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bokettochild · 2 years

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Hero's Wake - Part 3/3

Summary: A battle in the middle of nowhere leaves the younger heroes grievously injured and a couple near death. It's only been a day since their last big battle and they're nearly out of medical supplies, and with no towns or healers in sight, the boys have to hope that the owners of the small farmhouse Twilight saw when scouting ahead will be kind enough to help them. Turns out, the farmers have a lot more to offer than medical aid; they also have stories and memories of a young hero of courage it seems the Chain hasn't yet encountered.

(As promised, here is the art piece that sort of inspired this story, you know, in a round about 'how did we come here' sort of way lol. I honestly loved this piece and would love to mess more with the idea in future, if only because the potential is so untapped!)

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 (you are here)

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The bedroom is the same from this morning, still peaceful, still quiet, still haunting in the absence of its owner. The bed is a slight mess on Four’s side, as though the smithy has tried to straighten the sheets and given up halfway through on account of his bed-mate, but other than the blankets, everything is untouched. Well, except of course for the teapot left on the nightstand with an un-drunk mug of tea and the plush rabbit that nimble fingers are currently worrying the ear of.

He doesn’t think Legend notices him when he enters, or at least the veteran doesn’t respond in any way, positive or negative when he stops in the doorway.

It’s strange, in a way, to stand and watch Legend lay there, eyes fixed on the plush animal as one of its limp and well-loved ears is worried between his fingers. The vet looks near as young as the painting downstairs as he lies, blankets up to his shoulders, hair a mess and clutching the stuffed animal like some sort of lifeline, and somehow, that makes him feel he should walk back out. Except, Legend and Four were both badly hurt, and now that the vet’s awake, he really does need to check and make sure there’s nothing gone wrong and the teen is feeling at least somewhat better.

“Just going to stand there?”

The vet’s eyes don’t shift from where they're turned on the rabbit so it catches him a bit off guard, but he doesn’t let that show as he walks into the room proper, moving to seat himself on the opposite side of the bed, if not for his own comfort than for the vet’s so Legend won’t have to crane his neck oddly to look at him. “How are you feeling?”

The younger hero shifts slightly, making a face of discomfort. “Not great honestly. How are the others?”

“Hyrule’s leg was broken and we’re trying to keep him off of it, Four took an axe to the side and Wind took a bad hit to his right arm.” He lists, settling more comfortably and carefully noting the tense posture of the other’s shoulders as he lists off all their younger members, no doubt the ones Legend would have been most worried about. “They’ve all been treated.”

“And Wild?”

“A concussion, but nothing more, by Din’s grace.”

The vet nods, sighing as he sinks down a bit further into the bed with a wince. “The others?”

He recounts the injuries as Romani had done so, assuring that all is well, the others are all healing well and that Legend and Four really were the worst off of the nine of them. “And as Four’s already up, I’d say he’s well on the mend.”

There’s another nod, Legend’s gaze still not meeting his own as the teen fidgets with the plush rabbit. It’s strange, he’d never expect it from the seasoned veteran of their group to play with stuffed animals, but then again, he really has no room to talk; the stuffed horse Malon made him when they were kids still rests on their bed, well-loved and repeatedly mended, and he’s no closer to packing it away than he was when he reached adulthood the second time.

“How mad are they?”

It catches him off guard to hear, and he pauses, head tilting slightly to one side as he considers the hero before him. “None of us are mad, vet. That ‘blin was near twice your size, it wasn’t your fault.”

The tattered ear of the rabbit is tugged slightly, the vet’s face pinching into a scowl. “Not the guys, the- the folks of the house. We’re at Lon Lon but it’s not yours, how mad were the people here that...”

“That we intruded on their lives?”

Legend nods.

“Not mad at all. They almost turned us away at the door, but I think seeing you younger boys turned their hearts. It seems they have experience with heroes and can recognize them once they’ve had time to look.”

He can’t fathom why the vet winces at the words, or why his hands close tighter around the plush.

Distractedly, he wonders if he should look into getting animal plushes for all of his boys. Legend seems quite taken with the rabbit and he’s sure Sky and the younger ones would appreciate having one to hold or fidget with themselves. Warriors and Twilight he’s unsure about, but perhaps that is only because the two of them present themselves so maturely. Perhaps secretly, they would appreciate having a small animal friend to consult with when they need a moment alone, but he doubts they’d own up to as much.

“Did they...” Legend pauses, gnawing on his lip the same as the pup gnaws his cheek, “Do they know who we are?”

He considers the paintings downstairs. “Maybe some of us, they didn’t say anything about it though, so I can’t tell you for sure.”

