Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Water.

The first thing Warriors processed after the switch was water, and it was freaking everywhere. Currents tugged at his scarf as salty cold water flooded into his boots, clothes and hair, and nose, quickly making him realize where he should be headed at the moment. Yeah, that was up, as in, out of the water.

Grandpa had always affirmed that when tossed through a portal and into the middle of any body of water, you were to head towards where the light came from. Even if it wasn’t the sun, there was a higher chance of it being fire of some sort –which, duh, needed air to burn- than if it being some sort of terrifying sea beast. Grandpa’s logic hadn’t failed him yet, and Warriors was sticking with it until it did. That, or until he dealt with the bits where Grandpa had mentioned sarcastic shadows. As a kid that had seemed odd, but as an adult with experience fighting his own dark self, he was pretty certain whatever his grandfather had said had been intended as some kind of joke; shadows were terrifying and dangerous, not snarky pranksters with a propensity for the color purple.

Where had his grandfather even gotten half of his ideas for stories? Some of them were real, obviously, they were history that kids throughout Hyrule were taught in schools all the time. The other half of them though? Warriors was still on the fence there. Had anyone else told him those stories, Wind for instance, he wouldn’t have believed them, but Grandfather was trustworthy, unlike so many other people, and while what he said had to be taken with a grain of salt –honestly, dreams becoming reality was kind of ridiculous- Grandpa was someone that Warriors would trust no matter what.

In this instance, Grandpa’s advice proved to be useful once again, as Warriors found himself sputtering and spitting out salt water as he emerged from the waves, hair hanging in his eyes in an annoying manner as he took stock of his surroundings.

Time, weighed down by his heavy armor, was just barely remaining above water, Sky not far from him huffing in exertion at the difficulty of swimming while Four hovered cautiously between the two. Twilight was holding his own quite well against the waves, which was good considering Wild was struggling with staying above the water. Wild honestly had the best stamina out of all of them, but surprisingly he couldn’t swim well. Wind, as expected was doing just fine, what was surprising was the way he was holding up Hyrule, who was floundering. Legend, Warriors was surprised to see, was barely above the water, only his head emerging from the waves, practically green in the face and looking sicker than Warriors had ever seen (and he lived with soldiers who knew bars and pubs like the backs of their hands).

“We’re in my Hyrule!” Wind declared, sweeping his gaze about, before nodding (his hands were busy with keeping himself and Hyrule afloat) towards a dark blob in the distance. “Looks like a ship is coming this way too.”

Time nodded. “Can everyone stay afloat until it gets here?”

Warriors nodded, Grandpa had made sure he could outswim many of the sailors from his time, waiting for a ship to pick them up couldn’t be too hard, right?

“No...” Sky moaned.

“No -yech.” Hyrule spat out the water he had accidentally ingested.

“I want to die.” Legend whined, actually whined as he sank further down, only his nose and eyes showing above the water as he scowled at its surface.

“Cub! You have anything on that slate of yours that could help?” Time barked, reaching out to grab Sky’s arm as the Skyloftian bobbed beneath the waves for a moment.

“One sec,” Wild stammered, still floundering. Twilight took mercy on the teen and offered him an arm for support.

“Check. I gotcha, Cub.”

Wild nodded his thanks and turned his attention to the Sheikah slate, which somehow was unaffected by the water around them. “I have two barrels.” Came the reply. “If that helps?”

“Great, we’ll stick Hyrule in one and Sky in the other.” Legend deadpanned, ears twitching in irritation.

“Or we could have the weaker swimmers hold onto them.” Time corrected, scowling at their Veteran.

Wild nodded, fingers flying across the screen of the slate as two barrels manifested in front of him, allowing Wind, Twilight and Time to all release their charges, and setting the others better at ease.

“Wind, check with your spyglass to see what sort of ship that is.” Time called over to the sailor.

“Kinda trying to float over here.” Wind called back.

“Sit on one of the barrels for a moment, the others won’t mind, right guys?” Four suggested, and was backed up by hums of affirmation from their bad swimmers. Wind nodded and obliged, sitting perfectly still as he peered through the spyglass before bouncing up and down excitedly.

“Oh boy! Guys!” Ocean blue orbs whipped around to face them as Wind beamed fit to burst. “It’s Tetra!”

“Great!” Warriors gave a shit-eating grin. “We can finally meet your girlfriend!”

“Not my girlfriend!” Came the pitched reply, much to the amusement of the others as Wind flushed bright red, ears nearly crimson with his blush.

“Sure.” Twilight drawled playfully, “And Epona eats rocks.”

“I didn’t know Epona liked them too.” Wild cocked his head. “Was she upset that I didn’t share last time?”

“Wild, what the-”

“Let’s unpack that later,” Time interrupted the expletive that was about to emerge from Legend’s mouth. “Wind, how far off are they?”

Wind peeked back through his glass. “Wind's strong,” Snorts sounded around him but he ignored them. “I’d say fifteen minutes to half an hour, provided they stay steady.”

“Hylia, they better not decide to change their course.” Legend muttered, looking greener about the gills every moment, although even if he had had gills (and wouldn’t that be something) the high collar of his tunic would have hidden them.

Fortunately for all gathered, Tetra and her crew had not only decided to remain on whatever course they had been sailing, but had also spotted the Chain and was already ready to haul them aboard when they reached them. Hyrule, Sky and Wild had been the first up, followed quickly by Time, Twilight, Four, Warriors and Wind, with Legend grousing about not trusting the sea, and demanding that everyone get up before him so he could make sure the dratted thing didn’t wash anyone away. Hyrule had smiled softly at that, whispering a faint ‘softy’ in Warriors ear at the comment, but nobody really questioned it, not even when Legend all but collapsed upon reaching the deck.

“He sick or somethin’?” Tetra cocked a brow.

“I’m dead.” Legend groaned into the deck. “Someone bloody well end me.”

“It’s not that bad.” Wind pouted.

Legend raised his head long enough to stare the sailor in the eye. “My legs are gelatin; my lungs are dust and my head is a bomb waiting to explode. I’m not being a Wars here, I’m being completely, bloody, honest.”

“What’s gelatin?”

"What do you mean, 'being a Wars'!"

“Why did he say bloody?”

Wind grinned at Tetra. “Time,” He nodded at the man in question. “Forbade swearing. He thinks it will corrupt me.” Both sailors chortled at that before Wind continued. “So, Legend uses everything else under the sun. Apparently ‘bloody’ is a term used in another country or something.”

Tetra nodded and then shot orders over her shoulder to one of the pirates. “Hoi! Nudge! Take this lily-liver below, he’s lyin’ all over the decks an’-”

“No need for that, Tetra!” Wind broke in, already moving to help Legend up. “I’ll take care of him. The crew can continue their duties, I’ll be back in a sec.”

Tetra cocked a brow, but nodded. The pirate turned to the other Links. “Right then, who here’s been on a boat before?”

Legend groaned as Wind helped hoist him to his feet, the Veteran’s legs buckling underneath of him and making him fall heavily against the smaller boy. “I have, and I- bloody well hate it.” He corrected himself halfway through as Time’s disappointed stare fell on him. Legend must not have been feeling too very bad though, because he mustered the strength to shoot some very rude signs in Time’s direction.

Tetra scowled. “Anyone else?”

Wars grinned cockily at her. “I have.”

Tetra scowled at him. “Shut up, I know you have.” She said, much to the confusion of the others.

“I know you do. I just thought you should know that the old man here has too, he’s sailed with you, if you don’t recall.” The captain grinned cheekily, watching as Tetra turned to stare at Time, who suddenly looked very awkward as he offered her a shy wave.

Tetra stared for a half of a minute before blinking, her eyes blowing wide open as she stared at Time before she settled back on her heels, hands resting on her hips. “Well whaddaya know.”

Time grinned, the others stared, and Warriors cackled.

Tetra informed them quickly of their destination. She had been looking for Wind, on his Grandmother’s behalf, and had been about to report in to the old woman. Since they now had Wind with them though, it would be a much easier return, although Wind was already bracing himself for his sister’s inevitable scolding at leaving her behind while he had ‘another adventure' without her, and his grandmother’s fussing at him for being away so long.

As the ship was in fine array, and the weather fair, there was little to no need for most of them to step up to help around the place, so Tetra allowed them to rest on the quarterdeck by the railings while the rest of the crew went about their business.

“Your Hyrule’s nice, Wind.” Hyrule commented. “The water's so nice and blue!”

Wind grinned, shrugging casually as he rested against the railings of the deck. “Yeah, I know. They say you can see right through it to the bottom in some places. Actually, there was this one time-”

“Not another one of your stories,” Wars groaned playfully, nudging the young sailor. “haven’t you already told us all of them by now?”

Wind scowled at him, and dang, he really needed to teach the kid to scowl better, because this was just freakin’ adorable! “No. ‘Sides,” He crossed his arms, pout increasing. “This one’s not about me.”

“Who is it about?” Wild asked, leaning forwards, curiosity sparking in his baby-blues.

Wind sat up, throwing his chest out proudly as he responded. “My great-grandfather! He was one of the finest sailors in all of Hyrule, you know, before it was flooded anyways.” He frowned, eyes darkening for a second before clearing up again, and the kid shot a grin at Legend, who had agreed to sit with them, if only to be as far as possible from the sound of the waves and the water itself. “Of course, I’m the best sailor now-a-days, excluding Tetra of course-” At the helm, Gonzo snorted a laugh, “-but in his time, he was the finest of the fine! He was the founder of our home on Outset too!”

“Really?” Came several curious cries, and Wind nodded.

Warriors could already recognize the look on the kid’s face as Wind jumped to his feet, as he was wont to do when storytelling, and started gesturing around emphatically. “Yeah! Back then, Hyrule had just been flooded, and Grandpop -he was named Link too,” The others groaned and rolled their eyes, which Warriors could totally agree with, and it appeared Wind did too, because he simply nodded with a tired smile before continuing. “Anyways, since like, everyone had moved up onto the mountaintops near where they already lived, they were kinda crowded and there wasn’t much space for living. So, Grandpop Link put together a little crew and set out to find places for all the different people to live!” Wind grinned over towards Legend again, for some reason. “Granny used to tell me that her pops was like a hero to the people of Hyrule at the time, not a Hero of Courage of course,” He quieted, voice lowering softly, almost meekly, which made Warriors turn to the small sailor in concern, watching the kid’s shy gaze as it continued to rest on Legend, who remained impassive the entire time. “But people really appreciated his help!” He added in a tone that almost sounded hopeful, or encouraging.

“That so.” Legend drawled. “Good for him.”

Wind quieted, casting his gaze away before standing and informing them that despite Tetra having already stated that the crew had things handled, he was going to go and check that things were all alright. Gonzo shot the boy a concerned look, but the kid only offered a smile in return before striding down the steps towards the main deck.

“What was all that about?” Four wondered aloud. And Warriors couldn’t agree more. What the heck was going on?

The remainder of the trip to Outset was rather short (because plot reasons) and by the next day, not only was Wind in a better mood than the last evening -hovering about everyone and helping aboard the ship, while also periodically checking on Legend, who had all but locked himself in the cabin Tetra had let them use- but Outset itself was only a short distance away, and by noon Tetra happily informed them that they’d be docking in plenty of time for Wild to help Granny make supper.

Legend still refused to leave the cabin.

On any other occasion, Warriors wouldn’t have bothered with it, and he still tried not to. If Legend wanted to avoid them, that was just fine with him, he didn’t have to put up with the guy being an ass! But Wind was down about the whole thing, even if he was excited to get home –Warriors couldn’t blame him, he missed his own Grandpa and sister terribly. But the kid seemed so eager to show off his world to all of them, yet Legend was his especial goal for some reason, and Warriors couldn’t wrap his head around why.

He knew Wind from before this all, the kid was a brilliant fighter during the War of Eras, and even though he was currently unsure whether their Wind had lived through that yet (time was a fickle thing and Cia was too) there were some things about the kid that just didn’t change, like how he and Time both enjoyed stealing Wars’ scarf, or gripping at its edges when they got uncomfortable or worried. Yet in the same stroke, there was also something to him since the Chain had all met that had Warriors curious; why was the kid so darn set on gaining Legend’s attention?

Warriors sat at the rail, thinking this to himself when Tetra came and rapped his skull, grinning cheekily as he yelped in response. “Oi, hair for brains captain, we’re docking! Why don’t you get that pink-haired rabbit of a companion of yours out of the cabins, we’ll head ashore as soon as we’re anchored in place.”

Warriors scoffed. “Rabbit? Please, he’s more a rat than anything.”

Tetra rolled her eyes. “Get him, Link’ll be upset if he isn’t on deck to see the island.”

Warriors shook his head, but saluted lazily. “Aye, aye, captain.”

They were docked before Legend agreed to come out, and it was only when they heard Wind’s Granny already on deck and fussing over him that Warriors was finally able to get Legend to leave the cabin. It was odd, he thought as he followed Legend out onto the deck. The guy walked like he had sailed his whole life, yet the entire time he clutched the railing like a vice, sweat trickling down to his collar and knuckles white. Clearly, based on his shouted complaints last night during a bit of rough sailing, he knew more than most people about ships, enough that Tetra’s return of nautical jargon hadn’t even phased him when she had yelled at them after the storm was over. In fact, Legend had just yelled back with something equally confusing that might not have been entirely in Hylian if Warriors own ears were to be believed.

Yet his fellow hero was clearly afraid of the sea. Why? If he knew it so well, why would he fear it? Legend didn’t fear anything –at least, as far as they knew- and had faced Ganon enough times to be annoyed with the monster rather than fear him, and fought enough of the other sorts of monsters that he only complained at dealing with them again. But the ocean? The guy was outright quivering in his blasted feathery boots!

“There you are!” Wind shouted, bouncing in place as they emerged. “Granny’s gone on ahead with Wild to start supper, and Aryll’s gonna take us around the island!”

“Great.” Legend deadpanned. “Just get me off of this blasted ship.”

Tetra scowled, but at Wind’s desperate glance, didn’t say anything, only glaring at Legend in a way that made Warriors glad that looks couldn’t kill. He didn’t like the vet, but the other Links knowledge was valuable, and he had items enough to get them out of nearly everything.

Aryll grinned over at them, before freezing for a moment and darting a glance at Wind, who just shrugged. Warriors had half a mind to ask them what was going on, but since it was the only part of his mind that he actually had, he wasn’t able to act on that thought before Wind’s little sister was already leading them down the gangplank and towards the shoreline.

The entire tour of the island, and the resulting fun they had on the beach, would have been much nicer if Aryll hadn’t spent the entire time staring at Legend, and if Legend hadn’t spent equally as much time avoiding the coast, Aryll, or anything else that the others found themselves doing. Warriors eventually gave up on trying to figure out what was going on, honestly, Legend was just being saltier than the whole bloody sea stretched out before them, what was new about that?

But when they all began heading back towards the village for supper, Warriors couldn’t help but be surprised to see the virtual colony of seagulls that had gathered around Legend, who was calmly petting one of them with a distant look on his face that almost resembled the one Wild wore when he was lost in a memory. Legend snapped out of it soon enough, scowling at all of them as their talk and laughter startled most of the birds away, but one of the gulls stayed, perched happily in his lap, and only moved to sit on top if his head, its beak tugging gently at his pink hair, rearranging it gently as he followed the rest of them towards Wind’s house.

It was when they stepped inside the house that it actually happened.

Wind’s Granny had turned to greet them as Hyrule and Wind had bust in through the door, the older ones following while Legend hung back. She smiled at the boys’ antics, sharing a glance with Time as he attempted to corral all of them inside. But when Legend followed after them, a seagull still perched on his head, a scowl still firmly on his face, and pink hair sweeping into his eyes, the old woman froze, the bowls she had been about to set on the table falling from her hands and clattering against the wooden floor.

Everything froze.

Legend stared, startled, in the old woman’s direction, the seagull screeching painfully load at the crashing of the bowls before fluttering away. Granny’s lips twitched, almost imperceptibly, before the woman rushed –much faster than Warriors would have guessed someone of her age could- over to Legend, her small hands coming up to cup his face, dark fingers gently brushing away pink strands of hair as tears began welling up in her eyes. “Well, I’ll be.” Came the strangled sound of her voice.

Legend, to his credit, didn’t snap at the woman, but instead stared at her for a second before looking past her to cast a questioning gaze at the others. Hands twitching at his sides as he silently asked a question involving a word Wind had forbidden them to say around his sister.

“It’s really you.” Granny sobbed softly, making Legend clearly uncomfortable as he carefully pulled away, hands coming up to pull the woman's away gently, as if she might break if he wasn’t careful.

“I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re-”

Granny froze for a second before giving a tearful giggle. “Of course! Link said you were all from across time! I suppose Hyrule hasn’t even flooded for you yet.”

Legend’s violate eyes were bordering on indigo as he gritted his teeth. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“The flood of course, you come to help then.”

Legend scowled. “So help me, if Hylia sends me on another adventure after this one, we’re gonna have some serious problems.”

Granny paused. “Another adventure?”

Legend rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I’ve been on six already, seven if you count this hootenanny.”

Aryll and Granny both glanced from Legend to Wind.

“Alright, what the heck is going on?” Warriors caved, he was tired of asking himself this, he could ask for answers, right?

“You just,” Granny looked back at legend. “You look so much like him.”

“Like who?” The hero in question questioned.

“My father.” Granny answered. “Oh, a bit younger, to be sure, but,” The woman didn’t even react to the various stages of shock that the others had been shot into. “The pink hair? Violet eyes? Why, they even turn stormy when you get irritated!”

“Your what?” Hyrule squeaked.

“Wind, explain.” Legend demanded.

Wind did not explain. Not immediately anyways. But after supper, Granny had all of them sit down in the living room (it was a tight fit) and she produced some old snapshots from a photo album she had. Flipping through them, she stopped on a certain page and turned it round for them all to see. Staring back at them through time and space, was a picture of what looked very much like an older Legend, pink hair streaked with silver, and hanging a bit shaggier, but the smirk, the eyes, heck the way the man held himself, boasted of the same confidence and swagger that Legend himself carried.

“Good grief.” Legend breathed, fingers tracing the photograph.

“At least you age well.” Sky offered.

“But this doesn’t make sense!” Legend’s free hand came up to grip on his hair. “Hyrule doesn’t get flooded in my time! It stays dry and safe until Ganon comes back and then Hyrule has to deal with him! It doesn’t get flooded!”

The others exchanged a glance.

“And even if the blasted thing did get flooded, I, of all people, would not be the one to recolonize everything by sailing! Nayru and her father can take care of that for all I care!”

“Nayru, as in, the goddess?”

“Why not?” Wind questioned.

“Because I hate the ocean!” Legend exploded (but not literally). “Besides!” Legend stood to his feet, dropping the book in the process. “The timelines were split! The hero before me died fighting Ganon! The hero before Wind is Time! And he’s not dead!”

“Yet.” Four added unhelpfully, earning a glare from Twilight, who was beginning to look a bit sick himself.

“Yet, at all! He defeated Ganon! The Fallen Hero never did! Wind talks about a hero defeating Ganon, and it sure wasn’t me!” Legend huffed.

Warriors froze. “Wait.” The others fell silent and gazed at him, the captain’s gaze remaining fixed ahead, brows furrowed as he spoke. “The timeline was split.”

“We know that!” Legend was clearly coming very close to breaking time and Wind’s no swearing rule.

“But it only split into two.” Warriors continued. “The time that Time left behind, and the one where he lived as a kid.” Time nodded. “But what if, what if the hero of your time, the hero who failed, was also Time?”

“What?”

“What if the fallen hero is an alternate version of time. What if, in another... dimension or something, Time failed?”

Legend scowled, arms crossing over his chest. “Please don’t drag alternate realities into this, they’re enough pain in my ass as is.”

Warriors rolled his eyes. “But what if it is an alternate reality? You only have record of three other heroes, the fallen one, Four, and Sky.”

“And the first one.”

“The first one?” Hyrule murmured.

“Whatever,” Warriors shook his head. “We know the timelines split at Time. What if, in another reality, he failed, and that’s the reality where you come from?”

“Your point being?” Legend huffed, cocking a brow.

“My point being that in alternate universes, it’s the same people, just different occurrences. What if, you were born in the other universes that Time didn’t fail? And what if that version of you, went on to become Wind’s grand-grandfath-” Warriors cut himself off and stared. “Holy %$@# your alternate self is Wind’s great-grandfather!”

The others froze, even Time didn’t bother to correct Wars on his language.

“Is that why you’ve been following me around?” Legend turned to Wind.

The sailor shrugged. “What was I supposed to do? I meet a guy who looks like my relative and shares his name, and I’m not supposed to want to spend time with him? ‘Sides,” He flushed slightly. “You’re cool.”

Legend stared at the kid for half of a minute before bursting out laughing, actually laughing. “Hylia! This is a mess isn’t it!” He chuckled.

“Does that make Legend the real Grandpa of the group?” Four asked, glancing at the others.

“No!” Legend growled.

“Yes!” Wind cheered.

Granny laughed. “Well, if that’s the case, I apologize for making such a scene.”

Legend shook his head, surprising the others with the gentle smile he offered the old woman. “Don’t sweat it. If I had seen someone I thought I knew, I would have done the same thing, I can’t blame you.”

“Besides,” Wild added. “If Warriors is right, he technically is your dad, just from a different universe. It’s still the same guy though.”

Legend paled. “Yeah, no. I’m not being anyone’s dad.”

“Nope, just my great-grandpop!” Wind grinned.

Legend scowled at the kid. “No.”

“Sorry, Pops, you can’t escape it now!” Wind giggled, jumping forwards and tackling Legend in a hug, causing the older Link to squawk in surprise as the small body hit him, followed quickly by Aryll, the others laughing uproariously as he scrambled to escape them, only to be held tighter.

“Hylia, why!” Legend groaned.

“Come on,” Wind tossed him a gremlin grin as he squeezed tighter. “You know you love us.”

Legend scoffed, but no one missed the way he squeezed back.

Chapter Text

  Of course, they couldn’t stay on Outset forever.   

  The pattern was set: arrive, find the threat, eliminate the threat, and move on to the next world. Once upon a time,  Four  had suggested looking for clues about why they were being moved around, but after Sky and Wild had assured them that Hylia would just lead them to where they needed to go (and wasn’t it weird that those two could talk so easily with the goddess?) they had stopped bothering. Finding the infected monsters was their job, destroying them before they made too much trouble was their main  prerogative , and after that, Hylia would whisk them off to where they were needed next, apparently having no interest in allowing them to  strategize .  

  Legend had said it was because they were just pawns in Hylia’s big chess game, just pieces that would move and take out enemies, they didn’t need to have minds as far as the goddess was concerned. He further emphasized this point by pointing to Wars, and then to Wild and Hyrule, the trouble duo covered in thorns from a mini-adventure of the side of the beaten path.  

  Honestly though, Legend was right, and man did it pain Warriors to even think that, much less say it out loud, but it looked like it pained Sky just as much, if not even more than him to admit that Hylia didn’t really care about their thoughts or feelings.  

  Although, to be fair, she was a bit better about giving them time to heal or restock between shifts after Sky started making a point of visiting the statues of the goddess that were set around any Hyrule they found themselves in, and even when there weren’t any nearby, he did make a point of playing his harp more often, especially at night, which came with the double benefit of everyone sleeping better and Hylia being nicer to everyone.  

  Wind had once commented in awe that Sky could not only defeat Demise, but that the other boy could also calm the most ruthless goddess of them all enough that their suffering was lessened somewhat. The kid had once asked if Sky was perhaps a deity himself, after all, who else could calm such a high power, or defeat the world’s greatest threat, and Warriors was beginning to wonder about that too...  

  As was, after defeating an infected big octo, which, to everyone’s surprise, had thirteen  eyes .  Wind had warned them before battle that the number of eyes determined how dangerous or powerful it was, and if Warriors recalled correctly, his grandpa had mentioned the monsters once too, but Grandpa had once said that big  octos  generally don’t have more than twelve eyes. Warriors had asked if maybe the infection was the reason for the extra eyeball, to which the others had looked pensive, only for Wild, who was currently soaked to the skin after jumping in the air in order to shoot the monster and falling in the water afterwards, to unhelpfully state that in his Hyrule, Malice could give anything additional eyeballs. Their feral teammate had showed them a picture on his slate, and the others found themselves becoming even more concerned for the state of the newest  hero's  world.  

  But that had been a week ago, back when they were still in Wind’s Hyrule.  

  Now, the heroes were camped about in the shade of one of the giant goddess statues, most of them entirely too tired from a day spent trekking through what was apparently Legend’s Hyrule. The Vet had informed them that they were a fair distance from the capitol, and as such, would be on the road for a few days at least before reaching the castle. As for towns, the nearest one was a few hours away, and as the sun began to set, they had all agreed that camping where Sky could serenade Hylia was better than camping in the middle of the woods and leaving the goddess statue to be alone and grumpy without her boyfriend while they braved the monsters that would undoubtedly try and approach them. And when Wild had added that monsters tended to avoid goddess statues, the  decision  was practically made for them.  

  Currently, Wind was regaling them of yet another one of his adventures, the rest of the chain resting about and tending to their things or in Four’s case, Wild’s things, while they listened in. Their cook was busy preparing dinner, something with fish that he had learned from Wind’s Granny, and Time and Twilight were quietly conversing about their plans. Their leader may have asked Legend to join them, since it was his Hyrule and all, but their resident Veteran was currently  sandwiched  between his two  successors , Hyrule and Wind.  

  Even though they had come to understand that Legend was not, in fact, Wind’s Great-grandfather, the other hero was an alternate version of the man, and thus Wind still clung to him with the same enthusiasm that he had when talking about the rest of his family. It was kind of cute actually, not that Warriors would ever say so (he valued his life, thank you very much!). As a result, Wind seemed to seek Legend’s approval quite a bit, or at least attempt to impress the older hero. He needn’t have bothered, anyone with one-eye or half a brain could plainly see that Legend was proud of the kid, even if he never expressly said so (had it been any less obvious than Time and Warriors might have been the only ones besides Wind who weren’t in the know).  

  Currently, Wind was talking about finding some sort of land, eyes glimmering excitedly in the firelight as they  dances  over his captive audience. “Of course, sharks or no sharks, Tetra and I would be stopped at nothing to find a new land to call our own, so we kept on sailing, eyes set ahead and about, and archers ready should any trouble arise. Of course, if you shoot one shark, the others will turn their attention to them, and from there, it broke out into a proper bloodbath! The sides of the ship were painted red for weeks, I’ll tell you that!”  

  Hyrule shivered, tucking himself further into Legend’s side, despite the irritated huff that the Vet gave. Honestly, Legend was ridiculously soft, he had his arm around the younger hero’s shoulders and everything! No one would believe for even half of a second that he didn’t want Hyrule there.  

  “ So,  there we are, racing along at quite the clip, when up ahead, I was up in the nest at the time, I see this cool green shimmer, something long and flat out far ahead of us, and what do you suppose it was?”  

  Warriors started, turning from the sword in his lap to stare at the younger hero, eyes blown open wide, his lips parting to whisper the next words of the story, one that he had heard a million times before, although in a different voice. “ Hyrule ...” He breathed.  

  “Hyrule!” Wind cheered at the same instant. “Or new Hyrule anyway. Tetra and I are still working on building it up, but we’re getting there. Folks from some of the islands have already started moving over, and we’ve got a small port village all set up already! Next time we’re in my world, we’ll have to see if we can go there.”  

  “You’re helping found a kingdom?” Four questioned curiously.  

  Wind nodded. “Yep! That’s why Tetra was so pissed with me for disappearing like I did, I have responsibilities after all! And when I disappeared, I left that all on her. You might forget, since she’s a pirate and all, but she  is  my Princess Zelda.”  

  “ So,  you’re founding a kingdom, pretty impressive.” Four nodded approvingly Legend grunting his agreement as Hyrule snuggled closer, the younger hero already starting to fade into sleep.  

  “How are you going about that exactly, are you-” Sky’s voice began to cut out as Warriors zeroed in to stare at Wind.  

  Wind tousled curls, sun bleached to a lighter sheen than most of them, but with a stark yellow peeking through at the roots, almost the same shade as Warriors’ own hair. The kid’s ocean blue eyes sparkled with the faintest hint of green and silver, familiar in an uncanny way to the knight. Wind was a kid, sure, but one could already see the signs that he would be growing into a giant of a man in future, his wiry arms already showing some definition and his shoulders coming to a broader set on his short frame. He was too young to grow a beard yet, but Warriors could already see what the kid would look like with one.   

   A thick curly bush of a beard that he remembered getting tiny fingers tangled in as a kid, playful ocean eyes staring down at him as a deep growly voice that showed through when Wind was mad, now much deeper, much more growly, rumbled laughter, his grandfather’s barrel chest vibrating soothingly against his own small body as breath that smelt of beer and fish, with the distinct hint of tobacco and salt hanging around the beard itself, wheezed out from the older man’s lungs. “Watch yourself there, little Warrior, you might have adventures set in  yer  future, but you’ll ne’er find ‘ em  if you lose yourself in there.”  

  “Why’s your beard so big Pops?”   

  The air shook with the familiar bass boom of Grandpa’s laughter. “’Cause your grandma loved it too much to let me cut it, may she rest in peace.”  

  Link bowed his head respectfully, keeping silent for a moment as he shot up a short prayer to the goddesses.   

  “Now there was an adventurer.” Grandpa sighed. “Did I ever tell ya that she and I founded Hyrule?”  

  “Yes, Pops, several times.” Link giggled.  

  Grandpa’s eyes twinkled playfully, oh so familiar and ocean blue, green and silver twinkling in their depths. “Do you want to hear it again?”  

  “Yes!”  Linkle  shouted, rushing over and throwing herself across Grandpa’s lap. “Tell us about Granny and the sharks!”  

  “Well,” Grandpa took a draught of his tankard, pausing to savor it for a moment before setting it down and scooping his second grandchild up to sit on his knee. “Well, we had been sailing for some time at that point, looking just about  e’erywhere  for a place to call our own, a place for a kingdom worthy of the legends passed down to us through the ages. Mind you, this was before the Time Guardian brought time together again, so there was less folks around to help us out.”  

  Two blonde heads, curly in the same way Grandpa’s was, but blonder, lacking the stains of time or fade of the sun, bobbed in understanding, prompting him to continue.  

  “And what do ya suppose we came upon on the tenth day after leaving land?”  

  “Sharks!” Came the chorused reply, as two small bodies shot up excitedly.  

  “Sharks,” Grandpa agreed. “Of course, sharks or no sharks,  yer  grandma and I would be stopped by nothin’ and no one in our quest to found Hyrule. So, we kept on going, eyes ahead and about, archers standing at the ready should one of the beasties come too close. And of course, one of ‘em did.”  

  Both children froze, wide eyed as their grandpa stopped to stare at them, eyes still twinkling mischievously, but face drawn in a mock serious expression, one Link had never been able to recognize as such until he was much older, for now, it was all part of the story, Grandpa’s serious expression and sharp eyes boring into them. “Of course, if  ya  shoot a shark, their blood attracts other sharks, and before you know it, there’s a bloodbath taken place beneath  yer ’ hull.” He chuckled at their expressions of awe. “The sides of  yer  granny’s ship were dyed a proper crimson after that, I’ll tell you!  

  “Anyways, there we are, free of the sharks and racing along at quite the clip, when up ahead, I sees from the crows-nest this long, cool green shimmer, something long and flat, and far out ahead of us, and what do you suppose it was?”  

  “ Hyrule..” The two children breathed in awe.  

  “Hyrule.” Grandpa nodded wisely.  

   Warriors stared, open-mouthed at their youngest. There was just no way, no way on Din’s green earth that any two people could tell that story the same way, not so far separated in time as they ought to have been, but suddenly things were clicking into place; grandpa’s advice about portals, about trusting other people, the way the man insisted they learn to swim, to look after themselves, to shoot a bow, sail a ship and clean a wound. He knew, the old man had known since he was a kid what sort of things could happen. His Pops had traveled the width and breadth of the great sea to find a land for Hyrule’s displaced people, a home to call their own. He knew the dangers of the world.   

  He would have known the minute he saw the  triforce  symbol on his grandson’s hand, just what it was that the kid would go through. Grandpa wasn’t chosen by the goddesses, never had been, but he had forced himself into the role of hero, if only for the sake of the people he loved, and he must have known at the time that fate wouldn’t be kind to his descendant, and so had prepared him to the best of his ability. Getting him trained in everything from engineering to sailing, from sword fighting to healing, preparing him for the inevitable, and doing so in a way that made it fun, telling stories all the while of things done with the first Queen of new Hyrule, their Grandma. He had insured that Link, Warriors, would be close with his cousin, Zelda, made sure he knew their legacy and the importance of protecting the young princess. Made sure Wars knew to watch out for traitors, from the likes of Chancelor Cole to common soldiers.  

  Warriors wondered briefly if his grandfather had made the connection between the older  boy  that he had fought alongside on his last adventure and the kid he helped raise.  

  The poor captain was knocked from his musings by Legend and Wind grousing at each other, the reason wasn’t clear to him, his mind had been so lost in itself that he had failed to pay attention to his surroundings and the current conversation, but a few minutes of listening offered the hint that they were talking, shouting really, about something related to the ocean.  

  “It’s a nightmare!”  

  “It’s a wonderful place! It’s my home.”  

  “Yeah, and Hyrule’s Hyrule is his home, doesn’t make it a good place.” Legend shot a glance downwards at the younger hero, who at this point was fast asleep against the Veteran’s shoulder.  

  “ Well   excuuuuse  me, grandpa!” Wind huffed. “I’m quite fond of my ‘nightmare’ of a Hyrule. I think its perfect.”  

  “Nothing’s perfect.” Legend rolled his eyes.  

  “Water is.”  

  “My water is toxic.” Hyrule murmured sleepily, drawing the concerned gazes of several of the other Links.  

  Warriors chose that moment to return to his mental gymnastics.  

  Of course! How could he have forgotten! Wind and Legend were related! Which meant- the captain froze, gaze traveling from Wind’s adorable pout (that was his grandfather!) to Legend’s exasperated scowl.  

  ...if Legend was Wind’s great-grandfather, that made him Warriors' great-great-great-grandfather!  

  Warriors sighed and rubbed at his temples. What he wouldn’t give for a keg of beer right now.  

Chapter Text

  There were very few things that scared Time.  Deadhands  and wall-masters were one, spiders were the second, his own shadow? He was rather on the fence on that one, fighting against so many of them in the War of Eras helped to relive some of the fear of them (though by all rights he should be even more terrified). Majora was another of those things, but it wasn’t as bad, since he had defeated the monster years ago with the help of the Fierce Deity.  

  The Deity itself wasn’t frightening, at least not to him. The form, the spirit, it was familiar and foreboding and he respected the Deity, but it didn’t scare him.  

  But one of the things that  encompassed  his fears, the one thing that terrified him most, was his past.  

  Cities and fields burned and crumbling, falling apart and in ruins, with only a pitiful few having managed to survive through Ganondorf’s horrible reign. Despite the frustration that had come from being sent back to the body of a child, to a world where there was still so much to save, so much to do, so much suffering left to endure, he was glad he had been able to leave the horrible world of Ganondorf’s reign behind.  

  But after Wind’s revelation, after Wars’ own theory regarding the strange connection between Wind and their local Veteran, Time couldn’t help but feel that terrible sense of guilt and surge of fear rumbling in his gut. Even as they traveled across Legend’s Hyrule, through forests towards what Legend claimed to be the direction of Castle Town, Time found himself lost in his own thoughts, his own worries.  

  He had thought he had left those other times, those other worlds, behind, so, so far behind. He thought that with his actions upon being sent back that he had ended them all, that they had ceased to be when Ganondorf had been defeated. If the evil king was stopped before he could cause the damage, then it hadn’t happened. Or so he had thought.  

  How many other times had been affected by his careless toying with the fabric of reality, how far had Nayru’s fingers slipped in trying to keep up with him, Hylia’s chosen slave, only to accidentally leave the smallest of holes in order to stop another from forming? The weave of time was delicate, and when frayed it would cause great danger to the world, as he and Warriors had both seen with Cia and Lana, but he had never imaged that such a  simple   Hylian  as himself could damage it so much that whole other worlds would form from it.   

  And as Legend left them in Castle Town, strictly forbidding anyone to accompany him in seeing his princess -the Veteran proclaiming them all in too poor a state for the royal court, and pointedly staring at Wild and Twilight as he mentioned a lack of manners- Time found himself shivering despite the weight of his armor and the warm rays of the sun as he realized that for all that time hopping, there were universes where he hadn’t gone home, hadn’t just abandoned them. Legend spoke of a Fallen Hero, and while no one else seemed to have made the connections, the eldest Link Knew with a capitol ‘k’ that he and that hero were one and the same.  

  In another world, he had died facing Ganondorf. In another world, a Legend, much younger than the one they knew, (although how young he wasn’t sure) had been forced to clean up the mess left for him by the Hero of Time, a hero whose name was known, but spoken of with bitterness by the people of this Hyrule, a soldier, a pawn of Hylia, who had failed in his divine quest, and left thousands to suffer for his actions.  

