#lu Dot

[lampssshade]

The princess and her hero

[linderosse]

The Founder’s Call— Part 3

The battle begins!

Notes: In the games, Zelda’s abilities usually aren’t defined in as much detail as Link’s (for obvious reasons). Some Zeldas also display way more of their skills than others.

So I’ve put some thought into simple rules to help flesh out the details and fill in gaps. For example, the general rule for equipment is: a Zelda has access to items that a) they canonically owned in-game, b) their Link has duplicates of and would lend to their Zelda, or c) they have a clear motive for acquiring in their era. Check out the intro story in the masterpost for more details if you’re curious.

Other rules/patterns will be clarified as the story continues :)

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Masterpost

[the-little-robyn]

Tetra messing with the new girl. A parody of the scene from the spongebob viking episode.

A little comic I made if the Zelda from echoes of wisdom turns out to be a completely new Zelda. I know there is a high possibility that she would just be Fable but, can you imagine if she's a whole new Zelda? We're getting a new pair joining LU the party ya'll!

Also Since EoW!Zelda is new, she doesn't know that they all have nicknames for each other yet so, Tetra tries to mess with a little bit, Dot is in on the action while the rest just watches lol, but eventually, EoW!Zelda will be told about the nicknames and gets her own as well (idk what she's going to be called, i'll just roll with what ya'll decide).

I've been binge reading the LU comics lately and i'm OBSSESSED and as well the Wisdomverse comics by @linderosse I love the idea of all the different versions of Links and Zelda in a huge crossover AU 💖 and I can't wait for echoes of wisdom to be release!

[kenvamp]

them

[weepingtalecowboy]

Fanfic prompt : I like seeing people portray Four as an adult or late teen

But what if it got cranked up to him actually being the oldest

As in even older then time

Because that would be hilariously contradictory to his size

Because everyone is jokingly calling him a kid but if he one day just tells them that he is 30

They all won’t believe him

Till he gives life changing advice that only an old man could give

If you add shadow in but keep him a kid because you can’t age if you are dead and it would probably take years to find a way to bring someone back to life with no life changing consequences even if Zelda is helping alongside you

Like him having a kid would only make it more hilarious

Like many older people take it as a compliment if people consider them much younger than they are

The aneurysm that the chain will have when they see him with a small kid acting like a parent

While Time secretly envies him for getting spared from the nickname the old man

But also him awkwardly asking how to parent and them bonding over it

Like let Four be a dad for once

He already is wind's ancestor ( grandma implied that the shield was from an hero before them and a family heirloom)

Like let them have a relationship

[psykheofthestars]

My favourite hc about prophetic dreams in the royale bloodline is that they came from Sky

Artemis: *wakes up in a cold sweat with a very terrified expression*

Aurora: prophetic dream?

Artemis: prophetic dream.

Dot: Those dreams are both a blessing and a curse!

Lullaby: I'm genuinely so glad that Time also gets them, I know I'm not insane!

Flora: I only recently started getting them and I can confirm that they're *TERRIFYING* do you know how many times I've seen scenes of L-Wild being put into danger and having to deal with the fact that I can't even intervene!?

Tetra: I HATE when that happens! It happend so many times while me and Sunshine were seperated during the War of Ages!

Fable: Sunshine.. your denial of your feelings is a river in the desert..

Artemis: Goddesses.. I still remember how you would barely sleep until you two were reunited

*more Zeldas other then Sun telling stories about prophetic dreams*

Sun: wait wait.. They're really that bad? I guess I can manifest a quick vision of my Link but they aren't as terrifying as how you're describing it!

*silence*

Fable: You.. You don't get the dreams!?!?!?!!!?!

Dawn: Even I get them and I barely have any magic!

Dusk: I.. I'm at a loss for words-

*meanwhile*

Sky: *wakes up after having a very vivid prophetic dream*

Four: prophetic dream?

Sky: very vivid prophetic dream.

