Archive of Our Own

Warriors had always wanted to be a father. 

Between helping out with the rest of the kids in the nearby village, taking care of the chicks and calves at the Ranch, and even training his own soldiers, the act of caring for something, someone, of his own was something that he craved.

When the War happened, he thought that his dreams of being a parent would end along with his life on the battlefield. 

So, suffice to say, when his wife told him that she was expecting, he was elated. He was also scared completely to death. 

Of course, he didn’t have much time to be scared, not about that at least. Around a week after he was told the news, he was sucked through a portal by Hylia, and thrown into another adventure, this time, with Heroes of past.

///

“Sailor! Quit that and get over here before I feed you to the bokoblins!” Warriors sighed, and put his hands on his hips, watching Wind trying to catch his namesake with his deku leaf. He turned to Wild, expecting to see a similar sort of smirk on his face, but was met with the clear expression that the boy was stuck in one of his own memories. 

Warriors frowned and walked closer, standing in front of him and gently resting a hand on the Champion’s shoulder. Time met his eyes from across the camp, but Warriors just waved him off.

He’d made mistakes with Wild, especially in the beginning, but he knew well enough how to help him through a memory. 

It only took a few more minutes before Wild's eyes started to clear, and he came back with a quiet gasp. 

“Dad?” Wild's voice was quiet and cracked. Warriors frowned and rested a hand on Wild's forehead.

“Not warm…Do you know where you are, Wild?”

Wild blinked a few times before his eyes flickered back and forth between Warriors' own. The boy’s face paled to a concerning shade, and Warriors held his other arm out, prepared to catch him should he faint.

“Wild, you’re not looking so hot, how about you sit-“ Warriors was cut off by Wild’s quiet curse.

“No way. No fucking way-“ Wild tried to pull away from his grasp, but Warriors didn’t let go.

Twilight walked over, face set in concern, and looked between the two. “E’rrythin’ alright?” 

“I’m not sure…He had a memory, and now-“

“You’re my Dad.” Wild's voice was almost a whisper, jaw dropped. 

“I mean I’m flattered you see me that way, but surely Time fits the criteria a little better, no?” Warriors had a smile he didn’t feel on his face, and the joke he was trying to make clearly didn’t land the way he wanted it to, based on the horrified look on Wild's face.

He felt his own face fall when Wild shook his head, bringing his hands up to wipe at his eyes. 

“Wars? Bein’ your Pa? Really? I doubt he’d ever find a lady, much less anything else.” Twilight's joke didn’t land much better, if anything, it made the pounding in his chest that much more noticeable.

“No,” He barely heard himself object. 

“See! I knew all those stories were just for pity points.” 

“No.” His voice was firmer this time. “No, I…I have a wife at home. She’s pregnant.”

“WHAT-“ Wind’s shout causes Wild to flinch, the boy choosing the most inopportune time to actually listen and come closer to the camp. 

“Wind, go.” He’s glad that Twilight is the one to send the sailor away, because he’s too busy looking at Wild (his son?) and noticing things that he had pushed to the side before.

The same color of blond in their hair, easily explained away by the fact that all of the chain was some sort of blond or brunette (nevermind the fact that both his and Wild's hair was nearly golden, the same soft curls running through them.)

The same face shape. Same sharp jaw and strong nose. The same build. (All of the Links looked similar enough to pass as brothers, but more than once, he and Wild had been mistaken for twins.) 

The most damning evidence of all, was the same exact eye color. Most of them had some sort of blue or hazel eyes. Time’s deep, almost navy blue, Twilight’s own only a few shades more grey. Sky’s were (ironically), sky blue. 

But himself and Wild? A deep, royal blue. One that none of the other members of the chain came even close to matching. 

“You’re sure?” His voice was hesitant. He didn’t want to get his hopes up if Wild wasn’t certain. Not because he doesn’t want to be related to the cook, rather the opposite.

Wild nodded once, tense, like he was expecting some sort of backlash. Warriors opened and closed his mouth a few times before tugging Wild into his chest. 

Wild gripped on to the back of his scarf, shaking slightly. Warriors hushed him softly. He’s not sure when Twilight left, but he’s sure that he was off to let Time know, and Warriors can’t even blame him. He blinked as he felt a tear trail down his face. 

He frowned, confused, before he realized what the empty feeling in his chest was.

Grief.

He was mourning his son that hadn’t even been born yet. Mourning, because he knew Wild's fate. Knew that there was nothing that he could do to change it. Grieving the life of his child to be torn away by a legacy that he couldn’t deny.

For the first time in his life, Warriors wanted to curse the Goddess.

///

The weeks following were…awkward, to say the least. 

They tried to continue on as normal, not let the (earth-shattering) revelation change how they worked as a team.

Wild had only gotten a few more sparse memories that included Warriors at all, most of them being about his mother instead. 

(He had been sitting awake, staring at the fire when he heard Wild speak up. 

“Wars?” 

He made a soft acknowledging hum.

“Did…Was…” Wild sighed softly in frustration, not able to get his words out how he wanted them to. 

“Take your time, Kid.” He turned to face where Wild's cot was. The Champion was still staring at the night sky, his brows furrowed. 

“Was Mama excited?” Wild finally looked at Warriors, and in the faint glow of the flames, he’d never looked younger.

Warriors grinned, “Excited? She was ecstatic. Was yelling it from the rooftops as soon as she found out.” He turned back to the fire, and his mouth softened into a gentle smile. “She loves you already. Loved you before we even knew.”

