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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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To The Stars #3

AU: littel hyrule, adult legend, this was written as the ending before hyrule got sent back to complete his own adventure

Warnings: hell, i dunno. it's a story about supposed death and has fighting in it.

Legend couldn’t help the panicked-relieved-sudden laugh that burst through his throat at the sight of sunlight and he stumbled over a broken step, regained his balance, and reached out to make sure Hyrule got over it alright.

There was no one there.

He stared at the empty space, not fully comprehending its meaning for a good second or so before it slammed into him with all the force of a charging Epona. “Hyrule?” He cried, looking over the other heroes. Time, Warriors, Twilight, Wind, Wild, Four—

“Hyrule!”

There was a nightmare behind them. It had crawled into the cavern, holding onto the columns of ancient people, looking down upon a single, bright star.

Standing between the blight and his family, Hyrule lifted his shield and he raised his sword. Tears of fear carved paths through the ashes on his cheeks and he trembled and he shook, but he did not falter.

“No,” Legend breathed, lurching down the stairs. “No, no, Hyrule! Hyrule!” Arms wrapped around his chest, hoisting him back, and Legend kicked, clawing at the hands. “Let me go, let me go you fucking—Hyrule!” His screams echoed across stone, vibrating like the feathers of a Windfish.

“I’m sorry,” someone choked against his ear, “I’m sorry, Legend. I’m so sorry—”

He kicked back. Heard a grunt. “I can save him,” Legend begged, pleaded, sobbed, “I can save him. I can. Please. Please—”

The blight opened its maw, teeth jagged like daggers, tongue snapping like a whip. It roared and the earth shook, rocks tumbling from the ceiling.

Light shuddered.

“We have to go,” Twilight said, “He’s giving us time—”

Legend pulled and twisted, screamed and lunged. The goat herder held him fast, wrenching him backwards.

Slithering darkness twisted and spun, coiling higher and higher. The Magic Sword shone; nothing more but a tiny glimmer of light fighting against the shadows.

The blight slammed downwards, striking at the single star that dared to challenge it.

Legend hissed and spat as he was pulled out into the sunlight. The ground shuddered beneath him, the roar of darkness echoing out of the tunnel. Twilight stumbled and grunted, falling back as he lost his balance, allowing the other hero to twist free as earth crumbled and collapsed inward.

His mad scramble stopped and Legend jerked back, out of the way of incoming rock. Someone grabbed him by the back of his collar and hoisted him back so his legs weren’t crushed and he watched, eyes wide, as the tunnel filled in.

“No,” he breathed, “No, no!” Kicking away whoever tried to reach for him, Legend stumbled to the makeshift wall of stone. He dug until his nails cracked, dug until bruises formed along the tips of his fingers.

There was another rumble and his progress—as little as there was—caved in on itself. “You fucking assholes!” He screamed to the heavens, pounding his fists on the stone, slamming them down again and again until skin broke open and bled. “He’s just a kid! He’s just a fucking kid!”

Heavy, choking sobs gripped his chest and Legend leaned forward, pressing his forehead against his thumbs. He gritted his teeth until it felt like his gums would explode before opening his mouth.

A howl of anguish ripped through his throat and split across the sky.

Deep beneath stone and earth, buried in a place where the sunlight couldn’t touch, a hand pushed out of melting, blackening malice. It was scarred and burnt, blisters cracking along the knuckles and palms.

Hyrule surfaced with a gasp, gagging on his own copper blood, and used the blackened tip of his sword to force himself to his feet. Corrupted Power grasped at his calves, clawing at his skin, but was too weak to pull him back under and he left it to rot, staring up into nothingness. The abyss closed around him, waiting with hungry, grasping jaws, but he told it to wait for a moment.

Just a moment.

The Blight was dead beneath his heel, the last of its death throes still clawing across Hyrule’s skin. He stumbled out of its remains, limping through the dark, until his foot hit a hidden stone and he fell. Rock was cool against his cheek, damp with water that had snuck its way from somewhere else.

I’m going to die here, he thought alone and in the dark. Something inside him shuddered. No peace washed over him, no willingness to let go. His heart thudded in his chest, flapping against his ribs like a trapped bird.He couldn’t feel his legs. He couldn’t reach for his sword. Monsters waited in the dark, watching him with curling grins and hunger in their eyes. Ganon’s laughter echoed through his bones and Hyrule tried to push himself back to his feet, sobbing and choking as he coughed and coughed and coughed.

Oh, little one, a voice whispered through everything and nothing. It held the knowledge of all that was, that is, and that will be. It’ll be alright.

Hyrule felt arms encircle him, pulling him up until he was cradled in them.

