you," Sidon all but whined as he glided down the stairs to meet Link. Could sharks glide? Apparently handsome, tall, red ones could. 

"I told you I'd be back soon. Couldn't leave you behind, not when you asked to come along." He replied back, quickly ducking his head to look at his slate. He was sure his cheeks were flushed red but didn't want to make it obvious. Well, more obvious than it was. Hopefully he could blame it on the humidity. As he spoke Sidon moved closer, leaning to peer down at the screen between them. "We'll need to have physical contact for this to work, but I've never tried this on anyone bigger than a very small child. I don't know how much is required for it to-"

Before he could finish his sentence, arms wrapped around his shoulders and pulled him into a hug, shoving his face into a toned stomach. He stilled, mind processing what was happening.

"Is this enough contact?" Sidon asked with an excited grin, tail furiously wagging behind him. Link could only nod and keep his gaze on his slate. He clicked on Ruta's teleporter and off the two went, the very fabric of their beings being torn apart and stitched back together with royal blue threads of fate. 

The two reappeared on the ground before Ruta, the champions nowhere to be found but clearly heard from within the machine. He could faintly hear an argument happening along with the sound of rushing water. He could only wonder what they were fighting about this time. 

"Ruta… how far you've fallen," he heard Sidon mutter off to the side. Link spared a glance at the prince, seeing the crestfallen look on his face. He then looked up at the beast, taking in its features for the first time. 

The trunk, he learned that's what it was called from Mipha, sagged heavily against the ground. Its head was downturned and the bottom of its chin was barely hanging off the ground. It was truly a sorry sight. Link turned to Sidon and gave him a comforting squeeze of the arm. "He'll be alright Sidon, we're going to fix him. Have some faith in us," he said softly, giving the prince a smile before releasing his arm. 

Link turned his face to his slate, looking away too soon to see the loving look Sidon sent his way. He was less than happy with how few ancient supplies he had but he'd have to make due. "Be careful, I don't remember if there were any electric monsters or currents inside. And anything could've made a home in there since I first defeated the beast." He said, swiping to his clothing section. The wind had grown frigid, leaving the Hylian to shake slightly from the cold. 

Seeing as they'd be here for a while, Link decided to take off his Zora headpiece and put his ruby circlet on instead. It kept him just warm enough to not freeze, that would have to do until he got his body moving. That couldn’t be soon enough. "You ready?" He asked the prince, getting a delayed nod in response. 

With some help of Revali's gale, plus a particularly strong mighty and tough elixir, he was able to get both of them to the entrance of Vah Ruta. Urbosa was waiting for him at the entrance but the other champions- and his korok companion- seemed to be further in the beast.

"No monsters in here. Even checked all the secret rooms Mipha remembered. The other four are looking over the back half but we found some areas that need fixing." She summarized, her gaze falling to Sidon every few seconds. Said Zora was looking around the machine, clearly on guard and ready for something to pop up.

Link put a hand in his tense forearm, making Sidon look down at him. “There’s no monsters in the main room so there shouldn’t be too many elsewhere. You can relax a little.”

Sidon looked like he wanted to disagree, even opened his mouth to do so, but seemed to back out at the last second. “...If you say so, Link,” he paused and gave the room another look around. “While I do trust you, I’ll keep my guard up for a little while longer. Being inside this beast gives me a bad feeling.” 

"If anything dangerous pops out I'll protect you," Link promised, sending Sidon a reassuring look.

Urbosa, who had been quietly watching the exchange between the two, let out an amused buff. "Are you two love birds done or must I stand here and watch this go on for several more minutes?"

Link jumped and tried to keep the heat off his face, having completely forgotten the Gerudo was even there. "We should uh- go get started on this," he stammered, avoiding looking Sidon and Urbosa in the eyes. 

The Zora prince, unaware of their audience of one, nodded and followed behind Link. While he looked relaxed and openly eyed all the mechanisms of the beast, his hand never let go of the Ceremonial Trident he used to fight with. 