  “Hey!” Wind’s eager shout broke the eldest of the Chain out of his musings as the youngster bounced on the balls of his feet. “You know how most of us know nothing about Legend?”  

  The others, minus Hyrule and Time, nodded slowly. “Yeah,” Smithy answered slowly.   

  “What are you thinking, Wind?” Sky asked.  

  “We’re in Legend’s time, and he isn’t here with us! What’s to stop us from asking the locals about him?” At the dubious expressions of the others Wind rolled his eyes. “Seriously guys, if it’s something even the village people know, there’s no harm in us knowing it too! It’s literally public  knowledge !”  

  On any other occasion, Warriors would have joined in, a glint in his eyes and a smirk on his face as he urged the others to help dig up dirt on their Vet, all his charm and charisma put to its fullest extent in order to sway even Twilight. To everyone’s surprise though, he stopped to consider it first, staring towards the castle before nodding slowly. “It really wouldn’t hurt. After all, Legend doesn’t mind other people knowing,  I’m  sure he wouldn’t mind us knowing.”  

  “And this way he doesn’t get annoyed with us asking questions!” Four added, a smile of his own glinting across his face, eyes flickering red for a moment that left Time smiling despite his confusion at Warriors’ uncharacteristic hesitance.  

  “ Whoo !” Wind pumped his fists and traded a grin with Wild. “Let’s go dig up some dirt on our-” The youngster corrected himself as Time leveled the two youngest with a stare. “Let’s go learn more about my great-grandfather from another dimension!”  

  Warriors and Time both winced. “Do you really have to call him that?” Wars asked.  

  Wind smirked. “Yes, he hates it. Come on!” He grabbed at the captain’s arm. “Let’s go! Legend will only be at the castle for so long so we have to ask around while we still can!”  

  Luckily for Wind, the people of Legend’s Hyrule were only too happy to talk about their local hero, although not all of them spoke favorably.  

-  

  “Oh! Link? Yes, he was a sweet little thing as a kid, then he got it in his head he was some sort of hero.” The woman shook her head with annoyance. “No one believed him of course, but after he actually did save Princess Zelda from that horrible painted prison, well- no one could disbelieve him then.”  

-  

  “Link? Oh yes! Fine young lad, used to be apprenticed to a local black-smith. Decent with a hammer, I can tell you that! I bought this dagger of him early on, look at the craftsmanship!”  

  Four’s fingers were twitching as he took the blade, but Wind rolled his eyes and dragged the others away, leaving the Smithy to marvel at yet another of Legend’s little secrets, but not before they heard him murmur something that sounded suspiciously like. “He can make this but he doesn’t know not to freeze a newly forged sword?”  

-  

  “Ah, yes, the little sewer rat.” Wind giggled as the crone shook her head, Wars stifling a smile as well. “He’s been around, don’t bother keeping track of where he is all the time though. If you need him, it’s best to ask up at the castle, they seem to always have a good idea where the little idiot is off too.”  

-  

  “I sold him a boat once...” A sailor murmured thoughtfully, making Wind bounce up and down excitedly. “He disappeared after that. Haven’t heard of him since. Always wondered if he ever came back. He was a good kid, right helpful and pleasant to be around, I wonder what’s become of him over the years? He saved Hyrule you know! A regular hero!”  

-  

  “Ah yes! A true inspiration to us all! Why, he’s half the reason I’m still in business!” A spry little tailor chirped at them, fingers flying over fabric. “Between his own purchases and the lovely fabrics and patterns that he’s leant me, I’ve managed to attract dozens of new customers! No one else in all of Castle Town can sell you  Hytopian  fashions, but I can! Care to have a look?”  

-  

  But the real kicker, and by kicker, Time meant that he felt like he had just been punched in the gut, was a little fact shared by the wife of the captain of the guard.  

  “Oh yes, fine young lad! But he’s of the blood of the Knights of Hyrule, so it’s to be expected!”  

  “Le- Link is a knight?” Warriors questioned curiously.  

  The woman shook her head, laughing. “Oh no dear! The boy hates the very idea of it! Especially after his trouble with my husband in the past! I mean the Knights of Hyrule! The blood descendants of the Fallen Hero!”  

  And there was that kick to the gut.  

  Time wasn’t the only one who felt it either based on the expressions on the older boys’ faces, although Wind, Wild and Hyrule seemed oblivious as they listened while the woman kept going on.  

  “They say that before his defeat, the hero was courting a farm-girl of some sort, and after his death, what should happen but that a little one looking just like the hero himself should be born! Of course, he wasn’t a hero himself, but he went on to defend the kingdom as best he could, and his children after! Queen Zelda, the one from that time mind, loves, not the current Queen, gave their family the title of the Knights of Hyrule, and they protected the royal family for generations! Sme say that a few even ended up marrying princesses!”  

  Hyrule grinned.  

  “But of course,” The woman frowned. “No one’s quite sure about Link’s own parents, all that’s known is that that Uncle of his was one of the Knights, so..” She shrugged. “Fitting, I suppose, that the failures of one hero should pass to his descendant to fix, an inheritance if you will. Although,” She leaned forwards conspiratorially. “I’d say that was a bit too big of a burden to go casting on a seven-year-olds shoulders.”  

  And there was the second boot.  

  The woman had  continued  to talk, but Time had forced himself away, unable to keep listening.  

  His mind was spinning. Legend was a descendant of the Fallen Hero! Time himself from another universe, one where his relationship with Malon....  

  The eldest Link paled.  

  Malon.  

  Malon and he had had a kid, in another universe, and if Wind and Legend were to be used as an example, that made Legend himself equal with Twilight, made them practically brothers!  

  Twi and Wind had been surprised to find that their times were living through similar years, being separate only by a hundred or so years and the gaping hole that was Time’s own mistakes. So, if in another world, Legend would have been Wind’s great-grandfather, and in his own time, Time was Twilights  great -something-grandfather,  then ....  

  Malon was going to kill him!  

  He wouldn’t lie, he had fallen for the woman far before he had married her. Far longer before than she would ever know, would ever live. Before the War of Eras, before Termina and  its  nearly eternal time-loop, before being returned to his child form, back when he was saving the world, the first time, as an adult, he had fallen for the fiery farmgirl.  

  There was a reason he had been hesitant to connect with her again upon returning. What he and Malon had had, before he was sent back, before he faced Ganondorf, it was beautiful. Having it ripped away, having been sent back and left alone, where no one knew or remembered him, where Malon didn’t remember him, it had hurt. He had turned cold, tried to avoid her, tried to ignore the aching of his heart at realizing that even if Malon was Malon, and never changed no matter what time or dimension or universe he traveled too, she could still be torn away.  

  It had taken that same stubborn spirit that he fell for, not once but twice, to knock him upside the head and make him think clearly again. Malon, his wonderful Malon, had helped him process the horrible things that had happened, and acted as his anchor when it seemed it might be swept away again, with just the softest of notes from the ocarina.  

  He had told her, before their wedding, about how it had been, about how he had loved her once before.   

  Malon had smiled softly, and asked if it was maybe as good now? And even though words had failed him then, he hoped she knew what he meant; that he loved her even more now, and was so, so very glad that he could love her properly this time, without a demented pig breathing down his back the entire time. Malon had joked that it must be a universal constant, that their love was something so beautiful that even Hylia couldn’t break it, that Nayru couldn’t change it, even across the weave of time and space. He had warned her not to tempt their divine high-asses, but it looks as if there was no need.  

  Legend, with his hair that peaked reddish at the roots, despite being mostly blonde when they first met, whose pink hair didn’t seem to be growing out who’s eyes, when not slitted in contempt, were just as round and maybe once as bright as Malon’s own. Ann Wind, Wind who came after Legend in one universe -and if it was true in one universe, what was to stop it from being true across them  all?-  whose hair bounced with the same curls that Time was used to getting a face-full of in the mornings, whose eyes glimmered ever so faintly green, who was strong as an ox, despite his short stature. These boys, these boys who had suffered so much, because of Time’s own failures, were just like Twilight.  

  Malon was going to be delighted, and Time might be too.  

  Later.  

  He might like a drink first.  

  Yes, Lon  Lon  milk sounded excellent! And if, for pities sakes, Legend was their descendant, then why shouldn’t Lon  Lon  ranch still be around to give the ever so relieving Lon  Lon  milk that Time desperately needed? The eldest Link dragged himself towards a nearby bar, head pounding as he pinched his brows.  

  Out of the corner of his eye, he could have sworn he saw Warriors’ scarf flitter in the doorway as another figure stepped inside ahead of him.  

Chapter Text

  Hyrule had been through a lot. 

  Not the person of course, although the poor kid had been through more than anyone should have to. 

  But Hyrule the kingdom had been through the wringer, as was made apparent by the conversation that night around the fire. Half the Links spoke of countries in ruin, or still being rebuilt, and in Sky’s case, the kingdom was still being created! It was nothing more than a small village on the surface the last time the Chosen Hero had seen it, and while their journey had been going for some time, everyone doubted that it would have already flourished into the kingdoms they had seen in their travels in the absence of the time’s hero. 

  So, it was natural that, as everyone was rather suspiciously avoiding the topics of family, or Legend himself -and wasn’t that weird, they always pestered him endlessly for information about his journeys (well, Wind and Warriors anyway)- that the conversation turned to the process of building a kingdom. Naturally, it started with someone feeling homesick, and in this case, that was Sky. 

  “I wonder how my Zelda is doing.” Sighed the lovesick sky child. 

  Hums of agreement sounded around the fire, Legend himself with-holding any sounds of agreement. He had seen his sister two days ago, and they honestly didn’t see each other often anyways. That didn’t mean he didn’t sort of miss her, but it was an ache he had grown accustomed too throughout his journeys. 

  “New Skyloft- er- Hyrule was still being built when I left,” The Chosen Hero continued. “We only had the frames up for most of the houses...” 

  Hyrule and Wild both nodded, each affirming that their own departure had left behind houses and villages still being rebuilt from the calamitous events that had wrecked their homes.  

  “My Zeldas are still trying to reinstate the army, I was supposed to be helping, but...” Hyrule shrugged. 

  Wild nudged the smaller boy’s shoulder with his own. “You’re not the only one. Flora and I are still trying to reinstate the monarchy, and as I’m the closest thing we have to an army, I feel really bad leaving it all behind, you know? I mean, Flora can defend herself, but I’d rather her not have to, after everything.” He left the ending vague. None of the Links were entirely sure what had happened in his Hyrule, and Wild refused to elaborate on most occasions, but based on what he had actually mentioned, it sounded like he and Hyrule were in the same boat when it came to horrible things happening to their worlds, and wasn’t that just wonderful for Legend’s confidence! 

  Hyrule, his successor, had to deal with one of the biggest messes out of all of them, and while they weren’t certain who exactly was Wild’s successor, or even where he fell on their convoluted timeline, it had to suck for whomever it was that they had left the kid to pick up such a terrible mess. Legend knew that feeling, that guilt, and he was currently trying to harness it and shove it down into the darkest depths of his mind, which was easy enough, as they spread pretty far. 

  “You all just miss your Zeldas, huh?” Wind used, staring at the others, who all, unsurprisingly, nodded. 

  “Artimis is capable, but I worry sometimes. She was missing through most of the war, and even though we found out later that she had been hiding in our midst the whole time, it still rubs me wrong not knowing where she is at the moment.” Wars murmured. 

  “Someone’s got a crush!” Wind cooed. And Legend couldn’t hold back a smirk at the retaliation from his other-universe descendant in revenge for Warriors' own relentless teasing when they had been in the Sailor’s Hyrule. But Warriors didn’t flush or preen, but instead grimaced, much to the surprise of the others.  

  “Heck no! That’s gross!” And wasn’t that juvenile of him? 

  “You sound like a kid fussing about cooties.” Legend drawled as he leaned back in his seat.  

  “Artemis is- no! I’m not- Ugh!” Warriors shuddered. “The mere thought is terrible.” 

  “I thought you liked her?” Hyrule questioned. 

  “I do! Just, not like that! She’s like, my cousin a few times removed, so that's-” 

  Everyone made a face, including Legend himself. That would be like the others thinking he had feelings for Fable, except not as bad, because at least Wars and his Zelda had different parents! 

  “What about you, Legend?” Hyrule asked, eyes glinting in the firelight. “What are things like between you and your Zelda?” 

  Legend scowled at his successor. “I’m not talking about Fable.” 

  “Come on!” Came the voices of the youngest three, and there was that nagging at Legend that he had mentioned earlier. So, they weren’t completely out of it, good to know. Not that he had been worried, he just didn’t trust them not to be up to no good, that’s all. Totally no feelings for this group of idiots, not even when Hyrule’s great doe eyes stared up at him, or Wind snuggled up against him, or Wild would sit and absently mess with the pink hair that apparently was as soft as silk or –Hylia forbid- rabbit's fur. Nope! No feelings! The weird tugging in his chest was just his internal organs having a fit at walking so much, that was all. 

  “Pleeeeeease!” 

  And dang it, those puppy eyes, especially from all three at once, was hard to look at! But Legend wasn’t caving! He was stronger than anyone else here and he wouldn’t bow to cute looks and adorable- dang it! 

  Violet eyes glared down at the younger three, but they wavered ever so slightly before Legend turned back to his own bag, shrugging off their adorable faces and the weird thing it was doing to his chest while he pretended to search in his bag. “Pretty sure I have a gag in here somewhere.” He threatened. 

  “I’ll talk about my Zelda!” Sky offered, causing laughter and eye rolls all around the camp. 

  “We know you will, Sky.” 

  “I really love her.” The sky child sighed. 

  “We know, Sky.” 

  “She’s amazing!” 

  “So, we’ve heard, Sky.” 

  The Chosen Hero blinked and stared at them. “Are you all chorusing?” 

  “Yes, Sky.” Came eight other voices, and wasn’t that unique? Time was actually joining in on the mischief. 

  To be fair, it wasn’t that odd. Legend knew Time was a monster as a kid, not that he’d ever share taht fact. He had his sources though, and despite Ravio’s constant foofaraw, the rabbit-man was an excellent informant regarding the war, and Wind, Wars and Time’s skullduggery during that time. Legend hadn’t let on that he knew anything of course, but... Heaven forbid Time try leaving him in charge, ever, because he will mention that Time, their oh-so sagacious leader had apparently pantsed one of Hyrule’s leading Generals for dissing Lon Lon Milk, and if that wasn’t the picture of immaturity than Legend didn’t know what was (correction, he lived with eight other idiots, he knew exactly  what immaturity and insanity looked like, and it had very long blond hair) so if the old man wanted to keep his reputation, Legend was going to be allowed to keep away from any more responsibilities than he absolutely had to take on. Not that Time knew that. Yet. 

  “Sun is wonderful! Just wait ‘till you meet her!” Sky almost pouted, how very heroic of him. An excellent example to their younger members, to be sure. 

  “Sounds like someone’s ready to settle down.” Time chuckled softly. 

  Sky sighed again. “As soon as possible.” 

  Four laughed lightly. “Well, you can rest easy knowing it’s destined. After all, how else would the royal line come to be?” 

  The camp went strangely quiet for half a second before Warriors was whipping around to face Sky with that goddess-darned smirk on his face. “Oh, ho, ho! Sounds like you two will be busy!” 

  Sky, who Legend almost felt pity for (keyword being almost) turned a bright shade of red as his mouth flapped open and closed like a fish. “You- you mean-  what ?” 

  “Does this mean we should go back to Hyrule Castle then?” Wild asked simply, turning to face Time. 

  The older hero cocked a brow. “Why’s that, Cub?” 

  “So that Fable can meet her great-something-grandfather.” In the background, Sky shrieked. “I’d want to, if it was me.” Wild trailed off quietly, earning him a comforting hug from Twilight and, dang, Legend’s chest was being weird again. The Veteran rubbed at the affected area with a scowl, purposefully turning his eyes back towards Sky, who looked to be soundlessly screaming at the moment. 

  Legend huffed, shaking his head, what would Fable think if she saw that? Her-great-something-grandfather, flummoxed because he was going to have kids. Honestly, Legend’s sister would- His thoughts trailed off as Legend found himself similarly short circuiting.  

  Sky was the first king of Hyrule, and Fable’s great-something-grandfather, his sister’s great-something-grandfather, his own - 

  No, no, no, no, no. Legend shook his head and quickly glanced around to be sure that no one else had noticed his brief moment of shock; he was in the clear. 

  The royal line could not have possibly lasted that long! Especially after the time of the Fallen Hero –and boy was Legend glad that guy  wasn’t on this journey with them, he’d screw this up too-, none of the royal line must have been left after that!  

  “The royal line fell when Ganondorf killed the Fallen Hero.” Legend drawled, carefully leveling out his voice so that no one would catch onto the spinning of his mind. “It was most likely re-established after, but started with someone else, I seriously doubt it’s the same family.” 

  “It is!” Hyrule interjected. “My Zeldas traced it back as far as they could, and while the books we have don’t reach all the way back to Sky, they do go back to before the Fallen Hero,” Why was Time looking slightly grey? “So, we know the royal line survived. Fable is Sky’s descendant!” 

  Legend wanted to glare over at the Traveler, but doing so would give away that he was trying to throw the other off. Good grief! If the monarchy lasted that long than that meant that he and Sky were actually related! Him! The most experienced and hardened of all of the Chain, and Sky, the kindest, gentlest, downright soft member of the group! 

  Legend scowled to himself, which of course the others didn’t bother to notice, since that was normal, and closed his eyes. He could get through this headache. He survived Hytopia, he could survive this too. 

  Legend could not survive this too. 

  It was a good thing that Hytopia had made him accustomed to a form of paracusia, honestly, having two doubles was a nightmare sometimes! It was a blessing that he didn’t have to listen to them most of the time now-a-days, although keeping the other two voices in the back of his head did take a lot of patience, but this? Having three of them? 

  Sky carried the Master Sword, that was the rule. Sky helped to forge it, so it made sense, he knew the spirit of the sword, so it also made sense that he was closer with it than them. Never mind that Legend had carried the blasted thing longer than any of the others (as far as he knew, Wild had never disclosed how long he had had the thing). But Sky was currently indisposed, one leg injured to the point where he had to carried, and with his shoulders as bruised and beaten as they were, gashes torn through the flesh by a lizalfoes during their last battle; and with the first of them so beaten, he was hardly in any shape to carry the Legendary Sword. Wild, of course, wasn’t allowed to hold it, Hyrule was wary of it, Four and Time wouldn’t touch it, and Twilight was currently carrying Sky. Warriors and Wind had both made offers, but like with Wild, Sky didn’t quite trust them not to play around with it, and so had entrusted it to the Veteran. 

  He had, of course, been willing to carry it. He didn’t like what the thing meant for him, but it was a familiar blade on his back, if a bit lighter without his own improvements, and keeping it out of the hands of their resident mischief makers was also good.  

  Had he known that the thing nattered he would have been less willing. 

  One would think that they would have all realized it at some point, Wild had asked about it before, and Sky had mentioned it in passing, the Spirit of the Sword could speak. Legend had assumed that that meant that the sword could make noises out loud,  not in his head!  Fi, the spirit, had been very surprised at someone else’s wielding the blade, but due to more time travel nonsense she was able to recognize all of them and so didn’t fry him on the spot. Honestly though, that option might have been preferable. 

  The spirit didn’t know how to shut up! And she kept going on and on about everything! Anything he landed eyes on, she analyzed. Any living being that crossed into his line of sight was immediately evaluated, it’s stats ringing mechanically in his head as the Sword rambled off numbers and percentages; the likelihood of being able to defeat his fellow heroes in battle –his chances were a bit higher than he had first assumed, which was good to know if they ever turned out to be traitors- or the chances of being poisoned by oak leaves. The answer, not at all. Although apparently the insect sitting on a particular leaf could give him explosive burps, something he would never be sharing with Wind or Wild. Nayru knows he didn’t need to be corrupting his descendant or their newest member. 

  As was, his own mind was headed steadily towards his becoming their local dingbat himself, and even though he walked at the back of the group, he still caught the way that some of them looked back at him with concern. Warrior’s included, and wasn’t that vexing! Excuse him for having to slow down to accommodate keeping track of his surroundings and managing his temper! Yelling at an unseen voice would not help with the weird looks he’d been getting since leaving Castletown, and even if Sky and Wild knew the voice, it didn’t mean he could avoid the inevitable lecture from the elder about respecting the Sacred Blade. 

  Legend shivered slightly. Sky hadn’t spoken to Wild without frowning for almost a week after the youngster had shattered the holy blade, and Legend had no interest in receiving similar treatment. It wasn’t like Sky was actually his great-grandfather or some nonsense like that, that wasn’t why, it was just he didn’t want to have to deal with that kind of excoriation.  

   “ So, you are Master’s offspring.”  Came the constant voice, and Legend was beginning to wonder how nutty Sky himself was if he had to suffer through this torment. “The likelihood of his bloodline having survived to your era is quite low, Young Master.”  

   “Young Master?”  Legend thought in reply, he was used to conversing telepathically with himself, even if most people could just think, so a sword in his head wasn’t that different. And wow, thinking it that way sounded... messed up. 

  “Affirmative. If you are Master’s descendant that would make you my younger master.”  

  “Don’t you just serve the hero or whatever?”  

  “Ideally, yes. But Master’s descendants are all worthy of bearing my blade.”  

  “WHAT!” 

  Several heads turned about to stare at the Veteran, but at his glare most of them turned away, although Warrior’s continued to stare with an almost understanding look on his face (the captain was beginning to wonder if Legend was suffering as he himself was), but he eventually turned away, leaving Legend to his conversation with Fi. 

   “What do you mean, all his descendants can wield the Master Sword?”  

  “How else did you presume that the royal line could wield me? Those descended from the gods are worthy.”  

  “Gods? Plural?”  

  “Affirmative. Her Grace, Hylia’s, descendants, and those of the First Hero, the Deity of Heroes.”  

  “Wait, hold up, I  thought  we were all Hylia’s personal playthings, and you’re telling me that we’re demi-gods or some shit? Along with another patron deity?”  

  “Her Grace does not toy with you, Young Master. It grieves her greatly that she must-”  

  “Explain the Deity thing.”  Legend interrupted. Hylia had messed with his life enough that he was pretty certain he had a right to think of her however he pleased. 

  “Certainly, Young Master. Upon his victory over Demise, the first of the Hylia’s chosen was gravely injured. While required by destiny to reincarnate herself, the goddess knew that there would need to be a higher power preserving the line that would be her heroes. For this reason, she granted god-hood and immortality to her fallen first hero, the Hero Link. This hero became known as the Deity of the fierce, a protector of soldiers and warriors like yourself. It is he who fathered Master, and your own line.”  

   For the first time in his entire existence, and the last, Legend blessed the Windfish’s torture for giving him the ability to hear those words without screaming or reacting in a similar way to the others when finding out about the relations between them. Glancing over towards them, Sky especially, the young Veteran wondered if such a heritage was the reason Sky could speak so closely with Hylia herself, or if it was just because he was her boyfriend. 

  “Her Grace and the first hero have requested that he not be informed of this as yet.”  Fi warned, placid.  “But this is the true reason that the Hero of Winds was able to wield my power, despite not being chosen by Hylia. He bears the blood of the Heroes of old, and as such is worthy to bear the blade as well.”  

  “Wind doesn’t have the Triforce?”  

  “The Youngest Master acquired the  Triforce  much like yourself; by seeking it out. He, like you, was not chosen by Hylia, but rather by her present incarnate. He was called to duty by a need, and like you, claimed the Triforce by force.”  

  “Shit.” Legend breathed softly, unable to contain his surprise. “I didn’t realize we had that much in common.”  

   “You have much in common with your descendant, Young Master. Your adventures on the goddess’s behalf led you both to lands far and wide, and after your tasks were attended to, you both were called to the aid of the great ocean spirit to save him from his slumbers.”  

  Legend choked, doubling over and hacking and coughing as if he had consumed Hyrule’s cooking, startling his companions and making them spin about in confusion. Sky blinked blearily at him, brows creasing in an echo of Twilight’s expression as the two stood by, unable to help as the three youngest surged forwards to meet their fallen Vet. 

  “Are you alright, Legend?” 

  “What happened?” 

  “Did you choke on your tongue? I do that sometimes.” 

  Legend ignored that frankly alarming comment from their cook and shook his head, half in an effort to assure them he was alright, and half to try and make Fi shut up. 

  “Young Master, there is nothing blocking your air passage, but if you do not control your breathing, there is a 63% chance you shall pass out.”  

  “I’m fine.” The pink-haired hero wheezed. “Just tripped a bit.” 

  “So much for being an experienced traveler.” Warriors snarked, but relief was clear in the captain’s expression as he watched Hyrule pull their fallen comrade back to his feet. 

  Time shot a questioning look over to Legend, but at the Vet’s scowl had him nodding quietly and calling for them to continue again. It took a moment for them all to calm down, to stop glancing back every few seconds at him, but once the rest of the links had returned to their nattering, Legend was able to turn his attention back to conversing with Fi, rather than listening to her incessant predictions and estimates. 

  “You said Wind met the Windfish. How.”  It wasn’t a question. 

   “The Youngest Master-”  

  “Din’s sake! Call him Wind! Enough with the Master shtick!”  

  “Very well. ‘WIND’, as a descendant of yourself in a parallel universe, had to complete what your own self did not in that world. You attended to the Wind Spirit’s needs in your own world, but in his, there was no hero to do so, leaving the island  of dreams to be discovered and saved by another hero. Unlike in your time Young Master, the Wind Spirit was not weakened by Ganon in that time, and was not plagued as terribly, or-”  

  “Wind faced the Windfish?”  

   “That is correct, Young Master.”  

  “Is he okay? Hylia, if she screwed that kid up, if the WINDFISH screwed him up, I’ll march to the sacred realm myself and-”  Violet snapped to indigo as Legend’s hands fisted at his sides, jaws grinding together angrily. 

  “The trauma received from the incident was trivial, and has since primarily passed. Occasional nightmares and  brief confusion regarding the validity of reality are the only remaining side effects as of this time.”  

  “You’re sure?”  

  “Quite certain, Young Master. Upon grasping my hilt to receive his title, I was able to appraise ‘WIND’s’ mental state as well as his physical. He, as well as the other heroes present have all been appraised upon every grasp of my blade.”  

  “Does Sky know this?”  

   “Master and I have not conversed.”  

  “You mean I’m just lucky? Or you’ve been holding back with him?”  

  “Master’s exposure to Her Grace’s power is limited, as Hylia and other pure beings of light have had their powers diluted in his time. Your exposure to powers higher than yourself, and direct lineage to two deities, as well as exposure to mental conversation with other beings grants you the power to converse with me, while his exposure to  Demise's evil has damaged it. Additionally, his mind is clouded by Hylia’s strength in order to protect him, so I cannot reach him as effectively as I can with yourself, Young Master.”  

  “Great, so I’m just lucky and Hylia is playing favorites again.” He groused under his breath. 

  Fi had continued, but Legend had eventually tuned her out, alert if she should announce anything of actual importance, like the ambush they almost walked in on, or that Hyrule had wondered from the path, Wild on his tail, but other than that, Legend had been allowed to focus on his thoughts until they had made camp. 

  Wild and Twilight had left together to scout out around their campsite that night, and had returned with a few fairies that quickly healed Sky’s injuries from were red-potions had failed to do anything more than stop the bleeding. Legend had happily handed the sword back over to the Chosen Hero and then had promptly thrown himself down on his bed-roll, head pounding with the beginnings of a migraine. 

  Never had Sky’s harp been so soothing while still causing such turmoil in his mind. 

Chapter Text

  Sky has questions. 

  The last few weeks have been... interesting, to say the least. Warriors unraveled part of the mystery of their timelines, connecting Legend and Wind across time and space to what turned out to be a rather interesting relationship, one that was definitely affecting their Vet, whether he wanted to admit it or not (Sky knew he was fond of the younger Links, but this really made it clear especially with how they could make him do almost anything). He had a feeling Warrior’s had discovered something else in the process, but he wasn’t going to ask, the Captain knew messing with time travel and paradoxes better than most of them, and if he was keeping secrets than it was probably for a good reason, like trying not to destroy the already frayed time stream. 

  And then they had come to Legend’s Hyrule and learned that he was, somehow, related to Time. Some of the others didn’t seem to have caught on at first, but after they had finished talking to the Captain of the Guard’s wife, Twilight had been beaming fit to burst, looking like an over-excited puppy as he bounced along at Sky’s side, whispering quietly that this meant he and Legend were actual brothers! Somehow... 

  Everyone knew Time and Twilight were related somehow, although how was the question. But Sky hadn’t thought Twilight would be that excited over such a thing, although apparently, finding any ties to his birth family made him happy, and Sky couldn’t blame him. 

  He’d often wondered about his own parents. As the first out of the present company, he knew for a fact that it wasn’t any of his fellow heroes, but he did wish he knew more about where he came from and who his father was, who his mother might have been. Zelda- Sun, had told him that his father had gone down to the surface to try and make it safe again, and had never returned, and his mother had died from an illness when he was just a small thing. Even knowing that though, he wondered what they were like. Was his father anything like Time? Cool and firm, but caring beneath his sternness, willing to do anything to protect Sky and teach him about the world around him, guiding in a way that Time was to all of them?

  Was it weird that he thought of Time as something like a father? He didn’t have any memory of his own parents, but Time and Malon seemed like the kind of people he had imagined them to be, and Time seemed to see all of them as if they were his own children in some way. Indeed, most of the others, Twilight, Warriors, Four, they were like brothers to him! Being around Wild and Wind, and Hyrule too, felt like watching over younger siblings, or even nephews based on Wind and Legend’s relationship. 

  But then there was Legend. 

  Legend, who walked at the back of the group yesterday, grousing under his breath as he carried the Master Sword, yelling angrily and gritting his teeth in a way that Sky had never seen the salty rabbit do before. Did he really hate the blade that much? Did carrying it really make him that angry? 

  That evening, when he had handed it back to Sky, he had actually seemed reluctant to hand it over, violet eyes betraying curiosity and reluctance, but hands moving quickly to remove the baldric and hand it over even as he stared after it. 

  Sky didn’t know how to feel about that. 

  Legend was so separate from the group, and especially from Sky himself. He sat back from the fire when they told stories, took watch silently and alone, not bothering to wake a partner to help him keep vigil over their camp, not joining in to tell stories around the campfire, not bothering to join in when Four decided to pull the others into a cuddle pile at night. 

  Four's excuse had been that physical touch was important, and they all needed to ensure they weren’t starving for it, lest they end up becoming more agitated or snappish than normal, and on that reasoning, Sky couldn’t help but wonder whether Legend himself just really needed a hug. 

  But Legend avoided him. Him specifically. 

  Oh, he spent time with Wind and Hyrule, even sat with Wild on some nights and spoke quietly with their cook. He did well with their youngest members, even if he would never say so. He spared, verbally and physically with both Twilight and Warriors on a regular basis, and Time and he seemed to have a silent comradery regarding Hylia and anything related to the quests she had cast upon them all. There may not have been the quiet talks and playful brotherly moments that Legend had with the others, but Time and the Vet would often shoot glances at each other over the heads of the others, would share a silent conversation upon meeting a new monster. There would be those moments when they could look at each other and instantly warn the others away, snapping, or in Time’s case, gently ordering that the other Links leave the other alone. 

  Sky wanted that. 

  Legend was nothing but short with him, and since leaving the Vet’s Hyrule Castle, he had been worse, not even speaking to Sky, but staring at him when he thought that their first member wasn’t looking. Sky had become accustomed to the weight of violet eyes on his back, piercing through his sailcloth like sharpened purple crystals. But no word was spoken, and Legend had given him a wide berth since Twilight had warned him off after the younger had snapped at Sky one to many times. 

  Usually, the Chosen Hero could ignore Legend’s pointed avoidance, he could talk with Four, or one of his other brothers, he could walk with Time who, though usually silent, always offered a supportive smile and calming presence; but ever since that night that Legend had carried the Master Sword, Sky had been dying to talk to him. 

  What had startled him enough to make him trip and fall, leaving their Vet coughing a lung out on the path behind them? Why had his eyes been so haunted that night? Sky knew he hadn’t slept, he had been in the same boat, watching their hoarder through the night while serenading Hylia, his fingers absently plucking the strings of his harp while Legend tossed and turned, violet gaze staring up at the stars with a lost look Sky had never seen from him before. 

  A gaze that was echoed now. 

  They had come, after the battle against the monsters in Legend’s era, to spend some time in Twilight’s Hyrule. And while the ranch-hand had been eagerly sharing his world with them, a quiet smile on his face as he pulled Wild behind him, Time trailing after with a fond grin, while he had introduced them to his Zelda, beckoning Sky forwards in order to introduce the Queen to her ancestor (and hadn’t that made him blush!). While Sky himself had chatted quietly with Dusk, both awkward at their meeting and eager to meet the other’s expectations. The entire time, Legend had been standing back, and staring. 

  Another battle had come, as it always did. First an ambush from the enemy, and then a full-blown attack two days later, when they thought they might have been finished in that world. Hyrule had been run ragged tending to their wounds, Wild’s being the worst, as was quickly becoming the norm, and Time’s own arm needing significant amounts of healing lest he lose the limb. Their poor healer had passed out before being able to attend to any other wounds, slumping against Legend when the Vet had bidden him to sit down and take a breather for one minute. That had left Sky, Twilight and likely Legend himself bearing quite a few wounds, Warriors and Four, who had been watching each other's backs throughout the battle, had set about mothering the rest of them, tending wounds and shoving Wars’ camp cooking down their throats before sending most of them off to bed. 

  And when they had woken it had been to find themselves resting in the shade of a giant mushroom. 

  The others had never been to Sky’s world, and it showed, for some reason, Four had actually panicked at waking up to look at the giant fungus above him, and had proceeded to actually scurry about in search of...something, before he seemed to realize that the others were still comparatively his height, which left their shortest member to plop down where he sat and stare at the ground, head in his hands as if he was currently experiencing a migraine of some sort. In all likelihood, he was, everyone knew that Four had terrible headaches right after a switch. 

  The others, Wild especially, had looked around curiously, and Twilight had to be roused from his very deep slumber (their resident ranch mand had had one of the late shifts that night) in order to help Time in preventing the youngest of their trio from climbing the enormous mushroom. 

  Sky had grinned as he looked around, face practically glowing if what Wars had said later was to be believed as he had happily told them that this was his world. Navigating towards the settlement that he and Zel- Sun had established on the surface took a few hours, but unlike some of the others’ homes, they were their relatively quickly, and Sky was running ahead to greet his beloved and all the other wonderful friends that had come to live on the surface. 

  Time hadn’t done anything to stop him, and despite the heavy gaze that rested on his back, he had rushed ahead out of the trees and towards the settlement. The houses they had started when he had left were now completed, a large town hall was currently under construction, and more houses were springing up around streets that were just starting to be paved. Sky hardly took a moment to appreciate it as he rocketed through the small town and directly towards Sun, darting up behind her and scooping her up off her feet with an enthusiastic hug, making the poor girl squeak in surprise.  

  “Zelda!” 

  “Link! Oh my- you're home! Did you finish your new quest?” 

  Sky shook his head, burying his face deeply into Sun’s hair and practically melting at her scent. “No,” He murmured. “We still have a lot of work to do, but Hylia has let us come here to complete some of it, so I’m not complaining.” 

  Sun giggled. “Put me down already then, so I can hug you back!” 

  Her boyfriend obliged, only to be caught in a fierce hug as his girlfriend almost knocked him off his feet. The Chosen Hero winced slightly, both at the shock of pain that the hug elicited, and because his breath was being squeezed from his body. 

  “Oh my! Are you hurt?” Sun pulled back, face twisting into an expression of concern. “What happened to you?” 

  He rubbed his neck awkwardly, avoiding her eyes as his cheeks flushed. “We might have been in battle before coming here, and our healer is all tuckered out.” 

  “Your- Where are your companions then?” 

  Sky ducked his head. “I kind of ran ahead.” 

  “That eager to see me?” Sun teased. 

  “Yes.” 

   Her answering giggles were echoed by Groose’s own voice as the larger man approached the two, clapping Sky on the shoulders as he approached. “Good to see you back, Link.” 

  “Thanks. How’s construction coming along down here?” 

  Groose had started to explain what he and Zelda had been up to, allowing Sun herself to scooch up beside Sky and take his hand in her own, the two of them following Groose around and towards the edge of the village where the rest of the Links would eventually enter. 

  And what an entrance that was!  

  The others had been wandering along, looking around themselves, at the buildings the forest, and approaching the village rather slowly in order to give Sky a bit of time with his Zelda. And then Wind had pointed out Skyloft. 

  Eyes fixed above, many of them had stopped paying attention to where they were going, and while some –like Warriors, Wild and Hyrule- could move quite well without watching their surroundings, the resident Veteran had messed his leg pretty badly in the last battle, and the edge of the unfinished cobblestone path as all that was needed to send him careening forwards into their welcoming committee. 