Another nod, and Legend shifts yet again, this time to be lying on his back and staring up at the ceiling. He looks troubled, though by what Time can’t decipher.

“Is something the matter?”

This time he gets a shake of the head, but violet eyes still don’t drift over to meet his gaze, the other instead staring upwards blankly, gaze dull and hands still at work with the rabbit he’s pulled over with himself.

“Legend-”

“Don’t dad-voice me, Time.” The vet snaps, although without any of the bite he’s accustomed to as the teen turns on him. “It might fly with the others, but I’m not one of your pups.”

It takes him a bit aback, but he doesn’t fight it, just nods his acceptance before Legend is turning back to look up at the roof. Despite himself, he can’t help glancing up after, wondering what could be up there that’s holding the vet’s attention.

He doesn’t regret looking. The ceiling is painted, beautifully so, with a map. Not a star map, as he would suppose most people would attempt, but one of Hyrule, of beyond Hyrule. He can make out near perfectly the Lost Woods, Castletown, Death Mountain and Lake Hylia as well as a few other familiar landmarks. He can see towns and cities, palaces and islands, even the ocean in sweeping blue and purple.

“Wow.”

“The Labrynnian border is done wrong.” Legend huffs, drawing his gaze to see the scowl set on the face of the other.

He has to remind himself before he speaks that Legend is in pain, nervous for whatever reason and also a professional when it comes to both maps and art. “Maybe so, but for a child,” his good eye trails back up to the painting, perfectly visible from their place on the bed, “this is amazing.”

There’s silence a moment, and when he looks it’s to see Legend still frowning, eyes pained. “Wind could do better.”

“Wind is a professional map maker.”

“See, he could do better.”

Time sighs. “Legend-”

“Leave it be, Old Man.” Again, the younger hero shifts, rolling over and dragging the rabbit plush with him as he turns his back on the older man. “I’m going back to sleep.”

Impulse has him reaching out a hand and parting his lips to speak, but instinct has him pulling back, reminding himself that this is Legend; he likes his space and his peace and what precious little sleep he can get. “Sleep well, vet. There’s tea on the side table to help with the pain.”

Legend grunts something indistinct as a response, and Time takes that as his cue to stand and leave the room.

The meal has been cleared by the time he makes it down the stairs, but he makes it his business to offer a hand with the dishes despite. This time, he’s not denied the chance to work, and he and Warriors labor at cleaning and drying them while Creamia stand close by to make sure the plates and utensils and cups and other things all go where they ought.

It’s quiet between them as they work, the captain humming softly, brows furrowed in thought as he scrubs, and Time himself is a bit too lost in his own thoughts to try and attempt any sort of talk. He briefly wonders if the silence makes their hosts uncomfortable, as tense as he is, but the red-head at his shoulder seems more interested with watching them, curious, than looking disturbed by the strange quiet of the farm kitchen.

The day proceeds as such, the heroes offering their aid where they can and being employed in various capacities about the farm. It’s still raining, just as Miss Mirta predicted, but Twilight and Warriors take no issue with doing out of doors work despite, coming back inside sopping and grinning, ribbing each other and tussling gently in ways that draw smiles all around. Romani scolds them playfully, throwing towels in their faces as her girls likeways towel themselves dry, giggling at the two boys.

Four and Hyrule have settled down helping wind yarn into skeins and Wild has made himself useful with Wind in scrubbing and cleaning various parts of the house as they’re commanded by Mister Hanson. As for Time, he’s managed to find himself working with the patriarch of the house in cleaning the rather surprising array of weapons armor and items that the man keeps around.

“They’re from my days as a Knight of Hyrule.” The old man tells him, buffing a rather too small helmet. “I kept them around for Link, when he grew old enough. They’re family heirlooms and can’t be allowed to fall into disrepair.”

All in all, it's not a bad day they spend, working and chatting and general getting to know their hosts.

This worlds Malon is much like his own was in her teens, fiesty and a bit bitter, but not without reason. They learn that the girl was rather close to this world’s hero, and that his loss was like that of a younger sibling, leaving her feeling a bit alone without her partner in crime and taking his death perhaps the hardest out of all of her family. Regardless though, she’s quick witted and clever, and once Four prompts a laugh out of her with a droll comment she seems to warm up to the lot of them somewhat. Creamia is the quieter of the two sisters, but none the less sharp or observant. She speaks little, but she seems to be listening to all as she works over a mending pile that afternoon, green eyes flickering over their number with a hint of something sly touching her smile. Romani is something akin to both her daughters, bold and quiet at once, not speaking overmuch but always with purpose and she seems to have Warriors quite hooked in conversation as the two discuss matters he hadn’t been aware the captain knew anything about. The discussion of the market for cattle is boring to him, but quite riveting for the two if their tense expressions and quick back and forth means anything.

