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Chapter Text

He thought it was over. 

Sure, the knights in his era had never fully recovered from Agahnim’s control—they weren’t likely to try to kill him now, but they still thought he’d kidnapped Zelda and thus would happily arrest him even if Zelda would just release him again—but he’d gotten used to it, and even grown accustomed to traveling with knights. 

He never could’ve imagined the curse would rear its head again, let alone like this. 

                                                                                                      ****

His heart pounded in his ears as he sprinted down the street, then ducked into the nearest alleyway and crouched behind a crate. He covered his mouth with both hands to muffle his heaving breaths. After a moment, heavy footsteps approached the alley. 

“Did you see where he went?” Time’s low rumble—normally rather comforting—sent chills down his spine, and he hunched over further. Sky’s voice rang out, cold with an undercurrent of anger that made him shudder. Sky was scary when he was mad—and now that rage was directed at him. 

“No. He’s too fast, especially with those Pegasus boots of his.”

“Good at running, isn’t he?” Warriors quipped. Legend felt his eyes begin to burn with tears, but he swallowed them back fiercely. He didn’t have time for a breakdown. 

I can’t go back home; they know where I live—shit, I have to warn Ravio!

As if reading his mind, Four spoke up next. By the sound of it, the smith was right at the alley’s mouth. 

“Maybe Ravio would know where he went. For all that the hoarder pretends to hate him, they seem pretty close.”

Fuck you and your observation skills, Four. If you hurt him, I’ll end you.

Finally, the knights he’d called his brothers left, and Legend risked a peek over the crate. Time, Warriors, Sky, and Four were nowhere to be seen.

Okay. First order of business, warn Ravio. He’s stopping by Syrup’s place today to restock some potions, isn’t he? I’ll leave a message with her for him. . .and then, I should head for the secret passages. I’ll go to the castle; if I stay in Zel’s room, I won’t get found, no one’s going to do a big search in there. The Chain doesn’t even know my connection to her, so it probably won’t occur to them to look there. 

He scrubbed his eyes and swallowed down the sob that threatened to escape as he crept to the mouth of the alleyway. After one last check to make sure that his pursuers were long gone, he left the alleyway and headed towards Syrup’s shop, keeping towards the shadows and overhangs so he wouldn’t be easily spotted.

Of course, things could never be that simple. 

“Legend?”

He nearly jumped out of his skin and spun around, his sword already drawn and aimed. Wild blinked at him, chin tilted up to avoid the blade’s point. 

“Um—can you move that?”

Instinctively, his hand began to lower, but then his heart sank as he saw a telltale glaze steal over the champion’s eyes. 

Shit, how could I forget—Wild was a knight, too!

“Can’t do that, Champion.” He forced the sorrow out of his voice and pushed the blade a little harder against Wild’s throat. “I don’t feel like getting skewered today.”

“What do you—” Wild cut off, head tilting to the side. Dread curdled in Legend’s stomach as Wild’s gaze went ever-so-slightly distant, just like the other knights—but then Wild scowled and shook his head, ears twitching. “Ledge, what are you talking about? And can you please put the sword down? I didn’t mean to scare you.”

He blinked. That hadn’t been the response he’d been expecting. Despite his better judgment, he let the sword drift down. 

“Wild, what are you doing here?”

“I was just wandering around, replenishing my spice stores?” Wild stared at him like he’d grown extra heads. “What’s got you so jumpy? You looked like you were about to panic earlier.”

He bit his lip and looked Wild over one more time. The champion looked baffled and a little concerned, but not angry or suspicious the way the other four knights in the Chain had. As the silence stretched on, Wild got that distant look on his face again and his ears flicked back. After a moment, he shook his head harder and thumped the heel of his hand against his forehead. 

“What on earth. . .?” Wild huffed and glanced back at him. “Sorry about that. But seriously, what’s wrong?”

A desperate hope clawed its way up through Legend’s throat, and he swallowed, letting his sword fall further. 

Don’t get ahead of yourself, don’t get ahead of yourself, don’t hope for too much—

“Wild,” he said, keeping his voice low and as steady as he could. “How are you feeling about me right now? Aggressive? Hostile?” He swallowed a lump in his throat and pressed on. “Do you want to arrest, capture, or kill me?”

Wild’s jaw dropped. 

“Do I what?! No! You’re my friend, Legend, I trust you!” Wild looked a little hurt at the mere insinuation. “Besides, why in Hylia’s name would I want to arrest you? Sure, you’re an ass sometimes, but that’s not illegal.”

