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kintatsujo · 3 years

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LoZ AU- The Courage of Running Away Part TWENTY-SEVEN

Here’s the previous post, sorry this one took a couple days ^^; I keep overextending because I’m as excited to get to the denouement as I am to be writing the boss fight. (The denouement has some fun character moments)

These next couple posts are mostly more like prose with illustrations.

#AU August

#LoZ AU: The Courage of Running Away

Astramorus manages to get back to the altar and the stone beds the girls have been laid out on; despite having had to dodge whipping tentacles a number of times the God's Nightmare in the middle of the room seems a little more concerned with its Manifestations and the Triforce bearers.

Serenumbra is nowhere to be seen, but there's a door ajar to the side, leading to the Sanctuary sacristy (a sacristy is a little room off the side of a church sanctuary that is basically a combination storage room and prep room.)

Astramorus has to get these Princesses out of the way of these tentacles anyway, so he gets Hilda into a fireman's carry and tucks Zelda under his arm and drags them both over through the door, making note that there's another door in the back of the sacristy leading somewhere dark.

[Image Description: Astramorus has Hilda along his back and Zelda tucked under his arm and is attempting to walk fast while dragging them; it’s awkward because while Princess Zelda is fairly little for fourteen, Princess Hilda is taller than he is and her feet are dragging behind while her head droops over his shoulder. They are also both completely dead weight. End ID.]

(The girls have been spelled asleep; they’ll be fine eventually.)

After that he goes back to the altar and grabs the heavy book of magic at the book stand, because Serenumbra left that behind as well.

He makes sure neither Hilda or Zelda are too uncomfortable, then he heads down the dark tunnel after Serenumbra, book in hand.

It's certainly dark enough to give a man pause, no evidence of light any further down the corridor. Astramorus knows this probably leads to the castle throne room, eventually, but who knows how many other tunnels and caves may also be connected.

But Astramorus is a priest, and Link shoved a few fairies on him before they came here, and he knows a few things about fairies most people don't.

He pulls one of his little fairy jars and a silver rupee from his pocket, and he hums a little prayer as he unstoppers the jar and drops the expensive little gem inside.

"Please, little one," he says to the fairy. "Guide me through the dark and help me find the one I seek."

The fairy puts her hands on the silver rupee in acceptance of the offering, absorbing its magic into herself and spiraling up out of the jar.

"Let's go!" she says, zipping ahead, and Astramorus smiles and follows her.

[Image Description: Astramorus holds his hand under a brightly glowing fairy, a faint smile on his face. She’s mostly obscured by her own light but appears to be a tiny woman with antennae, and she’s saluting him cheekily. End ID.]

If you’re not familiar with Legend of Zelda, this is not a mechanic in any game, but it should be.

"You're awfully confident for a shadow from a bad dream," Dinravi says to Nightmare Demise, shaking out his hand from the punch and drawing his sword. "Mama, please check on Ghirahim, I'll call for you if I need help."

Nightmare Demise snarls, pulling a sword from shadow that only barely resembles the form Ghirahim himself once took. Eltani nods at her son and goes to Ghirahim still on the floor, using her sword to bat a tentacle away from him as she arrives at his side.

"You know that's NOT your old master, demon," she says, shaking his shoulder as if to rouse him.

Ghirahim closes his eyes, still shaking. "It's not- It's not that simple," he whispers. "I... I can't."

[Image Description: Eltani is staring at Ghirahim in some shock and concern. He’s gone flushed, and he’s shaking, staring at the floor, his mouth tense. End ID.]

Queen Zelda's Nightmare warps from OOT Zelda to a dragon, and Zelda takes it out with a blast of light in the mouth. It shifts from the dragon to a massive Moldorm and she casually strikes its tail with a hand. "I can do this as long as I have to," she tells the writhing shape. It becomes a man with a boar's head and she wrinkles her nose, grabbing the spear it strikes at her with. "Stop that," she says, and now she goes ahead and burns her magic reserves for one massive blast, burning her Nightmare completely away. She looks up to see that Astramorus is dragging the princesses into the safety of the sacristy and nods grimly at him, then turns to the nearest other fight in the room, which is Dinravi against Nightmare Demise.

Queen Zelda fishes a magic replenishing potion from the pocket of her skirt and then joins Eltani next to Ghirahim as she drinks it. Eltani gives her a helpless expression as she kneels beside them and puts a hand on Ghirahim's shoulder.

[Image Description: Queen Zelda drinking from a blue bottle as she walks. A legend reads: “Magic Replenishing Potion: It’s the Blue One!” End ID.]

"You cannot face the shade of your first master?" Zelda asks Ghirahim.

Ghirahim looks down and shakes his head. "I know it's not him, I know it's not him," he whispers harshly, and then repeats: "It's not that simple."

"It's fear," Zelda concludes, and he inhales sharply, shakily. "Lord Ghirahim, listen to me. If you cannot face him, look instead at the man you would call master now."

Dinravi is a flashy sort of fighter but this isn't some graceful sword duel; it's a brawl and a bullfight wrapped in one. Nightmare Demise and Dinravi are taunting one another in turn, but Demise is focusing on Dinravi's youth while Dinravi's jibes are laser focused on how fucked up it is that Ghirahim, Demise's most loyal lieutenant, is so afraid of him, what that says about Demise and how this thing isn't even the real Demise, just a ranting shadow.

It's when Ghirahim really looks up and is seeing this, though, that Nightmare Demise mimics something he recognizes, and calls down lightning to throw at Dinravi's face. He panics, calling out Dinravi's name.

[Image Description: Dinravi catches the lightning in one hand with a “CRACK,” the lightning overflowing around him. "One of my ancestors was the Lady Urbosa," he says, his hand sparking. Sparks overflow from his eyes like tears, but he’s smiling. "You think I've never fought with lightning?" Cut to Ghirahim, who’s blushing so hard the tips of his ears have gone red, the sparks reflected in his wide eyes. A legend informs: “Ghirahim is REALLY doomed.” End ID.]

(For the record getting to namedrop Urbosa as one of Dinravi’s ancestors is the major reason CoRA is post-AoC timeline. We have stepped into rule of cool territory but it’s the climactic boss fight, it’s allowed.)

Queen Zelda smiles in Dinravi's direction fondly, then says, "Lord Ghirahim, I understand if you aren't ready to face a shadow of your past. But perhaps you can help me with the main Nightmare and we'll see if that helps Prince Dinravi in turn, yes?"

Ghirahim looks at her, and then he stands.

Link, meanwhile, is sharing no taunts with the Nightmare of the Fierce Deity, though the Fierce Deity is certainly continuing to offer unnervingly calm and gentle commentary, on his form, his fears, his accomplishments.

Link is doing his damndest not to actually listen.

(and this post is long enough so we’re getting into THAT in the next post, which is already mostly written)

#my art #loz #loz au #loz au: the courage of running away #au august

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an-unseemly-gentleman · 3 years

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So, while chilling I, naturally, started thinking about breath of the wild and a thought occurred to me... ‘Why have I never seen anyone talk about how the depiction of the hero in the cut seen that plays during Kass’ recount of the battle 10,000 years ago has red hair?’.

[ID: screen shot from the cut seen, zoomed in on the hero. The stylised illustration depicts a person dresses in blue and red, holding the master sword and has flowing red hair. End ID]

Now, this could just be stylisation, but Link has always been some kind of blond.

[ID: A page from the Hyrule Historia showing the dates and various designs of Link through the different games. In each he is wearing some variation of his green tunic, shield and sword, and he is blond, or has very light brown hair in each. End ID]

Furthermore, the illustration that depicts the princess has blond hair.

[ID: screen shot from the same cut seen, zoomed in on the princess. The stylised illustration depicts Zelda wearing a white dress with flowing blond hair. Her arms are outstretched shooting out gold light. The complete triforce is to the right of her. End ID]

So, why is there this sudden deviation from Links design in this cut scene? This isn't something that Link or Kass is looking at, I don't think it appears anywhere in the actual game itself. Only the audience is shown this.

But... do you know who does have red flowing hair just like the illustration of the hero?