And that leaves Miss Mirta and her husband, who seem to be well settled folks who’ve seen both the worst and best of what life has to offer and sit contentedly apart from the world on their ranch, enjoying the long days and the company as it comes, and working at their tasks with eyes that turn over the group of heroes and farm-lasses with warm smiles. Mister Hanson in particular seems to take a shine to him, settling down and discussing adventures and combat and any number of droll stories that really aren’t half of what the man thinks them to be, but somehow capture Wind’s attention despite, the sailor constantly pausing in his work to listen until the lad is shooed away by Wild to just sit and keep the older fellow company.

Wind’s eagerness and the old knight’s nostalgia make the two a perfect pair to spend the following hour as dinner is prepared, and it finally leaves Time in peace. He takes the opportunity for what it is, rising and excusing himself to go check on Legend again, although not before Twilight has risen to do the exact same. It leaves chuckles ringing from the group about them as they exchange a glance and a smile before determining to head up together.

“If he’s awake,” Miss Mirta calls to them, rising from her needlework and making her way towards the kitchens, “bring him down. I’d like to check that wound over and get some food in him if he can manage, poor dear’s eaten nothing all day.”

“Could’ve eaten that soup I brought up,” Wars offers, and then to himself more then to their hostess, “doubtful though.”

Twilight nods. “Yes’m, he should be awake by now, so I’ll haul him down even if he kicks up a fuss. Apologies in advance for his attitude.”

There are chuckles and snorts from the other heroes and raised brows from their hosts, but nothing more is said as he and his pup make for the stairs and up to the loft space of the house. The room is the same as the last time he was in it, and surprisingly, Legend still lies in the bed, staring up at the ceiling with a pained expression as one hand rubs over the center of his chest. It’s telling in a way Legend rarely is, hinting that the wound from the previous night is bothering him even despite being mostly healed. It makes him worry just a bit, pausing in the door as he’s done both times previous.

Twilight has no such hesitations, entering the room boldly and settling at his brother’s side with a concerned tilt of the head and a quiet question that Legend dismisses with something terse and murmured. It draws a huff of silent laughter from his pup, one hand reaching out to ruffle the vet’s already atrociously messy hair, earning a glare as the vet bats at his hand. Despite all though, he can tell the interaction is purely playful on both ends; were Legend truly irritated he could kick Twilight off the bed with ease, and the pup would stop if told to do so seriously. Legend doesn’t demand he cease though, so Twilight doesn’t stop until pink bangs are falling over the vet’s eyes and earning a squawk of protest as the younger hero sits up and tries to free his eyes from their newly gained veil. It makes him smile to watch them, although it is somewhat surprising. He had thought the two to be rather at odds with each other, but it would seem something has shifted when he wasn’t looking.

“So, you can sit up,” Twilight observes, shifting around and scooping the vet up in his arms, making his brother abandon his mission to free his vision as instead the vet grabs at the arms around him with an outraged huff.

“Put me down, you bloody mutt!”

The ‘mutt’ in question huffs, smiling in the way that shows all his teeth as he purposefully fumbles his brother enough to make Legend’s hands clutch tightly into the rancher's shirt, drawing a laugh from the older boy. “Sorry, vet, but yer wanted downstairs.”

The words shouldn’t make Legend pale like he does, and he hardly expects the way the vet pushes back, nearly making himself fall all over again. It would seem his pup didn’t expect it either, and rather than letting Legend meet his fate of falling to the floor, the young man hastily drops his brother to the bed’s covers, face pinching with worry at the way the younger lad flails only to still, pain written across his face as he clutches at his chest.

“Vet-”

One hand raises in a motion for silence, the younger hero forcing even breaths as he pressed to the previously wounded area of his chest.

For lack of anything better to do, he makes his way to the bedside, scooping up the mug of tea that sits there, still only half drunk, and offers it to the younger man. Legend nods his thanks for it, sipping cautiously and making a face at the taste, but not handing it back until a decent portion of the now cold liquid is gone and at least some of the discomfort seems to have eased.

Patiently, his pup waits until his brother’s hand falls from against his chest, no longer pressing as pain is written over pinched features, and when Legend seems calm again, the pup speaks. “Vet, you should get that looked at.”

There’s a roll of the eyes in response, Legend settling back down as he speaks. “No point. It’s just the muscles regrowing. Hurts like the dickens but it won’t kill me.”

