#ls colin

It all stilled. There was only the sound of the monstrous wolf's breathing. The beast walked in a short circle when the sound of a portal opened back up. He shifted to try and look, but it vanished before he could. The imp's eye caught him. He froze in fear. She seemed familiar in a way he couldn't place. She snarled, and he thought he heard her growl "Zant" under her breath. He took a step back to hide himself in the trees.

The wolf had stopped, turning to look back at the imp. Her gaze lingered at the trees. She flicked the wolf's ear "There's nothing else here. Giddy up pony boy."

The wolf huffed and rushed off.

He waited a while longer before he came out of hiding, looking around the new world. Everything smelled weird. Half like home, half like nowhere he's known ever before. Like a corruption of them both. The small twili beast huffed and began to wander, searching for somewhere that felt a little closer to home.

2 years later

Link looked carefully at the crossbow, fingers tracing its edges and details. "Ya’ll really didn't have to." He said softly.

Rusl chuckled, "We figured you needed an upgrade in equipment. We all pitched in, it wasn't any trouble, kid."

Shad leaned against his shoulder, "I believe you'll quite enjoy it old boy, I did try to ensure it was durable enough for you."

"It's why he had you carry piles of books around all last week" Ashei said, shaking her head. Shad waved a hand and shushed her.

"Ya’ll could've just asked me about my draw weight?" Link laughed.

"That ruins the point of it being a surprise." Rusl said.

Link's ear twitched. A sound of a distant cry hit the wind, like an echo. He shook his head and smiled at the group. "Thank ya'll. It's a wonderful surprise. I'll cherish it."

"I better see ya practicing," Rusl said, pointing a finger with a playful smile.

"I will!" Link laughed, "When have I ever skipped practice?"

"Fantastic!" Shad announced. His proud, excited posture one Link could only recognize as when a theory had been proven. Link turned to him and raised an eyebrow. Shad grinned, "I had a series of crossbow training targets set up through the village!" 

Link snickered and shook his head as Shad and Ashei tugged him up into town.

--

The Twilit Beast sniffed the air, looking around. He finally caught a faint scent of home again. With an ear-piercing wail, the small beast began walking through the desert. He didn't know why they hadn't even responded to him yet. Surely they could hear him? He cried again. Rumbling deep into the bones of the earth…. He just needed Someone to hear him.

…

Link frowned, looking across the desert sands from the edge of the plateau. "Stalfos?"

"Yep," Auru said, leaning against his post, "The Desert isn't very easily passable regardless, but they've been crossing over to some of the roads nearby. With how they act, ambushing people, you'd think they'd be looking for something."

Link hummed, considering, then nodded. "I'll go."

Link stepped through the sands, looking around carefully. The shifting sands never did well for his ability to track things. The desert winds usually obscured any prints well before he could get to them.

Instead, he let his instincts guide him, wandering, inch by inch, towards Arbiter's Grounds. He fiddled a little with the new crossbow, twirling it in his hand idly. It was a good weight, and it was becoming nicely familiar. Soothing.

A piercing howl.

Link froze.

An ink dark silhouette rose above the sands into view. Eyes wide, he stared at the vision ahead. It couldn't be real. The twilight had been closed to this world. The beast looked up at him. Head tilting.

Link felt his body tense. His finger twitched against the crossbow trigger. The twilit beast sniffed the air. It’s small body tensed in response to Link’s own body language. It howled again, forcing Link to cover his sensitive ears. A stalfos rose from the sands. That explained it. The beast’s cries were summoning stalfos in the absence of other twilit beasts. Link huffed and aimed his crossbow to destroy the stalfos. It shattered into the sands. Another, longer howling cry. More and more began to rise, surrounding him. Link spun, assessing the situation. He needed to deal with the twilight beast. He shot the closest stalfos and turned again to look where the beast had been. It had vanished in the sands. Link let in a deep breath, refocusing. Target practice time, he guessed. 

He aimed and fired bolt after bolt. Soon they had surrounded him, forcing him to twirl in place. Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. A massive stalfos emerged and he fumbled back to hit it repeatedly. 

Something sharp hit his back and he shook himself, tearing away from the stalfos. He shot it point blank, sand weathered bone shattering in his face. He winced and rushed to destroy the rest before they entirely overwhelmed him. 

Eventually, the sands stilled. He tracked his surroundings for any remaining stalfos, wary of another round. Nothing.

He put his crossbow away, eyes shifting over the sand. He sighed heavily and began walking. Idly, he wondered who this lingering beast could be. A dark, traitorous, part of his mind wondered if it could be Midna. That she had somehow broken the mirror in such a way that she had been cast back into their world as a beast. It seemed like such a terrible fate… trapped in a world that wasn’t your own, in a body that wasn’t your own. He’d done it once, he wouldn’t want to do it again. 

Link spotted a bulblin skitter across the sands in the distance. A small object was in its grasp, reflective. The light hitting it too bright to make out the item's details. He frowned. Rushing after, the ranger followed the creature to the edge of their hideout. As quietly as possible, he snuck through the opening. He walked alongside the wall, keeping an eye out for places to hide himself. 

