Chapter Text
The moonlight glistened gently onto the still waters of the small lake, causing an almost perfect reflection of the night sky on the surface of it. There was a small patch of land in the middle of the lake that broke apart the mirror-like properties of the water. But without that small bit of dirt revealing the illusion, you wouldn’t be surprised if after looking into it for long enough that you would forget that you were looking at the surface of a lake- and not the glimmering night sky.
Every once in a while, a small breeze would gently blow its way through the trees. It seldom would bring a few leaves with it- causing them to slowly flutter down into the waters once the wind dispersed overtop of the lake. Even the slightest movements such as a leaf falling into the water would cause the surface to ripple into perfect circles that encompassed the disturbance.
The water shone like a molten mirror. It had lost its captivating deep blue colour to the night, but in the moonlight; the ripples twisted the reflection into something more beautiful than just a colour. The moon’s bright light illuminated the circular ripples and cast dark shadows behind it- causing the two to contrast dramatically. You would best describe the effect as a goddess tapping the night sky. Rings of light would appear on the water’s surface but then disperse slowly and peacefully. But saying that doesn't do it any justice. If someone was to stop and look long enough to see this- maybe more people would want to adventure more. And ignore all of the dangers that come along with your increasingly dangerous world. Aka, death.
The whole scenery was quite beautiful, you wish you could stop to enjoy it, and let it soak in. But you can't. You’re a little busy literally running for your life.
Two stal bokoblins and a small camp full of bokoblins chased after you as you desperately tried your hardest to run from them. Your body is not trained to be able to run fast for long distances, and you’ll surely have to pay for it later. That is if you actually survive this.
Who knew running could be so nauseant?
Your travels have been mostly peaceful so far as you explored the land. Granted, you predominantly stuck to the paths and only traveled in the day. You would ordinarily spend the nights in stables that were close to wherever you were. Avoiding the monsters that lurked in the dark altogether. That was until some old guy at one of the stables told you not to go out after sunset. So you did exactly opposite of what he said- because fuck him, man. Don’t tell you what to do- don’t put you in a box. You’re your own person dammit.
You felt your knees falter for a moment, and in that very instant you knew you were fucked if you didn’t do something soon. You looked around for a swift second- and saw the forest of which you came from when you stumbled into the monster camp. Perfect. Maybe you could lose them in the trees and make your way back on the path. That way, you’ll at least have a better chance of finding help if they manage to follow you through the forest.
You had misplaced your map one of the nights you were sleeping in a stable- and you’re pretty sure one of the rotten kids that were running around the place stole it while you slept. So you’ve just been winging it- following the paths to wherever they take you. Though because of that, you’ve walked around in loops more times than you care to admit.
What were you to do? Yell at the kid for taking your map? You might be a snarky bitch sometimes, but you’re certainly not going to scream at the poor map stealing child. You stole your fair share of things when you were younger, so it’s about time karma hit you back in the face.
And this time, karma hit hard.
You struck down your foot and sharply pivoted in the direction of the forest. This was the only chance you had so you had to make it fucking count. With the little energy that you had left in your system, you sprinted head-on into the thicket. With every stride of your legs, you could feel them getting more and more tired.
Wait, if you’re tired, they must be too, right? They wouldn’t possibly waste their energy following you into the forest with trees that they have to dodge, right? You glance behind yourself and-!
Fuck. They followed you into the forest.
You were getting sloppy. Even pure adrenaline can only last for so long. For every tree that you were evading- You would get closer and closer to the next. Seeing how close you can cut the corners so you can save the most amount of energy as you could. The less energy you spend running around the trees is more running away from the death machines chasing after you.
You glanced back one more time. You know you’re not supposed to do that because it slows you down or something- but you had to see if they were still following you. And of course, they were still hunting your ass down as they were before. They didn't even LOOK that tired. In fact- they honestly seem like they were having fun.
Oh, how you wish you were in their position.
As fate would have it, while you were focusing on being jealous of the monsters that were pursuing you- You failed to do one thing; Actually, run like a functioning Hylian being.
Your foot stumbled over the other and you tumbled, face first, onto the ground. The momentum made you roll forward a couple feet after you fell. Your brain took a second to realize what just transpired- but after that, you swiftly pushed yourself off the floor and into a standing position. You had to keep going. Your very existence depended on you pushing through this and getting out of here. But when you turned around- you realized it was quite hopeless. Your body was in no condition of going any further- and your muscles cried at you to just give up. They couldn’t handle anymore.
Besides, the bokoblins were closing in on you. Even if you tried to run- you would most likely end up collapsing, and they would just kill you faster. The only option was to stand your ground.
As they moved forward, you instinctively moved backward. When your body hit something behind you, a mixture of shock and fear swelled through you. What the fuck was behind you. You turned your head around expectantly, and thankfully saw a tree- and not a monster. Relief briefly entered your system but was shot out almost immediately. You were still in danger- and you had just backed yourself into a practical corner. Peering back at the creatures- it seemed that they formed a crescent-like shape around you. Trying to run now was definitely out of the options- if you tried to run, one of the bokoblins would just smash your skull open with one foul swing.
You made your choice, and now you had to die with it. Well, you would have died either way, but still.
Even if there happened to be a stable nearby, you couldn’t possibly know where it was. Without a map, you had no means of seeing where you were. Aka, no means of getting someplace safe, or someone seeing/hearing you out here. Aka, death.
The only weapon that you had on you wasn’t really a weapon; It was just a circular wooden shield that you made yourself. The rim was made of a curved pointed metal that was basically as sharp as a dull butter knife. And in the center of the wooden object were metal spikes that protrude outward. You basically just used this to scare away enemies.
Because come on. No one can tell you that you wouldn’t be at least a little bit scared of someone sprinting at you with a spiked shield, screaming like a lunatic.
You took it off of your back and wore it on your arm. You could possibly fend off one or two of them with your shield- but not the hoard that was stalking you. There would be too many open points, and you would just end up dead quicker than you would if you just held your ground. Besides, there is no way in hell you’re in any way, shape, or form, skilled enough to handle this many.