[wawapiggy]

art request for @butter-and-too-much-bread who wanted gender non-conforming links, basically just them in pretty dresses :D

i didn’t originally plan for four to have a full illustration, but ig that’s just what happens when u draw ur blorbo XD

[weirdnotal]

My Accent headcannons for the lu chain (and etc):

Time: was taught hylian by trees???? Almost has no tone/infliction in voice (he's working on it)

Malon: Tennessee accent all the way, with that nice hook at the end too (non southerners imagine dolly parton)

Lullaby: very formal proper hylian, dignitary style

Warriors: British military like he's reading from a manual

Sheik: I don't know much about her but the sheikah definitely take inspiration from Japan

Twilight: Appalachian accent as thick as raw honey (non appalachians have yall ever heard of one looking it up)

Midna: try 'n' convince me she don't have a loud ass Louisiana accent (non southerners go watch princess and the frog) (this is totally not for my Midna is African American agenda)

Dusk: real formal like n all that

Sky: That's a Midwesterner (he genuinely tried to get Wild and Rulie to eat jello salad once)

Sun: completely Midwestern

Groose: spends a lot of time around the other two^ but his parents are Gerudo (Arabic/middle eastern)

Four: the minish have always reminded me of the Icelandic tales of little elves

Dot: same formal accent, maybe more like Four's

Age/Cal(calamity): very formal british accent almost royal but also uses some Korean (Zora) words

Mipha: Korean accent (thicker than Sidon's)

Fauna: royal and tight lipped british

Wild: used to be more British (kinghts!), but now is more southern cause twilight has corrupted him

Flora: much more informal than the other zeldas

Legend: Scottish accent, but he usually hides it really well, so you can't really tell at all unless he's mad or tired

Fable: Scottish asf (non Scottish people imagine Merida)

Ravio: fairly normal, but if provoked, he will speak like an Italian mobster wife until he gets his way

Hyrule: Rulie is Irish or Welsh all the way (especially with half fae/fey Hyrule)

Dawn: pretty similar to Hyrule

Aurora: transatlantic accent!!!!!

Spirit: he's always reminded me of Hugo Cabret, so cockney british accent it is (this grates on War's patience)

Phantom: can be formal if she has to but usually just sticks with cockney as well

Wind: Okay look, I love scottish pirate Wind, but I raise you patois or creole pirate Wind

Tetra: Wind's accent but double the amount and also the volume she says it at

[skyloftian-nutcase]

Outbreak Pt 3 (LU in Healthcare)

(Content warning, this is a plague fic, it will likely hit close to home, and there’s dark humor and character death in this part)

It started off as a whisper, but the whisper became a chatter, a groan, constant and disturbing and growing ever closer.

Cases were on the rise in the city, though the surrounding area seemed unaffected still, for now. City officials were growing concerned, and restrictions were starting to be enacted. People were asked to stay home, if possible. As for the hospital and squads…

Hyrule squinted at his email. "Wait. Didn't... didn't they say we could use alcohol wipes to clean the equipment?"

"Yeah," Mo called from the kitchenette in the station.

"Now it says we can only use bleach wipes."

Mo groaned. "Isn't that like the third policy change this week?"

"I'm still trying to figure out if we're doing a specific isolation truck or not anymore," Aurora mumbled. "Like we just had one truck dedicated to the high risk iso cases, and now we're getting so many calls for it that it's a moot point anyway."

"I think the last email said put plastic over everything for Arfy patients and then wipe everything down that you use," Mo replied.

"Wait, which email?"

Hyrule sighed. This was getting ridiculous. And he was getting just a little nervous. “When in doubt, just bleach everything, I guess.”

Aurora huffed. “Did you see the email about the respirators?”

“Which email?” Mo threw his hands in the air, exasperated. “I’ve got twenty new emails!”

“I suppose that means you’ll actually have to read them now,” Aurora noted with a snort.

“Do you all think it’ll get worse before it gets better?” Dawn asked, wringing her hands worriedly. “The OMD made it sound like that would be the case.”