A horn blasted into the air. Link startled, eyes wide. A bulblin on a tower had spotted him and sounded the alarm. Link felt a low, animalistic growl rumble in his chest. It startled him, noting the side effect of being a wolf still lingered, even after two years. 

A bulbin swung at him in his peripheral. He leaped to the side. He pulled out his sword and crashed against the bulblin's weapon. He snarled at it as the creature pushed back. 

The bulblin swung wildly and Link barely had time to consider shielding. Instead, he raised his sword to block. The swing held enough force it knocked his weapon out or his hands. His hand stung with the hit and he was forced to retreat further in. He pulled out his crossbow and shot. The bulblin crashed to the ground. 

Link spun and fired at another bulbin rushing toward him. Quickly retrieving his sword and putting it away, he pushed through the hideout with his crossbow. He dodged around the crumbling stone structures. An arrow lodged itself into his shoulder. He growled and trained his crossbow on the archer. The bolt whipped through the air and it fell. Soon enough, the hideout was cleared. The only sound was the howls of the winds.

He huffed, sighing heavily, and fumbled to sit on the ground. He looked over his shoulder. He fumbled through his supplies and grabbed a chu potion and water. He pulled his gloves off and dashed water over his hands to rinse them. He cradled the potion in his lap as he snapped the arrow shaft. He closed his eyes and fumbled with the rest of the arrow to dislodge it. Then he pulled. A cry escaped his throat. He quickly downed the potion. He tossed the arrow to the ground and sighed, feeling around the edges of the wound to ensure the potion had closed it.

He washed his hands again, pulling his gloves back on. He stood, huffing. He walked through the hideout and looked through the bulblin's acquired goods. He grabbed anything that looked like it had been stolen off of Hyrulians. Auru and Shad could help return them. Eventually, he found what he was actually looking for. A small reflective shard. A fractured piece of the mirror. The center, judging by the triangle design in the back. Link tumbled it in his hands, frowning. It was a dangerous thing to consider keeping. But… he had to know what the bulbins were planning to use it for. He pocketed it and began the rest of his journey towards Arbiter’s Grounds.

He stared at the empty space where the mirror once belonged. His mind replayed Midna's Farewell again and again. Trying to determine what it meant. If there was some secret he'd missed these past few years. He was sure he wouldn't be able to figure it out any better now than he could then. 

He shook himself and looked down at the ground. The majority of the mirror’s shattered fragments had been ground into dust. Long since mixed with the sands. Link was only able to find two more tiny fragments worth picking up. He sighed, looking across the horizon to see if the twili beast was still out there. Nothing.  

He turned around to go back down and get back to Auru. Give up for the day. The dark beast stood at the stairway. Link took in a sharp breath.

The twili beast sniffed the air, inching forward. It really was small. Too small, Link thought. Nearly half the size of the beasts he had encountered in the Twilight. The creature’s size made him uneasy. This one was unique. Too unknown.  Link lowered himself, raising his hands slowly. Hopefully, he could keep it calm enough to capture it peacefully. Midna nor Zant were here- If anything harmed it, he was certain the twili trapped within the beastly form would perish. …How he intended to contain the creature, he had no idea.

“Hello,” He said softly as the creature inched closer still. He extended his hand slightly, and it flinched back. Link stilled again. “Sorry. I just want to get ya’ home, ok? It’s a'ight.” 

The beast made a whine of a sound. Link made a soft shushing sound, much like he used with the goats or Epona when they startled. Suddenly, it rushed him, and Link yelped, barreled over by the small beast. A wash of panic made him fumble for the closest weapon in his person. A flash of light hit the steel of his sword.

The beast screeched loudly and pushed off of him, racing away. Link rolled over, groaning. He swallowed, watching the beast rush off into the distance, vanishing from sight once again. Link sighed heavily.

-

Link hit target after target. Malo blew the whistle. He turned to the kids watching. Colin and Luda clapped. Beth meanwhile, was absorbing herself in painting yet another target. Link sighed.

"Hmmmm, I'd give you a silver metal." Malo said finally.

"I'm not done counting the points!" Talo shouted. "...He got silver," he grumbled. He shoved his little brother, "know it all." Malo shrugged, smiling.

Link chuckled and walked over to sit next to them on Renado's porch, "Not too bad."

"If you see that monster again you'll wanna be even better," Malo insisted. 

"I'm not shooting it," Link huffed as he checked over the weapon and put it away.

"I could sell you a net-bolt?"

Link raised an eyebrow.

Malo pouted, "I'll have one in stock soon enough."

Colin leaned over "Are you really going to go look for it again? 

"Of course he will," Beth interjected, "It's like his job to find monsters now."

"Isn't his job still herding?" Talo asked.

"Yeah but he travels to Hyrule allll the time. Like when the Zora needed help defending their river from monsters? Or the thing with the Gorons?"

"Yeah, but-"

Link rolled his eyes as Beth and Talo continued to argue over his job title. Luda scooted over to sit next to Link. She halfway whispered, "Do you think the twilight will come back?"

He straightened up, glancing over the horizon. The sun was low, casting a hazy orange through the dusty town. "No." Link said. "It's never coming back."

"But you saw one of the twilight monsters."