  Sun, bless her heart, had darted forwards just in time to catch him, smiling brightly at the lad as she looked down at him. “You alright there?” 

  Legend’s face went paler than kikwi’s stomach and –if possible- tripped even harder. It was a blessing Sun had a firm hold on him, or the Vet would have face-planted in the dirt. 

  What was going on? 

  What the heck was going on? 

  Legend had simply been walking along with the others –not limping, his leg wasn’t that bad, of course not- looking up at Skyloft and wondering how on  Earth  the island could stay there like that (how can an island even begin to float? What sent it up there?), when his foot had hit something hard, a jolt of pain had shot up his leg and he had gone tumbling forwards into- a field of blue fabric and two steady hands. And when he had looked up- 

  “How are you here?” Legend breathed, face paling as he stared up at the woman before him. “I swear, if Hylia decided to play her tricks again- you're supposed to be at home!” Legend fumed as he pulled himself to his feet with the young woman’s help. 

  The girl in question turned to Sky who, yeah, was standing right there, her expression confused. “What’s he talking about?” 

  Sky shrugged, looking just as befuzzled as he glanced towards the pink-haired hero. “Legend, what are you saying? This is Sun.” 

  Legend ignored the expression on what was apparently  Sky’s  Zelda’s face as he stared openly at first Sky and then Sun, his mouth slowly forming her name as his breath cut off. “Sun?” 

  “Yeah, Sun?” The Zelda in question questioned.  

  “You’re my Zelda.” Sky answered softly. 

  “Your Zelda?” Groose and Sun echoed, both chuckling as Sky flushed a bright shade of pink. 

  “ Sun? ” Legend wheezed again. 

  “...Yeah.” Sky glanced from the others in their small group and back to Legend. 

  How could that possibly be Sky’s Zelda? She was, she looked, that was Fable! From the way she styled her hair to the color of her eyes! Same shade of blue, same shade of blonde, same haircut, same smile, same freaking  giggle ! Had Hylia decided to switch their Zelda’s around too? Had she decided it wasn’t bad enough to throw them through time and space, she had to make Nayru’s job even harder by displacing her own incarnates? 

  But watching this Zelda, who Sky  claimed  was Sun, Legend found himself struck with the realization that while the resemblance was uncanny, the behavior was different. Fable was more composed, but also fierier, she didn’t beam and bloom lie this Zelda did, and she certainly never blushed! 

  “ Sun ...” That’s it, Legend has had enough for this week. No, this year! Screw that! He’s had enough for a year! Come back tomorrow everyone! He was not dealing with this shit again, nope, he was going home, or the closest appreciation, and taking a nap. Screw this! 

  Learning that in another universe he is Wind’s great-grandfather? Finding out that he’s related to Sky? Finding out that Sky is a descendant of a god? Finding out he can talk to a sword spirit that apparently thinks he’s Sky’s son or some shit?  

  Nope!  Nope!  Nope!  

  “Legend, are you okay?” Hyrule questioned gently. 

  The hero in questioned just groaned and let himself collapse onto his knees, burying his head in his hands. “It is too early for this.” 

  Sky frowned, glancing from Sun to Legend in concern and silently asking his better half for help in dealing with... whatever this was. 

  Time and Legend had been distant lately, who knows why, and none of the other older ones were particularly close with him, leaving the local link to have to deal with the unexplainable problem that apparently had something to do with his Zelda. 

  “What do you mean, Sun should be back at home?” Warriors questioned, staring down at their fallen comrade with confusion painted clear on his face. 

  “Nope.” Legend huffed. “Not doing this.” 

  Wind rolled his eyes. “Come on, Grandpa, you're acting like a kid.” 

  “Don’t care.” Came the oh so responsible reply and Legend ran his hands through his hair. “I can take a lot of shit but- no, shut up! We’re not talking about this.” Legend snapped at no one in particular, scowling down at the ground before gripping his head tightly with both hands and squeezing his eyes shut in the most expressive display their Vet had yet offered. “Shut up, shut up shut up!” 

  Four blinked in confusion for a moment before tarting and shooting the others a look that Sky had come to recognize as his ‘listen to me right now’ look. “He needs space, don’t know what's up, but I think someone just fried his brain.” A glare was shot in Wars’ direction as the Captain sniggered. “Sun- Zelda, is there a place we can go so he can have time to process,” Four waved his hands towards Legend vaguely. “Whatever this is?” 

  Sun nodded, motioning towards a statue set at the edge of the settlement. “There’s the academy up in Skyloft you can all stay at.” 

  Time frowned. “Too much space. We need to be close enough that Legend can find us when he’s done.” 

  “Someone needs to stay with him though, right?” Sky asked. “Sun can take you all to Skyloft, and I can stay with Legend and keep watch for monsters until he’s ready, then I’ll take him up to join you all.” 

  Time and Four shared a glance laden with meaning, before nodding – at the same time even- in Sky’s direction. “That should work.” 

  “Are you sure?” Twilight frowned, glancing back over at Legend. “You two don’t exactly get along, maybe I should-” 

  “Do you know how to get up to Skyloft from here?” Groose asked, pointedly. At Twilight’s head shake he smirked. “Link stays with him then, otherwise there will be two of you stuck down here.” 

  “Thanks.” Sky shook his head, grinning, before motioning for the others to head off. “Don’t worry, we should be up shortly, Legend is usually pretty put together, it shouldn’t take him long.” 

  It took him two hours. 

  Sky had sat still at first, patiently twiddling his thumbs as he waited for Legend to snap out of it, the shorter hero still bent over, hands pressed to his head as he murmured violently under his breath. But sitting still was making his sleepy, and goodness knows he didn’t need to fall asleep with Legend currently losing his mind, so he did what he did for Sun, and Four, when they got their headaches, he got out his harp and started to play. 

  He had played through every song he knew and was currently on the Ballad of the Goddess when Legend’s violet eyes had shot up to stare a hold into his face, the shorter hero hissing under his breath. “Do you  h ave  to play  that  tune?” 

  “You’re back!” The harp dropped from Sky’s hands as he spun around to face his companion.  

  “I didn’t leave.” Legend shot back, stretching his legs out in front of himself with a wince.  

  “Well, you kind of...” Sky shrugged, lacking the words to explain what had happened. 

   Legend cocked a brow. “Spaced out?” 

  “Yeah.” 

  “I was aware the whole time, I’m not Wild you know.” He rolled his eyes, before rolling upwards as if to stand. “Come on, let’s head up to Skyloft with the- ah!” The vet stumbled again, falling back on his butt on the ground with a wince before glaring down at his leg. “Seriously!” 

  “Are you hurt?” 

  “No! I’m just upset my boots got wet, what do you think!” 

  Sky frowned and scooted over. “Let me see.” 

  The other rolled his eyes. “What are you, my dad?” 

  He made to shake his head, but stopped at seeing how Legend’s face had paled again, his eyes widening frantically as he shot around to face Sky.  

  “I know you’re not, okay?” 

  “I... know you know that...” Sky answered slowly, staring at his friend curiously. 

  Legend flushed and turned away. “Whatever, let's just go.” 

  Sky frowned. “Not if you can’t stand, how do you think you’re going to get to the statue?” 

  “I’ll manage.” 

  He shook his head. “Nope, here.” Reaching back, Sky unbuckled his baldric, setting the Master Sword gently on the ground and then turning so that his back faced Legend. “Here, climb on.” 

  “No.” He could practically see the look of horror on Legend’s face. “I am not taking a  piggyback  ride  from you.” 

  “Why does it matter if it’s me?” Sky questioned, glancing back over his shoulder in time to see Legend flush again. 

 “Doesn’t matter, just no.” 

  “Would you rather crawl? It would jar your leg all the same.” The Chosen Hero pointed out. 

  “Shut up.” Legend snapped, gripping hold of the ground and tugging himself to his feet. A strangled noise escaped his throat, but he managed to stand, giving Sky a brief view of a hastily bandage wrapped around his friend’s thigh, blood leaking from the fabric and trickling downwards into Legend’s boots. 

  “Does Hyrule know about that?” 

  “He passed out.” Came the clipped reply. “I can take care of myself.” 

  “How bad was it?” He really didn’t want to know, but it was important he make sure Legend wasn’t gravely injured. 

  “Eight stitches.” Legend gritted out, taking a step forward. 

  Sky’s head shot up, and he darted up in kind. “You tripped really bad! You could have ripped a stitch!” 

  “Probably.” Legend gritted out, continuing forwards. 

  The Chosen Hero scowled, darting forwards and scooping Legend off of his feet in a bridal carry, ignoring the shouted protests of his fellow hero and simply laying the Master Sword in Legend’s lap. “Time left me in charge of your safety, if I let you walk over there with torn stitches, we’re both in trouble.” That put an end to Legend’s protests, for a moment. 

  “You couldn’t just act as a crutch or some shit?” 

  “Faster this way.” Sky answered simply. “We can get you treated as soon as we get up to Skyloft.” 

  Legend came the closest Sky had ever seen to the Veteran pouting, but he didn’t fail to notice how Legend gripped at the Master Sword’s handle or grimaced at every step Sky took.  

  They continued in silence as Sky walked through the starting town, attracting a lot of stares, and a few coos from unknowing individuals who probably thought that Sky was carrying a sleeping friend or something similar, and Legend’s face flushed brightly each time someone giggled or whispered something along the lines of ‘what a sweet picture’, which surprised his companion. Sky had never seen Legend blush, and he didn’t think that the situation would normally warrant such a reaction, rather, he had expected Legend to spit some sort of insult at the Hylians, telling them exactly where they could shove such comments, or where they should be sticking their noses, but instead, the younger hero slumped further in Sky’s arms and scowled, eyes refusing to meet Sky’s own. 

  It was when they reached the statue that Legend seemed to have had enough, as he suddenly went very red in the face, body stiffening as he scowled. “ I AM NOT HIS FREAKING SON! SHUT UP! ” Sky paused, staring down at his unwilling burden and watching as Legend tightened his grip on the sword.  “I swear to  Nayru  if you don’t stop talking, I will make Wild look tame in comparison to what I will do! They won’t be able to find what’s left of your  shards !”  A pause and then Legend was raising the sword, and, much to Sky’s shock, throwing the sacred blade as far away from himself as possible and covering his hears with his hands. “Stupid sword spirit.” 

  It was a very good thing that surprise made Sky grip things tighter rather than drop them, because otherwise Legend might have torn  more  stitches flailing around before he hit the ground. As it was, the pink haired hero squawked quite loudly at Sky’s sudden grip on his thighs and shoulders. “Wha- What did you just say?” 

  Legend scowled up at him, removing his hands from his ears and quirking a brow. “Sorry, huh?” 

  “Sword Spirit, you said sword spirit.” Sky stared down at his companion in shock. “Why would you say that?” 

  “You need to tell Fi to shut up.” Legend groused in reply. 

  “You can hear her?” Sky’s voice rose an octave. 

  “I wish I couldn’t! She won’t shut up!” 

  “She does that.” He chuckled. “I’m just shocked you can hear her! I thought she stopped talking after my adventure, she only speaks up on occasion.” 

  “So, it’s just my head she decides to fill with nonsense? Great!” Legend threw his hands in the air, accidentally hitting Sky in the nose and effectively landing himself on the ground as the Chosen Hero made to rub at the bruised area, dropping Legend in the process, who landed on Sky’s feet and effectively knocked the other hero over in the process.  

  Twin groans of pain sounded from the base of the bird statue as Legend and Sky lay at its foot, staring up at the sky with twin winces on their faces. 

  “Nice job, Sky.” Legend groaned, attempting to sit up. 

  “Not bad yourself.” Came the nasally response as Sky pulled himself back up, one hand still holding his bleeding nose. 

  Legend scoffed. “You look like shit.” 

  Sky giggled, then laughed outright, throwing his head back as he leaned back on his hands, surprise filling his face as Legend's own chuckles joined his own. Sure, the veteran hero sounded pained, but he was laughing, and that was a rare sight to see. Or hear, Legend’s laugh squeaked like the rabbit that he was, which only drove Sky further into hysterics as he doubled over on himself, laughter spilling from him and blood dribbling from his bruised nose as he attempted to reign himself in. 

  “I like your laugh,” He wheezed at last. “It’s cute.” 

  Legend had stopped laughing already, amusement in his gaze as he watched Sky struggling to breath, but he flushed dark as his tunic, scowling over at the other hero and raising a hand to swat at him. “No, it isn’t! And so help me, if you tell anyone about this then Sun will never be able to recognize you!” 

  Another bout of laughter threatened, but Sky nodded anyway, grinning over at his friend, and maybe they were friends now. “Okay, fine.” He paused, considering. Legend seemed stable again, scowling and laying on the pavement like he had just gotten tossed out of a bar and was waiting for his vision to clear again. Maybe he could get answers for what happened earlier? 

  “Did you recognize her?” 

  “Hmm?” Legend glanced over at him again. 

  “Sun,” He amended, and Legend stilled, “Did you recognize her? You were acting like you knew her.” 

  Sharp violet eyes turned his way, staring at him as if searching for something, and Sky waited patiently, open, although struggling not to flinch under Legend’s scrutiny, as the other seemed to find what he wanted and turn away. “She looks like my sis- Like my Zelda.” 

  “Your sis-” Understanding broke across Sky’s face like the sun breaks across the morning sky. “Fable is your sister?!” 

  “What?” Legend flailed for a moment, spinning to face Sky again and hissing at the pain the sudden motion caused. “When did I say that?” 

  “You corrected yourself, but you were,” Sky’s grin grew with every word. “You were going to call her your sister, weren’t you?” 

  The other’s hero’s face paled again, eyes widening again in horror. “Don’t tell. I’m actually begging you, Sky, you can’t tell the others!” 

  “What, why?” 

  “Because,” Legend’s gaze flitted over the area, ears twitching in a convincing imitation of his spirit-animal. “Because Hyrule doesn’t have princes, and Hylia has no sons.” It was spoke in hushed tone, but as if Legend was quietly reading it, not as if he was stating it himself. “Hylia’s-” He grimaced. “Hylia’s bastards,” He spat the word out, voice dripping with enough poison to make Sky start back. “Aren’t supposed to live. Warriors is a knight, Sky,” Violet paled to lavender. “Knights are to uphold the royal standard; they protect the royal name.” The fear in Legend’s eyes, his face, his voice, had Sky frozen in place. “Even if being a hero saves my life, he- none of them-” He hissed and his gaze shot downwards towards his hands, clenched tightly against the stone pathway. “Just don’t tell, okay?” 

  “Okay.” Sky breathed. He watched Legend for a moment, pausing himself to consider that information. “Is that why you were yelling at Fi? You told her you weren’t someone’s son. Were-” He paused, blinking in surprise before looking up to a blushing bunny hero. “Were you talking about me?” 

  “It doesn’t matter, okay?” And wow, he really was a bunny huh? That squeak in his voice was adorable! Not that Sky would ever tell him that. “Let’s just go find the others, I’m not keen on passing out in a village because I tripped.” 

  That startled him enough to get him back on his feet. “Right, of course.” And then he was scooping up the Master Sword and trotting back to Legend, scooping up the other hero, - his  descendant! -  in his arms and whistling the song to activate the statue. 

  Legend clung to him tightly as they shot up into the air, pink hair flying up into Sky’s face as Legend curled up as tightly as possible, clearly uncomfortable with not being on the ground. Sky grinned and held him tighter and, wow, was this how Time felt when he found out about Twilight? The overwhelming need to hug his fellow hero, a smile breaking across his face and pride dancing through his heart as he realized again what a skilled and selfless person Legend really was, and that the younger hero had saved the world five times before meeting the rest of them. Once upon a time, when Sky had met them all, he had been proud to hear that they had all saved their homes and people, but this was a different kind of pride, this was his descendant who had saved the world, a person that Sun and he had helped to create and, wow! That was an amazing feeling! Knowing that despite being the reason they had all been cursed, Sky had been able to help ensure there would be heroes in the future to fight that curse.  

  If he used the moment as they shot up through the clouds as an excuse to hug Legend as tightly to his chest as he could, well, the other hero would never know, right? 

  A whistle and Crimson were flying towards them, scooping the two up out of the air and whisking them away to the floating island that he had called home since the day he had learned the word. 

  “I’m telling Sun.” He murmured softly as Crimson swooped down towards the island. “It’s only fair she knows too.” 

  Legend huffed, unconsciously pressing closer to the older hero as they veered downwards. “Fine, but only her, not that weird red-head dude.” 

  “Fine.” Sky laughed. “Not Groose.” 

  As they landed, he almost missed Legend’s hushed murmur.  “The heck is a Groose?”  

  Naturally when they joined the others, there was some concern when they caught sight of Legend’s bloody leg and Sky’s formerly bleeding nose. Quite the sight they must have made, entering the academy; Sky, face bruised and smeared with his own blood, carrying Legend in his arms, the younger hero scowling and all but glowing pink, blood trailed down his leg and the Master Sword laid across his lap, one hand gripping the sword tightly as he attempted to ignore Fi’s chattering. 

  Jaws had dropped, that was for sure. The youngest three had paled slightly at seeing their favorite vet injured, and Sun had frozen in place at seeing both injured. Time simply sighed and shook his head. “Did the two of you get in a fight?" 

  Sky offered their leader and Sun an apologetic smile. “It was an accident.” 

  “What sort of accident could happen down there?” Sun fussed, rushing over to the two of them and all but scooping a very startled Legend out of her boyfriend’s arms, peering at his bruised nose with a slight pout. “That I can imagine, we bump things all the time, but him?” She nodded down at the hero in her arms, who seemed to have frozen -in true rabbit nature- with surprise. 

  “That’s a carryover from the fight I told you about. He ripped some stitches in the, um, incident we had down there.” He rubbed the back of his neck, abashed. “We didn’t try to kill each other, I promise.” 

 Sun snorted. “I know  that , you’d never, and I expect your reincarnations are the same.” 

  ‘No only reincarnations,’ He wanted to tell her. ‘Some of them are our descendants too’. But saying as much in front of the others would be breaking his promise to Legend, so instead he had waited until Sun had been able to excuse them all to the infirmary. For Hyrule’s sake, they had let the academy healer stitch Legend back up, and treat Sky’s nose, allowing the other heroes to explore Skyloft. Sun stayed with them, however, letting Groose do the honors of the island while she sat with her boyfriend until the healer was finished. 

  The minute the door closed, Sky spun around to face his girlfriend, and wow he loved calling her that! “Guess what!” 

  “We're doing this now?” Legend groaned. 

  Sun glanced from one hero to the other, eyes coming to rest on Sky’s own blue as one pale brow rose in a question, and yeah, that was a Legend like expression, how did he miss that Legend and Sun looked similar? Was it because Legend so rarely smiled, and Sun nearly never scowled? 

  “What is it, Link?” 

  “We have kids.” He gushed, before flushing and pulling back, releasing the hand’s that he had unconsciously gripped. “I mean, we end up having kids, in the future.” He stammered. 

  “Hylia, you’re bad at this.” Legend swore. “He means the two of you parent the royal line of Hyrule.” 

  A smile bloomed on Sun’s face as she reached for her boyfriend’s hands. “That’s wonderful! Did you meet them then?” 

  Sky was practically glowing, and he knew it. He nodded. “Yes, in fact, I did. Actually,” Legend groaned again. “He’s one of them.” He motioned towards the other hero. 

  Sun spun around in surprise. “Really? Is that why-” 

  “My twin sister looks just like you.” Legend stated plainly, eyes fixed on the ceiling as he lay straight on the medical cot. “I thought you were her.” 

  “ Twin !” Sky grinned. “You didn’t say you were her twin!” 

  “How else do you think our mum hid my birth from the kingdom?” Legend asked, gaze shifting to look at his hands. “She couldn’t just say that the baby was gone you know, they would have needed proof.” 

  “But why would she need to hide it?” Sun cocked her head, hair swishing charmingly across her face. 

  “Hyrule doesn’t like male royals, they dirty the bloodline or some shit.” Legend huffed, and Sky realized that the younger hero was avoiding looking at them. “Princes have to marry into the family to be allowed to live.” 

  Wow, oh wow, that was a blow to the stomach. 

  “But why!” Sun’s face screwed into a scowl, and yep, it looked similar to Legend’s. “They have just as much right to life as any other child. “ 

  “Maybe make that a law or something then.” Legend deadpanned. "Most people don’t think that way in my time.” He added softly. 

  “So, they just... get rid of them?” 

  “That’s a nice way to put it.” Legend stated plainly, still avoiding their gazes.  

  “But- They-” Sun took a deep breath and held it for a second, before allowing it to come hissing out from her cheeks, her eyes sparking with a fire that made Sky both love and fear her. “They can’t do that!” 

  “They did, or do, since it’s in the future I guess.” How was Legend so calm about this? 

  “How are you so calm about this?” And there was the concern that Sky knew would appear. 

  “It’s life, it’s how the world works.” Legend shrugged, violet gaze meeting emerald for a brief second before he turned to look back up at the ceiling. “I avoid thinking about it when I can. There's nothing that I can do about it anyways.” 

  “Does Fable know?” Sky questioned quietly, earning a questioning glance from his Zelda. “Fable is Legend’s Zelda, we give them all nick-names to keep them straight, just like we did for ourselves.” He explained. 

  “Like Sky calls you Sun,” Legend interjected. “Because you’re the goddess darned light of his life or some shit.” Sun beamed. “Yeah, Fable does know, she’d the one that told me.” Something like sadness swept over the veteran’s face for a brief moment before he returned to his usual killer-stare. “Mum left a letter explaining it apparently, we found out on our sixteenth birthday, once Fable had power enough to make sure no one caused trouble if they found out.” Salty was hardly strong enough to describe Legend’s expression, although if it was bitterness or sadness Sky wasn’t sure. “She called me over as soon as she found out.” 

  “Wow.” Sun frowned. “So, who’s older?” 

  Legend paled and turned away onto his side, closing his eyes in a mockery of sleep.  “You two have fun being gross, I’m taking a nap now.” 

  The goddess-incarnate only laughed, reaching over to ruffle the pink hair splayed across the pillow before helping Sky to his feet and dragging him from the room. “Guess that means he’s the older twin, huh?” 

  “You already caught on to how he is, huh?” Sky marveled. 

  “Well, I know you,” Sun planted a kiss on his cheek. “And if they’re anything like you, I know that admitting to being the rightful king of Hyrule would make them embarrassed.” 

  Sky froze. “Sweet Hylia!” 

  “Aww!” Sun cooed playfully. “You really think so?” 

  “No -Yes! I just, Legend’s the rightful king of Hyrule!” 

   “You have no proof!”  Legend’s very-much-not-asleep- voice called down the hall.  “Lies, all of it!”  

Chapter Text

  The last few weeks had been hard.  

  Hyrule wasn’t upset at the bonds that had formed between the others, and while he was pretty sure that someone was hiding something regarding the relations between all of them, he wasn’t about to call them on it. They all had secrets that they wanted to keep, and seeing as he himself was hiding a pretty big one, he had no room to go about scolding the  others  for it.  

  Briefly, he wondered if Legend knew at all.  

  Strangely, Legend had been at the center of nearly all of their recent discoveries; he was Time’s descendant apparently -and that had taken forever to figure out, only aided by Twilight’s excited behavior- and he was also Wind’s ancestor in another universe. Add to that that he was related to both Hyrule and Sky and the Traveling hero was beginning to sense a pattern.  

  It had taken more than sixteen years for him to finally learn anything of his own heritage, but between his aunts and the Zeldas he had managed to uncover something of his family’s history, which it turned out was deeply intwined with the history of Hyrule. Aurora had been delighted when they had uncovered his relation to her great-uncle, catching up both himself and Dawn in a tight hug and crying silent tears of joy that made sweet sugar run over his tongue and warmth blossom in his heart.  

  Being deemed the second true prince of Hyrule wasn’t something he really wanted to share with the rest of the Links, but Legend... well, Legend knew something about that too, didn’t he? After all, if not for his mentor, he wouldn’t even exist, much less be related to the two princesses of his time period.  

  And he wanted Legend to know that.  

  He wanted Legend to know, despite the worry that the older hero would be disappointed. It was easy to see that Wind and Legend had drawn closer after discovering their relationship, and whether it be by proxy of being close to Wind, or some other reason, even Wars had taken more time to connect with their Veteran. Hyrule tried not to be jealous, but after the incident on the surface- where Legend had panicked and taken a page out of Four’s book as he sat on the ground muttering and yelling at himself- Hyrule had the sneaking suspicion that Sky and Legend would be spending more time together as well.  

  He would never deny another hero of family, especially of being able to spend time with that family, but Hyrule missed being able to sit next to his mentor during dinner without the heavy bitter-sweetness of Wind’s disappointment filling his throat. He missed being able to walk with his fellow hero at the back of their group and talk with him about his day, or his frustrations and insecurities. More than anything, he missed being able to cuddle up against the older hero on cold nights without feeling like he was intruding on something that no one  thought  he should be part of.  

  Each revelation made it worse, and despite being terrified of Legend’s inevitable disappointment at the revelation he himself would provide, Hyrule couldn’t stand being pushed away from his mentor. Legend would never hate him, and he knew that, and while the pink-haired hero might be  disappointed ,  there  was the chance that at the very least he would let Hyrule near him again, if he knew they were related.  

  Originally, he had no intention of ever spilling his secret, of telling Legend of their connection, but he was willing to sacrifice nearly anything –no, anything- to try and stay within  reach  of his personal hero and ancestor.  

  Thus, while the others continued exploring Skyloft on the morning of their second day there (Twilight gushing quietly to Sky about something called Occa or something, and a historian whose name sounded something like ‘shadow’), Hyrule made his way towards the infirmary to go and see Legend.  

  Doubt rolled in his gut, mushy and tangy at the same time in his mouth, as he stood outside of the door to the room Legend had been allowed. He knew things would change after this, knew that if he entered the room and told Legend, that everything would change. But Legend had promised once that he would always be there for Hyrule. Sure, he was tired and it was after a panicked nightmare on the Healer’s part, but a promise made by Legend was one that was kept,  always . Hyrule trusted the older hero, and he trusted him enough to tell him the truth, even if he was hesitant to do so.  

  Legend would likely be  disappointed , but if it offered Hyrule at least some chance of coming close to his mentor again, he was willing to risk it.  

  Without taking the time to think further, Hyrule raised his hand to knock.  

  The small room was nothing impressive, four beds positioned carefully in the room, each with a side table on each side with an unlit candle resting beside it. A large window provided light enough that the candles seemed rarely used, and warm red curtains hung over it, positioned just so as to prevent sun beams flitting across Legend’s face.  

  The hero in question lay on top of the blankets of one of the beds, propped up against his pillows with a book in hand and a curious expression on his face as he looked over its edge and towards the door, his violet eyes (the color of which had instantly become Hyrule’s favorite after waking to them staring down at him with concern enough times after a rough night) watched the younger hero with curiosity, none of his usual iciness being displaced in their radiant hues.  

  “Everything alright, ‘Rule?”  

  The Healer quirked a nervous smile as he stepped through the door, closing it softly behind him. “Yeah, how you feeling?”  

  Twin brows shot up as Legend stared unblinking in his direction. “Sore mostly, and a tad knackered, but that’s rather par for the course. Why?”  

  A nervous smile flittered across his face. “Just checking.”  

  The book was laid down at the bedside and Legend was staring at him openly. “What’s wrong, remlit have your tongue?”  

  Hyrule coughed, chuckling softly. “No, no, I just- I'm glad you’re okay.”  

  “No thanks to that bloody path.” Came the huffed reply, and Hyrule laughed again, he had missed being able to talk with Legend without someone else hovering about them all the time.  

  “Yeah, no thanks there.” He glanced about the room, absently hoping that his initial scan had missed some sort of chair; there wasn’t, but he supposed that wasn’t all bad, he had trouble sitting still on a good day, and nervousness in no way helped that.  

  “What do you need?” Legend’s tone carried its usual casual gruffness, but Hyrule could taste the underlying fondness, and  oh , how he’d missed that!  

  “Well, you see-”  

  “Don’t beat around the bush, ‘ Rulie ,” Legend scoffed. “If you have something to say spit it out, I won’t throw a wobbly like Warriors if you say something I don’t like.”   

  For a brief moment, Hyrule wondered if Legend was able to taste emotions as well, or if the  older  hero could simply read him like a book.  

  “How close are you and your Zelda?” He blurted. Legend may have asked him to get to the point, but Hyrule couldn’t bring himself to simply admit what he had come about, much less share his secret so blatantly, he had to at least smooth his way first, else he’d be bumbling even worse.  

  Legend’s brows rose higher, disappearing beneath his shaggy hair. “You finally asking that?”  

  “Finally?”  

  “You’ve been no-so subtly dancing about it for some  time  now; don’t think I haven’t noticed.” He shifted, grimacing slightly in pain as his leg moved, swearing softly beneath his breath as he settled again. “So, what do you want to know?”  

  “Will- will you actually tell me?”  

  Legend’s face twists into his usual smirk, but it's a bit softer than it usually is. “Within reason.”  

  Hyrule nodded, shifting his feet as his eyes flitted up to Legend’s face. The veteran scoffed, and reached out to pat the bed at his side. “No need to stand there like a lost cow, ‘Rule. Sit down.”   

  Maybe a bit too quickly, Hyrule darted over and all but catapulted himself onto the bed, startling his mentor as he curled up on top of the sheets, a bright smile on his face as he settled in place. Legend rolled his eyes, but even so, a grin lit his face.  

  Hyrule couldn’t help but note that it somewhat resembled the grin on Sun’s face that morning when she had been teasing Sky.  

  “My Zelda, huh?” Legend shook his head. “She’s okay, I guess. Likes dragging me across the kingdom whenever she can,” The Veteran wrinkled his nose in disgust and Hyrule smothered a giggle at the invasive mage of a rabbit wiggling it’s nose entering his mind. “Ghastly business. Parties, formal events, I’m half glad I had so many adventures, it got me out of so many blasted formal engagements.”  

  “Why does she take you?” Was Legend going to admit to being her brother?  

  “I’m the hero, or some shit like that.” Legend shrugged, stretching out before letting his arms fall along the back of the headboard, one hand drifting down to brush against Hyrule’s shoulder. Discomfort was like a thick cloud about Hyrule’s face as Legend continued dismissively. “It’s ‘proper’ for me to have public appearances and set people at ease or whatever.”  

  “But you don’t dislike her, do you?”  

  “Fable? No. She’s a bother on some days, but she’s not all bad, I guess.”  

  Hyrule giggled. “You care about her, don’t you?”  

  Legend grimaced. “Hyrule, so help me, if you imply that the two of us are a couple or something-” He shuddered.  

  “No! Nothing like that! I mean, you care about her, like-like you care about Wind –no that’s not right.” Hyrule paused, fingers tapping idly at his leg as he thought. “You care about her like you do with us” He cast a furtive glance up at the other  hero's  face. “Like a sibling maybe.”  

  Legend paled.  

  Hyrule had wondered if Legend even knew, and if the other  hadn’t  learned  of  it yet, than he  wasn’t  intending on telling him, but Legend’s expression and the way his eyes darted towards the door, still shut, and then the window, as if looking for listeners in, made him worry that he had stepped too far.  

  “S-sibling?” Legend actually stuttered for a brief second, long ears twitching agitatedly. “No, she’s-”  

  “Are you two actually siblings?” Hyrule pushed himself,  throwing  all  reservations  out the window. Making legend worry or try to redirect the conversation wouldn’t help any, and he really, really wanted to tell his mentor the truth. “Like the history books say?”  

  Hyrule had never in his life seen Legend look  afraid , and the expression was one he hoped to never see again.   

  “You can’t tell Wars.” Came the rasped reply, anxiety pouring off of the hero and brewing sharp and bitter in Hyrule’s mouth. “You can’t tell, you understand?”  

  “Why?” Why would Legend be afraid of this? Sure, Hyrule had expected him to be surprised that Hyrule knew, maybe even upset that the secret was out. He had expected that if Legend somehow  hadn’t  known that he would be startled and deny it. He hadn’t expected the pale  pallor  that washed  over  his friend’s face or the nervous glances that were cast towards the doors, much less the choked whisper that escaped Legend’s throat.  

  “You can’t tell, got it?” Legend snapped, tone and eyes both ice cold, and Hyrule was nodding before he even processed what was said.  

  A sigh escaped the older hero, one hand coming up to run through long pink hair. It had grown over the months of their travel, Hyrule noticed, and with Legend’s hat sitting on the side table, it allowed him to see how the silky strands spilled down to Legend’s shoulders. It looked good really, and he wondered briefly why Legend hadn’t let his hair grow out sooner.  

  “He just...” The Vet frowned, sharp eyes turning to look back at Hyrule. “What do you know of the Princes of Hyrule?”  

   That I am one of them.  “That most of them died young?”  

  Legend scoffed. “Is that what they say? Tosh, ‘course they do.”  

  “Legend-”  

  “They’re killed, Hyrule. The royal knights can’t have the holy line tarnished, and Hylia’s line passes through women.” A huff. “The Zelda’s of the royal family are the ones who can  wield  the goddess’s power. They  have to  be the ones to rule. But if a son is born, well-” Legend turned away, bitterness seeping through his tone and making Hyrule  scrunch  his nose in disgust of the taste. “They have to ensure that only a princess can have the throne.”  

  For a moment, neither spoke.  

  “There’s a prince in my time.” Hyrule offered quietly.  

  Legend turned round again to face him. His features, usually drawn in a smirk or scowl, were painted in sorrow so rarely seen,  strangely  soft and pained at the same time.  

  “He’s seventeen,” Hyrule continued, unable to meet his mentor’s gaze. “He spends most of his time at the palace, but he travels around too.” He paused to let Legend process for a moment. “People have tried to get rid of him, yeah, but-” He huffed a deep breath. “That’s been happening since before anyone even knew.”  

  Legend’s brows were drawn when their eyes met again. “That sounds familiar, and not in a ‘sounds like me”  kind of  way.”  

  Here it was, his  opportunity . Hyrule steeled himself, eyes downcast as he softly  continued . “I’m a prince of Hyrule.”  

  Silence.  

  He was ready for a surprised sound, a scowl, anything, but Legend’s face was blank, and no motion betrayed his thoughts at he stared, blinking slowly, in Hyrule’s direction.  

  “I wasn’t going to tell you at first, I didn’t think you’d want to know.” Hyrule felt the words spilling from his mouth like vomit, and somehow, he  wasn’t  able to stop them. “But then there was the thing with Wind, and Time and- I just really wanted you to know that we’re family too! I mean, I’m not Zelda’s brother like you, I wasn’t even born to the same line but- but my dad was a royal, even if he didn’t know and my aunts said he was related to you and that I was a descendant of the Hero of Legend and since everyone else was telling you I decided you had a right to know and-”  

  “Wait.” Legend cut him off with one raised hand. “You’re what?”  

  “What?” Had Legend missed everything he had just said? “I’m- your descendant.”  

  Legend blinked again. “I had kids?”  

  A nod. “Two, if what Aurora says is right.”  

  “I got married?” Why did he sound so disbelieving?  

  “ ....yes .” Hyrule answered slowly, still frustrated that Legend had spaced out half of what he had just said.  

  “You’re... you’re my descendant?”  

  A nod.  

  “Sweet Hylia...” Legend breathed; voice strained. “I’m so sorry, ‘Rule.”  

  What?  What?  

  “Sorry? What for?”  

  “Everything.” Came the glum reply as Legend turned away.  

  And there it was, the  disappointment  that Hyrule had known would come, the sorrow at realizing how far his line would fall.  

  “It was bad enough I failed your kingdom, but if I failed my own family?” Legend scoffed a shook his head. “’m sorry, ‘Rule.”  

  “I’m sorry too.” Hyrule whispered, and Legend  flinched . Wow, that hurt. “I’m sorry your line turned out the way it did, I know  I'm  not great or-”  

  Legend spun around so fast it nearly gave Hyrule whiplash. “Shut up! I’m not upset with you! Did you think I was?”   

  Hyrule nodded dumbly, shocked at Legend’s sudden change of mood.   

  The veteran huffed, shaking his head. “I’m not upset with you, ‘Rule Anything but! You’re a fantastic hero! I’m just frustrated that you ever had to face that ballyhoo! You being my descendant means I failed my family and-” He shook his head again. “And the fact that I even have one for some reason is frankly surprising. But I’m not upset, not with you anyway.”  

  “You’re not?”  

  “No! Hyrule, you’re one of the most fantastic heroes out there!”  

  “But my kingdom is in ruins...”  

  “And I destroyed an entire dimension!” Legend scoffed. “You’re not special. If anything,  I  messed up your Hyrule, not you! You’re the one who went out and picked the whole thing up and put it back  together  again! You fought Ganon, when you were twelve! And you won! And I hate that it happened, but it doesn’t change that you did an amazing job of it! You’re twice the hero I am!” Legend had turned fully now, hands on Hyrule’s shoulders and eyes flashing in a way that Hyrule wasn’t sure if he should worry about or not.  

