I believe in you!

Do not worry overmuch.  He is currently getting drunk with a Gerudo and they are painting one another’s nails bright colors.  He keeps trying to talk me into letting him do my claws.  I’m not sure it’s a good idea, but it is a great deal better than earlier when he refused to move from a perch on my shoulder where he glowered at everyone who tried to speak to me!

Not that I minded actually.  It has been most refreshing to get some time to myself after the last several months!

nayrusknight‌:

At mention of Mipha, Zelda relaxes a little. Mipha has brought her back from the brink once in her memory, and possibly more times that she’s forgotten. When Sidon says Sheik’s name, though, she very visibly winces.

“…He does,” she agrees after a brief hesitation. “But… are you sure we should tell him?”

Link feels that wince, his heart twinging at the same moment. But he shakes his head, takes a deep breath, and hums.

“It won’t be a pleasant conversation, but then it won’t be to have with anybody else in our lot. Sheik has the most experience of all of us, and is the most likely to be able to work something of a plan out, or gauge it’s potential if one is presented. He knows things that have been lost to time. And he deserves to know.” Link swallows, with a little difficulty, then speaks again. “Keeping this from him…I don’t think it would be right. And he wouldn’t forgive us if he found out we knew and didn’t tell him. If you give the data you have about your test with Raon to me, I can do it. He’s liable to want to have words with me anyways after he finds out, same as you did, so I can get that out of the way at the same time.”

Sidon nods in agreement as Link speaks.  “If we kept him out of this then....”  Sidon’s fins flared with wariness and distaste.  He wasn’t sure if he’d be able to stand the sort of fury and hatred that might be directed his way.  Not from someone so beloved.  He shakes his head.  “There’s no reason he should be kept in the dark.  I won’t lie to someone I claim as a partner and equal in my life, besides.”  His hand still holds Link’s and he gives it a squeeze again before lacing their fingers together.

nayrusknight‌:

When Link returns the squeeze, Zelda becomes aware that they’re holding hands. She starts to pull away, but stops herself. She realizes that she needs the contact, however small.

“…There was a moment,” she says at length. “Nearly ten seconds between the pop and regaining consciousness, during which time Raon was apparently fine. It’s a small window to reach someone and start first aid, but it’s better than nothing.” After another few seconds’ consideration, she adds “…And the damage that I did wasn’t immediately fatal. It would have been, without treatment, in probably about sixty seconds. But the construct was destroyed instantly. It’s not as sturdy as a body, and there’s… a possibility… that the times that your construct has been destroyed, it dissolved before instantly fatal damage would have been incurred.”

She takes a couple of slow breaths, fighting to remain present and optimistic while the memory of Raon’s blood under her nails underscores her thoughts of Link. “…I didn’t want to tell you. Not yet. I was trying to work through it, to figure out how best to extract you and get you away from Ganon.” Her eyes start to lose focus a little as she looks past Link to the chamber she saw, a few weeks and a hundred years ago. “I don’t think I can kill it without freeing it, and I don’t think I can free it without popping your bubble. I’ve been trying to work out a way around that, or…” When she trails off this time, she doesn’t pick the thought back up. Just lets it fade away.

“I think…as much fear as this news brings, telling us now was the best option. Between all of us, somebody is going to be able to come up with something. There are a lot of sharp-witted, intelligent people among us, even if we’re all dim as dead fireflies now and then, somebody is guaranteed to be able to piece together a plan of action that will work out. And if not, then we’ll at least give it our best shot, and nobody can say we didn’t try.” He attempts a reassuring smile for Zelda, giving her hand another squeeze. “We’ll figure something out. Even if it’s something silly like throwing potion bottles to get at least a minor amount of healing going while somebody drags me away from things like a sack of potatoes.”

“Mipha is the best healer we’ve had in generations,” Sidon says with all the faith a little brother can have in his big sister. He’s never once felt it misplaced even when he thought he’d lost her forever.  “We can find ways to support her.  And Sheik has... More knowledge than most of us combined.”  As... painful as it likely would be to tell him about this.

nayrusknight‌:

Zelda blinks at Link when he asks his question, but cuts her gaze away again before answering. Making eye contact with him hurts.

“…You’re protecting yourself, in the castle. You haven’t aged or died in a century because you’re manipulating time around yourself to hold Ganon in place. If we go in there and seal Ganon, get you out, the bubble pops. Everything that’s happened to you will catch up.”

That was…strange. Learning that made some form of sense, but also, just.

“So…..I haven’t. Technically been injured yet. From all of it.” He finally leans to grab her hand, though…honestly, he settles it loosely on hers. “Right? So…s, so there’s, still a chance, right?”

“It gives us a chance to prepare,” Sidon said.  “We know what’s waiting for us, so we can all do our best to be ready.”  Nothing kept his optimism down for long.  It was grim tidings but so long as there was a chance....

nayrusknight‌:

“Raon volunteered to test whether damage to the construct put any notable strain on the real body. It didn’t, until the construct was destroyed. When the rune is canceled, the damage inflicted manifests spontaneously.”