A woman formed out of the darkness with green, glowing eyes and skin that crackled with lightning. Her long dress was untouched by the black, oily remains of the blight and she hummed.

Who are you?

A voice rumbled. Bursting like a tempest. My name, she told him, is Farore.

#Linked Universe #Lu legend #Lu hyrule #fabulist tales

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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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Mermaid Legend

I think this was a livewrite at some point but i never edited it and i never posted it. have some mer-legend!

Sand billowed out in small, rolling clouds, kicked up by a flat, pink fin. Fish darted out of the way, fleeing beneath the shadow of wide stingray wings and into the deep corners of a reef. Nothing followed them; the merman happy enough to weave between a shiver of frowning sharks.

He bopped one on the top of the head and darted off into deeper, bluer waters.

Desert stretched out before Legend; flat and full of sand, of wilderness, of everything and nothing all at once. He dragged his fingers along the ocean floor, winding back and forth with no set direction only to turn and watch as the murkiness he created settled grumpily behind him.

Spring had given way to summer, the waters warmed by currents from the south. Storms were replaced by bright blue skies and heavy sunlight that drew gold patterns along the sand. Legend admired the way they played across the stripes along his tail.

A sea turtle passed below him. No place to go, no place to be.

Dropping his hand, Legend traced the pattern along its shell with a finger and watched it head deeper into the blue. Sounds echoed from further out; whales and dolphins and beasts that had more teeth than he did. He debated heading over to see what the fuss was about but turned, instead, into a roll and kicked off in a random direction.

Darkness passed over him and Legend curled, watching the triangular shadow for a second. It flittered from left to right then back again and he darted after it, chasing across the sea floor with a boyish grin on his lips. One kick got him close enough that he could pounce, burying his fingers into the sand—

An octopus flashed bright red and scurried in the other direction.

Legend blew a few bubbles after it in apology and turned on his back, watching the shadow dart back and forth above him. Metal settled against his chest and he reached up absently, running his fingers along the edge of a ring before tangling his fingers in the leather necklace it was hanging from.

A bird passed over head. Another followed. He followed them with lazy flicks of his tailfin and spread out his arms to glide. The heaviness of the warm waters settled in his skin, chasing away the coolness that had been there for so long. Blonde hair drifted around his face, swirling like a pleasant storm. Pink was returning to it after all those years of dying it black and blonde.

He had missed it.

Somewhat.

Fish scattered around him and Legend flared out his fins, using the drag to slow him to a stop. There were shadows above, shadows below. A school broke and formed around him, twisting as one and parting as many.

Legend swam below it, settling with his back in the sand to watch feathers break the surface of the water as beaks snatched what they could. It would have been easier for the birds with a pod of dolphins circling like a pack of shepherds because the fish would have nowhere to go.

As it was, the school simply parted and most of the birds shot back into the sky empty bellied.

Wondering—briefly—which group he should play with, Legend brushed his tail back and forth through the sand. It rose around him, drifting like a storm cloud across his bright scales, and there was a distant rumble of thunder.

He twisted, eyeing the sunlight that drifted through the surface, at the shadows of birds and fish and half formed clouds that dotted the bottom of the sea. Ignoring the dance of predator and prey behind him, Legend kicked away from the sand and broke the surface. His hair stuck to his face and ears, clinging to his skin and he wiped it out of the way with a scowl.

There was a pod of clouds in the distance. Grey. Dark. Heavy. They were singular in the sky; a patch of darkness on a blue canvas.

A seagull squawked above him. Legend glanced up at it and frowned.

“Yeah, yeah,” He told it and rolled his eyes. His fin caught the water and he kicked forward, diving back under the surface and shooting off towards the out-of-place storm. A few smaller fish got caught in his wake and were brushed to the side, little fins rushing to dart out of his way.

Legend didn’t notice, arching over the remains of a small fishing boat, around a small forest of kelp, and twisting between two of the larger boulders.

One scraped along his dorsal but he ignored it, watching the sky darken the closer he got to the storm. The water grew shallower; crab claws replacing small schools of fish and old nets threatened to snatch him from where they had been caught along rocks and branches of white streaked coral.

Heavy waves picked up the sand and he swam up, surfacing a second time to look up at the side of a towering cliff.

A wave crashed against the back of his head and Legend cursed when he was forced back under.

Stupid, he thought, waiting for another to pass before rising again. It took a second for his eyes to adjust to the different light and he kicked to steady himself, arms stretched out for balance. Crested white caps pushed against him, trying to nudge him closer to sharpened rocks but he kicked against the force, fighting to keep place.

Light flashed in the darkness. Thunder rumbled above his head.

Beyond the small patch of the storm, there was nothing but clear blue skies.