Another option is to try and intimidate them by screaming at them and shoving your porcupine-like shield in their faces. But you doubt they are THAT dumb. Once they figure out that you won’t actually do anything- You’ll be dead meat. You can try and curl up into a ball and hold the shield in front of you like a dumbass- and pray to the goddesses that they are too stupid to just lift the shield and kill you. But that seems very unlikely
None of these options seemed promising, and they all ended in your, very horrible and tragic, death. But there was no way in hell you were going to let these fuckers just kill you. Your mind spun with potential ideas on what you could do as the monsters crept closer and closer to your exhausted body. They knew it was checkmate, so they took their sweet ass time waltzing over to you. Which just drove you crazy with anticipation and fear.
You huffed loudly, practically wheezing. Your lungs couldn’t take all of the running. Sweat rapidly formed on your skin and trickled down onto the gritty grass below you. It was quite clear now that your confidence was disappearing and being replaced with pure fear. Your arms shook as you held the shield up in front of you. You had to stand your ground and stand strong. You couldn’t falter. Not for a moment.
You stared right into the glowing eyes of the creatures in front of you. Their figures now looming over you. And the once beautiful moonlight seemed to add to the horrifying effect which they emitted. It outlined the creature’s bodies deviously- and cast shadows over their faces. Which of course allowed their eyes to shine brighter. You knew that you were fucked and they knew it too. One of the bokoblin’s mouths twisted into an almost wickedly crooked smile.
The chase was over. They had won.
A shiver ran down your back at the thought of your own death. You had promised Paya that you would visit her again- so you and she could hang out as you used to when you were little. That poor girl- who would find your body? Would she ever know that you died? You gulp at the thought. She was the one who really encouraged you to follow your dreams and start traveling. And knowing her- she would blame your death on herself.
…
You hope your dead body gets too mangled to identify properly, and that she forgets about you. It’s for the better that way.
Better yet, if your body isn’t found.
The bulkiest monster lifted its weapon against you, ready to slash down. You had to move. But just as you tried, your body froze. Your muscles wouldn’t budge to defend yourself, and it was about to cost you your life. Bug-eyed, and exasperated, you prepared for the end. A sudden coldness seeped it’s way into your core, that you could only possibly identify as dread.
But just as the bokoblin was about to give you a very lethal boop on the head with its weapon- a black, red and green blur appeared in front of you and repelled it. The creature loosely dropped its weapon onto the ground behind it, as it stumbled around for a second- trying not to fall backwards. You guess the sudden appearance of the blur scared it as much as it did you.
Like, for bloody hell, you almost pissed yourself.
In the dark, you made out that the ‘blur’ was a Hylian! You’re like, at least 87% positive it’s Hylian. The speed at which they are moving makes it a little hard for you to pinpoint exact features. Especially in the dark.
You grasp at your chest with one of your hands and hold up the shield with the other, holy fuck you somehow just got saved. Your breathing is arguably heavier than it was before as you take in what the fuck just happened, and is still happening.
...
Yeah, they’re definitely a Hylian.
You watch, awestruck, as they take down the entire hoard of monsters by themselves with just a sword. You normally would have tried to help, but the fact that your life came so close to ending is making you seriously shell-shocked.
They cut down a couple more of the bokoblins. And the remaining creatures- knowing that they won't live if they stick around, run away like complete cowards. Your savior stands in front of you for a second with their sword still out, it rested in their hand, pointed diagonally towards the ground. They stay put for a couple more seconds- making sure that the bokoblins are a safe distance away. When you guess they think you’re safe enough, they sheath their sword and turn towards you.
You realize this is the first good look you’ve had of this person. It was a girl, you think. It’s hard to see people’s faces that well in the dark. She sported classic Hylian adventure clothes. Their pants were a light tan colour, with brown boots that stopped at just below her knees. It could probably reach her knees, but the sides folded over the top of the footwear. The fabric of the pants ruffled over the boots ever so slightly, disfiguring her shadow a little bit. Her shirt was layered with many things, that created a very complicated appearance. She wore a red shirt with designs on the bottom and on the sleeves. She also had a green piece of fabric wrapped around her torso with a belt-like strap. Hanging off of the strap on her hip was a slate-like device that bore the glowing symbol of the sheikah on it.
What did she have to do with the sheikah?!
On her upper torso and one of her shoulders was what you think is hardened leather. She also was wearing gloves, that looked to be made out of the same aforementioned material. Above the gloves was some green fabric?? You guess they’re wearing a green long-sleeved shirt UNDER the red one? But wait, she has chainmail between the two shirts. How many layers is that? Including the belts and leather? 4? WHO WEARS 4 LAYERS?? How is she not boiling in there? Like damn. Major respect.
You mean, other than the respect that was already given to them for saving your ass.
Finally, to top everything off, she was sporting a grey (it was either gray or black. You couldn’t tell in the dark. Give you some slack) detachable hood with a semi-cape-like thing behind her that was covered in designs.
Damn, what an outfit.
She drew back her hood to reveal her face. Her hair was blonde and was pulled back into a low pony-tail. There were two chunks of hair that weren't in the tie that sort of rested on the side of her face nicely. Her eyebrows were big and messy and she had what looked like two earrings, though you couldn’t really tell. Her hair basically just covered them.
“Holyfuckthankyou.” You manage to spurt out, you just look at her, blinking rapidly. A mixture of disorientation, dizziness, and euphoria overcame you as you desperately attempted to thank the girl. With a shaky soft voice, you persisted. “I don’t even know how to BEGIN repayi-....”
Something curious caught your eye and you trailed off and peered over past her shoulders. You could’ve sworn you saw movement from behind her. Squinting into the darkness- you saw nothing though. No movement, no nothing.
Deciding it was just the darkness playing tricks on your eyes, you continued with what you were saying. “I,- er, as I was sayin- HOLY FUCK LOOK OUT!”