He glanced back at Wild, and saw that he had turned onto his side, something in his posture relaxing. 

Neither of them said anything else, simply enjoying the quiet.)

Sometimes, it was like they clicked. Like they had trained together a million times, and could read each other's thoughts before they took a single step. 

But sometimes, (most of the time, really,) it was like they were back to square one. 

Oftentimes, Warriors would find himself watching Time and Twilight. Seeing how easy they fit into the father-son roles and wishing he and Wild could have even a smidge of that kind of bond. 

More and more often, he’d feel eyes on the back of his neck, and turn to find Wild watching him, head slightly tilted (just like his mother-) looking like he was trying to piece together a puzzle. When that happened, depending on whether or not Wild would turn away after being caught, embarrassed, or if he would hold eye contact, Warriors would either leave it alone, or go and help Wild with whatever chore he was doing at the time. Some sort of olive branch that they both weren’t sure how to take.

///

Seven months after the reveal, and nearly eight since he was put on this journey, a portal opened directly under him. Not giving him time to say anything to any of them (to Wild-) before he was thrown unceremoniously back into his home.

It took him a second to regain his bearings, the portals were never particularly pleasant, but when you’re taken through one with zero warning it makes it an even worse experience. 

He sits on the floor and groans for a moment, before he realizes that he can hear crying. He shoots up, ripping open the door and calling for his wife. 

By the time he finds her, (in the guest room of all places-) it’s like the world quickens around him.

A doctor, one he recognizes from the castle, barely casts him a glance before they’re turning back to his wife, coaching her to breathe. 

He pauses only for a second before he’s rushing over to hold her hand, brushing the hair from her sweat covered face, and muttering apologies. 

Less than fourty-five minutes later, he’s holding a baby (his baby) to his chest with an awe filled expression. 

It’s like something slots into place, but, to his surprise, it’s not a feeling that’s unfamiliar to him.

It’s one he felt every time he looked at Wild. Every time Wild would show off a new plant he found, or a picture he took, or handed him a bowl of soup that specifically had less goron spice in it, just because he knew Warriors didn’t like it. 

His baby, his son, was looking up at him with beautiful royal blue eyes, cooing softly. 

“Oh, Link.” Warriors’ voice was soft, “My wild-child.”

“Wild-child?” His wife asked from where she was watching them on the bed. “He’s just been born, how on earth do you know that he’s going to be a wild-child?” 

Warriors grinned and looked at Link with a chuckle when his son reached up to grab at his nose. “Call it a hunch.” 

///

The years passed by in a blur of childish giggles and warm dinners. 

His Link was three years old the first time he got his hands on a training sword. Holding it up with determination in his pudgy baby hands, Warriors had humored him by picking up a wooden sword of his own, and teaching him the stances in the most child friendly way he could think of. 

By four, his son had already beaten several of his trained soldiers in combat. 

Five years after his wild-child was born, they welcomed another baby, a girl. Aryll. 

(“Why Aryll?” His wife had asked him. 

“It reminds me of the sea, don’t you think?”

“Whatever you say, dear.”)

His son had quickly become his sister’s biggest protector, carrying her around with him wherever he went, showing her all the wonders of the world (like how the frogs would leap in between the lily pads, or how the fire crackled.)

As they grew, they became no more inseparable (which was a positive when he spent endless sleepless nights trying to figure out how to hold off the Calamity so his son could stay safe.)

His Link is six when Athena dies. Put into a stuffy suit, he’s made to stand by his mother and his sister while Warriors carries the late Queen's casket to her final resting place. He gets to meet Princess Zelda for the first time at the gathering afterwards. (Warriors can’t decide if them meeting is good, or if he just damned his son more than he already was.)

His son is twelve when Warriors gets home, exhausted, from a mission, only to wake up in the middle of the night to Link standing at the edge of his bed, grasping the Master Sword like it’s a stuffed animal, tears streaming down his face. (It’s all Warriors can do to wipe his son's tears and repeat as many times as he needs to that everything will end up okay. It’s all Warriors can do not to curse the Goddess again for making his baby the Chosen one.)

His boy is fourteen when Warriors argues with King Rhoam in an office barely out of hearing range of the ballroom about whether or not they should be pushing their children harder, as if they hadn’t been pushed to their limits and beyond near daily. 

He storms out of the room, and he’s never missed Athena more. Turning a corner, he runs into his son and Princess Zelda (she looks so much like Athena it hurts) looking at him with wide eyes. 

He ruffles both of their hair gently, then gestures for them to follow him. “Why don’t you two go see if Purah and Robbie need any help with their research, hmm?” 

Princess Zelda gasps with stars in her eyes, immediately going on a rant about all the new findings. His son, ever silent (and doesn’t that hurt. His wild-child, silenced by the pressure that was put on his shoulders too young-) just watches her, like there’s nothing more interesting to him. 

Warriors smiles softly. If nothing else, he’s glad that they’ll always have each other.

His baby is seventeen when Warriors finds out that he’s dead.

That everything he did, all the sleepless nights spent awake researching the Calamity, and hours of training, was for nothing. 

He’s stuck at Fort Hateno, fighting waves and waves of monsters, unable to go and at least try to protect his son. Right when they were about to get overtaken by guardians, a bright white light flashes over Blatchery Plain, deactivating all of them. 