Magic.

He dropped back down and swam back, closer to the edge of the clouds and kicked hard against the bottom to shoot up. Half his torso breeched the waves.

A flash of silver steel, of brown, of green.

Lightning crashed from the heavens, echoing a howl of rage.

Legend dropped back into the water before the earth shattering boom could rattle his bones.

Definitely magic. His fingers dug into sand and he watched for any more angry flashing light—but it only flickered, fading away and leaving the clouds behind. Legend pushed off the sea floor, rising slowly, and peeked his eyes above the waves to look up at the sky. His heart was hammering in his chest, old memories of storms rising like a tsunami in his chest—

Red caught his eye and he twisted, baring his teeth in a half formed snarl.

Fire fell, spitting and sparking, into the waves. It existed for a moment in the water despite its nature and then faded, swallowed up by the unforgiving ocean. Small bits of rock tumbled down the cliffside, knocked astray by a heel.

Legend turned his gaze up to the young man backed up against the ledge.

His blade was a hungry blaze, arching to block the swing from a mace, the thrust of a sword, the arch of an axe. Creatures with the faces of pigs and canines and lizards snarled at him, climbing over each other to get closer.

Legend cursed himself for leaving his sword behind as he reached for the ring against his chest.

Well, it wouldn’t matter. A rock could bash in a monster skull if it was thrown hard enough.

He tugged on the leather necklace, prepared to pull it over his head when hands grabbed a green tunic, pulling the teenager away from the edge of the cliff.

That’s nice of them, Legend thought. They normally try to push me off it.

The teen wrenched out of their grip, green fabric tearing as he stepped back—

His weight teetered backwards, shield flung out as if for balance. Gravity wrapped hungry, desperate fingers around the heavy metal and tugged the kid off the cliff and into the waters below.

“Shit!” Legend cried, diving under the water and racing forward. Not the rocks, he begged, having to take it slow because of the sand kicked up from the storm. Not the rocks, not the rocks, not the—*

His fingers found cloth. Found skin. He wrapped his arms around a chest and kicked back, heading up and away, diagonal from any possible danger. Nails dug into his shoulders and something batted uselessly against Legend’s chest as he kicked and kicked and kicked.

They surfaced with a gasp and he looked down at messy brown hair, at wide, half-coloured eyes—

A palm shoved against his face.

Legend sputtered and a fist knocked against his chin, his collar, his shoulder. “Wait, wait!” He almost dropped back beneath the surface. “Shit, kid! Stop it—!”

“Let go of me!” Toes caught on his scales and pushed.

“Fine! Hylia,” Legend snarled. “Have it your way,” He said, shoving the kid away.

The brown haired teen stayed above the water for a second, arms and legs flailing uselessly.

And then he dropped like a stone.

“Shit!” Legend scrambled down after him. He grabbed the back of the tunic that time, wrenching the teen back to the surface.

He was coughing, gagging on salt water.

Serves him right.

“What the hell, kid!”

“Geddoff me!”

“No!” Legend shook him like a misbehaving shark. “You can’t swim, you idiot!”

A hand missed his ear by inches. “Screw you! I’m not going back with you—”

Wait, Legend blinked. What?

“—pig faced, ugly ass, red loving shit stain of a—”

“First of all,” Legend cut him off, “rude. Look at me. I’m none of those things.”

The kid splashed water at his face.

Little shit.

Legend shook him again for good measure. “Second of all, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Narrowed eyes stared at him, searched his face, caught on the point of his ears and the line of his jaw.

And then they looked down.

“You have a tail.”

Goddess, Legend rolled his eyes. “And you have legs. Let’s move on.”

“Why do you have a tail?”

“Because my mommy had one and my daddy had one and one day they decided to make babies—”

There was a splash behind them. Both turned and watched one of the lizards slipping through the waves like a serpent.

“Fuck,” Legend bared his teeth and watched the silver beast get closer. Its eyes flashed yellow in the lightening shadows as electricity sparked across the horn on its head. “Give me your sword.”

The teen muttered something.

“What?”

Brown eyes flashed. “I said ‘I dropped it’!”

“Dropped it? Where?”

“Where do you think, genius?”

Legend cursed.

The lizard was getting closer. Above them, the storm clouds were clearing.

“Don’t hit me again,” Legend told the teen, turning around and pulling him closer. “And hang on.”

Timid fingers brushed against his shoulder then gained more confidence as they brushed against the leather of his necklace and the scales along his collar. Arms locked around his neck and Legend could feel the pounding of the kid’s heart against his back.

“Deep breath,” he said and waited for the sharp sound of an inhale before dropping. Using the extra weight to spin around, Legend kick off towards the side of the cliff.

