#this is pre-game and or prologue stuff if u like | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lumberjackloverboy-moved · 2 years

Note

hi i don't know anything at all about zelda can you describe the plot in as much detail as u can /gen

OH BOY. OH BOY. OH NO

so zelda is notorious for having the most bullshit timeline ever so if you really want this buckle up lmao.

so here is the beautiful horrible convoluted timeline. it covers 15 games (two are missing), three timeline splits, and is just ridiculous:

im gonna break this up by timeline, then game, and end w breath of the wild and hyrule warriors. there'll be some lore bits thrown in too. this is your time to leave if you need to. you've been warned /hj

(i spent literal days on this everyone is required to like and tell me how smart and handsome i am)

CREATION AND PRE SPLIT:

So in the beginning, there were the Three Golden Goddesses: Din, the Goddess of Power, Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom, and Farore, the Goddess of Courage.

Together, they created the world. Then they dipped outta there. They entrusted the world to Hylia, who is also called the golden goddess sometimes bc nintendo can't think of another color. basically, they left, and when they did they went to the sacred realm, a realm that is uh. sacred. idk holy stuff is there, and at the spot where they left the material plane and entered this realm, the triforce was created. it was a trio of sacred golden triangles (yes more gold. nintendo pls) that would give immense power to whoever held it, mostly in the form of granting any wish imaginable. it was made up of the triforces of wisdom, power, and courage.

so the goddess are are gone, hylia is chillin, protecting the world and the triforce, everything is great until our anti-bestie demise shows up. demise is the king of the demons (??? it's not made very clear what he is. he's bad, okay?) and he wants control of the world and the triforce. a war breaks out between the two gods and hylia goes to find someone strong enough to help her end it. that someone is link, the First Ever Link bc there are like 18 of them. the goddess sword is forged for him, which holds the sword spirit fi, and they uh. well they dont really win.

(hylia and her dead boyfriend. rip)

hylia seals demise away, but link is killed in action and the world is decimated. she sends the last of her people onto an island in the sky, far from the destruction, and, knowing the seal wont hold forever, reincarnates herself and link so they'll be there when the seal breaks.

Skyward Sword

okay so did you get all that? that's the fucking PROLOGUE baby. i told you this would be long, im so sorry. NOW we are at the first game, skyward sword! it was made for the wii and really unpopular bc the motion controls sucked, which is a shame bc the story and character designs are great! so remember when we last saw link and hylia and they were being reincarnated? meet zelda and link 2.0, the two people they were reincarnated as!

link and zelda are two normal teens living on skyloft, the island in the sky. they're at an academy to become knights, they fly around on their giant birds, have the cutest fucking friendship ever, and their life is pretty damn good aside from a few bullies, like groose. but one day when link and zel are out flying a storm appears and rips zelda out of the sky. bye bye zelda. link is in a panic, and is called by uh. the force? to where the goddess sword and fi have been slumbering. he draws fi, puts on a snazzy green hat, and sets off for the world under skyloft to find zelda.

on the surface, he finds that zelda was saved from the storm by impa, her badass girlfriend, and that they are on the run trying to purify zelda's soul so she can fully realize her goddess potential. link follows after, and in the process meets the demon twink lord ghirahim, who is trying to capture zelda and use her life force to revive demise. he is the spirit of demise's sword, just as fi is the spirit of link's.

so link is following zelda around and ends up at the temple of the time, where zelda and impa are chilling. ghirahim finds them and zelda and impa book it through a gate of time (time travel? fun!) but not before zelda gives link her magic goddess harp. link goes on a funky quest to learn how to use it. in the process, he meets up w his old bully groose. they make up and team up to save zelda. quality redemption arc, it's super cute. link fights a weakened version of demise that was slowly escaping the seal, the imprisoned. it's a stupid boss fight it's not that important. anyways, now he finds out his sword isnt strong enough to kill demise (it would have been a lot faster if they just told him all of this upfront???) so he has to go beef it up.

he does so using the sacred flames and gets the master sword! that sword is very important! it is in almost every game do not forget it!

link finds a second gate of time, beats the shit outta ghirahim over it, and goes through, ending up in a time right after demise gets sealed away. link learns abt hylia's war and that hylia essentially created him just to fight for her and kill demise, which is a shitty thing to do. agency? hylia has never heard of it. it is a recurring problem w her. so link and zelda learn that the seal that had been keeping demise sleep from the end of the war to the present day was actually zelda. time travel! so she has to stay in a magic coma and do that until link kills demise, w link is pretty upset about, but oh well. he goes and gets the triforce and wishes that demise would idk explode or something. he asks it to kill him. the imprisoned (which came back. its such a fucking stupid enemy) is nuked by the triforce, and link books it to zelda. she wakes up, they hug, it's cute, but BAM ghirahim shows up in his twinkish glory, kidnaps zelda, and decides that if he cant resurrect demise in this time he'd just go back in time and do it in another. Time travel!!!

he tries to sacrifice zelda and link beats the ever loving snot outta him, but he's too slow. demise is back baby!! they fight and link wins bc he's link, but before he could finish him off demise curses him: he says that for the rest of time his hatred shall be reborn to destroy the world, and anyone with the blood of hylia (zelda) or the spirit of the hero (link) will be cursed to forever be reborn to stop him. ouch. anyways link seals him in the master sword (a reoccurring process in the games) the day is saved blah blah blah. which means we're ready for.....

Minish Cap

so this is the first game i ever finished by myself! It is near and dear to me. it was on the gameboy and is fucking adorable.

it has been many many many many years since skyward sword. like multiple milenia. hyule, the land established by link and zelda on the surface in ss, is thriving, life is good. now in this hyrule there are these lil bitty mouse creatures called minish who can only be seen by children and do good deeds like hide money in the grass and help you find lost things. every year, the hylians in castle town, the capital of hyrule, hold a festival to honor them.

okay enough exposition!

link, a 10~ year old blacksmith apprentice, (hylia starts em on the trauma train young lol) is meeting up w his best friend, princess zelda, and go to the festival. she gifts him a sheild and he goes with her to watch a sword tournament where a strange person in purple named vaati beats out the competition. for a prize he's supposed to meet the princess, win a sword, and see the picori blade in person. the picori sword, which was forged by the minish as a gift for the last hero of hyrule (reincarnation remember), is a fancy magic sword that bound a sealed chest that held a shit ton of dark creatures and magic and shit. instead of accepting his prize, vaati breaks the sword releasing the dark magic.

he had come in search of the magical light force, a sacred power that is in zelda bc she has the blood of hylia. a note: the words light force/triforce/sacred power/etc are all used when talking abt zelda and vary from game to game. they mean the exact same thing, that she's got the blood of hylia and ~magic goddess powers~. okay to our regularly scheduled programming. so vaati is pissed he didn't find the light force, thinking it was a physical thing he could take, so he murders the guards and turns zelda to stone. link tries and fails to protect her, and once vaati leaves decides that, despite being ten and vaati being a grown man with magic, he's gonna kill vaati and save zelda. he decides the best step would be to fix the picori blade so he sets out for minish woods to find them.

on the way he finds..... a talking hat! the minish cap! or, a cap that is literally a minish. it is a minish sorcererer named ezlo who was curses by vaati into a cap. turns out, vaati wasnt always some big tough guy-he's actually minish! he was ezlo's apprentice who went mad with power, turned himself into a human, and decided to steal the light force. with ezlo's magic, link is able to shrink down to the size of a minish, speak to animals, do certain magic, etc etc etc. so link learns that in order to remake the picori blade, he needs the four elements and sets off on a quest to find them. Link places them and the sword in the elemental sanctuary and forges the four sword, a holy blade that can split its user into four people. link learns from the history of the sanctuary that zelda holds the light force.

meanwhile, vaati has been spying on link. uh oh! he seens when link learns about zelda! uh oh!!! vaati steals zelda's body and begins a ritual to extract her soul/life force/whatever so he can get the power. fun fact, if you take too slow in the boss fight she will die. it will tell you that you were too slow and she is dead now. 10 year old me was traumatized the first time that happened. link beats vaati and him and zelda seal his evil final boss form away in the four sword and place the sword in the sanctuary. the day is saved <3 .... or is it????!?!

Four Sword/Four Sword Adventures

god where to even start. so there games are multiplayer and have almost no plot. i could give the plot of the manga, but it is 100% non canon, so that seems like a waste. Basically: vaati as giant evil bat thing gets free of the four sword. kidnaps zelda. link pulls sword to kill him, turns into four people. a few dungons later he kills vaati. the end. told ya there was no plot.

Ocarina of Time

back to plot! so! much! plot!!!!! Welcome to one of the, if not the, most well know of the games. it was zelda's first 3d game and created a whole generation of zelda fans. a note though: the plot carries some concerning race problems. our main villain is the king of 'thieves from the desert' called the gerudo who all have dark skin and large noses, and the women all wear stereotypical sexualized ~exotic~ belly dancer outfits. they make uncomfortably sexual shouts when link kills them. it's not good. the gerudo appear multiple times in the series and none of them are done well. the gerudo are a race of all women, with one man being born every 100 years and automatically becoming king, and this lore is often written in a very transmisogynistic way, especially in one of the later games, breath of the wild. basically, the racism, misogyny, and occasional transmisogyny cannot be ignored when talking about the gerudo and ocarina of time. okay back to plot.

it has been a long, long, long, long, long time since vaati and the four sword. since then, there has been a bloody civil war. ten years after it ends, we open on our hero....

deep in hyrule forest lives a race of forest spirits called the kokiri. they are eternal children, gifted immortality but unable to age or leave the forest, and are watched over by the great deku tree, a forest deity in the shape of a giant tree. each kokiri has a guardian fairy who watches over them- except for one. ten year old link (thank you hylia for traumatizing children) lives in kokiri forest and he is the only boy without a fairy :( it's just him and his bestie saria, and he faces relentless bullying from mido. one night, he has a horrible nightmare of a man on horseback chasing a woman and girl and is woken up by a... fairy! link has a fairy now! her name is navi and she tells link that he's being summoned by the great deku tree. after some harassment via mido and grabbing a sword and shield, the two of them are off. they meet up with the tree and his killer mustache only to learn that the deku tree has been cured by a wicked man in black armor (who totally isn’t our main villain /s). link goes inside the tree to break the curse, which took the form of a giant spider, but it was too late. the deku tree died, but not after giving link the spiritual stone of the forest: the kokiri emerald. he tells link the stone is magic and he has to bring it to hyrule castle and the princess asap. so link books it, apparently forgetting the kokiri die when they leave the forest but whatever. he's stopped by saria who also seems to have forgotten he will DIE if he leaves the forest, and she tells him she always knew he was different from the rest of them and destined to leave. ouch. she gives him her ocarina and tells him to remember her, because they'd always be best friends, no matter what

:*(

so link leaves and finds his way to castle town where he then sneaks into the castle and finds.... the girl from his dream! uh oh! that's princess zelda, who told him she had a dream of a child from the forest with a shining stone and a fairy who came to her to help her banish the dark clouds over hyrule. she thinks ganondorf, the gerudo king, is what the dark clouds represent, and her and link go snooping. turns out that... it's the man from his dream! shit! that's not good!

zelda tells him that ganon plans to steal the triforce, and bc no one else believes her it is up to her and link to stop him. she tells him there are 4 things ganon needs to unlock the entrance to the sacred realm: the three spiritual stones (kokiri emerald, zora sapphire, and goron ruby) and the ocarina of time (game title shout out!!!). zelda has the ocarina hidden, so link just has to grab the rest of the stones. link sets out, but not before impa (the woman from the dream. this is a lot of dream people. also, a second impa! cool! ) tells him 'zelda's lullaby', which he can play on saria's ocarina when proof of his connection to the royal family is needed.

link goes to see the gorons and the zora; he befriends goron chief durania, becoming his brother in arms, and gets the ruby, then saves princess ruto of the zora, who proposes and gives him the sapphire. link runs back to zelda- uh oh! zelda and impa are being chased by ganon on horseback! just like the DrEaM!!!