He looked around to his men, and realized that must mean one thing and one thing only.

The Princess succeeded. She unlocked her powers in the nick of time. 

They’re stuck at the Fort for longer than he’d like, trying to clear enough of a path that they can make their way to the castle when he sees her.

The Princess.

Alone.

Carrying the Master Sword.

Logically, in the part of his brain that’s been a Captain for nearly twenty-five years, he knows what that means.

But for some reason, it doesn’t click until he has his arms full of a sobbing Princess, apologizing for being too late, stuttering out that she had ordered Link (his baby boy, a part of his brain cries) to be sent to the Shrine of Resurrection. 

He functions on autopilot, ordering his men to escort her to the Korok forest, to clear her path so she may lay the sword in its resting place until the Hero (his son) was able to reclaim it. 

No one but him knew that by the time the Hero was able to reclaim the Sword of legend, they would all be long dead. 

He's barely able to stumble and lean against a wall, heaving, before he falls through a portal. One that he had very nearly forgotten about.

///

His landing is rough, stumbling and then falling to his knees with a choked off sob, wrapping his hands around his sides and pressing his forehead to the ground. 

“Holy shit- GUYS!! It’s the Captain!!” 

Warriors thinks he remembers the voice, a blurry face coming to mind. One with pink streaked hair and an eternally grumpy expression. 

Legend.

He can hear the fall of several sets of boots, running his way. He feels a hand hovering over his shoulder. 

“Fuck- You hurt, Wars? Rulie is running over.”

Warriors shakes his head, but doesn’t open his eyes.

“What’s wrong then? Why are you crying?” Legend sounds genuinely confused, (and so much younger than he remembered. He barely sounded older than Aryll-) and Warriors doesn’t even begin to know how to explain. 

Warriors sits up, and wipes at his face. His tears will help no one now. He opens his eyes finally, and sweeps across the line of concerned faces staring at him. Each of them, younger than he ever remembered, younger than his…kids…

His eyes land on Wild, and he gets no warning before he has tears dripping down his face again. 

“Dad-?” Wild doesn’t look any older than the day Warriors lost him. He’s covered in scars that make Warriors feel sick to his stomach to see (he knew that Wild had those scars. Knew that they were a part of him, just as anyone else’s, but now, after raising him, all he can see is his baby.) 

Warriors doesn’t remember standing up, nor does he remember walking over, but he does remember grabbing Link Wild, and pulling him close, swaying gently. 

“Oh, Link. My wild-child.” His voice is trembling along with his hands as he tries to smooth out Wild's hair. Wild doesn’t hesitate before gripping onto the back of Warriors tunic, making a confused, punched out noise. 

“I’m so fucking sorry. I’m so sorry, son. I failed you. I’m so sorry.” He continues to whisper apology after apology into Wild's hair, resting his lips on the top of his head. 

He barely has a warning before Wild goes limp in his arms, taking Warriors down to his knees with him. 

Warriors panics for a moment, putting a hand on his pulse point (steady, healthy, alive-) before leaning back and seeing the glazed over look in his eyes. 

“It’s okay, take your time, Kid. It’s okay, Dad’s here.” Warriors doesn’t even entirely realize he’s saying it. Repeating reassurances was second nature to him at this point. His son hadn’t had the memory issues, but he was still plagued with bouts of panic attacks and dissociation. 

(The first time it had happened, his wife was terrified, trying her best to snap him out of it. Warriors had rushed in the room when she had shouted, and felt his chest tighten in panic for a moment before he recognized what was happening.)

He hums softly under his breath, ignoring the eyes he can feel stabbing into his back. The memory is a longer one, taking almost ten minutes before Wild snaps out of it.

“…I had a sister?” Wild sounded confused, and Warriors chuckled wetly.

“You have a sister. Her name is Aryll, and you two were practically attached at the hip when you were younger.” 

Wild furrowed his brow and stared off at the space just beyond Warriors shoulder. 

“I remember…I remember sitting at the table…Mama and I were making dough and we had to stop Aryll from eating it…” He trailed off, and Warriors tilted his head up at the sky and laughed, startling not only Wild, but half of the rest of the chain as well.

“You-“ Warriors covered his mouth and wheezed, “You and your Mama were making dinner for my birthday, and Aryll was trying to help. Well, your Mama had to go to the garden to grab a few things, and in the meantime you two decided it was the best idea in the world to climb up to the cupboard and get the cookies your Mama had hidden.” Warriors laughs again and pauses to catch his breath. 

“I came home right as your Mama was coming back inside, and what do we see when we get to the kitchen? You, with a hand in the cookie jar, sitting on the counter, and your sister, sitting on the table, covered in flour. She had dumped the entire bag on her, and you were too busy climbing to pay it any mind.” 

He looks back at Wild, who looks at him with an awe filled expression and smiles softly. “Quite the move for my wild-child.” 

A moment passes, and Warriors face falls again. Wild pushes his face back into the crook of Warriors neck and Warriors starts to stroke his hair again on autopilot.

“…What happened to Aryll?” Wild sounds like he doesn’t want to ask. Doesn’t want to know the answer.

Warriors blinks hard and shakes his head. “I don’t know. For me, you just…” His grip tightens on Wild, pulling him closer.

“Oh.”  Wild's voice is quiet and pained and Warriors just hums. 

A cough is heard from beside them and Warriors turns to face the chain again.

“Welcome back, Warriors.” It’s Time who says it, and Warriors can’t help but think that even he looks young compared to what he thought nearly twenty years ago. 