[ID: A screenshot from the Breath of the Wild 2 trailer. Zoomed in to focus on the emaciated corpse of who is suspected to be an incarnation of Ganon. He has very long, matted red hair that has faded in colour and is wearing a red or orange robe around his waist, gold arm bands and a headpiece with a glowing yellow jewel in the forehead part. His body is arched backwards, and his face contorted in pain as a blue disembodied hand adorned in geometric gold jewellery grasps the centre of his chest, the red-black energy of calamity pours out from under the hand. The grey-green tone of the scene washes out the true colours. End ID]

Yeah, dehydrated Ganon. So basically, what I’m saying is is that maybe the hero depicted in the cut scene isn't a reincarnation of Link, but rather Ganon, or, at least a Gerudo king. In addition to this, the illustration of the hero depicts him with green eyes,

[ID: screenshot of the hero in the cut seen zoomed in on his eye. End ID]

And who else has eyes that colour?

[ID: Left Image is a zoomed in cropped screen shot of Riju, she is resting her head on her right fist and is looking out towards the viewer. She has green eyes, red hair, blue lipstick and is wearing ornate gold jewellery and head piece. Right image is a zoomed in cropped screenshot of Urbosa facing the left of the image, she also has red hair, green eyes and blue lipstick. End ID]

So, not only does the depiction of the Hero have red hair but he has the green eyes of the Gerudo chieftains. Green eyes too is something that Link has never had, as he usually has blue, brown or black eyes depending on the style and design of the game/official artwork. Furthermore, this also contrasts to the black used for Zelda’s eye in the illustration,

[ID: Image 1: zoomed in and cropped image of Zelda’s eye in the cut seen. Image 2: the same image of the Hero’s eye from before. End ID]

The difference is subtle, but obvious side by side. Depicting his eye as green was undeniably purposeful. The evidence that this is a Gerudo man and not a Hylian man is building up...

From the time line, we know that Link isn’t always successful, or even exists at the same time as something catastrophic happening in Hyrule, so perhaps 10,000 years ago the reincarnation of Link failed to manifest, but a reincarnation of Ganon did. And, with Demise being a separate entity in the form of the Calamity, it didn’t poses him and so was spared from the curse that binds Gerudo kings to evil. Therefore, he would have every opportunity to be a hero, and take the place that Link failed to fill. Or, alternatively, the reincarnation of Link and Ganon became one.

We know that Gerudo women have to find men from other places to have children with, so a Gerudo chief and a Hylian man having a child together is most certainly a common occurrence seeing how close the two peoples are to one another both geographically and socially. So, perhaps 10,000 years ago a male child was born to the Gerudo chief and her Hylian partner, and this child was the reincarnation of both Link and Ganon as per the parameters of Malice’s curse.

In the Hyrule Historia, it is stated that Demise’s flaming red hair is a call back to his eventual connection to Ganon as his ‘”incarnation of hatred”, and the reincarnations of Link and Zelda are a result of blood relation to the first hero and princess that defeated him.

So, going forward, lets assume that the hero depicted is a reincarnation of both Link and Ganon simultaneously. Ultimate good and ultimate hate fused into one person that is capable of both the greatest good and evil. Furthermore, someone who posses both the triforce of courage and power. Since we don't know where BOTW falls in the time line, it can be assumed from the presence of the Arbiter’s Ground’s from Twilight Princess in the desert of BOTW that BOTW follows the timeline where the triforce is not re-fused as it is in Wind Waker. However, looking back to the image of Zelda in the cut seen, a complete triforce is before her at her feet.

With two of the triforce pieces being possessed by someone with courage and power that choose to be good, it would make sense for the princess then to have the opportunity to reform the triforce and use all its power to repel and seal the calamity.

Okay, so that’s all very well and good but... how does that make dehydrated Ganon the hero from 10,000 years ago? Well, perhaps there was still malice inside the hero, perhaps the Zonai wanted to make sure that Demise, malice and Ganon stayed gone... And this is where I would like to turn this theory over to everyone else.

Please feel free to rip this apart or add your own ideas onto this theory. I honestly don’t know if anyone else has this theory because I really haven't seen it talked about before on like the Zelda theory channels I watch on youtube or anywhere else online.

#botw #breath of the wild #botw theory #legend of zelda #long post #image description

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syilcawrites · 3 years

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Angry confessions,,,like accidental angry confessions,,,confessing angrily,,,

a/n: hello it’s been a while but I finished!! I kind of based it off of “are you in the clouds or the rocks right now” hope that’s okay huhu.

summary: Link.exe stops working because Zelda accidentally confesses to him in the midst of a heated conversation :~)

ao3

a carved heart on the back of your hand

Link hates the rain.

It wasn't supposed to rain today, but it did, and now everything is ruined.

Zelda wrestles her wrist from his grip once they stop at a nearby run-down house; his right hand is still trembling and it feels like his muscles and tendons have been ripped from his left arm. It's better than feeling nothing at least—he can still feel the fabric of his sleeve against his skin. Link rolls his shoulder slightly, wincing. It's not broken.

She sighs out with an irritable huff, and he hears the Hylian Shield he gave her earlier clatter between them.

"Why did you do that."

He shrugs as he stares at the broken stone wall in front of him. He can't stop shaking his leg. "We should wait," he says quietly.

"I'm ready. You even said I was ready!"

"Why do we have to rush this?" He braves a glance back at her, and it's just as bad as he thought—she's fuming—face red with her chin held high and her lips twisted into an angry frown. She wants to rush back into things—rush back into correcting Hyrule, to make up for all those lost years. He gets it. Of course he gets it; it's exactly how he felt when he first woke up. There was a sense of duty he knew he wanted to follow through with even though he lacked any of his memories.

"There's a centuries' worth of responsibilities I have to catch up on. And to survive in this Hyrule of today, I need to learn how to carry my own weight." Zelda looks away from him, her frown deepening as she crosses her arms. She squeezes her eyes shut for a brief moment before she glares up at him. "And you—" The anger returns to her face as she takes a step toward him. He flips around to face her completely, holding up his hands in slight defense. "Do not jump in front of me like that again. It was completely irresponsible of you to rip the shield from my arm."

It was dangerous, even he will admit that. He knows she's capable—her precision with parrying is nothing short of amazing—but Guardians who could still slither around were different from the ones who were immobile.

And when it crawled on top of an empty body of a decayed Guardian, it aimed down directly at her forehead. Which isn't anything new, no. It always aimed for the head. That's how it usually goes, and he knew that. He knows that. But what if the Guardian slipped because of the rain? And then just like that, it could've hit her in the chest, arm, leg—whatever. It could've hit her.

Last-minute parrying is probably one of his least favorite things to do, but his legs were already moving through the sluggish mud and his mind was trailing too slow behind his feet.

Guardian, rain, Zelda.

Those were the only three words chasing each other in his mind at that moment. And the next thing he knew, he had the shield in his arm, the Guardian had toppled over, and Zelda was yelling at him.

He doesn't regret doing what he did.

"It was the rain's fault," he says. The rain got into his eyes, his ears, his nose.

"What rain?" she asks, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion. "It wasn't raining."

"It was raining," he trails off, unsure now.

Was it raining?

"Link, you know that I love you, but for Hylia's sake!" Zelda exclaims, narrowing her eyes as sharp as knives. "What you did was extremely, unfathomably—and might I add ridiculously—reckless and dangerous."

Love. Not loved, but love, as in a I love you right now kind of love.

"Wait, really?"

"Yes really!' she exasperates, groaning as she rubs her temples. "Sure, Calamity Ganon is gone and the Guardians are a bit weaker now, but that doesn't erase the high threat that they still pose."

"No that's not—" Link quickly averts his gaze to her feet. Wait—he's supposed to be the triforce of courage. He shifts his gaze back up at her, and it takes every inch of his strength to maintain eye contact. He's been through death—he almost lost his head to a laser beam about five minutes ago—so this isn't… it shouldn't feel worse, but it does.

He gulps.

"You love me?" His stomach flips. He wants to drag the words that he has haphazardly thrown out into the wild back into the deepest parts of his mind, because now she's looking at him with a very, very weird expression: mouth twisted, eyebrows strained, nose scrunched.