Link sighed as he accepted that Sidon would stand guard the whole time they were there. He followed Urbosa, occasionally running into another champion who helpfully (or unhelpfully. CoughRevalicough) told him where something had to be fixed. 

Three quickly became five, then ending at seven as the rest of the champions and Fostri met up with the group. As he got to work on repairing some of the broken parts he couldn't help but listen in to the conversations around him. Although he knew they were there for almost the entire length of his journey, he couldn’t help but forget since they barely talked about it. It was times like this that he was quickly reminded of this fact when he heard Urbosa and Revali making bets in the distance. He couldn’t hear much of what they were saying, just enough to know they were making bets on him and Sidon. He opted to not listen, saving himself the embarrassment of knowing they knew about his love life- and lack of it.

They were about halfway through the day when Link remembered the topaz jewelry he'd had custom made some time ago. He only remembered after the third time he almost accidentally electrocuted himself, standing much too close to a puddle of water while working with electricity. 

"Oh by the way,” pausing his work, he got the jewelry out of his slate and offered Sidon a pair of gems. "In case there's any electric enemies, this should help keep the effects from being too bad.” He rushed out, heat creeping to his face when he saw that Sidon was already looking at him.

The Zora prince gratefully took the gems, tail slowly wagging behind him. "Thank you Link! I'll be sure to return them when we get back to the domain!” He beamed, pinning both gems on his sash. The yellow gems complimented the navy fabric and stood out against his white scales. 

Link shook his head, using the movement to look away from the prince. “You can keep them. I bought a few more gems for the other Zora that frequently go to areas with electric Lizalfol.” 

He heard Sidon moving and before he knew it, there were two arms around him, carefully dragging him to Sidons chest. “I greatly appreciate this Link,” he beamed, . “You’ve done so much to help us Zora. Words alone can’t express how grateful I am for all you’ve done for us.” 

Link started to squirm, unsure how he should be feeling about being in the Zora's hold. He only stopped when Sidon spoke up, his tone hesitant yet heavy.

“Link… I…” He started, tightening his grip around Link. “You’ve been so distant these past few weeks. Is it something I have done?” He asked, voice going quieter with each word. “Have I done something to upset you?”

The silence was thick as Link thought about the question. He slowly shook his head, deciding that now was the time to tell him. “No,” he started, unsure how to go about this. “No, you haven’t done anything Sidon. I’m the one that should be saying sorry.”

Sidon was quick to speak up at that. “Link, you don’t have to be sorry for anything. I understand that you’re incredibly busy rebuilding Hyrule and protecting her people. I just wish to know what I have done to upset you.”

Link shook his head again, more firmly this time. “No Sidon, you really haven’t done anything. Maybe we should sit down and I’ll tell you everything.”

So they did. Link sat on the side of one of the pools while Sidon floated near him. Here, Link told him everything. How he was slowly getting his memories back over the course of his journey, and with them his feelings for people long dead. He told Sidon about Zelda, how he felt about her and how she felt about him. He told Sidon about the secret dates and the research trips that always took longer than necessary. He spoke of the long days watching Rhoam berate her and the late nights comforting her. Lastly, he told him how they planned to get married and start their own family after everything was done. 

It didn’t need to be said how that never happened.

Sidon was silent through everything, patiently listening and waiting for Link to finish before speaking up. “Do you still have feelings for her?” He quietly asked, no judgment in his voice. If anything, his eyes held nothing but sympathy and understanding. 

He didn’t know what to say after that. Some days his heart ached to be with the one he loved, staring at his sword for hours at a time. Those days are the ones where he was Link from a hundred years ago, feeling guilty for the kingdom he couldn’t protect. 

Then there were some days where he hated her. Hated her for putting this responsibility on him, this kingdom and her people. Those days are the ones where he was some random boy born into a world he had to save even if he didn’t know why he had to.

All he could do was give Sidon a halfhearted shrug, unsure of the answer himself. “I think so. I don’t know.” He whispered, looking away from the Zora. "Everything's so confusing. I feel like all these emotions I have are from the old me. But then I talk with Impa, Purah, Robbie. You and your dad. I don't know what to feel when I talk with anyone who I knew before." He ranted, frustration with himself building as he felt the tears threatening to fall.