“Still, there might be a way to help it along.”

“Warriors might know of something,” Time offers, “and if he doesn’t I’m sure our hosts-”

“No thanks.” Legend cuts him off, perhaps too hastily.

Twilight cocks a brow. “Why not, do you- Vet, if you think they’re unsafe-”

“Of course they’re safe,” the vet scoffs, “probably the safest people in all of Hyrule, I just...” The teen flops back into the bed, closing his eyes as to not look at either of them. “I’m pretty sure there’s nothing they could do for me, and I refuse to be a burden on people.”

He wants to deny that any of his boys could ever be a burden, but he’s not given a chance. It would seem his pup has sniffed out something and the younger man’s brows furrow as something glints in midnight blue eyes. “And how would you know if they’re the safest folk in Hyrule, when you haven’t met them and don’t know who’s Hyrule this is?”

He can hear the silent curse and the vet freezes up, and though Legend’s eyes are closed his ears give him away, flicking backwards in a signal of either fear or wariness as the other takes a stuttering breath. Neither he nor Twilight speak, waiting for an answer, and at last it comes, Legend pushing himself back up, eyes fixed on his hands as they fist in the sheets of the bed, knuckles white and jaw stiff. There’s a million emotions warring in violet eyes as they stare, not rising to meet either his own or those of his pup as the vet speaks. “Okay, hear me out.”

“We’re listening.” Twilight answers, frowning but not judgmental.

“This Hyrule is... mine.” Legend’s grip tightens. “This world is mine, this home is... was mine.”

“But-”

“You said you’d hear me out.” The vet’s head snaps to one side but he doesn’t meet the rancher’s gaze as he speaks to him. “Based on the voices downstairs, I’m guessing there’s five people here other than us, and if I know how this all works than that would be... that would be my grandparents, my aunt and my two cousins. Yes, I’m well aware of the fact that that doesn’t make sense. Knowing them, they’ve probably slipped and said something by now about their Link, something fond, something nice, they do that.”

“They said he was dead.” Twilight murmurs, confusion making his ears flick absently and Time knows without checking that his own are doing the same as he listens.

Legend scoffs. “Yeah. He is, in a way.” Thin hands release their hold on the blankets as Legend runs them both through his hair, pushing it back from his face and staring up at the ceiling. “Did they say how he died?”

The pup nods, and for a moment he finds himself wondering when it was said and how he missed it, but them he remembers he’d been trailing after the younger heroes this morning and caught in chatter with Mister Hanson for much of the afternoon. It’s not that surprising he’s missed something.

“Died at sea, yeah? Sailed out years ago looking for new lands to explore and never came back.”

“All that was found was the remains of his ship.” Twilight murmurs, a confirmation to Legend’s claim.

“Burnt and broken by storms.” The vet expands, and when the rancher nods the teen huffs a short and bitter laugh. “Yeah, that was three adventures ago. Four if you count this one. I didn’t die at sea, but I really ought to have. I didn’t make it home for some time and when I did, I wasn’t exactly in a state to go about getting myself legally alive again, you know, having nearly died and all.” He says it in a manner that hints he’s trying to make light of the situation even though it’s clearly eating at him if the way his ears flicker and nose twitches means anything, and Time knows it does. “When I was actually, you know, healthy again, it’d been a few years and I just” -the vet shrugs- “decided to leave it be. Link the Hero was dead, he wasn’t being chased, and everyone who didn’t know was already done mourning him and was starting to move on. So, I just...”

“You never told them.” Time finishes, despite not meaning to even open his mouth.

Legend nods, gaze flickering to meet his for the first time since this morning. “Yeah. They’d already moved on and it felt cruel to tell them.”

“That you were alive?” Twilight chokes out, as if the matter at hand physically pains him, and knowing what he does of his pup’s connection with his own family, it might. “It felt cruel to say ‘hey, I didn’t die and I’m actually alright’? Leg-”

“No.” And there is the snap again, that flicker in the eyes and the setting of the vet’s jaw as he turns his stare on his brother. “That the kid they lost was...gone. I might be alive, Twilight, but I’m nothing like they remember. I agonized over this for ages when I was healing, and I’m not going to pretend that it was an easy choice to make, but giving them back a shell of the person they knew...that would be like sending Wild back to his world before the Calamity with no memories of the people he loved!”

The words make both himself and Twilight pause. While Wild is the only person the lot of them know that such things apply to, it’s not hard to think of others as well, people forever changed or altered from how they had once been. For Twilight, it’s a matter of time having altered friends and family. For Time, it’s a matter of the people he knows never having coming to be as he recalls them.