And his voice sounded scratchy, so scratchy when he said that. He needs water, but there's no water near them because they drank the last of it early afternoon before they made their way to Hyrule Field. Outskirts Stable should have some… or maybe—what was closer? Riverside? But Akkala has the best water, so maybe he should go there instead. She did say how it tasted cleaner than other areas. It would be quick, in and out within two seconds tops if he used the Sheikah Slate. It's Autumn and the days are shorter and—

Link pats his hips frantically.

The Sheikah Slate is attached to Zelda's hips. They've been switching off, and of course, of course she has it today.

Link exhales. This is a-okay, shrug it off. It's not like she'll bite his fingers off if he asks for it—the both of them are probably really parched right now anyway since they just ran for who knows how long. And he knows Zelda, she'll definitely realize how perceptive and practical he's being with his proposition, and let him go swiftly without much argument.

"Are you thirsty?" he asks confidently, breaking the suffocating silence between them.

"Excuse me?"

"I can get us some water in East Akkala Stable, if you give me the Sheikah Slate."

"Well, I suppose so…" She unhooks it from her hip slowly, fumbling with it a little when it catches onto the metal of her belt. "Oh—!"

Link quickly reaches out for it before it can hit the ground—but Zelda does too, and then their hands touch. Link draws back immediately, and the Sheikah Slate smacks against the face of the Hylian Shield before bouncing off onto the broken pavement they're standing on. Link almost slaps his cheeks—their hands always brush against one another. Why'd he react like he got shocked by an Electric Wizzrobe?

"I'll be right back," he says quickly, swiping the Sheikah Slate up. His fingers hover over the screen as he licks his lips—how does he turn on the screen again? Tap it once? Twice? Five times? If Hylia is out there can she help him remember, please?

"Three times."

"Huh?" Link snaps his head up.

"Tap the screen three times to open it up," she mutters as she picks up the Hylian Shield from the ground, her eyes still on him.

"Thanks," he says, staring back down at the blue-lit screen. Akkala, upper right. Click the glowing icon and press yes. He looks back up at her, and she's situated herself under a part of the broken house, with the shield resting against her legs and a hand placed against the sheathed dagger attached to her hip. "I'll be quick," he promises, as the blue light begins to eat away his vision of her.

Zelda's face scrunches up like she's about to burst into tears.

He blinks, and instead of seeing her torn face, East Akkala Stable sits in front of him. And now he's definitely sure it's raining because this time he can feel a light, cold drizzle pelt against his skin. "Idiot," Link whispers as he tussles his bangs with frustration.

He just needs to be away for a second—it's hard thinking clearly when he's with her for some reason, and it's even harder trying to mask his emotions around her. In all of those memories, he was as stiff as a plank of wood. Even he couldn't read his own expressions when he remembered them. And sometimes he can manifest that part of him back, but with Zelda…

If he lingers too long in that feeling of emptiness, he knows he might stay like that forever. Most of those memories were filled with quiet conversations and sad smiles—he doesn't want to create more between them.

Link pulls out both of their water pouches as he nears the nearby spring reservoir, opting to avoid the stable altogether—he sighs again as he crouches down, sticking them into the water. The bubbles rise and burst with that awful glugging sound. He pointed out how weird it sounded to Zelda one time, and they both watched the pockets of air float and pop to the surface of the water as if it was the greatest thing in the entire world. He figured that the simplicity of it mesmerized the both of them. It seemed like she appreciated it when he pointed out random stuff to her—it's what initially drew her out of her half-dazed stupor for weeks after they defeated Calamity Ganon.

He sits by the water for an extra twenty minutes after he finishes filling up the water pouches, just soaking in the light drizzle dripping down his hair; leaking into the seams of his clothes, until he can feel it soaking into his skin. The rain washes away his thoughts.

He really hates the rain.

When Link returns, he finds her stabbing into the edge of some random piece of log with her dagger, a little ways away from the worn-down house. He can't tell if she's stabbing it out of anger or out of pure concentration. He raises an eyebrow as he comes closer, noticing that she's not actually stabbing it, but carving something.

"Zelda?" he calls out. She jumps at the sound of his voice but doesn't turn around.

"You're back already?" she asks, briefly glancing over her shoulder at him after a heartbeat. If she thought he was quick with his water trip, then she really was in the zone. "Wait—don't come closer."

He pauses about ten lizalfos' away from her, holding both of the water pouches in his hands. He watches with growing curiosity as she continues to stab and jab at the piece of wood a couple more times before she sheaths her dagger back. She rips something out of the log—hard enough for her to fall down onto her bottom, and Link instinctively takes a step forward with an arm slightly outstretched to her.

"Hm." She stands up as she looks back at him again, her expression troubled. "Why are you drenched from head to toe?"

"It was raining," he says, pressing his arm back to his side, "actually raining this time." He jogs over to her to close the distance between them. A humorless smile quirks upon her lips as she turns around with her arms behind her back.

They stand there awkwardly for a few moments.

"Well?" Zelda eyes his hands.

"Oh—" Link almost hits her arm as he quickly extends his hand out to her.

"Thank you," she says, grabbing it. She stares at the lip of it before holding out her other hand to him. "You said you lost that rock during the fight with Calamity Ganon?"

Link furrows his eyebrows together.

"The… that one rock you found on Death Mountain. The heart-shaped one. You called it your good luck charm?"

Oh, right. Somewhere in the midst of flying up in the air and running everywhere like a madman around Calamity Ganon, his heart-shaped pebble had fallen out from inside of his Champion's Tunic.

"Well," she says, tightening her fist, "I'm sure this is certainly not the exact way it looked. A craft such as wood carving takes years and years of practice, so this is the best I can manage." She still hasn't opened her fist—in fact, her knuckles have gone white. "You know that I always put my best efforts into whatever I am doing."

Link nods, waiting for her to drop the object into his palm. "Everyone knows you put your all into everything you do."

With a sigh, she opens her hand, and the small object falls into his palm with a light thud. It's a crudely carved heart-shaped piece of wood. It looks more like a weird hexagon, but at a certain angle he can see the heart in it. It looks nothing like the heart-shaped pebble, and that's exactly why he loves—

A short laugh escapes his lips before he realizes it.

"I'll make a better one once I get more practice!" she insists as she puffs out her cheeks. "I don't want your luck to run out, so just keep it for now."

"No," he says, running a thumb against the unevenly rough surface of it, "this one's perfect."

"Perfect? You insult me Link," she scoffs. Wisps of hair escape from her carefully pulled back braid, framing around her cheeks. Absentmindedly, she brushes it away from her skin, but it keeps falling back into the same position.

He wants to cup her cheeks, but both of his hands are occupied.

"I—" They both begin, pausing. Zelda purses her lips, but she keeps her gaze level with his eyes.

"I love you too," he blurts out before she can say anything, and presses the wooden heart against his fluttering chest. Red blooms onto her cheeks immediately—it's faint, but there. Maybe it's from the cold, since the wind picked up two minutes ago.

Her surprised expression melts into a soft smile—a smile with her lips slightly parted, carrying a sort of gentleness that is usually masked by the weariness of the world.

It's one of his favorite smiles.

#zelink #botw #breath of the wild #my fanfics #hope you enjoy it!!!#ty for sending a prompt to lil ol me hoho #i hope i didn't miss anything... i have a feeling i have LOL #enduracarrotchips

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clumsydarknut · 5 years

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The Duty of a Hero - Prologue

A novelization of the original Legend of Zelda

A long, long time ago, the world was in an age of chaos.

Wars raged across the land. Kingdoms that were once great dwindled into decline, led by the hearts of corrupted kings and lost to the despair of the people.

And yet, in the midst of the chaos, a glimmer of hope still remained.

In the remnants of a kingdom in a distant corner of the world, a legend was being passed down from generation to generation. The legend of a mystical golden power, its origins lost to history, that could reshape the world and return peace to the land. Once wielded by the Kings of Hyrule, this power manifested in the form of three sacred triangles – the Triforce.

