I have a question about oot Zelink that has been weighing heavily on me, and I can only trust a true connoisseur like you to do the topic justice
There has always been one crucial detail that has made it hard for me to fully commit to shipping oot Zelink, despite me wanting to very much. I mean, they're the doomed lovers ever and actually have so little time together and can never ever go back to one another by virtue of being (and having to stay!!) in DIFFERENT TIMELINES like. Damn I *see* your vision
But, see, before we get to the doomed yuri part of their dynamic, one has to consider the part where Link is. very much a nine-year-old in a teenage body, while Sheik/Zelda is an actual teen/young adult. Shipping them, while knowing there's technically such an age gap between them, has always been hard for me, so I really wanted to hear your take on this, if you have one
And you know, if the answer amounts to "yeah we ignore all that and have Link BE his adult age" I got no problem with that because. again. this dynamic is just such a feast and that's what I tend to do anyway. But if there's a plausible explanation a la "he was forced to grow up FAST" then that's even better, since that adds to the entire tragedy aspect of Link's character specifically
Anyway I'm having some oot thoughts and you're the main person I associate with these two walking tragedies, have a nice day✌️
Dearest @pitchblackespresso , your question is very welcome, I was just in need of a little positive mental exercise.
First, I just want to take this opportunity to mention the joy your BotW comics bring to me. It's always a pleasure to read your stories and the voice you give to our beloved characters is lovely. Guys, if you haven't already, go read Pitchblack Expresso's comics NOW.
Ok. So, the points you mention regarding the age gap between Link and Zelda in Ocarina of Time are absolutely valid and logical. If we take the facts presented in Ocarina of Time at face value, you're right, the ship is questionable. I'll do my best to explain in more details the interpretations I draw from the games that lead me to find this pairing so nuanced, complex, profound, bittersweet and tragic. Of course, it implies unnatural magic aging, duh! But there's more to it.
As usual, when I start writing a whole accidental essay, here's a small disclaimer: I don't claim to have the definitive answer, or that my view is absolute. I don't speak for all OoT Zelink shippers. My answer is based on my own interpretations of the events that take place in Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, and my deductions following the facts presented in Twilight Princess and Windwaker. Take also into account that my OoT Zelink ship is Link and adult timeline Zelda/Sheik. My answer is also based on 28 years of brainrot. (Wow. I'm not getting any younger....) Please remember English is not my first language so forgive any awkward sentences.
The foundation of OoT Zelink is their interactions and their shared plot points explored in the original game itself: shared destiny, fate, time travel, body dysphoria, duty, sacrifice and choosing the greater good over personal interests.
This particular Zelink incarnation, in my opinion, gets its definitive appeal and gut punch when you consider the plot and symbolism of Majora's Mask and start brainrotting and deducing what happened to both Link and Zelda throughout their respective post-games lives while assuming they never stopped loving each other.
Oot zelink is about all the consequences that came with Zelda's decision to send Link back to his childhood, not knowing there was no childhood for him to go back to and presumably unknowingly splitting time-space for an act of love and mercy, despite her own well being and needs.
Writing all this makes me realize OoT Zelink kind of surfs on a story trope that I usually really dislike: the "misunderstanding". Link could not, in the time frame of the game, completely convince Zelda he is a real grown up. As for Zelda/Sheik, she ultimately chose to see Link rationally rather than listening to her emotions and gut feelings. In the end, she could not believe Link was completely adult. She concluded he wasn't completely free and aware of his choices. She did have feelings for him...but they were illogical and irrelevant in the balance of Link's well being and the greater good. That's why, I believe, she made the decision to send Link back to live his childhood. And aside from the fact her choice shattered reality and influenced the whole LoZ franchise forever, it condemned both herself and Link to a life of isolation, regret, bitterness, probable on/off resentment and...mutual yearning (my fav part)
What was your ask about again?
I will now attempt to answer the question which, fundamentally, can make this ship problematic if taken literally at face value: "Is Link an adult or not?" My answer is: "it's complicated".
