Chapter Text
Well, if one thing was a comfort, it was that Time was used to falling through portals.
A few weeks after the “cheese cube incident” that still made Time shudder, he found himself falling through air and landing hard in a pile of sand. He rolled as best he could to absorb the impact, but with all his armor, he could only do so much. The air was knocked out of him and he took a minute to breathe and assess himself for injury. Finding none, he got to his feet and dusted himself off. Now where was he? And where were the boys?
Looking around, he found himself in the middle of a desert, with sand as far as the eye could see. It didn't look familiar, but maybe one of his boys would recognize it. He didn't see them, but maybe the portal had scattered them a bit. There had been quite a few incidents that Time preferred to forget. He just hoped that none of them were in trouble or surrounded by black-blooded monsters.
Determined to catch sight of his boys, Time decided to climb the nearest dune. The sand shifted and slid beneath his feet, forcing him to scrabble up the hill. If Hylia was smiling upon him, (most likely not, but he could hope) then the rest of the Chain would be on the other side.
As usual, no such luck. However, he did catch sight of two figures a little ways away, seeming to battle a small horde of monsters. He didn't recognize the monsters, but his heart leapt up as he made out two heads of blonde hair through the swirling dust. At least two of the troop were near. He shuffled down the dune and ran towards the two, hoping to help with the rest of the fight. Judging by the magic and explosions, it was most likely Legend and Wild. He had seen streaks of pink somewhere in one blond head, and it strengthened his suspicions.
Before Time could reach them, however, the last of the monsters were vanquished by a large quadruped falling out of the sky. It reminded him vaguely of a horse, but he didn't get a good look at it before it let out a loud fart and disappeared. One of the blonds cheered, “Hindenburg!” before promptly collapsing.
That didn't sound like Legend or Wild. The voice was far too feminine for any of the Links. A pit began to form in his stomach, but Time pushed past it. Whoever they were, they needed help. The amount of magic they had used would take a toll, as Time knew from his experience with the Traveler. He had some elixirs still in his pack, although food and rest would probably do more in the long run.
As soon as the dust cleared, Time's fears were confirmed. Neither of the two were his Links, but one, a girl with red streaks in her blond hair, was passed out on the sand. The other, a boy, was crouched beside her, trying to support her awkwardly.
They were both dressed in strange clothes, but the unconscious girl seemed more prepared for the environment, with her flowy linen attire and sturdy boots. The boy was evidently less so, with a white jacket that was sure to stain and flimsy-looking shoes of some sort. Seeming to hear Time's soft footfalls, he looked up with startling green eyes that appeared to glow in the twilight.
“Who are you?” he asked, scooting back while shielding his companion.
“I'm a friend,” Time assured him. “I saw that you were battling some monsters and came to help. I have some experience in that area.” He tapped his sword, drawing the boy's gaze to it. The boy didn't seem to be assured and shuffled further away, half-dragging the girl with him. Time grimaced internally. Maybe he had some soldier-related trauma, like Legend. Maybe he just wasn't familiar with armed men, if people like the girl were more common. Time desperately wished that he knew whose Hyrule this was, or if this was even Hyrule at all.
The boy broke Time’s train of thought with a question. “What does the name ‘Hawkmoth’ mean to you?” he asked cautiously, as if setting a test for the older man. Time frowned.
“Is that a common species around here?” he asked, hoping his response satisfied the boy. Thankfully, the blond teenager seemed to let down his guard somewhat at Time's ignorance.
“No, it's the name of a person from my hometown. He- well, he's- never mind, it would take too long to explain. My companion needs help, and I don't know what to do. She's breathing, but there's obviously something wrong with her. She just- collapsed after beating those things,” he explained in a rushed voice, running his hands through his hair. “I wondered if you had any idea of what to do.”
Time checked the girl's pulse. It was steady, but she seemed to be unusually warm. He checked her forehead and pulled back with a hiss through his teeth. It seemed like a fire was burning under his hand.
“She’s dealing with a severe magic exhaustion,” Time explained, digging through his pack for a stamina potion. Only three left, but the girl in front of him needed it. “I've dealt with this before, but there's not much we can do other than let her rest. Do you know if there are any inns or stables near here?”
The boy shook his head, confused, and Time sighed, rubbing his temples. “I suppose we can camp here for the night. Can you take a watch? I doubt your friend will wake up tonight, but I want to make sure that no more monsters will catch us off guard.”
The boy brightened and nodded. “Back home, my La- my friend and I help patrol our city. I can definitely take first watch. I have purr-ty good night vision if I do say so myself.”