“Our medical director knows more than I do,” Hyrule shrugged. “If he says it’s going to get worse—”

“No, he didn’t just say that, he said ‘it’s not a matter of if the wave hits us, but when,’” Aurora quoted, standing. “He scared the hell out of Dawn.”

“They’re pretty foreboding words,” Hyrule commented darkly, looking away. It was the main reason he was getting nervous. But he was also steeling himself. If they were in for a fight, he would face it head on.

“Okay, but what does any of this have to do with the email about the respirators?” Mo asked as he scrolled frantically through his email.

“Oh, we’re supposed to wear N95s now,” Aurora answered with a wave of her hand.

Hyrule blinked. “Wait. Aren’t—aren’t we supposed to get fit tested for those?”

“Oh, yeah,” Aurora nodded, rolling her eyes. “Here’s your official fit test: pick a mask that fits.”

“We’re all going to die, aren’t we?” Dawn questioned worriedly, hugging herself.

“Nobody’s died from Arfy yet, I don’t think,” Mo noted. “At least not here.”

“People have died,” Aurora corrected.

“Well, maybe we’ll die, then,” Mo amended.

Hyrule laughed while Aurora swatted his partner. Well… at least they’d die fighting. But he really hoped it wouldn’t get to that point.

While the rescue squads struggled to keep up with policies and slapped shoddy safety regulations into place, the hospital clamped down even further. Visitor policies had officially been revoked as of today, and it made all the providers somewhat uneasy.

In some aspects, it was helpful. In others, it made things that much harder.

Arfy patients were medical patients. Which meant the medical floor and ICU was quickly filling up while other parts of the hospital either maintained their quota or decreased as people stayed home. More and more, Four found himself floating to his friend’s ICU, and he felt fairly out of his depths about it. The one good thing was that he got to spend time with Dot. But as cases rose, so did the stress, the worry, and the heartache.

The ICU felt less like a unit where critically ill people got better and more like a place to go to die.

Four and Dot had the same patient assignment for four days in a row. It was the same assignment because nothing had changed with the patients. Intubated, sedated, paralyzed, some proned. The amount of sedation required to keep their patients under was far more than Four was used to, and it was insane how little it would take for their oxygen saturation to drop. Any semblance of activity in the body increased oxygen demand, and the instant oxygen demand increased, no amount of intervention from the ventilator seemed to help. ECMO was a word Four had hardly heard in his trauma ICU, but he heard it on a near daily basis now, being considered at rounds, being initiated with someone else’s patient.

Four was exhausted. His face was breaking out from wearing a respirator for twelve hours at a time. His feet and knees and hips hurt from standing in isolation rooms for three to four hours at a time trying to cluster all his care. And now, with the visitor restriction enacted…

Visitors were hit or miss, particularly in Four’s world. Trauma precipitated drama, and while family could be infinitely helpful and supportive, he’d also seen things go awry, had to deescalate fights or call security. In some aspects, he was thankful there were no visitors while all of this was happening; he was tired of having to explain that yes, you have to wear this gown and gloves and mask, no you can’t kiss your loved one while they’re intubated and sedated with a contagious disease… but still. He couldn’t imagine how hard it was on the family - the patients were sedated to the point that they shouldn’t be aware of anything, but the family had to agonize over the matter at home.

He didn’t like it. He understand the logic. But he didn’t like it.

And so here he sat, holding a patient’s hand while they withdrew care. Here he sat, being the only witness to someone’s last breaths while their family mourned from afar.

Four watched the heart rate steadily drop. He watched the oxygen saturation plummet. He muted the red alarms as the monitor screamed that his patient was dying, that something should be done, like an accusation and call to arms when Four knew this particular fight was over.

He wasn’t a particularly religious person, but he said a prayer for the patient and the family either way. He found himself praying a lot these days, honestly.