Ganon spots link, knocks him around a bit bc who doesn't love attacking children, zelda tosses the ocarina of time to him, and link books it to the temple of time to unlock the sacred realm. he does so and what does he find? the master sword! i told ya not to forget it! so, sacred realm open, he pulls the sword, and wakes up 7 years in the future. ganon stole the triforce while he was gone, but bc ganon's soul was unbalanced the triforce split into it's three parts; ganon kept the triforce of power, zelda the triforce of wisdom, and link the triforce of courage. in 99.9 percent of the games, if the triforce is there, it's broken up between them in that way. SO ANYWAYS, zelda is mia and now link is a grown-up. guess he's not really a kokiri then. weirdest way to find you're adopted, right? so link is an adult now and the world has ended, but while he's sitting there like 'wtf do i do now?' out of the shadows, comes the world's coolest most transgender ninja, sheik. sheik is a sheikah (who would have guessed?) a race of secretive shadow people who have been protecting the hyrule royal family since impa #1 in skyward sword. so sheik is like 'yo dude, life fuckin SUCKS rn, but you are the hero of time and it is your duty to save hyrule!'

so sheik follows link around, giving him advice, helping him, etc etc, they're buds. sheik tells him to save the six sages: the light sage, rauru, the sage of fire, durania (remember him?), the sage of water, ruto (remember her??) the sage of shadow, impa (remember her???), the sage of spirit, naburoo, a gerudo warrior who we meet through a rather confusing bit of time travel, and the sage of forest, saria! REMEMBER HER?!?!?!

so now link has the sages, which gives him the power to go and kill ganon. he's gearing up to go stab him when sheik pops up.

'hi link!' they say. 'so you know how i said i was sheikah? i lied! i'm actually princess zelda, the seventh sage!'

link is like, holy shit my bestie is not, in fact, a ninja but instead royalty! and almost as soon as he says that, ganon shows up and gives this monologue that’s basically just, 'i knew the princess would show herself if i watched you long enough. guess i was right!' and kidnaps sheik/zelda. link goes off after him, they fight. link wins! ganon turns into a giant evil pig! link wins!! zelda and the sages are saved. zelda tells him that she's sorry that he lost his childhood to this, so with the ocarina of time she sends him back 7 years. Back at the start of the game, link tells the king what he knows, ganondorf is arrested before he can take over the world, and life is good (is it tho? is it really?). navi, link's beloved fairy, vanishes, and his heart is broken. story ends w a deeply traumatized child, the end.

but is it the end? is it? is it really? no, no it is not <3 when link did all that time travel he caused a three way timeline split: the child timeline, the adult timeline, and the defeated timeline. it gets even more complicated from here, buckle up!

CHILD TIMELINE

the timeline here starts when adult link returns to the begging of oot to get ganon arrested. hyrule is saved before it can be taken over, and link is 10 again with a shit load of trauma and no therapist <3

Majora's Mask

considered the darkest zelda game out there, and so stressful that i have never actually played it and just watched lets plays, majora's mask takes place immediately after ocarina of time. like 3 days after. link is a depressed and traumatized ten years old having had to spend the past few months as a fully developed 17 year old (or as developed as a teen can get), which is fucking with his sense of self, on top of that, navi has disappeared. he decides he's going to find her, takes the ocarina of time and this horse, epona, and goes off into the world to find his fairy.

While he’s riding through the woods his horse is spooked by two fairies: tatl and tael, who are siblings and work with skull kid. Link is thrown off the horse and knocked out for a bit. Out of the shadows comes said skull kid— skull kids are a race of mischievous child spirits from the forest, but this particular skull kid has an attitude. He begins going through link’s stuff, intending to rob him. One notable feature of skull kid is his mask; he has this really creepy mask he wears called the majora’s mask (name drop!!). The mask is actually magic! It houses the spirit majora, a evil spirit hellbent on destruction that was sealed in there by a tribe of evil sorcerers. By wearing it, skull kid has been given magic powers but has also become steadily corrupted. By the end of the game he isn’t even a conscious person anymore, just a vessel for majora. Basically, he was a little shit throughout the game but it wasn’t really his fault.

So anyways, link is knocked out and skull kid is going through his stuff. He finds the ocarina of time and begins messing with it when link wakes up; link tries to grab it but skull kid steals his horse and books it. Link takes off in pursuit. they end up meeting up underground in front of a giant door; skull kid tells link he disposed of epona ( D: ) and makes fun of him when link is obviously upset, and then turns link into a deku sprout, a small wooden plant creature. skull kid bolts, but tatl gets left behind. she and link go through the door, which they find out lead underneath clock town, the capital of termina, the country link has found himself in. there, they meet a very creepy man w a very large backpack: the happy mask salesman, who hits them with one of the game's iconic quotes 'you've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?'

the salesman tells link that skull kid stole the mask from him and that if link got it back for him he would show him how to turn back to normal, but that link only had three days. he was leaving in three days, he needed it back in three days. okay we've established how important the three days are, and thats bc skull kid is going to make the FUCKING MOON fall and destroy termina in three days <3 so link is on a race against time to stop him.

link does not manage to stop him. he gets to the top of the clock tower where skull kid is and recovers his ocarina, but he's unable to stop majora. tael (remember him?) tells them to find the four giants. only they can stop majora. link plays the song of time, which turns back time. he's able to turn himself back into a human with the song of healing, which heals souls, turning the spirit of the deku scrub inside him into a mask he can use to turn into one at will.

determined to save termina, link goes to find all four giants, saving townsfolk and completing sidequests along the way. as he helps people he gains masks, which help him in different ways with their magic. he heals the souls of two other people, a zora named mikau, which gives him the zora mask, allowing him to turn into a zora, and a goron named darmani, which gets him a mask that... lets him turn into a goron. he finds his horse and fights some baddies. the giants are freed. on the final three day cycle he goes to the top of the clock tower to face majora. majora flees to the inside of the moon when the giants stop it from falling and link follows. he finds a field filled with a handful of children playing. through playing with them, he eventually gains the fierce deity mask, which houses the soul of a war god. with it, ke kills majora, fixes the moon, frees skull kid, and saves the day.

he wanders into the distance, and no one ever hears from link again-- alive.

(the fierce deity (right) and majora (left), drawn by cynthia leman @ https://cynthia_leman.artstation.com/)

Twilight Princess

We're back in hyrule! bye bye termina! it's been a while since oot and hyule is at peace. nowhere is it more peaceful than ordon village. there lives a teen named link who works with the goat ranch, babysits the local children, Beth, Malo, Talo, and Colin (his favorite (shh dont tell anyone)) enjoys fishing, slingshots, and the occasional spar with his friends. life is good and everything is perfect <3

one night, his father figure rusl asks him to deliver a sword to castle town. link agrees, and the next day as he's getting ready the children of the village noticed a monkey and chase after it. link follows, bc he is the resident baby sitter and has to keep the kids safe. he finds the kids being attacked by monsters-- a sign that the peace in hyrule is starting to fade. he goes and does his goat job with his horsie epona and him, colin, and his bestie ilia chill at a spring afterwords. all is well until....... MONSTERS! they attack, kidnap colin and ilia, and when link persues he finds a giant wall of black magic. he is pulled in by a shadow beast, who tries to kill him, only for his hand to glow, beating off the beast with holy power. it's the..... triforce of courage!! link has it!! anways, the world he is in now is covered with a magic called twilight that reduces life forms from the light realm, like link, into shadows of themselves/ghosts/etc. but bc of the triforce, link just turns into a wolf. he's a dirty furry.

link wakes up in a cell in castle town, close to the hyrule castle, and a very mean twilight imp named midna promises to help him escape and free his friends if he helps her in return.

(our beloved furry boy and his mean imp friend)

midna helps link escape and leads him into the castle where he meets princess zelda. zelda explains that hyrule has been invaded by zant, the usurper king of the twilight realm, who promised to let her people live if she surrendered hyrule to him. knowing her army was no match for the twlight one and desperate to protect her people, she surrenders, becoming a prisoner in her own castle forced to watch her kingdom succumb to the twilight magic and its effects.

midna helps link return to the world of light, or the area of hyrule not yet invaded by twilight magic and twilight monsters, and tells him he has to get her a sword and shield so she can start her quest. they go to ordon, link still trapped in wolf form, and go hunting for swords and sheilds. before he can leave, he finds Ordona, the spirit of the ordon region and one of the four light spirits that watch over hyrule. ordona begs him to free the light spirits corrupted by the twilight and says that only he can defeat zant and bring back the light. bc ya know. triforce. link finds and frees faron, a second spirit, and she transforms him back into a human, telling him he holds the spirit of the hero and was chosen by the gods, making him the one most qualified to save the world. lots of people r telling link to save the world. i think he gets the hint guys.

midna tells link that they need the fused shadows, a form of very dark, very dangerous twilight magic, to kill zant. gee, you might ask, midna, why are you helping? you're not very nice, you don't like the light world, you talk abt how much better twilight is-- why are you invested? why do you have zant? what's in it for you? Those are all very good questions but we aren't there yet!

so midna and link go and find the fused shadows. they make a pit stop in kakariko village, and find the kiddos from ordon, including colin! he's safe!! that's one friend found, one to go. link gets a shadow, then goes to castle town in search of clues for the next shadow, and finds ilia instead! wooh!! all our friends are back!! she's got no memory but w/e that gets fixed eventually. link saves the zora and gets another shadow, and in the process meets the spirit lanayru, the final light spirit.

lanayru tells link abt the interlopers, a tribe of shadow people with powerful magic that tried to invade and control the sacred realm. the goddessses sealed them away from the world of light, which became the twilight realm, and took their magic to make the fused shadows. she warns link of how addicting the shadows are, and link and midna finally have what they need.

midna and link set out to find zant, but he finds them first. he steals the shadows (uh oh), critically injures midna ( Uh Oh) and curses link with a shadow crystal that will permanently turn him into a wolf (UH OH). midna is literally dying, and link is panicing. knowing that zelda knows strong light magic, he runs to the castle in hopes the princess can save midna and break the curse. zelda cannot break the curse, even with the triforce of wisdom-- it is too dark, and only the master sword (!!!) which repels all evil will be able to purge the twilight from his body. she then gives up her spirit to midna, saving midna but losing her soul in the process. zelda really just died to save her. honey that's gay.

link and midna find the master sword, saving link and allowing him to transform at will like the furry he is. they need to track zant down for a rematch, but link doesnt know where to go. thankfully, midna does! she tells him of the mirror of twilight, which is used to go between the light realm and the twilight realm, and which zant used to reach hyrule. she him that the power he has been using is diffrent than twilight magic, something she's never seen before. how does she know what twilight magic looks like? how does she know what zant's magic looks like?

midna tells link that is the princess of the twilight realm-- the twilight princess, you could say (name drop!!). she is the rightful holder of the crown of the twilight realm and holds claim to a great amount of hereditary twilight magic, but zant wanted the throne. he thought he deserved it, and was bitter that she gained it instead of him. he cursed her into her imp from with strange new magic he had gotten from his 'master'. ill let you guess who that is. hint: his name starts with a g and ends in orf.