Link's brows furrowed. "It's probably been out there since the portal closed." 

Luda nodded, looking around, "Are you sure you can catch it?"

He glanced at her, "It's not going to come back and hurt ya'll. Any of ya'll. I won't let it."

Luda smiled softly.

"And Colin will protect ya'll too." Link winked. Luda giggled.

Colin looked up, startled, "I'm doing what? What am I doing? Don't sign me up for things-" Link laughed, reaching over to ruffle Colin's hair. He fumbled and squeaked, his voice cracking, "What?! Linnnk!"

Renado opened the door, "Link. We need to talk." Several of the children "ooo"-ed, laughing to themselves as Link stood. He followed Renado in, shutting the door behind him.

"I just got word that some Gorons have spotted a creature just like what you explained."

"What?" Link frowned, "I saw it in the desert- there can't be another, right?"

Renado shook his head, "I have no idea. But, it seems like it was following the paths you took. Is there some reason they would do that?"

He shrugged, bewildered.

Renado frowned, "Well, I want you to be cautious about this. Whatever is controlling this beast is searching for you as much as you are it."

Link closed his eyes and nodded, he glanced back, towards the entry to Death Mountain. "Someone should get the kids back home before dark."

"If you want to follow that creature, the kids will be safe with me. I'll send for Rusl in the morning."

He furrowed his brows, tapping his foot. "Okay. Thank ya'll"

Renado nodded, "Take care."

Link headed out the door and started walking out towards the mountain. The kids jeered for answers to what Renado told him, voices overlapping. "Ya'll're staying overnight, if I ain't back in the morning Rusl will take ya'll home."

The response had the kid's blinking. Beth, Talo and Malo all started talking amongst themselves.

Colin stood up and started following him. "What happened?"

"Some Gorons spotted the Twilit beast."

"Really?" Colin frowned, pausing. He blinked and jogged to catch up to Link’s quick stride. "I can help."

Link frowned "I don't know…"

"You wanna catch it, right? I can make a like… a little corral! So that all ya gotta do is herd it there."

Link's mind flicked back to every time he'd been cornered in a cage with those beasts. Every violent throw and crash. No, he never wanted to be in that situation again. Even if the cage was a fence or rock.

"Not that simple with these." Link said quietly, "Er. Thanks for the offer"

"Well… what can I do?"

"Stay with the others and stay safe." Link said.

Colin kicked a rock, frowning, "I can help you. Let me help."

Link stopped in front of the mountain pathway and sighed. "Look. I know ya wanna follow my footsteps but I want ya'll to make yer own. Ya hear?"

Colin crossed his arms.

Link looked up at the sky, then back to Colin, "Fine. Fine." He considered, then handed Colin his sword. "Be careful."

Colin went wide-eyed and nodded.

"Only use it if it runs at ya." Link looked over the mountain path. "You're gonna help me rope it. It moves faster than a goat, and it's legs are longer so ya gotta be quick. Okay?"

"Roping. Got it!"

Link sighed, taking his rope from his pouch and handing that to Colin. Supplies divided, Link started the climb up the mountain. "If we can, I wanna be gentle about it."

Colin frowned softly, "Why are you so concerned? Haven't you fought these before?"

Link swallowed thickly, frowning. "They're not just monsters" He whispered, "They're people. Transformed. Trapped like that."

"...Oh." Colin said quietly.

They continued their walk in silence for a moment. An uneasy air around them. Link bumped Colin with his elbow, gently. Colin swerved to bump back into him bodily. Link chuckled lightly and threw an arm around his shoulders and squeezed. Colin leaned in.

He looked up, "Do you think you can find a way to help the person go back to normal, Link?"

"I'm gonna try. I gotta. Th- there's no one else in this world I know of who can."

Colin nodded.

The twilit beast stood in front of the mountain pathway. A dark mass looming against the red background of rock. It looked like the same one, small and wary. It was huffing its breaths.

"Ah. Hello." Link muttered. 

The creature wailed. Link doubled over, covering his ears. Colin shook himself, then looked at Link with wide, concerned eyes.

Link growled and nodded to Colin to go ahead. He walked slowly backwards while Colin began walking up. He made soothing sounds, gingerly offering a hand. The creature sniffed the air, then rushed forward.

"Woah-woah-woah!" Link said, fumbling backwards and slipping with the downward slope. He fell on his back.

"Link!" Colin shouted. A rope cracked and the creature fell with a sharp squeal. 

Link sat up, "I'm ok!" He inched closer to the beast. It snarled and bent to chew at the rope Colin had been able to wrap around the hind legs. Colin rushed forward. The creature snarled and thrashed as Colin came closer. 

"Take a step back," Link said, frowning. 

The beast seemed to relax as soon as Colin stepped back. Good… he hushed and soothed the beast. Slowly, he raised a hand to the creature’s shoulder and rested it there. The creature was tense, but allowed it. Link let out a soft sigh. 

Assured he wasn’t going to be mauled, Link took the other end of the rope and swiftly tied it around the creature’s middle and chest, creating a harness of sorts, then released the tie around its legs. 

"Why is it letting you do that?"

"No idea," Link muttered. He stepped back and the creature scrambled to a stand, shaking itself. It walked up to Link and inspected him. Link froze.