The burn in his eyes returned with a vengeance and he stayed in place just long enough to sheathe his sword before lunging forward and clutching Wild to him in a hug as he tried not to sob. 

Thank Nayru, Farore, and Din—thank Hylia, even; for once she cuts me a break—

“Legend?” Wild’s arms wrapped around him despite the obvious worry in his tone. “What’s going on? This isn’t like you.”

He didn’t answer and just held on to his brother—who wasn’t affected, somehow—until his heart calmed down and he felt less like shattering in the street. When he finally regained his composure, he ended the hug and dragged Wild to the most isolated spot he could see. Wild—bless him—didn’t protest until they arrived. 

“Okay, seriously, what—”

“Did I ever mention why I wasn’t fond of knights?” he interrupted, lowering his voice and leaning in close. Wild blinked twice. 

“Um—I think so? They got controlled by an evil mage, right?”

“Yeah. He brainwashed them into believing him when he claimed I kidnapped Zelda—despite the fact that no eleven-year-old would be able to do that—” he shook his head, forcing the memories back. “Anyway, the thing is, we never managed to fully break the curse. They still believe I’m a criminal and nothing Zelda says or any evidence that she provides can convince them otherwise. This curse only affects the knights.”

Wild stared at him, slowly tilting his head to the side. 

“Okay. . .?” 

He waited for a moment to see if Wild would figure it out, then took a deep breath and pressed on. 

“Somehow, the curse is spreading now, but as far as I can tell, it still only affects knights.”

That did it. Wild’s eyes widened and the champion’s face went pale, throwing his scars into stark relief. 

“Wait—half the Chain are knights—”

“And that’s the problem!” He ran his hands through his hair, eyes darting about the street just to check that he and Wild were still alone. “I ran into the Old Man, the Captain, Sky, and Smithy earlier, and they were all affected by it.” His throat closed up at the memory, but he pushed onwards. “For some reason, you’re not and I don’t know why but I’ve never been so relieved—”

“Ledge, hey. Breathe.” Wild placed firm-yet-gentle hands on his shoulders and squeezed. He distantly realized that he was hyperventilating, and he forced himself to pause and take a deep breath. Wild hummed soothingly. “Yeah, just like that. We’ll figure this out somehow. Rulie’s good with magic, maybe he’ll have some ideas. In the meantime, what needs to happen first?”

He swallowed and clenched his fists. His breaths shook, but black spots no longer danced at the edges of his vision. 

“I need to warn Ravio. Four mentioned that he might know where to find me and I don’t want him getting hurt or spilling all my hiding spots because he doesn’t realize what’s happening.”

“Okay. Is he still at your house?”

“Mhm, but he’s going to Syrup today to restock some things, so I hoped to run into him there.”

Wild squeezed his shoulders again. 

“Then let’s go. You can talk with Ravio and I’ll check on the rest of the Chain to make sure no one else is affected.”

“Right.”

                                                                                                      ****

Sure enough, Ravio was just finishing in Syrup’s shop when they arrived. The Lorulean merchant perked up as they came into view. 

“Ah, Mr. Hero! Fancy seeing you here—”

“The curse spread to some of the Chain, Ravi,” he interrupted, fixing Ravio with his most serious stare. Ravio went pale under his bunny hood. 

“Oh, dear. . .how badly?”

“Badly enough.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets to hide their shaking. “They might stop by the house looking for me. Don’t tell them anything and don’t let them hurt you. If you need to stay in Lorule for a while, do it.”

“You really think it’ll get that bad?”

He shrugged. 

“I’d rather prepare for the worst than be caught off-guard.”

“I see.” Ravio rearranged the bottles in his arms and nodded once. “Would you like me to send Sheerow to the princess to alert her?”

“That—would be helpful, actually.” He bowed his head to his freeloading roommate and sighed. “Thank you.”

“Of course, Link.”

A hand tapped his shoulder and he spun around to see Wild, slate in hand. The champion gave him a warm smile. 

“I got in contact with Wind, and he promised to check on Twilight and Hyrule. If they’re fine, they’ll meet us at that bakery you introduced us to, and Wind said he’d bring your bag.”

The relief nearly knocked him off his feet, but he just nodded. 

“Thanks, Wild.”

                                                                                                      ****

When they reached the bakery, Hyrule didn’t waste any time and grabbed him in a tight hug. A moment later, Twilight’s pelt dropped onto his shoulders.