Though the Golden Power had the potential for peace and prosperity, if one with evil designs held it the world would be utterly destroyed. The Triforce was split to avoid such a fate, and without the heart of a just king wielding the sacred power, the kingdom fell into ruin.

The people of Hyrule were scattered, but still the legend of the Golden Power persisted, along with the belief that one day the Triforce would return the kingdom to its former glory.

---

“How long until they reach the citadel?”

“Not long, Your Grace.”

Zelda stood at the edge of her balcony, staring down at the burning city. Her curled brown hair fluttered in the heat wafting up from the flames, the smell of smoke and seared flesh staining the air. The gem dangling against her forehead felt starkly cool as the sweltering gusts attacked her skin. The ashes of her kingdom smeared her pink silk gown with soot. In the midst of the fire she met two glowing eyes; the eyes of a beast, staring up at her in rage.

She clenched her fists. The city – if you could call it that – offered little protection. Her tiny castle was surrounded by little more than a village, comprised of people straggling in from the wilderness. Her kingdom had already been scattered and broken, lost to the ages of war and deceit. Minions of darkness had already roamed freely, raiding the hamlets they found and forcing her citizens into hiding. Castle Town had been the only true settlement, and now it burned.

This is my fault, she thought. My forces are too weak. I can’t protect my people. She continued to meet the gaze of the beast in the flames for a moment longer before turning to her maid.

“There is nothing we can do for the township now,” she said. Fear threatened to choke her voice, but she swallowed it and maintained her composure. “We are going to lose this battle.”

“Your Grace?” Her elderly maid, Impa, watched her in perplexed anxiety. The woman’s thick, white hair flowed over her shoulders and down to the small of her back, and her red eyes glinted in the firelight.

Zelda took a deep breath. “We are going to lose this battle, but we can still win the war. We must prevent Ganon from getting what he came here for.”

“Do you mean…?” Impa gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.

“You know exactly what I mean,” Zelda replied sternly. “You know as well as I do what it is the Prince of Darkness seeks. We must make certain that he cannot wield the Golden Power.”

“But your Grace, surely there must be some other way!” she protested. “If you split the sacred triangles, you may never get them back! What would become of the kingdom?!”

Zelda closed her eyes. The risk of this plan was great. Wielding two of the golden triangles herself had still proven futile in rebuilding the kingdom. If she lost them, the only thing holding Hyrule together would be gone, and the remnants of the people of Hylia might be destroyed entirely. Any who remained would be doomed to start from scratch, with no one to lead and no protection from the evil that ravaged the land.

But the risk of the power – though incomplete – falling into the hands of Ganon was even greater. If he seized the sacred triangles, he would become nigh unstoppable. Everything would fall to his malice, and the world itself would be destroyed. The ancient ways were gone, and without them there was nothing that could stand against his might.

“We must hope,” Zelda breathed, “that the Gods will send us the aid that we need. We have to believe in that, or it won’t only be our people that are destroyed.”

Impa nodded solemnly. “What will you do, your Grace?”

“The only thing I can,” she replied. “I will shatter the Triforce and hide the pieces in the ancient labyrinths.” She opened her eyes. “There they will rest, away from the grasp of evil, until one with a courageous heart retrieves them and reassembles the power to wield against Ganon.”

“But, your Grace,” Impa faltered, “Who can accomplish such a thing?”

“That I do not know.” Zelda met Impa’s gaze. “But I am counting on you to seek them out.”

Impa gave a start. “Your Grace! I cannot leave you here!”

“You must,” Zelda commanded, “or all is lost.”

“Your Grace…”

“Flee, Impa!” she shouted. “Take the ancient maps and flee!”

Tears welled up in Impa’s eyes, but she nodded. In another moment, she had disappeared behind the chamber door.

Zelda sighed. I hope we meet again, Impa.

The princess turned back to the flames, and her stomach dropped. The demonic eyes of the Prince of Darkness were nowhere to be found amongst the carnage.

A thunderous crash from deep in the castle shot fear straight into her core, and the building shook. He’s already here. I need more time!

Frantically, she summoned the ancient magic. The energy filled her chest with warmth, and she took on a soft, golden glow. For centuries, the Royal Family had been blessed with such powers, as had all Hylians, though to a lesser degree. Her people, the children of the Gods, were said to hear the whispers of the heavens with their long, pointed ears. Zelda called on those gifts with all the strength of her soul, and from her heart she drew forth the Triforce.

Another crash came from below. Zelda held the sacred triangles, one floating above each hand, with dread shining in her eyes. Please, give me more time! She set aside the Triforce of Power and took the Triforce of Wisdom in both hands. She channeled all of her magic into the ancient force. Her hands shook as the Golden Power resisted. Again a crash sounded, only footsteps away. In one last, desperate push, the Triforce shattered.

The Princess of Destiny sent the fragments soaring away over the kingdom and reached for the second Golden Triangle when the walls and ceiling of the room collapsed. The shockwave of rumbling dust knocked her off her feet, rubble smashing against the broken floor and cracking the stone balcony. The dim, red light of the burning sky lit the stage, and towering over her was the dark beast.

“The Triforce…” The monster’s voice rumbled like thunder and grated on her ears like sandpaper. Zelda reached for the sacred power floating above the destruction but gasped as a sharp pain shot through her spine. Gnarled debris pinned her down, and blood began to seep through her dress. The giant, boar-like creature, spittle foaming from its snarling mouth, stepped toward the golden light. Gods, just a little more time…

“The Triforce is mine!” the beast cried. The maniacal, booming laughter shook the castle, and the balcony beneath her shifted. Zelda clung to the remains of a rug and prayed she would not fall.

Abruptly the laughter stopped. The monstrosity leaned down over the princess, its hot breath blowing her hair about. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to ignore the rancid scent of human flesh as it rushed over her.

“Where are the others?” the pig growled.

Zelda summoned the last of her composure and met the beast’s eyes. The scarlet stare scorched through her, but she held her gaze.

“They… are gone.” The monster’s shock made her smirk. “Hidden where you will never find them, Ganon. Your plan has failed.”

Ganon threw his head back in an enraged roar. Lightning crackled through the room and the floor trembled.

“Where are they?!” he bellowed. Zelda winced as phlegm spattered over the room. “Where are they you puny human!”

“Out of your reach,” she spat back. The monstrous Prince of Darkness raged, power seething from his grip on the Golden Triangle. The sky turned dark and his crimson eyes changed to pure, searing white as he gnashed his fangs. Terror pricked in the princess’ heart as the beast clasped his gigantic paw around her and lifted her from the floor. Pain burned across her torso and for a moment her vision went black. Ganon lifted her to his face, now shrouded in dark magic, and growled.

“You will tell me where they are, princess,” he boomed, “and when I find them, you will be made to watch as your world burns.”

#the original legend of zelda #the spirit of the hero #the duty of the hero #hyrule #legend of zelda #loz #fan works #fanfiction

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yossitaru · 7 years

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Legend of Zelda Musings

Breath of the Wild spoilers lay beyond here. Advance only if you posses the requisite Wisdom and Courage.

In Link’s Memory #1, Princess Zelda is reciting a prayer that makes reference to three specific heroes of old. These heroes are the Hero from the Sky, the Hero of Time and the Hero of Twilight. While this alone can very easily put Breath of the Wild into the Child Timeline, it is not the only proof that it is where these events belong.

After the final blow is struck on Calamity Ganon, Zelda states that Ganon has given up on the cycle of reincarnation and has manifested in a form of pure malice. Furthermore, the Hyrule Compendium describes Dark Beast Ganon as resembling its original form. This is consistent with the only other known instance of Ganon in the Child Timeline, the Ganon of Twilight Princess. Three important things happened between the time of the Hero of Time and the Twilight Incursion to lead here. First is that Ganondorf was apprehended and banished to the Twilight Realm before he could realize the power of Ganon within him, so instead of manifesting, it was suppressed and hooked on to Ganondorf’s subconscious. This lead’s to Ganon’s appearance during the fight with the Hero of Twilight, where, as a last ditch effort to save the host’s life, Ganon revealed itself in the form of a wild beast, who’s only concern was survival. However, despite all efforts, Ganondorf was still killed by the hero, and this version of Ganon which had no chance to assimilate fully with Ganondorf and his intelligence, the Spirit of Demise was left to its own devices, a will of two primal instincts, survival and absolute rule over Hyrule. All in all, this leads to the Calamity Ganon, a beast without intelligence.