While the visitor policy took its toll inside the frame of work, the restrictions both inside and outside the hospital were causing further stress on everyone. Warriors had basically banned Wind from seeing him, opting to stay with Time and Malon instead, leaving the kid in the apartment. He brought food deliveries to the door, asked if Wind needed anything, but he always did so when Wind wasn’t awake - the teenager had swore up and down that if anybody got Arfy he’d take care of them, and Warriors was terrified of that promise as it was basically a threat. Time agreed that Wind didn’t need to get involved, much to the teenager’s chagrin, and Wind found himself already struggling from the loneliness and the frustration of trying to study for classes online when nobody knew what they were doing or how long this would last.

Meanwhile, Wild sat in his room, fingers aimlessly tracing over each other, the smell of bleach so fresh in his nose from scrubbing everything relentlessly for hours on end that he might as well have inhaled a bottle of it. His chest hurt. Not to mention that new disinfectant they were told to use made him cough a lot.

And he worried. Because… it had been a few days since he’d seen his father. Legend had given him updates through his sister (and made Wild swear not to tell anyone about her), and it had sounded like he was improving as expected. But now, he… the rest of the family…

It felt like a blessing and a curse. It was a guarantee that Wild couldn’t run into his mother or sister by accident, but it was also a situation that his mind screamed that he address.

He couldn’t just… he couldn’t just leave his father isolated and alone recovering in the hospital in the midst of an outbreak. He couldn’t.

But what if visiting him made things so much worse? What if it stressed his father’s recovering heart? What if it triggered more traumatic memories for Wild? He was terrified of getting anywhere near the man while he was awake, but his heart screamed that he go to him.

Wild refused to be a coward. And he refused to be heartless, despite how anxious this entire situation made him, despite how his mind screamed he keep away. So that night, when he got on to work, he took a delivery to the cardiovascular ICU and paused in front of a doorway, looking hopefully for a familiar nurse.

“Link? Wild?”

Jumping, Wild turned around to see the nurse in question, watching him scrutinously. She smiled (or at least, he assumed she did, based on how her eye crinkled above her mask) in recognition. “I thought it was you. You here to see your dad?”

Wild swallowed and nodded.

“Good, because the drama I’ve been trying to avoid has been driving me insane,” Legend’s sister said lightheartedly, but despite the casualness of her tone, the words sank into Wild’s stomach like a stone.

“Drama?” He questioned quietly.

“Nothing like… bad, I suppose, but still,” the nurse explained. “I’d be in there taking care of him and overhear him talking to his wife and he’d mention that he swore he saw you. I’m not entirely sure she’s convinced. She seems hopeful, though. But I figured it was best not to bring it up myself since I, ah, don’t know what’s going on.”

Wild felt his blood freeze. His father remembered? And he’d told his mother?

Great. This was… this was just great.

“Go see him,” Legend’s sister prompted gently. “I can tell he loves you very much and just wants to know you’re ok.”

Wild’s eyes unexpectedly burned with tears in an instant, and he was grateful he was wearing a mask to hide his expression. He nodded, hesitantly making his way towards the room.

It all seemed so normal, seeing his father sitting in a recliner looking at his phone. Wild wasn’t even entirely sure he’d recovered memories of his father like that, but somehow it seemed familiar. Abel hadn’t noticed him yet, engrossed in whatever he was looking at, brow slightly furrowed. That expression drew memories, a familiar scrutiny that he would often give Wild himself or his sister, a quiet concern and sternness that made Wild want to stiffen up and simultaneously run to him.

Damn it all, he’d missed him.

Wild swallowed his fears and stepped forward, hoping that this wouldn’t be a disaster. He knocked on the door, initially so quietly that his father didn’t hear him over the chatter of the news on the television. He knocked again.

His father looked up. Stared a moment. Went a shade paler.

Wild hastily stepped forward. “W-wait, don’t get worked up—”

His father stood, seeming mostly steady on his feet, and tried to walk to him, heedless of the cords and oxygen tubing attached, and Wild hastily met him part of the way before he ripped everything out of the wall. Abel immediately pulled him to his chest in the tightest hug Wild had ever felt, and…

And Link sank into the embrace, crying.