It lifted up to its hind legs and Link rushed to grab the forearms before it could do anything. The beast squealed and wriggled. Link let go. He took a step back as it dropped back to all fours. "Okay" Link muttered, looking at the beast.

"Now what?" Colin asked.

Link stared at the creature. The first and only person he knew would have the answers would be inaccessible. He was in over his head already. …Rusl was going to scream if he found out.

"We don't tell Rusl."

Colin snorted. "Okay."

"I..uh… I'll ask the Princess for some leads?" 

"What are you going to do with the beast?"

Link shook his head, eyes wide. "...I don't know. I don't trust it out of my sight."

Colin nodded.

Link shook his head and began walking back down the mountain. The beast trotting circles around him. He nearly tripped on the rope a few times. Colin giggled.

"Maybe this is its new plan for murder" Link muttered as he stepped around the rope again.

They returned to Kakariko quickly, and Colin rushed ahead to tell them the beast was captured. Link stood at the outskirts of town with the beast. 

Renado walked out and towards him, seemingly bewildered. "So you caught it."

"Yeah… any ideas on how to undo dark magic?"

Renado frowned, "Perhaps bathe it in the spirit's spring?"

Link looked over to the pool ahead. "Hm." 

Renado sighed, "I don't work in that type of healing. I- I believe your best chance is to see the Princess if the spring does nothing."

Link nodded.

Renado gave the creature a wary look. "It's strange, how it has accepted you…"

Link shrugged, and started walking with it to the spring. As they hit the edge of the water the creature screamed and pulled. 

"Hey, hey, it's okay- I won't let it hurt ya- it's okay." Link knelt next to the beast. It barreled into him and climbed onto his shoulder. Link yelped and fumbled. He struggled to hold it in a way that secured it and himself.

 Link wrapped a hand around the creature’s lower end and chest. He pulled it from his shoulders and held it against his chest. Seemingly assured that Link wouldn’t toss it to the water, it nearly purred and snuggled into him. He took a moment to focus his breaths and calm himself fully. 

“Okay. Good. I’mma stand, okay?” He looked over the creature. He had no idea how much it understood. Even if it did understand words, there was no guarantee it understood Hylian. But the creature was calm enough. He grunted and slowly inched his way up to a stand, holding the creature against his chest like a rather large cat… or a child. It panicked slightly as he lifted it high enough from the ground. It made a sharp screeching sound. Link winced, “Sh, shh, it’s ok. I’m sorry-” After some soothing, the beast settled back against his chest. Link sighed, relaxing.

He looked back at the light spirit's spring. The twilit beast shuffled and curled its long upper limbs around his neck. Link sighed. There went that idea.

-

The human smelled like home. More overwhelmingly so than anything or anyone else. The twili beast clung to him as he walked away from the waters.

The human was quiet and gentle, soothing. He had a hard time remembering why, but it felt safe. Familiar. Especially now that he knew the human didn't want to hurt him like so many others had. 

Maybe the human would be able to bring him home… He missed home.

-

Link had arranged for everyone to get home with Rusl. He finally walked over to Epona to start their journey to the Castle. Epona reared, unenthusiastic about the twilit beast. The beast hissed at her in response. Link groaned. He pulled a blanket from Epona’s pouch and swaddled the beast. It whined and wrigled. 

"There. Declawed. Better?"

Epona snorted and defiantly turned her body away. Link groaned loudly. "Fine. We'll walk." He huffed to his horse. Epona winnied. Link was sure it was a laugh of victory.

The twili beast was difficult to manage while he walked, twirling and wiggling. He kept a firm grip on it, offering vague reassuring sounds when he could.

Eventually, the light dwindled, and Link stopped in a section of trees in Hyrule Field for the night. He looked at the twili beast. It wriggled and made a squeal of a sound. Link frowned softly at it.

"If I let go, am I gonna have to chase ya back down?" He mumbled to it, eyes narrowing.

The beast made another squealing sound. Link sighed and shuffled through his pack. He took out a drink of water for himself. He glanced at the beast. 

"Do ya'll eat? Never saw one'a ya' do it. Let alone the face." He considered. It might be easier to pass the creature off as a weird cat if it has the right facial structure under that mask. He gingerly reached to the sides of the plate over the face and pulled it up. A maw of sharp, crowded teeth greeted him. Behind white blade-like teeth was pure inky darkness. Link's eyes went wide and he gingerly slid the mask back into place. "Ah" he muttered. 

That certainly couldn't be passed off as a cat.

Link took some time to fashion a carrying harness as the hours dwindled and the beast devoured his supplies of food. He kept careful watch of it. Yet. The creature never wandered far from him regardless. He didn't want to consider its reasoning for that.

He settled on his finishing touch on the harness and strapped the beast in to confirm it fit. With a yawn, he looped the rope around the harness straps and tied its end to a thick tree branch. 

"Stay." He told it. The beast whined. With a gentle shake of his head, he settled next to an adjacent tree and closed his eyes.

Link woke to the sound of snarling and growling. The tree branch was nearly entirely gnawed through. Barely hanging together. Link fumbled to stand, and unhooked the beast, tugging it back before it could break something. Link sighed in relief. The twili beast whined louder and louder. 