  “But- but you saved six countries!” Hyrule barely managed to get the words out, too shocked at Legend’s own words to even think properly.  

  “Yeah, and I murdered the entirety of one of them. I’m not much of a hero, ‘Rule, I’m just some kid who got pulled into shit and hit it back harder than it hit me, I didn’t have a choice! You though! You willingly stepped up, not once, but twice! You saved two princesses, alone! And defeated Ganon; again, alone! Most of us had help of some kind, but you and Wild,” Legend shook his head, hair swishing in his face before he looked up, a manic grin cracking across his features, radiant and like both Sun and the sun itself. “You two didn’t just hit back, you  routed  the enemy and then destroyed anything that was left of them! Give yourself some credit, Hyrule, you’re more than just a hero, you’re a  Legendary Hero .”  

  That was... not what he was expecting, not at all. And Legend was still beaming down at him, hands clasping both of Hyrule’s shoulders, violet eyes twinkling with pride,  pride!  Legend was proud of him! Legend thought he was a hero! Legend, who had been on more quests than any of them, who had been to dozens of countries and saved countless people, who was a legend in Hyrule’s own time, one that others looked up to and wanted to be like; was telling  him  that  he  was a  hero , and not just a normal one, a  legendary  one.  

  The traveler launched himself forwards, tackling his ancestor in a full body hug, tears prickling at his eyes even as a hysterical giggle escaped his lips. “You’re not upset!”  

  “Heck no!” Legend was ruffling Hyrule’s curls almost aggressively.  

  “I thought you’d be upset!” He choked.  

  “Never.” Legend declared, somehow hugging Hyrule so tightly that he found himself almost crushed against his mentor’s chest, and if it wasn’t the best hug that Hyrule had ever received in his life than the traveler didn’t know what was.  

  They stayed like that for  a brief moment , both  nearly hysterical  as they held tightly to each other. And then Hyrule giggled, and Legend chuckled, and before either one knew  it,  they were shaking heavily with laughter that spilled from them, filling the air with the sweet airy taste of joy as they giggled hysterically. Legend’s squeaking laughter only making Hyrule giggle harder as he held tight to his ancestor.  

  Such was the sight that the other heroes walked in on when they came to check on Legend, surprise flitting across all of their faces at seeing the Vet and Hyrule curled up against each other, still chuckling and red-faced, the traces of tears still on their faces as both held on equally tightly to each other.  

  “ You  okay?” Wind asked cautiously.  

  Legend huffed, pulling himself up and gripping Hyrule’s shoulder with a grin. “All good, we just made a little discovery.”  

  “Oh?” Was Sky looking paternal or was that just Hyrule? Both the chosen hero and his Zelda stared at the Legend with fondness that assured him that Sky did, in fact, know about his connection to their vet.  

  “Yeah.” Legend grinned and shook Hyrule lightly. “Apparently Wind has a cousin.”  

  Wind’s face lit up, and just as Hyrule had wanted to earlier, the sailor launched himself at the both of them, tackling Hyrule in a hug.  

  “Really?” Four cocked a brow.  

  “Yeah, apparently I have two heroes for descendants.” Legend smirked pointedly at Hyrule, who flushed in response.   

  “And you decided to actually tell us yourself?” Twilight teased gently.  

  The pink-haired hero scoffed. “People only hide what they fear or dislike, Twi.” He grinned down at a wheezing Hyrule, and Wind, who had finally pulled back to let Hyrule breath again. “And neither apply with these two.”  

  “Do you dislike your journeys then?” Hyrule caught the hushed whisper, and he prayed Legend had been too distracted by Sun’s cooing to hear it, either way, the Vet didn’t respond at all.  

  Sky beamed at them both, and in a similar fashion as Wind, he bounded over up and wrapped the both of them in an embrace that tasted like sweet honey and apple cider. Legend squawked in surprise and Hyrule giggled as he was pressed close to his mentor again. “I’m glad to hear it.” The Chosen Hero intoned softly as Sun came over and joined them, effectively sandwiching Legend and Hyrule both between their two ancestors.  

  “Welcome to the family.” Sun murmured softly in Hyrule’s ear.  

  Hyrule beamed.  

No one noticed Warriors slink from the room and towards the dining hall, and Warriors was glad Time couldn't scold him as he knocked back some much needed liquor.

Chapter Text

  They’ve been wanting to share since they learned about Sky’s connection to the Zeldas.  

  No, they haven’t!  

  They want them to know at least.  

  And what good will that do?  

  It will prove to the others that they aren’t as tangled in their web of a family as the rest of them, and avoid having to carry around any awkward and potentially important secrets. Well-  

  More than anyway at least.  

  They really want to tell them. After all, they’re pretty sure the  others  would be as delighted as he is to know!  

  If they don’t decide they all have headaches and go off to get drunk off their asses over it first, like Warriors does.  

  Kind words! He only uses kind words around himself and the ‘a’ word is hardly appropriate for young minds.  

  It’s their own mind, they already  know  these words.  

  Four huffs a nearly silent groan under their breath and silently loosens  their  headband slightly. The colors are causing chaos in  their  mind, they have been ever since Legend’s breakdown earlier t his  week. The other hero had been talking to himself, or to other people, they aren’t quite sure.  

  But Red has been insisting they come clean, and Vio says that sharing the information will help them maintain their own calm behavior, and a controlled admission and  explanation  will be so much better than nervously waiting for the others to somehow discover it, because Four knows that it will eventually be discovered. Hylia seems keen on outing their secrets, and at least if they offer this one themself, the others will trust them enough to question them about their other secrets.  

  That’s why, after Legend is feeling better and they are able to seek out the danger in Sky’s world,  Four  comes forwards. They aren’t like Hyrule, needing to come forwards to their ancestor and reveal things quietly and away from the others. They don’t have that special connection to anyone of the other heroes. All of them are their brothers, and they all have equal right to know the truth, or at least, part of it. It’s hard speaking about themselves in the singular tense, and they slip up enough that they’re sure their other secrets will spill out eventually, but they are going to avoid that as long as they can.  

  So it is that after the latest battle against the black-blooded monsters, and while the others are sitting drearily around the fire, nursing wounds and slowly sipping food, Four takes the opportunity to speak up when people are least likely to jump on them with hugs or pester them with questions.  

  “We- I have something to share.”  

  Several sets of bluish eyes and one set of brown stare up at them.  

  “As we all know, Sky is related to the Zelda’s and- well,” They cast their swirling gaze on the hero in question. “That means you have a right to know the truth about us- all of us.” They quickly add a gesture around the fire towards the other heroes, but thanks to Blue they maintain a semblance of grace and control as they move. “And ou- my part of that is that I am related to my Zelda.”  

  Legend is looking rather pale, i s he  okay?  

  He’s fine, focus.  

  “We’re cousins,” They  amend . “Dot and I grew up together, and while I’m no prince-”  

  Look! Legend’s really getting pale!  

  Focus, Red! We don’t have time to worry about the Vet’s opinion of us or any of this, not until we’re done.  

  A little gentler please, Blue, but yes, please focus, Red.  

  “Our fathers are distant cousins, so,” They shrug. “I suppose we... have  another  relationship among us.”  

  Oh look, Warriors is paling too! Is he okay?  

  Come to think of it, the poor guy has been drinking a lot more recently, do you think it’s related to recent events, Vio?  

  Almost certainly. He wasn’t nearly this bad until we came to realize that Sky is the father of the royal line, and considering his comment about being cousins with his own Zelda, it’s likely that he realized that they are related to each other. Add to that that the sailor, who Warriors is clearly close with, is related to Legend and he’s probably trying to drown his frustration and confusion with alcohol in order to avoid having to face reality.  

  Thank you! Now, back to business, everyone’s staring at us.  

  And so they were. Eight sets of eyes were blinking incredulously at them, and Warriors was already glancing towards his bag and the flask that was undoubtedly contained within, only  proving  Vio’s hypothesis.  

  “You just- you just were  gonna  tell us? Not make s find out ourselves?” Twilight asks again, only this time he asks Four.  

  They tilt their head in a light shrug. “It’s as Legend said before, you only hide that which you are ashamed of, or that you fear.” Not that they fear the colors, but they suppose that they do fear the others’ reactions to finding out the truth.  

  Twilight seems to accept the explanation, sitting back heavily with a light frown on his face as he absent-mindedly runs his fingers through Wild’s long hair, only prompting their cook to lean closer to his mentor.  

  Cute.  

  That’s- okay, yeah, it’s a bit cute.  

  Agreed.  

  It is a natural interaction between people who are close, not at all unusual-  

  Shut up and admit it’s cute, book-worm.  

  It certainly stirs the heart to warmth.  

  Seriously?  

  If I have to, I’m going to say it in my own words.  

  Great, they think, Vio’s being an ass again, and a smart one at that. But even so, they can recognize the playful attitude and clear fondness in their attribute, so there is no retaliation from the others.  

  Hyrule hums from his seat, not far from where Four are sitting. “That’s right, the Zelda’s are related to Sky too.”  

  “Too?” Wild pipes up with a curious raising of one golden brow.  

  “Yeah, I mean-” Hyrule flushes slightly and rubs the back of his neck- a tell of embarrassment in all of them- “I guess I didn’t really realize that that means that I’m actually related to Sky as well, not just Legend.”  

  Red wasn’t kidding , the Vet really is paling!  

  So he is...  

  “It must be through your mother’s side then.” Legend comments, a bit too stiffly, and his eyes are avoiding looking at Sky or anyone else really.   

  Sky looks sad for a moment, but shoots a glance towards Wars, who has his head buried in his hands.  

   I sense more secrets.  

  Don’t pry Vio, unless you want them looking too closely at us.  

  Green has a point Violet, shut up before you ruin something.  

  Be nice to Vio! But really, Vi, maybe don’t tug that thread, ‘kay?  

  Hyrule stares at Legend incredulously. “My mother wasn’t even Hylian.” He deadpans, and then he balks, as if just realizing that he had spoken those words aloud. But it’s too late, the others are already pushing forwards, and in their own mind Vio is rattling off possibilities based on everything from Hyrule’s fingernails to his diet.   

  “Your mother wasn’t Hylian?”  

  “What was she?”  

  “How come you look Hylian then?”  

  The questions continue, and while Four themselves don’t speak, they do watch and think and wait for answers.  

  “Enough.” Time’s voice is cold and commanding, but not unkind. “Hyrule doesn’t have to tell us anything he doesn’t want to.”  Hyrule smiles up at their collective father figure, but flushes and rubs his neck again, shaking his head with a small smile. “It’s okay, you were bound to find out sooner or  later,  I guess. And what Four and Legend said is right, why hide it?”  

  Legend’s smile is strained, but it’s a smile, and that’s more than he usually grants people.  

  “So,” Hyrule stared up at them through his thick lashes, dark eyes nervous and vulnerable, but open in the way that Hyrule always is. “My mom is a great fairy. Yes,” He smiles slightly at Wind, who practically hurls himself across their shared ancestor to get closer to his cousin, undoubtedly brimming over with questions. “That means I’m part fairy, and yes, I can turn into one when I want. I’m not going to do it now  though,” He  asserts, eyes darkening slightly. “It’s not as easy for me as it is for some others, and it takes a lot of energy.”  

  And that makes sense, they’ve just fought a long and arduous battle, none of them are up to anything more than chatting around the campfire and taking turns on watch for the night. It’s fair that Hyrule want to save any potential displays for when he has more energy. And when he does, if he does, they will most certainly take the opportunity to gather any information they can. They’ve never met a half-fairy before, and they somehow doubt that they ever will again. Hyrule is likely a very rare sort of person, but then again, so are they.  

  It’s comforting to see the others reacting so acceptingly, it gives them hope that when they will eventually be forced to share their own secrets that maybe the others won’t hate them for it.  

  “Do you have powers at all?” Sky presses gently.  

  Hyrule nods. “That’s how I can do healing and summon lightning and everything. Zel- I mean, Aurora, says that normal  Hylian’s  can’t really do those things, and mom mentioned that it’s likely because of her that I can at all.”  

  “Mom?”  

  “Your mother’s still alive?”  

  And isn’t that a sad question, Red hums softly. They are all so accustomed to the idea of having no parents at all that the idea of even one of them still having any sort of blood-family alive in their own time is shocking.  

  But Hyrule beams, practically glows as he nods his head, and Four could swear that they see bits of fairy dust shake loose from the Traveler’s curls as he does so. “Yeah! My mom’s the Great Fairy of- well, if we go by Wild’s slate, I guess it’s the Faron region!”  

  Wild smiles and leans forward, careful not to displace Twilight’s hand as the older hero remains lost in his own mind. “What’s her name? Maybe I’ve met her, fairies live a long time after all!”  

  Hyrule giggles. “I doubt it, Wild. She’s been alive since before Legend’s time. Fairies are long-lived, but we aren’t immortal.”  

  “Still,” Wild shrugs, a sheepish grin still on his features. “It would be cool to ask my fairies if they ever knew her.”  

  And Hyrule’s eyes light up at that, and Four can almost imagine fairy wings fluttering in excitement behind him. “That would be amazing! Her name is Navi! Navi of the  Ancient  Forest, she’s-”  

  And a sound Four never expected to hear cuts through the conversation. All eyes turn, and the colors fall silent as they stare as one at the old man, who’s choked sob cut off their conversation.  

  They’ve seen Time open both eyes only once, when Wind revealed the truth of their timelines, and when they split; at that time, his face was full of horror, maybe even fear, but now, now the old man looks broken. His eyes are filled with an almost childlike sort of shock and pain, and he  grips at  his chest as though he’s been struck.  

  Wild, ever the concerned youngster that he is, moves forwards towards their leader, disturbing Twilight from his musings in the process as he gently approaches Time with an almost pained breed of concern written over his own features.  

  “Navi?” Time chokes out harsh and breathless, but not yet tearful as he looks up at their healer.  

  “Not again,” They hear  Wars  moan softly  under  his breath, the Captain is clearly concerned, but overwhelmed more than anything, and he looks and acts, if what Vio says is right, as though he is about to start on his flask now, in front of the others with no care as to the looks he’ll likely receive from Twi and Time.  

  Hyrule stares, but understanding dawns quickly across his features as he nods, slowly. “Do, do you want to talk about it? Somewhere else?” He offers, and Time nods quickly as he pulls himself to his feet, absently waving Wild and Twilight off with a muttered. “I’ll be fine.”  

  The two set off into the forest, and as they do, our wonders to themselves what this all means, and if Time and Hyrule are about to come back and reveal that they too are somehow connected.  

  As the two heroes disappear from the vision of the others, and Twilight stares after his mentor like a lost puppy (which is an apt descriptor when Four thinks about it), Warriors reaches into his knapsack and removes something that Four would think was his water canteen if he didn’t know the truth about how Warriors manages his stress.  

  It’s a shocking turn of events. One that wrenches his heart and tears it into pieces that Malon had worked so hard to stitch back  together  again years ago.  

  Discovering that Legend and Twilight both had to suffer for his mistakes hurt, knowing that he had abandoned not one but two timelines made his shoulders sink with the weight of  guilt  he thought he had left  behind  after saving Termina.  

  But at least those things made sense.  

  He knew why the timelines were split. He understood why Ganondorf had come and attacked, and why in some times he had fallen. He understood that Hylia needed a Chosen Hero and that she had no qualms about forcing a child to do her work, as long as she could look at them and see an adult. Those things had reasons, concrete reasons that he could analyze and process, and despite disliking them, he could understand them to a point.  

  But this wasn’t like that.  

  Navi never gave him a reason why she left.  

  He never learned where she went or what happened to her. He didn’t know if it was his fault, or if it was an accident.   

  He didn’t know!  

  Navi was something he dared not touch, a thought he allowed to simmer in the back of his mind when he was home and distantly wishing that she would come back, that she would come and he could introduce his mother to his wife, and show her the life he had built for himself and the wonderful home that he had found with the people who loved him despite his oddities. She was a distant dream even then, however, and when he left the ranch on this adventure, and  every time  since when their visits had to end, he would allow the little blue fairy to flitter into the back of his mind when he would avoid thinking of her whenever possible.  

  Because it never stopped hurting that she left him behind.  

  And now he learned that Hyrule, his fellow hero and their loyal healer, was also his... his brother, in more ways than simply spirit.  

  Navi had left him behind, and she had made a home. She had met some Hylian and had Hyrule, and she had raised him and taught him in a cave, and she had let him go out and become a hero.  

  ...wasn’t that familiar?  

  Yet it was horribly unfamiliar, and  heart-wrenching , to discover that Navi had not only left him behind, but had done so in search of someone and something else.  

  Was he not good enough? Was he a bad son? Sure, there had been times when he had forgotten to let her out of his hat when he was traveling, or when he hadn’t paid attention to her when she said to watch out or to listen to her, but she had always been saying that and it was natural that he had come to tune it out, right? Oh  Farore , this was his fault, wasn’t it? She had left him behind and let him struggle because he didn’t appreciate everything that she did for him, and because he never listened! She had gone off and made a new family for herself, one with a hero who hadn’t left the world to burn for seven years, a hero who would listen to her and do as she  said . A hero who wouldn’t pout and hide in the tall grass, or refuse to let her out of his hat when he was tired or annoyed.  

  “Time?”  

  Baby blue met silky brown, and Time could almost feel himself trembling.  

  “Are you okay?”  

  And he wanted to say yes, he wanted to assure the younger hero that he would be fine, that this wasn’t something to be worried about or fear, because he could see the fear and concern that shone in those twin chocolate pools, and he wanted nothing more than to wipe it away. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t even comfort his fellow hero when the younger was scared, Navi was right to leave!  

  “I-”  

  Hyrule’s eyes glinted with worry, and despite everything Time found himself answering truthfully.   

    “No, no I’m not.”  

   “You know my mom.” It wasn’t a question.  

  Time nodded slowly, lowering himself to sit lest he tumble down, his balance was poorly already with his injuries from their battle, and standing with this load on his shoulders was a chore even when he was healthy.  

  “How?”  

  For the first time since meeting the healer, Time averted his eyes. “She-” His voice lowered into a strangled whisper. “She’s my mom too.”  

  And he could feel Hyrule stiffening, almost taste the disbelief in the air. Navi once said that fairies can taste emotions, and while he was neither  Fairy  nor Kolkiri, he had been raised amidst both, and exposed since infancy to their auras and powers; it was no surprise really that he had gained a few of his own. Malon would tease and say it was such a power that kept him looking so young, but really, being raised by an immortal tree and small forest people meant he was unlikely to age and change like normal Hylians.  

  “She’s...your mom too.” Hyrule seemed to labor at the words, speaking almost painfully slowly as he stared at Time, understanding dawning on his face. “She mentioned you. She said I was named after you, her first son. The one the trees gifted her.”  

  His heart wrenched further at the words.  

  “She said you were lost a long time ago.”  

  Another tear.  

  “That you left her behind.”  

  And there- what?  

  “ I  left  her ?” Their eyes met again; confusion apparent in both gazes.  

  Hyrule settled down on the grass before him, eyes strangely grave for the young boy. “Time, you died in my world, she lost her first child to Ganon.” His voice was soft, gentle, and suddenly Time felt as if he was again a child sitting before the Great Deku tree and being told of the world beyond and the evils that it housed. “She watched you die, Time.”  

  “She left me behind.” He didn’t whimper, but his mind was slipping and he knew if he wasn’t careful that he would soon be lost in the depths of the hell that was his own mind. Time travel changed people, and being aged and sent back and trapped in time loops gave him no time to truly recover. There were still days when his child’s mind would take over, although rare, and he would be floundering for answers and searching vain for his mother's voice to guide him back to reality again.  Tatl , Tael and Malon had all aided him in their own ways, but they were strangers to his child-mind, strange fairies and  Hylian  that he didn’t remember and didn’t understand.  

  “I don’t know why she did that,” Hyrule’s vice was slow and even. “But my mom, my Navi-” And it hurt  so much  to hear  anyone  else claim his fairy and mother. “-she would never do that. She mourned you for years, Time. Centuries even. She said that the only reason she ever allowed  Hylian’s  to come near her again was because she knew she needed their emotions and offerings to remain alive. And even then, she didn’t connect with anyone again until she met- until she met my father.”  

  Time took a deep shuddering breath.  

  “I know she isn’t the same as your Navi,” Hyrule murmured softly. “But, when we come to my Hyrule next, would you like to see her?”  

  Time’s eye shot up to meet those of the younger hero.  

  “I know she’d love to see you, know that you lived in another time, that she found happiness somewhere. I know it isn’t the same as seeing you own Navi again but-” The healer was cut off as Time engulfed him in a warm hug.  

  “I’d love that, Hyrule. Thank you.” And while there was sob in Time’s voice, and a slight dampness in his eyes, and while Hyrule’s heart beat fast in his chest with worry and nervousness, neither mentioned the tastes in the air or the sensations under their fingertips, and instead the two brothers, the children of the great Fairy Navi, held each other tight in comfort, and let their hearts slow and their tears dry until the air tasted of warmth and contentment sat heavy on their tongues.  

  Only then did they part, sad smiles on their faces, but smiles none-the-less, and return to their camp.  

  Upon returning, they found Warriors sulking and Four pouring out a flask of very strangely smelling liquid that Time deemed it best to ignore for the time being.  

Chapter Text

  Warriors would like to know where the nearest tavern is, not that he’s going to run there right away, but after their most recent world switch into Hyrule’s Hyrule, he knew that some sort of non-sense was impending in the new world, and he wanted to be prepared, especially after Four had confiscated his flask. He did, of course, know that Wind/mini-grandpa carried a flask, Grandfather had mentioned before when recounting his journeys that ever since his travels had started, he had taken to carrying one that he would have a sip from when the day had been long or he had had to face a particularly difficult enemy. Said flask was undoubtedly concealed somewhere where Twilight and Time wouldn’t find it, and while the last thing Warriors wanted to do was dig through his ancestor’s things, he was willing to step that far if he had to .  

  So far, however, things weren’t going too poorly, and Warriors was beginning to hope that they might somehow be able to avoid their regular idiocy for once (not that he was  holding  out any actual hope for that though).  

  Their arrival into Hyrule’s Hyrule (they really needed a new name for the place because calling it that was an actual nightmare) had landed them where they were now, a place that caused Warriors no annoyance and was in fact, rather refreshing; the middle of an enemy camp. It was like the war he had fought back home, being thrust into the middle of battle with no preparations, and while he had never thought that it would actually be comforting, it was strangely pleasant for the most surprising thing at present to be the enemy’s tactics, which itself wasn’t that surprising considering how many sorts of enemies and tacticians he had faced over the last seven years.  

  At present, they were engaged in a fierce battle against a group of assorted beasts, all of which were targeting Hyrule for some reason that Warriors hoped was simply due to the youngster’s reputation in this world and not because of anything else –oh Hylia please don’t make it something else! He just can’t take it if it’s because Hyrule is the only thing stopping them from conquering the world or some shit. Not that that would be  too  unusual really, what with the nonsense Warriors saw every day, but he really just wanted something to be able to be chalked up as some good  old-fashioned  hatred for the enemy with no addition intentions.  

  As was, Legend and Hyrule were fighting back-to-back, as they commonly did, although seeing Sky darting about them and helping to ward off enemies was unusual, as the Chosen Hero commonly fought alongside Four and tried to stay out of the way of the other two. Not now however, and Warriors quickly pushed that to the back of his mind. Forget curiosity, he wasn’t poking at anything that didn’t slap him first, and if there was something there than he simply  did not want to know.  

  In a similar fashion, Wind was acting as a sniper, and most of his arrows, recognizable by their unique fletching, were protruding from enemies centered around the trio. Strangely enough, the entire battle seemed to consist of everyone trying to watch out for each other and keep enemies from injuring the  others , leading to the receiving of several injuries on the  protector's  part in some cases.  

  As far as he could tell, from the edge of the battle where he was focusing on picking off the enemy archers, Wild watching his back, the cycle went something along the lines of Legend watching out for Hyrule, Sky guarding Legend, Wind covering all three of them from his perch in the trees, Four at his side, while Hyrule shot blasts of lightning at anyone who came to close to the archers. Twilight was watching out for Sky and Legend, and Time was, as usual, watching out for his pup.  

  Naturally of course, Warriors himself was watching out for Time. The older hero might have aged some since their last adventure together, but Warriors could never see anything but the smart- alek  youngster who had been the bane of the battlefield and their own camps, feared by anyone who valued their kneecaps and wanted to keep their pants up (that was a precious memory and not something he ever intended on forgetting, although he had purposefully pushed any pranks played against himself into the furthest reaches of his mind where he would hopefully never see them again, but who was he kidding? Mask’s face haunted his nightmares some nights and when he woke, he would be lunging for a mirror and checking all his clothes and armor to ensure that nothing was missing or damaged).  

  Why Wild was watching his back was  anybody's  guess, but considering no one else was currently doing it he wasn’t really questioning that either, simply thankful that someone was looking out for him, even if it was the local arson child.  

  Blades clashed and enemies fell, Sky cried out in pain and Twilight was leaking rather large quantities of blood, but they were currently winning, and with Wild and Wars working together to pick of any of the enemies on the outskirts of the battle, all of which were caught unsuspecting and thus ended quickly, it looked like the battle might be over quite soon.  

  And when it was, and Hyrule was fussing over the others in the way he always did after a battle, and Wind and Wild were busy looting the monsters’ corpses -cleared first of all because they were always the worst about hiding injuries- and all the while Legend was working with Time to help wrap wounds while Hyrule treated everything too life threatening or overly concerning. Warriors himself, after being cleared, sat with Four and helped to clean and care for the group’s weapons. He wasn’t a healer, and while his work would do in a pinch, everyone present would be far better off letting the more experienced heroes tend to their injuries. No, Warriors’ strength was with weapons, so he sat with the smithy and attended to those, attending first to his own blade before moving on to the much more taxing and time-consuming task of tending to Wild’s.  

  Seriously, how was the kid this bad at weapons  maintenance ?  

  He shot a look in the direction of the youngster, surprised to see how Wild flushed and ducked his head, shame emanating from his frame as he and Wind, now even more soaked with blood than they had been before, returned to the edges of the camp.  

  ‘ Sorry.’  Wild signed, head still ducked. ‘ Not good, can’t-’  he paused a moment and shook his head.  ‘Not remember.’  

 And dang, didn’t that make him think of the new recruits who came in with little to no knowledge of how to handle, much less clean, a sword. Warriors found himself shaking his head, but scooching aside and patting the ground next to him, familiar words falling from his mouth in a well-used drawl. “I’ll show you then, alright soldier?”  

  Wild’s eyes lit up at the offer, and the youngster was plopping himself on the ground beside Warriors, earning looks from Hyrule, Time and Legend that all echoed a sort of cautious but approving look before they returned to what they were doing.  

  Wow, this kid really had them all wrapped around his scarred little fingers, huh?  

  “Now, we start be wiping away all this blood and dirt and stuff, sharpening and  polishing  will come later, but they do no good if the blades dirty. Watch closely, ‘kay?”  

  And Wild did watch closely, eyes trailing after Warrior’s hands for a brief moment before the older hero passed the younger the soiled blade. “Now you try it, I’ll show you how with Twilight’s blade, yeah?”  

  And dang, if the look Twilight was shooting him wasn’t a combination of desperate thanks and relief, although he wasn’t sure if it was meant as relief and thankfulness for helping Wild or for cleaning the Ordon Sword from the mess Twilight had made it into. Probably both really.  

  “Well, that’s the best I can do.” Hyrule broke the relative silence of the camp as he sat back on his heels, eyes pained and shoulders drawn with exhaustion as he looked at the still open wound in Twilight’s side.   

  Dang!  How  hard was the rancher hit for Hyrule to be unable to do more?  

  “Is there a fairy fountain nearby here?” Wild called out softly, which meant he wasn’t feeling so awkward and embarrassed that he needed to sign anymore, that was good.  

  Hyrule’s face lit up bright enough that Warriors found any doubt he had about the kid’s relation to fairies melting away. “Yeah!  There is ! Mom lives close by, and it’s only a few hours walk to my cave!”  

  Smiled overtook the faces of all present. Legend was wrapping Hyrule in a tight side  hug  and Time’s eye sparkled with a sort of bitter-sweet joy as he helped his protégé to his feet. “What are we waiting for then? Let’s go see mom.”  

  Warriors choked as he realized that –oh yeah- Time had a fairy when he was a kid and had mentioned that his mum’s name was Navi, how had he forgotten that?  

  But then Wild was pounding him on the back with a concerned expression and Warriors was doing everything he could to stay upright because  dang , that kid was strong! Maybe it wasn’t that his weapons were all in bad condition, maybe he was just too much of a beast for the blades to handle! But hey! At least Wars wasn’t choking anymore, and rather than staring at him, everyone was already going about their packing and planning, all too used to Warriors’ recent odd behavior to really notice it anymore. Except Wild, who still worried far too much about everyone and making sure they weren’t dying or hurting in any way, and was very careful about helping the older hero to his feet and to gather up the weapons that had been laid out around them.  

  Four snatched up his blade with a steely glare before either of them could step within four feet of it, but that was also normal, and the Smith calmed instantly afterwards, bending down and helping them to collect the now cleaned and sharpened blades and distribute them to the appropriate holders.  

  Time was helping Twilight to mount Epona, and Sky was lifting a very tired Hyrule into his arms, despite the half-hearted glare that Legend was shooting his way as the pink-haired hero limped alongside them, still struggling with his injury from the battle in Sky’s own Hyrule. In the meantime, Wind was packing up extra equipment, joined shortly by Four after handing over the Phantom Sword.  

  Part of him reminded Warriors that he should be helping more, but he was utterly spent after the adrenaline crash from the battle and the should-have-been-obvious realization that Hyrule and Time shared a mother... somehow.  

  The journey out to... it was either Hyrule’s cave –why did he have a cave? Where was his Hylia-blessed  house? -  or Navi’s fountain, was relatively uneventful. They did run into a few chu- chus  and a like-like that Legend seemed to take especial pleasure in destroying, backed the entire time by Hyrule’s loopy cheers, but otherwise the four-hour journey was actually almost peaceful, considering the nearly haunted feel of the forest and the spooky sounds that filled the air around them.  

  Strangely enough, Twilight and Legend both seemed rather at home with, although still somewhat cautious of, their environment, and once Sky had to at last pass Hyrule’s weight onto Time, who had much better stamina and less trouble breathing, the Chosen Hero had taken to playing some sort of song that he said was blessed by the goddess and thus would help to protect them.  

  As it turned out, Hyrule’s cave and Navi’s fairy fountain were one and the same, and upon entering the cavern the collected heroes found themselves bathed in a blue light that made Wild suddenly clutch at Warrior’s arm with all the ferocity and strength of a dead-hand attempting to pull themselves from the ground. Wild’s hand was even startlingly cold, although not nearly to the extent of a dead-hand, but enough to make Warriors turn from watching Hyrule greet his mother to ensure that Wild was still breathing.   

  He wasn’t.  

  In fact, he looked almost deathly pale.  

  Fingers dug deeper into his skin, and Warriors found himself darting a glance between the other heroes, very much wrapped up in meeting the Great Fairy who was Hyrule and Time’s mother, and the young hero at his side who seemed to be descending into either a memory or a panic attack.  

  It wasn’t hard to determine what the proper course of action would be, especially when Wild’s legs started to go out from beneath him, and Warriors found himself scooping up the newest hero in his arms and carrying him back out of the cave in the hopes that it would help whatever was happening stop, or at least not happen again when the long-haired hero came to  again .  

  Hyrule’s mind had been fuzzy since the battle, and while he had been aware and alert enough to direct his fellow heroes from his place in Sky’s arms or from Time’s back, he had still been too fuzzy to tell when they had moved him from one to the other, or to be worried when Legend, who was still injured both from their previous battle and their latest, sprang forwards to attack a like-like on his own and with none of the others even stepping up to back him up. Had he been properly in his own mind, we would have scolded either his ancestor or the others. As was however, he had been giggling and cheering Legend on, and when at last they reached his  cave,  he found himself smiling brightly, his cheeks practically glowing as he reached out towards the fairy fountain.   

  “Mama! I brought Time!”  

  And there she was, Navi, the great fairy, rising up from her place in the fountain, blue water cascading from her form as she opened eyes of a shade remarkably similar to Time’s own, although lit in a luminescence that no  Hylian  could achieve through means natural or unnatural (although it was remarkably similar to the lights on Wild’s slate now that he thought about it). And the bright blue rested on him, and then on Time, and then they were filling with tears as two great hands with fingers almost too long and thin caught up the two heroes and pulled them close to the edge of the fairy pool as Navi herself moved closer, wrapping them both –Hyrule still on Time’s back- in a hug that managed to be full of emotional warmth despite the cool sensation of the Great Fairy’s robes against their skin and armor.  

  Hyrule found himself burying his face in the soft blue of his mother, the ever-present question of why none of her color had passed to him passing through his mind again as he soaked in her presence, healing both to the body and the heart. Beneath him, Time seemed to be  similarly  relaxing, soft sobs shaking the older heroes frame as continued to hold Hyrule’s legs, supporting the younger hero, but burying his face in their mother’s robes with a strangled sob.  

  “My sons.” And Mama’s voice held a sob too as she hugged them tightly, before pulling back and looking down at Time. “You have questions, and I do as well, but first,” She cast a pained look towards the other heroes. “Allow me to tend to your other family and their wounds.”  

  And  so  she did. Sweeping them up in her hands and bestowing them with water from her pool, gentle kisses and brief flutters of her fingers as she healed their wounds. The whole time, Time and Hyrule sat at the edge of her pool. And once the other heroes had left, many of them, Twilight especially, passing soft smiles over their shoulders as they left.  

  The moment they were alone, Hyrule was removing his tunic and diving into the cool sweetness that was his mama’s fountain, letting the smaller  fairies  flit about him as he floated on the surface. Surprise filled him as Mama motioned for Time to do the same, and he found himself further surprised as Time followed the instruction without hesitation, stripping his armor and tunics and splashing down into the water in a way that sent water droplets flying up into the air, making the  other  fairies scold and mama laugh in a way that was painfully bittersweet, while Time’s own laughter, caught in the same pained tones, sounded alongside.  

  “I’ve missed this. Both of you, either of you, swimming with me.”  

  But Hyrule knew Mama meant that for Time, so he didn’t answer. Let them have their talk, and he would swim and regain his strength in the pool while they did.  

  “Me too.” Time  breathed;  his single eye cast up to look at mama. “You’ve changed.”  

  Mama laughed, soft and sad, like she always did when Hyrule said something funny or did something foolish yet endearing for some reason. “You did too, Link.”  

  And Time nodded, smile bitter. “It’s been a long time, and Hylia wasn’t done with me just because I was alone.”  

  Mama’s face fell, and she was sinking down into the pool to be at eye level with Time. “Why were you alone, Link? Why was I-”  

  “You left.” Time answered, words and tone sharp and coated with pain that attempted to burry itself under the weak smile he tried to offer, but was driven back up by the hard surface of suffering that acted like armor around the older hero. “We beat Ganon, we sealed him away, and  Zelda  sent me back,” mama gasped and clucked her tongue, doubtlessly disapproving of something that Time had just said. “And when I put the Master Sword back-” Time’s voice broke in a sob. “You just... flew away.” And Time was sobbing in a way that Hyrule had never expected to see in all of his life, and he was caught between wanted to swim over and hug the man, and swim in the other direction and give him his space.   

  Sorrow, bitter and sharp like sour berries drifted across his tongue made stronger my Mama’s own tears as she pushed forwards and caught Time in her arms, pulling the sobbing her to her chest as great tears dropped down and created waves in  the  water.  

  “I’m so sorry, Link.” And despite the fact that she and the fairy that Time remember were not the same, she apologized on the behalf of her other self, because while she couldn’t understand what would have driven her to abandon her child -her first child, even though he hadn’t been  kolkiri  like she had thought he would be- especially when he had been thrust back through time again and into the body of a child, she knew that the reason must have been something that would only make Link suffer worse, and the possibilities there were frightening and painful in a way she could never bring herself to burden him with.  

  “Why?” Came the question from the tearful hero, and Time was staring up at their mother with  both  eyes, making the great fairy’s aura waver with shock and  horror  at the state of her son’s face.   

  “It was not me who chose to leave,” Mama whispered sadly. “In my time, in this world, I was left behind.”  

  And Time seemed to realize again that in this world, he had done the leaving, and that he had died and left their mama alone. The Hero  of Time’s face bore a sorrow and frustration that Hyrule could feel ringing about his own mind, despair at never truly finding peace with what had happened, at knowing that there would ever be any real answers, despite seeing Mama again after so very long.  

  “I’m sorry.” Time’s voice was almost like that of a child as he  buried  his face in Mama’s robes.   

  “It’s good to hear that you saved your world.” mama whispered, and Time pulled back, nodding with a bitter smile. “I did, and another one as well.”  