Sidon said nothing, making Link keep his head down in anticipation. Would he be upset at him for keeping this secret? Betrayed that Link has feelings for another? Would he be mad and leave? He didn't want to know. 

"Link? Would you look at me, please?" Sidon asked softly, the sound of water gently splashing as Link saw his shadow moving closer.

He didn't want to look up in fear that his fears would come true. Nonetheless he did, wanting to know what Sidon wanted to say.

Looking up at Sidon revealed none of that. Sidon had a sympathetic smile, nothing but complete sympathy and understanding on his face. “When you do figure out your emotions, do be sure to let me know. Until then, I shall wait for you for as long as you need. If you ever need a friend to talk to, please don't hesitate to ask me. I shall help you however you need, as it would be my pleasure.” The Zora stated, holding a hand over his heart. A vow he was always willing to hold.

And suddenly, Link didn't see Sidon anymore. He saw Mipha offering a healing hand while ranting talking about her day and the domain, or scolding him for getting injured again. He saw his childhood best friend who always had his back no matter what. He saw the sister to the one he loved, the Zoran princess he couldn't save.

"Link, how many times must I tell you to be careful? You Hylians are fragile, please take better care of yourself." The red Zoran princess scolded, gently holding Link's injured arm in her hands. 

The knight shrugged, looking away from the princess in front of him. They were having their weekly chats, sitting on Vah Ruta's trunk this time, Princess Mipha having recently gotten crowned as the beasts pilot. 

Princess Mipha sighed but held a webbed hand over the slash, letting her healing water wade over the wound. Link bit his cheek as a hiss threatened to leave him, training and desensitization being the only reasons he didn't flinch from the sting of the healing. 

It was quiet, the sound of water softly swishing being the only noise until Mipha spoke up. "I worry about you Link," she said softly as her healing faded, the slash leaving barely a car behind. "You constantly throw yourself in harms way for Princess Zelda and hold no regard for your own health. I worry your duty to the princess will get you killed." She confessed, tracing the freshly healed scar with a clawed finger. 

I worry too Mipha. But I have to protect the princess, it's my purpose. Link thought to the Zora, willing her to understand his thoughts.

Another sigh passed from her lips, letting go of his arm and allowing him to take the appendage back. "I suppose there's nothing I might be able to say to change your mind, is there Link?" She guessed, a sad smile on her face.

Link shook his head, knowing that even if he wanted to, being the princess' knight was his duty till he died.

"Then there's nothing else I can do but be here to heal your every scrape and wound. I promise to you that I shall always be here to heal you, even if I leave this world." The Zora stated, placing a hand over her heart. A vow she was always willing to hold.

Link stared at her until he blinked and saw Sidon once again, who was making his way out of the pool.

Sidon stood next to Link and held a hand out to help him up. “Now, I quite believe you said there was more work to be done here?” He asked, looking around the space they were in.

Relieved that he was changing the topic, Link wiped his eyes and nodded. He cleared his throat as well for extra measures. "Yeah, you're right." 

Neither of them pointed out his misty eyes or rough voice.

~Bonus content~

After Link and Sidons conversation, the two spent the rest of the day working on Ruta. Link felt that he could be turned on (don't ask how, he just had a feeling) but decided not to. 

Or well, he tried.

Honestly, his first mistake was saying his thoughts to Sidon. The Zora was so insistent that Link felt he had to turn the beast on. So with a warning of the noise and vibrations the beast would cause, Link set his slate to the control unit and allowed it to wake from its slumber once again.

The Zora was enamored by the beast now that it wasn't trying to flood his home, begging Link to sit atop it's back. Seeing as Link couldn't say no to him, the two watched the sunset from Ruta's back while Mipha enjoyed some time with her previous life partner.

The champions, who had been kind enough to not comment on their conversation, were spread across the beasts back to give a semblance of privacy. 

