#spoopy asks

Ravio was, admittedly, exhausted.

It was late into the evening, the sunset finishing up it's last rays of color before darkness took over the sky. Ravio sat at a dimly lit desk, surrounded by empty coffee mugs. He focused on the book in front of him, squinting when his vision began to blur.

Sipping at his current cup of coffee, he winced at the loud slurp that came with it. His eyes were bloodshot, heavy bags resting under them, but he refused to rest.

You see, he was working on a gift for his hero, tax benefit and husband, Link.

Ravio couldn't count the amount of times the idiot had shown up on his doorstep bleeding and passed out. For both Link's safety and his own mental wellbeing, the merchant decided it was time to fix this, or at least make it happen less often.

Hence his mission to make the most powerful protection spell seen before, because Lolia knows Link needed the best of the best to stay even remotely safe.

He already had a ring to put the enchantment on- a nice silver one with some amethyst embedded in it. He'd gotten it from a local jeweler who happened to be a business friend, and with some haggling it was his.

He was rather familiar with enchanting, but he had to admit he was struggling. Every book he read only had information on basic protection spells, and he didn't need something that'd help some clumsy kid get scrapes on their knee less often!

He was broken out of his thoughts by a loud screech. He hissed, covering his ears and glancing over at his feathered companion.

"Augh- Yes, Sheerow?" He attempted to muster a smile. Sheerow pecked him lightly, tugging on his hood and screeching some more. He sighed, burying his face in his hands.

"Yeah, I know it's been a while since I slept... I gotta finish this, though. Link will be back from his hero duties soon enough and I wanna surprise him!"

Sheerow tilted its head, unamused. He pinched his brow.

"Look, whether you like it or not I'm continuing. So you can either leave me be or go back into your cage, okay?"

Ravio didn't love arguing with his bird (Link questioned how this was even possible on a daily basis), but he was going to work and he was going to do it in peace.

A long pause ensued, both him and Sheerow staring unblinkingly at one another, trying to assert dominance and win the disagreement.

Sheerow eventually gave in and cooed sadly, giving him one last look with its beady eyes before fluttering away to another room. A wave of guilt churned in his gut, but he brushed it off, resuming his research.

...He might need more coffee.

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Link sighed in relief.

After three days, he kids you not, of trying to help some lady get her fancy necklace heirloom back, he was finally done. Now, don't get him wrong, he loved helping people. He had to, otherwise he would've never taken up the hero gig in the first place.

But dear Hylia above, it was exhausting sometimes.

However, he was done now, and he was looking forward to getting home and taking a nap in his husbands arms.

He glanced up at the sky, frowning at the setting sun. It'd be night by the time he got there... Hopefully he wouldn't wake Ravio up.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he resumed his Pegasus-boot aided sprint towards home, seeing the silhouette of his house on the horizon. He allowed a soft smile to take over his face, eyes crinkling at the sight.

Goddesses, he missed Ravio. Not that he'd ever admit it, but still.

Moments later he arrived at his front step, halting his sprint and catching his breath. He quietly opened the door to his home, wincing at the loud creak as he stepped in.

To his confusion, the lights were on. Normally Ravio liked to go to bed relatively early, something about how 'if he didn't sleep enough, a customer might scam him!'

Link cautiously walked further into the house, noticing the light was coming from his study. He peeked his head around the doorframe, only to gasp at the sight that greeted him.

Ravio was surrounded by piles of empty mugs precariously stacked on top of one another. Crumpled papers littered the floor, the trashcan overflowing. Stacks of books were scattered around the room, and several notes written in both Hylian and Lolian were pinned to different places among the walls.

And there, in the middle of all the chaos, was his husband. Ravio's hair was disheveled and messy, stray strands sticking up on end. His eyes were unfocused and bloodshot, with dark circles lying beneath them.

He looked like a goddess forsaken mess.

Link loudly cleared his throat, unapologetically staring at his startled husband.

"O-Oh, Link! Y-You're back...!" Ravio forced a tired smile, trying to cover up the notes around him. Link was not impressed. He tilted his head and rested a hand on his hip.

"Rav, what the fuck is this?"

"...Uh... Research?"

"..."

"..."

"Go to bed."

Ravio immediately opened his mouth to protest, but Link cut him off before he could.

"Nope, I don't wanna hear it. Go to bed."

Sheerow happily chirped from across the house, as if cheering Link on in his attempts to get his idiot husband to take care of himself for once. Ravio seemed to realize he wasn't going to win this- but it wouldn't be Ravio if he didn't make himself the biggest pain in the ass possible.

The merchant groaned loudly, sinking further into his chair while holding direct eye contact.

Link's eye twitches.

"Ravio," he says, a clear warning in his voice, "either you go to bed willingly, or I drag you there."

The extremely sleep deprived Ravio pouted, staying in his seat. Luckily, Link was used to his husband's shit by now.

With little more than a grunt, he hoisted the merchant up and over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, assisted by his power bracelets. Ravio yelped and began to squirm, but Link simply adjusted his grip a bit and persisted on towards the living room.

With an unceremonious plop, Ravio landed onto a couch, a pillow under his head. Before he could even attempt to try and get up, Link flopped on top of him, effectively holding him hostage on the cushioned surface.

There was a long moment of squirming and pitiful groans before Ravio sighed in defeat. Link smirked, making himself comfortable.

"Are you happy with yourself?" His husband muttered, utterly exasperated.

"Very much so."

"You're so lucky I love you, Mr. Hero."

Link groaned at the old nickname, causing Ravio to giggle in delight.

The merchant used to call him that all the time before they got together, but now that they were married the formality annoyed the shit out of him and Ravio knew it. Hence him using the title whenever he wanted to irritate Link.

Link narrowed his eyes, determined to get the last laugh. He put on the sweetest expression he could muster and kissed Ravio's nose, murmuring a little "love you too" with a soft, gentle voice he almost never used. He proceeded to relish in victory as Ravio turned bright red.

They'd been married for years, but he was still so easily flustered, and by Hylia, Link would use it against him until they were both buried beneath the earth.

Ravio pouted, his mood worsening when he took in the shit-eating grin on Links face. Sheerow, sensing its owners distress, came zooming in like an aggravated keese and gave Link a firm peck to the head.

Ravio cackled maniacally.

Link soured, shooting the bird a betrayed look. And to think, mere moments ago it was cheering for him from another room. The audacity.

Like nothing even happened, Sheerow fluttered over to Ravio and nestled into his hair, beginning to preen the messy strands. Ravio looked up to the bird, still giggling, and gave it some scritches. Sheerow leaned way into his touch, cooing lovingly.

Link sighed in defeat, allowing the battle to end, if only so his husband would finally sleep. He nuzzled into Ravio's purple robes, relaxing for the first time since he'd left. It was easy to forget just how much he loved his home, but coming back from a journey always reminded him of how lucky he was.

Sure, he'd been through a lot. He became a hero before he was even ten years old, he saved countless lands, he had a dream torn away from him, his skin was littered with scars- but he had this going for him.

And as long as he had his husband and his home, he knew everything would be alright.

He glanced down, realizing Ravio's breathing had evened out, a light snoring coming from the merchant. He really had been exhausted, huh.

He smiled, snuggling further into Ravio. Sure, he'd intended to move them to the bed- but he was tired and comfy.

Content, the hero's eyes drifted shut, and within minutes he fell into a blissful, dreamless sleep.

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