"Sh! Sh." Link soothed in a panic. He sighed and picked the creature up. The creature relaxed. Strange.

Link shook his head, bouncing lightly as he looked around. He finally found a thicker tree branch and tied it back up. He slumped next to it and closed his eyes with a light grumble.

He couldn't have been asleep for long when he woke to the sound of crashing. He startled up and stared at the sight of the twili beast happily trotting up to him. The tree limb dragged along. Link stared at it. The creature pushed a clawed hand-paw against his chest. Link blinked his bleary eyes a few more times, then sighed. He dropped to the ground again and allowed the beast to crawl up against him.

-

When he was finally able to get to Castle Town, he firmly decided it was a nightmare. The city was always busy, and he had never learned how to navigate it with any grace. But the usual chatter and crowds was nothing compared to this. People were everywhere. Link could barely take a step without having to apologize for bumping into someone. No one else apologized for bumping into him. Which was often.

Amongst it all, there were games, balloons, booths of various wonders and merchants. Music and noise was everywhere.

The beast had been swaddled up like a baby on his chest, obscured in tons of fabric. It squirmed and whined and Link struggled to hush it in the chaos. Its claws were grinding against his chainmail and likely tearing his shirt.

He bumped into someone going the opposite direction. As he began to mumble another apology he noticed their mask, like a demonic boar. Link couldn't help the scream that erupted from his lips.

"Woah, you okay?"

The beast whined, pitching up into that dangerous tone. Link fumbled and scrambled through the crowd pushing through with reckless abandon. People were complaining and yelling at him now, but he needed to get out out out-

He stumbled into an alleyway and backed himself into the finally empty space. He wheezed his breaths, covering his ears. Despite that, he could still hear the twili beast's increased whines, and the music and the chatter- Why were they always so much more sensitive- he didn't want to hear anything anymore, why why- A cat mewed. 

Link opened his eyes. A white fluffy cat. Telma's cat. He took a deep breath. The cat rubbed against him, and he leaned into it, keeping his ears covered. He took in another breath. Soon enough, he was able to pick the cat up and snuggle her against him. The twilit beast struggled to look around, and Link lowered his head to its, resting gently. 

The cat's purrs seemed to lull them both, and Link sighed. He kissed the cat's head. "Bless ya'll" he mumbled, "Thanks."

The cat mowed.

"Is Telma's just as crowded?"

The cat made a meerurp sound, seemingly in the affirmative. Link sighed. There went his hope Telma's could be a familiar place to stay until the crowd waned. If it waned. "...Can ya show me a way through to the castle?"

The cat purr-chirped, and hopped from his arms, trotting to the edge of his small sanctuary, toward the crowd. Link sighed and glanced at the creature. The twili deserved to be released from its beastal prison. He could brave a crowd for it. He stood up and followed the expectant cat.

They weaved through the crowd a little easier with their white tailed guide. The cat seemed to act as a path maker, the crowd parting more easily for her. Link was a little jealous. He almost lost her twice, but the cat was patient, and seemed to notice every time the crowd had pushed him back.

Eventually, he was at the backside of the castle. Rather than brave any of the gates, the cat, and ultimately Link, leaped over boxes and roofs to climb over the edge of the wall. Once they found a door that led inside, Link knelt down and petted the cat. "Thank you so much. I promise, when I'm done here, I'll come visit Telma's and give you a whole fish."

The cat purred, rubbing her body against his legs. Link stood, checking on the twili beast, which squirmed and grumbled. He sighed and entered the building. 

The castle itself had become slightly easier to navigate over time. Slightly. But the halls were quieter than the streets, and that made a world of difference in his ability to think. He reached the main hall and looked around. The Princess was standing in front of a window, hands clasped behind her back.

Link was about to announce himself, until the twili beast squealed loudly. Zelda startled, eyes wide. Her hand had immediately gone to the rapier hilt on her hip. Link raised his hands.

"Link! Goodness- you can request an audience now, you don't have to sneak around like you had-" She frowned as her gaze settled to his chest and the bundle secured to it, "...Is that a baby?"

"Er…not exactly?" Link muttered. "Uh… don't scream or attack us, please?" 

"Link of Ordania, what did you do?" It did not sound like a question but rather a demand. Link grimaced.

He undid the wraps of fabric and Zelda gasped. "Why did you bring that thing here?! Where did you find it?"

"It followed me from the desert, I think." Link pulled the creature free from the harness and it shook itself. "They were all twili… people. I- I just need to figure out how to turn it back."

Zelda frowned, looking at it. She inched forward and gingerly raised a hand towards the creature, hovering just above. "Do you know how this was created?"

"It's Zant's magic. I'm not sure. Probably similar to when it turned me into a wolf. The Sols in the Twilight healed the ones that were halfway transformed. But… we obviously don't have those."

"The Sols… were light, yes?" Zela hummed, placing her hands behind her back again. "Your triforce should be sufficient."

"Er… What?"

"The triforce. Channel your energy through it and together we should be able to generate a healing light with it. We just must be careful not to generate too much radiant power and harm the twili."