She furrowed her eyebrows for a moment, but then promptly turned around and pulled out her sword. But before either of you could react, the sound of an arrow piercing through the cool night air filled your eardrums. You surveyed the land for where the projectile could have possibly come from- and spotted a bokoblin that was hiding in the bushes. Fuck.
It seemed as if time itself slowed as the object spun dangerously towards you. All you could do was watch as it got closer and closer, ready to pierce through your head. You couldn’t react fast enough.
But she could.
Without even thinking for a second, she recklessly used herself as a shield for the arrow. And it lodged itself in her shoulder. You helplessly watched her fall onto the ground before you. She seemed to drop just as fast as your stomach did. Sudden dizziness overcame you, as you stared wide-eyed, and blankly. She just saved your life. Again.
Your muscles stiffened and seemed to tear against your skin- as your sudden outburst sprung you forward towards the monster who was hiding in the bushes. You hardly thought about what you were doing before you started running quickly in the direction of the creature. It wasn’t just your life at risk now- it was also the life of the blondie who saved you.
The spiked shield you had made had found its way onto your arm, ready to attack. Who was the reckless one now?
You had to ask. But still decided it was them.
You didn’t just take an arrow for a random stranger.
Using the side of a nearby tree, you push yourself up into the air and down onto the attacker. It leapt back just before you made contact with the bokoblin’s hideous skull- causing your shield to get lodged into the grassy dirt that was underneath you. It had rained not too long ago, so the ground was still nice and soft. Easy to pierce, but not too easy to take things out of.
With your only means of defense and offense stuck in the ground- you were vulnerable to assault. You could try to pull it out of the ground, but you feared it out take too long. You were entirely open to attack. One shot from the monster’s bow would quickly pierce through your skull and make quick work of your life. And it was close enough to you that there was no chance of it missing you.
You were at a loss on what you could possibly do, but then a realization hit you. You just had to scare the creature away- no one said anything about killing it.
Clawing at the damp dirt like a savage animal, you begin rapidly throwing the pieces of ground towards the monster’s face. The mud flew straight into its eyes and it started shrieking in pain. Holding its arm up to its face to block more dirt from getting in its eyes- the beast slowly started to back away. Score!
With one more frustrated scream, it veered around and began to run it’s way back to the camp with the others. Though, you didn’t stop pelting the bokoblin with small stones and pieces of the earth until it ran away fully out of your range. You had to be sure it was gone for good this time.
Scooping one last handful of ground into your hand, you scanned the area to make sure that this time, there really were no nearby threats. Even though you didn’t go outside at night that often- you had surprisingly good night vision. Scratch that, you had very good vision in general. You could see things that most people couldn’t see that were far away. Your eyes would be perfect for someone who used a bow. But alas, no one ever taught you. A lost opportunity you guess. For now, you’ll just have to deal with having a spiked shield and dirt as your weapons.
Shame. You would probably look pretty kick-ass with a bow.
When you felt that there was nothing around, you dropped the damp dirt onto the ground- causing a soft ‘thud’. You were about to stand up- but you remember you have a fucking shield attached to your arm that is impaled in the floor. Shifting your feet on either side of the shield, and using the arm that was still strapped inside of the board, you pulled upward. But the hardening dirt seemed to hug the spikes tightly- so pulling it out was difficult.
It still wasn’t budging. You wiggled the object around for a couple seconds in a circular motion in hopes that it would increase the size of the holes that it was stuck in- making it easier to pull out. Your plan worked better than you expected, in fact, maybe too well. When you pulled upward again, in an attempt to dislodge it- it turns out that maybe you put a little too much force into it. The shield easily got pulled out- so much so that the extra force that you put into taking it out caused you to fly backward and onto your butt. And the shock of that reminded you, and your muscles, that you overextended yourself.
Ouch.
All in all, you were kinda proud of yourself for not collapsing already from exhaustion- knowing fully well that you were functioning purely off of adrenaline and determination that was pumping through your blood.
Your chest felt as if someone was pressing on it, and you could feel your beating heart pounding through your skin.
A stumble could be heard from behind you- and you whipped your head around in complete and utter surprise. The girl who had saved you before was stumbling around- trying to get up. She swayed from side to side, hunched over with her head down- fiercely determined to stay up. Her arm was stretched across her torso and gripped onto the injured shoulder tightly. The arrow just so happened to be shot into the shoulder without the hardened leather protecting it.
With one sharp and aggressive movement- she brought her other hand up to the arrow and ripped it out of her flesh; then limply dropped it onto the ground. You watched as she scrunched up her face in pain. That wound would probably get infected fast if it wasn't treated properly. And there certainly was no way that she would survive the night in her current state.
Even though her legs were spread far apart from each other, in a stable position- that wasn’t enough. Her swaying cause for her to fall forward.
Arguably faster than you were running before- you dashed forward and caught her fall. She flopped limply into your arms- but as soon as she did- she tried to push herself back up again.
Wow, okay then.
You systematically analyzed your surroundings. You needed to set up for the night so you could get some rest and cook some food for her. The only things that you had on you that could be used to help her heal from the wound was a medical wrap and some food. No elixirs or anything to treat it properly- nor anything to reduce the pain. Perhaps you could go foraging for a little bit and try to find something that you could possibly use- but that would mean leaving her alone. And there is no way you’re going to do that. You’ve already committed yourself to help her.
Though- as a Hylian, she should be fine by tomorrow- and the wound should heal up fine. That is- as long as she gets some food in her. Unlike other races, Hylians have rather insane healing properties. If a Hylian supplies their body with enough nutrients, and gets some rest- they could heal almost any injury in a rather short amount of time.
You mean, other than you. Your ears weren’t pointed like a normal Hylian- and you for some reason didn’t have all of the abilities that were supposedly given to the Hylians by the gods. You grew up living with the Sheikah- but that was because they found you when you were just a baby and decided to raise you as their own.
Impa described you as ‘human’; a race sort of similar to the Hylians that went extinct a long time ago. They weren’t particularly strong, but they were smart. Which might explain your craftiness.
