Chapter Text
After Calamity Ganon was finally defeated, there was still a lot to do. It took years of helping Zelda try to rebuild Hyrule until it was at least slightly stable, and after that, well… Link didn’t really know what to do. He finally had time , that was something he never really thought about. There just wasn’t enough spare time from when he woke up, to when he finally faced Calamity Ganon to really think about what he would do afterwards. If he were to be honest, he didn’t expect to survive. Sure, he knew there was a chance that he would, and that it was the best outcome, but he didn’t let himself get his hopes up. If he accepted that he would probably die, the fear of it wouldn’t be a distraction. The only issue with that was.. well, what happens after everything is finished. So, what did he do after it was all over? He bought a house.
It was a decent sized house on the edge of Hateno Village, and they were going to tear it down anyways, so he swooped in before they finished and bought it. Bolson was the one who sold it to him, and gave him a great discount in exchange for some labour. For a while Link would bounce between fixing up his own home, and helping Hudson work on building Tarrey VIllage when he felt the need to travel. It took him a good six months until the house was in a state fit to be lived in, but it was nice. Bolson offered for him to do the repairs and building, but Link prefered to do the work himself, and he was quite proud of it. About a year after he bought the house, it was finally starting to be close to finished.
It was spring again, and Link was outside, tending to a fresh sapling he had just finished planting (gardening had become a very peaceful pastime for him). It was hot, and Link had his hair up in a ponytail, bangs pushed back with a bandana, and face smeared with dirt. Rhodson’s Voe outfit was perfect for this kind of weather, chest exposed, and shorts keeping him cool, he was knelt down in the dirt, planting a Silent Princess next to it when the har on the back of his neck started to raise. His instincts kicked in, and his body froze, ears twitching to hear the footsteps coming up the stone steps behind him. His fingers crept towards the dagger on his belt, slowly wrapping around them as he heard the footsteps cross from the stone onto the grass of his yard. They were within range now. In one fluid motion, Link swiftly stood, spinning around, pulling the dagger out of its sheath and pulled it back, ready to send it sailing straight into whoever had come up behind him. He paused, hearing the person yelp in surprise, and seeing the black haired man in front of him duck, raising his hands above his head in a sign of surrender.
“P-please don’t kill me, I’m sorry! I’ll leave I promise, just please don’t kill me!” The pleas tumbled out of his mouth in one rush of air as the man took a step backwards, looking back up at Link, fear evident on his face.
Link’s face flushed red in embarrassment, he slowly lowered his knife, putting it back into its sheath, and quickly signing a stumbled I’m sorry, I won’t hurt you, I was just surprised.
The man watched his hands carefully, slowly lowering his arms, still watching him cautiously. “I-it’s alright. I’m sorry that I spooked you. A lot of people are still on edge these days, I forget that.”
A long pause stretched out between them. The man’s eyes didn’t leave Link, and he started to squirm beneath his gaze. Clearing his throat, he stepped forwards and signed So, how can I help you?
This finally broke the man’s gaze, and his face quickly grew red. A smile crept it’s way onto Link’s face as he watched the man stumble over his words, trying to pull himself back together. He was cute, Link wouldn’t deny that, and he looked very familiar, but he just couldn’t place where he had seen them before. Had they met? He was Hylian, so it had to have been sometime after he woke up for the first time in that shrine, but there were just so many people that he met over the past few years. Sometimes it all just shifts into a blur.
“Um, uh, I’m sorry. You- you are Link, right?” the man asks, gesturing towards the hand carved sign that marked his house. With a proud smile, Link nods. The man grins in relief, “Thank the Goddesses. You have no idea how long it took me to find you. I-It's really nice to see you again.”
Link blinks a few times, brows furrowing. So he has met him before. A pang of guilt hits him in the stomach. This man clearly knows him, and with the amount of trouble that he’s gone to to find him, apparently Link means something to him. The man’s ears droop as his face falls into disappointment. “Oh, you don’t remember me.” Link starts to sign another apology, but is interrupted, “No, no! It’s been a long time since we last talked, it’s okay, really!” He steps closer to Link, holding out his hand, “I’m Bozai, we met outside of Gerudo town, oh Gods, a few years ago now. You might remember me as the guy with the boots.”
The memory pulls itself to the front of Links mind. A smile creeps onto his face as he steps up to Bozai, taking his hand, and taking another step towards him as he shakes his hand. Bozai’s face flushes darker as Link invades his space and he quickly steps back, letting go of his hand. Of course I remember, Link signs, How could I ever forget you, Bozai? He signs his name as a loose B, grinning as he watches the man in front of him try to gather his wits again. Of course Link remembers him. He remembers the wild goose chases that Bozai sent him on, and how cute it was when Link would return a little bit beat up, and listen as Bozai went on about how worried he was about the “poor, cute vai” that he put in danger. He had felt bad when he had to turn Bozai down when he asked Link out on a date, but Link didn’t exactly have the luxury to agree to it at the time.