Legend sits, watching them a moment before he continues. “I was thirteen when I left home. Nayru knows how old I am now, but it’s been long enough that- Telling them, seeing them, it will just hurt them at this point. It would have hurt them before to see what I’ve become. I’m nothing like I was and may as well be a stranger to them now. I’m not a leader like they hoped, I’m not the knight I was trained to be, I’m not even the chivalrous child hero who my grandfather likes to tell people about! I’m just” -he shrugs again, eyes losing the fire from the moment before, body going slack as a weary smile is forced to the front- “an average nobody who got pulled into saving the world a few times while I was out exploring.”

He wants to deny it but, in a way, the vet is right. He doesn’t know the child that the vet’s grandparents did, but he knows, to a point, the teen hero who sits before him, tired and worn but still eternally curious about the things beyond his own Hyrule. Legend isn’t a leader, nor a knight, nor really anything save their dear veteran, a hero like the rest of them who’d risen in a time of need to help the people around him.

“But they’re your family,” Twilight stresses, looking torn, “they clearly love you, Ledge.”

“And they’ll keep loving me,” the vet returns, “but this way they don’t feel hurt if I end up disappearing again. If something happens, like yesterday in that battle but without the potions, without the friendly farm folk offering help, or if I get cursed again and can’t find a fix for it, they aren’t losing anything. To them, I'm already gone, and I’m- I’m okay with that because it means they can’t lose me again.”

The rancher scowls. “I don’t think it’s your place to choose what they lose and who they have to mourn. They’re your family, vet, not your subjects.”

For some reason, that statement earns another twisted up expression somewhere between amusement and resignation, but the vet doesn’t explain that any more than he seems to give thought to Twilight’s words. “I’m supposed to protect them, Twilight, not-”

The rancher shakes his head, scowling slightly. “No, they’re your family, your grandparents and aunt and if what they’re sayin’ is right, everyone here is older than you-”

“If you call me the baby of my family, I’m disowning you.” Legend deadpans.

“Are you?”

A scowl. “I am the youngest, that doesn’t make me the baby.”

“But it does mean the only ones protecting here should be the adults, not the kids. It’s not your business to protect them from hurt-”

“But it literally is!” Legend explodes. “I’m the hero! Last I checked, protecting everyone was literally in the job description!”

“Boys,” he soothes, leaning across the bed towards them and setting a hand on the vet's shoulder, “enough.”

Eyes dart away and frowns overtake faces as the same tension that he’d only recently realized had left returns, neither looking at each other as the vet crosses his arms and Twilight rakes a hand through his hair, both huffing. It saddens him to see them at odds, but such things are common between siblings. Goodness knows he’d been in the same place with Mido a million times before everything went south and still somehow they’d mended things after a while. Well, except the last time, but they never really got the chance to try then.

“Legend,” he starts again, once they’ve had a moment of silence to gather themselves and their maturity, “we do need to have you come downstairs. No, listen. You’re still injured, and you haven’t eaten all day, you need to come down and take care of both of those things. While I don’t understand your not wanting to talk to your family, no one is asking you to. You can keep to yourself if you must, but you need to let us help take care of you until you’re healed properly.”

The vet stares up at him, lips pursed and brows furrowed, but he doesn’t speak, almost visibly biting his tongue as he listens, and Time counts that at least as a win.

“While Warriors may be a trained medic, he’s only a field medic, he’s not trained to oversee recoveries. Whether you come down or not, someone’s going to have to help, and Miss Mirta seems the most adept at handling injuries.”

“Yeah,” the vet huffs, “she learned on me. I know.”

“Then you know she can help you.” Twilight interjects, still tense and frowning, “let her.”

Violet eyes snap towards the rancher with a scowl. “Hard to help when you’re sobbing your heart out in confusion, rancher.”

“Well, she wouldn’t be confused by your existence if you would just trust your family!” his pup huffs, “Vet, really, open your eyes!”

“To what?”

“What if I had done this to you?” Twilight demands, stepping forwards and staring down at his brother. Legend looks as though he’d love to jump up to meet his gaze, to keep them more level so he’s not being stared down by the wolfish rancher, but there’s no space for it and he’s left sitting on the bed, neck arcing back to meet steely blue eyes. “What if, when I got hit by the shadow, I had let you all think I’d died? What if I’d just gone off to fight the shadow alone because I don’t want you all to suffer on my account?”

“You didn’t.”

“But what if I had?”

This time, he stands back, lets them hash it out. Stepping in will do no good now, not with tempers flaring and both young men snarling at each other. If anything, it will just put of the conflict, make it simmer until it finally explodes, and that’s not something he wants for any of them, least of all whatever poor souls the two will be around when it eventually happens.