  “Is that how,” Mama motioned to the markings on Time’s face, and as the two seemed to have moved past the worst of the conversation, Hyrule let himself drift closer to hear  their   conversation , he was curious about the tattoos as well. “This happened?”  

  Time’s expression was unreadable, but mama smiled down at him as though he was an open book to her, and he likely was. “Not exactly. I fought the moon, met a god, destroyed another evil force, and was sent back to a  world  that knew nothing of any of it, again.”  

  Hyrule winced. Time said it with such a casual air, but he could only imagine what it must have been to suffer through two adventures and never have anyone remember either of them.  

  “This is just a side effect from something related. The god I mentioned got a bit testy.”  

 Mama frowned and looked up as if she wanted to challenge whatever god Time spoke of, but the older hero simply shook his head. “I pushed my boundaries and took things to far, he acted out of no cruelty.” A strange expression passed over the older hero’s face as his fingers passed over the markings in question. “It was a warning, to protect, not to harm.”  

  Mama nodded, settling back into the pool and letting Time float at the top while she rested, watching the two of her sons with a bitter-sweet smile. “And what has become of you since, Link?”  

  And Time smiled, and Hyrule knew in an instant what would come out of his mouth. “Do you remember Malon?”  

  “The little farm-girl who called you ‘fairy-boy’?” Mama quirked a brow.  

  “That’s the one. We’re married now.” He flashed the ring in a way that was undeniably proud, if not a bit giddy.   

  Th great fairy’s eyes glowed as she surged forwards to look at it. “Look at that! Good for you, Link! You actually learned to talk to a girl!” Time blushed and Hyrule found himself giggling at how much it displayed how close the two really were, despite being divided so by time and space.   

  “Yes, well.” Time averted his gaze, his bad eye closed again,  it’s  pale orb hidden beneath the lid. “Turns out we also had a few kids.”  

  Mama blinked in surprise.  

  “Twilight, and apparently Legend, and both my descendants in two of the timelines I apparently created. And Wind, the sailor, he’s Legend’s descendant from another timeline altogether.”  

  “Legend is the one with the pink hair, right, Link?”  

  “Yes.”  

  “I remember him. Had a bad habit of dropping his weapons when I first met him.” Both heroes stared up at her in surprise. “He was honest about it all though, and quite apologetic.” her face twisted into a sad expression as she stared out towards the caves  entrance . “He’s changed since then, not the same bright faced child he was when Ganon first  reemerged .”  

  “He’s been on five adventures since then.” Hyrule murmured softly.   

  Mama’s face fell, a scowl forming on her features as she swore quite impressively at the goddesses and their nasty tendency to choose children for their work, making Hyrule stare up at her in shock and Time smirk.  

  They continued talking for some time after that, soaking in the fairy spring while recounting adventures both old and new to their mama, and her telling of events that had occurred between their two lives during the several hundred years that she had spent first wandering the forests and then eventually settling in an abandoned spring that she had made her own. It was all very relaxing, and apparently freeing for the long-estranged mother and son, and if Hyrule found out more about Time in those few short hours than he had in all of their journeys together well, he promised to never tell the others. That promise earned him the true story behind the moon comment, and in turn he shared the truth of his own adventures, even going so far as to transform for Time to see, earning a startling chuckle out of the older hero. But then it was time to say goodbye to Mama, and they both were getting up and gathering their things and waving goodbye to Mama with promises to return as soon as possible before heading back out of the cave and towards the other waiting heroes.  

  The others really hadn't taken to very long inside of the cave, but Twilight’s expression at seeing Wild curled up in Warrior’s arms, grip to tight on the older knight for him to possibly have set his charge down, was enough to make you think that Twilight felt he’d abandoned Wild for six years and only just  remembered  him.   

  “Is he okay?” Wind asked, leaning over to look at his friend, Legend and Sky exchanging glances with each other as Twilight darted forwards, now fully healed, to check on his cub.  

  “I think so,” Warriors offered one of his signature smiles, freeing one hand to gently ruffle his mini-grandpa's curls. “I think it’s probably just a memory, he froze up when we went inside the cave and he was acting  kinda  strange, so I just brought him out here until it wore off. He calmed down almost immediately, but he hasn’t been responsive.”  

  “ Shit .” Twilight breathed, catching the attention of all present. The Rancher never swore if he could help it, and doing so meant that things were more than a little not good. “Oh course- how did I miss that?”  

  “Miss what?” Legend demanded, violet snapping to indigo that burned into the back of Twilight’s head.  

  “The lights! Wild hates blue light, sets him off every time, I should have remembered!”  

  “Blue light?” Wind cocked a brow. “But his  Skeikah  Slate has blue lights, and he doesn’t mind those.”  

   Twilight  shook his head. “Trust me, it took him months to get to that point, but a room -or even worse, a cave- full of blue light? Yeah,” The Rancher ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. “That’s sure to set him off.  Danggit ! I should have  thought  about that!”  

  The others all calmed, and Warriors released a deep sigh. This was just the norm for Wild, and while that wasn’t good, at least it wasn’t worse. At the very least, when the kid woke up  again  he would have them all there to comfort him if he needed it, although... Warriors narrowed his eyes. “Where are Time and Hyrule?”  

  Legend jerked a thumb over one shoulder towards the cave mouth. “Stayed behind to talk to the Great Fairy.”  

  “That is their mom after all,” Sky smiled softly. “Even if it’s hard to believe. I imagine they would want to catch her up on all that’s been happening since she saw them last.”  

  Wind scowled. “That’s confusing as heck! I thought that Time was Legend’s ancestor, but he’s the brother of Legend’s descendant, Din what?”  

  Legend stopped and stared down at the sailor. “Say what now?”  

  “Time’s Hyrule’s brother and it’s weird?”  

  “No... the other thing.”  

  “Oh, Time’s your ancestor.” Wind paused, then squinted up at the pink-haired hero. “Didn’t you know that.”  

  And pink wasn’t just the color of Legend’s hair, his cheeks flushing bright in contrast to the dark look in his eyes. “You mean to tell me that our leader is the goddess-darned Fallen Hero who  wrecked  my Hyrule and left it to die!?”  

  And of all the times in the world, Time and Hyrule chose to emerge that very minute, as Legend was scowling darkly and stomping away, Sky at his heels attempting to calm him down, and Four shaking his head slowly while Wind and Warriors exchanged a glance.  

  “Where’s Hyrule?” Twilight, oh so sensible and calm Twilight, asked as his mentor emerged from the cave mouth.  

  Time smirked and motioned to the bright light bobbing about his head, one which flew over to hover in Twilight and Warriors faces, giving them a clear view of a very small person in a petal pink dress. “Hey guys!”  

  Wind, and indeed, all present, started in surprise.  

  “You really are a fairy...” Four breathed softly, hand reaching up gentle as could be and allowing Hyrule to settle on it.  

  “Yeah.” Hyrule’s glow wavered for a moment, his wings folding behind him as he looked up at the heroes around him. “It’s still okay though, right?”  

  Warriors grinned down at him. “My best friend during the war was a fairy, Hyrule, you’ll have to turn into something way weirder for any of us to  actually  mind much.”  

  The tiniest of smiles nearly split Hyrule’s face, but his eyes sparkled in a way that they simply couldn’t have done had he been in  Hylian  form, and it made the rest of them grin in return.  

  “Where’s Legend?” The small fairy asked, darting about again in search of his mentor, and pausing at seeing Sky and Legend downhill from their gathering place, the older hero attempting to wrap the younger in a hug and the Veteran shrugging him off almost reluctantly, as if he didn’t really want to but at the same time had an image to maintain. Sky seemed to see through that though, and pulled the smaller hero into his arms with a gentle, if not somewhat sad smile. Hyrule couldn’t hear them at the moment, but it was clear that his mentor was upset, and with a whisper under his breath and a spray of fairy dust, he was standing on his own two feet again, a  Hylian , and running down to wrap his mentor in a hug, ignoring the startled cries of their friends.  

  Sky welcomed him with a gentle smile and a shifted hold on the pink haired hero, allowing Hyrule to squirm in between them and hug the stuffing out of his ancestor while Sky wrapped them both in his arms, something like a mother bird wrapping their wings around hatchlings.   

  Warriors sighed and shook his head as he looked down to the trio, and at Time’s confused glance, Warriors just offered him a weary smile. “It’s probably fine, Legend just realized something the rest of us have known for ages now and, well, he needed some space I guess.” He couldn’t help but think that the other hero likely needed a drink, but Legend hated pubs, and the closest thing he ever got to alcohol was Lon-Lon Milk, and even  then,  it was only on a rare occasion that the pink-haired  veteran  even ordered it.  

  Time nodded, a sigh escaping his lips. “Fair enough.” One  luminescent  blue eye turned to stare at the smaller hero curled in Warriors’ arms. “ How's  the Cub?”  

  The Captain shrugged. “Memory.”  

  A nod.  

  “So, where now?” Warriors inquired, gently brushing a hand through Wild’s long locks.   

  Time frowned, adjusting the straps of his armor which, unlike his sopping hair, seemed relatively dry. Warriors forced back a snort of laughter as he realized that their leader had likely taken a dip in the fairy pool during his and Hyrule’s time in the cave. “Monsters here are quite common apparently, and the best way to determine where they’re currently swarming is to consult the princesses, communication is still poor an’ the villagers won’t have news of any sort, but their majesties might, if Hyrule is right.”  

  “Right then.” Warriors nodded. “Onto Hyrule castle then.”  

  Time nodded in return, a wry smile on his features.  

Chapter Text

   Waking up and becoming alert are two very different experiences, and unfortunately for all of their group, the former was more familiar to most of them than the latter, and boy did he know it. Legend almost never slept, in fact, the veteran would rarely if ever sleep when they all laid down for the night; he dozed when they stopped for meals, and it wasn’t uncommon for him to drop off while walking, in which cases Twilight or Sky, and even on occasion Warriors and Wild, would walk alongside him, or even scoop him up into their arms and carry him until they reached their next stopping point. For all Legend knew when he woke up, he had simply dozed off or been lost in thought.  

  Warriors would sit up at night and watch them all with red-rimmed eyes that begged for sleep, eyes trailing over Hyrule, Wind and himself as if afraid that they would disappear if he dared drop off to sleep.  

  Time would sleep for three hours at a time, wake, patrol the area, and drop off again, without fail, after another half of an hour, allowing himself exactly two sleep cycles a night and spending the rest of it trying to convince the others to sleep.  

  Twilight was always fitful in his sleep, unless he had someone curled up against him, which Wild himself was always willing to do for his mentor. Even then, however, Twilight’s sleep would be plagued by nightmares, and he would come awake sobbing silently in Wild’s hair, likely believing that the nuzzling of his cub against his chest was an unconscious motion, when in truth it was all Wild could think of to help his mentor to calm down, and when at last Twi’s hand would fall still in his hair and his breathing would even out, Wild would find that Time was, more often than not, sitting close by the both of them, his face creased and eyes dark in an expression that Wild had learned to read as sadness.  

  Hyrule and Wind were similar, only sleeping well if they had someone to cuddle with, in Hyrule’s case it was Legend, who of course, didn’t really sleep, but Wild could hear the soft tunes that the veteran breathed into Hyrule’s curls. Wind, rather than craving comfort, preferred to sleep with a smaller person curled up against him, as his sister did when he was home, Four, naturally, filled this role, thoroughly enjoying the sleep once his ever-racing mind finally stilled at eleven o’clock every night.  

  Wild had asked about it once, his curiosity getting the better of his cautiousness, and Four had, rather vaguely, implied that his mind was always running, or at least parts of it, and some parts were just more active late at night than the rest of him. A question as to if it was his imagination was answered with the even more confusing answer of “my imagination goes to sleep at nine o’clock every night without fail” which only confused Wild more.  

   Sky, of course, slept perfectly fine on his own, although thunderstorms or rain showers always meant that the Chosen Hero would be up watching his namesake nervously all night long, and no amount of time on the surface seemed to help ease his fears. Privately, Wild was glad that they hadn’t yet come to his Hyrule, because Sky would probably never sleep while they were there, unless of course Hylia decided to play nice with her boyfriend, which she did on occasion.  

  So yes, all of the heroes of Hyrule had sleeping problems, but Wild... well, he... He already wasn’t normal.  

  Flora had theorized that his hundred-year sleep had stock-piled him with energy somehow that allowed him to run nearly non-stop. Sleep was an option, but only after he had run himself ragged for a few days, or when he was entirely and completely comfortable, like when Time or Twilight ran their fingers through his hair and allowed him to curl up against them like he had... sometime in the past.  

  His memories were different than sleep, his mind active entirely while his body was still, so it didn’t really provide him any rest, and coming awake was more akin to pulling himself out of a dark hole than drifting from a shaded tunnel and into the light. He had to fight to reemerge every time, and while it was entirely a mental affair, it was still exhausting, especially when he’d been sent far down into the pit of memories to the events of his childhood.  

  This time, as he clawed his way back upwards, away from the soft white hair that brushed against his cheeks and the warm honey-gold laughter and rough hands that had carried him from a great house, he was met with warm arms wrapped around him, cradling him in the same manner that the honey-golden laughter had, resting him against something solid and warm, plush fabric resting against his cheek where a moment ago fluffy white had brushed and tickled in his memories.  

  A deep voice rumbled beneath him as long fingers trailed through his hair, and as his mind processed its freedom from the pit of the past, he nuzzled closer to the warm presence and comforting touch.  

  Wolfie used to scold him for not letting people draw close enough, for alienating himself from the touch that any Hylian needed to survive, but in the past it had been hard to find someone besides the great beast that he could truly trust. Mipha had tried, bless her, and Daruk and Urbosa in their own ways. Even Revali had offered his own strange brand of affection towards the young hero, but even then, the only presence he would relax in, away from Zelda’s burning eyes and those of the kingdom, was the wolf.  

  But now, now he had his brothers, and Time, who wasn’t quite like a brother, but was someone that he knew he could trust and look up too. (Not a father, fathers were cold and stern and demanding, and while Time was stern, the older hero was never cold or demanding.) But these other heroes were people that Wolfie said he could trust, and so he tried, and in moments like this, he didn’t even have to try, it just came oh-so naturally.  

  “Right then,” The deep rumble sounded, clipped and professional, but not unkind like the few memories of the Hylian Knights he had. “Onto Hyrule castle than.”  

  The arms holding him shifted, and Wild flailed as he was moved, startling the person holding him and making them hold tighter as he blinked open his eyes to stare up at them.  

  Warriors’ deep blue eyes stared down at him, startled yet amused. “So, you are awake.”  

  “Not ‘sleep.” He managed to gurgle out, attempting to glare up at the older hero and earning twin rumbling chuckles from both Warriors and Time, who was apparently close enough to hear the conversation.  

  By his feet, Twilight stood and shook his head, a bright smile softening his rugged features as dark hair swished in his eyes. “You gave us a bit of a scare Wild, y’all right?”  

  Warriors glared over at Twilight, but the Rancher ignored the pointed distain for his vocabulary in favor of watching his protégé.   

  “Yeah, think so.” Wild rubbed at his brow. “Where are we?”  

  “Navi’s fairy fountain.” 

  Wild blinked in surprise. “A fairy fountain? I had a memory at a fairy fountain? Why hasn’t that happened before now?”  

  Warriors and Twilight exchanged a glance. “It was in a cave.”  

  “And there were blue lights.” Twilight added, face suddenly pinched.   

  “Oh.” Wild felt himself shuddering involuntarily, earning a concerned glance from the three older heroes. It made sense in its own way, the blue lights had caused plenty of panic attacks before when he had first been starting out his journey, and even now, if they were reflecting off of stone, he struggled. Add in the sound of water from the fairy’s fountain and he could understand that he had likely at least frozen up.  

  Looking back into his mind, back through the memory he had just relived, one that was already beginning to be foggy again, the faces of the people he had seen already unclear and distorted with only colors and textures remaining clear in his mind when he tried to imagine them: dark purple, light brown, soft white, like a dove's feathers. The purple was rough and the brown was smooth, and the white was fluffy and puffy and tickled; hair, he reminded himself.  

And the other figure, silver and golden and browned, not a nut brown like the first, but a warm smooth kind of sun-kissed brown like the people who worked outside all day long, and golden that was rough and wiry in some places and soft and curly in others. The silver was smooth, shining, glimmering in the light of the place they had been -a big place really, filled with the loveliest of smells, like a meadow, but indoors- and it had been warm to the touch, like his sword when he let it lie on the rocks beside a river while he fished.  

  Those memories, those people, whoever they were, had nothing to do with the Shrines, or the tomb, or... any of it.  

  And the lights of the cave, they had scared him, yes, they had made him reach out and grab hold of the person beside him, Warriors it turned out, and hold tight, but they hadn’t sent him off.   

  No, the memory had been brewing in the back of his mind all day, from when he and Wind had been gathering the loot left after their battle, when Warriors had shown him how to take care of his sword, when they had been walking through the woods to visit some great healer that turned out to be Hyrule’s mama, and then... then he had been set off, not by the lights and the water, but by Warriors’ quiet strength at his side and Hyrule’s delighted greeting of his parent.  

  “It wasn’t... a bad memory.” He said at last, pushing away from Warriors in an attempt to get himself back on the ground, and startling some when Warriors let him down only to have to hold him in place for a moment while he untangled his beloved scarf from around Wild’s own neck, earning him cocked brows from both older heroes and an incredulous look form Wild.   

  “What was it about, Cub?” Twilight asked gently, cocking his head in an expression that screamed ‘dog’ louder than any howl or bark would have. Seriously, how was he keeping that a secret this way?  

  “I’m not sure, it's still blurry but,” He twisted his face up in an expression that he had many times labeled as thoughtful and Twilight had labeled as a scowl. “There were people, two of them, and we were in a big place that smelled of flowers.”  

  Time cocked a brow. “You can smell things in your dreams?”  

  Twilight and Wild both turned to the older man. “You can’t?”  

  And Time and Warriors were exchanging a look that seemed to be a mixture of ‘is Twilight actually helping with a prank?’ and ‘this is a real thing then?’.  

  Twilight shook his head, grinning wryly at Wild. “Just us then, okay. Do you know who the people were, Wild?”  

  “No, their faces were blurry, all I know is that one of them had white hair and I think the other one had a beard.”  

  “Sheikah.” Twilight nodded. “They’re the creators of the shrine, so that would make sense.”  

  Wild frowned, it didn’t seem quite right, didn’t sound right, the person he saw didn’t dress like the Sheikah did. Then again, he couldn’t hold all people of one race to the same standards, and for all he knew they might just have been a Sheikah who, like the Yiga, left the clan behind to pursue some other kind of life. Hopefully this one wasn’t evil though; they had seemed really nice. “Maybe.”  

  A moment of silence hung in the air, as if they were waiting for him to say something else, but when he didn’t Time nodded in that final manner of his that meant he was about to start giving instructions. “We can’t stay here all day, other people need to get to the fountain as well, and it’s not very safe in the forest. Hyrule said that Castletown isn’t too far from here, so we were planning on aiming for that. Wild,” He turned to the youngest hero present. “Do you think you can handle that?”  

  A nod.  

  “Good. We’ll gather the others from the bottom of the hill, and Twilight,” The rancher looked up at his mentor. “You get Epona, it looks like she’s wandered a bit.” Time was smiling slightly, so that was good, hopefully that meant that his reunion with his mother had gone well.  

  And so it had. Hyrule had greeted him happily when the group had rejoined, and after the others had all made certain that he was alright again, they set off, Hyrule bobbing about on one side and Wind at the other. Time and Warriors took the front of the path, talking quietly and occasionally calling back to Hyrule for directions, but otherwise leaving the youngster to catch Wild up with what had happened while he had been lost in his head.  

  “You finally transformed into a fairy and I missed it?” Wild huffed. “I thought we were friends, Hyrule!” 

  “We are!” Hyrule giggled. “Don’t worry, you’ll see it again sooner or later. I’m not supposed to be Hylian all the time anyway, it makes my wings stiff when I do use them, and now that you all know, I’ll be able to transform as much as I need!”  

  “Cool.” Wind breathed, ocean eyes glittering.  

  “I call dibs on being your ride when you get tired of flying.” Four called from just in front of them, where he and Twilight were walking with Epona, confusing the other heroes, but as that was normal for Four, no one really bothered to ask for reasons why, Hyrule just nodded back at him. For some reason, that made Four smile as he turned back to his conversation with Twilight.  

  Behind the three youngest, Legend and Sky walked along, a little distance from the others. A glance back showed that Legend, rather than Sky, was currently holding the Master Sword, which meant that the veteran would undoubtedly know if they were in any danger; the sword’s voice was weak, but she could really raise it when she needed to tell you when you were in danger. The two heroes were engaged in a hushed conversation, and Sky seemed to be trying to comfort Legend about something.  

  “What’s goin’ on with those two?” Wild nodded back to them.  

  Hyrule and Wind both peeked over their shoulders, faces set with matching expressions that he couldn’t read.   

  Wind turned back to him. “You know when we went to Legend’s Hyrule and talked to all those villagers?”  

  Wild nodded.  

  “Okay, well, they said that Legend was a descendant of the hero of Time, right? What’s Time’s hero title?”  

  “The hero of Time.”  

  “And that means?” Wind pressed.  

  Wild scowled. “I might act dumb, Wind, but even I can put two and two together, Wind.”  

  “He’s not insulting you, Wild.” Hyrule soothed. “We just weren’t sure if you’d realized it, because it turns out Legend didn’t.”  

  “Legend?” Wild had enough experience on the road to not stop walking, but he did stare at the other two. “But Legend knows everything!”  

  A snort sounded from behind him and Wild lowered his voice. “How did Legend not know?”  

  “Because,” Hyrule winced. “In our world, Time died when he faced Ganon, and so he’s mostly called the Fallen Hero. It’s not that Legend didn’t know he was related to Time; it’s just he didn’t make the connection between Time and the hero that left our world to die.”  

  Wild averted his eyes. “So, he’s upset that Time failed.”  

  Wind nodded. “Yeah, seems so.”  

  Wild privately made up his mind to avoid Legend in future. Sure, the older hero was amazing and all, but the others were bound to find out the truth of his adventures sooner or later, and if Legend was this mad at Time; brave, strong, capable Time, for failing a world, than how would he react to Wild? It would be best to distance himself from the other hero, it would dull the pain when it eventually came.  

  The walk/ride to Hyrule’s Castletown didn’t take very long. It turned out that, like all the others, Hyrule had a really small Hyrule, and thus everything was only a few days distance from everything else. It also turned out that Hyrule’s Castletown was also really small. Although, to be fair, all of the buildings actually had people living or working in them, and many of them were actually in good condition, which was something Wild couldn’t really claim.   

  Sure, Zelda and he had been working with Bolson and the construction company to restore their own Castletown when he left, but they had only really cleared out all the rubble and started work on the frames when the portals had appeared and swept him away.  

  But this Castletown was full of people, and that meant that they were all pressed up close to each other. It wasn’t all bad, since it was his friends, but his mind was screaming for freedom from the confinement, alarm bells sounding in warning against the Yiga, against assassins hiding in the crowd and shifty eyes looking over them like they were cattle that didn’t deserve to be in the same presence as the people around them.  

  Fortunately, the small town meant that they were at Hyrule castle in almost no time at all, and with Hyrule having moved to the front of the group, the knights only saluted in respect and didn’t bother trying to stop them as Hyrule waved them all through the castle gates, much to the surprise and displeasure of several townspeople who had stopped in the hopes of watching what would happen when strangers approached the castle.  

  The castle itself was rather dark in nature, but had been lit by candles in every sconce and corner, with windows cast open to let in bright sunlight and flowers resting on sills that looked to have been kept locked tightly for decades.  

  Hyrule led them along the passages with a bounce in his step that had been there since leaving the fairy fountain, and the curly-haired hero seemed to almost shine with joy as he glanced back at them every so often. Before anyone really knew it, they were walking into a large study, shelves lining the walls which were themselves stacked high with countless dusty volumes in various states of disrepair, and in the midst of it, two young women, lovely gowns coated in dust, sat surrounded by yet more volumes. 

  The amount of dust that flew into the air at their entrance into the study was impressive, perhaps enough to rival a molduga as it breached from the sand, and that was saying something. Hyrule was suddenly caught up in two pairs of arms while the princesses -or was one a queen now? - greeted him. 

  "Link! You're back! Oh, Dawn and I were just worried sick! We've been to see your mother and even she had no answers as to where you might have spirited yourself away to!" 

  "You really gave us a scare, Link." Dawn echoed, voice deeper and calmer than her fellow princess, who tutted about Hyrule like an old grandmother, despite her face and height betraying that she couldn't have been much older than the hero she was scolding. 

  "A scare is hardly right," Aurora huffed, plucking at Hyrule's collar in a distracted manner. "I was worried sick that something had happened to you! Oh, why didn't you leave a note or message of some kind?" 

  "No paper." Dawn and Hyrule echoed together, making the other princess flush.  

  "Oh, right. Forgive me." 

  "It's nothing," Dawn shook her head before turning and smiling over the heads of the other two at the rest of the heroes. "Welcome travelers, and who might you be?" 

  Aurora's head shot up again, bright brown eyes sparkling in a similar fashion to Hyrule's own as she caught sight of the other heroes. "Why, Dawn, can't you see?" Her voice caught in a squeak that was almost familiar. "They're other heroes!" 

  "What?" Dawn looked at her fellow princess in surprise, and Wild couldn't help but do the same, were they really that obvious? How on earth had everyone else they had met in their travels failed to recognize them if this one princess could do it in a heartbeat? Was it because of the Triforce of Wisdom? If so, then why did none of the other Princess's display such a power? Could Flora do that when he brought the others to meet her? Would she? 

  Hyrule's voice broke the Champion from his thoughts as the other hero stared at his princess. "Well... yes, they are. How did you figure that out?" 

  Aurora smiled sweetly at Hyrule and then at the rest of their company. "I'd recognize my great-uncle anywhere!" 

  Beside him, Wild heard Warriors muffle a sound that sounded suspiciously like a mixture of a whimper and a groan, and only a few paces ahead, Legend paled.  

  "Not this again-" came the whispered plea, but the princesses apparently didn't notice as Dawn started to search amongst their number.  

  "Which one, Aurora? Which one's the Legendary Hero?" 

  "All of us." Time chuckled, clearly enjoying this and apparently still in a good mood from having visited Navi. His comment earned him a brief disapproving look from Dawn, but her lips quirked in a way that made Wild wonder if she was actually as irritated with him or if she was pretending. 

  "No, I mean, which id the Hero of Legend?" 

  Hyrule beamed, turning and grabbing Legend's hand at the same time as Legend started to back away. "Here he is! His name is Link too! So, we're just calling him Legend!" 

  Aurora beamed and darted forwards, catching Legend in a tight hug around his waist. "It's lovely to see you again! I've missed you so!" 

  "Don't know you." Legend grumbled half-heartedly, but it did little to dissuade the princess from her embrace of her ancestor. 

  "Of course, you don't! I wasn't born yet when you went on this adventure! Mama wasn't even born yet, much less Auntie-" 

  "Good grief," Legend sighed, cutting her off. The veteran hero slumped in place, but Wild didn't miss how he gently patted Aurora's back. 

  "Wait." Four frowned, brow furrowing in thought, eyes flashing violet, as they do when a person is thinking. "Legend is Hyrule's ancestor, but he's also Aurora's great-uncle? Hyrule, are your princesses' your sisters?" 

  The princesses in question both giggled, and Hyrule frowned, incredulous. "No. And Dawn isn't a princess anymore, she's a queen." 

  The actual princess in the room smiled softly, releasing Legend and smoothing her dress as she addressed Four. "Goodness no! My brother passed on generations ago!" 

  That gave the others pause, but Wild found himself staring at the girl as a soft smile broke out across his face. "Did- did you fall asleep too?" 

  "Too?" The two girls exchanged a glance before Aurora shook her head. "Dear me, it really is a pattern, isn't it? First our ancient ancestor the Hero of Time, then myself, and apparently another one after that?" She tutted softly. 

  "Heaven works in mysterious ways." Dawn nodded.  

  "And the higher world." Aurora added, and all around him Wild could sense the others staring at each other in confusion as the princess answered his question. "Yes, brave one. I was cursed to sleep 'till woken by the blessed hero, and unfortunately I lost quite a few decades during my slumber. How long was it for you?" 

  "One hundred year." And there were even more stares being sent their way. 

  "I'm sorry," Twilight interrupted. "But what's the higher world? Is that like the sacred realm?" 

  "Never mind that, you slept for a hundred years?" Wind exclaimed, staring open-mouthed at Wild. 

  "What's heaven?" Sky mused softly, almost too quiet to be heard. 

  "Tea." Dawn declared. "We'll have tea and explanations can be made by those who wish to provide them." Waving a hand about the room, she motioned to various chairs and stools that were lying about in odd places. "Take a seat, someone will bring it in just a moment." 

  Curious looks were shot every-which-way, but most were aimed in his direction, and Wild found himself shrinking from curious stares to try and hide behind the flaps of Warriors' scarf. It was a ridiculously long thing, big enough to wrap up a small child, or Four, and still have something left over, and as such it did a fine job of blocking the gaze of the curious heroes while a servant brought up the tea. 

  Once all were served, Wild deemed it safe to emerge from behind his fellow knight, earning a curious, but friendly expression from Warriors as the older hero sat in a nearby chair. 

  "Thank you for the tea." Four opened, resting a cup and saucer on one knee and smiling politely at the princesses- the princess and the queen -the royals. "Now, how did you say you are related to Legend again?" 

  Aurora sipped her tea for a moment before answering, and Four waited politely as if he had tea with royals every Tuesday. "He's my great-uncle, my grandmother's brother." She smiled fondly. "They were twins." 

  Four nodded, smile still polite and manners still so immaculate it almost made Wild mad, how come he couldn't do that? Not even after an entire life of training in palace manners?

  "I see. And, how does Hyrule come in?" 

  "He's our cousin, somewhere along the line. The hero of Legend was his great-grandfather, or," The princess's face screwed up for a moment before clearing as she waved a hand dismissively. "Something along those lines. Really, I wasn't conscious during that time, and records are scarce." 

  "What we do know," Dawn continued for her. "Is that Hyrule is family, and so are we." She motioned between herself and Aurora. "And apparently some of you as well." Her voice was warm, like summer, and her eyes sparked as brightly as her auburn hair as she smiled at them all. 

  "Does that mean..." Four turned to Legend, who glanced about the room with a -dare Wild think it- nervous expression, his gaze lingering on Warriors for a moment longer than the others before he released a pained sigh. 

  "Fable's my twin sister." 

  "And my great-granddaughter!" Sky beamed, wrapping an arm around the salty hero's shoulders and whispering something to him. Wild knew it was meant to only be between the two, but he caught something of what was said, vague though it was. 

  "Don't worry about......I'll...there, protect you...promise." 

  Legend scowled at whatever it was, which sounded something like Sky promising to protect him, from what, Wild didn't know, and if it was something that Legend needed help against, he was worried, especially since Legend didn't decline the offer, or promise, whichever it was. 

  Several sets of blue eyes stared up at Legend and Sky before Twilight groaned and pinched his brows. "Does this mean you two are related?" 

  "Yes." 

  "And Wind too, as well as Time." 

  "...yes." Legend seemed more hesitant about that. 

  "And myself, I suppose, since Time and I are related." 

  "You finally admit it, rancher." 

  Twilight smiled, almost mischievous. "I wasn't exactly trying to hide it." 

  Eyes rolled and head shook, and the two girls in the room giggled. 

  "Now." Warriors' voice was strained, and his smile was almost as bad, although clearly, he had been trained to handle high stress diplomatic matters in his line of work. "Someone mentioned something about a higher world?" 

  Legend snorted, slumping in his seat and suspiciously closer to Sky, a wary glance being cast in Warrior's direction. "Home of the big three, Wars, keep up." 

  "Big three?" Several voices chorused, and Hyrule cocked his head. 

  "Who are the big three?" 

  "Nayru, Din and Farore." Aurora answered brightly. 

  Hyrule nodded slowly, and then shook his head, curls flying in his face. "I'm sorry, you've all mentioned those names before but... who are they?" 

  Stares were leveled at the traveler from nearly all sides, and he shrank back into his seat with a flush that rivaled the color of Legend's tunic. 

  Said veteran rolled his eyes again, shaking his head. "Don't worry about it Hyrule, I didn't know either until Nayru told me. Heck, I didn't know who Hylia was until my second adventure!" 

  The stares rounded on their veteran as the princesses nodded wisely. "Few Hylians even know those names anymore, and mostly only the ones who can read." 

  "How is that possible?" Sky frowned. "They're the goddesses!" 

  Legend snorted. "Some goddesses." At the glare he received from Sky, he huffed. "I've met them, they aren't exactly what you think of when you think 'rulers of the universe'. Besides, Nayru herself said so, they aren't even goddesses, they're just higher beings who have some power over the earth." 

  Blank faces stared back at him, all except Hyrule who sighed in what appeared to be relief. "Okay, and here I was thinking that I missed something important!" 

  Legend shook his head. "Not that important. Important enough that Hylia messes with us and decided to let us struggle when she gets bored, but not important enough that you'll die without it." 

  "Wait, so you don't worship Hylia?" Sky looked at the two princesses. "But you're her descendants?" 

  "Are you're descended from an ancient being of power, you don't worship your father, do you?" Dawn inquired, brows furrowing as she set down her tea cup. 

  Legend blanched. "He's not supposed to know about that." 

  "Oh, my apologies." 

  "What being of power?" 

  "I was wrong to say that," Dawn corrected herself. "Please, answers will undoubtably be provided in future, but if it is something you are not supposed to know, then I ought not to speak of it in your presence." 

  Sky turned to Legend, an expression on his face that seemed a mix of pleading and "what-the-heck-Legend?", but the vet just shook his head.  

  "Fi said I wasn't supposed to spill, and for once, I'm listening to that darned sword-spirit." 

  The Chosen Hero did not appear to be satisfied with that answer, but he didn't push it. It made sense, Wild supposed. He couldn't hear the voice of the sword too well, but when it spoke, listening to what it said was always a good idea. However, Legend had managed to hear its voice, what had been said was important, and disobeying a direct order was foolish, and while Wild may have been their Champion of foolishness on some days, even he knew his limits. Disobeying Fi was a line even he didn't cross. 

  "If you don't worship Hylia, who do you worship?" Warriors asked, rubbing his temples slowly. 

  "We're Catholic." Legend answered., and both Hyrule and the princess' nodded.

  "Not that many churches survived Ganon's reign over Hyrule, but we're steadily rebuilding them." 

  Warriors did a very poor job of biting back another groan. 

  The rest of their visit to Hyrule Castle had been short. Everyone was developing a headache from recent revelations, and Dawn had received reports prior to their arrival about a group of monsters descending on Saria town. So, after a very short visit, hugs between the royal family and Sky (as well as the Chosen Hero emphatically informing his descendants of his pride in them and Hyrule) they set off. 

  It was, again, not a very long march to the town, and they reached it in less than two days, arriving in time to find villagers fleeing and the far side of the town swarming with dark beasts that the heroes quickly set to work on. 

As usual, Wild threw himself into the battle with everything he had, breaking weapons left and right and doing everything in his power to preserve what was left of the town. He knew how valuable settlements were in a ravaged world, and even one little house made a huge difference. 

  Once the air had cleared, however, and the monsters were dissolving on the ground, leaving behind scant remains that Wild and Wind attempted to collect, only to be wrested away by a furious Twilight, who would have set to scolding them right there and then if Hyrule hadn't pushed him aside in order to treat them. 

  Injuries were another odd thing about him, he had realized, and while in battle, it was hard to notice them. Apparently missing the spear head that had been lodged under his ribs was cause for concern, and the time it took Hyrule to tend it was all the time that the healing power lasted before Hyrule dropped off, leaving Wild with a new scar, and the rest of the camp untreated. 

  Four, fighting a head injury and quite possibly a concussion, was forced to lay down while Wind kept on eye on him, and in the meantime, Warriors, Time and Twilight set about tending the rest of the party's wounds as best as they could. 

  That's when the fuss was raised. 

  Legend, who'd taken a nasty blow to the chest while trying to shield Sky's back, was refusing to allow Warriors to help him, despite their normal healers being out of commission and the replacements still wrapped up in treating other injuries. Legend curled in on himself, blood leaking down the front of his tunic as he glared darkly up at Warriors, who was currently kneeling before the veteran, face flushed pink and ears twitching in irritation as he snapped back at the pink-haired hero to let him help, goddess-darn it! 

  Warriors himself was beginning to hate the situation more with every hour. The revelations at Hyrule castle two days ago had nearly knocked him off of his feet; Legend was a prince in his world, and a descendant of Sky. He was also, apparently, of the belief that Hylia was no more than an overpowered Hylian from another plain of existence. And to top it all off, he was actually acquainted with the golden trio themselves, and still didn't believe in their holiness!