they go to where the mirror is and find it shattered into four pieces by zant. there they also find the ghosts of the ancient sages, who tell minda that zants power is coming from ganondorf. wow who would have guessed!

back in oot, when link told the king what ganondorf was planning and ganon was arrested, he was ordered to be put to death. his execution was carried out by these sages, but what they didn't know was that ganon held the triforce of power. with its magic he broke free and began killing the sages. desperate, they opened the mirror to the twilight realm and shoved ganon in, closing it behind him. for this current link, it has been ages since the hero of time. for ganon, it has been weeks. Now link and midna have bigger fish to fry than zant: they need to get the mirror pieces, get to the twilight realm, and kill ganon.

speaking of oot link! remember how i mentioned no one ever saw him again, alive? that's bc someone saw him while he was dead! through his adventure, this current link was being tutored by the hero's shade, the ghost of a mighty adventurer who teaches him how to fight and be courageous. this shade was oot link! he was appearing to tp link not only bc he was a hero chosen by the gods, but also because he was a descendent of oot link! somewhere during his lifetime post-termina, oot link got it on and centuries later tp link popped out. family reunion w grandpa and great-great-great-great grandson <3

okay back to the adventure plot. link and midna get the shards after a lot of shenanigans, including an entire dungeon based on making soup for a yeti, and they are ready to fight! they go to zant's castle in th twilight realm and midna fuckin explodes him with the fused shadow, then they turn around and go to hyrule castle to kill ganon. there they do not find ganon, but they do find zelda's corpse :D ganon possesses her and they fight. link wins, zelda's alive again, and he beats the shit outta ganon with they help of some light arrows. the world is saved and midna's curse is broken. she returns to the twilight realm and smashes the mirror, keeping any further contact severed.

DOWNFALL TIMELINE

so we remember ocarina of time link, right? cute little ten year old, has a fairy, was horribly traumatized over two adventures, whose life sucked in general?

yeah he's dead. fuckin dead.

the downfall timeline is one of the three timeline splits caused by oot. we just finished the child timeline, and this timeline happens when link fails to kill ganon. after ganon takes the triforce, when link is 17, he kills link in the final battle. the world falls into ruin. the apocalypse occurs. everything sucks and poor link is fucking dead.

having killed link, ganon is able to steal the triforce of courage, and with that and the triforce of power, takes the triforce of wisdom from zelda. he has the entire triforce, making him nearly invincible and holding ultimate, unlimited power. in a final act of desperation, zelda and the six sages seal him in the sacred realm, destroying it in the process. this holy place of dwelling for the gods becomes corrupted, becoming the dark world.

For a moment, there was peace. with ganon gone, the land of hyrule began to rebuild. but it did not last long and the imprisoning wars began. having heard of the triforce's dwelling place in the sacred realm, hundreds flocked to the sacred realm, trying to steal the holy power for themselves. people came in, demons and monsters came out, and no one ever returned. the sages decided to destroy the entrance to the sacred realm instead of just sealing it, cutting hyrule off entirely from the holy triforce, causing increasing ruin to the land. Hyrule was in shambles, impoverished and broken, and many, many years passed with the memory of a prosperous hyrule being left to time.

A Link To The Past

it is raining. storming, actually, pouring in the middle of the night with thunder shaking the earth. link, a young boy (with pink hair <3) is woken from his dreams by a strange voice. It's a girl, around his age, who says her name is princess zelda and that the wizard agahnim had imprisoned her below the castle. He's kidnapped the seven sages, a group of holy women, and now planned to take her too, hoping to break open the doors to the sacred realm and break the seal on ganon so they could rule both the light and dark world's together.

link knew he had to help. despite the late hour, his beloved uncle is putting his cloak on. he tells link that he would be back shortly and to go back to sleep.

link does not go back to sleep. armed with nothing but his wits and a lantern, link found his way to the castle dungeon, stumbling over his dying uncle. the man gives him his sword and shield before passing away. link is completely on his own. he frees the princess and takes her to a holy sanctuary, and goes out to find the pendants of virtue so that he might draw the master sword (!!!) and defeat agahnim. he does so, and rushes to defeat the wizard, only to see he has found zelda. link watches in horror as he sends her to the dark word; link defeats agahnim, but with the last of his strength the wizard sends out a mind-warping curse to convince all of hyrule that it was link who harmed zelda, and throws link into the dark world....

....where he turns into a bunny.

(seriously. that's link the pink bunny)

Link finds a magic mirror that lets him leave the dark world at will to rescue the sages, but can only stay human with the help of his moon pearl. Link finds agahnim was just a vessel for ganon, and the two fight. link wins! yey!! He finds the triforce among ganon's dead corpse (i guess?) and uses it to wish hyrule into prosperity again. he returns it to the royal family, and we go to...

Link's Awakening

post alttp, link has decided he needs a vacation. While sailing, his boat is ripped apart by a hurricane and he wakes up on the beaches of Koholint, a tropical island that's like something out of a dream. link meets Marin, and the two become fast friends. it's implied that it might be a bit more than that, but regardless they are very, very close. marin is a beautiful singer and teaches link all about the island she tells him that she dreams of turning into seagull and flying away to be free from koholint.

link learns the only way to leave koholint is to collect the instruments of the sirens and wake the wind fish, a mystical creature that slept in an egg ontop of the tallest mountain. link does so, but learns that the island and everything in it, including marin, was just the fish's dream, and that by waking it the island will fade away. link wakes the fish and wakes up in his wrecked ship, all alone.

Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons

Link's back! And so is ganon! Twinrova, two witches that raised ganon, decide they want their baby back. For this they need three flames to be lit: The Flame of Destruction, the Flame of Sorrow, and the Flame of Despair, and follow these with a human sacrifice. Fun!! In order to obtain these flames, the witches sent General Onox to Holodrum and Veran, to Labrynna, two countries near hyrule. One day, when Link visited Hyrule Castle, the Triforce beckoned him into its chamber. Remember, link saved the triforce so it's just chillin now. Once he placed his hands on the Triforce, bc i guess he has triforce touching privliges after saving it, it transported him to the distant land of Holodrum. That's a stupid fucking name but w/e.

Upon awakening in Holodrum, Link finds some road side performers and a dancer, Din. Which is suspiciously close to the name of the goddess Din, buuuut nintendo never goes anywhere with that. Link danced with Din, but then a whirlwind appeared and snatched Din away! i feel like we've seen 'important girl being snatched by storm' before but w/e. Din was actually the Oracle of Seasons, which isn't really explained BUT it means that with her gone, the seasons in Holodrum are thrown into chaos. The only way to restore balance to the seasons was to collect the eight Essences of Nature scattered around Holodrum. Link gets the rod of seasons, which manipulates the seasons (obviously) and gets what he needs. He defetes Onox and rescues Din, and then in transported to Labrynna! But uh oh, the Flame of Destruction is still lit.

So link's in labrynna now. He finds impa, and is like 'holy shit! impa! long time no see!' and they team up. they find nayru (more goddess name!?!) and impa turns into a shadow and possesses Nayru. turns out she was an illusion from Veran. Veran uses nayru's time travel abilities to go back in time and influence the queen to build the black tower. Link uese the Harp of Ages to travel back and forth between the present and the past in order to collect the eight Essences of Time and challenge Veran atop the black towner. he kills her, but the Flame of Sorrow had been lit.

In order to light the third and final flame, and also have their human sacrifice, twinrova kidnapped zelda who had arrived in Labrynna. This would complete their dark ritual and light the Flame of Despair. but link beats the shit outta then, and as a last-ditch effort to complete the sacrifice, they give their bodies to ganon. but unfortunatly for them, because the ritual was incomplete, Ganon returned as a mindless beast and not their beloved lil boy. Link beats the shit outta ganon and seals him away (why are we sealing and not killing??), restoring peace to Holodrum and Labrynna

the end!

The Triforce Separates

oh noooo, more triforce problems. @ the gods did you ever consider that maybe the triforce was a bad idea? so after link's adventures in holodrum and labrynna, the triforce is split apart, which it is like 90% of the time at this point. ganon, despite being sealed away, still has the triforce of power. the triforce of courage's location is unknown, but most likely link hid it bc he's sick and tired of triforce shenanigans

A Link Between Worlds

so we are finally, finally dealing w a new time. centuries have passed, the triforce of courage is still missing, and link is sleeping in. he is a blacksmith apprentice, and the son of the blacksmith he works for drags him outta bed. link is told to deliver a sword to the captain of the guard, and finds him in the sanctuary-- dead. the keeper of the sanctuary, Seres, turns out to be a sage (we have a lot of sages in this series okay) and is turned into a painting by the sorcerer Yuga. link gets the shit beat out of him and wakes up in his house. he has been saved by ravio, a merchant who always hides his face and is also a lil shit. he rents link items in exchange for letting him crash on the couch, and also gives him a strange bracelet as thanks.

link goes and tells princess zelda and her friend impa abt seres. she gives link a charm, which turns out to be one of the three he needs to unlock the master sword (!!!!!!!!!). yuga captures the rest of the sages and zelda, turning them to paintings, and when link gets too close to winning, turns him into one too! the bracelet that ravio gave him began to glow and pulled link out of the wall. he can now turn into a painting at will. Link goes to confront yuga in a final battle.

turns out, yuga is from lorule, a parallel universe similar to the dark world. he frees ganon but cannot control him, turning into a beast. the princess of lorule, hilda, holds him back and tells link to save the sages, who have been sent to lorule. in doing so, link awakens the triforce of courage. he returns to confront ganon and learns that hilda was behind it the whole time!! the leaders of her land destroyed their triforce, hoping to stop the wars it caused, but only ended up destroying the kingdom in the process. hilda hoped to steal the hyrulian triforce to replace their own. right before she can attack, ravio appears! he was the hero counterpart of lorule, just like link was to hyrule, but knew he could never beat yuga, instead going to hyrule to find a hero who could, link. he talks hylia down and the day is saved without violence. link and zelda wish on their triforce for lorule's triforce to be restored, and everyone lives happily ever after.

Triforce Heros

Fashion break! This game is silly and cute and I love it.

(they're so fucking cute i cant handle it)

Link leaves the hyrule and books it to hytopia for a vacation. There he is recruited by the witch-hunting brigade to defeat the evil witch lady maud. The witch had cursed princess styla into wearing an irremovable brown jumpsuit. it is very ugly, and in fashion-forward hytopia, that is a fate worse than death.

Link teams up with two other heros, blue and red, that look just like him to gather the pieces of the lady's ensemble. they defeat maud and the witch's younger sister, madame mouture, assembles the outfit, which frees styla. yey!! back to real games

The Golden Era and Era of Decline

*mr incredible voice* can the triforce not cause problems for TEN MINUTES???

following the recovery of the triforce in albw, hyrule enters the Golden Era. For a very long time, the hyrule flourishes.

the triforce is passed down from ruler to ruler, but the last such king, doubting his son's worthiness, hides the triforce of courage and, upon his death, casts a spell on hyrule such that a the triforce will only appear on day on a boy worthy of weilding it. the king tells zelda where it is, then dies.

the unworthy prince ascends to the throne. he only has the triforce of wisdom and power and desperately wants the full thing, so he questions zelda on where courage is. when she refuses to reveal her father's secret, the prince puts her under a spell of eternal sleep.f illed with regret, the new King places the princess on the altar in a far away castle.

the prince governs hyrule to the best of his ability, but without the power of the full triforce the kingdom falls into ruin. the life withers away, monsters become worse, it's a fucking mess. . The triforce of power and the triforce of wisdom continue to be passed down within the royal family. The existence of the triforce of courage is all but forgotten.