"I- I don't know if I can do that- what if I do it wrong?"

The princess shook her head, "You will succeed. You must."

Link sighed "I'll try."

Zelda nodded firmly and placed her hand on top of Link's. Both of their hands glowed. Link's eyes widened and he glanced nervously up at her. Her eyes were closed, concentrating. Link looked down at the twili beast in his arms. It seemed uneasy. He focused on the creature, trying to mentally search for whatever healing property was hidden in his hand.

"Don't overthink it," Zelda said softly, "just feel the energy flowing through your veins and soul and focus it."

Link nodded once, closing his eyes to get a better sense of what she meant. His hands were warm. And sweaty… Hopefully the Princess didn't notice-

"Your mind is loud for someone who's always so quiet," Zelda muttered. "Quiet your mind and just focus."

"Ya'll're reading my mind?"

"Link."

Link bit his lip and furrowed his eyebrows. He took in a deep breath and refocused. The twili beast was so nervous and confused, he could tell. He just wanted to explain it would all be okay but he knew he would never find the right words. Instead, he lowered his forehead against its. He focused his breaths to calm. His heartbeat became a gentler drum. He almost felt a electric warm tingle course through his body and it shifted, focused through his hand the longer he held it hovered over the twilit beasts back. 

Zelda smiled when a gentle light shone around them. It grew in strength until Link felt the shape of the creature change against him. He let the light linger for a moment, before he opened his eyes.

A twili stared back at him. Red and yellow eyes surrounded by dark purple. The twili was young, he was sure of it. So young. Link felt something in his chest sink like a stone. How could Zant do this to such a young child- How many child soldiers could Link have fought without realizing?

Link didn't even notice Zelda taking a step away, he just scooped the child up against his chest and curled up with him, slipping to the floor.

"Do you speak?" Zelda asked the twili quietly. 

"Speak?" The child repeated, voice odd and just like Midna's. Link struggled to keep himself together. Feeling tears pinprick against his eyes.

The child's hands raised to Link’s cheeks, using some twili language to ask him a question.

Zelda hummed and leaned down, "Do you have a name?" 

The child turned to look at Zelda, keeping his little hands on Link's cheeks. He continued on in that incomprehensible language.

"Ah...probably a hard question to answer with this linguistic barrier," Zelda said, mostly to herself.

Link took in sharp breaths. A child. A child.

"Oh, this might work- how old are you?" Zelda asked, offering her fingers to count, "Five? Six?"

The twili held up three.

Zelda looked stunned, "That can't be possible- that must not be right."

Link stared.

The child frowned, looking back and forth between them. He looked increasingly worried.

Link fumbled to hug the child properly, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry-" He whispered. His voice cracked and disappeared on him. He cried and hugged the child more, hoping it somehow made up for the fact he couldn't fix it all.

The child made a strange hushing sound. Matching the rhythm of his own soothing tone, just slightly off with his twili voice. Link hiccuped and cried harder.

Zelda stood there, hovering awkwardly. Finally, she knelt down and placed a hand on Link's back, polite and calm. 

Eventually, Link found a way to calm down. He placed a small kiss to the child's head and rubbed his eyes. 

"We should start seeking a way to return him to his home…" Zelda said softly. "I will research the archives. Will you look through the rest of Hyrule for anything that might find evidence of twili portals?"

Link nodded.

"We just need someone to take care of him while we investigate… I have a handmaiden who is discreet and polite she might-"

"I'll keep him." Link said, sounding firmer than he intended.

"Are you serious? You'll be wandering Hyrule, it could get dangerous."

"I'm keeping him. I'll keep him safe. I know twili better than anyone." Link lifted his head and looked at Zelda. She frowned.

The child demanded something in that twili language, patting his face. Link smiled sadly.

Zelda huffed lightly, "At least meet with the handmaid. But I will leave the decision to you. I will trust your judgment."

Link nodded, "Thank ya…"

Zelda turned back to look out the window. He sighed and stood, rocking the child. "What is all that commotion outside anyway?"

"The Festival of Light… I extended an invitation to you. I assume it missed you while you were traversing Hyrule with your new companion."

"Oh."

"Perhaps you two would enjoy the fruit balloons." Zelda said, turning and smiling at him, "They will be launching them shortly. I see you have a crossbow. I can lead you to a good shooting position."

"...Shooting balloons?"

Zelda grinned. "Come."

Link looked at the child, then shrugged, rushing to follow Zelda. She led them through the halls and outside, until they reached a quiet, brilliant view. Zelda took up her bow and a small object. She tossed it into the air and hit it with an arrow, causing a shower of light. Link blinked. The child laughed and cheered. Suddenly, more balloons began being tossed into the air all across parts of Castle town. Larger than Zelda's. 

Zelda gently took the child from his arms, "Go, shoot as many as you can"

Link fumbled to take his crossbow out and aimed for a balloon. When it popped it exploded into a brilliant firework. Link laughed lightly, "Who came up with this?"

Zelda hummed, "It's an age old Castle Town tradition… I don't know."