“Then Wild would have lost his mind and one of us would have eventually figured you out-”

“But if you hadn’t.” Twilight demands. “If I let you all think I died, and never did anything to give you closure, or worse, if I’d just disappeared sometime, or if Warriors did, or Sky or Wind-”

“What’s your point?” The vet hisses, tensing. Warriors, Sky and Wind are all important to the teen, they all know this. Hyrule is his successor, but Sky is his best friend, Warriors his sparring partner and while he’s unsure of the nature of the relationship between the sailor and the vet, he knows there is something between them, something close, and that Twilight is using that to his advantage when bringing them up.

“That it would hurt you if you lost one of us. I know you play at not caring, that you put up a shield and snark and act like an ass, but you can’t convince me that if someone attacked and killed one of us that you wouldn’t be heart-broken.”

“I’m an ass, not a cold-hearted snake.” The vet hisses, ears flicking back.

“And somehow I don’t quite believe you really are the first of those,” Twilight challenges, “because if I recall correctly, it’s been you this whole adventure who gets the most worked up about anyone gettin' hurt or upset. You’re the one deflecting any barbs from the others and you’re the one panicking if anything happens to us. If I didn’t know better, vet, I'd assume you were the softest hearted one of us.”

“How dare you.” Legend deadpans.

The pup doesn’t smile at the quip, doesn’t react at all save leveling his brother with a glare. “I’m bein’ serious, vet.”

Legend scowls, hands tensing in the sheets again. “Then stop dancing and tell me what your point is.”

“My point,” Twilight all but growls, “is that if somethin’ happened to one of us, you’d be hurt. That’s how your family is feelin’ and how you’re lettin’ them feel- essent’ly, makin’ them feel.”

“I’m-”

“You think you’re protecting them but you’re jist not!” It is a growl this time, the rancher bending over and bringing his face to a near level with the younger hero’s as he speaks.

“You have no idea-”

“But I do,” Twilight seethes. “When I went on my adventure, no one knew if I was comin’ back. No one knew if I was even alive half of it, all they could go off was gossip, and Ordonia knows Hyrule gossip don’t make its way out to Ordon. Far as my folks were concerned, I was good as dead.”

Legend blinks, startled, and it seems to prompt Twilight into realizing just how aggressively he’s posed, hands fisted in the sheets and face inches from the vet’s own as he leers over the smaller hero. The older of the two pulls back, much to Time’s relief, as he’d been half afraid he’d need to pull his pup away from his brother, a feat he’s capable of should he need, but not an easy one by any means.

The rancher sighs, running another hand through his hair as he steps back. “I lost my family for a long time, and in a way, they lost me too, forever.” Midnight eyes are pained as they turn back on the vet, no more aggression or anger in them as the lad takes in his brother. “Like you, vet, I’m nothin’ like I used to be. My adventure changed me and when I did come home it was a slap to the face for the folks that raised me. But they still love me.” He stresses the words, desperate, trying to press how important they are as Legend blinks, unaffected, at him. “Even after all the changes, they still love me, and even though they know they could lose me at any time, know I might leave one day and never be able to come back home, they still want me in their lives because -and I speak for both them and myself when I say this- we think it’s worth it; it’s worth the pain if we can have each other. Love is pain, family is pain, but it’s worth it because it is so, so much more than pain.”

Legend scowls. “Why does this matter so much to you? It’s not even your family!”

“But you are.” And once the words are out the vet is starting and Time himself feels something shift, feels something inside of himself twist oddly. “You’re my brother, vet, and I know that someday, all this” -a vague gesture to the room about them- “all the adventurin’, the travelin’- all of it, we all know it’s going to end. When it ends, I know where I’m going; I’m going back home to my family and I’m helpin’ Ulli run the schoolhouse. But the rest of you? Sky’s going home to his Zelda. Wars has a family somewhere that he says precious little about, but I know at least he has a sister and a lot of friends. Wind has his granny and sister and the pirate gang. Four has his grandpa, Wild has his Zelda and the friends he’s made, Time has Malon and the ranch, Hyrule... Well, we don’t know rightly who Hyrule’s got, but I know he’s friends with his princesses, so he’s got them at the least, but you vet? You have an empty house and one singular friend who might not even be able to stick around once all this dimensional time travel stuff is over!”

And that gains a reaction, Legend is starting and looking just a bit pained before he’s blank again, scowling and twitching in discontent and frustration.