Link sighed, feeling at peace for the first time in a long, long while.

~~~

It's been almost two years since Link (now known as Link Durim Hyrule across his (HIS!!!!) people) had been crowned as King of Hyrule. His rule isn't perfect, he still messes up and burdens people with his mistakes. But it's a learning experience. One he and his people are learning through together. 

It's nearing the last day of the festival, the Miracle Festival some people have been calling it. On this day two years ago he defeated Calamity Ganon once and for all. The festival took place in the center of Castle Town. The once destroyed town was still destroyed but it was quickly being rebuilt into an even better version of itself. Bolson got his team together (including Hudson's mismatched band of races) and they got working on the new town.

Their hard work was truly paying off. The town was usable for the first festival, even if only the town square was able to be used. But this year almost the whole town could be used! Most of the buildings had been fixed up so store owners could store their wares or travelers could rest in one of the temporary lodges.

Seeing Link's kingdom, his people, his friends, his family. Seeing everyone come together to celebrate his victory? That was doing terrible things to his self-esteem. Hylia knows it was already too big.

The coming sunset signaled the time for the festival to come to a close. Store owners gave away the last of their wares and travelers bedded down one last time before the long journey home the next day. Link decided to go check and make sure no monsters were lurking in the shadows of the walls. After waving off the champions ("No I don't need company"), Paya ("I promise I won't rip my outfit again"), and Fostri ("I'd rather you stay safe in town. I'll bring you back some apples when I come back.") he set off to do a quick perimeter check.

He switched out his 'formal' attire (a shirt that was nice quality and ripped far too easily with pants that probably would've cost both his arms a century ago) and into his sheikah set. You could never go wrong with a classic. His Hylian shield and savage lynel sword were his chosen defense and offense for today.

As he neared the walls he got this sinking feeling in his chest.

Something was wrong.

Something was there. 

He narrowed his eyes and quietly got his sword out, holding it parallel to his body. His whole body tensed up as he heard voices on the other side of the wall, every muscle in his body pulled taut. 

"Does anyone know who’s Hyrule this is?”

“Fuck if I know! Four threw up on me and passed out!”

“Poor Four. Here, take this and give him to me.”

Link quickly opened his slate and downed a stealthy elixir, stalking as close as he could to the walls. He started scaling the walls, throwing his sword in his slate to make the move more quiet.

“When he wakes up he’ll be put on laundry duty. Whenever we find somewhere to settle down. Warrior, don’t you think this looks like Castletown?”

“If it is, it’s much quieter than most of ours. Could be ‘Rules?”

“Not mine, not enough magic in the air.”

“Kinda looks like mine but too big ta be. An' too quiet for the old mans.”

Link finally got to the top of the walls, peering down over the other side of it. There he saw eight people, two kids, two teenagers, and four adults. He glared, wondering if the children were taken against their will. While he didn’t recognize them, it wasn't impossible that there were some people he hadn't met yet. Perhaps they could be from out of Hyrule? But that doesn’t make sense, someone had asked who’s Hyrule they were in. Were there multiple kingdoms named Hyrule?

He didn’t question it for much longer before he grabbed his Great Eagle Bow, lined it with arrows and spoke up. “Put your weapons down and your hands up or I’ll be forced to shoot.”

The whole group spun around trying to find him, hands flying to the swords on their backs. Link was going to shoot until he saw one with a wolf pelt look up at him. Something about pelt seemed so… familiar. Pelt slowly raised his hands, making Link loosen the hold on his arrow. He didn’t harm people that were surrendering. “We don’t mean ya any harm.” 

“Uh Twilight, I think he’s the one that should be saying that, not us!” One of the teenagers hissed, one with pink hair.

“You don’t question the person with an arrow aimed at you who looks like they're prepared to shoot!” The adult with a long, blue scarf hissed back.

Link let an arrow fire past Pinkys head, watching his hat swish from the sudden movement. He didn’t have time for people to question him, not when he could feel Tenk laughing at him and his lack of authority over the situation. Of course the one spirit he couldn't get rid of is the one spirit that couldn't help him. “State your name and business for being here. I have to get back and I’d rather not have to escort you to jail.” 