The shadow of the lizard passed overhead. Sharp, white claws were too slow and Legend’s tail slipped easily past its grasp.

His burst of speed put enough distance between them and the monster for a moment and Legend used his hands to feel for stone and kelp and sand.

Bubbles blew past his hair.

Hang on, kid, he thought, patting frantically against the sand. Hang on, hang on—

The grip around his neck loosened.

Legend’s fingers hit metal. He snatched the hilt of the silver blade, dug out the shield beside it, and tucked both against his chest as he shot towards the surface.

There was a frantic, desperate gasp against his ear and the teen shuddered against his back, shaking and coughing wetly against his shoulder.

“You okay, kid?” Legend adjusted his grip on the sword and watched as a crocodile shaped head lifted out of the water.

The monster opened its mouth bearing its curved, pointed teeth.

Legend bared his right back.

Coughing continued against his back, but the hand against his chest curled and offered a weak thumbs up.

Good lad, Legend thought, pressing the shield against his chest with one hand and hoisting the sword with the other. “Take another deep breath for me, then.”

There was a grumble against his skin. It was probably something rude.

Despite himself, Legend smiled. The kid had fight in him. That was good.

Lungs expanded and he heard the rush of an inhale. Legend dropped back below the surface and pushed himself as fast as he could, rushing forward in a roar of bubbling water. The sword was held out in front of him like a spear as sand rose in his wake, launched up with the force of his kicking. The lizard creature scrambled out of his way with a screech and Legend laughed, spinning he took the boy on his back further and further into the open ocean.

#Linked Universe #LU Legend #LU Hyrule #Fabulist Tales

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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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would you write for any other link-meet aus?

that's under the assumption that everything i write isn't already a bastardized version of lu already

#i mean #probably one day?#literally the only reason i tag it as lu is because i'm too lazy to separate alttp oos ooa and la from albw and legend is convenient

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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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anyone got a chill loz server that's accepting new members who want nothing to do with drama and just wants to look at cool art and read dope fic?

#i would start one but i hate modding things #i just like writing u see

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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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“See anything?” The Hero of Hyrule called up to the canopy of the naked boughs, his hair stubbornly falling back in his eyes even as he reached up to brush it away again.

Fog smothered thin, towering trees, thick enough to be cut by a dagger. It covered the shy blooms of orange and pink flowers peeking out from the gnarled, tangled branches and new spring growth, swallowing every sound that dared to try and flee it. Mushrooms clung, hungrily, to damp bark, creating a twisting, miniature staircase up the trunk.

Hyrule followed it with his eyes, breathing in the earthy rot of the woods.

“No,” The wielder of the Four Sword said from above. He was a splash of dulled colours against the mid-day darkness, a quiet voice in the smothered quiet. “Nothing.”

Something rumbled in the distance; it sounded like a great beast rolling over to go back to sleep.

Sighing, Hyrule glanced down at his feet, watched a beetle scuttle over the toe of his boot. “Guess we’ll just have to keep looking,” he said, hoisting his shield and sword higher up.

Wood creaked and groaned, holding up with century earned patience as Four dropped from his makeshift perch in the canopy. His blonde hair had a few newly-grown dark leaves stuck in the strands and he plucked them out, letting them flutter to the forest floor. “Probably,” he said, picking his pack up from where it was hanging off a branch. “There weren’t any signs of the others. Or of... whatever the hell those things were.”

Round heads with massive pointed ears. Black skin that glinted like an oil slick in the dim light of their lanterns. Something bright and thick and colourful dripping from between numerous sharpened teeth.

“I’m sure we’ll find them,” Hyrule said, careful to step over a bit of rotten wood. There was a hole dug beneath it, deep and dark.

“The monsters, or the others?”

Some part of him wanted to stick his hand through the opening and find out how deep it went.

Another part figured that some things living in deep, dark holes didn’t want to be bothered after sleeping for most of the winter.

“The others. The monsters. Either.”

Four grunted beside him, boots caught in some still-drying mud. “I don’t suppose you have a lantern, do you?”

“Just a couple of candles,” Hyrule said, glancing over at him. “Why?”

The other hero hummed and hooked his thumbs in the straps of his pack. “It’s nothing,” Four looked back the way they had come, a thoughtful frown on his face. “But...”

Hyrule glanced towards the sky. The fog blocked most of it from view, the heavy, dark clouds around them rather than above. “You’re wondering if it was the light that attracted those... things.”

Shrugging, Four looked up at him. His eyes were dark. “Something like that.”

“Well,” it was easy enough for Hyrule to take off his pack and dig through the contents, finding the red candle he’d found when he was young and wandering the base of Death Mountain. The wick was darkened from years of use and white wax frozen halfway down the side in small, round beads. “It doesn’t hurt to try, right?”