“You doin’ alright, Kit? Are you hurt?”

“No, just stressed.” He didn’t bother to wiggle out of Hyrule’s grip and just glanced over the healer’s shoulder to check on Wind. “You three are all still fine?”

“Mhm. You’re still my annoyin’ little brother.” Twilight ruffled his hair, and he unabashedly leaned into it. He was in no mood to be prickly today. 

At least I still have some of my brothers. . .

“Now what do we do?” Wind asked, fiddling with his Wind Waker. Legend took a deep breath and finally let go of Hyrule. 

“I need to find somewhere to lay low while we get this figured out. Hopefully they wouldn’t actually try to kill me, but I’d rather not push my luck or end up locked in the dungeons again.”

The other heroes blanched.

“Right—we should definitely be avoidin’ that,” Twilight said slowly. “Where d’ we go, then?”

“Well—wait, we ?” He blinked at the others, and Wind scoffed before punching his arm. 

“What, you think we’re leaving you to deal with this shit on your own? Fuck that. You’re stuck with us, Vet.”

For the umpteenth time, his eyes welled with tears. At least this time, they weren’t from fear or betrayal. For once, he wasn’t dealing with homicidal pursuers on his own. 

It felt nice.

“So, where should we go?” Wild asked, head cocked to the side and an earnest look in his eyes. “This is your era, vet; we’ll follow your lead.”

He shook off the warmth that came from that trust and closed his eyes, skimming his mental map of Hyrule. 

Ah-ha! I think I know just where to go. . .

“C’mon. I have just the place in mind—and no others in the Chain know where it is, or even that it exists.”

                                                                                                      ****

The Pond of Happiness was just as he remembered it, and tension fell from his shoulders as they stepped up to the pool. Hyrule gasped softly. 

“Is this one of your Fairy Fountains, Vet?”

“Mhm. They increased my carrying capacity for bombs and arrows in exchange for rupees.” Regret flashed through his mind when he saw the glee on Wild’s face. “Champion, no. You already have infinite storage.”

“But—”

“He’s got a point, Cub.” Twilight patted Wild on the shoulder while snagging Wind’s collar. “That goes for you too, Sailor. Ya don’ need any more bomb capacity.”

“Oi!”

It felt almost normal—if one ignored the four missing Links. He bit the tip of his tongue and sat by the water’s edge, tapping his fingers restlessly against the stone. Hyrule settled next to him and laid a gentle hand on his knee.

“So, what exactly does this curse do?”

“I’m not completely sure.” He tugged at the pink streak in his hair, trying to put it into words. “Originally, it just made the knights follow Agahnim’s orders, but even after I killed him, they still thought I was a criminal and a traitor, no matter what I did or said—or what Zelda did or said. They take any chance they get to arrest me, and some of the overzealous ones will get violent.” His heart ached as he thought back to the Chain’s knights. “With Wars, Sky, Time, and Four, they just seemed suspicious and thought I was causing trouble since they saw my old wanted posters—long story—and when I mouthed off to the Captain like I usually do, he tried to ‘detain’ me.”

“Well, I’ll be.” Twilight shook his head. “Sounds like one hell of a curse.”

“No kidding.” Legend glanced over at Wild. “What confuses me is why Wild isn’t affected. You’re a knight, aren’t you?”

Wild’s scars creased as he frowned, fingers skimming over the designs on his Champion’s tunic. With a thoughtful hum, the cook shook his head. 

“I was a knight, but that was Before. I’m not—I don’t think I can call myself one, anymore. I don’t feel like one.” Wild shrugged. “Maybe that’s why it’s barely an annoyance.”

Wait, what?

“What do you mean by that?” Wind raised his eyebrows and Wild jumped, like he hadn’t meant to say it.

“Ah—”

Legend narrowed his eyes. Suspicion grew once again.

“Wild. What do you mean, barely an annoyance? Is it affecting you?”

“I mean—” Wild ducked his head so his hair fell about his face. “It’s like someone’s whispering to me in the back of my head, sort of like Flora did when I first woke up—but it’s saying that you’re a traitor to Hyrule Kingdom; that you’re dangerous and you’ll turn on us all in a heartbeat so I have to stop you before it’s too late.” Wild met his eyes, glowing blue shining with honesty and genuine care. “It’s not influencing me, I swear—I don’t believe what it’s saying and I won’t follow through with anything it tells me to do. Besides, it’s not like Flora, it feels wrong.”