  To be brief, Legend had been at the center of a lot of Warriors' problems recently, and his pig-headed refusal to allow him to help him was only making things worse. 

  "Stop being such an ass, Legend! You're gonna bleed out at this rate!" 

  "Well, you'd prefer that, wouldn't you?" Legend bit back, eyes unfocused and pupils dilated as he swayed ever so softly, clearly concussed but refusing to even that to be treated. "Wouldn't have to do it yourself that way at least."  

  The words bit deep into Warriors' heart, and made his breath stutter in his throat as several sets of eyes turned their way, shock and fury written clearly across the features of the still alert heroes. Time's single eye flashed darkly as he strode stiffly over, favoring his right leg as he bent down to look Legend in the eyes. "And why, Legend, would Warriors want you dead? He's your ally, not your enemy. Let him help you." 

  "Time." Sky's gaze swept up towards them from where he had been tending to Twilight's hand, which had been smashed between shields during the conflict and had had two fingers displaced. "He's- he's got a valid reason." 

  The teeth around his heart dug deeper and Warriors almost stumbled back, pain lancing through his soul and mind as he looked at the Chosen Hero, their most gentle, kind member, and heard him say that Legend had reason to believe that Warriors would do the vet any harm. 

  "Not Warriors." Time denied, shaking his head firmly. "We've fought together before, if anyone among us was to betray the others, which I highly doubt, it wouldn't be him." 

  Twilight nodded. "He may be a city boy, Sky, but he's also a soldier, he'd know better than most of us what it's like to be betrayed." And wasn't that the truth. "He may be scared of muck and mire, but there's no one I'd rather trust to have my back in a battle," The rancher frowned and amended. "Other than Time, of course." 

  Well, that was good to hear. He and Twilight didn't always get along, and while the jabs at each other's home turf had lessened from being borderline insulting to being playful, they both had very different ways of leading, and as both acted as second in command when needed, the conflict between them had been at times concerning even to Warriors, who had wondered if maybe Twilight outright disliked him, an idea nearly unheard of when it came to the friendly rancher. 

  Sky shook his head. "Legend's not-" 

  "Can talk for myself!" Legend snapped sluggishly, earning a tired sigh from his ancestor, who with a final tug on Twilight's bandaging, moved over to take the supplies from Warriors' hand.  

  "Let me." The Chosen Hero whispered, trading positions with Warriors and gently tapping Legend's bare knee. "Uncurl for me, maybe? That cut's pretty nasty."  

  Legend huffed in his customary fashion, but complied, allowing Sky to help him out of his damaged tunic and to clean and treat the nasty looking wound that would likely scar in future. 

  As Sky worked, he explained. "Wars, he's just scared. In his world, knights..." Sky frowned, eyes deep pools of sorrowful blue, like the sky before rain. "They aren't good people, Wars, not like you. He's learned not to trust them, and with a concussion messing with his brain." A motion to the vet himself, who was currently rubbing at his injured head. "He's not thinking straight, okay?" 

  "He thought I wanted him dead." Wars breathed; eyes hardened. "What sort of knights did he have that he thinks that all of them would want to kill a hero?" 

  "Because in his Hyrule," Sky answered, wrapping Legend's wound and handing the vet a red potion. "His entire life rides on avoiding them. It's not that he's the hero, Wars, it's because he's a prince." 

  Yet again, the others stared in confusion, temporary healers and patients alike cocking brows and tilting heads in a silent question.  

  "How many princes of Hyrule can you name that were born into the royal line?" Their Chosen Hero asked them. Hyrule raised his hand and Sky smiled. "Other than yourself and Legend, 'Rule."  The hand went down. 

  "The royal family doesn't have sons." Wind frowned. "Tetra said that they were blessed by Hylia to always have a female heir." 

  "Lies." Legend, now somewhat more alert and functioning, shot out. "That's just something the royal line made up to hide the truth." 

  "What's the truth?" Twilight asked, paling. 

  Legend stared up Warriors. "'Hyrule doesn’t have princes, and Hylia has no sons.' The knights of Hyrule see to that.” 

  Warriors found himself starting, falling back on his heels and staring at Legend, who’s icy indigo gaze stared back up at him, challenging and -fearful. The dark expression was betrayed by the way Legend watched Warriors’ hands, the quirk of his brows and the way his ears quivered, his nose shivering almost like a rabbit’s as he waited for some sign of an attack that Warriors had no intention of making. 

  “Why? ” He breathed, staring down at his fellow hero, his brother , the hero who in another life would have fathered Warriors’ own family line, who would have been his great-great-grandfather. “Why would you think- I would- Legend, I would never do that! Never! Lay me out and gut me with a cutlass! I’d never do that to a kid! Much less...” The words refused to come to his mouth, and instead, Warriors turned to Wind. 

  “You know what, I give! Wind, please, I’m literally begging you.” He cast a weary gaze at the youngest hero. “Could I please borrow your flask?” 

  “What flask?” The younger hero snapped defensively, and at any other time Warriors would have just moved on, but he was tired, his head was killing him, and all he really wanted right now was a drink that could help knock him out for at least a few hours before he had to deal with this insanity again.  

  “The one you keep in your bag, Wind. You’ve had it since your first adventure, you told me so yourself.” 

  Wind startled. “When did I ever say that?” 

  “Future.” Warriors muttered. “You grew a beard, looks good. Really curly.” 

  Sky was looking at him like he might be concussed, and honestly, with the amount of mental blows he’d taken over the last few weeks, he wouldn’t be surprised.  

  “You met future me, and you didn’t tell me?” Wind scowled.  

  “It’s just too weird. Talking to kid-you is weird, hearing kid-you telling stories is weird, and knowing you can’t smoke or drink without Time losing his mind is weird, especially when-” 

  “Grandpa was Wind?” Time interrupted, staring at Warriors like his whole world had turned upside down. “Grandpa Link, the man who held of twenty bokoblins by himself during the War of Eras, was Wind?” 

  “Yes.” Warriors was done, he was so done. He didn’t even care anymore. “My gran’pa is Wind in the future, and Wind is Legend’s great-grandson, and Legend is Time’s great-something-grandson, as well as Sky’s great-something-grand-something. Throw in Twilight and Hyrule, and Wind has two cousins. Throw in Four and Wild in there somewhere, and we’re all one big freaking messed up family. Now, I need a drink, and if Wind isn’t gonna share, then I’m headed back to town, because I know they have something there that can knock me for a couple hours.” 

  And with those parting words, Warriors pulled himself onto his feet, walked back into the town, pulled up a stool inside the local pub, and ordered a tankard that would hopefully send him at least to the crazed and drunken part of his mind, rather than the reality of an insane world (or worlds really) that he was living in. 

Chapter Text

  Headaches rage in the confines of his mind as four voices struggle to process the world around them in their various ways. Red is shattering on about something or other related to the bugs they see, which aren’t something he recognizes, and Blue is grouching about the condition of the ground, covered as it is in moss and underbrush that keeps him from seeing the path clearly if there even is a path. Vio is murmuring to himself about the trees and what their heights and types mean about the area they are in, one that none of them recognize easily, and Green is attempting to keep up with the others for them all while still trying to find out if there even  is  a path. 

  It’s all very frustrating for Four, and they would rather be able to tell the colors to quiet down, but they also know that if they ever did quiet, they would panic. It was bad enough that the first time they had gone through one of the strange portals, the one that took them and their strange new traveling companions to another Hyrule, Green had actually passed out, leaving the other three to attempt to handle being ‘Link’ without said persona’s logical calm side being conscious. They had panicked quite badly at the time, and the other colors had been struggling to make sense of what had happened to their brother for a full two days before Green came to.  

  Vio, very guiltily, had suggested that Green’s ‘death’ at the hands of Shadow may have caused him to be weaker to darker forces than the others, just as his own association with their counterpart had made Vio stronger against them. 

  Still, even with that in mind, Four couldn’t help wishing that the rest of himself could manage one train of thought or one subject at a time without trailing off in five different directions after a few minutes (there may only be four parts of his mind, but Red was hyperactive as was and could balance two trains of thought with hardly any effort). 

  The Chain had found themselves in what Twilight claimed was his Hyrule after the chaos they had struggled through in Hyrule’s world, and while all of the others were not-so-subtly casting each other glances, Four walked in their midst with bags under his eyes and feet dragging as his tired mind struggled to keep up with the expressions and likely thought processes of the others as well as his own mind. 

  Legend still walked with Sky and Hyrule in the back of their group, casting glances up at Warriors, who stalked ahead of them and had only manages a weary grunt every so often since rejoining them from having visited a tavern in Hyrule’s world. Wild walked along-side the Captain, hand on his sword and Twilight at his back as the two watched out for their tired companion, ensuring no more nonsense -be it the sort caused by ‘blins, Wild or the others- was forced on the already dragging knight. Anything else would likely make the poor man collapse, especially considering how long he’d been in the know about everything while still keeping it to himself. Wind eyes his brother/future-grandson throughout the last few days, but had bobbed around Time begging to know about how their leader had known about his future self, and Time (still in a good mood from having met with Navi, despite it having been days ago) answered as best he could ‘without destroying the timeline again’. 

   Poor Time and Warriors.  

  How’s that?  

  They’ve seen so much already, and now they have to find out that all this nonsense revolves mainly around their families. Legend too! Imagine thinking that Wars would actually want to kill him! Or that Time ruined his whole world!  

  Least it wasn’t us, Red.  

  Blue! How could you say that!?  

  It’s true, the old man has enough respect from the Vet that they’ll move past this, if it was anyone else, Legend would just cut them off altogether! Like he tried with Wars!  

  He’s got a point there, Red, Time may be at the center of the split in time, but he at least is someone we all trust.  

  …...pinecones....  

   The colors giggled softly, their mostly united thought making Four do the same as Vo continued his deductions, blissfully unaware of his brothers’ chatter. 

  Twi’s Hyrule was decently sized, likely the biggest one amongst the ones they had seen, but it didn’t take over long for them to reach Ordon village. The plan was to stay and rest there for a day or two, allowing themselves to heal from their last battle and the mental... trauma was a fair word to use they supposed, yes, the mental trauma that followed said battle. After a couple of days, they would head back to Castletown to visit Dusk again and ask if any more monster attacks had popped up since their last visit. 

  It hadn’t been that long since they had been here, but Twilight didn’t appear to mind as he and Wars forged ahead together, his Cub at his back and his home village somewhere ahead of them. Sky himself seemed rather eager to see Dusk again too, even if their last visit had been plenty awkward with the Chosen Hero still coming to grips that the princesses where his descendants. 

  Four was glad that the two heroes were happy; hopefully the others would come to be so too. It had been chaos, their last couple of months, and trying to make sense of their timeline combined with their apparent family tree was a bit of a struggle to be perfectly honest. Although, Vio seemed to appreciate the concept of that puzzle and rank it as being more important than their current surroundings. Twilight had declared these forests to be safe most of the time, and while nothing was truly safe with the black-blooded monsters around, knowing that land wasn’t typical monster territory at least allowed them to lower their guard a little when traveling. 

  Now for that timeline...  

  Isn’t it a family tree?  

  I think it’s a bit of both really, the flow of time is what  divides  the family line after Time after all!  

  Please tell me Green didn’t just make a time pun? Please, I don’t think I can take him turning into the Old Man.  

  Calm down, Blue, it wasn’t on purpose.  

  NOW FOR THE TIMELINE!  

  DON’T YELL, VIO!  

  Don’t talk over me then.  Came the huffed reply. 

   We share a  head;  you really think that’ll work?  

   ….point . Now, be quiet and let me figure this out.  

  Fine, but only because I need someone to make sense of this nonsense and my head’s hurting too much.  

  Tch, of course it is. Now, let me...us...think. Sky is the  father  of the Royal Family, Dot’s family, right?  

  That’s right.  

  I said quiet, Green.  

  Rhetorical questions don’t work well in a shared mind, you can’t here the  tonnage  as well.  

  Fair enough. As I was saying, Dot is related to Sky, and it’s pretty safe to say that that is a direct relationship too. We are her cousins, so that makes us next in line. Time married Malon in apparently every timeline, and they have at least one kid, which leads to Legend after a while. If we go with the concept that marriages are basically a universal constant unless the other is dead, then we can assume that Legend is also part of the royal family in all timelines. Legend is Wind’s great-grandfather, or maybe great-great-grandfather, and Warrior’s is Wind’s grandson. Hyrule is also Legend’s descendant, and it’s quite likely that Time and Twilight are related as well.  

  Are we sure about that? They haven’t really said anything about it...  

  I don’t think Wars could take another revelation, Red, he might just give up and become a drunkard if too many bombs are dropped on him. Poor guy has been struggling, and even if alcohol is a poor coping mechanism, I don’t think he really knows any better way to handle all of this stress.  

  Fair point, Green, so... should we ask? It might at least let us know for sure where everything falls.  

  Wait, where does Wild fall?  

  Down ever cliff in Hyrule, why?  

  He meant in the family tree, Blue, not in real life.  

  I’m not dumb, Vio, I was teasing Red.  

  A poor attempt at humor.  

   It’s  your own fault you  don’t  see the humor, sleep deprivation hardly grants you a good sense of humor, and it made  Red  laugh.  

   Red was, indeed, giggling softly. 

  Enough, you two, let’s just ask Twi when we get some time where Warriors doesn’t have to hear, okay?  

  Easier said than done. With Warriors and Legend both awkwardly avoiding each other, Wars was up at the front with Twi throughout their trek through the forest towards Ordon, and thus they were unable to question the rancher about their suspicions regarding his relationship to Time until the next day, when they finally reached their target location. 

  “Welcome back to Ordon.” Twilight grinned, motioning towards the village sprawled out before them, a lazy smile softening the otherwise stony features of the hero as he led them out into the village, cheers and excited greetings welcoming them as the Ordonians rushed to greet their wayward hero and his companions.  

  “Link! You’re back!” Collina and the other children cheered, swamping Twilight instantly and hanging off him in various forms of hugs. 

  “The young hero returns.” Mayor Bo greeted with a boomed chuckle. 

  “There you are, you wanderer, and here I thought you’d gone off hunting the minish again!” Uli chuckled fondly, sweeping forwards, her youngest sat firmly on her hip as she greeted her eldest child with a kiss on his nose that made him blush and the other heroes laugh. 

  “It’s been a good time since I chased Minish, ma.” 

  Four’s ears perked up, twitching lightly as his bright eyes turned to the two, following the exchange with peaked interest. 

  “Certainly doesn't feel like it, just yesterday I could swear you were building that treehouse o’ yours with Rusl, an’ it was only day afore that that you were wandering through the woods with scraped knees ‘looking for the little people’.” 

  “Ain’t been that recent, ma, an’ you know it.” Twilight drawled in return, cheeks flushing slightly as he caught sight of Time’s fond smirk, and if that wasn’t an indicator of the relationship between the two, Four didn’t know what was. Time was fatherly with all of them, but Twilight seemed to be on the receiving end of most of the highly paternal exchanges. 

  Not far from the main crowd of Ordonians, Four noted that Warriors was looking on in a pained fashion, actual flinches creasing his face with each spoken word as the Ordonian drawl wrecked his Queen’s Hylian. It made Four smirk slightly to himself, Wars had been through plenty, but making him suffer through country life never got old. 

  “It wasn’t too long for me, Link, I can still see twigs in your hair.” And with that the mother figure reached up and snagged a bothersome branch that had lodged itself in the hero's hair during his rush to reach the village. Twilight flushed darker and rubbed at his neck.  

  “I just haven’t changed much in that time, I suppose, but there’s been time enough, ma.” 

  “Sure.” The woman nodded in a knowing way, before turning her attention to the rest of them. “Well, you must all be right starved for something decent to eat after your day. Dinners on, and I’m sure we can make it stretch for y’all.” 

  Warriors flinched again. 

  “An’ if not, I can whip up some more in a quick jiff.” The woman winked, earning warm smiles from the assembled heroes as thanks flooded from them. Wild was an excellent cook, but it was always nice to have something made in a home and not on the road, and having more diversity in what was cooked, and who cooked it, seemed to make every meal better. 

  Dinner was a lovely affair, full of eager chatter and retellings of events while they had been away. The children and adults warred for Twilight’s attention, and Warriors had given up flinching in order to rest his head on Sky’s shoulder with a perpetual pained look that earned him yet more concerned drawls from Twilight’s adoptive parents which only served to make everything worse. But light shone in every eye, and for a brief moment, they were able to ignore the chaos from a few days ago and simply settle down to a homemade meal with people that were almost like family, if not actual family in some cases. 

  After dinner, Sky had helped Uli to shepherd the kids off to bed while Time and Rusl had settled down with baby Rose in the main room to chat about their respective farms and families. Wild and Legend had settled into the back of the kitchen, a wash basin between the two of them as they scrubbed the dishes from the night's meal while Hyrule and Wind had raced to clean the rest of the kitchen before Uli came back from settling Colin to bed and taking the other kids home to their own parents. Warriors, reluctantly, had joined the older men in the main room, lounging on the couch and looking mighty close to dropping off if not for the clattering in the kitchen. 

  That left Twilight and Four. Twi had been playing with Rose after the meal, eyes sparkling with the delight of an elder sibling that appeared whenever Wind would do something especially child-like or Wild would calm and let the others close for once. The ‘brother-look’ had been directed at all of them on occasion, but somehow with a baby it became more pronounced, as their strong farm-hand was reduced to a babbling and giggling mess in the presence of the infant. 

  Rose however, had begun to take on what the rest of them had labeled as ‘the Sky-look', which led to Rusl scooping her up and leaving his eldest stretched out on the floor in a convincing imitation of his lupine form, complete with the hero’s mouth left hanging open as deep breath huffed from between his lips. Four smothered a giggle as he sat at the fireside, his sword laid over his knees as he worked on it, eyes twinkling a brown that was red and green both in the firelight. 

  “Well,” Rusl rose, nodding to his company in an apologetic manner. “Best if I get Rosie ready for bed, her ma will be back any sec now and there’s no keeping a baby waiting for their food or bed.” 

  Time grinned, actually grinned, at the other father. “No there isn’t.” 

  Four really wanted to know if Time was thinking of one of them or some other child when he spoke. 

  Rusl grinned, nodding a goodbye for lack of a wave as he walked off with his hands full of his youngest, leaving his guests to their business in the living room.  

  “Now where did Hyrule and Wind go, there noise in the kitchen’s dimmed and that’s never a good sign with those two.” Time grunted softly, rising from his place on the couch before pausing and smiling fondly at Warriors, who sat with his chin resting on his fist as he leaned on the couches arm, soft snores escaping him as his chest rose in fell slowly. 

  Twilight shook his head, pulling himself to his feet and stretching for a second before nodding at Time that he had this handled and moving to fetch a patch-work quilt from a cabinet, which he proceeded to tuck about his fellow hero while Time slid of the captain’s boots. 

  Four watched with a grin as Time nodded at Twilight and moved on towards the kitchen, leaving Four alone with their fellow hero and the sleeping form of their over-tired captain. 

  “So...” Four drawled out, gaze flitting to the side as they grinned over at Twilight, eyes flickering purple. “Little people, huh?” 

  The other hero flushed, shaking his head and grinning. “Yeah, when I was a kid, I was fascinated with them, always wanted to find where they kept their little houses or what they did. I guess as I got older I kinda grew out of it, but,” He shrugged. “They’re fun to watch I guess.” 

  Four paused. “Yeah, they were, huh?” He wasn’t about to advertise that his sixteen-year-old ass could still see the creatures most kids stopped seeing at ten. 

  Twilight cocked his head, looking every inch the part of his lupine form. “You see them too though, the minish?” 

  “Picori.” Four corrected softly. “And yeah, all kids could see them in my Hyrule, up ‘till you turn ten or eleven, then you’re too old.” 

  “But you can see them, I know you can, you showed one to Wind.” 

  “I can, but I’m...” Four frowned. “I’m a bit different.” 

  Twilight nodded, not asking despite the curiosity that burned in his cobalt gaze.  

  “It’s because of my adventure.” Four said after a moment’s hesitation, Twi had trusted them with the secret of his animal form, so they might as well be honest as well. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to not see them.” 

  Twilight grinned, crooked and toothy in a way that made all of them grin in return, no matter what their mood was. Only Legend ever seemed to be able to resist the charm of the wolf-smile, although why Four had never managed to figure out, although Red had pointed out that the salty hero seemed somewhat repulsed, if not startled or afraid, of that grin in particular. “I think all heroes can see them, Wild mentioned them once to me, and I can’t remember a time when I couldn’t see them! Hylia, they’re the first thing I remember!” 

  Now that piqued Four’s interest.  

  “How do you mean?” 

  Twilight frowned, glancing towards the kitchen in an uneasy fashion and then over to Warriors’ dozing form, his voice dropping ever so softly as he met Four’s gaze. “Uli and Rusl aren’t my birth folks, you know this. But no one rightly knows who it actually was that I came from, I just kinda...” He motioned outwards, hand fluttering slightly. “...appeared, out of the forest one day. Uli said I was about four at the time, so most of my permanent memories hadn’t formed, and the only family I could tell her about was ‘the little people’.” The wolf-hero leaned back with a sad little grin. “Of course, most adults don’t remember the minish- picori, and so Uli thought I was making it up, but-” Twilight shook his head agin, eyes twinkling and gaze fond as it fixed on a spot just above Four’s head, a spot where a nearly unnoticeable weight rested on their hair. “I never forgot how they watched out for me when I was little.” 

  The picori on their head squeaked out something that made Twilight chuckle, startling Four. He wasn’t startled that the picori had made noise of course, although that was rare, but Twilight was definitely acting as though he could not only see, but also hear the creature in question. 

  Four grinned. If Twi could see them, it wouldn’t be weird to interact with the little creature, right? And as his fingers reached up to offer a perch for his new little-friend, Twilight moved forwards, eyes sparkling as the picori reached out tiny paws to gently pat Four’s face and then squeak up cheerfully at Twilight. 

  “He says hello.” Four murmured softly, earning a wondering look from his fellow hero as Twilight waved gently back at the picori.  

  “Hi.” Came the disbelieving reply, breathy and whispered, but a smile accompanied it. 

  The picori squeaked again, dark gaze flitting from Twilight to Four as it spoke, counting on Four to translate for it, which they did, disbelief echoing in their own voice as they repeated the tiny being’s words. “He says the other miss you, they loved taking care of their hero’s...” They cut off with a sharp breath, eyes bugging out as his gaze, now a stormy ocean, met Twilight’s. “Their hero’s youngling.” 

  Twilight frowned, understanding clearly not having dawned. “Time was raised in a forest, and he can see them too, but I didn’t think he ever saved them. Huh, guess saving all of Hyrule includes-” 

  “He’s-” Four’s voice broke for a second, squeaking nearly as high as the being in their hand. “He’s not the hero of the minish, he’s-” Four huffed a deep breath, blinking furiously. “Their hero is- Oh Hylia....” 

  “It’s you, isn’t it?” Twilight finished, a wry smile pulling his features, almost apologetic as Four nodded. “Should have seen that coming, huh?” 

  “Yeah, we should’ve.” Four rasped, shaking their head to clear it and settle the voices that rattled about inside. “Gosh, Hylia really isn’t taking it easy on us is she?” 

  “Or God, if you believe like Legend and Hyrule do.” 

  Four rolled his eyes. “Prety sure even they believe Hylia is the one messing with us, not some other deity.” 

  The two shared a grin and the picori in Four’s hand chirped out a squeak laughter like noise. 

  “Calmest reveal ever.” Twilight grinned wolfishly. 

  “You can say that agin, and Wars slept right through it!” Four chuckled. 

  The two grinned at each other for a second before breaking out in hysterical giggles, Twilight’s hands clutching at the rug beath his feet as his shoulders shook and Four struggling to keep his small passenger balanced as he wobbling in mirth. The picori only laughed with them, sharp and soft at the same time. 

  “What are the chances.” Twilight wheezed, cobalt blinking across as swirling hazel. 

  “Who knows!” 

  Time’s head peeked around the door-frame for a moment, his expression relaxing as he took in the two boys with the picori, eyes meeting that of the small beast and exchanging smiles before he returned to the kitchen to attend to the younger heroes and whatever they had gotten up to. Four and Twilight could be trusted, even when hysterical, to not do anything overly foolish for a Link. 

  “So,” Four drawled as their laughter eased, sharp eyes staring into Twilight’s own. “You are Time are related then?” 

  “Yeah, I’m probably gonna tell the others sooner or later, I just wanted to give Wars a bit of a break,” The ranch hand turned to stare in sympathy at the captain. “He’s been taking all this really hard and I don’t want to shock him much more.” 

  Blue suppressed a smirk as they shook their head, setting the picori on the ground between them and Twilight. “Trust me, I think he can handle it.” They all basically knew at this point anyway, and Twi confirming it would hardly hard the captain's mental health. 

  Twilight, ever the clueless farm-boy, actually looked concerned. “I’m not so sure about that.” 

Chapter Text

  It was agreed by Four and Twilight that telling Warriors anything about their recently discovered connection was a foolish idea, and would most certainly send him off the edge if not into the nearest bar, so once the rest of the group woke in the morning, no words were said between the two. Furtive glances throughout the morning, both over the breakfast table and during their preparations to leave were shared, but as far as anyone else knew, they were simply expressing an annoyance with the attitude and behaviors of their team-mates and apparent family members. 

  Much to everyone’s surprise, despite his wariness of livestock and lack of particular interest while at Lon Lon Ranch, Legend spent the morning visiting the small fruit grove that Mayor Bo had planted just outside the village. Never before had Twilight seen the snarky veteran so enthralled in something, and watching him crouch down like rabbit on its haunches while he inspected the sapling trees and gently touched their tiny leaves, he found himself wondering what exactly Legend might have done before he set out on his first adventure. Sure, the village people had said that their Vet had been seven when he had first had to save the princess, but those first seven years had to spent doing something, right? 

  Wind and Warriors had enjoyed keeping the village children occupied, and Sky and Hyrule had both made busy with watching the Ordon goats that Twilight had, admittedly, spent a good deal of time telling everyone about. 

  The other heroes had been busy with other things around the farming village until a messenger had arrived from Queen Zelda.  

  Monsters had been seen descending en masse from the Lost Woods upon the villages bordering Hyrule Field, and the queen had sent messengers far and wide throughout Hyrule in hopes that one of them would run into the band of heroes. Twilight had to admit, it was a wise choice on Dusk’s part, as they had by now explained to a few princesses Zelda of the strange pattern that they traveled in. Dusk must have acted on the slim chance that the rise in monsters also meant that they had returned to deal with them, and fortunately, she was right. 

  Time had called for them all to gather their things and arm themselves while they prepared to set upon the forest, and Four shook his head as their leader proceeded to guide them directly towards a location in Twilight’s world that none of them had previously visited in this time. Twilight winced when Four had subtly signed his disapproval of their inability to be subtle about the connection between Time and himself, and he had to agree; maybe Warriors already knew at this point. 

  Thank Din that Hyrule Field and the Lost Woods were both only a day's trek from Ordon! Had they been in the Cub’s Hyrule it would have taken weeks at least to get there, and their hopes of arriving before the monsters had disappeared would have been hopeless without teleportation, something Twilight both hated and yet could understand the necessity for, even if it did require the use of forces he preferred to avoid. 

  It was a tense day and a half that they spent traveling to the forest, and the night on the road was restless for nearly all of them. It was rare to have the way pointed so clearly and quickly when they arrived in a new Hyrule, and as such all were on edge the whole night through. Time had attempted to enforce some sort of a watch rotation while sending the rest of them off to sleep, but Warriors held his post nearly all night, almost without blinking, sword drawn and laid across his knees, ready to be used at a moment’s notice. Wind and Wild had both attempted to stay awake as well, but both youngsters had been worn out by the recent strain put on their group. Twi knew that his Cub rarely slept, but it had been almost a week now, and even their Champion was fallible; sleep would creep up on the youngster eventually, and the added stress of the day seemed to be the final nail in the proverbial coffin, sending him off into a deep sleep as both blond-haired youngsters slumped against each other, wrapped up in Warriors’ scarf while Sky snored quietly beside them. The rest of them however... 

  Twilight knew that Time could sleep with one eye open (it was terrifying for the person on watch when the man was too tired to take care that it was his good eye), but he also knew the difference between awake Time and asleep Time, and as such he knew for a fact that despite Time’s purposeful heavy breathing, or Legend’s fake murmuring in his ‘sleep’ or Four’s silence, that the remaining six heroes received no sleep that night. 

  As a result, the battle in the morning had been a difficult one. Time had been caught heavily with a sword aimed at his legs when the monsters had broken cover to rush the traveling heroes, and despite his skill and speed, the old man still was struggling to hold his own as he attempted to avoid relying on his injured leg for balance or support. Wild, as always, had flown into the battle without a plan and started taking out monsters left and right, while the rest of them had attempted to work with some kind of teamwork. Much like the previous battles, there was much watching of backs and attending to the safety of others. Sky watched out for the downfall duo, while Legend kept his eyes on his descendants and Hyrule watched out for Wild, who was protecting Wars, who in turn was watching Wind, who was supporting Time, who had his eyes on Sky. This left Four and Twilight to watch out for each other, the small smithy darting in and out of battle while Twilight himself changed through the hoard of monsters on Epona’s back, sword swinging and bow hanging ready for use once he could get an opening. They kept their eyes on each other, and Time’s single eyes following them both with a knowing look whenever he had a moment to catch his breath. 

  The problem was, Legend was watching out for three people now, and as such, his attention was far too divided as he fought back the monsters. One blow was all it took for the Vet to stumble back into Hyrule, and then it all went downhill from there. Hyrule was attempting to get his predecessor out of the range of the enemy, face white at the sight of the gaping wound an axe had left in the Vet’s ribs as Wild flew in to cover the two of them. 

  The sight of blood seemed to stir the monsters to further madness, and their attacks grew fiercer and more frenzied. The walls of bokoblins and moblins, as well as vast quantities of stalfoes, grew too thick for Twilight to be able to reach the other heroes.  

  Beneath him, Epona shrieked a horses scream as swords dug into her flesh, the monsters unfazed by the hooves that flew upon their approach or the spiked shoes that greeted their ugly faces, and as the mare's knees buckled, Twilight found himself being flung from the saddle for the first time since his first adventure, and into the crowd of beasts. 

  His sword was hacking every which way, blade singing on the wind as screams, both of enemy and allies, assailed his ears. The wolf in his heart sang a song of bloodlust and his eyes flashed, teeth bared as he unleashed the full fury of the Spirit of Courage on the creatures that dared to attack his home and the people he loved.  

  There was only so much he could do alone though, and despite the glimmer of Hyrule’s healing that shone across the battlefield and the shrieks of the monsters, it was easy to see that they had bitten off more than they could chew. 

  Not far from where he was battling, Wild, soaked in blood that Twilight prayed was not the Cubs own, set upon the monsters, weapons crashing to pieces upon contact as new ones shimmered into existence from his slate, only to themselves be destroyed by the relentless champion. Wars, to his left, scarf tied tightly and spattered red across the royal blue, wreaked havoc on the monsters that approached him, but still, for every one monster to fall, another two would appear in its place, and it would only be so long before Wild ran out of weapons, or Warriors ran out of energy. 

  A shriek, long and loud and high enough that it almost made his ears bleed even in Hylian form, sounded across the field, stunning the heroes and ‘blins alike while skeleton assailants took a few second to push their advantage. Blue flashed in corner of his vision, stained red and accented by swishing gold, but nothing was clear in the moment that he stood frozen, and once he was again able to move, the whole battlefield had been shifted, and he found himself lying on the ground, staring up at golden armor, encrusted with ivy and rusted by time. A Hylian Knight’s claymore swung before him, bony hands guiding a blade through two ‘blins, toppling the beasts to the earth as Twilight stumbled again to his feet. 

  Shaking hands grasped his sword, and despite the thoughts flooding his mind, he turned his focus to the enemies before him. Another shriek sounded, and the sounds of battle echoed as blue and gold stood against hordes of bony soldiers. Blows struck his frame, pain erupting from places he could not act to defend, and still he waited for the moment to return when he could again swing into the battle. 

  The wolf howled in his heart, angry as it pawed the walls of his mind, begging for release to wreak havoc on the monsters that dared chain them by time, but once both of them were released Twilight found himself again stumbling to the earth, warm crimson leaking into his vision and blocking the image of the battle around him as beaten flesh met the earth. 

  “ Pup! ” A strained and gravely distortion of Time’s vice -Shade’s voice?- sounded across the field, desperate and fearful. It was that last thing Twilight knew before the darkness claimed him. 

   “Link! Link!”  Gnarled fingers –bones?- patted his cheeks as sunlight filtered into his vision. Twilight blinked awake, staring up at the too bright sky in confusion. 

  Where were the trees that had blocked the sun during their battle? Where was the putrid smell of blood and scorched flesh that always hung in the air, even after the enemy had dissipated? Twilight moved his head to glance around, his confusion growing, where were the others? 

  A sharp bark caught his attention, making the rancher turn about abruptly, only to find himself face to face with a sunlight shaded form of a wolf. Bigger than him, brighter than him, and oh so missed! 

  Rough hands closed on silky fur as a blood-stained face was buried in the wolf’s hide, tears escaping cobalt blue eyes as Twilight sobbed into the hide of his mentor. Tears of relief, or grief, of joy. Here was Shade again! It wasn’t a dream! It wasn’t a so longed for fantasy brought on by Time’s sleep-laden voice or Wild’s bony fingers, it was the Shade himself! In his wolf form, yes, but the hero himself! 

  “Sh-shade!” His voice was choked even as he drew back to smile at the beast, tears still running down his face. “You’re- you’re here! Your alive!” 

  The wolf raised a brow, Time's unimpressed scowl written plainly across the beast’s golden features forcing a giggle from the hysteric hero.  

  “You know what I mean, Old Man.” 

  A snort as the wolf lowered its head, accepting the scratches that Twilight administered to his ears. The younger hero grinned; he knew the effectiveness of ear-scratches better than perhaps anyone, and his mentor was just as much a sucker for them as he was himself. For a brief second, he wondered if that was a inherited trait and if he could blame his weakness on the older hero, but he dismissed the thought as his gaze traveled from the wolf before him to the land around them. 

  “We’re not near Ordon anymore.” He observed wryly, glancing out at country that spread out before them, cliffs dropping away to reveal a vast lake, and a plateau rising up to the left, grasses swaying freely in the wind and not a monster in sight.  

  Twilight frowned. “But if we were teleported,” He glanced down to the golden wolf before him, confusion pulling at his brows. “How are you still here?” 

  The wolf didn’t answer, and Shade didn’t transform either, instead, he rose and trotted away, casting a brief glance over his shoulder at the rancher as he went, and without any better options before him, Twilight rose and followed. 

  Whatever injuries he had sustained in the battle before had faded, whether by the work of the fairy or by Hylia’s blessing, he didn’t know. Shade wasn’t one to carry fairies with him, and a stalfoes couldn’t exactly purchase potions, but he had seen a fairy or two flitting about the shade’s helmet on a rare occasion, so there was a chance that his miraculous healing was to be attributed to them, but he couldn’t be certain. Whatever the case, whatever injury had brought him down in battle was no longer a problem, and while his head still throbbed with a headache and his limbs still twinged with pain, no wounds gaped or spilled precious life-blood onto the ground as the two of them walked. 

  Great, wheezing breaths sounded ahead, and Twilight’s ears, less mobile as a Hylian but still very much active, pricked forwards to catch the sound. The golden wolf huffed a sad sounding whine, and rushed forwards, the rancher at his heels as they raced towards the sound. Ahead of them, a great dark blotch took the form of a fallen horse, and Twilight found himself stumbling as his eyes traced over the great gashes that tore across Epona’s body, heavy breaths escaping the mare as she heaved, wheezing for air that seemed to do little good. 

  “Epona...” 

  The last few steps to the mare were staggered, but Twilight made them before falling to rest at the faithful mare's side. His hands were already searching his bag for a potion, a fairy, anything! But it was in vain, and he knew it, the last potion he had had been granted to Wind when the sailor broke his ankle on the journey over. The rest of their potions were with Hyrule, and there was no indicator that the others had even made it here with him. 

  Epona’s labored breathing rasped in his ears as he turned pleading eyes to the wolf at his side, who’s own single ruby eyes was downcast in sorrow, tail fallen limp as the beast hung its head. 

  “No...” The harsh whisper came unbidden to his lips, but neither animal responded. 

  “Change back,” He demanded, tears beginning anew as he grasped at the mare’s mane for comfort. “You helped me, what’s stopping you from helping her? Call a fairy or something, I don’t care! Just don’t...you can’t...” The words stuttered to a stop in his throat as the single red eye lowered, closing slowly, a pained expression marring the wolfs faces as a final shuddering breath heaved beneath the rancher’s fingers, Epona’s body falling still as dark eyes slipped closed. 

  No words could escape him as he turned in shock to stare at his beloved stead, and as tears clouded his eyes a fierce howl ripped from his throat to bay in sorrow up at the clouds, echoed by his mentor’s own melodious howl as two voices raised in a dance of sorrow against the pale sky. 