The Legend of Zelda (yes, THE legend of zelda. the first ever one <3)

Many, many years later, ganon has been freed. leading an army of monsters, he attacks the hyrulian royal family, led by princess zelda, a descendent of the sleepy time zelda, and takes the trifoce of power. knowing the destruction that will come if he gains more of the triforce, she splits the triforce of wisdom into pieces and scatters them through hyrule. zelda sends her nursemaid impa to find someone with the courage to defeat ganon, but impa is attacked after leaving the castle, only to be saved by a young child: link.

seeing true courage in him, impa tells him of the triforce and asks him to save hyrule, despite him being like. ten. hylia starts them young. Link collects the pieces of the triforce of wisdom from the eight dungons across the hyrule and then confronts ganon in death mountain. with the triforce of wisdom, the magical sword, and silver arrows he defeats ganon, and zelda declares link the hero of hyrule

The Adventure of Link

it's been a few years, and link is now 16. ganon is dead, but his monsters and followers remain. the follows in particular are a problem for link-- if they manage to get a hold of his blood and spill it on ganon's ashes, they can complete a spell that will resurrect ganon. link is on the run. life sucks. on his sixteenth birthday, a glowing golden triangle appears on link's hand (wow i wonder what that could be!?!?!). link goes to impa and zelda in hopes they knew what it is. impa uses him (literally. like sticks his body on the door) to open the chamber where the old zelda has been sleeping all these years. it's been like 100 years, i think??

impa tells link about the breaking of the triforce, the hiding of the triforce of courage, and zelda's curse. she entrusts him with six crystals and an ancient scroll written by the king who had hidden the triforce of courage all those years ago. link learns from reading the scroll that the triangle on his hand is the result of a spell cast by the king, marking him as worthy of the triforce of courage. now he just has to find it. the scroll indicates that the triforce of courage is located in the great palace. which is. a great palace. to enter Link must go to each of the six palaces in Hyrule, defeat the guardian defending it, and set one of the crystals in the heads of each of the statues located in the palaces. Impa gives link the triforces of power and wisdom, and tells him that by uniting the three pieces of the triforce, he can undo the spell cast on the sleeping zelda, and, most importantly, return prosperity to hyrule. a full triforce again willrestore the land.

link does what was told of him and, in a final trial at the great palace, defeats his own shadow, dark link, to obtain the triforce of courage.

link is now the only link ever who has held the full triforce, making him the strongest of the links. link returns to hyrule castle. The three pieces of the triforce unite before the altar and he sleeping zelda awakens. with the connected triforce, peace is returned to hyrule.

(link with the full triforce)

Aaaaand we're done with the downfall timeline! One more timeline left!

ADULT TIMELINE

in the adult timeline, we are once again back to oot. remember how link left the hyrule were he was 17 to return to the beginning of the game to stop ganon? well, that world didn't disappear when link left. it continued to heal and eventually prosper with ganon defeated. but slowly, in the years after oot, ganon had been building his strength. he attacked and the people of hyrule waited in desperation for the hero of time to appear-- but he never did. he was too busy in termina. so ganon took control of the world. the people prayed to the goddesses to save them, and in order to prevent ganon's conquest, the gods flooded hyrule, creating a vast sea, the Great Sea, and destroying everything in the process. hyrule was safe from ganon, but drowned below the waves. the triforce of wisdom was split into two, one piece staying with the king of hyrule, who drowned, and the other with princess zelda who barely escaped, and she passed it down throughout her family line. the triforce of courage vanished, and the kingdom of hyrule was forgotten over time, but the people of the islands of the great sea still remembered the barest of bones of the myths of that hyrule. they gifted their children with green clothes like the hero of time when they turned 12 in hopes it would remind them to be courageous always. and this is where out next story begins......

(art from the prologue of wind waker telling the story of the downfall of hyrule)

Wind Waker

link is having a nap on the watch tower of his island home. it is a special day: his birthday! His 12th birthday in fact! His grandma gifts him green clothes and his little sister, aryll, gives him her precious telescope as a gift. life is good until they see a giant fucking bird in the sky. i mean GIANT. plane giant. it's carrying away a young girl!! and being followed by a pirate ship! the ship manages to hit the bird, the helmaroc king, with a canonball, but that just makes the bird drop the girl somewhere into the forests of the island. Link grabs a sword and takes off for the forest, determined to save her.

the girl's name is tetra, and she's a pirate captain who did not need help, thank you very much!!! she and link start walking back to the mainland but are stopped by aryll on the way. link watches in horror as the helmaroc king snatches up his little sister, thinking she was tetra, and flies away.

link demands the pirates take him to save her, and they laugh in his face, only to get shamed by quill, a rito mailman. girls with goldren hair and long ears have been being kidnapped, and despite not looking like that, aryll was taken-- because the bird got her confused with tetra. so the kidnapping was her fault and the least she could do was help link save her. begrudgingly, tetra agrees and takes link to the forbidden fortress where the bird has taken up shop. link sneaks through the fortress and finds his sister, but before he can free her the bird snatches him up and takes him to its master- GANONDOF!!11! he has freed himself from the watery grave of hyrule and is now searching for the triforce that he might resurrect hyrule and take back the kingdom and the great sea. he orders the bird to throw link into the ocean to drown.

link gets chucked into the open sea, but does not drown! yey!! instead he's saved by a talking boat, the king of red lions.

the boat gives link the wind waker (title shout out!!), a baton (like w an orchestra) that can control the winds, and tells him that he can only defeat ganon with the master sword (!!!!). link needs three goddess pearls to access the tower of the gods, which will test if link is worthy to wield it. the first is din's pearl, which is with the dragon spirit valoo at dragon roost island, the home of the rito. the problem is, valoo has gone off the walls and is destroying everything. the rito prince komali has the peal but is terrified of valoo and refuses to give it to link unless he can prove he is worthy of it. link sets off to calm valoo alongside medli, valoo's attendant. together they stop the monster that has been harassing valoo and link receives the pearl.

next link and boat set off for forest haven, where we meet....... the deku tree!! or a descendent of the deku tree from oot. there we meet the koroks too! they are the descendants of the kokiri, and they are adorable.

the koroks say they will give him the peal after a ceremony they need to perform. but oh no, one of the koroks with an important part is missing! makar has gotten stuck in the forbidden woods and link has to find him. he does, returns him home safely, and gets the pearl.

next is great fish isle where the ocean spirit jabun, but when link + boat arrive the island has been destroyed and jabun is missing. ganon beat them there.

quill tells him that jabun has gone into hiding in a sealed cave near link's home, bc apparently postmen know everything. link learns that the pirates know of jabun's location, and are planning to take the pearl, thinking it was some kind of treasure. tetra buys link some time to get to the island and link manages to bomb his way in where he meets jabun. he gets the last peal and enters the tower of the gods. there he proves his worthiness and gets the master sword (!!!!)

he returns to the forbidden fortress, frees aryll, kills the giant bird, and confronts ganon. But the magic has left the sword, and it cannot defeat ganon. ganon attacks link, bc apparently a grown man is cool w murdering a 12 year old, but is stopped by valoo and tetra, who have come to save the day. Ganon grabs tetra and the triforce of power he holds begins to freak out-- it knows another triforce is close. Tetra is the descendant of princess zelda and holds the triforce of wisdom. valoo sets ganon's hideout on fire before he can hurt tetra and link and tetra flee.

Boat takes the two kids back to the tower of the gods where a portal has opened up to a castle beneath the waves-- hyrule castle. boat appears in the form of a man: he was the king of hyrule who took half of the triforce of wisdom. with tetra and his pieces she transforms into princess zelda (in which her skin is lightened bc nintendo cant get through one game w/o being racist) and told she has to remain below the sea for her own safety.

ganon killed the two sages who had been keeping the master sword powerful, back before the word got flooded. link + boat need to find their reincarnations in order to fix the master sword. thankfully, we've already met them! link gets makar and medli, they remember their past lives, and the master sword is fixed. link gets the hidden pieces of the triforce of courage and is officially ready to beat ganon's ass.

tetra was taken by ganon and link follows after, eventually fighting him with the help of tetra and some light arrows. Ganon assembles the full triforce, stealing wisdom and courage from the kids, and is ready to wish for hyrule to return so he may control it. however, boat is back as a man and gets to the triforce first, wishing that hyrule stay submerged and a new world might emerge from the ocean, promising prosperity for a new generation. ganon flips shit and attacks some 12 year olds. link finally beats him, stabbing him in the head with the master sword. link and tetra are returned to the surface as boat drowns and the world slowly begins anew.

Phantom Hourglass

Link is a pirate now! He's been traveling with tetra and doing fun pirate things. They are now searching for the ghost ship, and when they find it tetra tried to jump into it, only to violently disappear. Link tries to follow but is thrown overboard.

he wakes on an island and is nursed to health by the fairy ciela, who has amnesia, an old man named oshus. they agree to help link find tetra, and they enlist the help of the reluctant sailor linebeck and his ship after saving him from the temple of the ocean king. link discovers to get to the ghost ship they have to find the spirits of courage, wisdom, and power. they use items found in the temple of the ocean king, but things are getting increasingly dangerous. to overcome the evil forces in the temple, link must use the Sands of Hours within the phantom hourglass (name drop!!). however, using the sands slowly drains his life force (AHH) so he must utilize other creatures around the islands to prevent his life force from being drained. with the hourglass, link is able to locate the spirits of wisdom and power easily, but not the spirit of courge. They find out that spirit looks exactly like ciela. oshus explains that ciela is actually the spirit of courage and she lost her memory when the demon bellum attacked her. He also reveals that he is the ocean king. oshus further explains that he and ciela had to take their present forms to hide from the life-eating monster Bellum, who is the cause of the ghost ship and other evil in the local area, and has taken residence at the very depths of the temple. Link succeeds in his attempt to rescue tetra with the help of the three Spirits, but finds tetra is now a statue, a further effect of bellum's life-draining power.

link continues, with linebeck only agreeing after being promised by oshus that he would grant linebeck one wish with his fish god powers. link learns that the only way to defeat Bellum is to forge the phantom sword from three unique, pure metals around the local islands. after collecting the materials and forging the Phantom Sword, link descends to the bottom level of the temple, and initially appears to defeat Bellum. tetra is freed from the statue form and revived, but before the group can celebrate, Bellum reemerges from the ocean depths and takes Tetra again. ughhhh tetra pls. In the ensuing battle of the linebeck's ship and the ghost ship, linebeck's ship is lost, as well as oshus going missing, and link and tetra are captured. linebeck picks up the phantom sword and is able to free the two kids, at the cost of his own freedom, but is able to give link back the Phantom Sword before Bellum possesses Linebeck but link manages to kill bellum without harming linebeck.

the sand from the phantom hourglass is released into the sea. oshus, now in his true form of awhale, grants linebeck his ship back.tetra and link appear on the pirate ship, where it seems only ten minutes have passed for the rest of the crew and they insist that it was all a dream. BUT still possesses the now-empty hourglass, and spies linebeck's ship on the horizon, so we know the adventure is real.