His unnatural aging makes him an oddity that cannot be categorized. He fits nowhere and that, in itself, is the tragedy of Link's body dysphoria, a characteristic that makes him my favorite incarnation of Link.
Even though Link did age mentally through the events of Ocarina of Time (Another essay on this topic here), I sadly believe that Link is not completely adult by the end of Ocarina of Time, BUT, he definitely is an adult by the end of Majora's Mask.
Majora's Mask begins with Link leaving Hyrule to find his fairy, Navi. But Navi is not just a character and a z targeting game asset. She's a symbol. The symbol of Link's childhood and innocence. The quest to find Navi in Termina is literally Link trying to find his lost childhood in hopes of living the life Zelda wished for him. But this adventure doesn't make him a child again. On the contrary, Link actually completes his aging process. The aging and maturity Link needs to fully transition to adulthood is gained through the game's masks. (Zeltik actually has a super thorough and clear video on this, I interpret MM the same way as him and he is way more eloquent than me. He also has a lovely British accent. Check it out.)
The Mask makes Link metaphorically grow up. He starts as a prisoner of the deku mask, the only mask possessed by the spirit of a child. This deku child's body is a prison, Link is powerless in that form, no one takes him seriously and he hates it. Next, he acquires the goron and zora masks, which gives him the appearance, power and credibility of an adult. And, at the very end, Link obtains the iconic Fierce Deity Mask, literally his adult face. When he wears it, he not only gains his adult body back but he is so overkill, so powerful, we can deduce its Link's own power fantasy and utter most desire. He is his accomplished self.
How does Link acquire the Fierce Deity Mask? By helping people. By managing schedules, taking responsibilities and fixing relationships. Aka by adulting. The best quest involves helping a man trapped in the body of a child reuniting with his beloved as the world is ending (Anju and Kafei are a OoT Zelink metaphor and i will die on this hill) Bottom line, all the side quests necessary to acquire the Fierce Deity Mask are actions needed to grow up. The moment Link obtains it, his journey towards adulthood is complete. His grief for Navi is complete too. He will never find her because he can never be a child again. But he is still stuck in the wrong body.
For Zelink, Link grew up too late. He did it alone and far away from the Zelda he fell in love with. And he now has to exist with body dysphoria and the pain of belonging nowhere... And having been "mercifully rejected" by his soulmate. And now, with all this in mind the table is set for OoT Zelink angst brainrot 🔥.
Conclusion and going feral over yuri doomed love
As I said before, the pleasure I personally get from OoT Zelink is just thinking of their doomed love, separated by time and space, yearning for one another as they do their best to go on with their lives without ever being able to completely move on. They clearly had full lives, full of challenges but They can never forget and get over one another. Cuz they are f* Zelink!!! They are soulmates separated by time and space and they yearn! And by yearning I mean long term yearning. Yearning that lasts for a lifetime and goes beyond it. Yearning that lasts after death. And that's goth and metal and this is where my creative sandbox is. That's how you get a stuck between life and death Hero's Shade yearning to see his true love one last time. Its how you get Sheik sneaking their way into Hero's Shade plane of existence to find him. This opens the door for stories that can depict OoT Zelink as nuanced and flawed characters who do selfish things to find each other again and I live for those stories. There's so much angst to think about, I'd need another essay to list it. The cherry on the cake of OoT Zelink Angst being Child timeline Zelda
I will end my long ass reply with one last thought concerning Child Timeline Zelda and her heartbreaking angst.
That age gap you mention in your original question. Most people see it instantly with Link and Sheik but if you are a person who headcanons Link unnaturally aged, that age gap still exists between Link and Child Timeline Zelda.
Of course, a talented and creative mind can work around that just like I did here, but here, in this house, it's angst, heartbreak, suffering and....well...yearning. But Child Timeline Zelda is another topic for another time. (I have so many heart breaking prompts with her... I hurt that Zelda out of love, okay....)
I hope this freaky chunk of text made sense and actually answered your question ♥️
Cheers and see you around! And thanks!!
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