“It feels wrong?” Hyrule leaned forward, his dark eyes intent. Wild nodded.

“Makes my skin crawl. Flora felt warm and friendly. This just feels nasty.”

“Huh.” Twilight tilted his head in a distinctly canine manner. “Mebbie it’s ‘cus you used to be a knight, but don’t feel like one now?”

“Yeah!” Wind added, his face all scrunched up in thought. “You just have a handful of memories of being a knight, so their rules and expectations and shit doesn’t mean as much to you, so maybe it doesn’t have as much of a foothold!”

Legend blinked and shared a glance with Hyrule. 

“Could that be it?”

Hyrule hummed, tapping his fingers together. 

“It could be. It would explain why Twilight’s not affected, either.”

He snapped his head over to the rancher, whose face steadily turned pink. 

“‘S an honor thing,” Twilight muttered, glaring at the stone around them. “Dusk did it—‘s not like any of the knights would actually listen to li’l ol’ me, and I don’t want it neither. All that fussy business can stay with the nobles. I’m a rancher, not a knight.”

“. . .Huh.” Honestly, he could see that. Being one of Hylia’s Chosen and saving the kingdom practically demanded rewards, and he could see Dusk knighting Twilight as a gesture of respect. He couldn’t see Twilight going along with acting as a ‘proper’ knight. “That makes sense, actually.”

Twilight actually pouted, but Hyrule clapped twice for attention. 

“Anyways, back to the curse—Wild, you said you could hear it whispering to you? D’you think that’s what the others are hearing too?”

“It wouldn’t surprise me.” Wild shifted position, fiddling with his slate. “Although it’s not very believable.”

“Maybe that’s the curse making them believe it,” Wind mused. Then the sailor perked up. “Wait, do you think that means we can convince them otherwise?”

Legend snorted mirthlessly. 

“We’ve tried, Pirate. The ones affected by the curse don’t listen to reason.”

“But these are Heroes we’re talking about. Even if they’re affected, surely they’re more resistant than the normal knights!” Wind argued. “Or maybe Fi could—”

“Tried that. I tried using the Triforce , Wind; I don’t know how to break this damn spell if those two didn’t manage it.”

“Damn. That’s a stubborn curse.” Twilight shook his head, hand drifting up to finger his amulet. “I thought I knew tough magic, but this is on a whole ‘nother level.”

“You’re telling me.”

Silence hung heavy over them, and Legend took a moment to massage his temples. This whole mess was a nightmare. 

What are we going to do?

Chapter Text

The mood was dismal that night. Wild made his favorite for dinner—bless him—and Wind tried to lift their spirits with a probably-highly-exaggerated story of one of his and Tetra’s victories, but Legend couldn’t shake the image of his brothers’ anger from his mind. They’d looked at him like he was one of the monsters they’d been sent to defeat. 

(He’d almost forgotten how much it hurt, to see those he trusted and looked up to turned against him.)

As night fell, Hyrule rested a hand on his shoulder, shaking him out of his thoughts. The healer gave him a soft smile.

“You should try and rest, Vet. You mentioned that no one knew about this place, so we should be safe enough.”

His first instinct was protest. Years of experience taught him that nowhere was truly safe; that monsters or Hylian predators could pounce at any moment. But. . .Hyrule did have a point. 

Still. . .

“We should keep a watch, just in case that Shadow decides to add to this mess,” he said. “I wouldn’t put anything past it.”

“Not a bad idea. I can take the first shift,” Wild murmured as he cleaned his pot. Twilight raised a hand. 

“I’ll take the second. Just two should be fine and dandy, right?”

“I mean—probably?”

“Lovely.”

                                                                                                      ****

He sprinted down the streets of Castle Town, but he wasn’t fast enough this time. Someone caught his arm in an iron grip, and as he struggled to pull away, footsteps pounded closer.

No. . .

He glanced down and saw Four, holding his elbow with all his smithing-born strength as cold, merciless brown eyes stared him down. His heart stuttered in his chest. 

Like the frightened rabbit he really was.

“Four, please—”

“Hey, you got him!” Warriors appeared around the corner, giving Four a quick smile before turning to Legend. His lip curled into a sneer. “You’ve caused a lot of trouble—though really, I shouldn’t have been surprised. You always have been. . . difficult.”

“Wars—”

“Don’t.” His head snapped to the side as Warriors’ palm hit his cheek, pain blooming a second later. “I’m surprised you haven’t learned to hold your tongue yet.”