While the Deline Timeline already has an independent Ganon, I do not believe that Ganon could become the Calamity as we know it. For one, this Ganon chose to ascend past his human form and retained Ganondorf’s intelligence. Furthermore, this Ganon and his minions have already concocted ways around the usual cycles of reincarnation by way of the various rituals featured throughout the ages of Hyrule’s decline. Abandoning all of that to become a primordial, mindless beast of destruction seems like a poor move for anyone seeking to further their own power.

Now, we must address several important things. First, I will tackle the most ovbious; Ganon’s “only” appearance in the Child Timeline, what happened to Four Swords Adventures? I have argued in a previous post that the Ganondorf in Four Swords Adventures may have been the second, sometime after the death of Ganondorf in the time of Twilight. However, that may not be the case. There are two possibilities that can rectify this. First is the simple solution that Four Swords Adventures takes place some time after Breath of the Wild. However, that fails to explain several things. The second option disconnects the games that feature the Triforce and the ones that feature the Light Force. For this post, it will suffice that this theory places Minish Cap and the Four Swords games on its own timeline independent from all the others, where Zelda and the Shiekah could not dig it up from the past like they did everything else. I shall explore this in more detail in my next post.

Secondly, when we last saw the Sheikah, they were down to one known member, Impaz. However, during the Calamity of Ganon, there are once again many Sheikah, but few of them have the iconic red eyes. We are also given confirmation of the fact that Sheikah have a much longer lifespan than the average Hylian. This indicates that Impaz was able to take a Hylian mate and as their children took further Hylian mates, they were simultaneously able to rebuild the tribe and dilute the lineage, leading to Sheikah with blue and brown eyes.

Finally, the ancient Sheikah technology makes the most sense coming from the age of Twilight, where ruined sky islands could still be accessed and Ganon/dorf never had a chance to destroy any progress the Hyrulean scientists could make. This lead to the massive advances which eventually resulted in the Guardians and Divine Beasts which allowed a Link to defeat the now primal Ganon so thoroughly and easily that they were allowed a previously unheard of ten thousand years of peace where these advancements made while under the constant fear of the Return of Ganon could be forgotten, but preserved in such a way that records could be recovered.

Even with all of this, however, we are still left with several mysteries that are without answer. How did the Gerudo people manage to recover and why did they reintroduce their isolationist ways? How and why did the Rito come to be in this world where a massive flood did not happen and serve to hide an ancient civilization? What events occurred that the koroks came to be, such to be the Great Deku Tree’s unseen hands to all but the chosen?

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anotherlifefic · 4 years

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Chapter 48: The Heir of His Hatred

Ganondorf was a strict teacher, and training with him was gruelling. In between my magic lessons, my fighting lessons at Ashanti‘s school and taking care of the household, I barely had any time to breathe. But these were dark times… yet again, so of course leisure would fall by the wayside.

Two months after I started my lessons, Zelda started showing first signs of morning sickness. And unfortunately… so did I.

„You‘d have done well in showing a bit restraint with your hero“, Ganondorf commented as I was running to the bucket the servants had graciously provided for the third time that morning. „Who in their right mind gets pregnant during times like these?“

„Me, appearantly“, I replied shakily once I had stopped vomiting.

I vaguely heard the Gerudo mumble something about „spoiled, reckless Hylians“.

I finally stood up straight again, rubbing my stomach and hoping that the nausea would pass soon. The herbal tea that Dr. Tori had given me didn‘t seem to help now like it did when I had been pregnant with Gareth. Every morning I felt like my stomach was all up in knots.

Fantastic, I thought to myself as I sat down next to Cassandra on the sidelines. Because this is the perfect time for a difficult pregnancy!

Compared to me, Zelda seemed to have it quite easy. Either that, or she hid her troubles well.

Cassandra shot me a compassionate look, causing me to sigh.

„Gareth didn‘t make me nearly as sick as his little sibling does“, I complained, reaching down to where Gareth was playing with Erika, Ganondorf‘s and Cassandra‘s youngest daughter.

„I‘ve gone through seven pregnancies thus far and let me tell you: Every pregnancy is unique, just like every person is.“

„Seven?“, I asked. I knew for sure that Cassandra had eleven daughters at this point. As insane as that sounded.

„Uh-huh. Two of them were twins and one were triplets“, she explained. „Good thing that Ganondorf and the other Gerudo were always there for me. The Gerudo take the saying ‚It takes a whole village to raise a child‘ very seriously. No Gerudo mother is ever alone in raising and educating her child.“

„That sounds amazing“, I replied, still rubbing my belly hoping that it would stop the nausea. At least I had gotten around to weaning Gareth. And not a moment too soon; he had started teething, a bit later than other children but still within the normal range, as Dr. Tori had assured me, and appearantly he believed my breasts to be a perfect teething ring. Luckily the bruises it left would be long forgotten by the time his little sibling was born.

„Mommyyy!“ Gareth came waddling up to me. He was walking quite well now. „Hungie!!“

„Is it that late already?“, I asked, feeling heavy weariness descend upon me. I looked up and indeed; it was already noon, judging by the position of the sun. „I have to get home and make sure dinner‘s on the table when Link comes back.“

After making sure that Ganondorf really had no ill intentions, Link had stopped watching my lessons and instead committed to his own training. Meaning that, upon returning home, we were usually utterly exhausted.

It really wasn‘t easy being both warriors and parents.

Zelda caught up to me as I was about to leave the training court towards home. „Rebecca! Hold on!“

I smiled and embraced her as a greeting. „Yes, dear?“

She gently stroked my cheek. „Why don‘t you and Link stay for dinner today? I‘ve already tasked the cooks with preparing some baby food for Gareth.“ She gently traced the outline of the dark shadows under my eyes with her slim, elegant fingers. „You look so tired. And Link does, too. You both deserve a bit of a break. I already asked him, and he agreed to join me at the table.“

Well that made my decision easy. „Of course, Zelda. I‘d love to.“

It was so refreshing to not hurry back home and hastily throw together a meal for once. The food was simply divine; an array of delicacies both from Hyrule and the sorrounding kingdoms.

I was just glad that Gareth wasn‘t a particularly picky eater. He ate everything the cooks had prepared for him without complaint. In fact, he seemed to love it. His eyes lit up with delight every time the spoon approached his face.

Zelda watched Link feed him with a thoughtful expression on her face. She looked a little paler than usual, but apart from that nothing about her indicated that she was pregnant. Though of course, as the Queen, she had the very best medical care anyone could ask for.

I put down my knife and fork. „Is something the matter, Zelda?“

She took a sip from her goblet and swiveled the honeywater in it around for a bit. „I‘m worried about the current situation. Now that Demise is about to manifest again, who is to say he won‘t just choose a new host to be reborn into?“

I furrowed my brows. Then my eyes widened. „You don‘t think-“

„It would make sense, wouldn‘t it?“ Her hands tightened. „Your… visions only started after the night the three of us spent together. Isn‘t that true? I‘ve been thinking… maybe it is because in that night, the new heir of Demise‘s malice and hatred was conceived.“

„But which one of us…?“

Zelda shrugged defeatedly. „It could be either of us. Maybe it‘s more likely that my child is that heir. The heir of Demise, born of the bearers of the Triforces of Courage and Wisdom. Then again, you were the one having the visions.“

„Do the children of the bearers of the Triforce inherit their parent‘s powers?“, I questioned.

„I don‘t know. There isn‘t exactly a precedent for the Triforce being split in three pieces. Did Gareth exhibit any kind of exceptional courage thus far?“

I looked over to Gareth, who was trying to „bravely“ wrestle the spoon from Link‘s hand. „Not really.“

Zelda obviously tried really hard to keep her composure. I looked around, only to find that the three of us were alone in the dining room. So I got up, walked over to her and began rubbing her shoulders. They felt like one big, tense knot. Zelda really needed a break. Too bad there was nobody who was trustworthy enough to take over the kingdom while she took a while to relax and take care of herself.