They also lacked any 'magical' properties of any sort. Meaning, they weren't super strong, they couldn't use magic, elixirs didn't work on them, and any food in the land that gave you abilities when eaten had no effect on them. Basically all of the fun stuff.
You mean, you assume. You had never met another human before, so everything was trial and error when it came to you.
Thinking back to what you had seen while wandering around the area- you couldn’t remember that many places that could be used as a possible shelter. Everything was too open, and you wouldn’t dare just sleep in the open woods. Especially after what just happened, you don’t really trust the forest.
Though, you do remember seeing some old broken down stone buildings around the lake. That would most likely be your best option, considering that the walls of the broken down buildings would provide some sort of cover- and make the two of you harder to spot. Plus, if it started raining at any point in the night- having something like a wall would make it easier to prop up a tarp to block the water.
You slung the girl’s arm over the top of you across your shoulder and held onto it with one hand, and used your other to support her body. And as soon as you did- you instantly regretted it. She might have been only a little bit taller than you- but she was definitely a hell of a lot heavier. Just her arm was insanely dense. You couldn’t imagine trying to carry all of her at once. What the actual fuck was she made out of? Rocks? Probably, to be honest. Her muscles shared the firm feeling that rocks had when you held them.
She tried to squirm out of your hold for a second and waved her hands wildly in an attempt to say ‘I’m fine! You don’t need to carry me!’, but you weren’t having any of it. You were going to help her. If she wanted it or not.
You managed to guide her out of the forest, and with all of the strain you put on your muscles in one night- you wouldn’t be surprised if you would be sore for the next 7 years. She had slowly stopped leaning on you- because after all, her shoulder is the thing that got hurt. Not her legs. But even though she stopped leaning on you, and her was walking relatively normal- you still held your arm out for support, just in case.
It was quite obvious she didn’t want the help though. Which was crazy to think about. She was bleeding out of her shoulder, and near a camp of monsters. There was no fucking way you were about to leave her there to rot. Is she not used to people helping her or something? Your face scrunched into a confused mess. So it’s okay for her to risk her life to save some random stranger she never met before, but you can’t?
She must have noticed the change in your face- because she turned her head slightly to look at you. You could see it in your peripheral, and you did that weird thing where you look at someone but not at the same time. You looked straight ahead- but focused on the blurry figure that was her face. Whether she wanted something or was just looking at you, you had absolutely no idea.
The rest of the walk to the place where you wanted to camp was relatively calm and relaxing compared to what had just conspired. The wind had picked up slightly and swayed the grass back and forth gently. The lake’s surface wasn’t nearly as calm as it was before- but it still looked gorgeous. Small waves slowly rolled up onto the shores of the surrounding land- stretching as far as it could before receding back into the abyss. The repeating pattern was soothing to look at as you stumbled your way over.
You wished that you could stop for a second to enjoy it, but if you tried to stop walking your legs would probably collapse. And the girl you had with you probably wouldn’t enjoy you leisurely watching the lake as she bled out.
Or would she? You had no idea.
But probably not. You wouldn’t enjoy it if you were in her situation, so there is a good chance she won't either.
Though you managed to get a pretty good look at the lake, even if you weren’t at the shore. As you practically limped over to the ‘campsite’, you took in the last of the lake before you entered. Who knows when there will be another night as clear as this? Better enjoy it while you have it.
The two of you stumbled through one of the broken-down walls, using what was clearly not supposed to be an entrance, an entrance. You couldn’t bother to find an easier place to get in from, and the worn-down wall was good enough.
The ‘room’ you entered was quite old, and it was obvious that no one had been there in a long time. Or at least tended to the place. The walls were made of stone bricks stacked on top of each other that had vines weaved in between them. The bricks were a light gray colour, not that you could really tell though- as the walls were covered top to bottom with bright green moss. Chunks of every wall were missing, and there was plenty of rubble on the ground that you needed to move if you wanted even a chance at a comfortable sleep. Size-wise, it honestly wasn’t that bad. You had a good amount of space, so if you did happen to get ambushed by monsters during the night- you wouldn't be trapped that badly.
The ground was still slightly damp, which wasn’t much of a problem for the both of you; you had a tarp and a blanket you could use. One could sleep on the tarp, and the other on the blanket. But the problem came with the fire you needed to set up. You had a couple pieces of wood with you that you could use to start it off, but continuing it would be difficult. Anything that you could scavenge from around the area would also be damp. If you put the damp wood in the fire, it would start smoking like crazy. Which doesn’t sound bad, but on a clear night like this, the smoke would be able to be seen from a great distance away- drawing unwanted attention.
While you thought about what to do, the blonde chick you were with made her way over to one of the walls and slowly sat down while leaning against it. There curiously was a couple of chopped pieces scattered around in the room. Perhaps someone was here recently? Whatever the situation was that lead to the wood being there, you were very grateful. You really did not want to have to look around for logs and broken twigs. If you started the fire with what you had, you could put the other pieces next to the flames and allow the heat to finish drying it off.
Confident that your plan would play out, you started stacking the pieces against each other and lit the fire. It started off as a small spark, but as you blew on it- the flames started to breathe. They got bigger and bigger as they enveloped the wood and attached itself onto it. Once you felt that the flames were stable enough, you continued with where you left off unpacking your things and setting up camp. You unrolled the tarp and blanket and folded them into a shape suitable to sleep on, then placed them down cautiously on either side of the growing flames.
The fire crackled near the corner of the stone structure, projecting long shadows on the surrounding area- and causing the bumps and ridges in the walls to seem much more defined. The fire itself provided a small radius of warm light, that you very much so appreciated. The fire was pulsating, the glowing embers seemed to move in rhythm with the flames, matching every movement almost perfectly. It was mesmerizing to watch, the colours of orange and red gave way to yellow and white near the centre, where the emanating heat was the greatest. It almost seemed alive.
