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Finally, Link was prepared – the four giants were saved, the swamp was clean, spring had come to the mountains, Romani was safe and her sister’s milk delivered. There was only one final task, he thought, looking up at the moon in the sky. To stop that.
That, however, would need to wait until tonight, so now Link had some time to kill.
He decided to spend it fishing.
He made his way towards the Southern Swamp; he had passed by the fishing hole there multiple times now in his several cycling over the past three days, but had always been too busy to drop in, to his disappointment. Link liked fishing – it reminded him of lazy days spent at the Lake Hylia fishing hole as a child (when he had still felt like a child, at any rate), when he had thought three shining rocks would be the end to all of his problems.
He sighed, then approached the door (Southern Swamp Fishing Hole, was written on a placard that hung from the door. Beneath the words was an image of a cartoon fish, which seemed, in Link’s opinion, to be glaring at him.) A bell twinkled out as he pushed open the door.
“Twenty rupees to fish,” drawled out a voice that had Link’s blood running cold.
No. It can’t be.
There was a pause, and then the voice continued: “Ten if you’re under twelve. How old are you, kid?”
Link slowly looked up, heart pounding.
The same tall stature, the same red hair, the same amber eyes that had been haunting his nightmares for years had paused from where he stood wiping down the counter to look at him.
Link pulled out his sword and charged.
“What the –”
He had stood no chance in this child’s body against this man before, Link thought, but now… now he had experience; he had defeated him and sealed him; he could –
He was grabbed by the collar and hoisted into the air. Unwillingly, the sword clattered from his hand to the ground.
Link squirmed, breathing heavily as he looked up into the face of his nightmares. So this is how I die. Fitting.
“What is wrong with you?”
Link blinked.
“I’ve had a lot of terrible customers,” his greatest enemy grumbled. “But this is a first.”
Link blinked again. Somehow, he was not dead yet. And that meant… what did that mean?
He stared at the man who was holding him. The same red hair, the same amber eyes, yes… but though his face was currently tight with anger this man had the faintest lines starting to develop around his eyes, as though he smiled often. And he had the same tall, strong build of the man Link had fought, but looking at the arm that was currently holding him up in the air, there was a softness to him that suggested he enjoyed relaxing just as much as he enjoyed moving his body. He saw, on the man’s shirt, a tag that read Ganondorf in large black letters.
Link thought back to the witches he had met in the swamp. The spitting image of the Koume and Kotake who had brainwashed Nabooru and who knew how many others, but the Koume and Kotake in this land had been perfectly kind, if a little odd. His face flushed.
“Sorry,” he mumbled. “You look like someone… that I know.”
He was thrown roughly to the ground; Link scrambled for his sword but was stopped by Ganondorf’s boot, stepping over the blade before Link could retrieve it. The man himself crossed his arms as he peered down at him.
“You know many Gerudo men, do you?”
“Uh…” said Link. “No…?”
Ganondorf glared.
Link swallowed. He had met Gerudo in this land, though they were very different than those he had known from his own world.
“Are you… a pirate?”
The man’s scowl deepened.
“Get out,” he said shortly, then “Now!” when Link did not get to his feet quickly enough.
Link stood slowly, slightly sore from how hard he had hit the ground.
“I really am sorry,” he said quietly. Ganondorf did not respond, so after a pause, he added, “Can I go fishing?”
The silence that followed was so thick that Link immediately regretted asking. Were it not for the sword still under Ganondorf’s foot he would be running out the door. Instead he stood awkwardly, unwilling to take his eyes from the harsh stare of what was increasingly seemingly not the King of Evil.
“Please,” he added.
Ganondorf let out a sigh. “Fifty rupees.”
“But you said –”
“Fifty rupees,” Ganondorf repeated.
“Fine.”
(Truthfully, this was not a meaningful sum for Link. Perhaps he ought to feel guilty about the money that he had taken from the Clock Town bank, but really, didn’t he deserve it for trying to save everyone’s lives?)
“Fine,” said Ganondorf, nodding his head towards the line of fishing rods hung up on the wall. Link hurried to pick one, then heading towards the pool of water beyond the counter.