[libr-0-cubicularist]

I think Four should get to be pretty. As a treat.

Thank you @zarvasace for the ask, I always want to draw the boy <3

[zerorock41]

Another Linked Universe Headcanon/idea!

Girls born into the Royal Family are all named Zelda as a tradition (that only became genuine law in the Decline Timeline). Whenever there is more than one living Zelda, the eldest one keeps the name, while the others take on other names, usually their middle name but not always.

Lullaby (Time's Zelda) doesn't remember her non-Zelda name anymore. She was so young when she lost her mother, and was so confused when everybody started calling her a different name.

Tetra, when she returned to her ship at the end of Wind Waker, ordered her pirates to share any stories and traditions they knew about the old Hyrule, as she did have interest and respect for the drowned kingdom (if she didn't, she wouldn't have kept the name). She regretted this order when Gonzo shared the name tradition, meaning all the crew thought they had to start calling her Zelda now. This is the reason for the opening scene in Phantom Hourglass.

Dot only just became Zelda a few months before Minish Cap started. In truth, she wasn't comfortable with everyone in Hyrule Town calling her Zelda, though she hid her discomfort well. Only Link/Four still called her Dot, and he still calls her Dot to this day, three journeys later, and while traveling with the Chain.

[linderosse]

Makin’ some proper intro cards for the gals ✨

> Sun, Dot, Lullaby (Details)

> Tetra, Dawn Fable

> Dusk, Artemis, Flora

Masterpost

[skyward-floored]

For IAU requests… anything Four related? Sorry if that’s too vague lol

Don’t worry about it anon, being vague is fine! Precise prompts are fun too, but having some more vague ones adds some nice variety. And gives me the freedom to do stuff like this, hehe.

(Set when they’re all a little older. Four is somewhere in his early teens).

————————————————————

“Hey, um... Link?”

Four startled, nearly banging his head against that of the girl leaning over him. She jumped back, and Four blinked a few times, trying to focus on her face. Freckles swam into view, and Four finally recognized the girl as his friend Dot.

Friend, despite how his brothers tried to tease.

“Ah, sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you,” Dot apologized, and Four waved her off, yawning.

“‘S okay,” he mumbled, rubbing his eyes. “Did you need something?”

Dot hesitated, something odd shining in her eyes. “You um, really seem tired today, Link. Are you all right?”

No. “Yeah.”

Dot studied him a second, then leaned down, and lowered her voice so the other kids couldn’t hear her as easily.

“I... I heard your brother was in the hospital.”

Four swallowed as the familiar ache in his chest came back, and he looked at his desk as he nodded.

“I’m really sorry,” Dot continued, her voice soft. “Is there anything I can do?”

“No,” Four mumbled, not wanting to think about Twilight, still struggling to recover after a hit from a mysterious weapon had nearly killed him. Hyrule’s powers had had almost no effect on his injury, and they’d exhausted every option they had. And though Twilight was finally no longer on death’s doorstep, he still wasn’t healing like he should be.

He could easily slip back to a dangerous level, and if that happened again he might not have the strength to pull through this time.

“...Link?”

Four swallowed. “Sorry. Thanks though. Appreciate it.”

Dot hesitated, but nodded, and patted his shoulder as the bell rang, signaling the start of class. She sat in the desk next to him like she always did, and poked his arm whenever he started to drift off, giving him a light shake when that wasn’t enough.

The school day dragged on, and dragged him with it, Four fumbling his way through his classes. Dot stayed at his side for all of them that she could, and the part of him that was awake enough to notice was grateful for it.

He’d barely slept the past few days, his emotions were a wreck, and on top of all that he’d had a nasty argument with Wild last night.

“He doesn’t need this right now!”

Four swallowed. All he really wanted to do was go back to the hospital and sit with Twilight, but instead he was stuck in school, currently learning about some math formula while his and Wild’s angry words rang in his head, along with the noise Twilight had made when he’d been hit and Four couldn’t stop thinking about how still he’d gone after he’d fallen—

“Mr. Forester, I asked you a question.”