You sat down on the blanket and resumed with what you were doing- you had a lot of stuff in your bag. Digging through your gear, you extracted everything you needed to make a meal for the night. Laid down on your blanket were a cluster of mushrooms, some spices, herbs, and a handful of wooden skewers. There wasn’t much left compared to what you had before, and you would have to forage for some more food tomorrow, but it was plenty for just two people.
Glancing over- the girl was still sitting alone by herself on the opposite side of the room. And you guess she got used to the pain; because she stopped holding onto her shoulder- and was rubbing her hand gently over the areas where you had touched her. Her face was devoid of any identifiable emotion, and she looked as if she was zoning off into space.
“Hey,” You said softly, trying not to startle her. “I’m making us something to eat, and I have some bandages that I can use on your arm to stop the bleeding. But in order for me to do that, I’ll need you to come over here into the light.”
With a slow nod, she got up from where she was sitting and wandered her way over to the fire, and sat down onto the tarp you had laid out.
This was the first time you could see her features properly- and holy fuck-
She was actually a he.
The more you looked at his face, the more masculine it looked- but you understood why you thought he was a girl. He had beautiful blue eyes- and pretty long eyelashes. The only way you could describe his overall face is ‘soft’, and sort of round.
Though, the light allowed you to see some other things too. He had intense dark circles under his eyes, and his clothes were all scuffed up.
The hell did this guy do for a living? Wrestle bears?
Your ears flushed pink sightly when you realized why he might be so cautious. You didn’t even tell him what you were doing this whole time. Being too tired to think properly- you just slung him over your shoulders and started walking- without a word.
Yikes.
“Sorry for kinda dragging you in here-” You acknowledged, trying to sound as innocent as possible so it didn’t seem to him as you just kidnapped him.
Because you totally just kidnapped him.
“I couldn’t just leave you out there. And that was the least I could do for you saving my life.” Awaiting his response, you continued preparing the food, but no response came.
You looked up at him, maybe he didn’t hear you?
But no. When you glanced up, he was staring straight at you. He was just being silent.
Thinking back, you haven’t heard a word from him this entire time. Just some grunts and quiet groans- but those don’t count.
Was he mute or something?
“Not much of a talker, are you?” you asked, sort of awkwardly breaking the silence that fell over the two of you. You weren’t used to carrying the conversation by yourself. It was something you were able to do, no doubt- but it just seemed so foreign to you. It’s not really a conversation if just one person is talking.
That’s just someone awkwardly talking to themselves.
Though, what you weren’t expecting, was a confused, and almost surprised look from him in return. He looked unsure of what exactly you meant. But still didn't say anything.
Well, you guess that was the only response you get.
Even with his lack of speaking so far, you were determined to get at least his name. Referring to him as ‘the boy’ or something like that seemed satisfactory- and a little bit more effort than you cared to give.
“What’s your name, anyway?” You quiz. And in an attempt to get him to talk, you also share your own name.
“I’m (y/n).” You say as gently as you possibly could, and smiled. Your stubborn nature was determined to find out his name. Even if you had to go through the alphabet, with each and every letter, making him nod, or shake his head.
You were so ready to do that.
You had to spend the night with this fucker. You were going to learn his name.
“Link.” He said, finally.
Oh so he CAN speak?
For whatever reason, the name ‘Link’ sounded familiar.
Actually, you knew why. It was the name of the guy who Impa used to tell stories about. The hero that fell in battle about 100 years ago. Paya was obsessed with him. For the most part, he matched the description that Impa gave about him too. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, just like the hero from 100 years ago, but he lacked the signature sword and tunic. His parents must have named their kid after the legendary hero.
Being thrown back into your memories, you started to recognize the slate on his belt. It was called the Sheikah Slate or something like that (Wow, such a creative name). Why the fuck did this knock-off hero have the Slate? It was a very important piece of technology that they uncovered, so it didn't make sense for him to have it. Wasn’t it put away with the hero when he was placed into the Shrine of Resurrection or something? The shrine shut itself after the hero was placed inside too. No one could open it, so unless…
Wait-
“The Legendary Hero, Link?!” You sputter, wide-eyed.
He gave an unconfident nod, almost unsure of it himself.
“When did you-! How did you-!” So many questions flowed through your head at such a rapid pace that you couldn’t even finish what you were saying before a new one was blurted out.
Oh, how badly you wanted to bombard him with questions. But the short, unsatisfying responses he would probably give you convinced you to cut it short and ask only one.
Well, maybe two.
You were about to ask him if he went to Kakariko Village yet and talked to Impa, but you luckily held your tongue and prevented yourself from asking such a stupid question that you could figure out yourself. It was obvious he had been there, you recognized his armor. You’re not quite sure why you didn’t realize this earlier- but his armor was from the village. It was one of the two they had on display there. You had to ask at the counter for other clothing.
Man, Paya must have freaked. You get stung with a pang of regret that you weren’t there to see her face. It would have been hilarious.
Though, if he has been to the village already, how long has he been awake for?
He held up two fingers and stared at you with the same blank expression he’s had all this time. What? Is that supposed to mean something? Two? Two what?
Ohh wait, you must have said your question out loud.
But even with figuring out why he was holding up a peace sign- it was still quite useless. Two days? Weeks? Months? Years? Without the context, it was hard to decipher what he could have possibly meant. But you took an educated guess.
“Weeks?”
Your response was a quick nod, paired with an affirmative grunt.
“So what have you been doing in the past two weeks then?”
He couldn’t possibly have done much. It took forever to just travel around Hyrule thanks to its sheer size. And from what it looked like, he didn’t have a horse with him to help speed up the process. What? Did he just run across Hyrule?
Sure. Funny joke.
Apparently, trying to avoid talking at all costs, he pointed up towards the red beam in the sky shooting straight at Hyrule Castle.
You stopped what you were doing.
Oh fuck, right. That.
You had kinda gotten used to seeing it there once it appeared, and you mainly just ignored it. It had stopped raining in Zora’s Domain and the Divine Beast Vah Ruta seemed to have calmed down. It was perched on top of one of the giant mountains that surrounded the area. How it got up there will forever elude you, but you didn’t think for one second that it was caused by Link though.