Warriors nods, “I can’t say it’s good to be back, but I am glad that I get to see all you boys again.” 

Four wrinkles his nose and crosses his arms. “Why are you calling us ‘boys’ like you’re the Old Man?” 

Warriors chuckles, “Because, to me, you all are boys. Even the Old Man seems younger than I remember. Most of you are only a few years older than my youngest.” 

“If we’re only a few years older than your youngest, how old are you?” Hyrule tilted his head innocently like he didn’t know exactly what he was asking. 

Warriors glared at him playfully. “Old enough.”

The boys chuckled for a moment before Time’s face got serious again. “How long were you gone, Captain? It’s been a week and 13 hours for us.”

Warriors unintentionally gripped Wild tighter, loosening his grip and gently rubbing where he squeezed in an apology when the boy made a noise. “It’s been nearly eighteen years for me.” 

“You…Didn’t forget about us, did you?” It was weird hearing such an insecure sounding question from the usually steady Sky, but he understood why the other man (still a boy, still younger than any of them should’ve been-) asked it.

Warriors shook his head. “I lost some things, but I lost those about my own parents. I would never forget you.” 

His words sent a visible wave of relief through all of them. Warriors looked back at Wild, running his hands through his son's bangs one last time, then patted him twice, a signal to get up. 

As soon as Wild was up, Warriors stood up with a groan. He glared when Wind and Legend snickered at his knees popping, and walked over to Time, Wild following close behind. 

He pulled Time into a hug, and it only took the other man a second before he was hugging back. “I missed you, Mask.” He whispered into the other man’s shoulder.

Time nodded once, and Warriors patted him on the back, sniffling softly. 

He made his way through the rounds, hugging his brothers and doing a check to make sure they were all uninjured (unlike his son-.) 

“Alright, let’s get somewhere safe. Whose hyrule are we in, anyway?” Warriors asked.

“The Vet’s. Said his home was near here, so that’s where we were headed.” Warriors nodded at Twilight in thanks, then followed after Legend who was waiting impatiently at a fork in the road. 

Warriors looked around, doing a headcount, though he only counted seven including himself. When he realized which two were missing, he wasn’t surprised. He looked around for a moment before his eyes landed on the boys. He whistled, repeating a familiar pattern.

Wild’s head snapped up, his eyes immediately landing on Warriors, before grabbing Hyrule’s hand and walking over. Hyrule looked sad to be torn away from the plants they had been looking at, but followed easily enough. 

Once they rejoined the group, they started walking, following Legend through the forest. After a few minutes of quiet chatter, Wild tugged on Warriors’ scarf.

Warriors looked down at his son easily, and made a questioning sound.

“Why’d I respond to that?” Wild's brow was slightly furrowed and he was playing with the edge of Warriors scarf.

“Respond to wh- oh. The whistle?” Wild nodded and Warriors sighed softly, more frustrated with himself than anything else. “I taught you that when you were a baby. Means ‘Drop Everything And Find Dad’. D-E-A-F-D, it was easy to teach you since the letters went with the notes.” 

Wild made an understanding noise and then stared at the ground as he walked. 

“I’m…sorry for using it, Kid. I won’t use it if you don’t want me to. It was more autopilot than anything.”

“No, no it’s okay…It’s just…strange.”

Warriors hummed. “Strange how?”

“I mean, I finally have someone to answer all of these things that I don’t remember.” Wild looked up at Warriors, and then back in front of him. 

Warriors found himself hesitating for only a moment before wrapping an arm around Wild’s shoulders. “Anytime you want to know anything, ask me. I don’t care if it’s the middle of the night.” 

Wild looked up at him, surprise coating his face, before he nodded and looked away, contemplating. Warriors squeezed his shoulder before letting his arm fall back to his side. 

///

“Wars-” A soft whisper woke him up. They were at Legend’s home, a small place he lived at with Ravio. He opened his eyes and blinked until he was able to focus on who was standing in front of him, and when he was, he saw that it was his son. 

“Link, everything okay?” His voice was still slurred with sleep, he doubted that it had been more than a couple hours since he had fallen asleep. 

His son had barely visible teartracks trailing down his cheeks, and he was biting the inside of his lip. Warriors immediately woke up more, but stayed laying down, trying to let his son go at the pace he needed. 

Link opened and closed his mouth a few times before shaking his head and going to turn away. “Nothing, I’m sorry for waking you-”

Warriors frowned and grabbed his wrist gently so he couldn’t walk away. “Nonsense, what’s wrong?” 

Warriors watched the fight of emotions on his son's face before he finally sighed. “When’s my birthday?” 

Warriors couldn’t help the way he paused, and he thinks it must’ve been a second too long, because his son speaks up again. 

“It was stupid, I’m sorry. Wind and Four were talking about it earlier because it's almost Wind’s birthday, and they asked me when mine was, and I didn’t know and-” 

Warriors cut off his son's progressively more panicked ramble by tugging him to lay down, pulling him close as he did when Link was small enough to crawl into his and his wife’s bed at night. 

“Autumn. Your birthday is in Autumn. You were born during harvest season, and that’s why your Mama calls you Pumpkin.” 

“...She called me Pumpkin?” 

Warriors can feel part of his heart break, but he’s careful to keep an easy expression on his face. He runs a gentle hand through his son’s wild hair and nods. 