One Eye spoke up, hands slowly coming down from above his head. “We’re here to find the hero of the land? We need to speak with him.” 

“Busy. State your name and business for being here.” Link pointedly said, aiming his arrow at One Eye. 

"Hey now! You wouldn't harm an already injured man, would you?" Blue scarf hissed, glaring up at Link. "Wouldn't kill you to set the bow down." He scoffed and threw his arms down, hand much too close to his swords handle.

Link decided Scarf would be a better target as he let another arrow fly, this time snagging at the edge of his tunic. A rip was heard as the arrow nicked the bottom edge of the fabric, keeping the piece pinned to the ground. 

The silence was thick as Link instantly lined another arrow. "I will say it once again. State your name and business for being here."

"I bet if you threaten one of the kiddos they'll be more inclined to answer." Tenk unhelpfully offered, lazily floating next to the kid in a colorful tunic. 

The kid in blue must've seen his eyes lingering on the other kid as he shouted "Don't!" Before a gust of wind knocked him down from his perch on the wall. 

Goddamit Tenk, Link thought as he fell. He prepared himself to feel the air leave his lungs and his back to snap.

He didn't prepare himself to get swallowed by a swirling mass of purple.

[shade-pup-cub]

It is still WIP Wednesday somewhere!! A snippet I added to the up coming Chapter 2 of Same Yet Different- Extended

...

Flora seemed more relaxed with that cleared up. “The guardians are the first thing Ganon will corrupt as he claims the castle. If you don’t know how to parry the beams away, Wild will teach you as well as Link. Shortly after we had fled the castle, the Divine Beast were taken over by Blights.”

Wild took over. “Each Blight is in control of the responding element of the Beast it is in. Ruta has the Waterblight. It has a spear that can reach long distances and can send blocks of ice your way. Break them with a weapon or arrow. Rudania has the Fireblight, though fire is its weapon, it can have a protective shield. Naboris will have the Thunderblight with extreme speed and lightning, but it is also hurt by lightning. Medoh has the Windblight who produces tornadoes and has tracker beams. None of these are a walk in the park and they play dirty.

“Each Champion will need extra fighters.” Wild looked to his brothers. “I know this is why we are here, but I do not want to ask any of you to do this.”

“You don’t have to ask us.” Sky began as he looked to the others. “This is our task and we will do it.”

Regret still filled Wild as he told each of them their stations. “Time, Legend, you two will be posted on Vah Ruta with Mipha. Sky and Wind, with Revali on Vah Medoh. Warriors and Twilight go with Daruk to Vah Rudania as Hyrule and Four go to Vah Naboris with Urbosa. Myself and Flora will stay on the ground with Link and Zelda.”

Evander placed his hands on the table, uncanny resemblance between father and son(s?). “What do you need me to do?”

“The closest place to the Castle is Castle Town and here and will be the first place to be attacked. The king will not make such an announcement, but the whole area will need to be evacuated. Mo-” Wild stopped before he got the full word ‘Mom’ out, looking at Link. This was Link’s family, not his. “Mrs. Malon, Dela and Jax need to leave before dawn to make it to Hateno.”

Link signed, ‘My house has enough room and I’m not there too often, but it is stocked up. The bridge was finished a few months ago too.’

No way. “You own the house on the hill, across the bridge?”

‘If it is also in your era, we, built it.’

“I was told a soldier from the time of the Calamity owned it, but never came home. It sat there vacant until not long ago. I just didn’t know it was mine that whole time.” Wild’s mind raced, but he shook his head. “Yes, they will need to go there. Get word to any major influencers in Castle Town that the people need to leave there.”

“What if they choose not to?” Zelda asked.

“That is what they choose, we can’t force them.” Most at the table knew how these things worked and paid no attention to Zela flinching at the unspoken death sentence that would come with that choice.

Mipha came forward asking, “Should we at least tell the King of our plan?”

Legend glanced around the room. “Pretty sure that we are all wanted at this point.”

It was Flora who surprisingly agreed with Mipha. “The ground team can while you all get to your stations. By no means are we stepping foot into the castle.”

Knowing how this could be turned into the Chain’s adventure instead of who it was, Wild added one last thing. “Link, Zelda, this is your adventure. We will help you as much as we can, in any way that we can. When it comes to advising, we are limited due to the choices going forward are yours to make. Your orders are final, we will follow your lead.”