And to further show what he’s been up to, he handed the Sheikah Slate over into your hands and tapped the screen- making a map appear.
A little more than a quarter of Hyrule was displayed on the small device. The rest of it was outlined in sections. The areas that were shown though, appeared in rather astonishing detail. What the hell? Did he draw all of this? How in the fuck???
Your attention was drawn to the small blue and yellow spots on the map. They appeared all over the uncovered area and seemed to come in a handful of different shapes. One looked like the Divine Beast Vah Ruta, so you assumed that’s what it was- but what were the others? From memory, you could figure out that the yellow squares were towns and stables.
“What are these things here?” You asked, pushing your finger on the screen- causing the map to get closer and more detailed.
Holy fuck what did you just do. You just broke it- didn’t you. Fuck. Shit. Fuck.
You glanced up at Link in a panicked state, but he didn’t seem alarmed though, as he just pinched his fingers together on the slate, and it returned to normal. Turns out you didn’t break it. Thank god.
He pointed at the lighter blue marking. “That’s a tower.”
“What about the other one?”
“A shrine.”
“Ah.”
You still didn’t know what they exactly they were, nor what they looked like. But hey, at least you knew what they were called! But why where they on his map anyways? God, this confused you to no end.
You knew that the ancient Sheikah technology was advanced, but you had no idea it was so fascinating. There was a structure that was on top of the hill in Kakariko Village that was ancient Sheikah technology, and you have seen a few of them on your travels- but didn’t think much of it. No one could open them anyways, and you just forgot it was there.
Wait, fuck, that was a shrine. That's what shrines look like.
But the fact that you could touch the screen, and have it move around just by your finger amazed you. It was honestly like magic.
What was it powered by? How did it even work? How did it sense your finger, then act accordingly to match your movements? Your head spun just by thinking about it.
You squinted at the screen. Goddamnit there was a stable around here. You almost got killed for nothing.
You shook your head to dramatically remove the thought from your head- and handed the mystical device back over to Link. If you had stared at it for and longer you probably would have gotten lost in it. Which didn’t surprise you. You had a tendency to get lost in thought while you looked at things that fascinated you. Or just in general.
The two of you got back to what you were doing after that little exchange. You, meticulously seasoning the food- and Link watching you season the food.
After finishing preparing the food, all you had left to do was let it sit in the fire to cook. Now you could finally take care of his injury. Grabbing the cloth wrap from inside your bag, along with your flask, you shuffled carefully around the fire over to his side and sat down.
“Alrighty! Let’s see how that wound is doing!” you said. “Sorry for making you wait so long."
To be honest, you had actually almost forgotten he was injured in the first place. His face showed no signs of any distress or pain- and his lack of words failed to indicate that he was literally bleeding out in front of you.
And since he stopped holding onto his shoulder too, it had looked as if he was fine.
With a quick nod, he started to take the clothes he had on his chest off. You would have said ‘shirts’, but with the many layers and random straps he wore- saying something as simple as that couldn’t possibly capture the insane amount of things he had to unhook and remove.
And of course, while he was changing, you did you best to look away from him. It’s rude to stare.
God, someone should tell Link that.
Peaking back, he had only just finished taking off the billions of straps he for some reason had on him. Everything he had taken off so far was in a small pile beside him, with the Sheikah Slate out of the pile, and out of the way.
Chainmail armor wasn’t the best when it came to protecting you from arrows, and that fact was made rather clear when he took off red shirt that he wore overtop of the ring-like armor. You could see the exact spot where the pointed head of the arrow penetrated it too, as some of the chainlinks were broken and were completely covered in his blood.
His shirts could be sewn back together, but the problem arises with the actual armor. He would either need to buy another chained shirt- or pray that any monsters that he fights wouldn’t hit him there. That being said, the hole was small enough that it should be fine. But you would much rather he be safe than sorry. This socially awkward mess was the savior of Hyrule.
When you realized you were staring at him, you turned away again to face the wall. You felt as if you had just put yourself in timeout or something as you just sat there, staring aimlessly at the mossy stones in front of you.
“You do have other clothes you can wear, right?” It was a strange question- but you had to ask. While technically he didn’t need to wear anything, it was just slightly uncomfortable for you to see someone who you had just met shirtless. It was kinda indecent. But you weren’t about to make him put back on the bloody clothes he was previously wearing just for your own comfort. So you needed to confirm with him that he did have something.
You couldn’t see him, but you heard what sounded to you like an affirmative grunt, and you imagined that he nodded or something.
Giving him a few more seconds to change into a new shirt, you turn around.
Wait.-
Holy fuck he was still shirtless- and as it looked like, he had no intention of putting anything on.
Goddamnit.
Why the fuck didn’t he put anything else on overtop. A tank top would have been good enough. Just anything to cover him up at least a little bit. You think that what you said would have signaled at least a little bit to him that he should put something on. But no. Of course, it didn’t. Because why the fuck would it. It's him.
“Okay- You know what?” You said while violently scrambling over to your bag and ripping the only pillow you had out; then throwing it at him. “Just-, take it.”
The pillow landed in his lap, leaning up against his chest- it thankfully did its job properly and covered him up at least a
bit.
He seemed confused on why you had given him the pillow, but just accepted it anyways- sort of coddling it awkwardly. Link, for God knows what reason, didn’t seem to care that you were seeing him shirtless.
God, didn’t he know that his body is supposed to be private? You did not need to see his shirtless body. You were good.
Taking a second to calm down from your frustrated fluster, you proceeded to sit back down; and then started doing what you were trying to do in the first place before you got rudely interrupted by Link’s social incompetence.
The wrap was rolled up into a cylinder-like shape and was held together with a metal clip. When you unhooked the metal piece, it unraveled easily into your lap. Maybe a little too easily, as some almost fell off your lap and onto the dirty floor.
That would have been bad. You weren't about to use an unclean cloth. That would be disgusting.