Spirit Tracks

we're in the home stretch yall. the great sea is officially gone with land having risen from the sea over hundreds of years and creating a new continent and the newly established kingdom of new hyrule. this new land has new spirits, the spirits of good, who were responsable for sealing away a demon named malladus into the earth after a vicious war almost ripped new hyrule apart. malladus was shackled into the earth with train tracks called the spirit tracks (name drop!), which cover new hyrule. now we meet link!

link is an enginer, who meets princess zelda, a direct decentent of tetra, to be offically made a royal enginer. she asks him to meet her in private, as she is suspicious of the chancellor cole and trusts link to help her. link and zelda sneak out of the castle and meet up with alfonzo, link's mentor, who helps them steal a train and slip out to safety outside of castle town. However, the tracks disapear as they flee, causing the train to crash. They are stopped by cole and his right hand man, bryne (who i had a crush on as a kid)

bryne easily takes down alfonzo, despite alfonzo being one buff dude, and beats the shit outta link. loosing conciousness, link watches helplessly as bryne rips the soul out of zelda's body and takes the empty body with them. They send out demon trains, which disrupt the structure of the starting point of the spirit tracks, the tower of spirits, destroying the tacks.. cole and bryne leave, and link wakes up in the medical ward of the castle.

link finds that he can see zelda's spirit, but only he can. zelda gives him the spirit flute, a magical pan flute, and then asks link to take her to the tower of spirits to find out why the tracks disappeared. buuut the tracks are gone, so the only way to get to the tower now is by an old tunnel in the back of the castle.

link and zelda get to the tower and they meet an old woman named Anjean who is a lokomo, a guardian of the tracks. anjean says the only way to restore the tracks is with the rail maps, which will give tracks for four of the five temples across the land. but to do so requires power, which they need to get in the tower. the tower was protected by phantoms, giant armored creaters, but with the corruption of the spirit tracks they have been turned hostile. turns out, zelda can possess them, allowing safe passage in the tower.

link and zelda restore the tracks and figure out the last thing that they need to do to prevent malladus from resurrecting is to lock him back under the altar at the top of the spirit tower. link and zelda climb the tower only to find bryne, who they fight and defeat, only for him to escape to the top of the tower. link and zelda follow, only to see malladus' reseurection completed. malladus possesses zelda's body and turns on bryne. cole and malladus escape on the demon train to the dark realm.

anjean tells the kids the final way to destroy malladus. link must go to the fifth temple and obtain the bow of light, which has the power to split the soul of one from their body. link gets the bow and anjean then gives link the lokomo sword. he and zelda get to the dark realm and board the demon train. zelda possesses some phantom armor and uses it to help Link in the next battle. they climb on top of the train to find cole and malladus. link and zelda eventually reach the front of the train and zelda grabs malladus, giving link the opportunity to shoot him with the bow of light.

malladus' spirit leaves from zelda's body, giving her a chance to retrieve it. she cant at first bc she has been separated from her body for so long, and malladus is about to come back and possess zelda's body when byrne shows up and stops him. she finally gets her body back, but byrne bites the dust. malladus takes Cole's body, then turns into a beast, and link and zelda team up against in, and link beats the shit out of him, killing him.

INTERMISSION

im taking this time to talk abt hyrule warriors! it's not canon, so i wont go into detail, but if you wanna know more, you can go here

THE GREAT CALAMITY

10,000 Years Ago

It has been a long, long time since the hero of time. We don't know what timeline the Great Calamity is, but it has been at LEAST 10,000 years. a long time. remember the sheikah? they have become a technologically and magically advanced society with the power to do great, unimaginable things. the hyrulian royal family learns that calamity ganon, a form of ganon so overwhelmed by demise's curse and a lust for power that it has become a creature outside of sentience made of nothing but malice, rage, and hatred, is growing power and will soon attack. they turn to the sheikah, who create an army of robots call guardians to fight alongside the hyrulian army, and four giant machine called divine beasts controlled by champions that are capable of extreme destruction to help destroy ganon. all of this would be led by a chosen hero who carries the master sword (!!!) and a princess born with a holy power. with all of this, the hero and the princess defeated ganon and sealed him away. for 10,000 there was peace. but the royal family was paranoid. they were scared of sheikah power. so they gave the sheikah a choice: give up their tech and way of life, or die. Half gave up their culture and went on to be humble farmers and servants of the family, and half stood their ground. furious, they aligned themselves with the only thing that hated hyrulians as much as they did... ganon. they became the yiga class and went underground, plotting and planning, waiting for the day when ganon would rise again.

Breath of the Wild

your name is link-- or at least you think it is. you wake up in a dark room hooked up to a glowing machine, and a woman's voice tells you your name is link and you have to wake up. you find a few pieces of dirty, rotting clothes and most importantly, a strange piece of tech called a sheikah slate. you find the exit of the cave you've been slumbering in and the woman calls you the light that will save hyrule. your name is link and you have lost your memory and have been asleep for the past one hundred years.

one hundred years ago, there was a princess named zelda. her father, the king, heard from a soothsayer that ganon was gathering power and that the power to destroy it had been buried by time, waiting to be discovered. they unearthed the divine beasts and called for champions to pilot them. vah ruta would be manned by the zora princess, mipha. vah rudania would be manned by the gonon warrior daruk. vah medo would be manned by the famed rito archer revali. and vah natorus would be manned by the gerudo chief, urbosa. link, having pulled the master sword (!!!) proving himself a worthy fighter, was given the role of the hero, leaving zelda to fill the role of the holy princess. the problem? she couldn't access her golden power.

link was assigned as zelda's personal body guard, and she resented him for how easy his life seemed to be, having already drawn the master sword. the resentment turned to hate, mostly stemming from zelda's own self loathing. for some reason, she couldnt harness her power. everyone around her was ready for ganon and she couldn't harness her birthright. eventually, after link saved her life from the yiga, her and link became close, close friends. things were going as well as they could be, until ganon awoke.

ganon was prepared. it remembered how the hylians defeated it the first time and was determined not to fail again. it possessed the guardians, turning them against the army, and then the divine beasts, slaughtering the champions inside. link and zelda were on the run, link gravely injured from protecting her until they were cornered by guardians. there was nowhere to run. Link prepared for his last stand, knowing he was going to die here, only for zelda to push him out of the way, shielding his body with her own. a golden light shown from her-- the golden power.

(link (left) being wounded and shit and zelda (right) being a BADASS)

She destroyed the guardians around them with it, but it was too late. link collapsed, dead. as zelda held him in her arms, the master sword spoke to her, telling her of the shrine of resurrection where she could place him, which would save his life and rob him of his memories. zelda sent soldiers to the shrine with link's body and went to face ganon alone, holding it in place in hyrule castle for 100 years while she waited for link to wake up.

sooo flashback over, link is awake. he goes to kakarko village where he meets impa, who tells him to free the souls of the champions so that they can regain control of the divine beasts. he does so, growing in strength as he does. he finds and draws the master sword, slowly recovering his memories over time. he fights and defeats the yiga, he saves villages and lives and then is ready to defeat ganon. he goes to hyrule castle and beats the shit outta it, and when it flees to hyrule field, follows. it turns into a massive pig, dark beast ganon, and with the bow of light, link defeats it. zelda seals it away with her power and the two are reunited. the end!

THATS ALL FOLKS!

while this isnt absolutely everything, it is most of it! i hope yall enjoyed, i had so much fun putting everything together xoxo

#long post #legend of zelda

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goldenscript · 6 years

Text

the consequential discovery | one

pairing: park jimin | reader genre: friends with benefits + college au / fluff word count: 8,510 description: Your mother always warned you about the boys that were after one thing, yet she never warned you about the boys like Park Jimin. Unlike any of his predecessors, he’s taught you that your core isn’t the only thing that can burn — your heart can too.

THE START

You feel free for the first time at a party.

For once, this party doesn’t follow the norms of a college house party but rather takes advantage of the beach located a good half-hour away where seawater and the burn of the sun await already half-dead college students relishing in their last few weeks of summer vacation. Students find themselves basking in warmth and the thick air that only this time of the year can offer. It warms them, inviting them to dig their heels into the sand and enjoy the heavily-incorporated bass music as it ascends into a higher plane, just to prepare the listeners for a proper drop, along the waves with the few people that know how to surf, to taste the deep bitterness of the keg and other assorted alcoholic beverages all crowded around the picnic tables, and to free themselves from any other thoughts that are school-related in some way, shape, or form because the moment mid-August hits their freedom is stripped away.

Each of them have been stripped of worry lines or frowns, all things you expect from college students. Those closest to the shore are playing on the dry parts of land, tossing around a football in the sand and alongside them are a few boys playing soccer; within moments, they are hollering in elation as successful passes and goals are made all-around. These jovial sounds meld with the sounds emitting from the ones in the water, its seafarers running to and fro like the ebbing waves. It’s all set to the invigorating, lyrical sounds from the music booth adorned with a small crowd of bodies dancing together in a lopsided circle. Everyone is in their own little zone enjoying themselves, even the ones just lazing around with drinks in hand.

Among the plenty that are already relishing in their pre-game concoctions, you have a red Solo cup in hand while your best friend, Jisoo goes off to find some more for the two of you. It’s an experience you both decide to try together, so you beam at her when she approaches you with two more cups with different-colored liquids all sloshing around inside.

Once you managed to down the first cup of the keg beer, washing it down with a quarter of the half-empty Sprite bottle as a chaser. When your friend offers you a multi-colored mixture reeking with the sharp scent of tequila and some other unidentifiable drinks, your visage scrunches the moment you take a sip.

“What did you do it?”

Jisoo’s nose scrunches as she laughs sheepishly, “Sorry. I saw a bunch of stuff at the table, so I just mixed whatever.”

“Couldn’t you have watched somebody before you did that?” you guffaw, switching the cup for the bottle of Sprite. The carbonation thankfully fizzing away the godawful mango margarita aftertaste. She makes only a slight face and claims that you should’ve gone if her bartending skills were going to be an issue. “I mean I’m not judging… okay, I am, but Jisoo, try that and tell me if you actually like it.”

The red-haired girl shrugs, reaching for your rejected cup and doing as you suggested. Her expression is the same as yours, and you take this opportunity to laugh at her.

“See!” You grab a safe-looking cup from her other hand, feeling grateful when she chokes out that it’s Blue Moon brew. “Thank god—”

In the distance, you swear you heard someone yell something but it all falls on deaf hears and melts into the discordant sounds around you two. Somewhere in the mix, the part where you might’ve zoned the fuck out with batting an eyelash, you find yourself unscathed one moment and suddenly a projectile target the next.

“Well, oh shit—!” Jisoo looks at your top with a half-open mouth before she shoves the cups onto a nearby bench. “Lemme go find something to clean that up.”

You don’t even know how it happened exactly nor do you really register that Jisoo has scurried away, but the beer in hand winds up all over your cropped T-shirt and the pungent scent is your reality check. The already thin material clings to your skin, making you wish that you had packed extra clothes like you intended when you found out you were coming to the beach.

To your right lies a black soccer ball adorned with red lines for accents, and you immediately regret standing so close to the play area.

Should’ve seen that one coming. You look down at your poor T-shirt. Just great.

You look up and around in hopes of finding the perpetrators—scurrying away or not—or Jisoo, and to your surprise, you’re met with an attractive boy with a head of sable locks brushed toward the back of his head. He couldn’t have been much older than yourself, but getting a good look at him had you stop mid-thought as it registered in your brain just how handsome he is. With olive skin and dark-brown eyes the same shade of coffee, you especially note how plump his lips are as he speaks to you: “Fuck, I am so sorry! My friends and I weren’t paying attention to how close we were getting to the crowd until—well—that,” he gestures to you, “happened.”