Four blinked, and realized his math teacher had come up to his desk, arms crossed as her foot tapped on the floor. The classroom was quiet, and Four swallowed when he noticed everyone was looking at him.

“Mr. Forester?” the teacher reminded sternly, and Four swallowed.

“I’m... could you repeat that, please?” he stammered, and she sighed.

“I asked if you knew how to solve the problem,” she said, raising an eyebrow. “And I would appreciate an answer sometime this year.”

A few of his classmates tittered, and Four blinked the exhaustion out of his eyes, trying to remember if he’d actually heard her say the problem or not. His cluttered brain couldn’t focus though, too many thoughts and feelings clogging his usually sharp brain. The writing on the board blurred, and Four swallowed, looking at his desk.

He had no clue what he was supposed to be solving.

“I... n-no. I’m sorry,” he whispered, and to his horror, his eyes began to water.

His teacher sighed, and went back to the front of the class. “Disappointing, Mr. Forester. I expect more from you. Can anyone else tell me how to work these equations? Miss Castor?”

Someone else spoke up, but the words just buzzed in Four’s head, his throat tight as he stared at his desk.

His brother could be dying right now, and he was wasting his time sitting in a math class.

Four bit his lip as it trembled, flipping up the hood of his jacket. The argument with Wild wouldn’t stop replaying through his mind, the way he’d yelled and how Four had yelled back, and how he’d split in the middle of it and said things he knew he’d regret, but they’d felt so good leaving his mouth, and the way Wild’s face had looked so miserable as he’d run away, and how his father had just looked resigned to the fact that they were going to lose Twilight—

A hand squeezed his arm, and Four looked through his hair at Dot, her face sharply worried now. He swallowed rather thickly, and Dot suddenly raised her hand.

“Yes, Miss Gustafson?” their teacher asked as she turned around, and Dot stood from her desk.

“I think I need to take Link to the nurse,” she said firmly, hand still holding Four’s arm. “He hasn’t been feeling well all day, you can see for yourself he’s pale.”

“Are you certain?” their teacher asked, and Dot nodded, unwavering. Their teacher thought for a moment, tapping a finger on her desk. “Hmm. I suppose he has been acting unusual today... that would certainly explain some things. You may escort him.”

“Thank you,” Dot said with a nod, and she pulled Four out of his desk and out of the classroom before he could blink.

They didn’t go to the nurse’s office though, rather Dot pulled him to a small spot behind the stairs, one so small only a few kids could actually fit back here. Four and Dot fit fine though, and she tugged Four down to sit, rifling in her bag.

“Okay, go ahead,” she said, pulling something out.

“Go ahead?” Four asked, barely stopping his voice from wobbling.

“Go ahead. Cry. You were on the verge of breaking down in there, you’ve got to let some of it out or there’s no way you’re making it through any more classes today,” Dot said matter-of-factly. She held up a small packet of tissues. “So cry, please.”

Four let out a hollow laugh. “I’m not going to just start crying because you told me to, Dot.”

“It’ll help, trust me,” Dot urged, and her voice softened. “It’s okay to be upset, Link. Anyone would be with what you’ve got going on. Just cry for a bit, and then we can go back. We don’t even have to go to the nurse if you don’t want to.”

Four laughed again, but the sound was watery. “Dot, just because Tw-Twilight is in the, the hospital, doesn’t m-mean, I...”

For some reason saying it out loud made it all crash down on him, and Four’s voice broke.

He tried to keep talking, but his breath hitched, and suddenly he was crying instead, a sob hiccuping from his throat. Dot stayed quiet as she set a hand on his shoulder, and Four felt tears begin to drip down his cheeks.

She rubbed it a little bit, and Four hiccuped again, wishing in the back of his mind that he could split. Then only a fourth of him would be sobbing his eyes out in front of Dot, and this would be a little less embarrassing.