“You really want to spend your last day here, kid?” he heard Ganondorf call out.
Link shrugged. “I like fishing,” he said.
There was a chuckle in response, but nothing more was said.
***
The fishing was not nearly as relaxing as Link had hoped – he was all too aware of Ganondorf’s eyes on him, and though he kept telling himself it was not the same man who had upended Link’s entire life, he could not settle. He was similarly all too aware that he still did not have his sword back; it was now leaning against Ganondorf’s counter. He wanted to bombard the man with questions, starting with Have you ever killed anyone?,(or perhaps, Have you ever kidnapped any princesses?) but he couldn’t imagine that going over well at all.
Besides, Link had never really been much for talking.
So he fished, and other than Ganondorf occasionally offering him advice (“That lure is awful; here, kid, try this one.”), it was quiet. He caught several fish, but released them back into the pond without bringing them to the counter (somehow he had the suspicion that this fishing hole would not be offering any prizes for particularly big fish like the one at Lake Hylia). The moon stared down at him.
Only a few more hours, he promised it, and it will all be done.
“Alright,” said Ganondorf after how long Link wasn’t sure. He yawned. “I think that’s enough.”
Link quickly reeled in his line, feeling nearly relieved to be told to leave. He began to walk back towards the counter.
“You play that thing?” Ganondorf asked.
Link blinked in surprise. He followed Ganondorf’s gaze to the ocarina tied to his hip.
He nodded.
“Music,” Ganondorf said quietly. “That’ll be one of the things I’ll miss the most, I think.”
Link bit his lip. Then, on a whim, he raised the instrument to his mouth. He did a quick inventory of all the songs he had learned, but really, there was only one that felt appropriate now: The Song of Healing rung out around the fishing hole; even after so many times its mournful melody tugged on Link’s heart.
When he rose his head, Ganondorf had tears in his eyes.
“Thanks, kid,” he said. “That was… nice.”
Link nodded. He wondered if the Ganondorf he had known before would have reacted the same.
“Do you play the organ?” he asked impulsively.
At this Ganondorf let out a real laugh. “What? No.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “I play the bass guitar.”
“Oh.” Link looked now to his sword, still leaning against the counter. “Can I…?”
Ganondorf snorted. “Oh, go on,” he said.
Link awkwardly retrieved the sword, replacing it in its scabbard. Then he pulled out his wallet, returning to stand before the fishing hole owner. He started to count out rupees, but Ganondorf held out a hand.
“Keep your money,” he said, then with a touch of bitterness, “Don’t need it anymore anyway.”
Link shrugged, placing his wallet back in his pockets. “I think you’d be surprised,” he said quietly.
He made his way to the door, then turned once more before he exited. “Thank you.” He paused. “Mr. Ganondorf.”
Ganondorf smirked. “See ya, kid,” he said.
You won’t, Link thought as he walked away.
***
Link saved the world, but he did not stay for the celebrations. Still, he was not quite ready to say goodbye to this land quite yet, so he made his way to Termina Field and wandered. The landscape was much lovelier without the moon blotting out the sky.
Then, in the distance, he saw a figure walking through the fields: tall, redheaded, and he made Link’s heart leap even as he reminded himself that clearly it was the fishing hole owner, not the Ganondorf he had known before.
And he noticed beside Ganondorf a second figure: dressed in blue and white, long blonde hair falling from their head. He squinted.
Is that… Sheik?
(Or perhaps Zelda; on closer inspection the woman beside Ganondorf looked almost like a cross between the two. Which he supposed was sensible, considering they were the same person, though Link still found that difficult to wrap his head around.)
He also noticed, to his slight horror, that they were holding hands.
He watched Ganondorf stop and touch Sheik-or-Zelda’s face; she tilted her face up towards him and –
Link abruptly turned away.
I need to go home, he thought.
His greatest enemy owning a fishing hole; he could accept that. Just as he could accept his childhood fiancée being a popular singer, or his dear friend from Lon Lon Ranch being split into two sisters, or one of the witches he had bested in battle running a tourist attraction.
But this…
This was just too weird.