You blink, shaking your head as you look at him and back to your shirt, and it suddenly becomes clear on what he was referring to. You immediately cross your arms over your chest, feeling your cheeks burn even hotter than before you stepped out of the dance floor with Jisoo for those cursed drinks as you reply, “I-it’s fine. Accidents happen. U-um—”

“—Shit, I’m still sorry. Did you bring any extra clothes?” he asks, scratching the back of his head. He takes a step back and reaches over to grab the ball from your right, giving you a small peek of his lean arms.

“I actually didn’t.” You huff under your breath, “unfortunately.”

“—lemme guess… sorry?” you say this in hopes of turning the bitter moment into something a little more lighthearted. Although you could’ve been raging at how incompetent him and his friends were, you can’t help but feel a little lax about the situation. At the very least, he came over to apologize, and not many guys or even people alone would do that, so you’re kind of grateful to find out he’s not an asshole. Well, sort of. That depended entirely on how this guy would going to react to your minor quip.

He feigns surprise (though his eyes briefly showed it for real), even clutching his chest as he replies, “How’d you know?” He leans closer, and you swear your heart skipped a beat. “Are you a psychic?”

“Mind reader, actually,” you correct him, cupping your ear after an idea passes your mind. “Oh, I’m getting something from you though.”

“Oh really?” He raises his eyebrows at you, a grin curving on his lips when you nod. “What is it?”

You feign a small gasp, “You brought extra clothes and you want to lend me a T-shirt?”

It takes him a moment to process what you’ve just said (something a part of you only mildly feared that he would brush you off considering most people who pause like that do not appreciate your humor), but to your surprise, when your words do reach him, he throws his head back and lets out a full-bellowing laugh.

“Was that a yes or no?” you ask after the sound dwindles down, unsure of whether that constitutes as a good response or a bad one.

“Right,” he says with a nod, much calmer than a moment ago. “You’re in luck! I do.”

You let out a breath of relief and mutter, “Oh thank fuck. You’re a lifesaver—oh, what’s your name?”

“Jimin.”

“Well, thank you, Jimin.” you say with a smile. “Seriously, you’re a lifesaver.”

He waves you off, “It was my fault anyway. Me and my friends weren’t being careful.” It takes him a moment of standing there until he takes the opportunity to ask, “What’s your name? Unless you prefer going by Mind Reader.”

You laugh and shake your head, “No, you can call me Y/N. Calling me Mind Reader would be way too obvious. Someone might report me to the CIA or somethin’.”

The grin on Jimin’s features grows wider, a gesture that has you feeling obligated to return even if it is starting to hurt your face muscles. You can’t help but note that he has quite a nice, rather contagious smile. Before he can say a word, someone yells his name and soon a taller brunet donning a white T-shirt and a pair of basketball shorts appears.

“Hey, everything okay over here?” he asks, looking between you and Jimin.

There’s a breeze that has you crossing your arms tighter over your chest, though you still give a nod as Jimin replies, “yeah, I’ll be back. I’m gonna lend her a shirt, so you guys continue the game.”

The mystery boy nods, looking at you and then Jimin once again. His doe-like eyes reminding you of a child’s as interest piques in the dark hues. He smiles at you and you return the gesture, watching as he leaves with the ball to a boy with chestnut brown locks and one with fiery red hair. The other two boys in question look over in your direction with the corners of their lips turned upwards though you make no comment of it as you turn to look at Jimin, who seems to be fishing in his pockets for his car keys.

Once he manages to locate them and you nod, you two begin to walk toward his parking spot. You decide to send Jisoo a text message that you’ll be back in ten minutes (of course citing that you found a spare T-shirt but leaving out the beer spiller in question) just so the poor girl won’t lose her head when you aren’t where you’re supposed to be.

“I’m surprised you’re not fuming that some idiotic guy spilled beer on you.” he says as you both make your way away from the rest of the party.

When you accidentally bump him while shrugging, you take immediately take note of how warm he is and continue on to responding, “It was an accident, so why am I going to get mad?”

“You’re surprisingly lax too,” he says, looking over at you with the corners of his lips still upturned. “Blunt, too.”

He’s awfully observant, isn’t he?

“Is that a bad thing?” You even throw in, “This is how I usually am, by the way. I’m not drunk…” Taking a moment to pause, you admit, “Okay, I’m like almost tipsy but still a-okay!”

You two have made it onto the wooden steps, where he has you step first. He follows close behind and muses, “It’s not bad. Just different.”

Truthfully, there’s just something calming about being at the beach, so as much as you probably would’ve freaked out at him had this been at any regular house party (because let’s be real, who in their right mind would play soccer indoors in a crowded frat house anyway?), you realize you didn’t feel the need to with him as you both approach ‘96 muted gold Volkswagen Hatchback. That one specifically catches your eyes as it stands as probably one of the oldest cars in the lot. Plus, it makes you smile, because it reminds you of your mother’s Nissan Altima from the same year, and much to almost everyone else’s amazement, that thing’s still kicking (even now in your possession).

He lets out a sigh, warning you, “Don’t rag on Ash, alright? He’s an oldie but runs well enough.”

You look at him incredulously and relinquish a small laugh. “You’re one of those guys?”

“What?” he says, walking backwards past two other cars. “There’s nothing wrong with naming your car. I bet you named yours.”

You roll your eyes and give a small shrug. “Okay, yeah I did. But Ash? Didja get that from Hatch?”

His mouth drops open ever-so-slightly, he stops right in front of the trunk so you do the same.

You blink, “What?”

“How’d you know? Most people think it’s ‘cuz of the color.”

“Well, when you say Hatch the ‘-atch’ part is almost like Ash,” you explain, seeing some strange relief flood his eyes. “When I was a kid, I used to say ‘hash.’”

“Funny, me too!” Patting the trunk, he adds with a breathy laugh, “This used to be my Dad’s so I just kept up the name I guess.”

From the looks of the scratches and the chipping paint, the car is pretty well-worn for wear but you understand from your mom that old cars like those could still run good as new. Probably even better if taken care of properly. It’s literally a hunk of metal, and in any given situation involving a car crash with a newer model, the oldies are the ones that would come out relatively unscathed. Your mom drilled that into your head and even did the same as Jimin’s dad with your current car, gifting it to you as a parting college gift so you know the desire to name your car comes from sentimental value.

“Cute, you can definitely tell he’s seen a thing or two. Is it a he?”

He rolls his eyes this time, “duh!”

You laugh, “Well, he reminds me of Jiji.” When Jimin looks over at you with his brows drawn upward in curiosity, you reply, “My mom’s old car. I loved Kiki’s Delivery Service and the car’s this interesting shade of black that can come off as this glossy, deep forest green in the sun, so I just thought the name fit.”

He can’t contain his smile, “Cute, I bet he’s seen a few things as well then.”

Your mouth falls open slightly, not missing the pronoun that falls off that stupidly plump lips, “You’ve seen it?”

“I liked it a lot, actually. Among many other Ghibli films...” he admits. “Plus, who would I be if I hadn’t seen those movies? All of them are classics.”

“True, I’d have to disown you as my lifesaver for that.” He snorts in response, only fumbling with his car keys once.

You don’t say another word after that, deciding to let him continue his task so a silence ensues as he pops open the trunk to rummage through the assortment of bags, a few empty chip bags and cups (an exception to his silence as he cursed his friends), and even a few cups of Gatorade before he settles on a faded red duffle bag. Inside he has a pair of jeans, a T-shirt, and a hoodie, with a few other things though you pretend not to notice the Trojan wrapper as he hands you the plain black T-shirt.

“Thanks.” The scent of whatever cologne he used already wafting the open sea air and mixing with the sea breeze. To say the least, it wasn’t a surprise that it smelled so nice or that it was fresh and warm, like him.

“No problem!” He says with the trash in his hands, “Can you get the trunk for me?”

“Yeah, sure,” you say, shutting it as he walks toward the trash can by the stairs, and mumbles a few more curses at his friends. “I’m gonna change real quick!”

He replies with an affirmation and remains where he is as soon as his keys land safely in your hands. His gaze seems to be locked on the descending sky.

Rather than escaping to the bathroom near the edge of the party with a line far too long for your liking, you wedge yourself his car and some grey Lexus, opening the back door and making sure the tree in front of you can cover you once you’ve crouched down and strip off your damp shirt. The back of your shirt is used as a makeshift rag to get off the residual moisture on your abdomen and part of your bra, although it’s nothing like rinsing off in an actual shower, you’re feeling exponentially better as the soft, dry cotton his shirt kisses your now semi-dry skin. Some of his cologne even doing some work to staunch the alcohol fumes.

Once you come back up, you see him by the stairs and make your way over. He lets you go first, gesturing to the steps with an extended arm parallel to the rusted metal railing.

There’s a spring in your step despite the reminder of what could’ve been a ruined evening still cradled in your arms. But then immediately after thinking of your ruined shirt, you can’t help but think of Jimin and how helpful and fun it’s been just getting to know him in such a short amount of time. It makes you happy, half-tipsy or not.

“So, favorite Ghibli movie?” you ask, looking at him over your shoulder. He looks like he’s debating something from the way his bottom lip is caught between his teeth, but as soon as he finds your gaze trained on him, he simply runs a hand through his hair and smiles at you.

“How much are you gonna judge me if I say Spirited Away?”

You scoff, a smile curving on your lips, “I would not, that’s a classic! Who am I to judge?”

“Good, ‘cuz yeah. That one.” He says this right as you ask, “So, why that one?”

You two laugh, unconsciously slowing down as you reach about halfway down the stairs.

There’s a point where it levels out, a particular drop that is about a step and a half farther than you remember. The sudden loss of footing that you must’ve miscalculated happens far too quickly, and your heart is practically thundering in your chest like after you’ve abruptly woken up from one of those dreams where you’re falling. But it’s in that moment where your brain is even more aware than usual, its hyperactivity sensitive to the feeling of his chest pressed against your back. His arm latched around your shoulders like an awkward back hug, but you don’t really notice it so much because 1) he’s so goddamn warm and 2) he’s still holding onto you even after you’ve gotten your balance back.

“Careful there,” he laughs, his grip on you firm and slightly calloused but still gentle. He leans close to your ear with a lighthearted titter. “Maybe you aren’t just tipsy after all.”

You retort, trying to hide the fact that you nearly toppled over, because you’ll be damned to acknowledge that part of the reason might’ve been due to him and his close proximity. “Maybe the beer fumes are messing with my motor functions, thanks to someone.”

He points out, “Well, you have a clean shirt on so what’s your excuse now?”

“Secondhand beer fumes from my skin, duh.” You look over at him when his arm slips away from your shoulders (despite your hand acting on its own accord to brush against his right hand), watching as his eyes form adorable half moons. The hickory hues aren’t focused on some ridiculous scene at the party in amusement either; in fact, they’re trained on you. “What?”

“You’re really cu—”

“—Jimin!” Before you can hear his answer, there’s a loud shrill of discombobulated sounds at the edge of the partying group. There are four boys beckoning your new friend over, goofy grins plastered all over their visages even in the incandescent street lamps lighting the general vicinity. The red-haired one is whispering something to the chestnut brunet and another brunet different from the one earlier appears to be laughing about something while the dark brunet with the doe eyes looks on expectantly.

Jimin catches your attention by speaking: “Sorry.” He scratches the back of his head, breaking your eye lock to see his friends still waving at the bottom. “I better get going before they get annoying.”

“Wait, what were you gonna say?” you ask, raising a brow at him. You feel inclined to ask, though you would’ve been fine to let him go anyway. You just can’t help but want to keep him there just a little longer. You notice that when he glances over at the quad of boys, he actually appears more embarrassed than hesitant.