“Oh.” His son leans into the repetitive motion, and relaxes slightly. 

“Aryll was born in the Spring, she was born during one of the worst thunderstorms that Hateno had ever seen. I think I was more nervous than you were though.” He glances down with a smile, seeing his son's eyes getting heavier at his rambling. “You were out playing in the rain with your Grandpa, not a care in the world. You lived up to your name, wild-child. Mama was born in the Winter, and I was born in the Summer. Your Mama always liked how we completed the whole year worth of seasons.”

Warriors paused and cleared his throat gently, chuckling when he heard the soft snore from his son. He glanced up, and met Time’s eye, the Old Man (and really, he shouldn’t call him that now, not with how old Warriors himself was) smiling at them softly. 

Warriors reached out carefully, and grabbed his scarf, wrapping it around his son gently before closing his eyes and drifting off. 

///

They were foraging, in a grove near Legend’s house, trying to refill Wild’s slate for herbs and vegetables to add to the coming meals when Wild stopped dead before turning to him. 

“You…” Wild started, hesitating and furrowing his brow “You taught me this. You taught me how to forage…” 

(It was early, much too early for Link to be awake on a non-training day, when his Dad had woken him up with a slightly frantic look in his eyes.

“Dad?” Link asked, yawning and rubbing at his eyes, trying to stay awake.

“Link, get dressed.” He nodded and stood up, still confused. 

His Dad left the room, and when Link walked into the kitchen, now dressed, he was standing at the stove. Link paused in the doorway, quiet, as to not alert his Dad that he was there, and watched. 

His Dad was cycling between shifting his weight between his feet, never truly staying still for more than a second, and having his hand near his hip, fingers twitching, like he was getting ready to draw his sword. A few times, he almost startled, before shaking his head like he was trying to physically get rid of whatever thought had just intruded. 

Link shifted, and the floor creaked. His Dad sucked in a sharp breath and spun around, and then just stared at Link for a moment before smiling. 

“C’mon, Kiddo. Eat up, and then we’ll leave.” Dad set a bowl of porridge at Link’s spot and then ruffled his hair before walking back to his and Mama’s room.)

Warriors glanced at Wild and chuckled before going back to pulling herbs from their stems. “You remember?” 

Wild nodded, before frowning. “Yeah. Why were you so…” He trails off.

“Jumpy? Stressed?” Warriors asks, a sad smile on his face. Wild nods once and Warriors pauses and sighs, looking down at the dirt that was covering his hands, and willing it not to look like the blood that he was sure he could still see staining them. “I hoped that you hadn’t noticed.” 

(Dad was marching forward, slightly quicker than Link could keep up with without having to rush.

“Dad?” No response. His Dad was frowning and staring straight ahead.

“Dad.” Link asked again, tugging on the ever present scarf around his Dad’s neck. 

His Dad turned to him and blinked slowly once before his eyes cleared. 

“Sorry, Link. I got a little lost in my own thoughts. What did you say?” 

“Where are we going?” His Dad looks lost for a moment again before crouching down in front of him and smiling. 

“We,” he starts, brushing Link’s bangs out of his eyes, “are going foraging.” 

“Foraging?” Link asks. 

His Dad nods once before standing up with a quiet groan that makes Link giggle. His Dad glares at him teasingly before smiling and gently leading him over to a tree.

“This, my son, is a Hylian Shroom. It’s one of the most reliable sources of food you can have…-”) 

Warriors watched as Wild blinked away the end of the memory, and rubbed his arm gently. Wild leaned against his arm for a moment in thanks before going back to organizing his slate, trying to find the best order for all of the herbs. 

“I was scared.” Warriors said after a few minutes of silence. Wild startled slightly and looked up at him, confused. 

Warriors smiled grimly and sat back on his legs, wiping his forehead. “I’d had a nightmare that night, about not being able to change anything. Not being able to fix anything. That you would be left completely blindsided.” He laughed self-deprecatingly and closed his eyes. “Fat lot of good I did, huh?”

He grunted when Wild pushed him, glancing at him out of the side of his eye and raising an eyebrow. 

“Are you stupid? You saved me. You wanna know the first thing I found when I got out of the Shrine? A Hylian Shroom. I knew that because of you, Dad. So stop being so hard on yourself.”

Warriors stopped, and tried to get his breath to come easily again. Wild didn’t call him Dad regularly, but every time he did, it was like music to Warriors’ ears. 

On top of hearing that, to also hear that he didn’t completely fail his son makes his eyes water. He can tell the exact moment that Wild sees it because he tenses up, awkward.

“Shit- Sorry! I didn’t mean to-” 

Warriors cut Wild off by pulling him into his chest. “Thank you, Link.” 

Wild relaxed and nodded once, leaning further into Warriors’ chest. 

“I’m so proud of you. You’ll never understand how much it means to me that you still let me be here with you.” 

Wild sat up and looked at him, confused. “Why wouldn’t I-” 

He was cut off by Hyrule hollering at them from the other side of the field. “GUYS!! C’mon!! Portal!” 

Warriors sighed before patting Wild twice quickly and standing up. “You heard him, grab your slate, Kiddo, let’s get going.” 

///

After (yet another-) rough landing into another hyrule, ironically enough Hyrule’s hyrule, and a fight with a pack of black blooded monsters, they were finally settling down and setting up camp. 

“Woah, Wild! That’s a gnarly scar on your leg, how’d you get it?” Warriors barely glanced up at Wind’s question. 