A wave of his hand and the wick sputtered to life.

Four stared at it for a moment, opened his mouth, then shook his head to take the small, metal candle holder. “We could set it somewhere,” he said, looking around at the awakening forest. There were a few tangles of branches, a couple of rocks, one half rotten stump. “Keep an eye on it from a—”

Wood cracked. Groaned.

Leaves fell down upon them.

Hyrule and Four looked up.

There was nothing but the oddly grey world and still, silent treetops.

“I don’t think we’d have time for that,” Hyrule chose his words slowly, reaching for the hilt of his sword. The silver was warm beneath his touch. He searched the canopy, taking care to examine every odd lump, every strange shadow.

Dark, humanoid fingers curled over a thin branch, claws digging ever so carefully into the bark. A round, eye-less head peeked over the edge, the triangle point of an ear twitching as it slid out of hiding.

Hyrule lifted his free hand with careful slowness. In the eerie, smothering silence, he snapped his fingers.

The flame on the candle went out.

A screech pierced the fog. It sunk into Hyrule’s bones, clung to his ribs, froze in his lungs. Wood splintered as four, long limps curled out from beneath the tree trunk, a long, black tongue rolling out from gasping, hungry lips.

#linked universe #lu four #lu hyrule #fabulist tales

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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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*takes off my protective goggles and rubber gloves after scrubbing my inbox clean*

sorry to everyone who left a prompt in the past. something definitely died in that thing and it needed to be cleaned out

#i have an instinctual response to slam my computer close whenever a message pops up

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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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Little Ones

my partner asked for turned-into-kids fic and i've been drabbling to come up with a solid idea

AU: little legend and little hyrule

“It’ll probably be a couple of days until we find some sort of civilization,” Time said, leaning over a map spread out over a half-rotten tree stump. The bark and old wood were peeling away, crumbling into the dirt and could hardly pass as a functional chair, much less a table.

A good chunk had been snatched by Wild to make the campfire he was cooking over and the smell of burning pine wafted across the beach. The large, black pot gurgled happily, surrounded by Twilight and Four—both who were making suggestions that were also promptly ignored.

Time turned to the young man standing beside him. “We’ll have a better chance of—”

Crunch.

Sky grinned as Time pressed a hand to his lips, trying to hide a smile. “Please,” the Skyloftian said, his gaze bright. “Continue.”

Huffing a put-upon sigh that was fully faked, Time motioned to the map. “As I was saying,” he continued. “We would have a better chance finding—”

Crunch.

Sky snorted.

Time rolled his eyes as he smiled and crouched. “Hey, bud,” he said and watched as blue eyes blinked wide under a mess of flamingo pink hair.

Legend—because it was Legend dangling from Sky’s grasp—had frozen with his little bunny teeth digging into the yellow flesh of an apple. Its juice was currently dripping down his chin. Someone (probably Twilight) had managed to find him a shirt that dropped down well past his knees, though the collar had been hurriedly sewn shut so it wouldn’t constantly be slipping over one or both of his shoulders.

At the moment, he was currently hanging from Sky’s arms, held up by his armpits and doing his best to eat the crimson-skinned fruit without slipping free. It couldn’t have been fully comfortable, but the kid (and he was a kid now, more than he had been before) hadn’t complained yet.

In fact, he hadn’t said much at all.

It had been like that since the fight in the desert where a mass of something beneath the sand had managed to corner Hyrule and Legend away from the others. They had fought tooth and nail, using fire and ice and swords to beat the beast back. Blood splattered the ground, buried beneath the roiling waves of the desert, but the monster fell.

Legend and Hyrule, victorious, dropped their guard for just a mere moment.

But that mere moment had been enough for the witch to strike.

(Wind had sworn that he had seen Legend move fast enough to push forward. Had sworn he had seen the older hero take most of the multi-colored bolt that had pierced him and Hyrule through the chest.)

Shaking himself free of the memories, Time tried to put on a grin for the bright blue eyes staring up at him. “Having fun?” He asked.

Legend kicked out a leg and wiggled a bit, hoisting himself higher in Sky’s arms before taking another massive bite of the apple in his hands.

Crunch.

“You can put him down.”

“Absolutely not,” Sky said, grip tightening.

#Linked Universe #lu legend #u don't see hyrule because he's bullying warriors off to the side with wind #lu sky #fabulist tales

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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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I'm not a native speaker, and may I tell you that it's your writing that showed me how beautiful English can be?

thank you so, so much! writing is... everything to me and stories even more so. i'm glad that mine have touched you in some way

#brb scream crying sobbing #because this is what it's ALL ABOUT

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lightning-of-farosh · 9 months

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Charcoal Smeared Faces

Faceblind!Hyrule

WARNINGS: blood and dead people

Scritch. Scritch, scritch. Scritch.