She drones, flat again. Her finger slows, but doesn’t stop. Tap. Tap. Tap. 

Link’s stuttering attempts weren’t getting any better, though he eventually managed to work out a short question, given enough time. ‘Why am I still here?’ He should, by all rights, be dead several times over. Shouldn’t he? He reaches a hand over to squeeze Sidon’s, both for Sidon’s comfort as much as his own, and though he wants to do the same for Zelda, he refrains, the memory of her shoving him away minutes ago fresh in his mind.

nayrusknight‌:

The tea seems to take her by surprise. She blinks at it as though unsure how it got there, and though she reaches out to hold it politely with both hands, she makes no move to bring it to her lips. When his tone eases, Zelda shifts in her seat, breaking her attention without retreating back into herself.

“…The wounds on the construct manifest on the physical form once the rune is deactivated.” She says it softly, half a report and half an admission. One index finger taps rapid eighth notes on the side of her teacup. All of her nails are ragged where she’s chewed them down, and started on the skin around them.

Link looks, again, like she reached out and slapped him, mouthing wordlessly in Zelda’s direction. He definitely knows what that means, but…is she sure? How does she know?

“How? Did…h..” He can’t seem to force anything else out of his mouth, his voice closing off, and he can’t even sign at this point with his hands shaking. The best he manages is a ‘what’ before even that is illegible.

Heat curled up through Sidon’s throat, resting just under his tongue.  It was a tight, sick feeling.  At that moment he didn’t think so much of the how as he was too stuck on the what.

Briefly, his vision was filled with blue liquid splattered like someone had dumped a bucket of paint across the grass and the snarling face of a moblin.  It was a memory that ended in hazy rage.

Hearing her name in that tone, Zelda stiffens to attention. Her expression is just as impassive, but she obeys when he orders her to sit. Her gaze focuses now on Sidon, attentive but not as sharp as can usually be expected of her. Not quite on autopilot, but not fully in control of herself either. It seems safe to assume at least that she’ll cooperate now.

It’s a bit like putting on his adornments and finding them just slightly ill fitting, but they resettle easy enough.  Sidon nudges the cup of tea meaningfully toward her, then the other toward Link and finally politely folds his hands atop the table.

nayrusknight‌:

Zelda stands where Sidon left her, gaze again falling on an unremarkable spot on the floor a few feet in front of her. She doesn’t respond to his kind voice, doesn’t seem to have heard him at all. Deep inside, she’s thinking. Not clearly–she hasn’t managed to hold a clear thought for longer than a minute or two these past few days–but she’s chasing a concept around and around, trying to grab hold and force something to make sense. Gentleness can’t reach her where she is. It doesn’t mesh with her dizzy, distracted mind.

And so she stands stock still and staring at nothing, apparently ignoring the question.

Link’s voice failed him at the moment, so he lapsed into sign. Something he hadn’t needed to do for a while, but necessary now, by the look of things. Bazz, of course, did as Sidon asked, order or not. 

‘Bazz called me, and Zelda looked upset. When I asked her what was wrong, she told me she’d failed to protect me, and when I prodded her a bit for more information on what she meant, she yelled at me for my…recklessness, the past few months. I don’t know what prompted her to get upset over it.’

He watched Link, watched his hands as he signed and thanked Sheik’s lessons. Sidon bit back a sigh, sharp teeth digging into the inside of his cheek.  He didn’t really like commanding his friends but--  Sidon straightened his posture and adjusted the discomforted set of his fins--a more regal pose.

nayrusknight‌:

Zelda manages to pry her eyes from the ground, but she can’t quite manage to focus, or look up past Sidon’s hand. That it’s there clearly confuses her. She stares at it for a few second before one part of her manages to win out over the other, and she reaches up to take it. As she does so, pain flashes across her face, and her fingers twitch, gripping his hand and squeezing desperately. But it only lasts a moment before her grip eases and her expression blanks once more.

Link gave him a squeeze back, confused and more than a little hurt, but willing to move. When Zelda looked pained, he managed a concerned squeak sound, but otherwise couldn’t seem to make a sound. Considering she’d shoved him away, he didn’t feel right reaching to attempt to help support her, and before he could work out a way to make himself do so, she seemed…fine again.

Bazz, of course, just scrambles to get the door for them all. Because he needs to do something, and this just seems useful.

It made anxiety curl in Sidon’s stomach to see the two of them like this.  Whatever had happened was... obviously something big.  He ushered the two of them back into the house, then to the kitchen.  “Bazz,” he said, once he had them settled.  “Do me a favor and make sure no one interrupts us?”  There was a lilt to his voice--the Princely touch that said it wasn’t quite a request.