But his powers were secret, and supposed to stay that way. So Four continued to cry, Dot scooting over to sit more closely beside him, her hand warm on his shoulder.

He didn’t know how long they sat there, Dot patting his shoulder while he cried his eyes out, but it was long enough that he was sure their teacher would be suspicious.

“Y-you should go back,” Four finally said, shakily wiping his eyes on his sleeve. “You’ll be missed.”

“Oh don’t worry about that, I can just say you threw up on me and I had to clean myself up,” she shrugged, offering him a tissue. Four let out a watery snort, but took it, shakily blowing his nose. “Or that the nurse wanted to make sure you hadn’t infected me. Ooh, or maybe you were so delirious you begged me to stay at your side, and I was forced to forgo math in order to stop your feverish ramblings.”

“No way that would work as an excuse,” Four said, his voice still wobbling.

“It might, you never know.”

Four fondly shook his head, then sighed, feeling drained from all the crying he’d just done. He didn’t feel... better, exactly, but he felt less overwhelmed by it all. His head felt less cluttered at least, and he gave Dot a grateful look.

“Thanks Dot,” he said quietly, and she nodded, then gave him a quick hug.

“Of course. If you need to talk, or just... anything else, just ask, okay?”

Four nodded, and hugged her back. “Okay.”

They sat under the stairs a little while longer, trying to make Four look like he hadn’t spent the last half hour crying, and then Dot pulled him to his feet, and they went to the nurse’s office together. They at least needed an alibi for being gone so long, and it would be suspicious if Four was never seen going to the nurse. Even if he only felt sick because of worry.

Four sighed as they walked down the hallways, and Dot squeezed his hand, giving him a little smile. He somewhat succeeded in returning it, and his thoughts drifted back to Wild, and their argument.

As soon as he made it through the rest of the school day, he’d... try and talk to him. He owed Wild that much at least.

And... Twilight would want him to try.

[adrift-in-thyme]

@telemna-hyelle it took more than an hour (sorry about that) but here it is! The Four/Dot fluff I promised!

I hope it helps you end your day on a good note <33

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

He isn’t ready for this.

Four moves along the wooded path as if in a trance. He knows every step of this place like the back of his hand. But usually, he is much more attentive than this. Usually, he keeps a watchful eye on the surrounding area, scouting for the stray chu or keese. 

Today, however, he cannot seem to keep his mind on such things. The sunlight dappled earth beneath his feet, the scent of leaves and bark baked in the afternoon warmth, the breeze that caresses his cheeks, and the chittering of the many critters that scamper about within the foliage – they are all lost on him.

He feels Dot’s hand in his, her palm smooth and warm. He smells her perfume – light and sweet like the cotton candy they spin at the yearly festivals. He hears her laughter, bright and unrestrained and free as she tells a tale from her day. He sees her, radiant, hair like strands of gold and eyes the color of the joyful sky.

She looks at him, says something he can’t comprehend. He nods, conjures up a smile. With luck, it won’t be as strained as he feels that it is.

He has faced beasts one hundred times his size, navigated the pain and confusion of being split into four, saved the world twice. But by the golden three, he is not ready for this.

And yet, he is going through with it anyway. He can’t back down now. Not when his best friend is right here beside him, every moment of basking in her presence strengthening the love he feels for her. 

Four squares his shoulders. Yes, this is the right thing to do. The hardest things often are. 

The Minish have done a spectacular job preparing the clearing. That much is evident as soon as it comes into view. Everything is as they had planned. Every detail has been attended to with immaculate care.

Vines drape over tree limbs, their slim strands heavy with layered blossoms. Flower petals drift down in lazy pirouettes to join the coat of vibrant pink already lying on the forest floor. The sun glimmers through slightly parted branches. Not far off a fairy fountain casts its soothing glow. Soft notes of magic drift to Four’s ears as he leads Dot forward.

“Link,” she breathes, gazing upward and all around, eyes wide with adoration, “this is beautiful.”