“And I don’t want that,” Twilight continues, “I want my brothers to be happy when we have to say goodbye, I want to know they have someone there for them if somethin’ goes screwy an’ they need help. And let’s face it vet, you don’t have anyone! Not anyone you seem to trust anyways!”

“I have my sister!” The vet protests.

“And how old is she?” The rancher demands, skipping over the fact that this is the first time they’ve ever heard of such a person.

Legend fumbles, ears flickering and eyes darting away a moment. “How should I know? We’re twins, and I don’t even remember what year it is, how should I know how old we are?”

“But you’re twins?” the rancher repeats, and at the vet’s nod he frowns. “Legend, a sibling isn’t enough. Yes, they’re wonderful an’ all, but what happens when you need someone to go to for advice? What happens when yer face finally catches up with the rest of you and you need to learn to shave? Who’ll be there to teach you things or help you when yer sick- we all know you ain’t got the fittest system in Hyrule, who’ll help you back on yer feet again?”

And Legend stammers, he flusters and stumbles over his words for all of a moment before shooting a truly poisonous look Twilight’s way.

That’s about when he considers it safe to intercede, shifting his seat on the bedside, on Legend’s level but not in his space, catching the younger man’s eyes and holding them with a frown he’s careful not to make judgmental or too harsh. “Legend, please, think on it.”

“I already have.” The vet hisses back. “I thought about it for months.”

He nods. “Without the knowledge you have now. I think you should take some time to reassess, think things through.” His bones creak as he moves to stand, gesturing to his protégé and moving for the door. “I’ll send Wars up with your dinner and we’ll give you some time.”

The bed behind them moves, creaking slightly as Legend turns to watch them exit. “And then what?”

It’s a moment of struggle to stare his pup down and prompt him out the door, but once Twilight is headed for the stairs again, he turns back to the teen, carefully calm. “Depends on what you choose, vet.” And with those words, he closes the door behind himself and descends the stairs.

The next morning dawns the same as the last, Wild tucked up against his chest and Twilight waking beside them as boots scuff near the door and the farm-folk make to head out to the barn. Just as the morning before, he sits, eyes closed, waiting for their exit so he can drift back off, content to regain the precious sleep he’d lost the previous night and wake later to help with the work. The day before was a draining one and he’s not truly ready to see its results.

He doesn’t get to.

When he wakes again it’s to the sounds of sharp cries and sobbing, noises which pull him up from the couch in instants only to see Legend standing at the base of the stairs, engulfed in Miss Mirta’s arms as the woman clings tight hold to him. Missing an eye as he is, he still isn’t so blind as to miss how Legend returns the embrace, clinging, face buried in the woman’s chest as she murmurs something in the Gerudo tongue that his tired mind won’t bother translating.

For privacies sake, he rests down again, shushing Wild when the teen blinks up at him and running a hand through long blonde hair to sooth the other back to sleep. When they both wake again, Legend is sitting in the kitchen, hands full with a mug of the bitter tea and the five Lons gathered around, speaking quietly while Twilight creeps back to their side, a bittersweet look on the lad’s face when he catches Time’s eye.

They keep to the main room for the morning, Hyrule showing the others the paintings and drawings and both he and Wind trading comments in the sort of jargon only Legend and Wild have any understanding of. They leave the Lons to their peace, to their questions and answers and Legend to his family while his brothers gather about and stare at two paintings of faces nearly familiar, questions dancing between them as curious gazes sneak to the open door in hopes of catching sight of something beyond.

Breakfast is late, but no one comments. Miss Mirta is fussing at Legend the whole time and Malon smiling bright as day as she sits herself as close as possible to her cousin, but the heroes hold their tongues and avert their eyes, careful not to trigger any discomfort. That doesn’t stop them sneaking glances, chuckling softly at the worry and fuss and scolding and the hint of tears about blue and green eyes. It doesn’t stop Legend from tossing something at Twilight midway through the meal when his grandmother is looking away a moment, the vet offering a look Time has no time to read before it’s gone, his pup smiling back in return.

There’s questions after everything, of course there is, and Miss Mirta eventually has to excuse herself and her husband for a moment while the two collect their wits, leaving the vet free for a precious moment before Wind is catching hold of him and dragging him back to the main room and the other heroes, questions already brimming over.

Questions are answered, in the coy, round-about manner Legend answers anything about himself. There’s some light teasing and no small amount of wonder at the reveal that the bold young knight they’ve been told of is their own vet, and Warriors raises a pointed brow as he inquires about the knight part of the title, but Legend doesn’t seem overly upset by it all. Eventually though, the questions ease and they’re all mulling over the information while Legend sits with Hyrule, who smiles in that odd way that hints that the traveler has known, had figured it out himself somehow without ever hinting a thing. It’s then that Four brings it up.