He nodded, aiming and shooting another balloon. Glad that the explosion was quiet and distant. The child laughed and cheered, and Link's smile grew. They spent a short while this way, before Link realized he was almost entirely dominating the scene, catching all the balloons before others could. He ultimately decided to give whoever else in Castle Town that shot the balloons a greater chance, putting down his crossbow and sitting down. 

Zelda sat down next to him. The child tumbled down from her arms and latched onto Link. The lights showered over Castle town and Link took the moment to relax and forget the turmoil brewing in his chest. The child leaned against him, oohing and awing at the showers of light. Link smiled.

-

Link fiddled with the shards of the twilight mirror as he walked back through the sands. He was so tired. The child stared at him, eyes bright. Link really needed to figure out what this kid’s name was somehow, he’s nearly spent half a year with this kid- or… maybe it didn’t matter anymore, with his inevitable departure so soon. Link smiled and ruffled his bright red hair, “We’ll get you home soon enough, yah?” 

Link’s gaze settled to Arbiter’s ground, expression falling tiredly. He paused and looked at the powder blue sands in the hourglass they’d retrieved from the Temple of Time. The Skull Kid had put up a fight to stop him from taking it out. He wasn’t exactly sure if this would even work. What if the mirror was just. Broken forever. What if it sent him to the wrong place-

“Ling” the child said, shoving his face. He blinked and looked at him. “Going home too?”

“What?” Link frowned, “Yeah, eventually. We’ll get you home first, then I’ll go home.”

“No” The kid shook his head repeatedly, “No no, that’s wrong.”

Link hoisted him up on his hip, brushing sand out of his hair. “What do ya mean?”

“Home!” he demanded, grabbing Link’s sleeves and shaking him slightly, “Ling is going home too!” 

Link stared at him, eyes wide, “I- no” he said softly, “I can’t live in the twilight realm with ya’ll- That’s not my home. I-”

“No!” The twili screeched, eyes welling with tears, Link winced, struggling to cover an ear with one hand and hold the source of the noise in the other.  “Ling’s home with me! Ling’s home with ME”

The ground rumbled. Clouds began to darken overhead.

“I’m sorry-” Link croaked, “I’m sorry- If- If this works I can visit but-” The toddler screamed and cried, tiny hands scrunched up in his shirt. “Hey- hey! It’s gonna be ok!” The earth rumbled again and Link fumbled to gain balance. He turned his head just as the massive skeletal form of the Stallord rose from the sands. Lightning flashed.

Link scrambled to place the screaming child in the carrying harness, ignoring the continued screaming and crying. The blue sand hourglass slipped from his hands in his rush. He pulled out his crossbow, fumbling backwards. The Stallord roared in time with his child’s scream and loomed forward at him. Link really wanted to swear repeatedly right now. He bit his tongue and focused instead on dealing with what was in front of him.

The boy continued screaming in twili. The Stallord exhaled molten rock toward him, he shot crossbow bolts at them, shattering them before they could reach him. He struggled to focus with all the noise. It made his heart leap into his throat and his eyes haze. He heaved his breaths, struggling to determine what to shoot and when. The fossil of a creature raised a hand and Link scrambled back, shooting it before it could do whatever it aimed to do. Something crunched under foot. 

The Stallord’s hand shattered. Soon he was working off muscle memory and pattern. Targets found and destroyed. The Stallord crumbled. His child wailed again, and shattered bones reformed. Link swallowed, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry-” He said, kissing his child’s head as he fumbled backward as far as he could, until the sands under him dared to drag him down to join the rest of the skeletal creatures it created and consumed.

Rinse and repeat. The Stallord roared and dragged itself closer. The child shrieked and curled up against his chest, suddenly going quiet. Skeletal flaming heads flew towards him, and he scrambled to fight them off. One bulled right into him, and he winced, knocking it back away with the edge of the crossbow. 

The child shouted in alarmed twili. It sounded so much like “Papa!” Link nearly choked. He placed a hand on the child’s head in an attempt to shield him, and focused on the monster ahead. Eventually. Finally, it fell. Silence stretched in the air. The fossil bones became one with the sand. Link swallowed thickly. 

“Okay? Okay?” The kid asked, shaking his sleeve. Link took in a deep breath.

“Yeah” He whispered, “Ya’ll a’ight?”

He nodded quietly. The child snuggled in against him and Link sighed, pressing a few kisses to the top of his head, “Okay.”

Link looked around them, and his eyes landed on shattered glass and a patch of scattering blue sands. “Wait-” He gasped and fumbled to grab a bottle, hurriedly pushing sand into it. “No no no no-”

“It’s okay!” the child said, reaching out to Link’s arms, “Sand can be sand!”

“You don’t- you don’t understand-” Link looked around the sands, before corking the bottle, “This is the last idea we have to get you home! This is it! I- I can’t just turn back time on my own, this is it! I can’t go back and stop Midna from destroying our one connection- I- I can’t…”

The twili stared. Link swallowed, rubbing his eyes and dropping his hands to his sides. “I promised I’d get you home.” Link sighed and dropped to sit on the ground propping his head up with his hands. The child reached over and pushed his hands away from his eyes and onto his cheeks. Link opened his eyes, bleary and red. He grabbed his nose. Link smiled just slightly.