“Yes, it is,” he agrees with a calm he in no way feels. “The Minish worked very hard on it.”

Dot turns to him now, head cocked in question. “The Minish? What do you…”

She trails off as he drops to one knee.

It feels as though he is kneeling on a bed of silk. But the sensation in his chest as he reaches into his pouch is about as pleasant as the Big Octorok sitting on him.

The ring is in his palm though, a delicate thing melted and shaped and fired by his own two hands. It had taken countless tries to get it right, to meld the corners into the perfect curve, to carve the designs in the way he imagined them to be. Making jewelry is not quite the same as crafting a sword. It requires a different sort of skill.

But he had found that skill within him. And he had created something beautiful. Something he will be proud to see upon her finger.

“Zelda,” he murmurs and curses the way his voice trembles a bit at the end, “Zelda, Princess of Hyrule, my dearest friend…” He raises his head, gazes into those big blue eyes. The ones that had shone with empathy when the pieces of himself had threatened to shatter him anew. The ones that had glowed with mirth and joy at the festivals, brightened when he told a joke, gone sharp with interest when he told a tale.

The eyes he has gotten lost in so many times before, and hopes to many more times in the future.

“Zelda, will you marry me?”

She stares at him for a long, agonizing moment, hand held to her mouth, emotion surging across her face. Then, she laughs. She laughs and the world sings with the noise. And she swoops down and lands a kiss right on his lips.

“Was…” he croaks when his surroundings have swung back into focus and the dizzying mixture of elation and trepidation have abated somewhat, “...was that a yes?”

“Oh, Link, of course, it was! Of course!” Her hands are on his face. The ring shines on one of her fingers, though he can’t remember placing it there. Everything is a haze, a haze of wonder and joy and fear. 

It looks perfect there, though. Almost as though she was born to wear it.

“I’ll marry you, Link!” She cries, visage aglow. “I would like nothing more!” 

A laugh bubbles from his lips now, smaller and more hesitant, but overjoyed nonetheless. He stands and suddenly, his arms are around her and hers around him and they are hugging like the world depends upon it. Like if they let go, this moment, this delicate, beautiful moment will solidify and shatter. 

Perhaps, it will. But Four likes to think that it is stronger than that. Like they are.

He blinks away the tears and smiles.

As a sword is forged to endure the struggles of time, so is their friendship made to withstand the toughest of tribulations. And that makes moments like this one even more precious.

“I love you,” she says and her very soul is in the words.

Four holds her tighter and makes himself a promise that he will never let her go. He will never allow her to fall in harm’s way again, never leave her to face life alone. No, they will stand tall through it all. Together. 

“I love you too,” he whispers. “I love you too.”

[weepingtalecowboy]

I am surprised and kind of not surprised at all by how undeniably bad Hyrule's politics are

Like there is a demon knocking at your doorstep every decade or so

And instead of creating a system of actually destroying the demon again and again

You just throw your daughters at the problem and wait till a little blond boy comes and saves you

Like why is the whole kingdom so underprepared for calamity ganon

They had 10.000 years to prepare for it and instead chose to procrastinate till they had less then a year left and only then did they try to find a way to fix the situation

Like telling Zelda to get on and start zelding would have been useful when they had several thousands of years to prepare

But only like 17 years without a link to be found

Is just stupid they should have recovered the divine beasts the second that Zelda came to be or even earlier like several hundred years before the reawakening of the calamity

But that also makes total sense for a kingdom that won’t stop sacrificing daughters and relies entirely upon a single man (most Times a boy even)

And that is so fucking hilarious and pathetic

Like if I was an outside observer

I too wouldn’t want to involve myself into such a mess

[dark-angel-of-muses]

Did a hand at designing a version of Dot (The Zelda from Four Swords Adventure!) She's a little cutie and I hope we get more zeldas with bows and ponytails in the future! She's a black-capped Chickadee, and the reason she has wings is I was inspired by @breannasfluff Wing Boi au which is super awesome and you should go check her out!