Then, Sidon set about finding the tea things that Sheik kept stocked.  He’d learned how to make them from Sheik, and set about it.  A blend that he’d made often while Sheik was ailing.  He stayed quiet, letting the tense atmosphere wash over him, and off of him, like water off his scales.

Bazz gestured helplessly for a few moments between the two silent Hylians. one of which currently inhibits a fidgety Zora form, then decided it would likely benefit them all for him to explain as best he could. So, he took a few moments to compose himself, cleared his throat, and tried to not look too sheepish or sound as panicked as he felt.

“I met the young Sheikah they’ve recruited this morning, after Prince Link agreed to bring me along to see how things are going. It was…ah. Directly after training, and I spotted some worrying wound marks on him, and managed to convince him to at least tell me that he got them when he was with Zelda, but he wouldn’t give me any information about it beyond that. So I came to talk to Zelda, but she’s been just as unhelpful in giving up information about why she stabbed a seventeen year old in the torso, and I got…frustrated. So I called Prince Link out, hoping that he would be able to get the information from her, since something like that should be investigated, and…well…she just. Shouted at him. About a lot of things. I still don’t know what’s going on or what caused this or the Sheikah boy’s injuries, and I am…admittedly unsure of what to do now, because I’d rather not accidentally cause some kind of interspecies incident by pushing farther without some kind of advice or support.”

Hearing Bazz go on like that was.... alarming.

Sidon moved forward, surprisingly quiet given his size.  When he drew closer, he leaned his head forward, tail slipping down over one shoulder to thump against his chest and the Naydra scale mounted on his armor there.  Gently, he took hold of one of Link’s hands and enfolded it in his.  It wasn’t quite as small as he’d become used to. 

Giving it a comforting squeeze he looked even further down to Zelda.  He wasn’t certain if touch was welcome there, even if he already called her sister and stopped his hand halfway held out to her.

“I think,” he said, taking in the tension in the air and in the these too wonderful people, “that we should all sit down.  Inside.”

nayrusknight‌:

She reaches up to rest her palms on his chest. At first the gesture seems to be one of seeking comfort, but then she shoves back hard, attempting to break the embrace. There’s finally strong, solid emotion on her face. 

Rage.

“You couldn’t just listen to me, could you? I made a simple request. I told you to go back and wait for me. But you pulled out all of that I can help, you need me, I can’t leave you bullshit, and you got your stupid ass killed, and then when you came back you kept. doing. it. Every other week you get stabbed or shot or swallowed or blown up, because you’re reckless and you’re thoughtless. Have you ever considered everyone who died to keep you alive? Every soldier and civilian whose sacrifice bought us an extra second? How many of those extra seconds you’ve thrown away thinking that you’re invincible? You have a great life here, and more of that lined up down the road, and now Sidon–” She chokes again, swallows. “–and Sheik–” 

She can’t keep going. The anger gives way to heavy depression for a few seconds, and then her face goes blank again as her gaze fixes on a specific blade of grass about three feet behind him. 

When she shoves at him, he does let go of her, and takes a few steps back. He mouths wordlessly at her while she talks, confused and stunned, looking for all accounts like she’d decided to punch him in the face. He doesn’t know what exactly she’s getting after him about this for, but he doesn’t interrupt her, and when she falls silent, he looks away, hands reaching to fidget with one of his articles of clothing.

Bazz is, of course, more than a little stunned as well, but at least he doesn’t lapse into anxious silence. No, he decides he needs assistance before he makes things into a full on interspecies incident, and decides looking for Sidon is an optimal idea. They’re not going anywhere, they’re both on emotional shutdown tracks, he’s pretty well in the clear to just turn and call for Sidon like he did Link with little to no resistance or worry of either running for it.

It was hard to miss all the hubbub going on outside, but when you were a Zora and you spent most of your time in the upper areas of Zora’s domain (as he had to do as their prince) you got used to just shutting out other people’s business.  If it involved him, someone would tell him.  It was a habit he hadn’t lost even in the months spent elsewhere.

But, the moment he heard his name, his head shot up and Sidon got himself up,  He made his way through the house and out front and stood for a moment taking in the tableau before him.  It didn’t take long for worry to set in.

I keep thinking I should do better at that sort of thing than I do. And I want to do better.

And I’m glad I can help, if nothing else. It’s a little hard for most hylians to get down there without, you know. Drowning.

It’s pretty far down. I think the water level has risen since it was made…

Thank you. I’ll let Muzu and these others know. Hopefully Bazz will back me up, seeing as he definitely knows it’s me. I doubt he’d be less than half as amused by this mess if he didn’t.

Also, in case you missed it: I found what I think are the ruins of the entrance to the water temple. And made an ass of myself.

Yeah, I really can’t. I don’t know how to turn the darn thing off once it gets started. If you can think of something to do that would assist in making this less awkward later on, I would appreciate that, but I’m kind of not sure how to do any of that myself.