  Twilight didn’t know how long he sat buried against Epona’s still form, sobs wreaking his from and tears slipping down his cheeks, but once at last the wolf managed to pull him up and away, he found himself following automatically, thoughts void and mind fogged as a blank gaze trailed after the shining golden beast. 

  A stable rose up before them, one he knew from the fogged images of the Cub’s Hyrule, and before its doors, the other eight heroes sat around a fire, faces pinched with worry save for Four himself, who lay across Hyrule’s lap, glittering gold dancing over his head as healing was bestowed on the passed-out hero.  

  The golden wolf barked, tail wagging slightly as it bounded across the camp, leaping over the fire and tackling Wild, and despite the weight of sorrow on his shoulders, fear for his Cub took precedence in his mind as his own wolf-spirit pushed them both forwards, fear dancing in his heart at the thought of his mentor attacking his protégé. The thought of having to fight one for the other was horrible, but he’d fight Ganon twice for Wild if he had to, and he wasn’t about to lose his friend and his Cub both today. 

  “Seanathair!” Wild’s delighted shout calmed the other heroes, prompting them to all relax and resheath their blades as their second-youngest buried his fingers in the wolf’s golden fur, staring up at the animal that stood over him and grinning like the gremlin that he was. The wolf barked and Wild’s grin stretched wider, arms reaching up to wrap around the beast’s neck just as Twilight’s had done earlier. “I didn’t think you’d visit, miss me much?” 

  Sharp teeth nipped at the Cub’s ear, catching for only a moment and tugging and making Wild wince. “Ow, ow, ow, I’m being safe!” 

  Warriors, clearly exhausted, grinned wearily and shook his head, “And he’s supposed to believe that?” 

  Wild, scowled but upon looking back at the wolf he shrugged. “Fair.” 

  “He’s nearly as bad as that mutt that usually follows you around.” And Twilight could have sworn he sensed some sadness in Legend’s tone at the vet watched the wolf and boy. 

  “I don’t think wolves like being called mutts, Legend.” Twilight forced out. His own grief could wait, if even Legend was worried about his safety, he needed to be present for their sakes and assure them that he was okay. 

  “Twilight!” Seven heads whipped around to stare at him, and Wind tackled him in a full body hug.  

  “We were worried sick!” The sailor murmured into his tunic. 

  “Where were you?” 

  “Nice job wandering off on your own just before a switch, Rancher.” 

  “Are you hurt?” 

  “That dog come here with you?” 

  “Pup, are you okay?” 

  Cobalt met their match as Twilight stared up at his living mentor.  

  “Where’s Epona?” Warriors questioned. 

  His eyes slipped away and Time caught his breath as he watched his protégé slump in place. 

  “She didn’t make it.” 

  “Guess we’ll see her when we get back to your Hyrule than.” Legend shrugged. 

  “No she-” Twilight’s breath caught, and despite his best attempts, a sob was beginning to build up in his throat. All eyes, including the wolf’s turned back to stare at him as he rubbed a hand over his face, doing his best to wipe away any stray tears. “The battle, she got pretty beat up. I thought she was back in my Hyrule but then-” He cut himself off to gulp down a sob, but the tears were already leaking again as he continued. “We- I- she was just lying there and-”  

  Time’s hand came to rest on his shoulder and Twilight felt his resolve give out as he slumped to the ground, Time’s arm wrapping around his shoulders as a gnarled hand buried itself in his hair. “Oh Pup...” 

  The wolf barked again, nudging at Wild as the youngster glanced across at his mentor and their leader. “But she died here, in this Hyrule, right?” 

  Five sets of eyes glared over at him at Twilight’s shuddering breath met his inquiry, tears heavy in his tone as he responded from Time’s arms. “Yeah.” 

  Wild jumped to his feet, grinning down at the golden wolf and then over at Twilight. “Then there’s hope yet! I know someone who can help!” 

  “Epona’s dead, Wild.” Time sighed, looking up at his descendant's protégé as Twilight himself slumped further into his mentor’s embrace. 

  Wild bit his lip, nodding under the judgmental stares of the other heroes. “I know, but... this wouldn’t work if she wasn’t, just... trust me, ok?” 

  The golden wolf barked in affirmation, trotting away from the group a ways before turning back to stare expectantly at them. 

  “Alright,” Twilight sighed, wiping at his tears and pushing back from his mentor and letting Time pull him to his feet, shooting Wild a weary look before looking over at the wolf. “Lead the way, you two.” 

  Wild offered a reassuring smile before nodding at the wolf. “Right then, Seanathair, let’s go see Seanmháthair.” 

  Wild and the wolf led the other heroes down a path and between craggy cliffs until, at last, they stood before a great flower like fountain that almost resembled that of a great fairy, and which Twilight found himself vaguely remembering. 

  A great cackling arose about them as the water rippled to life and a strange figure, hung about with draped clothes and hidden behind a horse-like mask appeared before them.  

  At his side, Time stiffened, and Twilight felt the hairs at the back of his own neck rise as he stared at the spirit while his protégé approached it. 

   “Little hero, what brings you to visit my realm, again.”  The voice had the rest of them stepping back in surprise as fingers twitched menacingly over the head of the champion, but the wolf sat calmly, tail wagging gently as it barked a greeting at the spirit. 

   “Ah! I see you travel with blessings, greetings love of mine, has fate been kind?”  

  And thus proceeded the most confusing conversation that Twilight had ever heard, consisting of barks and murmurs from the terrifying spirit that lasted for a few minutes before Wild interrupted.  

  “Seanmháthair, my friend’s horse, Epona, died a few hours ago, can you bring her back for us?” 

  Every conscious hero started and stared as the spirit turned it’s gaze back to Wild.  “Epona, the one I had gifted you, you have allowed her to die? I will destroy you, young hero for failing her!”  

  Swords were already in hand as the spirit calmed again, Wild still standing passively in place. 

   “I jest.”  

  The other heroes relaxed. 

  “But how did the blessed beast come to fall, young hero? Surely your foolishness has not doomed her, hey?”  

  Wild shook his head. “We were fighting a camp of monsters infected with black blood and my friend Twilight and she were both badly injured.” The youngster's gaze traveled down to stare at the wolf at his side. “Seanathair was able to help Twilight, my mentor, but they couldn’t help Epona. But you can, Seanmháthair, right?” 

  The spirit gazed down at the group before them and gestured wildly about, the heroes beneath cowering slightly for fear of the wild hands knocking them over.  “Am I master and god of horses for nothing, young one? Pay as is right and what you ask will be granted!”  

  Wild grinned, reaching for his slate and, in a flash of blue, three huge carrots sat in his hands, only to be snatched by the alleged horse-god who quickly consumed them before waving their hands dramatically, and there, right before their eyes, Epona, clean, fresh and healed, stood chomping at her bit and pawing at the ground. Tears sprung to Twilight’s eyes as both he and his mentor sped to the mare’s side, hands brushing over her glossy coat, ignoring the dramatic horse-deity and instead focusing on the miracle that they had been granted. 

  “Epona, thank heavens!”  

  No one saw Wild thank the spirit, or heard the gentle assurance of the being as they offered a brash but fond goodbye, and no one, not even Wild, saw how Malanya stared after Time sadly before disappearing again into the depths of the fountain. 

  Epona was fussed over more that night than perhaps ever before in her life, but even a horse can become irritated with attention, and at last, with a few pointed whinnies and stern glares, the heroes had departed and allowed the mare to have her space. The meal Wild had been preparing in front of the stable was well and fully burnt by the time they returned, despite the best efforts of the stable-master, who was very apologetic about it all. Wild assured the man that it was no matter and set about remaking the meal, the golden wolf at his side, a shimmering sigil as the youngster cooked, stern and imposing even when Wild slipped him a few pieces of meat and rubbed at the bristly ears. 

  “Are you alright then?” Time murmured softly to his protégé as the rest of the heroes immersed themselves in informing a now awakened Four what he had missed. 

  “I will be, I hope.” 

  Time’s gaze tracked that of his descendant to stare at the wolf and cook. “The creature seems to be no trouble, does it worry you?” 

  Twilight started, a scoffed laugh escaping him as he shook his head. “No, not at all, he’s the most trustworthy person I know.” 

  “I’m hurt.” The elder deadpanned, although his face did pinch slightly as he spoke. 

  “You shouldn’t be,” Twilight chuckled. “That’s the- well, that’s you, in a couple hundred years. That's the you that trained me when we first met.” 

  “The shapeshifting is a family trait then?” 

  Twilight chuckled. “Who knows, with everything recently, that would make us all shifters, and I’ve yet to see proof for all of them.” 

  “Implying that you have proof one way or the other for others of them.” 

  “Something I can neither confirm nor deny, Old Timer.” 

  Time smirked, eyes still focused on the form of what was, apparently, his future self. “I’ve seen time travel before, but I can’t say I’ve met myself before.” 

  “Well, he’s not all you, he’s seen more and done more.” 

  “Died too, I see. That's not a living being, Pup.” 

  The rancher winced. “Yeah, like I said, couple hundred years. Yer old enough as is, you really think you live that long?” 

  “Long enough to train another hero? I doubted it. Good to know at least I’m not some twisted spirit at least.” 

  “Not that much change,” Twilight chuckled nervously. “You still glare at me the same way -and Wild too apparently.” He added, surprised, as the wolf in question gave one of Time’s mastered scowls at the cook while the youngster flipped a knife through his fingers. Said knife was promptly snatched out of the air by Legend, who echoed the canine’s scowl as he sheathed the blade. 

  “Question is, how does Wild know... him.” Time stumbled on the last word, and Twilight felt himself wince as he realized that the older hero was still processing what he was to become, and that the splendid wolf before them was in fact, his future. 

  “Honestly... I don’t even know.” 

  Time nodded, accepting, and Twilight watched as the wolf-shade nipped at Wild’s ears again in a direct reflection of Time’s practice of pinching them when the younger hero got too troublesome. 

  That night, after dinner, Twilight moved out to sleep in the horse stables with Epona, leaving the others curled up in their beds, Wind with Four, Legend with Hyrule, Sky sprawled across his own, Time in another, and Wild curled up against a silky golden pelt on the last, the wolf’s head resting on his hip as the youngster dozed. 

  Warriors stared across at the beast, eyes dark and pained as they met ruby red in the midnight glow. “How are you here? How did-” The captain cut himself off, sighing and rubbing a hand over his face, eyes meeting those of the wolf again, sorrow reflected equally in both as the beast whined softly.  

  Warriors’ voice cracked as tears pricked at his eyes, blue still fixed on red. “Why are you alone?” 

Chapter Text

  When he was little, Warriors would get painful migraines that sent him curling up in Grandfather’s room for hours, buried amidst pillows and with the curtains drawn while the rest of the family kept busy outside or in other parts of the house. At the end of the day, Grandfather would come and find him, and the two would sit there in the darkness, him curled up in his grandfather’s lap, the man’s fingers gently brushing through his hair, and a soft, rolling sea-shanty being carried through the air on his grandfather’s voice and vibrating against his small frame. When he had gotten older and gone on his first adventure, when chasing rabbits had gotten to be too much and whistles had rung in his head for hours, he would go find a quiet place near some water and hum the same shanty. It was a habit he had developed, whenever things got too hard, or his head pounded too much, he would hum one of Grandfather’s shanties to calm himself.  

  Mask had asked him about it once, when the soldiers’ cheers had rung too harshly about his head after a long day of stressing under the sun, fear for his cousin’s safety pressing in about him and heavy armor weighing him down all day long. The kid had found him at his worst, head enveloped in pillows as he lay as still as possible in the darkest corner of his tent, the breathy melody the only noise present in the tent until Mask had entered. As the kid’s fingers pulled through his hair, cut short now and no longer long enough for Grandfather to braid, he had explained that sometimes it just helped to ground him, grant a little peace and calm his mind enough that he could relax and let the headache fade.  

  He didn’t think the kid quite got it then, the frown on the child’s face screwed up in a way that had made him chuckle breathlessly for a few minutes, but as Time looked back at him now, concern etched over his sharp features as the lilting tunes traveled over their company, he supposed that over time the now-older hero had come to understand. 

  The relations between them that had cropped up over the last two months were wearing on him, and while the others hadn’t mentioned it again, his outburst in Hyrule’s world had left him riding high on tension and stress as he waited for the other shoe to drop. No one had said anything about his revelations, and it worried him. Sure, Legend was suddenly less defensive around him, and even somewhat nice, the man even making a point of looking out for him in battle, and Wind had taken to staring at him like he had with Legend when they had all first joined up, but the others seemed to be politely refusing to mention it. 

  Except for Sky, he was supportive and loving as always, and in the weeks after Wars’ outburst had been a calming presence and reassurance. The Skyloftian had only once encouraged him to bring it up again and discuss matters, and he had been planning on it, planning on sitting down to a discussion where they could lay everything bare, figure out any other connections and finally be done with the folderol that was the last few months.  

  But then the wolf had joined them. 

  They had wandered about Wild’s world, taking out monsters and exploring the land set so far ahead of any of their own times, and the whole time, the golden wolf had followed them. 

  It hurt. 

  Looking at the wolf hurt, seeing the creature looking at him hurt. Knowing that Time and Twilight both apparently knew about the wolf hurt. Seeing the golden beast trotting along alone tore his heart out and shredded it over the rocky path beneath their feet! 

  So, he tried to avoid it. After the first night (the night that had only raised questions and tears but no answers, never any answers) he had stayed as far away from the animal as he could. He walked as far away from Time, Twilight and Wild as he could, despite wanting very much to try and bond with his fellow knight and the rancher, or spend more time with the kid that he had once thought of as his own. But the wolf always walked with them. Sure, it drifted around, checking in with each of them just like Time did, nuzzling against Wind and Hyrule and making them giggle before it continued onwards, but it always came back to that trio. They didn’t seem to mind though, so Wars let them have their space. 

  Of course, staying at the back didn’t save him from the creature’s presence. Just like Mask, like Time, the wolf never let him alone to sulk or brood, instead curling up at his feet when he took night-watch, the beasts head pointed forwards and out towards the forest, ears pricked forwards and eye fixed on the land around them, always alert and aware. 

  Artemis had once wondered after the wolf’s mortality, whether it was a gift from above or perhaps like the fairies and the like which lived longer than most beings. Warriors hadn’t particularly cared at the time, all things considered, all he had worried about was that the animal was safe and not likely to hurt anyone that he cared about, and once Lana had assured him as much, he stopped looking into matters; there was only so much his mind could take of the supernatural and unusual, and if he didn’t need to know then he would save himself the headache (one had to prioritize these things). But these days, when he would come awake buried in golden fur just like so many long years ago, and the wolf would still be there, staring out at the world, he would find himself wondering if the beast ever needed to sleep, or if it could just power through anything. 

  Injuries healed with the falling of night, blood disappearing from the silky fur and bones setting themselves as the moon rose above. Maybe that was supposed to be some sort of apology from the heavens, he didn’t know, but he knew that he’d never, in all the years they had known each other, seen the creature sleep, and unless someone specifically fed him, the creature didn’t eat either.  

   What annoyed him was that, despite all of his attempts not to, he often found himself dozing up against the creature, no matter that he would be sitting on a rock or log when his watch began, when he came aware again, he’d be nestled in golden fur that curled ever so slightly and could almost make him believe that he was back at home curled up on top of his grandfather, the man’s beard tickling his face, his grandfather's stomach rising and falling beneath him. He’d attempted to glare at the wolf, but it never seemed to do much of anything, the beast would just smile a smile that looked far too much like Time’s, despite the canine face, and return to keeping watch. 

  Still, he’d keep watch every night, letting the others sleep as his own tired body dragged on through the night. It wasn’t that Wars didn’t like sleep, he very much missed being able to have it. Not that he’d remember it well, he hadn’t slept through the night since he was a child himself. But there were other things that always needed doing. There were soldiers to aid through nightmares; poor boys who never realized what they were getting themselves into when they signed up to defend their country. There was watch to keep; someone had to ensure the safety of the camp. And there were families to take care of; his family needed taking care of. 

Grandfather would have knocked him upside the head with the back of his hand, eyes glistening mournfully as he instructed him to go to bed, to rest. Linkle would have pinned him to the couch and flopped on top of him until he agreed to sleep. Zelda would scold and fuss, ordering him to his quarters in the hopes that he would drift off, or demanding he take a vacation so that he would at least relax. And the rest of his little family, the people who he would give his life for, they would all demand that he rest, in their own way, and once upon a time he would try and listen. 

  But once upon a time was once upon -not now, and before Hylia had whisked him away with the others, being locked in his room by Zelda or pinned down by Linkle or forced on break only left his mind to spiral and his thoughts to painfully pick through his failures and all the things he wished he had done better.  

  The other would complain that Hylia was being lazy by forcing them to fix her problems, but in all likeliness, the swirling portal that had ripped him from home was the only reason he was still alive today. He had others to worry about now, and a family that needed him as much as he needed them. They were a team, one separated by time and reality, yet still a family that he could lean on, and with every new member that turned out to be family, he had grown both more tired, and more thankful that there was someone still around to hold onto. 

  And then the wolf came. 

  The wolf that haunted his soul and refused, no matter how he ignored it, to leave him alone. 

  None of the others seemed to see, or at least didn’t notice the few interactions between the two, and if Warriors could help it that’s the way it would stay. 

  He had looked forwards to when, at last, a portal would appear to carry them all away, leaving the wolf back in Wild’s world to wait until they returned, which, (no offense to Wild) he hoped would not be for a long time. But when the portal finally had appeared, swirling with all of its detestable purple and gold, the beast hadn’t left their sides. 

  They had been camping out, as they usually did, set on a hill with an excellent view of the world around them, eyes out for monsters as they had gathered around the fire, the wolf lying between Wild and Twi as they all finished their meals. Wars had been keeping his gaze fixed towards Death Mountain, his thoughts purposefully set on the landmark in an effort to avoid the wolf, when Sky and Wild had started, the wolf (Twi was insisting that it was called Shade, but he couldn’t bring himself to think of it as such) barking sharply as the sky had split and the portal had swirled into existence only feet away. 

  They had gathered their things, abandoning their campsite and allowing the hole in reality to carry them away to another world. Bright sunlight had greeted them as they stepped out into a vast field, and for some time, the others had stood about in confusion while Wild had absolutely panicked as a Guardian Stalker had passed by them, lights blinking and glittering as it patrolled the area, never bothering with the heroes that stood in plain sight in the middle of the field. 

  And the wolf stood right there with them. 

  “We must be in an in between time.” Twilight gulped out, eyes still wide with fear that Wars couldn’t understand, they were just Guardian Stalkers after all). 

  “Well, let’s explore the area, check the lay of the land and see where things are around here!” Wind suggested, surging ahead, only to be stopped by Legend’s hand on his shoulder. “ 

  “Not so fast, short-stack-” 

  “Short-stack?!” 

  “We don’t know this Hyrule, we shouldn’t be wandering off, and I don’t feel comfortable with everyone splitting up either, not if those are Guardians like Wild was saying.” The Vet’s eyes scanned the field around them, a scowl marring his otherwise pleasant features. 

  Hyrule giggled. “Really taking that grandfather role to heart, huh Legend?” 

  “Not your grandfather.” Legend seemed to be growling the words, but it rumbled and squeaked in a way that reminded Wars of the hours he had spent as a kid scooping irritated rabbits up in a net to cart back to their homes. 

  “I think that title belongs to Four now anyways.” Twilight sighed, looking almost as tired as Wars felt. 

  “Four, are you even related to everyone else?” Sky hummed, cocking a brow. 

  The rancher facepalmed as their shortest member jabbed him in the side, eyes glinting steely blue in the sunlight as he glared in the man's direction before looking pointedly at Wars. 

  “Go on and share, you not saying anything means there’s something to be said.” Wars sighed, averting his gaze and glaring up at the sky. Would Hylia ever let him catch a break? 

  “That...okay.” Four shook his head and nodded. “Distant relative of Time and Twilight, we found out back in Ordon when some family friends visited.” 

  “Your friends are still alive in Ordon?” 

  “When did they come around?” 

  “When were you taking visitors, Smithy? I didn’t see you with anyone.” 

  Four rolled his eyes. “Descendant of some friends of mine, they just know u- me because... well, We're not too sure to be honest..” The smithy’s face twisted up in confusion as violet edged into his gaze. “I suppose we didn’t really discuss that, they only mentioned knowing me and that their family used to help take care of Twilight and Time because of it. Don’t ask,” He waved them off before questions started being thrown his way. “We didn’t go into detail and we don’t have time for that right now anyways.” 

  Time nodded slowly, stoic and composed to the rest of the group, but Wars could spot the other hero’s confusion a mile away, he had been the victim of too many a long night answering curious inquiries to not recognize it, even on Time’s very-much-not-a-kid-anymore face. Warriors echoed the gesture as the others all looked back towards him, perhaps wondering if he was going to snap again, but in all honesty, he was simply too tired to care at this point. Instead of acknowledging them he grabbed hold of Wild, who was still coming down from his panic, and struck out across the field, carefully ignoring the wolf that followed on his heels as he pulled the dazed kid along. 

  The others followed in kind, letting the captain take the lead in this new world and taking the brief moment to enjoy not having to chase down Wild or Hyrule, both of whom were being carefully kept ahold of by Wars and Legend respectively. 

  Wars didn’t bother with explaining himself or his path to the others, and he didn’t make a show of pretending not to know where he was. He had a goal in mind and for once it was in reach, with no adventures, heroes, soldiers or blasted portals to hold him back. 

  The house rose up in front of them, set on a hill overlooking the coast and just as tumble-down-tidy as it has always been. They weren’t far along the path before the door burst open and a figure was speeding out the door towards them, not stopping for a moment before scooping Wars, and by proxy, Wild, into a bone crushing hug. 

  “There ya’ are! I ‘as beginning to worry you’d made some sort of wrong turn!” 

  And for the first time in far too long, War let himself go limp and sink his face into the curly grey beard that he was pressed up against, drinking in the smell of salt and smoke, and just the slightest hint of rum.  

  “Missed you to, Pops.” 

   There was no describing how good it felt to be back in his childhood home, Granny’s recipe for stew bubbling over the fire and the rest of his time-strewn family gathered in the house, staring about in awe. 

  Wind, naturally, was taunting Legend with the fact that he apparently grew to be taller than any of them, and so the Vet’s jab of short-stack earlier was invalid. Grandfather had joined in, teasingly calling Legend “Pops” while the vet had stood open-mouthed and wild-eyed as he processed what was going on around him. 

  It only got worse when Grandfather had caught sight of Time, whisking him up in his big arms and ruffling their leader's hair playfully before holding the man out before him and nodding. “You’ve grown.” 

  “Time does that.” The no longer-eldest in the group had replied with a grin. “Good to see you, Old Man.” 

  “The same to you, whippersnapper.” 

  Jaws had dropped and eyes had bugged out, but for once Warriors was left unbothered by the chaos, instead choosing to step inside, plonk himself down in Grandfather’s armchair and enjoy the warmth of the fire. 

  The others had only been too happy to explore the house, looking at the trinkets that their own youngest would one day collect and trying to pry some sort of story out of the old man. But Wars had stayed in the living room, eyes fixed on the flames that danced in the fireplace and enjoying the warmth that thawed him from the fierce winds that blew about outdoors. Wild sat with him, practically on top of him, having never been released from the older hero’s hold and still too out of it too really notice the older hero pulling him close and gently threading long fingers through his hair. 

  The wolf settled at their feet, perfectly at home in the familiar house, and perfectly content to watch the two of them as they enjoyed the fire. 

  In time, Wild would come back to himself and run out to join the others in exploring. In time, everyone would come in to enjoy one of his favorite childhood dishes and chatter about their lives. In time, they would have to talk about everything, about their connections and relations and the nightmare that was the timeline. In time, he would have to face the headache of life again. But for a brief moment, a small snippet in the messed-up existence that was time, he would enjoy being here, and imagining that everything was as it should be. 

  “You’ve been drinking.” 

  “How did you know?” 

  “I lived through this too, lad, I was there.” 

  “You’d been planning this lecture since you were a kid, haven’t you?” 

  Grandfather grinned. “Maybe.” 

  Warriors pulled a hand down his face. “I didn’t mean to, I promise.” 

  “You were doing so well though...” 

  “Stress is a horrible influence.” 

  “So are shadows.” 

  “You know how this all ends, right? Tell me?” 

  “And ruin the adventure? Never! 'Sides, it’d mess with time, and not just the kid, I mean the principle, and our kind have done that enough as is.” 

  “Rats.” 

  “Don’t think you can dis’ract me, Link.” 

  “Rats again.” 

  “But I’ll give you a bit, you seem to have your hands full.” 

  Warriors smiled slightly and looked down at the boy sprawled over his chest. “I can’t even get up.” 

  “Do you even know how you got down?” Grandfather laughed. 

  Warriors glared up at him from where he lay pressed up against golden fur. “I wish.” 

Chapter Text

  Fluffy white hair, plum gaze, rustling violet, smooth brown and a melodic laugh. 

  Honey-warm laughter and rough hands and a beard that tickled his cheeks. Wiry gold and warm, sun-kissed brown, warm metal and glinting silver. 

  The memories had haunted him for the last few days, distant and hardly touchable, yet present and looming just out of reach. 

  The scent of flowers and the feel of light, of warmth, of openness. 

  His Hyrule was full of such feelings and sensations, but despite having all of the ingredients, they didn’t seem to come together right, none of them reflected the vision, the brief recollection of that open and home-like place that he couldn’t quite remember. Flowers grew wild and free, spaces stretched out open and unchecked, air warm and sun bright, but yet nothing matched, something was missing.  

  A distinct feeling of grandeur haunted the memory, but what made it grand or what made it majestic escaped him, dancing away like a fairy between his fingers as he reached for it. 

  Wild sighed into his breakfast, letting his spoon tap against the rim of the bowl he had been given. Eyes turned to him, but rather than face their concern he kept his focus on the faces from his memory, the sensations he hadn’t had time to focus on since they had been recalled, the images and people he had yet to place, but was determined to remember properly. 

  Warriors shared a look with Twilight and Time. Their resident wild-child had been out of it all morning, despite having slept better than ever while curled up on the floor with Warriors and the golden wolf (Shade, Twilight reminded him again). The kid was nearly silent, gaze downcast and clouded, as if he was caught in a memory, yet still moving about and doing things with the rest of them. 

  Wild had helped Grandfather make breakfast, helped round the others up and had sat down with them as if he was fine, but his eyes told a different story, one which all of them could read.  

  Grandfather hadn’t said much that morning, eyes sad but knowing, with a glint of joy peeking out only to be smothered again by that saddened look that the older man shot them. It was irritating, in its own way. Grandfather clearly knew what was going on, or at the very least had an idea of it, but wasn’t saying anything about it. Wars wanted nothing more than to demand that he give them an answer, if only to get things somewhat back to normal, but doing so would mess with the time stream... oh how he hated it sometimes when older adults were right! 

  Besides, bringing up the matter now would make it look like he was trying to avoid the current topic, and while that was exactly what he would like to be doing, Time would absolutely have his hide for pushing this off again. 

  Maybe that was what had the kid off; Wild wasn’t yet confirmed to be related to any of them, so hearing the others talk about their connections this morning... no, the kid never had a problem with it before, and doubtless they would discover something soon about Wild’s family, if Hylia was going to continue as she had been doing.  

  No, something else was the matter. 

  “Well,” Time turned his attention back to the rest of the Chain, a silent command to both Twilight and Warriors to give Wild his space and allow the kid to come forwards in his own time. “Now that that’s all out, who would like to run down this, frankly exhausting, family tree?” 

  Four rose his hand, looking very much like a child in school for a brief moment, a thought that made Warriors have to fight to stifle a giggle in his own still-tired state (although last night had been one of the better ones he had had in years).  

  Time nodded at the smithy, prompting the beginning of what was, to be frank, a quite impressively organized spiel all things considered.  

  “Sky is the first of our number, although apparently there was another hero before him who isn’t with us. Sky is “descended from a being of power” that has so far remained unnamed by those who do know.” Grandfather smirked, glancing away for a moment and hiding his face behind a mug of coffee, making Wars frown in consideration, was this something they would also learn at a later date? 

  “Sky fathered, or will father, the royal line, which includes all of our princesses. Since Dot and I are distant cousins, that make me a descendant of Sky somehow, and according to some family friends, I'm also an ancestor of Time’s. Time split the timelines during his travels and became the Fallen Hero in one,” Legend scowled and averted his eyes, causing Sky to flop his sailcloth over the salty-hero's shoulders in a show of comfort as the man sulked. “And the Hero of Time in Wind’s, before returning to his own time somehow where he isn’t commonly known as a hero.” 

  The others all nodded, confirming that everything seemed to line up so far. 

  “And that’s where it all goes insane.” Four sighed, slumping slightly before proceeding to point at each of the other heroes in turn. “Time fathers Twilight’s family line, making them related, but also related to me somehow, but in the other two timelines he apparently also fathered Legend’s family. Legend from Wind’s time went on to become Wind’s great-grandfather, but in his own time he will parent the line that produces Hyrule. Legend is also a prince of Hyrule and thus descended directly from Sky and Sun, and Hyrule and Time are also brothers as well as Hyrule being Time’s descendant because Time’s adoptive mom is Hyrule biological mom.”  

  Four paused for a breath, eyes glinting a myriad of colors at once and making Wars wonder for a brief moment if the poor kid was going to be made sick with all the spinning about and pointing that he was doing. Of course, a battlefield required more spinning and a different kind of pointing, so perhaps Four would be alright, as long as his mind wasn’t spinning as much as he was.  

  (Warriors couldn’t have known, but Four’s mind was spinning much faster than his body was capable of and he felt very much like becoming sick with the migraine that the colors were giving him at the moment.) 

  “Lastly, Wars is descended from Wind, his grandson to be exact, and apparently,” The smithy grinned manically over the younger version of Grandfather. “He married his Zelda, ahem,  Tetra,  thus making Warriors a relation of the royal family as well.” 

  “Meaning that any and all fear regarding princely titles is irrelevant because Wars is either a prince or some sort of lord as well!” Sky added softly, nudging their Vet who seemed to stall in surprise at the thought. 

  “Yeah, what is up with the whole prince thing?” Wind frowned, cocking his head. “You two seemed pretty tense over all of that.” 

  Legend shot Wars a glare, one which the captain took in stride. The Vet’s glares had many deviants, but this one was more an appraising one than a fearful or angry one. 

  “In my timeline, Princes are thought to be a curse or ill omen, they pollute the bloodline or something. There’s an unspoken rule that for Hylia’s freaking power to be passed on, the royal line has to continue. But if a prince takes the throne instead of a princess, then the power of Hylia will only travel through the princess, and thus disappear into the masses. To prevent that, they keep a woman on the throne whenever possible.” The vet shrugged. “Not a bad idea honestly, they have more sense than most people in my experience.” 

  Wild looked up with a smile at that, nodding in a way that made Wars remember that the kid was technically in his hundreds.  

  “The issue is, the rules state that only the firstborn can take the throne, so if a boy is born first, well... You get the idea; the princess can’t rule. The rule is too old to change, so instead they just make sure a girl is always first. People got suspicious about how there were no first-born males, so the royal family told everyone that Hylia blessed their line to only ever produce female heirs. Of course, with that sort of thing floating around, they have to make sure it holds true so,” The vet’s eyes glinted indigo as he raised one ringed hand in an ominous wave. “Bye-bye, baby boys.” 

  It was like a sucker punch to the gut, and Wars winced at the thought. “That’s horrible!” 

  Legend didn’t meet his eyes. “The Hyrulian Knights were the ones who took care of that, their job after all is to protect the line of Hylia in all ways, even from descending into obscurity.” 

  If the previous thought was a sucker-punch to the gut, then that was a sword through Wars’ heart, and he found himself staring in shock and horror at his fellow hero. “You know I wouldn’t, Legend, I’m-” 

  “I had no way of knowing.” The vet cut him off. “Wild is a knight too, but once we figured out that he had amnesia, I figured he was less of a risk.” 

  A risk that someone would betray the vet. A risk that he or Wild would attempt to kill their companion. 

  His gut churned with the thought. Betrayal was one of the worst experiences that had become the norm while in the army during the War of Eras. Knowing that the people closest to you could turn at any moment was a fear he was still learning to let rest. There were so many times he had thought about what would happen if the others would betray him, but over time, he had learned to trust them despite that fear. 

  But Legend must have lived with that fear his whole life. If he had to hide the truth from everyone for the sake of staying alive, if he really had started adventuring at the age of  seven , then how long had he been watching the people who were supposed to protect him, with fear? How long had Legend spent looking at  him  in fear? Thinking of him as a threat?  

  “I would never hurt you.” His voice was the same solemn tones he had uttered when swearing allegiance to his cousin, when promising to protect her. They were the same heartfelt words he had promised to his beloved when they had tied the knot, held the same weight as when he had promised Mask that he would always remember him. And now, looking Legend in his too violet too haunted eyes, Warriors made another promise.  

  “I swore as a child to do all that I could to protect and preserve the royal line.” Legend winced. “If the knights in your time have sworn the same vow than they have disgraced it, because prince, princess, king, queen or otherwise, any descendant of Hylia’s is to be held in honor and respect and will be defended to the last breath by any knight who is worth their salt. Your Hyrule may not understand that, Legend, but rest assured, the day I willingly turn my blade on you is they day I take my own life.” 

  The room seemed frozen as the two heroes stared at each other, violet and royal-blue meeting and searching the other.  

  For once, Warriors allowed the other hero’s soul-searching gaze full access, holding nothing back as Legend stared at him. Gold tingled at his senses, familiar yet strange, warm and cold at once, searching and curious, but respectful as it drew away again from his mind. 

  “Why should I believe you?” The vet- Legend, challenged. 

  Wars sighed, but despite wanting to he didn’t drop his gaze. “You don’t have to. You can distrust me-” His voice caught for a brief moment but he pushed forwards. “You can distrust be ‘till the day this quest is done, until we never see each other again, but even so, I will keep my promise. I wouldn’t let anything happen to you, any of you, not if it was in my power to stop it.” 

  “Cute.” Legend rebuffed, but his cheeks tinged pink and his eyes softened as a smile tugged at his lips. It wasn’t trust, and it wasn’t acceptance, bit it was a willingness to give Wars a chance, and that was worth all the pain that would doubtlessly come from his promise. 

  “Well, now that you two have settled that,” Sky looked around, sky-blue eyes twinkling lovingly. “I suppose the thing to do now is visit with Artemis and see how things are around here, that is, if you think that’s best, Time.” 

  The younger of the two old men in the room nodded, expression drawn but his eye twinkling with warmth. “Sounds like a plan. Pup, do you mind grabbing your Cub? I think he might have drifted off again.” 

  Artemis, Warriors was looking forwards to seeing. He hadn’t been anywhere near his cousin in months, even before this whole adventure had started. That was, of course, his own fault, but even so, he longed to see her again, of only to set his mind at ease that she was where she was supposed to be, not locked in a prison under the grip of monsters, not parading around the countryside as Sheik, and not taking off for a joy-ride in the spirit train (neither had done such since after their first adventure together, but she did tease). 

  The person they saw the minute they stepped into the throne room however, they weren’t someone Wars was counting on seeing, or even hoping to see. 

  Time’s blade hissed in its sheath as dark eyes stared over to them, a smirk playing on ruby lips as Cia took in their company, and Warriors fought the temptation to follow his leader/kid’s example. Cia had redeemed herself initially after the war, but her failings as a guardian of Time, as a keeper of portals and preventer of paradoxes and time-travel had left him without a kind word to spare her. 

   “Heroes.” She greeted, not purring like during the war, not friendly like once-upon-a-time, and not angry like his more recent memories. 

  “Cia.” Time’s voice echoed his own as they greeted the woman who stood before Artemis’s throne. 

  Whatever might have followed from there, Wars didn’t know. Whether they would have regarded each other with cold professional gazes and words while both coming to the princess for their respective needs, or if one would have stomped out, they never got to find out. 

  A blue blur sped across the room, rocketing towards Cia and making the time-guardian start for a brief moment before catching it in her arms, eyes glinting in surprise before setting alight with warmth as golden locks settled again, dark fingers buried amidst their masses as Wild’s soft, almost tearful voice echoed around the chamber. 

  “Auntie Cia!” 

  Warriors short-circuited right then and there and for a good while there wasn’t any sort of response from any of them. In the mean-time, Cia, in all of her dazzling horror, bent down to Wild’s level (the kid was short, okay?) and kissed his forehead. 

  “And how’s my favorite nephew doing today? Hmm? Goodness me, I haven't seen you in so long, look at you! You got so big!” Claw like nails gently brushed golden hair out of cornflower eyes as soft plum stared down at the kid.  

  Wild flushed slightly, fingers hesitantly tailing up to where Cia let him run them through dove white hair, gently brushing over warm brown skin as he stared with awestruck eyes. “It was you. I saw you!” 