“Oh. Uhhh…I dunno.” Wild squinted at the scar and shrugged, “I woke up with that one.”

“You got it shield surfing on the hebra mountains.” The answer came easily to Warriors, not even bothering looking up from where he was polishing his sword, scrutinizing the tiny imperfection on the side of it. 

“What?” Wild’s voice was off, quiet, and slightly confused. 

Warriors looked up and tilted his head slightly. “Yes. I remember that one. You were there on official business with the Princess. I was there because you were still in training, and the King decided that it was the easiest way around needing more knights. You and the Rito Champion, Revali, decided that the best course of action was to see who could surf further. He crashed almost immediately, but you kept going until you ran into a rock and flipped over. Broke your leg clean through the skin, I nearly had a heart attack.” Warriors smiled softly at the memory, “All you were worried about was whether or not you won. You were lucky Princess Mipha was there, or it would’ve been a much worse healing process.”

“Oh-” The word sounded almost punched out of Wild’s chest, and Warriors frowned. 

“Link, son, are you-” The question he was about to ask was answered when Wild’s eyes glazed over and he slumped where he was sitting slightly. Warriors sighed softly and stood up. 

“Sailor, help me roll out his bed, will you?” Wind nodded with a salute, and Warriors walked over to his son. He crouched down in front of him and gently pushed the bangs from in front of his eyes and waited patiently for the memory to be over. 

He hummed softly under his breath and continued running his hands through his son’s hair, laying him down gently. Warriors sat down beside the bedroll staring at the crackling fire. He glanced over when he noticed Hyrule and Four sit down beside him. 

“Hello, boys.” 

Both of them nodded in greeting. Hyrule started digging through his satchel, organizing herbs. Four began to polish his shield. 

“So,” Four started, barely glancing up from his task, “he was always this…wild?” 

Warriors and Hyrule both snorted at the wording and Warriors nods. “Some of the things he does now are tame compared to what he used to do. Jumping off of high things is not a new thing for him, scared me and his mother half to death. He never stopped.” Warriors felt the smile fall from his face slowly, and he moved his hand to rest on his son’s pulse. “He was constantly on the move, constantly training. He pushed himself to no end to feel like he was worthy, despite my constant reassurances that he was doing more than enough.” 

Hyrule frowns, and Warriors swore that Four’s eyes flashed through several different colors before landing back into his usual teal. 

“Why did he feel like he needed to work so hard?” Hyrule’s voice was hesitant. 

Warriors sighed and glanced first at his son (his eyes were still glazed over, staring at nothing), and then at Wind who was across the camp. “Athena, may Hylia rest her soul, married a man, who would go on to be the King of hyrule until Princess Zelda was to be of age to take over. Rhoam was his name.”

He tried to keep a neutral face, to not let his anger show, but based on the looks from the boys he wasn’t doing as good of a job as he wanted to be. 

Warriors took a deep breath before starting again. “King Rhoam didn’t like the results he was getting from the Princess and from Li-Wild, and rather than trying something new, he thought that pushing them behind my back would work better. I didn’t find out until Wild collapsed during breakfast. Rhoam ruined both his own daughter and my son’s self esteem, and it all ended up being for nothing because there was nothing that either of them could do. If the Calamity hadn’t taken Rhoam out, then I would’ve.” 

He sighed and glanced over at Four and Hyrule who were both looking at him with slightly widened eyes. He rubbed at his face with a quiet groan. He was saved from having to explain himself more by Wild blinking. 

“I totally won that.” 

Warriors got up with a snort, patting his son on the head as he passed. 

“I did-!” 

///

Warriors sits up with a groan, putting his head in his hands. 

“Whose hyrule is this?” He thinks it’s Sky asking, but his head is spinning too much to pay attention exactly. 

“It looks like mine…but…” Wild’s voice sounded off, almost floaty, and it made Warriors look up with a start.

His son was glancing around, his eyes landed on something, and then glazed over. Warriors looked where his gaze had landed.

“…Daddy? Link? You’re home!” Warriors shot up and rushed over.

“Aryll!” He reached her and pulled her close.

“Oh, thank Hylia you’re okay.” He pulled back, and did a once over, only seeing a few scrapes, he pulled her back into his chest.

“Daddy? What happened to Brother? Why does he have all those scars?” Aryll’s voice was shaky, near tears. 

Warriors bit his lip. “Where’s your Mama?” 

Aryll looked up at him, confused at his non-answer. “In the house?” 

Warriors nodded once, and then glanced around at the chain. “Twilight.” The Rancher cocked his head to the side, like the wolf he was. “Can you stay with him? I…need to explain this before she sees him.” 

Twilight nodded, face understanding, and went over to where Wild was still standing, stuck in his own memories, and helped him sit down. 

Warriors crouched down so he could make eye contact with his daughter. “Do you remember me talking about my brothers? The ones I was on an adventure with?” 

Aryll nodded, “You said they helped save you.”

Warriors smiled and brushed Aryll’s hair behind her ear. “That’s right.” He turned and glanced at the others, all standing and acting like they weren’t staring. “Sailor, c’mere, would you?” 

When Wind skipped over, Warriors turned back to Aryll. “This is Wind. You were named after his sister, do you remember me telling you that?” At her nod he continued “How about you show him all the things we found when we visited Lurelin? He’d love to see all your pretty shells.” 