Cool air rose off gentle, lapping waves, bringing the taste of salt and fish over the beach. A few washed up bits of wood settled heavily like sleeping beasts on damp sand, looking lonely beneath the numerous, winking stars.

On one of the larger logs, Hyrule sat with his back to the fire pit and the yawning, dark mouth of a tent. Someone shifted inside, rolling over beneath their blankets before settling once more. He didn’t bother turning around to check.

Wood popped. The ocean exhaled. Thunder rumbled in the distance.

Hyrule sighed at the journal beneath his charcoal stained fingers. Upon its parchment was a simple rendition of the tree line across from him with its scraggly branches and tired looking pines. He smeared one of the trunks with his thumb, dragging the shadow across the background to mix with the others.

An owl hooted from the forest. Another one replied from even farther away.

Turning on his seat—almost knocking his shield over with his heel—Hyrule faced the dying fire. Its amber light sunk into his legs and chest, heating up his bones. He kicked another log in with his foot and watched the sparks rise to join the stars.

Someone sniffed in the tent and Hyrule glanced past the fire. A figure curled up tighter beneath their blanket, blonde hair falling across their nose.

Hyrule flipped through the pages of his journal, finding the Link with the shoulder length straight hair. Hero of the Four Sword. There was a messy, charcoal sketch of his face from the front, from the side, what he looked like when he laughed. Tiny notes in ink lined the corners—too small to read in such dim light.

Bushes rustled. Hyrule looked up and watched as a jackrabbit hopped out from the underbrush. Its ears swivelled, its nose twitched, and then it scrambled back into the woods. There was a ragged rhythm to its movements. Not quite sick; just awkward.

His hand tightened around his charcoal. How odd, he mused, staring at the darkened woods.

The rabbit didn’t return.

Hyrule turned back to Four, his fingers leaving small, dusty prints along the edges as he pressed his makeshift pencil to the parchment. He had another hour or so before he would have to wake up the next person for their watch.

Scritch. Scritch, scritch. Scritch.

oOo

“We’re lost.”

“We are not.”

Hyrule breathed in, holding the heavy smell of pine in his sinuses before exhaling again. He had lagged behind most of the group, fingers tightening around the traps of his pack. A bird watched them from the branches, red feathers ruffled and bright against the viridian. Tree roots snuck out from beneath the dirt, breaking apart hoof and paw tracks.

No rabbits, though, Hyrule dug his heel in and shifted, staring at the mark it left behind.

“What do you mean ‘we’re not lost’?” The snap, the roll, a tinge of surface grumpiness. Hyrule had to look to double check, but there was no one it could be other than a splatter of pink, a cap of blue, and a long red tunic. Legend. “You have no idea where we are!”

“We’re on a path, not in the middle of nowhere,” Exasperation. The rise to a challenge. Blue scarf fluttering with every step.“Just cause it’s not on your map doesn’t mean—”

“The fact that it’s not on a map is the definition of lost—”

A voice rose above the other two, loud enough that it startled the bird from the tree. Hyrule watched it flee further into the forest.

“Hey, hey. That’s enough.”

An elbow knocked into Hyrule’s and he blinked at the wave of sea salt and fish that replaced dirt and sap. Tearing his gaze away from the trees, Hyrule focused on a bright, sky blue tunic and a wide, Cheshire grin. One tooth missing from the smile; a small gap that added charm and just a bit of mischief.

Wind had told him the story about how he lost it once; something about a fortress, barrels, a canon, and some pirates. It had sent the rest of the camp into hysterics as he stood, face illuminated by the dying flames, food forgotten in bowls as he had let the shadows pull at his face.

Hot skin pressed against Hyrule’s side as the younger hero tilted his head up, combing through the canopy. Light and shadows played across his features, highlighting the freckles spread across his nose and cheeks, dancing up to his ears. They looked like a small night sky on his sun kissed skin.

There was a drawing in Hyrule’s journal mapping them out.

“Whatcha lookin’ at?”

More arguing sparked from the front of the party.

“Just a bird,” Hyrule told Wind. “How long do you think they’ll,” he nodded towards a splash of pink on yellow and gold-like blonde hair, “let the two of them argue before we can start moving again?”

Wind rubbed the back of his neck and grimaced. “Not long, hopefully. I wanna make some progress before nightfall.”

There was a huff of laughter in front of them.