“Right, I’m sure they can spare this a second… I think?” he lets out a small huff, part of it exhaling as a laugh, a rather nervous one at that. His cheeks dust with a prevalent shade of rouge, his plush, pink lips parted to repeat his previous words: “I was saying you’re really—”

Until the sound of your name halts him, breaking your attention from him to your own red-haired friend waving at you with a free hand. She says something but you can hardly hear her as you feel guilt creep up on you for the sudden interruption and it only deepens as both of your friends continue to wait there with expectant expressions (and that’s enough for you feel unnerved because you assured Jisoo you wouldn’t be meeting anyone at the party either).

“Jimin, hurry up!”

His hand grazes yours as you both walk onto the sand toward your respective friends, both parties seemingly watching the exchange with a glint in their eyes that neither of you could necessarily decipher from the dim lighting and from the sheer uncertainty. Of course, you’re absolutely certain that Jisoo’s going to inquire further about him, her eyes are wider than ever because the shirt on your form is not the slick T-shirt from earlier but rather a bigger and baggier one that’s fitted for a guy. And you can already hear murmurs from the boys awaiting Jimin, something about Yoongi and Joon, so you assume they’re going to meet up with their other friends.

You barely look at him as you both arrive to your friends, though you catch sight of the shy smile on his lips at the jeering of the four other guys. Many of which have gotten a better look at you underneath the light before turning their attention back on the dark-haired man and slapping him on the back as they lead him back to the beach for an excursion of games, perhaps even some actual partying now that the rest of the goers have lit the bonfire.

He tips his head back toward you one last time, a small smile in your direction until the taller brunet leans over to whisper something. Of what, you have no clue so you just watch for a split second before your gaze flickers back to your red-haired friend. You sneak a look but you don’t see him because the small group has already managed to disappear into the sea of people.

You begin walking once Jisoo latches an arm around you, smiling mischievously. “New shirt? And a boy?” she comments before taking a sip of her cup. “Please tell me you’re gonna share the details.”

With a laugh, slipping your arm out of her grasp to sling it around her shoulders. “Honestly? His name’s Jimin and he was the beer-spiller.”

Jisoo looks at you, slack-jawed. She guffaws, “You’re kidding! You didn’t kill him either. Wow, you must be getting softer considering he didn’t come back crying.”

Even just the mention of that incident has you huffing, “Shut up. That was one time!”

“Anyway, he’s hot, Y/N. Kudos for scoring his number,” she says, bumping your hip. You let her move you, but she wraps an arm around your waist to keep you beside her.

It dawns on you that the one thing you did not do was one of the most simplest, especially considering you’d have to return his shirt sometime. Literally all you had to do was ask, yet it managed to go over your head. “Well…”

She tilts her head at you and asks, “You didn’t get his number?”

Fuck, now how am I going to return this to him?

From the silence she receives, your best friend has her answer but that doesn’t deter her from straightening her head and grinning at you even wider than earlier.

With furrowed brows and a semi-scowl on your lips, because what did she know that you didn’t? You inquire, “What?”

“I mean Jennie tells me that just means he intends to see you again. Preferably before the night ends.”

“That’s ridi—”

“—Is it though?” She even arches her brow at you. “You do have his shirt. Even better if it’s his favorite one. And from the looks of it, you two seemed to be getting along quite well.”

Still, you shrug, trying not to read too much into the whole fiasco. No matter how attractive Jimin is, you have a way of rationalizing your way out of those sorts of speculations.

Perhaps he just forgot.

“I’m not too worried about it. Whatever happens will happen.”

She rolls her eyes at you, pinching your side and ignoring the yelp you give. She again ignores you and the pointed glare you send her way, “At the very least just know that his friends are pretty certain he digs you.”

“You heard them?” She nods, chugging down the rest of the cup’s contents. You harden your features just to see the pout on her face, simply responding, “That doesn’t change anything.”

Because it doesn’t.

“Brat,” she say, tapping your head with the empty cup. “Let’s just go drink and dance. Maybe we’ll see your boy toy along the way!”

Before you can protest her comment, she slips out of your grasp and wiggles her hips to the beat of the electronic bass. She beckons you forth with her index fingers, leading the two of you past the heart of the circle and toward the beverages. She grabs another two keg beer cups—obviously (read: thankfully) learning from her initial mistake—and slips one toward you.

She holds her cup out toward you and says, “Cheers!”

You roll your eyes at her, feeling a swelling in your heart as you tap the edge of her cup and utter a fuck it.

“Cheers!”

You slip away for a moment. One fucking moment. And you return to your group’s meeting spot after braving a half-hour long line to use the restroom and wiping away the sweat that accumulated at the corners of your forehead with the back of your hand, powering through the burn in your thighs from an hour-and-a-half long dance session with the girls—and that in itself has become nothing more than a blur of swaying, bass, and heat emitting from your friends’ bodies—and the minor headache throbbing in the back of your head. All for the crowd (that has already gotten significantly smaller than earlier) without Chungha, Lisa, or Jennie in sight.

Jisoo’s there, perched on a log in all her red-haired glory by her lonesome, somehow swaying to the beat of the song. The previous DJ must’ve left because the music is different from earlier, much more akin to songs blasting radio music from a portable speaker than the songs playing earlier on an actual speaker system. But all you can think is where the fuck did our friends go? Because you’d be damned not to spot Lisa’s orange hair anywhere, but for reasons beyond you, she isn’t there.

“Where’s everybody?” When you take a seat beside her, she cranes her head toward you with a smile curled on the corner of her lips but still no answer. “Ji—”

She lays her head on your shoulder. “They left!”

You blink, trying to meet her eyes in some way but they’ve shut already. “What do you mean they left? They’re our rides.”

“I told them about Jimin.”

You groan, fearing that the answer you have in your head is the one she’s about to tell you. “Why would you do that? What did you even say?”

“That he’s your cute boy. ‘nd you didn’t get his number yet,” she answers, trying to bury her head further into your body.

“So that made them leave?” You know damn well that Chungha wouldn’t have done that unless someone told her they’d manage a ride otherwise.

“I said that we’d manage.” she pouts at your visible frown. “I’m helping you!”

You groan loudly, shaking her off to kneel in front of her. Her whines are pointedly ignored as the log becomes her pillow. “You dummy! Why would you give up our ride like that?”

“He’ll give us a ride,” she says, opening one of her eyes. “I know what’m doin’.”

You glare at her, raising a brow. “And how do you know that?”

“B’cuz his friends said they’d carpool with other people so he’d have room for you.”

You blink, tilting your head at her as both eyes shut once again. You continue to look at her anyway. You’re unsure of how to feel exactly with this news considering the reality that you two are half an hour away from campus without a ride. Of course, you could always call Chungha back but that was your last resort with the chance that security wouldn’t allow her to leave without signing out. And the hard truth is a part of you kind of liked the news Jisoo just supplied you with; you hadn’t even said a word about Jimin supplying his friends with rides, making her story check out to some degree. But the glaring extent was the fact that her own credibility was compromised by the simple fact that she was very much drunk so whether it was true (you hoped) or not was entirely a crapshoot.

That alone has your legs ready to give out from underneath you at the sheer exhaustion of the situation. Even if she was correct about Jimin (you highly doubted it) that still meant trying to find him and coaxing a ride out of him. It might’ve been possible if he hadn’t left already and he was just that nice of a person but there was still no saying who had left and stayed from the looks of the party. Plus, you hadn’t seen him once since you two parted ways (and you know damn well you looked as best as you could in your position).

“For all we know, he could’ve left already,” you sigh, looking over at Jisoo as her features contorted now that the alcoholic influences were catching up to her. You would’ve laughed had you not felt so stressed. You stand up to ease your stomach and look around for any familiar faces—Jimin or not—for the sole reason in asking any other friend of yours for a ride back to the school.

“Maybe someone we know is still around.” you say, turning on your heel to go back into the crowd. You crane your head back over to Jisoo, only slightly scowling (not that she could see it) to say, “Stay put, I’m gonna go find us a ride.”

“Bu—”

“—No but’s. Just stay,” you huff, already walking into the even sparser circle. You don’t spot anyone you know, feeling a knot of anxiety formulate in the pit of your stomach.

Goddammit Jisoo.

“Fu—” you stop yourself, stay calm.

You’d like to think you’re a relatively calm person anyway, especially as you’re walking past unfamiliar people who are doing a mix of actual dancing and half-assed swaying. Even with no one somewhat familiar in sight, whether it’s a floormate or someone from the same dorm building, you try to keep your cool as you weave between bodies, feeling the heat of the fire as you stop at the outskirts of the group circle to catch your breath.

Damm—

“—Y/N?” You blink at the sudden feeling a hand on your shoulder. Out of a reflex, you reach over and almost smack the perpetrator’s chest with an open palm when it registers that the voice belongs to the very devil himself—Jimin.

“Jimin?” you ask, looking over at him and dropping your hand. “You’re still here?”

He laughs, looking the same as ever—still breathtakingly handsome—as he says, “Yeah. I was just helping my DJ friend pack up and load his stuff.”

You muse, “No wonder the music started sucking just a few moments ago.”

He smile broadly, “I’ll be sure to tell him that everything he played was a hit.” He tilts his head over at you, “you’re still here. Did you lose your friend?”

You shake your head, feeling a little embarrassed to admit the true circumstances of your predicament but he continues to look at you patiently. “The rest of my friends left, so I’m looking for a ride for me and my best friend actually.”

He just laughs and says, “How about I give you two a ride then?”

Dammit, Jisoo.

You’re scratching the back of your head, feeling your own cheeks give away your emotions. At least until his words register and then you say, “What about your friends? I thought you’re in charge of carpool?”

“My friends ditched me for another driver.” he fake sniffs, straightening his head. “So, what do you say?”

“You’re sober right?”

He nods, holding up his hand. “As sober as can be. Scout’s Honor.” He sniffs indignantly, “I was the DD earlier after all.”

It’s nothing to really ponder that intensively, his offer is simply out of convenience after all, so you make the executive decision of nodding. “Sure,” you smile as he does. “First the shirt, now a ride home. You’re seriously a lifesaver.”

He winks, extending his arm outward to say, “I have to make up for being a beer spiller somehow. Lead the way.”

As you begin toward Jisoo, you can’t help but look over at Jimin and say, “Y’know your friends planned on ditching you right? Jisoo overheard them.”

He exhales sharply, nodding. “I suspected that when Yoongi—that DJ friend of mine—sent me back onto the beach to double check if he left anything. And believe me, if you knew him then you’d know how anal he is about leaving anything out. Especially his equipment.”

“This wasn’t some plot of yours to get me by my lonesome was it?” you ask, raising a brow at him. You make sure not to sound too serious, because you would actually be flattered that he would (solely based on the assumption and hope that he wasn’t a psychopath, of course). “You’re not going to kill me on the side of the road or somethin’?”

His brows have since arched upwards at the beginning of these inquiries; however, it isn’t long until he’s giggling as they register. “Don’t worry. As much as I was hoping to see you again, this wasn’t intentional on my end.” By now the two of you are a good meter away from Jisoo. “And, for the record, I am not going to murder you on the side of the road. Or murder you, period. Mind reading powers or not, I’d prefer you live long enough to save the world.”

“And how do you know I intend to use these powers for good?” you quip, earning a laugh from him. You turn your attention on Jisoo when you’re a good foot from the log she’s still perched on. “Chu, you good?”