Wind nodded furiously. “Me and my Aryll have a whole collection back at home. Our Grandma keeps them in a jar in the kitchen. I wonder if you have more than we do?” 

Aryll’s eyes lit up, and she nodded, tugging Wind along. Warriors smiled in thanks at the Sailor and watched them until they were in the back area where the shells were kept. 

Once they were out of eyesight, he sighed and buried his face in his hands, staying crouched. He stayed like that for a moment before he felt a hand on his shoulder. He peaked through his fingers and saw it was Sky, wearing a sad smile, face apologetic.  

Warriors took the hand Sky offered and stood up. He wiped his face roughly before turning to the others. 

“Alright, boys. We’re in Hateno, this is where I live with my family. There’s a store and an inn down the path but I…don’t know how stocked it’s going to be. You can wander until dusk and then come back. Stay within the area, and don’t go without someone.” 

He turned to Sky, and Sky just followed him quietly, a silent aura of strength that Warriors didn’t notice before surrounding them. Warriors walked up to the door, and hesitated. 

“What’s on your mind, Captain?” 

Warriors ran a hand through his hair, tugging on the ends gently. “I don’t know how long it’s been for her since I left. I don’t know if she…”

“If she knows?” Sky’s voice was somber, and it’s all Warriors can do to nod. He takes a deep breath before opening the door.

He waves Sky in behind him, closing the door gently. He walks towards the kitchen, where he can hear his wife humming under her breath. Warriors pauses in the doorway, hesitating before clearing his throat.

His wife spins around, startled, and drops the whisk she was holding. “Link?” She rushes over, looking him up and down with the intensity of a field medic, “You’re okay! Do you know how worried I’ve been?! You and the boy left two days ago and I haven’t heard anything from anyone. What happened at the castle? What’s that…thing.” 

Warriors tried to keep a neutral face. He really did. He didn’t want to break down at all, let alone in front of his wife and his brother, but it seemed that Hylia had other plans when he felt tears streaming down his face. 

“Manei, I’m sorry.” His voice cracked when he spoke and Manei just stared at him confused.

“What on Earth are you sorry for?” She reached up to wipe away at his tears and it only made him choke. 

“I failed. I failed, and our son is gone.” 

Manei’s gasp and sob hurt worse than getting a spear through his chest. She stared at him with wide eyes, and he pulled her close, resting his chin on her head. 

Their quiet sobs were broken by Sky clearing his throat. Warriors opened his eyes and looked toward his brother, who was looking at both of them with resolve. 

“Not all is lost.” 

Manei looked over at Sky, clearly expecting him to continue, but Sky just nodded encouragingly at Warriors.

Warriors cleared his throat, voice still wet, and began to explain. “Link, he…he fell…protecting the Princess. She ordered him to be sent to the Shrine of Resurrection."

His wife’s strangled sob made him pull her closer, running a hand through her hair. 

“Do you remember, years ago, when I was pulled through the portal? I told you about how I had met a wonderful bunch of Heroes.” Manei nodded, looking confused at the non-sequitur. Warriors took a deep breath. “One of them was our boy. Wild.” 

“You said he…The Shrine…worked?” Her voice was shocked, a whisper of hope underlying it. 

Warriors nodded. He swallowed and tugged at the back of his hair, startling only slightly when Manei reached up and threaded her own fingers through his. 

“Yes. It worked, he’s alive, but…” He paused, “He doesn’t remember much. Woke up remembering absolutely nothing after a hundred years in the Shrine. He’s regained some memories, some about you and Aryll, actually,” Warriors said with a smile. “Most of them are about the Princess.”

“I don’t care.” He looked down at his wife, and all he saw was the fire in her eyes that made him fall for her the first time. “He’s still my son, memories or not. Is he with you?” 

Warriors nodded once and then set his chin back on her head, holding her close and breathing for a moment. 

The creak of the door made him lift his head from where it was set. His son stood there, looking back and forth between the two of them, Twilight stood behind him, looking apologetic.

“Dad? Mama?” Wild’s voice was cracked and confused. Warriors held a hand out, and when Wild took it, he pulled him into their hug. 

“Oh, my baby, my sweet boy.” His wife smiled through her tears. 

Wild stared at her for a moment before he shuddered and his eyes glazed over again. Unlike the last memory, this one caused him to go limp, and Warriors had to tighten his grip to keep his son standing. 

Warriors glanced at Sky and Twilight, who were both watching with concern painting their faces. “Would you two go gather the other boys? I’d like all of them close before it starts getting dark.” 

They both nodded, understanding the unspoken ‘We need a minute alone’ and left, closing the door behind them softly. 

Warriors carefully fell to the floor, Manei sitting with him. He ran a hand through his son’s bangs and then looked back at his wife, who was biting her lip in concern.

“Is he having another episode?” 

Warriors shook his head. “No, he’s getting back a memory. This is his second one in the last hour, he’s sure to be exhausted by the end of it.” 

Manei frowned and gently rubbed a hand up and down Wild’s arm. 

Warriors could tell that she was struggling with the dissonance. He, himself, was still struggling with it. Just two days ago (for her, at least, it had been nearly three weeks for them,) their son was rushing out the door, only barely taking the time to press a kiss to Aryll and Manei’s forehead before he was gone. 

Less than twenty-four hours later, he was dead. Put into a solution of Sheikah technology that he knows she had a help in understanding. 

Manei ran a careful hand over the scars on his cheek. “Oh, pumpkin.” She turned to him, “What even…” 

“Guardian.”