Hyrule turned and took in the taller man’s face. No scars, no markings. He had sandy brown hair, a long white cloak, and a red bit of cloth wrapped around his waist.

“If we start walking without them,” Sky said—and it must have been Sky; the hilt of the Master Sword peeked over his shoulder—keeping his voice low enough to make it seem like he was trying to be quiet, “maybe they’ll just follow?”

“And if they don’t follow, we won’t have to hear their bickering.” Wind added on. “You’re a genius. Utterly brilliant. Marry me.”

Sky laughed and the sound filled the gaps between the trees. “Sorry, I’m taken.”

“Shame.”

Shaking his head, not bothering to hide his smile, Hyrule started walking. They went with him, chatting pleasantly as they passed a massive set of armour, a wolf pelt, and a long, dark cloak. Wind waved cheerfully at a burst of pink and the argument stuttered off in a serious of indignant sputters.

There was laughter and the sound of boots moving over dirt behind them. Wind wrapped his arm around Hyrule’s waist and leaned in, his words burning and heavy as he spoke with Sky. Above them, the sun peeked beyond the tops of the canopy, clouds twisted into half formed shapes, and, slipping its way into the afternoon, there was a scream.

It was twisted, tortured, echoing amongst the trees.

Nails dug into Hyrule’s forearm and the pommel of his sword hummed beneath his palm. He took a step towards the sound.

A hand on his shoulder pulled him back.

“What was that?” Someone hissed behind him.

Hyrule didn’t turn to look, searching the faded shadows of the trees and the silent, empty branches. His gaze trailed, up and up, catching on the clouds.

“Forget that—where’d it come from?” Pink brushed past, and Legend stood at the front.

A flock of birds darted overhead. “There,” Hyrule said, pointing the way they had come.

“Careful,” one of the taller heroes stepped up next to him. Light glinted off his heavy armour. “Take it slow; we don’t know what we’re facing.”

There were nods and murmurs. Hyrule stared up at the figure, the words settling around him. It was Time, right? No one else wore armour.

“Keep up, Hyrule,” Wind hooked their arms together, dragging him off the path. “Don’t want Legend to hog all the glory, do we?”

“Well, he’s called the ‘Hero of Legend’ for a reason, isn’t he?”

There was a squawk and an arm wrapped around Hyrule’s shoulder, pulling him in. Warm, hearth-like spices settled on his nose and he fought the urge to sneeze.

“Nice work,” Sky told him, voice carefully quiet to hide beneath Wind and Legend’s bickering.

Warmth settled in Hyrule’s chest and he ducked his head, unable to hide his small, pleased grin as they walked on, deeper into the forest.

The evening’s rain had made the world slick and bushes grabbed at ankles, branches snatched at sleeves. Wind swatted at insects that came too close, grumbling under his breath. Hyrule watched his feet, finding small bit of tracks darting across small, almost non-existent trails. Trees fell away, some of them becoming stumps marked with the blade of an axe, even more parting, opening—

There was a house. A small one, made of logs and brick. There was no fence along the outside, no horse tied at the post.

The door was open, hanging on a hinge.

Legend went first, hand on the pommel of his sword, ducked low and slinking away from the windows. A figure with a dark hood drawn over their head followed him but before Hyrule could figure out who it was, Sky was pulling him in the opposite direction.

There was a small garden in the front with half the weeds pulled and piled off to the side, a couple of cuccos peeked out from beneath the porch and shuffled back under at the sight of two strangers. Rabbit tracks darted between some of the cabbages and it looked like a raccoon had dug its paws into some of the radishes.

“Poor things,” Sky murmured.

Hyrule hummed, ripping his gaze away from the tracks and pausing, focusing on the window.

It was dark. Cold.

Nothing moved behind the glass.

“Give me a boost?”

Grunting, Sky cupped his hands and lowered them, hoisting Hyrule up so he could cup his hands over the glass and peer in.

Flowers sat, overturned on the table. Dirt was smeared across the floor, trailed in footprints back to the door. There was a kettle on the counter, on its side with water spilling out of the top. It dripped over the side, rolled down the cabinets, and mixed with the blood on the floor.

“There’s someone inside,” Hyrule said as he was dropped to the ground.

“Is he...?”

Hyrule shook his head.

“Damn,” Sky said in an arrested voice. Then he breathed in, squared his shoulders. “Any sign of what did it?”

“Just footprints,” Hyrule nodded towards the front door. “Hylian ones, it looked like.”

There was a choked noise from the hero beside him. “Hylian? You sure?”

Hyrule opened his mouth to confirm. Paused. “No,” he admitted. “But they looked like they were made from boots.”