„I think we‘d know if either of our unborn children were evil“, I said. „You would be able to feel it, right? And I doubt Demise would have the patience to wait another few decades for his new vessel to be grown up.“

Zelda leaned into my touch, her eyes half closed. Now that I was so close to her, I saw the slight hint of dark shadows underneath her eyes, though covered up by powder. „Zelda“, I said gently. „I realize that ruling the kingdom is hard work that never ends, but please don‘t forget to take care of yourself.“

„I don‘t. But I can‘t afford to relax while we are in the middle of yet another crisis.“

„Another crisis means that you need to be at your best. You won‘t be able to help or guide anyone if you collapse from exhaustion.“

„So what do you suggest I do?“, Zelda asked dryly.

I stopped for a moment. Well, what should she do? I was already pretty overwhelmed with juggling combat training and parenting my son. I didn‘t know what to do if one were to add ruling a nation to that mix. „I… I don‘t know.“

Zelda sat up straight again. „...exactly. I appreciate your concern, Rebecca, I really do, but I cannot show any weakness. Especially now. The people need a queen who bears the burden of responsibility without complaint.“

I grew silent, still working the knots out of her shoulders.

Once I was sure that she was at least a little more relaxed, I returned to my seat and continued eating.

Link remained in the castle to continue his training after dinner, while I returned home with Gareth to get some housework done. I put him in his playpen and started wiping down the table and kitchen counters, then I started sweeping the floor.

Hours passed while I wiped, swept, tidied and played with Gareth, until the sun began to set. I wanted to wait for Link to return, but as time ticked on, Gareth became tired and cranky, so I decided to tuck him into bed and read a book by the light of the oil-lamp on my bedside table.

More time passed and at some point I decided that there was no point in waiting any longer. I put the book away, snuffed out the lamp and went to sleep.

Link was in Zelda‘s study, walking up and down with a worried frown etched onto his handsome features. Zelda herself was sitting at her desk with a similarly serious expression.

„We have to do something“, she said finally. „We cannot risk Demise being reincarnated. And she‘s the one who has visions of him.“

„We already have administered the first dose of the poison today, didn‘t we? It won‘t take too long until it works. And she will think that it was a natural miscarriage. A tragedy, but these things happen.“

The words were spoken in their voices, but they sounded so wrong. Nothing this cruel could ever come out of the mouths of the people I loved so much.

„Maybe we should increase the dose of the poison. Just to be safe.“ Link sat down on a nearby chair.

Zelda raised her eyebrow. „That could endanger her life as well.“

Link met her gaze. „...as I said. These things happen. Especially during unfortunate miscarriages.“

I woke up, drenched in sweat, and grabbed the bucket next to my bed. Maybe this really wasn‘t just the typical sickness associated with pregnancy. Maybe… oh Goddesses.

I vomited until nothing but foamy bile came out. It was the middle of the night, and Link still hadn‘t come home.

Once I was sure that there was nothing more for me to throw up, I put the bucket back and rolled myself up in the fetal position, quietly sobbing to myself.

It was just a nightmare, I tried to tell myself. Link and Zelda would never do something so cruel. And there certainly was a good explanation for his absence right now.

I heard the sound of Gareth crying next door; my noisy vomiting and subsequent crying fit had woken him up, no doubt.

I got up and, on shaky legs, stumbled through the door and to Gareth‘s room. He was standing in his crib, his big blue eyes already puffed up from crying. I picked him up, wrapping my arms around him in a protective hug. „Hush, love. It‘s okay. Mommy is here.“

„Mommy“, he whimpered, holding onto me and holding onto the collar of my nightgown.

I took him into the bedroom, humming a soft lullaby to him and lightly bouncing him.

After a few minutes, he finally calmed down enough to fall asleep again.

I didn‘t want to leave him alone, and I certainly wouldn‘t be able to fall asleep again. So I just put him down next to me on the bed and took out a ball of yarn and my knitting needles. I managed to knit a few more rows until sounds coming from downstairs distracted me. I looked out the window. Judging by the position of the moon, it was just a bit after midnight. I hadn‘t even slept two hours.

The sounds came closer. The front door opening and closing. Then footsteps up the stairs and coming along the hallway until the door opened and a very tired looking Link came in. He looked up, eyes widening when he realized that I was still awake.

„I thought you‘d be sleeping.“

„I had a nightmare, and then Gareth woke up.“ I nodded in the general direction of our sleeping son. I was still shaking, but tried to stay calm. No need to get upset with my husband over what happened in a silly dream.

„Oh“, Link replied and then trudged over to his side of the bed, got out of his clothes and slipped under the cover.

„Where have you been?“, I asked casually.

Link looked up at me. „I was training, and once I was done with that, Zelda asked me to come to her study to discuss our plans going forward. The Sages and a few of the ministers were there too.“

Her study. Everything within me tensed up. Just like in the dream.

„And what are the plans?“

Link shifted slightly. „We aren‘t sure yet. It was mostly about what to do with Demise should really chose to be… reincarnated.“

Oh Goddesses.

He scooted over to me, taking Gareth into his arms and placing his own head on my stomach. „I don‘t think he will, though.“

I dropped the knitting needles, and before I knew it, hot tears were running down my face again, dripping down my chin and landing on my chest.

„...Becca?“ Link sat up, alarmed, and pulled me into his arms. „What‘s wrong?“

„Link, you wouldn‘t do anything to harm our children, would you? Not Gareth, and not our unborn child either?“

„What? What are you talking about?“ He let me snuggle up to his chest while stroking my hair.

„I-it‘s nothing. I had a nightmare, that‘s all.“ I took a few deep breaths and told him, interrupted by a lot of stutters and hiccups, about my dream.

He was quiet for a long time, just holding me and letting me cry. Once I had calmed down, he sighed and made me sit up straight again. „...One of the ministers overheard the conversation you had with Zelda during dinner and brought up the idea of trying to...“ He hesitated. „...end your pregnancy prematurely. It took pretty much all of the Sages to keep me from punching him in the face.“ His fingers got tangled in my messy hair. „Ruto surprised me. I figured she‘d be against that plan for morality‘s sake alone, but she gave that minister quite an impressive verbal beatdown. ‚My personal feelings about Rebecca aside, it‘s disgusting that you would consider inflicting this kind of physical and emotional pain on an in this case innocent woman, and just based on the very low possibility that her unborn child could end up evil. If that‘s enough to poison a pregnant woman, you might as well start poisoning EVERY pregnant woman, INCLUDING the Queen.‘. Those were her words. The minister didn‘t say any more after that.“

I let out a soft, surprised gasp. „She said all that… in defense of our baby? Remind me to thank her for that the next time I see her.“

„She‘ll probably blow you off out of embarrassment“, Link quipped. „Come on dear. Lay down and sleep now.“ He slipped under the covers again. I did the same, and with Gareth still sleeping peacefully between us, we drifted off into a deep, restful slumber.

#Another Life fic #The Legend of Zelda #fanfiction #OC #tw miscarriage

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kintatsujo · 3 years

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LoZ AU- The Courage of Running Away Part FIFTEEN

Okay so first of all if you haven’t seen part fourteen with Astramorus’s friend Serenumbra showing up you’re going to want to because there’s a bit at the end of this one that will be providing context for.

#AU August

#LoZ AU: The Courage of Running Away

So it’s high time we got into Whatever The Fuck Ghirahim is Doing and we’re not gonna get ALL the answers but we ARE gonna get a whole fuck ton of flirting!