Zelda, still not as confident as Flora, looked to her hero. “I will follow you.”

Revali turned quickly from the others, feathers going over his beak as if in deep thought. Wild could fill the storm brewing with him, but Urbosa spoke first. “Alright Revali, what has your feathers twisted?”

“Hyrule’s King chose us to perform this pivotal task. It will be my honor to excel, as always.” Revali boasted, before returning a glare at Link and Wild. “Then there's you, the one part that doesn’t add up.” Link stayed stoic as they squared off. “Why should this nobody be trusted to lead us in the coming battle?”

“It doesn’t matter who the leader is. We are all in this together, right?” Daruk tried to reason.

“You are, of course, mistaken. My Divine Beast is the key!” He walked a little ways away, his back away from them still. “Really now, it makes no sense.” He mumbled not to himself. “Well… My one comfort is that your reputation will be completely ruined once you fail. The Fallen Knight. Ha! Seems fitting since your twin half really was the Fallen Knight or even the Fallen Hero.”

Time is the one to step in, both eyes open. He looks every bit of the Fierce Deity that he held in his travel bag. “You should hold your tongue on things you know nothing about. Especially in regards to Heroes and things we have had to go through to save our homelands and the lands of others.”

Wild walked over to Time’s side, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You might not be the exact same Revali I knew or maybe you are. You once patronized me over having to merely assist me all because I had the Master Sword. You talked big about being the best archer in all the Rito, therefore making you the best warrior of all the land. I just keep thinking, how asinine it is to think so narrow minded.”

A few members of the Chain, including Link, tried to hide their snorts of laughter, not used to the bold sassy talk coming from Wild.

Revali puffed up his chest with a smirk, “Care to prove me wrong?”

Link tapped the table. ‘He did call us a pathetic knight.’

Legend came over and elbowed Warriors. “That’s some fighting words, Cap.”

“That it is.” Warriors leaned a bit onto the Vet, elbow on the younger’s shoulder. “Care to place a bet?”

Wild grinned. “I accept.”

Outside, they gathered in the center of the arena, bets made. It was a bit tense, but Wild just hoped that this would settle a few scores and bring the bird's ego down. Speaking of the bird, Revali fiddled with his bow, not looking at Wild as he talked. “So, hero, how do you want to do this, targets or-”

“Fight.” Wild coldly stated. “First to yield. Use anything you want.”

“Hmph, fine. You’ll need all the help you can get.”

Evander leaned in close to Wild’s ear. “Don’t hold back.”

Wild kept his lightest shield in his hand and a standard broad sword on his back along with his treasured Great Eagle Bow from Teba, a handful of arrows at his hip. Wild closed his eyes, slowing his breath and blocked out the background noise. Reopening his eyes, all he saw was Revali, his opponent, circling him. He knew the Rito would take to the sky and mock him for his inability to do the same. Predictable. 

Wild tossed a square bomb onto the ground, went to shield surf over it, but set the bomb off instead. He launched himself into the air, drawing his bow before reaching the full distance he would be going. Time slowed down as he pulled back to string, knuckles lightly brushing against his unscarred cheek. Letting go he met his mark, Revali’s bow. The arrow’s momentum took it right from the other’s feathered hand.

Wild allowed time to return to normal, still rising high from his bomb trick. Revali had squawked, chasing the beloved bow downwards, but Wild drew back another arrow, forcing his surroundings to slow once again. He inhaled, held, breathed out and let go. This arrow flew so close to Revali that even in slow motion Wild could see his head feathers move with the pulling gust. The second arrow split the first down the middle, embedding itself deeper into the bow.

Paraglider deployed, Wild glided overhead to line himself up with where Revali was swooping down still. He took out his sword and arched it over head to swing down in the Rito’s direction. Revali’s eyes grew wide as he grabbed his bow and rolled out of the way. He barely made it five feet when Wild’s sword made contact with the ground, sending dirt everywhere.

He forced Revali to block or dodge his strikes, not giving it his all at the moment. That was until the bird blocked with his bow and reached up with his talons, cutting into Wild’s chest. Hyrule was going to be pissed, but there wasn’t time to think of that since Revali went back into the air, but this time he had bomb arrows ready.