A heavy hand landed on his shoulder and Sky sighed as if he was inhaling and exhaling the whole universe in one breath. “The others will check inside,” he said, “We should—”

A jackrabbit lunged out from underneath the house and dug its teeth into Hyrule’s thigh.

Blood welled, skin broke, and Hyrule snarled as the creature dropped to the ground and ran into the woods. He sprinted after it, crashing through the underbrush, doing his damndest to keep the white tail in his sight.

“Hyrule? Hyrule!” Sky’s voice followed him through the trees.

He ignored it, scrambling around tree trunks, jumping over roots, dodging around thorns. He was no wolf, no cat, no four legged beast.

But he could run.

The rabbit had a bad back leg and its jumps were lopsided and short. It swerved to the side, avoiding the pebbled bank of a river, and Hyrule skidded, kicking up dirt as he followed. A rock bit into his ankle, a branch caught his cheek.

Trees opened to wildflowers and the rabbit sprinted, making a break for the other side of the clearing and the long shadows that would hide its marble coat.

Magic curled like a snake.

Hyrule used a rock to propel himself into the air, diving forward with his hands outstretched.

Fingers snatched plush fur and the rabbit squealed as he landed on top of it.

“Gotcha!”

The rabbit slipped from his fingers and he scrambled up, blinking owlishly, looking down.

Thick, black smoke swirled around his hands, met his eyes, and slammed into his face. It snuck into his nose, in his mouth, burning across his tongue and sinuses. He gagged and choked and clawed at his cheeks and lips.

Hands wrapped around his waist, hoisted him up. Hyrule kicked out but met nothing. A shoulder dug into his stomach, a hand was on his back. Branches caught on his tunic, trying to tug him off the shoulder he was slung over as the figure holding him jerked and bumped and ran—

Please, his lungs shivered, trying desperately to inflate. Please.

Something brushed over his spine and he was grabbed, again. Held, again.

Flung outwards into nothing.

There was a moment of breathless silence, where all he could hear was the roar of blood in his ears.

And then he hit something cold.

Water rushed over his head and Hyrule twisted underneath a current. He scrambled, panic sinking jagged teeth into his chest. He could die with hands wrapped around his throat or with smoke in his lungs but not water, please not water—

The acidic burning in his nose and mouth were swept away by the river. The pain faded and his eyes could open, seeing nothing but a mosaic of lights and Hyrule clawed at the liquid, kicked at the bottom.

A hand caught his wrist, tugging him back towards the surface.

Hyrule scrambled at small rocks, forcing himself onto his hands and knees. The river swirled around his thighs and over his boots in a gentle rhythm.

He stayed there, panting and staring down at the muddled reflection of his eyes—brown, he realized.

There was a figure beside him in blue and orange. He flinched away from the small splashes that dotted across his face as they moved.

“What the fuck, Sky?!”

“There was smoke coming out of him!”

“So you just tossed him in the river?!”

“Worked didn’t it?”

They were both soaked. Huh. Hyrule breathed in. Breathed out.

Wind was still half in the river, his hand on Hyrule’s back, rubbing soothing circles between his shoulder blades. His hand was warm. Still on the bank, palms lifted in a sign of surrender, stood Sky. There were thin cuts along his cheeks, some dirt across his tunic.

Hyrule wasn’t looking at him.

“Interesting,” a man said behind Sky. His face was many things. Too many things. The eyes kept changing from happy to sad. There were frown lines, laugh lines, big ears and small ears.

Sniffing, Hyrule wiped his nose. He coughed up a bit more water. It was better than the smoke, but not by much.

He blinked and the man was gone.

“Come on,” Wind ducked beneath Hyrule’s arm, hauling him out of the water. “Let’s get back to the others.”

He stumbled, slipping on the rocks. “I—what?”

Sky got under his other arm. “We were hoping to ask you that,” he said, draping his white cloak over Hyrule’s shoulders when he shivered. “You just took off.”

“There—” His whole body hurt. Hyrule groaned. “There was a rabbit—”

“I mean, I’m not really one to question people’s bad decisions,” Wind said, leaning against him. “But I don’t think that a rabbit is on the top list of priorities at the moment.”

Hyrule sniffed. He couldn’t smell anything other than charcoal and mud. “It was there,” he fumbled a bit, feet managing to steady before he pulled his friends to the forest floor with him. “And it was...” Wrong was the best word, but his voice trailed off.

There was a woman standing in their way, her brown hair curled and pulled back from her face, sweat dripping down her chin. Mud and blood were splattered across her front and a bite wound from a rabbit on her wrist was leaking smoke.

“You,” she said, looking at Hyrule. “What is wrong with you?”

#Linked Universe #Lu hyrule #lu legend #lu sky #i think those were the biggest ones #fabulist tales

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