Let’s start with what I think will be Ghirahim and Dinravi’s first revealing scene together once we’re out of the 0.5 Draft, which takes place right after Ghirahim shooshes at Astramorus and scares the marbles out of him:

[Image descriptions: Ghirahim is throwing off his fortune teller’s cloak while striding toward Dinravi, who is putting his necklace onto a dresser with a large mirror. “What an INVIGORATING outing that was!” Ghirahim declares. Dinravi says, “YOU’RE in a good mood-” he starts to remove his outer duster- “You didn’t KILL SOMEONE while I wasn’t LOOKING somehow, did you?” Despite his words he’s smiling, perhaps in amusement at Ghirahim’s good spirits. Ghirahim puts a hand to his face, brushing his hair out of his eye slightly while pursing his lips flirtatiously. “Oh, Sweet Prince, how UNCOUTH,” he says, then comes forward and puts a hand on Dinravi’s chest, smiling up into his face. “I do HAVE other INTERESTS,” he says, a heart accompanying his words. Dinravi seems mostly unmoved, if amused. “There’s hope for you yet, thank Din.” he says. End ID.]

(In case it wasn’t clear Ghirahim is intimating that his other interests include scaring the wits out of old men.)

Basically Ghirahim showed up under the fortune teller guise fairly recently, revealed himself to Dinravi and has been trying to seduce him into becoming the demon lord Ghirahim knows he can be ever since.

But it’s actually not working very well because Dinravi is basically chill as fuck:

[Image description: Ghirahim has his arms around Dinravi from behind and is leaning up to murmur into his ear. “You and I, wielder of Power,” he says, “We could BATHE THE SANDS RED and drink the BLOOD OF YOUR ENEMIES, crush their bones in my TEETH.” Dinravi, amused, answers him “I don’t WANT to drink blood Ghirahim, I want poultry pilaf and some fried bananas- please don’t cling to me while I’m COOKING.” End ID.]

(Dinravi cooks for himself as a hobby.) Also for the record I’m letting Ghirahim have randomly sharp teeth as he pleases because I think it’s hot. XD

On Eltani’s side of the situation, well:

[Image Description: Eltani is talking to Dinravi, and says, “There’s something OFF about that fortune teller, Belovéd, you WATCH YOURSELF with him.” Dinravi answers, “Of course Mama.” He then thinks, pursing his lips, “Do I TELL HER that he’s an ancient demon trying to SEDUCE ME for some reason?” He then blushes. “ABSOLUTELY NOT,” he thinks, and a label pops up reading “Reminder this kid is only 20.” End ID.]

And no, Dinravi’s not really fully aware he’s technically Ganondorf and whether Ganon and Demise are fully connected is something I’m gonna choose to be vague about; all he knows is this sexy demon man showed up one day claiming as the holder of the Triforce of Power that makes him a worthy master.

And Dinravi’s response to that? By sheer force of will, he’s determined to influence Ghirahim for the better instead of being influenced for the worse.

Because Dinravi’s a particular sort of badass and also an optimistic 20 year old kid gunning to be a good leader and possibly save the world, from Ghirahim specifically if it comes to that. Preferably by pointing out to Ghirahim that he doesn’t have to railroad himself into his own fate.

[Image Description: Ghirahim is showing Dinravi his hands transformed to claws, tapping the heavy necklace Dinravi usually wears. He says, “I’m a SWORD, Dinravi, what do you THINK makes me feel ALIVE?” Dinravi answers solemnly, “Even a SWORD can become something ELSE, Ghirahim.” Ghirahim’s demeanor suddenly shifts as he pushes his hair out of his face with what is now a normal human hand, and, remarkably, blushes. “WELLL,” he begins, then shifts to flirtations, leaning his back against Dinravi’s chest. “Maybe with some BEATING, HEAT... And no small amount of SKILL.” Dinravi scrunches his face, trying not to laugh. “Pff do you EVER turn it OFF?” he asks. Ghirahim’s face lights up as he goes in for the figurative kill: “My RAPIER WIT?” he asks. “NO!!” Dinravi bursts out laughing. End ID.]

So who do you think is more doomed, the person laughing at bad puns or the person aiming to get a laugh with the bad puns? This version of Ghirahim’s had a little more time to settle into himself, and in some ways that makes him more dangerous, but in others it might make him a little more... human. Dinravi is young and inexperienced, but he’s had a lot of good examples to look towards.

The real question is how Ghirahim got here, and he’s not answering that one as of right now.

And in the meantime, Astramorus is trying to sort out his atonement:

[Image Description: Astramorus enters a room with Serenumbra. The centerpiece of the room is a glowing bow on a pedestal, set at the feet of a statue of Hylia. Serenumbra asks: “Is that-” “Yes,” Astramorus answers. “Manifested by the previous Hyrulean princess to have fought Ganon. A BOW OF LIGHT.” The Bow of Light glows. Astramorus takes it in hand. Serenumbra says, a hand to his mouth, “Ah, surely that will help, I hope the boy will ACCEPT it from you.” Astramorus looks slightly surprised at the statement, then slightly exasperated. “Sure, sure, yes, I’ll figure something out.” Serenumbra smiles cheerfully. The scene switches to show Astramorus outside the Sky Temple in the middle of the night. He is releasing fairies. End ID.]

Astramorus what are you doing???? Didn’t one of those fairies literally save you just a few scenes ago???

#my art #au august #loz #loz au #Loz au: the courage of running away #sorry this is in the literal middle of the night

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anotherlifefic · 4 years

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Chapter 47: Magic Lessons

Zelda took her place on the throne, and we gathered around her, with Ganondorf, Cassandra, Lana and Cia standing in front of us. Though Lana took that position mostly to keep Cia quiet.

Link was squirming uncomfortably next to me, and I could imagine why; Cia was leering at him like she was undressing him with her eyes. I moved to stand in front of him, and to my surprise, Ruto did the same. That way, everything but his face was out of sight for her.

„So, Ganondorf, former King of the Gerudo. Would you please repeat what you told me upon your arrival in the castle.“

„Of course, Your Majesty.“ His tone was patronising, and I clenched my fists. How dare he talk to Zelda like that?! He looked around. „Though first I must ask exactly how familiar the people in the room are with Hyrule‘s early history. Specifically about how the kingdom was established and what came before that.“

Empty stares. Zelda leaned back on the throne. „I fear that a lot of knowledge about this land prior to the founding of the kingdom of Hyrule has been lost to time.“

„Indeed. So let me give you a little lesson in history. Long before the kingdom of Hyrule was founded, this world was ravaged by a fierce war between two powerful deities. One of them was a goddess named Hylia, who served the three Golden Goddesses and protected the Triforce they had left behind. The other was an entity so fearsome and cruel that nobody ever spoke his name, and he was only ever called Demise, for demise is what he brought wherever he wandered. Demise sought to conquer the world and gain power of the Golden Goddesses for himself, while Hylia wished to protect the people of the world. Hylia was aided by a young warrior who, unlike the other humans, showed great courage in the face of the seemingly unbeatable Demise.“ At this point, Ganondorf paused, before commenting:„It sounds familiar, does it not, Your Majesty?“

„Indeed it does. But history has the tendency to repeat itself. What exactly are you trying to say with all of this?“, Zelda asked cooly.

Ganondorf smirked a little. „I was about to get to that point. So with the aid of the young hero, Hylia managed to defeat Demise. Defeat, but not destroy him. All she could do was seal him away, and she had to give up her own divinity to do so and being reborn as a human woman was the consequence of that. A woman with divine powers, but mortal nonetheless. Many centuries passed, and as the seal grew weaker, a new hero was chosen, and together with the incarnation of Hylia at the time, he destroyed Demise‘s physical form. But Demise could not be entirely destroyed. However, unlike Hylia, he did not reincarnate as a mortal. Instead, his evil infected a certain bloodline and manifested itself in all of its male descendants, which were… quite rare.“

„So you are the reincarnation of Demise?“, I blurted out.

His yellow eyes darted over to me. „Did you not listen, Glaces? No, I am not his reincarnation, but I am, or rather was, indeed the latest heir of his hatred. And when the Hero of Time pierced my heart with the Master Sword, Demise‘s essence was separated from me. So now I am free of its influence, but that also unfortunately means that Demise will possibly be able to manifest again.“

„And how does the Sorceress fit into all of this?“, Link asked, pushing his way past me and Ruto to stand in the front again and nodded in Cia‘s general direction. „We have been told that she was the guardian of the Triforce before she went mad.“

Ganondorf raised one eyebrow. „Can‘t you guess? The Sorceress was supposed to be Hylia‘s successor. The Goddesses did not allow her to interact with the world she was guarding, so she wouldn‘t make the same mistake as Hylia.“

„Well that backfired horribly“, Naboru commented.