Three arrows were loosed and Wild dove out of the way for the first two, bringing his shield up to bash the third one away. The last arrow blew up near his feet, throwing him backwards onto the ground. He was still sore from the midday lashing, back screaming in protest once again due to the same person.

“No more tricks up your sleeve, Wild?”

A single bomb arrow came Wild’s way and he pulled out the tricks. Shield raised, Daruk’s protection surrounded him and the ghostly figure of Daruk exploded outwards on the bomb's impact. Daruk’s response was a thunderous laugh and a, “Look at that!” At least his response to seeing the gift was positive. How would Revali respond to his? Only one way to find out.

Crouching down, the wind whipped around Wild to create an updraft. With it ready to go, he shot into the air with his paraglider, Revali’s ghostly form spinning around him to pull him upwards with the gale. The living Revali was outraged to say the least. 

...

[novantinuum]

20 Questions For Fic Writers

Tagged by @picnokinesis! Thank you, friend! <3 I love these sorts of things.

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1. How many works do you have on AO3?

91 works, spread across five fandoms! (listed in #3)

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

368,544 words

3. What fandoms do you write for?

(In order of most to least recent)

Legend of Zelda (9 works)

Steven Universe (40 works)

Doctor Who (20 works)

Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia (5 works)

Gravity Falls (17 works)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

All Steven Universe fics here, which isn't surprising:

Hollowed Moon (2,953 kudos)

Crack the Paragon (1,711 kudos)

Shattering Atlas (733 kudos)

Contact (625 kudos)

Misalignment (472 kudos)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I do my best to respond to comments when I can, although if I get hit with a strong influx of them I often fall behind on this and respond "late." I like my readers knowing that I do take time to read their thoughts, and that they're not just commenting into a void! Also, I've actually made some new fandom connections through engaging with the AO3 comments thread in the past, so they're something I like to encourage.

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

So this is a tie between Shattering Atlas and a one-shot I posted in my LoZ Whumptober collection.

Shattering Atlas because... well, it's my Steven Universe: Future Bad Ending corruption fic with zero comfort. However, I do IMPLY an eventual "good ending" in the author's notes, so this is up to audience interpretation whether it TRULY counts as "full out angst."

In my Legend of Zelda Whumptober collection, meanwhile, I have a one-shot that is basically an in-game Bad Ending but permanent, in which Mipha's spirit has to watch Link die horribly to the Blight Ganon in Divine Beast Vah Ruta. That one absolutely has no silver lining, but the angstiest descriptions of it ARE pretty swift and don't linger too long.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

This question is a little hard to answer because most of my fics are either one-shots or unfinished, and basically ALL of my one-shots have some falling action or catharsis of some sort. I feel like this is more applicable for authors who focus on multi-chapters, so it's not one that meshes well with my fic catalogue.

That being said, if I have to choose ONE fic, then probably my recent post TotK Zelink fic, A Hymm as Sweet as Memory, which actually contains a very impromptu and rushed proposal, and emotional reunion smooches. I feel like that counts as "happy" ahahah.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Eh... no. I haven't really written anything super "controversial" that would garner flames yet.

Yet, though.

(See below.)

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I do now. Haven't posted it yet, but I have a fic about 75% complete that in fact COULD gain me flame commenters. I don't feel like it will, because I feel like AO3 readers are a bit more chill than folks used to be on Fanfiction dot net, but like. It always Could. It is overtly non-con and is written as an experiment both to explore my own cerebral interest in sex from a very detached asexual perspective, and see how absolutely disgusting a piece of prose I can muster. (Think... slime. Monstrous nasties. Hot, brackish fluid rushing down one's throat. Exploding eyeballs. And... yes, this IS a Gloom Spawn porn fic, what of it?)

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I've written ONE crossover to date, and it was a fusion of Gravity Falls and Trollhunters, where all the characters existed in the same world and things played out quite differently for both plots as a result. A Tale of Two Trollhunters, it was called. Very niche, but I'm still quite fond of the idea. There's a SHIT ton of notes I have for the crossover that I never got around to writing... I only posted 14K of this work, but I have like... another whole 5K of work that's partially finished, just sitting around.