  “You did see me, Little Pup.” Cia smiled, almost sadly, eyes trailing up to stare over at the group before lighting up again. “And I see that despite my mistakes, another has not failed to uphold their duties.” And Warriors could only stare in shock as the woman who nearly destroyed his whole world knelt to run blood painted nails through too-gold too-soft fur as plum and ruby met. “You didn’t abandon him, did you? You watched him as best you could.” 

  The wolf snuffled softly, unblinking as it stared at the woman.  

  “Hylia offers her thanks.” Cia whispered into the beast’s ear, but the empty silence of the room carried it to the gathered heroes as they stood, hands still loosely grasping weapons and eyes and mouths both hanging open in disbelief and surprise as they watched the Guardian of Time smother the golden wolf in pets and kisses, Wild kneeling at her side and following her example. 

  “Cia.” Artemis’s choked voice broke all from their thoughts as gazes traveled to the descending princess, who paused at the side of the smaller group, hands clasped before her and a painfully confused expression marring her otherwise gorgeous features. “What on earth do you mean, your favorite-” 

  “Link was right when he accused me of being unable to bring back his son.” Cia responded, rising to meet the princess’s gaze, one hand remaining burring in golden fur as the two woman darted glances down at Wild, who seemed frozen himself in a state of confusion (although his mind was processing whether he should bow or remain still rather than the words the women spoke). “Hylia’s hold on her heroes is firmer than any power within our grasp, and only a wish on the tri-force could have achieved what he wanted. The boy wasn’t chosen, not in the manner that Link or his ancestors were, but without a hero of their own, the future needed someone to bear the mantle of protector. As such, Hylia’s will over-rode my abilities, leaving me powerless to retrieve that which was lost.” 

  Warriors stumbled forwards, blindly catching hold of the wall as he stared at his cousin and one-time friend. “But you could bring everyone else back, send the others to their won times. Why not-” 

  “Hylia’s hand holds fiercer than anything, Hero, even love. My powers are gifted from the golden three, and if their chosen sister has prevented my actions, it is no fault but her own, as I have told you for years now.” 

  Something crumbled inside, something built of anger and almost bordering on malice, and Warriors stared, lost, as the kid he’d been traveling with for months, the kid who was currently staring up from where he knelt before the princess, eyes as confused as they had been when first he had entered this hall and seen the proceedings within.  

  “What is going on?” Sky asked softly, but no one answered, instead, Artemis collapsed to her knees, pulling a surprised Wild into her lap and sobbing as she buried her face into his hair, confusing the kid even more as she shook with tears. 

  “He’s back, he’s back, he’s back...” 

  And as much as Warriors wanted to do the same thing, wanted to say that it was  his  son that had been taken away, that it was his  child  that had been ripped away by the War of Eras and cast into time unknown; staring at the kid in front of him, he couldn’t help but feel shock and horror that for all the desperate searching and years of fighting to force Cia to return to him what was his, Wild was grown and gone, no longer the little kid that had tugged at his own too-long, no longer military standard hair; that had curled up in his lap and hidden in his cloak. This wasn’t the small child that Artemis had carefully enlarged his uniform scarf for, not the little-one who has slipped away in swirling purple in the middle of their living room; this was a hero who had proved himself time and time again. This was a young knight who had fought Ganon and won, who had destroyed an evil that Warriors knew he was yet to face, an evil he would leave unconquered for his own son to face ten-thousand years into the future.  

  The words of the woman from Legend’s Hyrule flitted through his mind, ‘ Fitting, I suppose, that the failures of one hero should pass to his descendant to fix, an inheritance if you will’.  

 Bile crept up his throat, and Warriors felt his knees collapsing beneath himself as cool marble rushed close towards him, a fall he was unable to break about to slam him into the stone, only for fingers to catch hold of him, rings catching on his armor as someone hefted him back up again, supporting his weight as he stared, unseeing at the room around him. 

  Everything was tilted at an angle, and he could only barely see Wild from where the kid was buried in Art- Zelda's arms. Confusion marked the already scarred face, fingers gently brushing along the woman’s back in a confused attempt at comfort. 

  Cia sat close at hand, the golden-wolf at her side as her hands trailed through the beast’s almost curling fur, plum and ruby staring on in sadness, yet with a twinkle of joy at the reunion before them.  

  Almost like Grandfather’s eyes this morning, he thought as more hands caught hold of him and began to shift him around. 

  Voices called and hands brushed over him, but nothing registered save the image of the boy he had once carried on his shoulders nestled safe again in the arms of a beloved aunt, two guardians standing watch against any more of Hylia’s dirty tricks. 

Chapter Text

  Warriors had fainted. 

  Legend, unlike the others who were all in varying states of shock, had had the presence of mind to catch the captain before the poor man hit the ground, and had the circumstances been any less grave, Wild would have laughed to see the considerably shorter Vet hoisting Warriors up against himself and shifting the man into a bridal carry. (Such a position may not have been the best for the Vet’s back, but it would be the least amount of discomfort for the passed-out soldier.) 

  Mouths continued to hang open and eyes flashed between staring at Auntie Cia and back to Wild himself, who, despite his best efforts, was still clutched closely to Warriors’ Zelda, Artemis, and was no closer to being released than he had been when the woman had effortlessly scooped him into her lap. 

  Tears had made his hair wet enough that it clung to the back of his neck, and Artemis’s grasp on him was nothing short of fierce (it almost rivaled Sky’s), leaving the young Champion unable to do anything in the ways of helping as Time was knocked back into his own mind by a well-aimed kick on the Veteran’s part. 

  Bustling began around them, and while Artemis did raise her face from his hair, she continued to hold him tightly as she gave orders for the guards in the hall to aid Legend in transporting the Royal Cousin to the healer’s ward.  

  Of course, with his brothers and family about him, there was no need for the knights to do anything, and even as they offered to guide, Time waved them away, guiding the others down the halls after Legend refused to hand the captain off. Violet eyes had flashed a soft lavender as he scolded the others, but his grip was tight on the captain, and his ears tilted down in the way Hyrule had once pointed out as meaning that the Veteran was concerned or frightened. Boots hastened out of the room, all of the rest of their group leaving him alone with Seanathair the two women who were, apparently, both his aunts. 

  “Zelda, let the Little Pup breath, he’s becoming dazed.” Auntie Cia’s voice was soft and rumbling in a way it hadn’t been when she had addressed Warriors, and had his mind not been beginning to spin into its deepest depths, he would have wondered why that was. 

  These women were his aunts. People from Warriors’ time were his family, a family that he briefly remembered. 

  There had been two figures he remembered, Auntie Cia with her fluffy dove hair and smooth brown skin, soft plum eyes and rich purple robes*, and a second person, a person with honey-warm laughter, who was smooth shining silver and curling gold with sun-kissed tan and summer-soaked warmth. 

  Auntie Cia had said, claimed... she had called him Link’s son. Had said he was taken away. But the Link from this time was Warriors, Warriors who was soft-hearted but with words that were stern and commanding when needed, although they rang with bitter-sweet laughter at the shenanigans that the younger heroes got up to. Warriors, who was strict but gentle as he guided the less knowledgeable of their party through swords training, who wrapped the others, even Time, in his scarf when they were down or scared. Warriors, who’s mere presence was warm and safe enough to break through the barriers that had blocked away his childhood since even before the shrine had stolen it from him. 

  Warriors was safe, Warriors was caring and kind and playful and guiding and... gentle. 

  Fathers, fathers were none of those things! 

  Fathers were sharp and brash, they shouted and yelled and whispered in ways that bit like snakes. Their hands don’t guide, they strike out and punish. Fathers don’t wrap other people in warm blankets and scarfs, they rip them away and kick people out of bed to train until their legs can’t hold out and their fingers are half frozen. Father don’t joke, they don’t tease, they don’t play or laugh or- or- or do anything Warriors did! Anything Time or Twilight or- any of them did!  

  Fathers were people to avoid, Hylian fathers anyway (he’s met Mipha’s father, he’s seen Dorian and Teba and he knew they cared for their children). 

  But Auntie Cia was saying... 

  Warriors couldn’t possibly be his father! 

  He remembered his father, remembered the man more than he wanted. Zelda had once asked him if he was happy to regain the memories he had, or if he would have preferred to recreate himself free from the chains of a dead-man, and despite everything, all the wonder and love and amazing beauty he saw in his past, he would willingly give it all up in order to lose the haunting echo of his father’s voice and the sting of hands on his face. 

  Reliving that memory had sent him shooting up in bed in a cold sweat not long after they had returned to Hateno, he had been silent for a week and Zelda had fussed over him the whole time, eyes full of pain he wanted to wipe away, but couldn’t bring himself to do after remembering why he wasn’t supposed to interact with other people. 

  Warriors didn’t make him want to run away or stand in silence, making himself as small as possible. The Captain settled him enough that he could actually sleep, the scarf wrapped around them both and tying the older hero to him so that the man couldn’t move to fight or wander away and cry (Wild had seen him do it late at night when he thought the others were asleep) without waking him. Warriors was... Warriors was everything a father wasn’t! 
 

  “Little Pup?” Warm tones pitched with concern somewhere nearby, but despite feeling the fingers that patted up against his face, and knowing somehow that they were those of his aunt, his mind only registered sharp slaps and angry tones as he ducked down. 

  Blond hair peeked at the edges of his vision, soft pastels beneath, like... like someone safe, someone he knew he could trust, and he ducked further down, hiding against them until the fingers dissapeared and the voice quieted. 

  Murmuring. 

  Someone was murmuring softly and it made him still further. Was the person upset? Was Father angry? 

  “Hey there, Sparky.” The voice wasn’t deep and rumbling, or soft and tearful, it was warm and melodious, with a pitch to it that he knew he remembered from somewhere. 

  Smoke tinged at his senses and he darted up, eyes wild for a second before he took in that which was before him. 

  Legend sat a few feet away, a flame resting in the palm of the large leather glove he had dawned, and the man’s violet eyes were staring at him in that intense yet passive manner that was so totally Legend it could have made him sigh in relief (it did). 

  “There you are, Twilight said you’d probably get lost in your head.” 

  Fingers twitched slowly as he raised them from where they had desperately been clutching at his aunt’s dress.  Where is Twilight?  

  Legend frowned for a moment, brow furrowing slightly in confusion before understanding dawned on his face. “He’s helping Sky handle the others, the rest of those idiots are yammering on and I think it’s giving pretty boy a migraine at this point.” 

  Wild flinched and Legend shifted awkwardly.  

  “I came to make sure you weren’t freaking out and ruining the princess’ day, but I guess I’m a bit late to stop your panic attack I her lap.” 

  Wild flushed, but Legend’s eyes weren’t angry, and even if his voice carried irritation, his eyes glistened in that starlight manner that reminded him of goddess statues in the forest where no monsters would come and roaring springs after a week in Gerudo town.  

  “Chin up kid, it doesn’t look like they’re gonna throw us out.” 

  A soft snort escaped him as he shifted out of Artemis’s lap, allowing the woman to adjust the position she had fallen in upon hearing that her nephew had returned. 

  “How’s Warriors?” 

  The vet rolled his eyes, but his brows pinched and his ears flicked softly as he turned to put away the flaming glove he had been wearing. “Still passed out. Time’s sitting with him right now and Wind is running back to-” His face screwed up and he shook his head. “He’s getting Wars’ Grandfa- He's getting himself or whatever we’re supposed to call the old man.” 

  A soft laugh pushed its way out of his chest and Legend smirked, raising to his feet and brushing himself off before cocking a brow at the younger hero. “You gonna get up off the floor? Or should I leave you there for the cleaning staff to handle?” 

  Golden hair swished into his face as he shook his head, but he pushed himself back up regardless, smiling softly as Seanathair nudged against his hand with a soft whine. Legend cast the great-wolf a strange look, but it was easy enough to ignore; the vet wouldn’t harm his friend even if he was off-put by him. 

  “Well,” Artemis was dusting off her dress and turning to Aunt Cia, a strange look on her face. “I suppose it would be best, all things considered, to avoid telling Linkle about this just yet.” 

  And despite all, Cia blanched at the thought. 

  Linkle, it turned out, was not to be dissuaded, and the instant Legend had finished dragging Wild down the halls to the infirmary, the girl appeared in the window, a scowl on her face as she jumped down and marched over to Time with an expression that may have been a scowl or a pout, but looked more like gas. 

  “When were you planning on telling me, huh? When were you gonna tell me that my darling baby-brother was back home, you freak?” 

  “Good to see you too, Linkle.” Time deadpanned, running a hand over his features in the manner Twilight had pointed out once as meaning that the man was exhausted and running on fumes.  

  “Huh? How the heck do you know my name?” 

  “Would ‘Auntie Linkle’ be more appropriate? I thought it would be awkward.” 

   The girl stared for a second before understanding dawned and she was wrapping her arms around Time in the most aggressive bear hug Wild had ever witnessed  (Time’s feet actually left the floor!),  a giant grin on her face the whole while. “Little Link! You grew up!” 

  “Yep.” Time’s face was still completely calm, as if he was accustomed to being literally swept off his feet by nearly everyone in Warriors’ Hyrule. (He was.) 

  Linkle stopped, dropping Time back to his feet and stepping back to stare up at him, a pout written clearly across her features that made Wild certain she was related to Wind. “And you’re all grown up, no awkward teenage years or anything!” She whined softly. “I won’t get to tease you about your first crush or anything!” 

  Time actually reacted to that, clearing his throat and looking away. “Yes, how unfortunate.” 

  “If it makes you feel any better,” Legend’s voice was full of mischief as the two other conscious adults in the room turned to him. “Our Old Man is married now.” 

  The transition from pout to maniacal grin was near instantaneous as Linkle spun back to face Time, who face-palmed with a long sigh. “You’re married? To who? Have I met her? Oh! Was it that Zora Princess who you were engaged to?” 

  “I’m sorry, what?” Laughter rang in Legend’s tone as he settled against the wall, a smirk playing over his features that screamed trouble louder than Hyrule’s feet tapping did. “Time was engaged to a fish-woman?” 

  “Zora.” Time corrected. 

  “Potato, potahto.” Legend quipped back, eyes glinting. 

  “A childhood fantasy carried over into her adult life, we were never in a relationship.” 

  “Sure, Old Man.” 

  Linkle grinned between them. “I like this one, what’s your name, Pinky?” 

  The Vet scowled darkly. “Link, but since everyone here is essentially Link, I go by Legend.” 

  “Bit pretentious isn’t that?” 

  “Not my choice, it’s the title I was assigned. I doubt your ‘darling baby brother’ would have chosen ‘Warriors’ for himself.” 

  “Point.” Linkle agreed, rocking back on her heels before grinning again. “Bet he’s been real dumb on your adventure, huh?” 

  Legend’s grin made it a matching set. “You’d never believe half of it.” 

  “You’ll have to tell me then, I want to know everything, that way I can hang it over his head when he calls me short or tries to make me do the dishes.” 

  Time stared between the two with something akin to resigned horror before a soft groan sounded from across the room. Purple and blue gazes turned to look as Warriors’ long lashes fluttered softly against his cheeks, a frown pulling at his brows and the lines around his mouth before royal blue stared up at the ceiling in confusion, only for it to melt away into a pained expression.  

  “Well, what do you know, Sleeping Beauty finally awakens.” 

  Warriors’ started and made to sit up, only to be pushed down by the older warrior sitting next to his bed. “Linkle?” 

  “Better believe it baby!” The girl crowed, hopping forwards to sit at the foot of the bed. “What got you all conked out in the middle of the day?” Her expression darkened. “You weren’t drinking again, were you?” 

  Warriors’ face twisted up into a pained expression. “I wish, what I wouldn’t give for a Chatau Romani right now.” 

  “No chance in the Sacred Realm.” Time deadpanned. “I might allow it while we’re traveling, or after a long battle, but when we just arrived here-” 

  Wars scowled. “You really think telling me what-” 

  “I’m older.” Time smirked. “Have been for a long time, so don’t even try that.” 

  “I raised you,” Warriors shot back. “You were still a kid when we met.” 

  “I was raised by a tree, thank you.” Time returned, as if to assert his status as the dominant gremlin in the room. “You may have helped, but I think ‘nanny’ might be a more applicable term than ‘dad’.” 

  Warriors flinched at that, and Linkle and Time exchanged a glance. 

  “You know he’s kidding, right? You’re a great dad.” Linkle murmured. 

  “Just look at how you’ve been handling Wild recently,” Legend interjected. “Wrapping him up in your scarf and holding him when he drifts into a memory. Even if I wasn’t expected to hear that the kid is your spawn, I think it’s safe to say you’ve been parenting him for a while now.” 

  Royal blue darted in their direction and Wild’s breath caught in his throat at the bittersweet look on Warriors’ face. 

  “Wait, hold up. That’s-” 

  “Wild.” Warriors interrupted her. “Yes.” 

  “But he’s-” 

  “Cia’s portals took him to the future apparently.” Time explained softly as Linkle continued to stare between the two knights. At last, however, she shook her head and shot a crooked grin in his direction.  

  “You sure got big squirt.” 

  “Yeah.” Warriors’ eyes were full of pain. 

  “But still not bigger than me.” Linkle smirked, but Wild still saw the hurt that flashed in her turquoise eyes. 

  “’m Sorry.” 

  And three sets of eyes were turning to him, full of hurt. Time’s hands held Warriors down, but weren’t fast enough to stop Linkle from launching herself across the room and scooping Wild up in her arms. “Not your fault, baby pop! You hear me? I refuse to deal with two self-deprecating asses!” 

  “ Linkle! ” 

  “Er- two self-deprecating dummies?” 

  “Warriors, Wild hears us say ‘ass’ all the time, cool it.” Legend dead-panned. 

  “But he didn’t before,” Linkle shrugged. “Let the man cave to his fatherly instincts, if he hasn’t already swaddled one of you in that ridiculous scarf at this point than he’s been holding back; if he keeps that up any longer than he’ll be whispering dad-jokes in his sleep or some shit.” 

  Legend cocked his head. “I think I might like you.” 

  “The feeling is mutual.” Linkle smirked. 

  “No!” Warriors’ gaze was blown so wide Wild was almost afraid his eyes would pop out of his head. “You two will not become friends! I can’t handle that much sarcasm and-” 

  “ Yiss .” Linkle hissed, grin stretching wider as Legend’s smirk followed suit. “We will make your life miserable.” 

  Wars fell back onto his bed (Time hadn’t let him sit up in the first place), eyes turning to the man standing over him. “Kill me, I beg you.” 

  “No can do.” Time smirked. 

  Warriors blanched. “Not you too, Mask, don’t betray me like this.” 

  Time’s grin said everything and Wars turned away with a dramatic groan, eyes falling on Wild helplessly before he reached out to him. “You won’t betray me will you, kid?” 

  A snicker escaped him, but Wild shook his head and brushed his fingers over Wars’, giggles ringing in his chest as Warriors dramatically touched a hand to his brow. “Thank Hylia, I was afraid my whole family would turn on me!” 

  They were family, weren’t they? It was an odd sort of thought. 

  Sure, the others had been a family of some kind before, but in the same way that Teba and Tulin and Saki were his family, in the same way that Riju and Sidon were his siblings. This, this  blood-family  thing, this being related to each other, it was different. It was like a hut in a storm where he had only ever had rocks to cling to. 

  A tug on his arm and he looked down to where Wars was staring at him, eyes still bitter-sweet, but warm under gently curling gold. Sun-kissed fingers tugged him close until Wild was nearly on top of the bed, and Warriors shifted aside, still clad in sun-warmed and glimmering silver-mail, in order to pull him down as well. Wild followed the unspoken command, or was it an offer? Climbing up on the bed beside the man and smiling softly as Warriors threw the blankets over both of their heads, a smirk on his face as he whispered.  

  “For protection against the moblins over there, if they can’t see us than they might actually leave us alone.” 

  There was a lot that had to be sorted through, but in time, maybe Warriors’ gaze would glimmer back to life; the sadness faded away into a scar, and maybe fear would fall flat at the long fingers that combed through Wild’s hair, all worries that Wars was like other fathers might dim and fall into the abyss that all other memories from his past had slipped into. 

Chapter Text

  Link was gone a lot.  

  Before, he had been employed by the queen as both a body-guard and an advisor, but the swirling portals of rich purple had ended that as he had been swept away to another time or world that needed saving. He had been hesitant to go but Malon had pressed the matter.  

  She loved her husband dearly, but if Hylia was calling him, then the goddess’ hold on him was the stronger of the two. Even love couldn’t stop a quest.  

  (Link had told her of a time when he had failed to stop the evil, and the idea of making people suffer that because she was feeling selfish made her nearly sick).  

  Hylia was kind enough to allow him to visit on some occasions. Great purple and golden portals would open up not far from, or even right inside, the ranch. Link -Time now, because all of the boys were Link- would come marching through, his single eye lighting up the instant he saw her, and he’d be sweeping her up in his arms, kissing her lips and burying his nose in her hair in a greeting all his own.  

  Malon looked forwards to that.  

  It didn’t happen often and never enough for her taste, and when they did come, nearly every time since the first time, one of the boys would be injured, someone had to be carried or aided in walking to the ranch, bloody wounds would have to be stitched up and fevers brought down again. But even so, she would take cleaning their wounds over mourning a loss any day, and as long as she got to see her boys, she would give thanks for each and every visit they were gifted.  

  But the faces that greeted her this time made her uneasy as the boys walked through the portal that had opened up in the ranch yard.  

  Link- Time's face, for all that it usually rested in a scowl or frown, was screwed up in that nervous manner she hadn’t seen since the first visit when he had informed her of the identity of their descendant.   

  Many of the boys were sporting injuries, as had become the norm, with Twilight leaning heavily on Legend and Sky carrying a sweating Wind in his arms. Warriors carried a dazed Wild, the Captain’s face screwed up in pain that grew with every step, a huge golden wolf that she didn’t recognize at his side, apparently trying to offer support. Four was fussing softly with Hyrule as Time pressed past them, heedless of the sling on his arm as he swept his wife up into a kiss.  

  All gazes were uneasy, yet tinged with the mischief that sang in Time’s blood nearly as strong as his courage.  

  “What happened to y’all?” She tutted softly, pressing a hand to the brow of the youngest after being released by her husband. Wind smiled lazily up at her, warm skin and foggy eyes telling a story of some virus or another attacking his system.  

  “Mud fight.” Warriors groaned.   

  Legend rolled his eyes. “Got sprung on and ended up in a swamp. We beat the sods well and good, but Pretty Boy twisted his ankle and those two,” He motioned towards the two youngest. “Caught some sort of bug.”  

  “All hands are full, otherwise we’d have never let Warriors carry the kid.” Hyrule breathed dismally.   

  “Ah well, there’s beds and ice aplenty inside, we’ll have that fever down a’fore the suns up come tomorrow! Well, both of ‘em.” Red hair swirled in the air about her as she shook her head. “Let me take him, love.”  

  Warriors grimaced, but shook his head. “I can handle it, it’s just a bit more to the house and he’s light.”  

  “I’d take his word for it.” Hyrule murmured softly beside her. “He won’t let go unless he absolutely has to. Legend could use some help though.”  

  “I am good and fine, thank you!” The pink-haired lad called back, scowling darkly as he readjusted his hold on Twilight, who sagged against him with a stifled pained sound. The boy frowned, face softening. “Twilight might not be though.”  

  “Let me then.”   

  Her boy looked as though he was about to object, but she was already scooping him up in her arms, and once he was lifted, he simply blinked and then buried his face in her shoulder, a relieved sigh escaping him as Legend rolled his shoulders, now free from his burden.  

  “Let's all head on down to the house and get y’all fixed up.”  

  With both of the youngest down with fevers and Twilight too injured to head over to the barn, it took less time than usual to corral the boys into the house and set them down. Just as Hyrule had mentioned, Warriors refused to truly leave Wild alone, and despite all attempts, the lad simply shook his head and stayed where he had sat himself, one hand gently clasping the Champion’s and the other buried in long golden hair, the strange wolf at his feet, one ruby red eye fixed on the duo.  

  “Leave them.” Time had murmured softly. “We’ll explain things tomorrow, but they both need the comfort.”  

  Nightmares plagued both of the fevered boys that night, and come morning all of them were groggy and sore, be it from sitting at bedsides or carrying others the day before. But just as she had promised, Wild and Wind’s fevers had broken in the night, and come breakfast they felt well enough to sit with the others, crammed around the table she was seriously considering replacing, if only to better accommodate the now grown family.  

  Mischief and uncertainty bled into the gazes of all of the lads as they looked at each other, save for Wild and Wind, who were slumped up against Warriors and Sky respectively, still tired and groggy even without the heightened temperatures.  

  “So, y’all had something to tell me?”  

  Glances were exchanged, and not for the first time Malon felt like a mother waiting for her children to fess up to their crimes.  

  “Well...” Sky started.  

  “Congradu-flipping-lations, you have children.” Legend deadpanned, still tired from the night before and with a mug of tea pressed against his temple as he slumped in his chair.  

  Hyrule shook his head and Twilight sniggered. “He means; we’re all related.”  

  “What?”   

  Link’s face grew shadowed and he motioned to Four. “You seem to have it down, Smithy, care to do the honors?”  

  Violet seemed to be fronting as the smithy’s eyes glinted purple as he spoke. “Might as well.” He turned to face her, expression deadpan and eye-bags dark enough to almost rival Legend’s. “How much do you know of Hyrule’s history in this time?”  

  “As much as most, I suppose. Our people came from the sky with Hylia’s blessing and settled the land of Hyrule under their first king and queen once the hero had made the land safe. Hyrule grew over time and the hero of men rose to defeat the evils that came in his time, and he was followed by the hero of minish.” She chuckled softly. “When we were kids, Link used to beg me to tell him stories about the hero of Minish. Never mind that he was a hero in his own right with two adventures under his belt! Oh my, he knew it all word for word, but he’d beg for ‘em any time he was feeling down, an’ by now there’s no needing for the book, I’ve ‘em memorized!”  

  “That so, Old Man?” Twilight drawled.  

  Time shook his head, a deep rumbling chuckle brewing up from his chest. “It was the only other account I knew of about another hero. Sometimes it helps to not feel alone in the world.”  

  All around, heads nodded and sounds of affirmation filled the air.  

  “Well, after the hero of minish, Hyrule knew peace for a time. Of course, that doesn’t last, and a hundred years ago or so there was a civil war that very nearly split the land. The Gerudo joined with the rebellion, and for their treason the king made them outcasts to the desert. Of course, that set them a’brewing about their being cast out, and when Ganon became king... well, y’all have dealt with your own version of that.”  

  Vio nodded (did it count as him being Four when only one was in control?). “Alright. So, the hero that made the surface world safe again was also the first king of Hyrule, and that’s Sky.” Said hero waved shyly, earning a warm smile from the farm-wife. Vio ignored it and continued with his explanation. “Sky is engaged to his Zelda, Sun, and together they are working to found Hyrule and they will also begin the royal line.   

  “Said royal line will continue until Wild’s time, or rather, the era he’s a hero to.” All faces twisted up and concerned glances were shot one way and another as a silent message traveled through the air. Warriors sighed and grabbed at the nearest drink, downing the burning hot coffee without a second thought as his hand rubbed at Wild’s hair in agitation. It was a new tick, usually he rubbed at his own face, but with his arm wrapped around the other hero it made more sense.  

  “We- I- am my Zelda’s distant cousin, not close enough to be noble or a royal, but close enough that it’s recognized, although that might also jus be because of the hero business.” The smithy shook their crowded head. “Anyways, during our recent ventures we have been made aware by some family friends that I have a descendant that was left in the Kolkiri Forest some years ago, we were in Twilight’s time when I was informed. Said descendant is, well, Time.”  

  Malon beamed. “You mean to say that all this time he’s been reading stories of his own great-somethin'-grandfather? Well don’t that beat all!”  

  Four flushed, violet tinging darker purple as Red’s influence seemed to join Vio’s. “Yes, well, we didn’t know  that . Anyways, as you know, Twilight is, somewhere down the line, a descendant of yourself and Time, what you may not know is that due to all of Time’s...time-traveling-”  

  “The timeline was split?”  

  “Wait, you knew?” Time frowned.  

  “Link, darlin’, when you traveled to the future there was more’n just you displaced. Folks were only too happy to talk about home, and Lon Lon became something of a gathering place for those displaced. I heard many a version of who was hero and when. Merging timelines was bound to come up, and such a thing can’t happen ‘less there was more than one. Didn’t take much to piece together how they could split.”  

  “Ah, yes, that.”  

  Four sighed. “As I was, when Time split the timeline, three different one’s emerged. But one of them is what he left behind and another is an alternate reality where he died. But in both of those timelines, in fact, all three, one thing stayed consistent.”  

  “Time is a sucker for redheads.” Legend dead-panned.  

  “He isn’t the only one, I think it’s a family trait.” Warriors mused. Across the table, Legend choked on his tea.  

  “I told you once about what happened in the time I left.” Link murmured; gaze sorrowful as he rubbed at his neck.  

  “That ya’ did. An’ I told you, I’m glad that no amount of time or change can stop our love.”  

  “ Aww! ” Sky cooed, eye’s almost watering as he watched them.  

  Time chuckled wetly, brushing a kiss to her hair. “Don’t deserve you.”  

  “Heck no you don’t, yet here we are.” She teased in return, earning an extra tight squeeze from her hero as he all but pulled her into his lap, all sadness gone from his eyes and mischief tinging the royal blue gaze.  

  “And,” Four pressed on, voice softened slightly and eyes back to brown as they watched the happy couple, a smile on their lips. “In each timeline you produce a line that brings forth a hero when they are needed. One of your descendants married a princess of Hyrule and became the father to Legend’s Zelda; Fable, and Legend both. They’re twins apparently.”  

  “Really!”  

  “And it doesn’t stop there.” Wind interjected; eyes bright past the groggy clouds in their silver-green hues. “Legend was born in my time as well, and he became my great-great grandpa!”  

  “And,” Hyrule added, flushing softly. “In my time, Legend was my father’s ancestor.”  

  “You’ll never guess who his mother is though.” Wind grinned brighter.  

  Malon frowned. “I don’t know anyone in that time, or the future, boys.”  

  Link grinned. “Hyrule and I are brothers.”  

  “Navi?”  

  “Hit the nail on the head.” Legend drawled, apparently recovered from Warriors’ red-head comment.  

  “To recap so far, Sky is my ancestor, I’m Time’s ancestor, Time fathers Legend and Twilights families, and Wind and Hyrule are both Legend’s descendants. Add in the fact that Time and Hyrule are adoptive brothers and you begin to see how messed up this family tree really is.”  

  “Begin to?”  

  “Warriors is Wind’s grandson.”  

  “We even met future-me in Wars’ world! It was awesome! I grow to be taller than Time!”  

  Link smirked. “That would be the Grandpa Link I told you about that I met in my last adventure.”  

 Her head was spinning but the smile on her face grew ever wider with each revelation. “What are the chances!”  

  “Nearly impossible.” Legend dead-panned again, apparently unwilling to be left out of the conversation, but interested only in making sarcastic jabs at all present rather than bothering to contribute any actual information.   

  “And, to put the cherry on the top, Wild is Warriors’ son.”  

  Her jaw really did drop at that. “What? How?”  

  “Portals.” Came the voices of all nine heroes, deadpan as Legend had been all day, and completely done with the very thought.  

  “In short,” Sky offered. “We’re all one huge family that I apparently fathered, and that gets closer together the further it goes down the time-line.”  

  Malon’s smile stretched ever wider as she looked over them all. “Dearie me, I don’t suppose I can fit my whole family in my arms anymore at this point! Not that that’s bad! I’m,” Tears blurred her vision. “I’m so glad y’all have family of some kind, and to think it’s the folks you travel with! My, Hylia has quite the sense of humor!”  

  “If you mean a wicked sense of humor, you’d be right.” Legend muttered into his mug, but as he sat the closest to Malon, she heard it, and took it as an offer to ruffle the veteran’s silky pink hair. Legend squeaked in surprise, choking on his tea again and making Hyrule roll his eyes fondly.   

  “Careful Legend, we don’t need you choking to death. How am I supposed to be born if my great-grand-dad dies?”  

  “Hardy har har.” Legend wheezed, but his eyes smiled at the curly-haired youngster.  

  Malon paused, eyes trailing to the foot of the table. “So, is that why you two are so close together? Ya finally found each other again? My goodness, If I lost Link I s’pose I’d be in a similar way.”  

  Warriors smiled fondly at the kid beside him, who didn’t meet his eye, but didn’t pull away or squirm either. “We’ve got a lot to talk about still, and even more to work through, but yeah, I’m not letting him go again, not if I can help it.”  

  Malon nodded. “Fairs fair. Now, what’s with the wolf?”  

  Twilight and Time exchanged a look, but were saved by Warriors.   

  “He’s Wild’s guardian. He’s been with the family for years, since before I was born. He stays with the kids and watches out for them as they grow up, but with Wild, well,” The man smiled fondly again, looking down at the beast that had curled up beside the table leg and at the base of Wild’s chair. “He was especially close to him, they were never apart before they were whisked into Cia’s portal, and now that they’re together again I expect that’ll stay true.”  

  The rest of the day passed as it normally did at the ranch; those who were in good health helped with the chores, and those who were injured or sick sat inside and kept Malon and Legend company as the two did the housework and mended the damaged clothes.  

  The chatter at the dinner table lasted well past the finishing of the meal itself, discussions of family and time related shenanigans filling all but one mind as night drew ever nearer.  

  As the others talked, no one noticed how Four slipped away outside to sit on the porch.  

  A gentle breeze brushed over their cheeks as they sat on the sturdy wood of the porch, feet swinging softly as a tune drifted in short huffed notes from their lips.  

  "Well, well, well, all alone are we?”  

  I knew it!  

  There it is.   

  I wondered when he’d make an appearance.  

  Finally!  

  Wow, Vio, wasn’t expecting you to be  that  excited.  

  Shut up, he’s waiting!  

  "Took you long enough.” Four smiled into the darkness. “Gonna join us? Or just sit there and brood?”  

  Red eyes glinted in the light of the house as Shadow floated closer. “They won’t see?”  

  "They’re all busy chatting, what do you think, genius?“  

  “Ah, nice, as always, to hear from you, Blue.” The shadow frowned as he settled at their side. “Any chance  y’all  could split? Or are we playing what-color-are-my-eyes today?”  

  “I said they’re talking, not that no one would check on us randomly. You can hide easily, hiding what looks like three more of us wouldn’t be as easy.”  

  “Great. And here I thought you wanted to see me, Vio.”  

  “We do- he does! We just can’t yet.”  

  “If we take a walk, you can.”  

  “Yeah, but if the others notice we’re gone they’re going to worry.”  

  “Let them worry!” Shadow whined. “It’s weird talking to everyone at once!”  

  “Suffer.”  

  The shadow’s form flickered slightly and his ears flicked with irritation. “Hello again,  Blue.”  

   Four chuckled. “So, did you catch on to everything happening recently?”  

  “Yes, and for what its wroth, I’m sorry that my descendants are such, well, since Red is here, I’ll call them dummies, but I think you know what I mean.”  

  “Your descendants?”  

  “Yeah, I mean, believe me, Ravy is all cute and bumbling, but don’t think I haven’t pieced together that my having kids isn’t the reason you guys even meet.”  

  “Pardon?”  

  “Gee, for having Vio in there with you guys, you’re all pretty dumb! I’m a  shadow ! As in, the darkness of the hero, sound familiar? My kids are literally just  your  kids’ shadows, AKA, the reason you all are on this whole mission!”  

  “Your kid is-”  

  “That stupid lizard, yes. If I had any power over him, trust me, I’d pull full grandfather rights and ground him or some shit, but since I don’t, I can’t.”  

  “I-” Four cut off, staring blankly at the ground.  

  “Four? Buddy? Vio?” Shadow waved one hand in the face of his counterpart before sighing and settling his chin in his hands. “Aaand he’s spaced again. Whoo hoo.”  

  Shadow would have waited until the hero had recovered, but boots on the floor behind them and the creaking of the door signaled that it was time to go, so with a final concerned glance at his friend, he melted back into the shadows.  

  “Four, hey, you alright?” Twilight pressed gently, looking out onto the porch where Four sat in frozen silence.  

  “He probably fried his brain trying to sort out everything while the rest were still talking. Let him breath, it’s quieter out here.” Legend drawled.  

  The hero of Twilight nodded, but concern echoed in his gaze as he closed the door again, only to melt away as he turned to Legend. “We’re not telling them about the Crystal thing, right? Not even with the wolf?”  

 The vet raised his brows. “Which wolf?”  

  “Shade.”  

  A shrug. “I won’t if you don’t, we both have too much to lose from it if I’m being honest.”  

  “Great. Out of curiosity, would this count as a brothers’ secret?”  

  “Never mind, just tell them, I don’t care.”  

  Laughter rang through the house as the two walked back to join the others, leaving Four to mentally implode.