“So, the paintings,” the smithy nods to the far corner and the paintings he, Hyrule and Time has stared at so much the day before, “is that you?”

There’s a glance to the wall, Legend’s face flushing brightly a moment, and then the vet’s head is falling into his hands with a soft groan. “Of course they still have that. I told Grandpa...”

“It’s quite impressive,” Time offers, resisting the urge to ruffle pink hair as a comfort, “you must have been quite beloved to already have paintings made of you.”

The vet snorts, looking up between his fingers with a small smirk. “That was made about four-hundred years ago, along with all the statues and whatnot, it’s by no means recent.”

The words send the rest of his boys into another round of questions, eyes dancing and voices curious as they ask after what sort of statues Legend may be talking about, as well as how the vet could look so similar to a person from so long before his birth ever occurred. The vet takes it in stride, rolling his eyes at some of the more outrageous guesses and teasing here and there until Wild is actually begging him to fess up.

“Alright,” Legend sighs, pulling himself up with a slight wince but declining the motion the captain makes to aid him, “the paintings were made after my third adventure. That is me” -he motions to the first- “and my ancestor and mentor.” A motion is made towards the second, the more confusing of the two that looks so familiar yet strange to the group of heroes. “That’s Raven, First of the Knights of Hyrule and my ancestor.” He doesn’t miss the hint of pride in the vet’s voice, or the fondness in the teen’s eyes as he looks at the painting before turning back to the rest of them. “He was also my mentor during my third adventure, and a dear friend.”

Wind nods, staring up at the image. “Was he a hero?”

“The finest.” There’s no hesitation as the veteran answers. “Unlike all of us, he was just some guy, just a descendant of the last hero who wanted to help others. He never bore the Triforce of courage, never was called to aid by a princess to save her or her kingdom. He was just a knight traveling the world and seeking knowledge, doing what he could to help other people as he went.”

“So,” Warriors chuckles lowly, “you don’t hate all knights.”

A fist connects with the captain’s shoulder, earning a wince and a hearty laugh as Legend attempts to scowl at his older brother, but they can all see the smile past the stare, so it really does the vet no good.

Ignoring the two, Hyrule stares at the painting, a frown hinting in the crease of his brow as he considers it. “Do you think he’d join us, by any chance? Or would the fact that he didn’t carry the Triforce mean Hylia wouldn’t call on him?”

Legend pauses, turning first to his successor and then to the painting again, the same considering look touching his face as mars the Traveler’s. “I’m not sure. On one hand, it’d be nice to see him again, but on the other, I wouldn’t wish the nonsense we get up to on anyone.” There’s a brief pause before Legend adds, “except maybe my Hyrule’s knights, but they’re horrible people and they deserve it.”

Four, to the side and yet again cradling a mug of tea, nods, chuckling darkly in a way that Time’s not sure he shouldn’t worry about, before raising his voice in another question. “Legend?” At the flicker of violet eyes to meet hazel the smithy continues, “why does he look so much like Time?”

There’s murmurings from the rest of his boys, shades of blue and brown flicking from the painting to his own face as he stares over at the vet. He can’t help but be curious himself, the question having made him wonder since he’d seen the thing, but he’s surprised at the unsure look he sees as he watches the teenager's face. Legend’s face screws up oddly, gaze darting to him and back to the object of their focus, hand once more rubbing over his latest injury in a motion he hopes is more distracted than actually pained. “He was his grandson. Probably shouldn‘t surprise you all, we are Lons after all, the name had to come from somewhere.”

Time’s heart skips a beat in his chest at the words, and a glance at his pup is all it takes to confirm he’d heard what he thinks he has. “So,” he drawls slowly, waiting until the others, but more specifically Legend, have turned to look at him in curiosity, “you are, as you put it yourself, one of 'my pups'.”

Wild, beside him, lights up in delight, turning to Legend with a wide grin and flashing blue eyes, only to be stopped by his own mentor’s chuckle.

“No,” Twilight rumbles, rich and meaningful as he meets the veteran’s eyes. It’s not hard to miss how Legend pales, skin sheet white as violet glints fiercely in a warning that the rancher gives absolutely no consideration. “Legend isn’t a pup,” the rancher drawls, smile near predatory, “he’s a kit.”

Without warning, there’s a sharp wheeze, Sky folding over as the skyloftian laughs breathlessly.

Legend’s face undergoes a change in seconds, from white to near red as the vet squeaks a protest “Twilight, so help me-”

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