The aforementioned raises her head, one eye peeking open as she gives a small shake of her head.

“My tummy hurts. T’won’t stop going ‘grrr!’” she whines, turning onto her back. Luckily, she has a large green flannel to keep her warm from the oceanside air beginning to roll in now that midnight was bleeding into 1AM. It’s almost hard to believe that time has flown by this much, but even just trying to recollect everything is hazy on your brain at the moment.

You’re about to say something but your best friend beckons you forth (which you unwittingly acquiesce and kneel in front of her) and cups her hand around her mouth to loudly whisper, “Can we get something to eat?”

“I dunno if Jimin—”

“Sure, we can.” He smiles at you when you crane your head up at him. “How does 7-Eleven ramen sound?”

To which, Jisoo lets out a cry of happiness.

The car glides across the roadway, while a soft ocean breeze passing between the cracked windows. There’s music playing softly, though you don’t know the song that well, you can’t help but smile as you hear Jimin hum along. He looks like he’s in his element even in that briefest instance, completely sober without another thought or worry in the world as he turns into the semi-familiar parking lot, with the bright lights of the 7-Eleven peeking into the car. Their windows are adorned with falling posters of Big Gulps and coffee, but those do nothing to make your mouth water compared to the small cups of ramen adorning the shelves.

Looking down at Jisoo, her head still nestled atop your thighs and eyes still shut tightly, you actually feel a little bad for disturbing her from the much needed rest she’s going to need after tonight’s adventure. But the idea of her stomach hurting after ingesting all that alcohol makes you lean forward and poke her cheek, though that does nothing to stir her. As you whisper her name, allowing the tips of your hair to graze her face, you see her nose scrunch.

She doesn’t say anything above a whisper, “I want chicken ramen.”

She raises her head only to give you enough room to scoot out but she curls back into a ball and lays her head down onto the seat. “J’st go! ‘M tired.”

“Alright, one chicken ramen coming right up,” you sigh, giving her shoulder a pat before shutting the door. You’re immediately met by the cold and Jimin, the latter shoots your friend a sympathetic look before he turns to you.

His brows are drawn upward as he asks, “she okay?”

While he makes sure the doors are locked, you respond, “Just sleepy. She requests chicken ramen.”

“Beef’s where it’s at,” he laughs, beginning to walk alongside you toward the well-lit building and the solace of warmth. You can practically feel the heater as you’re underneath the proximity of the store’s brick-red canopy.

“Right?” You pass him by as he opens the door for you, letting the door flutter shut behind and banishing the cool air.

Inside is as comforting as the sight outside with a long green table by the hot water kettle toward the right upon entering to the cozily placed shelves that made the vicinity feel a lot smaller than you would think. Albeit it’s brighter than your eyes have adjusted to, you do so gradually and feel the blasting heat smoothing your gooseflesh away. It’s pretty much a utopia of brightly packaged snacks and other roadside foods, with the scent of coffee beans wafting the air alongside the distinct pinch of sugar that has your stomach rumbling even more than before. Your cheeks are still cool to the touch, but you know that it’d burn on any other given chance.

“Hungry?” Jimin quips though he receives no response, just a small, playful eye roll. Nudging your shoulder, he begins to lead you toward the goods by hand. His palms are still remarkably warm, and still notably soft as he sifts through the shelves for the desired packages. Soon enough, he comes back with two beef-flavored and a chicken-flavored Maruchan soups.

The cashier accepts Jimin’s money before you can fish out your wallet, pointing the two of you to the hot water stations. The latter doesn’t look back at you, only accepting the narrowed look you shoot his way until after he receives the receipt. Of course, you wouldn’t have minded paying for yours and Jisoo’s but you still admit your gratitude to him since he did pay (and did so much more) after all.

When he comes to the table bearing the gift of the glorious noodles, you move Jisoo’s still packaged soup to the side so your food is front of you. With a pair of chopsticks bestowed to you, you smile at him and get ready to say yet another admission of gratitude.

“Seriously, thank you,” you say, allowing him to fill the cups by holding the chopsticks. “You’ve done more than enough for me tonight.”

He meets your eyes, looking at you with a soft smile. He replies, “It’s no problem. You haven’t been a burden or anything.”

“Are you just saying that?” you ask, raising a brow. “Because I’ll try to repay you somehow.”

“You don’t have to—”

You laugh, trying to look even more stern though probably failing, “Oh yes I do! I work at the campus coffee shop by the Quad, so please come by okay? I can bestow you with the best gift all college students would kill for.”

His eyes light up. “Free textbooks?”

You laugh again, giving his arm a light smack. “Me and you both wish I could do that.”

“Well, I’ll remember your offer the next time I need a caffeine fix then.”

“Promise?” You don’t mean to be so childish but of course you can’t help but stick your pinky finger out just to see what he’ll do. It’s a little thrilling to see just how he’ll respond to your antics, not that many people can truly say they agree with them, but seeing him as he laughs and goes along with it makes you very happy.

Hell, he even presses his thumb to yours and says with feigned solemnity, “I promise.”

A comfortable silence falls over you two, giving you an opportunity to dig into the cup of noodles. You relish in the taste, allowing the warmth to soothe your muting stomach and feeling a lot more sober. It’s nice just to sit there beside Jimin, knowing that Jisoo’s comfortably in the backseat of his car where she couldn’t be causing any more trouble or running all over the place had she taken something with a little more strength. You know she won’t mind you eating now, with her resting for tomorrow, she’s sure to unleash a ball of gloating your way because she was right about what she told you on the beach. Still, you hope she forgets so you don’t have to hear about it.

As you glance over at Jimin yet again, the reminder of what you were supposed to ask him strikes you. He’s just eating like yourself and looking just as peaceful. He seems to feel your stare, turning to meet your gaze.

“Yeah?” he says after finishing his bite of food.

You do the same, muttering an apology before you say, “I have two questions for you.”

“S’fine, shoot.”

As you’re placing your chopsticks atop of the cup, you ask, “What were you going to tell me at the party? Y’know before we were so rudely interrupted by your friends and mine?”

He laughs at your exaggeration but it sounds off by a few octaves, causing you to narrow your eyes ever-so-slightly. He scratches the back of his head, this time a breathy chuckle chases after his sharp exhale. “You still remember that?”

You laugh, noting the way his cheeks turned an even rosier shade of red. “I might’ve been sort of tipsy but I’m certainly not an amnesiac.”

“Well…”

“What?” You tilt your head to the side, a smirk teasing at the corners of your lips, “shy all of a sudden?”

“Kind of? Like I said before, you’re so open and upfront it seems so random to tell you.” He admits sheepishly, “Plus, I have a very strong feeling that this is gonna come off as either very fuckboy or very cheesy to you.”

When he rolls his eyes and cheeks still reddening, you amend the situation just a bit, obviously still very much curious. “C’mon you can tell me. It wouldn’t be as random as saying you like the swedish meatballs from IKEA or something.“

He bursts into laughter, eliciting a smile of your own, again. Your brain is very loud and clear in voicing just how nice that smile of his is, and you’re not even going to attempt to deny that much. Instead you focus on his lips as he says, “True, well,” he pauses, glancing at the table. “I was gonna say you looked really cute earlier.”

“How so?” You add as you see his mouth open, “That’s not my second question, by the way. Consider it a follow-up and totally unrelated.”

He nods, still smiling, “Just when you were teasing me it struck me even more than when I first approached you.”

This time you nod, happy to see his eyes so you can say, “Well, thank you.”

”You’re welcome.”

After a moment, the two of you actually taking that break to get another bite of the noodles, he says, “So, question two?”

“Oh right!” you say, still holding onto your chopsticks. “How am I supposed to get this shirt back to you?”

He doesn’t say anything immediately afterwards. Like at all. He just pauses, eyes darting to the solace of the soup. The rouge on his cheeks are creeping upward like vines, decorating his skin with flowers blooming on a spring day, and it actually makes you curious as to what he’s thinking. From what you’ve accessed about him, he’s a bit of a flirt with loads of bashfulness peeking between the cracks. Definitely the type to know what he wants, but not the kind to know how to voice it too seriously. Just the fact that he’s struggling to articulate himself makes him even more adorable especially when that conflicted expression of his melts into something akin to confidence.

“I was thinking we could actually exchange numbers….” he answers, slowly meeting your eyes.

“Who knew you were one for being forward?” you say, leaning closer to his pink-cheeked visage. “Sure.”

He can’t help but remain trained where he is, probably registering the fact that you are indeed this close without a bat of your eyelashes. Of course, your brain is screaming at you for being this close in his proximity, but another part of you doesn’t seem to care. In fact, if you lacked any more self-control than you already did, you might’ve actually leaned in to kiss him.

He suddenly blurts out, “Y-you look good in my shirt.”

His fingertips graze the hem gingerly before he looks back up at you raising a brow at him. The deathly serious look on your face only lasting long enough for you to ask, “Is that your way of saying that I can keep it then...?”

And right then, he does that thing where he throws his head back and laughs again, “No! I actually really like this shirt, okay?”

You hold your hands up in surrender, replying as soon as it seems like he has nothing more to say, “Thank you.”

When you look down at your styrofoam cup, you find it a devoid of noodles and much soup. Much like Jimin, the two of you are quite dismayed at the lack thereof, because it means you have to part ways. You know you have to go, but it feels like you’re only just beginning to get to know him. And still, there’s feels like there’s more to do even if what you have visualized in the back of your mind is merely an impulse touch of your lips and caress of fingertips. You’re feeling brave too. Maybe it’s the booze or maybe it’s your own brain telling you not to miss out on this moment, because carpe diem right? (Or carpe noctem to be more specific?) You’re young and isn’t this the type of shit you’re supposed to do on nights like this anyway?

Before you can say a word, he slides his phone open and pulls up the dialer. “Number?”

You recite the digits for him. He does the same for you, even posing for a contact photo just for you. He’s simply smiling but the way his eyes form half moons, and his lips stretch across his face, revealing his dimples makes you feel smile as well.

“You want your picture taken too?” You laugh, smiling anyway. He snaps it quickly, looking satisfied. But he can’t seem to take his eyes off you as he sets his phone down.

“What?” you tilt your head at him.

“You look really cute.”

“You told me that already,” you giggle, leaning on your elbow and unconsciously moving closer to him.

“You tell me something then,” he suggests, following in your example.

“I’d let you kiss me right now.”

He lets out a small laugh directed to himself as he mutters, “Jesus, you’re really the forward one here.”

Curiosity washes over your eyes as you ask, “But would you let me?”

He pretends to think for a moment, glancing at you with feigned exaggeration and a smile. “Yeah, I truthfully would.”

You decide it can’t hurt. You’re young and maybe this is dumb, but you certainly can’t say that this is something you’ll regret. Perhaps after you return the shirt, you’ll never see him again. His numbers nothing more than a forgotten contact like the ones you accumulate within a quarter until they become useless in the next one. It’s a pessimistic way to see new people, but you know that’s just the reality of college.

Before you can lean in, he looks at you earnestly and asks, “You won’t regret this, right?”

You shake your head, leaning in closer, “and you won’t either, right?”

This time he doesn’t answer, you assume for fear that he might not actually be able to respond with a stutter or even a show of hesitance, but determination washes over his features in the most minute way you almost miss it. And the thudding of your heart ricocheting all around your chest is the only thing you can hear besides the thrum of the slurpee machine besides you.

You can feel Jimin’s hand finds its way onto the far side of your face, comfortably placed at the juncture between your start of your jawline and your hairline. He leans in first and kisses you.

And, of course, you kiss him right back.

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