Quickly drawing your fingers down the fabric, you reached the end- and holding it tightly, you tore the end off. You placed the rest of the medical wrap back in your lap for later. And now scrunching the piece you tore up, you gently poured some of the water from your flask onto the square of material, careful not to let any spill.
There was quite a bit of blood on his skin, most of it had dried a little bit, but the wound itself was somehow still bleeding. Though it looked like it had already begun the process of healing, as there was what looked like the beginning of a scab was on his skin. You were a little amazed by how fast he was healing, actually. Whenever you accidentally got cut, it would bleed out for what seemed like forever before it clotting up and forming a scab.
It must have had to do with you being a slightly different race from him.
Everyone else around you who you ever met seemed tougher than you. Even Paya, who was a shy, and sort of weak girl was more resilient. Your skin was softer to the touch and pierced easily. You were weaker- but that never stopped you from doing what you wanted.
Shaking the thought, you got back to the task at hand.
For support while you cleaned away the blood, you brought your other hand up behind his shoulder. While you didn’t exactly need to do this, it just made it easier for when you had to press harder against his shoulder to clean everything off. Aka, the dried blood.
Link flinched ever so slightly when you first touched him. Which was rather odd, considering you were nowhere near the wound. So whatever caused him to flinch was unknown to you. But nevertheless, you continued with what you were doing. Starting from the lowest point on his shoulder/arm at which the blood was on, you placed the cloth gently on his skin and began to clean upwards in a sweeping motion.
Link had his eyes on his shoulder as he watched you clean his wound. It seemed so foreign to him that someone was touching him- in fact, it was a little off-putting at first. His skin craved to be touched, and it wanted contact with someone. Anyone. Not even in a sexual sense either- that part didn’t cross his mind. It was almost like a hunger. When you carried him before, he was slightly shocked. He had almost forgotten what it felt like to have another person touch him. But when you got to the stone buildings and put him down, there was a strange sensation on his skin where you had made contact. And he had just sat there, confused. It was a good sensation- but why?
He didn’t understand why he suddenly didn’t want a random stranger to go away after they held him. He knew got this feeling at least twice before; One, when he accidentally touched the hand of a shopkeeper while he was handing them some rupees. And the other, when he had to ride on Sidon's back when fighting Vah Ruta- but it wasn’t to this extent. Granted, ever since he woke up, he didn’t really touch anyone. He didn’t see the need for doing so. And you were the first person who had touched him with care in mind that he could recall.
By the time he finished his train of thought, you had finished cleaning up his injury and had wrapped the wound up with the cloth already. You were in the process of using the metal clip you had to stick the end of the wrap to itself. You opted to use the clip because, in your opinion, it was much easier to use than any other method you could think of to make it stick it to itself. Sowing the fabric would just take too long, and then tucking the fabric was unreliable and would usually just unroll if you so much as moved.
“Better?” You asked, genuinely curious- hoping you did a good enough job wrapping it. You mean, it wasn’t hard- but you were better with memorizing what plant helps with what; instead of actually treating the patient.
Somehow you almost always managed to be bad at the simpler tasks compared to the hard ones.
And to your delight, he nodded. But was still looking at his wrapped shoulder. Was there something wrong and he wasn’t telling you?
“Thanks.” Link said, his voice trailing off slightly.
Choosing to ignore his rather strange behavior, you moved back over to your ‘bed’- and your attention was promptly caught on something else;
What the hell what that smell?
It smelled like burnt mushrooms. With a hint of herbs and spices?
Wait.-
“OH FUCK THE FOOD!” You practically shrieked, scaring Link enough that he tensed up and whipped his head around to face you- then put his hand on his sword, ready to pull out at a moment’s notice. He took his hand off though- and relaxed his shoulders once he saw you dive for the mushroom skewers like a complete dork.
Even though you were trying to lie low to not attract attention- the mushrooms burning were an urgent situation. At least, for you it was.
You see, you were kinda a snob when it came to cooking and food. It was one of the few things you were really good at- and in result, you became picky about it.
And with a swift movement, you snatched up one of the food-covered sticks and began to examine it. The outside of the mushrooms was a little bit too burnt. Damn. This would ruin the taste a little- it wasn’t supposed to be charcoal-y!
You plucked a skewer from its spot in the ground as if it were a freshly grown carrot, and handed it to Link. It was dug into the floor on a tilted angle for optimized effect while it was roasting in the flames. But it was slightly burnt from you forgetting about it like an idiot.
“It’s a little burnt, but it should still be edible.” You say, disappointed.
He reached his arm out and cautiously took the skewer from your hand. You physically felt his own hand stiffen when he touched yours too.
What was with this guy? He reminded you of a child. It’s not like you had cooties or something.
You couldn’t understand anything about him, especially when his only expressions were unreadable stoic faces.
He retracted his arm noticeably quicker than when he extended it. Which honestly didn’t surprise you at this point. His eyes danced around the skewer for a second, systematically analyzing the mushrooms and how they were seasoned. What he could be possibly thinking, you had no idea. But once he was done looking at the food in front of him, (which was just a rushed couple of seconds) Link looked up at you, confirming he could actually eat it.
You gave him an expression that you would think would confirm that he, in fact, could actually eat the food that you handed to him. But apparently, that wasn’t enough. He just stared at you, awaiting your response. So instead you just resorted to signaling with your hands while nodding ever so slightly. You couldn’t really be bothered to open your mouth and talk.
“Thank you.” He said, slightly sheepish.
He brought the mushrooms close to his mouth and took a shy bite out of the food, and then another, and another. Holy shit, was he starving or something? You'd never seen someone eat something so fast. Once he started biting into it, he just picked up the speed and he chowed down on the skewer faster and faster. You were too entranced with watching this weird display that when he finished inhaling the skewer, completely barren of food, you hadn’t even taken a bite out of your own.
He placed down the wooden stick next to him, and eagerly eyed down another piece- but tried to look casual about it.
“Go ahead dude, eat as much as you want. There is plenty here.” You urged, while finally biting into your own.