His wife closed her eyes with a pained expression that he’s sure was mirrored on his own face.

“They were never meant to harm.” Her voice was quiet and broken.

Warriors squeezed her hand and leaned over to kiss her forehead, careful to not disturb his son. 

“I know. I was a field away. We were getting swarmed. It was worse than the War. If I had just been faster-”

He’s cut off by Wild’s quiet groan. He opens his eyes, and glances back and forth between Warriors and Manei. He only hesitates for a moment before reaching out and hugging Manei. She pulled him close to her chest and swayed, whispering quietly in his ear. 

Warriors smiled sadly and got up, gently running a hand through each of their hair before he walked back outside. 

He waved at Legend and Hyrule, the two boys sitting against the old oak tree that was planted in the front yard. Sky, Twilight, and Time were standing halfway between the front and back yard, watching Wind, Four, and Aryll sorting seashells. 

It hurt his heart, in a bittersweet way, seeing the two youngest boys playing with his daughter, not a care in the world. He hated that he was about to have to dampen that bright smile on their face. 

He nodded at the trio who were watching, and then walked over, crouching beside Aryll and pulling her into his side gently. Aryll grinned up at him, and he couldn’t help but smile back. 

Aryll pointed at the line of shells she had made, one out of place. “Wind says that one should go with the smaller shells, but I say it should go with the similar color.” She leaned in and whispered, “Four isn’t very helpful, he keeps switching it to the same four places.” 

Warriors snorted. He knew exactly why Four would do that, he’s sure that Vio and Blue especially were arguing over where to put it, but he couldn’t expose his brother like that, so he just shrugged. “I don’t know, sweetheart. I think there’s very good arguments for each.” 

Aryll and Wind both groaned, Wind falling back onto the ground, and Aryll sighing into her hands. After a second, she sat up with a sigh. “Brother would know where to put it.”

Warriors fought to keep an easy smile on his face, but Aryll, ever observant (just like her mother) noticed, frowning. 

“Something is wrong with Link.” It wasn’t a question. 

Sometimes, Warriors missed when Aryll was a toddler. Completely oblivious to the world around her, simply enjoying the things her brother would show her. Awe filled eyes watching as he showed her how to catch Sunset Fireflies without hurting them, releasing them gently into the evening air. 

“Yes.” His voice was hushed. Aryll curled into herself, resting her chin on her knees and playing absentmindedly with the shell she was still holding. 

“Did…I lose my big brother?” Aryll’s eyes were glossy, and Warriors was quick to maneuver so he was sitting in front of her. He tilted her head up so he could look in her eyes. 

“Listen to me, Aryll, something bad happened. Link got hurt, and he got hurt really bad. Right now, for us, he’s in a secret spot, healing so he can fight when he’s better.” 

Warriors could see the brave face Aryll was trying to put on, trying to hold back her tears, and it broke his heart. 

“But,” He started, softly, wiping the tears that had fallen, “Wild is still your brother. He loves you, even if he doesn’t remember everything right now.” 

Aryll nodded, and threw herself at Warriors, sobbing into his scarf. Warriors stood up and swayed, hushing her and whispering soft reassurances to her until she had cried herself out. He made eye contact with Four and Wind, who were both frowning. Warriors closed his eyes with a soft sigh, pressing a gentle kiss to Aryll’s temple. 

He opened his eyes and glanced first at the trio still watching from afar, and then to the two boys in front of him. He held out a hand to Wind. “Come on, boys. I’m sure Wild will help sort these out in the morning. Let’s head inside and figure out how to fit all of us in the house, hmm?”

Wind took his hand, standing then helping Four up off the ground. Warriors waved the rest of the chain inside, closing the door behind them softly, as to not wake his daughter. He walked into the living room, where Manei and Wild had moved. Wild was asleep on her shoulder, tear tracks being reflected by the lanterns lighting the room. 

Warriors blinked hard a few times, sniffing before turning to the chain. “Boys, this is my wife, Manei.”

He heard Wind gasp from beside him, and Time seemed to follow suit, both were smiling. “Ms. Manei!” 

Manei’s eyes widened. “Tune, Mask, is that you, boys? My, how you’ve grown!”

Warriors could tell that Manei wanted to get up and look at them closer, but she was unable to move with Wild still leaning on her. He walked over, readjusting Aryll as he did, and picked up Wild easily, carrying each of his children in one arm. He smiled at his wife when she squeezed his arm in thanks, and then made his way up the stairs to lay them down. 

He didn’t bother laying them in separate rooms, instead choosing to lay them both on his own bed. As soon as they were next to each other, Wild wrapped himself around Aryll, just as he had done since they were babies. Warriors brought the blanket up to their shoulders, tucking them in gently. 

He’s not sure how long he stands there, watching his children breathe, almost scared to leave them lest something happens, but it's long enough that Wolfie (Twilight) pushes the door open with his snout. Wolfie looks at him for a moment, then the bed, then back at him. Warriors snorts softly and then nods. “Get up there, you beast.” 

Wolfie nudges into his side gently before hopping up on the bed, doing a quick circle before laying at the kids feet, relaxed, but eyes open. Aware.

Warriors presses a gentle kiss to each of his children's foreheads, barely hesitating before pressing one to the top of Wolfie’s head as well. He chuckles at the glare he gets from the wolf, before walking out, blowing out the candle that was illuminating the room on his way.