Cia stomped her foot. „These wretched Goddesses! They must have reveled in my torment, my eternal solitude! And then they let the only soul capable of comprehending my torment dance to the tunes of their flutes right in front of my face, with no way of reaching him!“

„Cia! Quiet!“, Lana shushed her.

„Why should I?“, Cia snapped and strained against the crackling magical rope. „I am the guardian of the Triforce! For all intents and purposes, the Triforce, the Hero, this WORLD should belong to ME!“

„Good Goddesses, and I thought Rebecca was a spoiled brat“, I heard Ruto mumble.

„Excuse me?“, I asked dryly.

„You heard me.“

„Are you quite done?“, Ganondorf inquired.

Zelda sighed. „Yes. Please continue.“

He slightly tilted his head in acknowledgement and then continued:„As of right now, he hasn‘t recovered his physical form yet, which makes him exceedingly difficult to fight. It would be prudent to try and predict where he could manifest again, by placing guardians at every spiritually significant place in Hyrule.“

„So you mean the temples“, Naboru said.

„Indeed. However, Demise seems to have taken a certain interest in a certain Glaces. Or so I‘ve been told.“ Now Ganondorf‘s piercing gaze wandered over to me. „Why do you think that is?“

I shuffled my feet. Goddesses, how I hated feeling so vulnerable under his eyes. „...because I‘m the weakest link in the chain. Uh… no pun intended.“

He lifted his chin approvingly. „That is true. Of the people gathered here, you are the one who is most easily manipulated, and has the least actual combat experience. Even the Sage of the Forest managed to get quite strong with the help of the nature-based magic she is capable of using thanks to her status. You however are clumsy at best with your weapon and your magic is about as dangerous as a snowball.“

„Gee, thanks.“

„So“, Ganondorf continued, completely ignoring my sarcastic remark. „Her Majesty and I discussed the best course of action, and decided that it would be prudent for you to get some actual practice both with your naginata and your magic. I do not use a naginata, but I‘ve been told that you have already found an instructor who is more than capable. And I will be the one to instruct you in the art of magic.“

My jaw dropped, and I turned to Zelda. „Please tell me that this is a joke.“

„I don‘t really like it, either. But he is right; it is vital that you learn to control your powers, and to properly defend yourself.“

I bit my lip, and then glared at Ganondorf. „...Fine.“ After all, lover or not, Zelda was still my Queen, and her word was law. I could hardly just tell her „no“.

Zelda settled back into her throne. „Now that that‘s settled, we should probably get to questioning the sorceress.“

Ganondorf and Cassandra retreated to the sidelines, and Lana brought Cia a few steps closer to us.

„Cia, former guardian of the Triforce, sorceress of the Temple of Souls, you stand accused of attempted regicide, among other offenses. This could mean your doom, unless you choose to cooperate now and tell us what we want to know. Do you understand that?“

Cia glared at Zelda, until Lana nudged her. „Cia. Answer.“

„I understand“, she hissed in between gritted teeth.

We spent the next few hours questioning Cia, but she couldn‘t really tell us anything new, except that a mysterious voice had told her that she could easily bend or break the rules of fate if she so desired, and thus had slowly but surely corrupted her.

Once she had been brought back to the dungeon, the Sages bid their goodbyes as well.

Ganondorf turned to me again. „Your training will begin tomorrow morning. I will waiting on the training grounds usually used by the knights of Hyrule. At sunrise, and not a moment later.“

I cast Zelda a pleading gaze, which she returned sternly. Then I sighed. „Very well.“

Back at home I fed Gareth and put him in his playpen. My hands were shaking from the stress, so Link guided me to the sitting area in front of the fireplace and made me sit down on the couch.

„I‘ll come to the training grounds with you tomorrow“, he promised. „There‘s no way I will leave you alone with Ganondorf.“

„Thank you, dear“, I mumbled and leaned into his embrace. „I love you.“

„I love you too.“

The next morning, Link and I woke up while it was still dark outside, to get ourselves ready. We fed the horses and let them out of the stable for the day, then took a very sleepy and slightly fussy Gareth out of his grib. I stroked my little boy‘s cheek in an attempt to calm him down while we walked the winding path up to the castle.

Ganondorf was already waiting when we arrived. He raised his eyebrow when he saw Link and Gareth.

„Too cowardly to come here on your own, Glaces? Do you intend to use your husband and child as meatshields in case I have some nefarious plan?“

I grit my teeth. „I believe that using small children as meatshields is your shtick.“

Ganondorf chuckled darkly. „You‘ve got quite the sharp tongue, Glaces. Pity Demise can‘t be defeated by snide remarks, otherwise we‘d have already won. Can we start, then?“

„Fine.“

Link sat down on a crate standing near the entrance to the castle, while I approached Ganondorf.

The Gerudo began:„I suppose I do not need to go over the basics of channeling your magic again. You seem to already know how to do that. However, you have to learn to concentrate on the image you use to conjure up your spell much harder if you want it to be stronger.“

And so, for the next few hours, Ganondorf made repeat the same spell over and over again, always telling me to concentrate harder. Until I felt completely drained and Link had to get up and rush to me to keep me from falling over in exhaustion.

„Hm...“ Ganondorf rubbed his chin. „You haven‘t made quite as much progess as I would have liked you to, but I wouldn‘t say that today was entirely unproductive.“

I leaned on Link, trying to regain my balance. I had a headache and felt like I had just done two days worth of farmwork on LonLon Ranch within half a day.

But then Gareth began to cry and my motherly instincts kicked in. „He must be hungry.“ I had Link walk me over to the barrel where he had been sitting and was about to pull the collar of my shirt open to let Gareth drink when I remembered that Ganondorf was still there. „Do you mind?“

Ganondorf crossed his arms in front of his chest and rolled his eyes, but did turn around. „You do realize that I have children of my own, do you? Seeing a woman breastfeed is nothing new or interesting to me.“

I was quiet for a moment while feeding Gareth. Maybe it was the calming presence of my son, or the mention of Ganondorf being a parent as well, but I felt a lot less contempt for him at that moment. „I met some of your daughters during that other future.“

„I know. They helped in the siege on my castle.“

„Do you hold that against them?“

He shook his head. „How could I? I forced their hand. They did what they had to do, and they did so with all of the strength and determination I tried to impart on them. And that shows me that despite Demise‘s influence on our lives and my behaviour, Cassandra and I raised them well.“

I looked up. Ganondorf still had his back turned to me, but his posture showed that he still payed close attention to how I reacted. „You really did raise them well.“

„Thank you.“ He sounded sincere, almost gentle.

„Now what is that?“, called Cassandra‘s voice from the entrace to the castle. „I can‘t believe you two are actually getting along!“ Her voice was light and cheerful. „I half expected to arrive here and find the place in ruins!“

„Do you really think I have so little self-control, Cassandra?“, Ganondorf asked dryly.

„I have complete faith in your self-control“, Cassandra replied, the golden beads of her elaborate headdress jingling like tiny bells when she came bouncing down the stairs from to entrance up to Ganondorf and wrapped her arms around his mid-section. Next to him, she was comically small. „But you know, things happen, situations escalate, and with all of the hostility shown to you thus far...“

„You speak without thinking again, Cassandra“, Ganondorf told her sternly. „Princess… pardon. Queen Zelda has already shown us a tremendous amount of clemency by not immediately arresting and executing us.“

„Sorry“, Cassandra replied. „I‘m just happy that we can be here now. And I often get anxious that something could go wrong.“

Ganondorf bent down, picked her up into his arms and kissed her. „Nothing will happen. Don‘t worry.“

I smiled to myself. In a way, they reminded me of Link and me when he tried to calm my fears.

A man like that… a man who was proud of his daugthers for fighting for a good cause and clearly loved his wife couldn‘t be a truly bad person. That much I was sure of.

#Another Life Fic #The Legend of Zelda #fanfic #OC

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