Your HSL has gotten better, I see. Did you learn that just for me? Link tilts his head, raising an eyebrow. A mischievous grin flits across his face as he watches Bozai scramble to find words to respond with. It may have been a bit mean, but Link couldn’t help himself, he remembers just how easy it was to fluster him back then, and apparently that hasn’t changed. Link lets out a laugh as Bozai attempts to stutter out a response, but quiets down when a frustrated glare is shot his way. Okay, I’m sorry, I’ll stop teasing before you start to keel over. What brings you all the way over here?
Bozai’s shoulders relax as his face starts to calm down to it’s normal color. “Well, as I said, I was, um” he takes a deep breath before looking up and meeting Link’s gaze. “I was looking for you. Honestly it was just a stroke of luck that I found you here, I just stopped by to get some more supplies, and here you are.” He waves a hand, gesturing at Link.
You were… looking for me? An eyebrow raises in suspicion. He can’t help it, people often end up on his doorstep looking for the Champion’s help.
“Well, yeah. It’s been a while, and I think you still have something that you borrowed from me a while ago.” He gives Link a sheepish grin as he mumbles out the excuse.
Link’s eyes narrow slightly in suspicion, but he decides to just roll with it. He glances to the west, seeing the sun slowly lowering in the sky. Okay. Bozai’s eyes widen, apparently he wasn’t expecting this to go over as well as it was. I have to get Pubs settled in for the night and then wash up. Would you like to stay for dinner?
“Yes!” Bozai blurts out, before quickly correcting himself to a more collected, “Sure, that sounds nice, thank you. But, Pubs?”
Link chuckles, quickly signing Horse and motioning for Bozai to follow him around to the back of the house. He turns around, walking backwards so he can talk to Bozai as they walk. She’s my horse, her full name is Pumpernickel, but I like to call her Pubs.
Behind his house is a small fenced in pasture. The large, dark horse raises her head as they round the corner, and she lets out a low whinny, and trots over to the gate, tossing her bright orange mane. Link grins as he hops up onto the gate, standing on the top rung, opening his arms for wide. Pubs bumps her head into Link’s chest, letting him throw his arms around her face. Her head is the size of his entire torso, and raising her head, she lifts him up off of the fence, and setting him down inside the pasture. Link turns back to Bozai to see him frozen halfway to the pasture, mouth open as he watched the exchange between the boy and the gargantuan horse.
After waving his hand high to get Bozai’s attention, he signs She’s a sweetheart, I promise.
With his brows furrowed, Bozai slowly approaches the gate. When Pubs lets out a quick snort, he jumps in surprise, making Link giggle. On the ground, neither Link nor Bozai even stand as tall as Pubs’ elbow. Link leans himself back against Pubs’ chest, lounging as he watches Bozai slowly reach up to stroke her nose. There’s a mix of fascination and apprehension on his face, and Link is simply content to watch him. He would be happy to stand and watch him for a while, but then Pubs decides that she’s done, turning and trotting towards the small stable, sending Link stumbling backwards. Link shoots her a glare as she trots away, tossing her mane with a snort as Link brushes himself off. Rolling his eyes, Link runs after her, hopping up onto her back, and guiding her towards the stable.
Bozai is left at the gate, his eyes following the blonde man, the one who he had been looking to find for the past four months. He doesn’t know exactly why he decided to come looking for Link now. He had spent so long wandering with no real purpose or direction. Like with a lot of people in Hyrule, the defeat of Calamity Ganon brought a jarring change that was unexpected by most everyone. When your life is guided by focusing on your survival, and you’re so used to an almost post-apocalyptic world, and you don’t even know it, things going back to normal can throw your entire world on its head. When the puzzle pieces that were his experiences with Link clicked together, he just felt an urge to seek him out. Now, watching the Great Champion, a tiny, unsuspecting Hylian man roughhouse with a nine foot tall horse as he refills her grain bin, and cleans out the sludge from her water trough, he can’t help but smile. Despite the twisting, gnawing anxiety in his stomach, it feels as if a tension inside him has been released. After a few minutes, Link is finished with caring for his horse, he gives her one last pat on the ribs and jogs back to the gate, vaulting it with an ease that Bozai didn’t expect. Link roughly wipes a spot of dirt off of his chin and continues walking, motioning for Bozai to follow him as he heads towards the back door to his home. After a moment of hesitation, Bozai follows him to head inside as the sun sets behind them.