Time raised his eyebrow at the attempted pun. He shrugged it off and dribbled the potion into the unconscious girl's mouth. At least the boy had some experience with night watches. And he had volunteered for first watch. He seemed like a good kid, even if he did make nonsense puns.
“What are your names?” Time asked as he checked that the girl wasn't choking. He wanted to stop calling them “the boy” and “the girl” and actually call them by their proper names. For a chilling moment, Time wondered if Hylia had sent him to fetch yet another child hero for her goddess-damned quests. He prayed to no one in particular that this boy was not named Link.
“My name is Adrien. Nice to meet you,” the boy said, holding out a hand for the older man to shake. Time stopped his administrations to shake it, relieved that he hadn't found yet another Link for Hylia to play with. Sheepishly, Adrien continued, “I don't know her name. We kind of ran into each other, but before we could exchange names, the monsters came and she ordered me to get behind her. She made some sort of protection circle and started blasting away. It was really cool.” He stared into space for a moment, starry eyed, but shook himself and focused. “She collapsed just before you arrived.”
“So you've said,” Time mumbled to himself as he poured more potion down the nameless girl's throat. She was beginning to cool down a bit, but he couldn't be sure that that was her recovering or just the night air settling in. Maybe both.
“You can call me Time. That's what my friends call me, anyway,” Time offered. Adrien nodded, filing away the information. “How did you come to be here? You don't look like you're prepared for the desert. Where's your pack?”
Adrien opened and closed his mouth a few times before hesitantly answering, “I… was on a trip when I was separated from my school group. They’re probably far away by now.”
Well. There was an obvious lie. Time didn't push it. All of his boys had one secret or another that they preferred not to share. In time, Adrien would hopefully trust him enough to tell him the truth. But if Adrien did have people looking for him, Time wanted to know. It wasn’t safe for normal travelers, if the attack earlier was anything to go by. The sooner Adrien returned home, the better.
“I'm going to pitch camp. Can you watch over our fighter here until I'm done?” Time asked. Adrien beamed a yes. “Let me know if she starts to toss or turn.”
As Time set up a tent, he watched the two teenagers. Adrien seemed to like having a purpose and being useful. Once given a spare bedroll for the girl, he promptly set it up and managed to roll her onto it. He even managed to get most of the hair out of her face and into what resembled a neat hairdo afterwards. Satisfied, he pulled out something from his jacket and began to munch on it. Time wrinkled his nose as the smell wafted across the camp. Whatever it was, it stunk like Hyrule’s socks. Time made a mental note to ask Adrien to eat downwind once they were better acquainted.
Time set his bedroll in the tent. He thanked Hylia that Wild had been reorganizing his slate when the portal came, or Time would have had a lot less gear. He supposed that Adrien could sleep in the tent while Time himself was on watch. Once he came out, Adrien asked him, “Do you have a spare tent for her?”
Time shook his head. “Magic users need to recharge their magic from other sources. Most of my friends benefit from being out in the open, where plenty of magical sources can reach them. I figure that she could benefit as well. Did you notice any particular object or element that she seemed to draw from?”
“Not really,” Adrien confessed. “The only source I noticed was at the end, when she grabbed something off her neck and the camel appeared.” Time noted that the strange gassy animal must have been what Adrien called a camel. He wondered how effective the camel was, or if it was a last resort. It had no clues as to her magic source, however, unless it was somehow animal-related. Judging from the explosions, Time doubted it.
There was time for wondering later. The sun had set, and the hot desert was growing cold. Time wished that he had some of Wild’s Rito armor for the boy as the chill set in. Hopefully this place wouldn't get as cold as the Rito Village, though. Time shrugged philosophically. The best thing he could do was get some rest and possibly take second watch sooner rather than later.
“We'll change shifts at one to one thirty,” Time announced. “I can wake up on my own so that we can trade.” In reality, he'd probably wake up at midnight to take his shift early, but Adrien didn't need to know that. “Do you mind if I go get some rest right now?”
“Go right ahead!” chirped the blonde. Time crawled into his tent and undressed until he was in loose underclothing. Polishing his armor and weapons, he made sure that the blade was sharp and that there wasn't any rust. He didn’t have many spare weapons, and who knew when he would see his boys again. He closed his eyes as his heart gave a pang. He missed them sorely. How long would it take to find them again? He’d even pray to Hylia if it came down to it.
Time fell asleep to the whispers of the breeze over the desert sands.