“Can we go?” he asked, brows furrowed and serious, “I don’t wanna be here anymore”

Link swallowed and stood up.

“We’re looking wrong.” The twili grumbled, turned to look where Link was facing.

“Huh? Where should we be going?” Link whispered. The child pointed over Link’s shoulder. Toward the forested distance of Hyrule and Ordon beyond it.

Link considered him for a moment, then sighed, turning around. “Got it…” He glanced backward at Arbiter’s Grounds one more time, and started walking home. He put away the bottle of blue sands in his pocket, brows furrowing as he dragged his fingers over the edge of the mirror shard there. …Later. Link determined. When he knew for certain it could work and work well.

4 years later

The twili raced around the goatpen chasing his little auntie around with a laugh. Rusl and Uli’s daughter squealed as she turned a corner and raced behind her big brother.

“Colin! Colin! Protect me! Aror is gonna turn me into a chu!”

Colin giggled as he lifted his broom higher, out of the kid’s reach. He turned back and forth trying to look at her, “Oh? How’s he gonna do that?”

“RAH!” Aror exclaimed, teeth bared and sharp. “Lemme at ‘er!”

“Why would I do that?” Colin asked, tilting his head.

“Becauuuuse,” Aror leaned back, “She stole the last piece of pie!”

The teenager gasped, looking down at the six year old, “Kiri! How could you.” 

“It’s good!” she said, smiling.

“And you didn’t even ask,” Colin shook his head, “Ok Aror, chu time.”

Aror laughed, racing around Colin to grab the girl and tickle her. Colin glanced up and pointed, “Link’s back!”

Aror turned and smiled, “Papa!” He tossed Kiri up at Colin. 

Colin yelped and caught his sister. “Aror, careful!”

Link waved at them all as he walked over. The twili leaped at him and wrapped his arms around him. Link laughed and spun with him, “How’s it been?” 

“Good!” Aror exclaimed with a grin. “Well, mostly. Kiri ate the last piece of pie.”

He shook his head with a light chuckle. Aror snuggled into him and hummed, "What did you find in Hyrule?"

Link hummed, "Not much, some bulblins were harassin' travelers in Hyrule Field." 

"Did'ya stop anywhere?" Aror asked with a grin.

"I ain't bringing presents every time I take a trip to Hyrule" Link laughed, ruffling Aror's bright red hair.

"The goats were good while you were out, only one escaped and I got it before it could run past the Mayor's!" Colin said.

"Oh, nice! Don't go stealing my job under me, Rusl will be sad nobody caught onta smithing."

Colin laughed and shook his head, "No way, Aror's gonna take over yer job."

Link giggled. "Really?"

Aror grinned, "The goats love me."

"He's magic!" Kiri said with a cheer.

Link smiled and hugged him tightly, "Yeah he is. Now…. Who wants to pick some more berries for a new pie?" 

Colin made a subtle x with his hands, shaking his head, while Kiri and Aror whooped and cheered. Link set Aror down and the pair raced off. He winked at Colin "Ya don't gotta eat it."

"No, but I gotta deal with the Sugar Rush!" Colin whined.

Link made a mock helpless shrug and started following after the children.

…

Link's brows furrowed as he looked over the bottle of sand. It had long since been carefully sifted, finally pure blue. He moved the mirror fragment over onto the hand mirror frame he'd gotten. He poured the blue powder over the empty space and drew lines through it. He glanced back and forth between an old book and the lines.

Zelda had told him this was the best record of the symbols in the mirror that her library had. 

"Hey Papa did'ya want any-" Aror's voice cut off. "What are you doing?"

Link closed the book abruptly and turned around in his seat "Nothing much. Pie sounds good, though. Do ya want help getting a slice?"

"No, what is this?" Aror stepped forward and looked over the blue dust and the handheld mirror. He tilted his head, “I know this, where is this from?"

Link frowned softly, "Aror… I-"

His golden and red eyes flickered over Link’s face. His ears pinned back. "You're still trying to get rid of me."

"What? No never!" Link stood up, hands reaching to brush a hair out of the twili's face. Aror grabbed the mirror off the desk and backed away. Link pulled his hand back, "Aror, I promise that's not it."

He shook his head "I thought ya'll stopped trying to-" He blinked and rubbed his eyes. "Why else wouldn't ya'll tell me you were still looking for a way there?" He made a pitched whine.

"Bud, I'm just trying to find a way to get you home-"

"I thought I was home!" Aror screeched, he tossed the mirror frame. "But you apparently don't want me here!" 

It all shattered. A dark pool flooded around the floor. Link's gaze was focused on Aror. "No, no- I love you! I want you to ha-" Link stepped forward and slipped over the edge of darkness. Blue eyes went wide. 

Aror gasped. The boy scrambled to grab his hand but fingers slipped and transformed into a paw. He let go, fear rippling through him.

The beast with blue eyes tumbled into darkness and the portal closed with a hum of dark power. Aror stilled. The beast was gone. …His dad had turned into that. His papa was gone.

"Papa?" He slammed his hands against the floor. "PAPA!" The earth rumbled around him as he screamed.

"Aror?! Aror are you alright?!" Colin shouted into the house. Footsteps thundering across wood.

-