With getting your acceptance, he swiftly grabbed the mushroom skewer that was closest to him. And started vacuuming that one too. You watched, completely amused by this display.
They didn’t even taste THAT good. Especially for your standards. But it was the best that you could do with the little variety of food you had and very few supplies. You knew your cooking was good, but it definitely wasn’t good enough that would make someone practically inhale it like Link was doing. Someone would have had to be fed fucking dirt their entire life to get a reaction like that. You even made a mistake and let it burn more than you should have. So you figured there had to be something else at play here.
The once reservedness of him seem to disappear with the more he ate. Eventually, his excitement took complete control, and he abandoned chewing all together; the food was practically gone as soon as you saw him pick it up. And to your delight, he seemed more relaxed then he did before.
“Holy shit dude-! Hungry much?” You managed to spit out while not trying to laugh at what was going on in front of you. “When was the last time you ate?”
You asked, but it was more of an attempt to tease him than ask an actual question.
With a mouthful of food, he managed to spurt out a response. “Yesterday I think.”
“You think!?” You replied in complete surprise, you were just trying to poke fun at him a little bit. You didn’t actually expect that he hadn’t eaten in a while- for whatever reason, it didn’t cross your mind. The fact that he wasn’t even sure about when he ate last set off some alarms too. Gawking, you just sat there- giving the most dumbfounded look you could possibly manage. “What did you even eat?”
Link didn’t even notice the insane face you were pulling, nor did he take note of the tone in your voice- he just kept on eating and flatly replied to your question.
“In the morning, I ate some fruit that I found.”
“You didn’t you eat anything else?” You inquired, still gawking. God, you felt like a concerned mother scolding her child. You just met this fucker and your motherly nature was already kicking in.
“I don’t have the time.” He replied- as if that was all the explanation you needed.
What the actual fuck dude.
He had to be joking, right?
“Surely whatever you’re doing is less important than taking care of yourself?”
Link slowed down on his pace that which he was eating for a moment, coming to a stop. He finally caught wind of your very blatant astounded look- and only then did he have the audacity to look slightly embarrassed by what he said. But didn’t dare to respond.
You gave him the most stupefied look you were possibly capable of, but he just started to look self-conscious in response- and returned his focus onto eating to try to avoid your judgemental gaze.
Was the responsibility of a hero really so great that he couldn't find the time to take care of his basic needs? God, you didn’t get this guy.
Shaking your head, you weren’t sure whether to be concerned or at least relieved he was eating now. But the emotions ended up just merging together into an amalgamation that was predominantly ‘disappointment’, with hints of the aforementioned feelings.
At least you cooked up a lot of skewers, and they were rather large too. The wooden sticks that the mushrooms were speared onto were about the size of the bottom of your forearm to the top of your fingers- and were able to fit quite a bit of said food on them.
But when you glanced down to check the state of the skewers, you were quite bewildered to see that there was literally one left. That’s right, Link just ate 5 full skewers in like, only a couple of minutes.
Holy shit this guy was a machine.
You felt a little discombobulated, where was all of that food going anyways? Glancing down at his stomach, it was literally the exact same as before. Did he just absorb that shit or something? How did he manage to do that?
Like, you expected lots of leftovers from this meal, but it looks like there literally won't be any.
You looked up and met his eyes, and he sheepishly looked down. He seems to just now realize how much he ate, as he was very obviously averting your gaze in embarrassment or something.
Rolling your eyes only slightly, you pick up the last skewer and extend it out to him.
“Here, just take it,” you said, almost mockingly. “you clearly need it a hell of a lot more than I do.”
When he didn’t take it, you sort of just leaned forward and shoved the stupid thing into his arms- forcing him to grab onto it.
He looked up at you, about to protest, but then backed down almost immediately. You didn’t have enough energy left in your body to fight about this with him- so you just put on the sternest glare you could possibly manage before whipping your head away in a dramatic fashion.
That seemed to do the trick, as when you peaked back at him, he was shyly picking at the skewer. But eating it, nevertheless.
And by the way, he was still shirtless.
You wanted to keep the ‘upset’ tone you had till he finished it- so he would actually eat the fucking thing. But then you started giggling like a complete loser.
Well, it was more like a mixture of half-hearted snorts and snickers than anything.
The whole situation was pretty amusing, actually.
You had cooked up 7 decently sized skewers of mushrooms and you ate one of them. Link literally inhaled the rest.
You didn’t stay up much longer after you had eaten. Perhaps on another night you would’ve been awake for longer- and enjoyed the fire, but you really didn’t have any energy to do so. Whether you wanted to or not, you were going to sleep. And to save yourself the embarrassment of if you just flat out passed out- you decided to get ready to sleep.
A yawn escaped from your mouth, as you stretch your arms up in response. You didn’t even bother to change into something more comfortable. What you were wearing was good enough.
“I’m going to get some shut-eye, what about you?” You said, laying your body down onto the blanket.
He didn’t seem to understand what you meant by ‘shut-eye’, but using hints from your body position and your yawning- he realized you were talking about sleep.
So he slowly nodded.
And feeling obligated to do the same, Link shifted his body down and wiggled around for a couple of seconds- trying to get comfortable. You noticed something curious though, instead of using the pillow that you had given him for its purpose- he chose to cling onto it as he rested on his side. Holding it how a child would hold their favorite stuffed animal.
You would laugh, but that seemed ruder that you wanted to be right now.
“Night.” You whispered weakly to him, propping your bag up underneath your head to use as a pillow.
You knew it was irresponsible for the both of you to sleep at once, and not have someone watching over. But at this point in the night, your level of care was at an all-time low and your body craved for sleep.
“Goodnight.” He responded softly.
Never had a few moments deliberation seemed like infinity as you felt your consciousness ebbing away. Your eyes grew heavy from the strenuous effects of excessive agitation from what had occurred during the eventful night. A relaxed feeling swept over your body as you started to lose feeling. The last few things you saw before drifting into a sleep- were a blurry mess of oranges, blacks, and reds as the fire died out.