It's honestly one that I haven't entirely discontinued in my mind- I think it could be fun to return to one day should I ever get the inspiration or whim.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not to my knowledge.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Lol YES, and it's with the person who tagged me. We had like... a series of 13th Doctor one-shots about her first episode we were working on for a while, and then life got away with us. Honestly they're still pretty good IMO.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

Oh god. Uh... I don't think I can consciously choose a favorite ship, but I CAN choose a favorite ship from each fandom I've been in:

Doctor Who- The Doctor/Clara Oswald, with a particular emphasis on queerplatonic 12/Clara.

Gravity Falls- Stanford Pines/Fiddleford McGucket

Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia- The Jim/Toby/Claire trifecta

Steven Universe- Steven/Connie

Legend of Zelda- Zelda/Link (in general, but especially their BotW/TotK incarnations)

My AO3 stats signal that my most posted ships are Connverse and Zelink (3 fics each), but I do feel like spending multiple years writing in-depth Ford/Fiddleford RP, and like easily over 300K words of it, does mean that this ship is especially dear to me even IF it's not represented in my AO3 stats.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

Sigh... probably Crack the Paragon. I care about that fic very deeply, but I'm so damned blocked on it and so deep into another fandom right now that I certainly can't see myself returning to it within the next five years, unless there's a really epic Steven Universe interest renaissance coming for me and half the internet soon.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Uh... when I write a super crunchy metaphoric sentence, it sure can be a mean ass, crispy banger of a sentence.

I also feel like I'm decent at establishing unique voices for characters in my dialogue when I try at it. I've been told by some that they can easily hear characters speak the lines when they read, so... I will take those compliments to the bank, I guess.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Dialogue passages that feel oddly disjointed from the surrounding prose. I often end up sketching out bits of dialogue before I can think of good ways to link the segments together coherently, and as a result I feel like some of my dialogue-to-prose and back to dialogue segments come off as disjointed and awkward.

Also I abuse the em-dash. Em-dash my beloved. So sue me.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I am only proficient in English, so for the meantime this isn't really something I'm interested in or think I could pull off successfully and respectfully.

The single exception here is that I am trying my best at describing a few signs and emphasis markers for the sign language Link uses in many of my fics. I am bending the rules a little because he is using Fantasy Sign Language and not ASL, but I think there'd naturally be a lot of visual overlap with super basic concept gestures, so I've done research for those and am having fun finding creative ways to describe his expressiveness through his hands and facial features instead of through a voice.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Doctor Who! I started posting Doctor Who fanfiction on FF.net in 2011, and never looked back. Although that original account I posted on is now inaccessible to me, sadly.

20. Favorite fic you've ever written?

I have two.

One is my first fic written for Legend of Zelda... a funky lil second person POV fic called so close, so far... (so familiar...)

I just really enjoyed the writing process of this one, and feel it's one of my most unique works in style. I also think it's probably my most slept on fic of all time lol, like I wish it got more attention than it did for how much I cherish it.

The other is A Memoir of the Marks Unseen, one of the last major projects I finished for Steven Universe. This fic took me about a year and a half to write, real talk. I often get the sense that I HAD to get this one out of my head before I could truly move on from SU as an active fixation. In many ways, it's the culmination of my emotions about my own mental health recovery, all partially projected onto Steven as he goes through a different but still metaphorically relatable experience. I also like... kinda think that my writing peaked here. Lol.

_

I am tagging only a few people. I am tired. Yeet. Off the top of my head:

@deiliamedlini, @citrusella-flugpucker, @bahbahhh, and uhhh... one more... @michpat6