#silverdragonms

And now Wild was hurt because of it. It didn't even matter that he was wearing topaz earrings that lessened damage taken from lightning when he jumped in front of the blow; because he was still wounded and breathless all because Hyrule couldn't do a single thing right.

He didn't mean to freeze up. He didn't mean to panic. They've dealt with ambushes before, but this one startled him. It was a Lynel with the likes of something Hyrule had never seen. It was larger than his own. Meaner. Their eyes filled with malace and bloodthirst. It had charged at them suddenly, previously hiding in the thick groves of trees around them, it's black fur blending in perfectly with the shadows and night sky.

It was closest to Hyrule, galloping with a single goal, and that was to drive it's massive spear through Hyrule's chest. Any shield Hyrule had would have been peirced through if he attempted to block, and he could all too easily imagine himself trampled under those hooves... so he froze up in terror, completely unsure of what to do until Legend screamed his name.

And at first, he thought he was being clever by remembering he had magic.

But it was stupid to cast Thunder, especially as panicked as he was.

He misjudged his magic output, and instead of anything close to helpful and controlled, a storm of lighting appeared all around him... not only hitting the beast but also any of his friends who were too close.

Sky and Wild were too close. He heard Wild's scream and stopped the spell, but he wasn't quick enough. Sure, the Lynel layed dead and steaming on the ground, but whatever victory he could have felt was quickly replaced with terror so much stronger than the terror of a giant monster charging at you. Wild was crumpled over Sky, shielding him with his body, and his left arm wounded with spiraling, jagged burns.

And in that moment, all Hyrule could think about was how disappointing he was. How pathetic of a hero he turned out to be. He seemed to be the only one in the group that didn't know what he was doing and he wasn't even the youngest or the smallest.

He felt like his entire life he'd been living by the skin of his teeth. Surviving from freak luck. Winning on whims. But the others? They're so much larger and better than what he could ever be and none of them could ever had made such a stupid mistake like the one Hyrule just made.

And his vision blurred. His chest hurt. His ears rung like his heartbeat was replaced with wardrums. He didn't know what moment, what look, what gasp, caused his body to move, only that before he blinked he was standing there at the the mess he made, and after the cold bark of an unfamiliar tree pressed against his back as he sat on the roots, knees to his chin and hands snuffling his own cries.

He could hear voices calling out for his name; they were looking for him. The closer the voices got, the more he felt trapped like a fairy who really didn't want to be put in a jar. If he weren't weak from the sobs trying to rip through his chest or blind from the tears streaming from his eyes, he would stand and run further. To where? He didn't know. Somewhere where there wasn't anyone to endanger. Somewhere where he wasn't a burden. Perhaps that old man he met, all alone in that cave who had nothing but a sword to give, was onto something.

The crack of a twig peirced through his missery, prompting his eyes to shoot up at the cause of the sound. He had hoped the others would give up on searching for him and deem him the lost cause that he certainly was, but of course Legend stood there anyways. Hyrule couldn't bring himself to look at his predecessor in the face, too cowardly to see proof of his worthlessness on the face of someone he almost considered a best friend.

He kept his head burried in his knees, biting the sleeve of his undershirt.

"Wild's okay, if you were wondering."

The words were like a knife between the ribs. Hyrule flinched, and Legend sighed as he stepped closer.

"No scares or anything. The idiot isn't even upset with you, he's actually impressed and wants to see you demonstrate the spell again. Sky is only a bit ruffled, but no harm done."

Legend paused, then joined the unresponsive Hyrule by sitting against the tree. Their shoulders just barely touched, and it felt like sandpaper.

"Everyone else... we're worried for you, Rule. You never confide in us... we didn't even know you had powers like... that. It was powerful, and we could all see it scared you just as badly as it scared us. If not more. Then you ran off and... and we don't know what's going on in your head. We all know that you didn't mean to hurt anyone, and all we want is for you to come back to camp so we can move on-"

"I'm not going back," Hyrule whimpered, wondering if it we're possible to curl up any tighter. "I'm not. All I ever do is hold you guys back and mess things up and you are all better without me."

"Who told you that?" Legend snapped. Hyrule flinched again, and Legend took a deep breath. "I don't know why you think that, but none of us think it."

Finally, Hyrule allowed his eyes to open past the top of his knees so he can glare. Or at least try to. His eyes and cheeks must be as raw and red as a setting sun. "None of you have to think it. I know it. I'm always being saved or I'm always in someone's way. Every time I try to help I mess things up or get us in trouble. And now I've hurt Wild. I'm useless and I'm tired of holding you all back-"

"Stop lying," Legend hissed. "Stop it. You're one of the bravest, strongest people I know. You took down that Lynel in one blow. That's powerful and useful. And not only that, but you're a skilled swordsman and a knowledged survivalist. There's been plenty of times you've saved us from picking poisonous berries or spotted an ambush before anyone. Not only that, but you're kind. Kinder than anyone I know. You have so much room in your heart for the world, despite all it's done for you. I just wish you could see this... make room in your heart for yourself. There is no one else I would trust to watch my back as much as you. Stop lying about this. What you say is not true, and it's pissing me off. I will not stand for slander against my most precious friend, even if it's spoken from his own mouth."

Hyrule couldn't find words to respond. His face was fully exposed to the air, eyes locked on Legend who spoke with such sharpness and passion that all he could do was flounder for words that wouldn't come through his slack jaw.

"You're going to come back to camp with me, and we will work through this. We're not giving up on you, especially for a mistake you clearly didn't mean to make."

Hyrule still couldn't find the ability to respond, rendering him helpless as Legend stood up and grabbed his hand, tugging him to his feet.

"C'mon, traveler. We're going to be okay."

Legend tugged on Hyrule's hand, and Hyrule stumbled along because he couldn't think of anything else to do.

Though, he finally found a way to respond to his friend's words that were much too out of the world to believe. Too kind for a failure like him. But too kind for him to deny. For him to refuse to try to believe; regardless of how little he thought of himself.