Okay, ouch.

“Are Sky and Time almost here?” Four asked, his grip never loosening. Warriors hummed an agreement. 

“They’ll be here in a moment.”

Legend’s heart stuttered. He didn’t really want to find out what the arguably-more-dangerous-knights of the Chain had in store for him. As stealthily as he could, he let his free arm creep towards Four. 

His ribs are ticklish, right? Wind got him that one time—

Warriors’ hand clamped down on his, his metal gauntlet biting into his skin. 

“Nice try, traitor. ”

That hurt even worse.

“I see you caught our runaway.” Time appeared out of nowhere, looming over him with that awful flat look on his face. 

(Legend promised himself that if he made it out of this, he’d apologize to Twilight for teasing him about his fear of Time’s disapproving face. It was terrifying to be the subject of.)

He blinked and Sky was there, Fi in hand and scowling down at him. The echo of Godslayer rang in his ears. 

“Wait, Sky, don’t—” he squeaked. The Master Sword flashed in Sky’s hands, but the Chosen Hero’s frown only deepened. 

“I’m not sure how you hoodwinked Fi into letting you wield her.” Sky’s voice rumbled like the thunder that now surrounded them. Lightning flashed across the sky and along Fi’s blade. “But I won’t let that mistake happen again.”

“Watch your hands, Sky. She may hurt you by accident,” Warriors warned. Four snickered. 

“Why would she? She only refuses to hurt heroes,” the smith taunted. Four gave him a nasty smile, eyes glinting blue. “I hardly think you qualify.”

“Right.”

He opened his mouth to say something—to plead, to try and convince them, to do anything but just stand there—but then a leather belt was in his mouth and Time held his head up by his hair while Four and Wars clutched his arms. Sky lifted the blade of the Master Sword to be level with Legend’s heart. 

“It’s about time we finished this.”

No, please—!

                                                                                                      ****

“Legend, wake up!”

He shot up, gasping for breath and clutching his chest, half-expecting to feel Fi sticking out from between his ribs. His fingers met nothing but rumpled cloth. Hands fell on his biceps and he flinched, but the hands stayed gentle, just rubbing circles into his skin. 

“Easy, easy, it was just a nightmare, Vet. Everything’s fine. You’re safe.”

He blinked sleep and tears from his eyes to see Hyrule sitting before him, forehead creased and lip tucked between his teeth. The traveler’s hands continued rubbing those small circles into his arms. 

“Ledge, are you with me?”

He had to swallow twice before he could force out words. 

“‘Ru-Rulie?”

“Yeah. Can you take a deep breath for me, Scholar?” Hyrule took an exaggerated deep breath and fond exasperation sparked in Legend’s chest. He knew how to stave off panic, thank you very much. 

(He still appreciated the gesture.)

As his breathing began to even out, Wild appeared with a plate of crêpes in hand, and Legend found his mouth watering. 

“Wild, you’re an absolute blessing.”

“I try my best.”

Wild’s Goddess-blessed cooking helped settle the last of his nerves, and by the time Wind swept the plates away to wash, the dream had lost most of its sting. That meant it was time to get down to business.

“So, what should we be prioritizing right now?”

He sighed and rubbed his temples. 

“Frankly, I have no idea. We can’t exactly go hunting the black-blooded monsters with half the Chain missing; they’re a challenge when we’re all perfectly in sync, so we’d probably get our asses kicked sooner or later, and who knows who the others would go after first if they ran into us in the process.”

“Good point. We don’t want to be fighting both heroes and monsters at the same time.” Wild absently braided his hair, then undid it, then repeated the process. “Maybe your Zelda will have some suggestions—or at least resources?”

“And you’ve traveled a bunch, right, Vet? Maybe someone from one of your other adventures would know what to do!” Wind added. He hummed, considering the idea. 

Hytopia. . .no, definitely not. Holodrum or Labrynna, maybe? Ralph still owes me a favor. The Oracles would probably be willing to help, too. . .Moosh, Ricky, or Dmitri might know something. . . geez, I know a lot of people.

“It’s a possibility,” he said slowly. “I could send off some letters—”

“Or we could just go visit them,” Twilight drawled. “Things are already goin’ to hell in a handbasket, Ledge, and I doubt we can just stick around in here. The rest of the Chain may be lacking the sense that the Goddesses gave to cuccos at the moment, but they’re still far from fools.”

He blinked at the. . . unique turn of phrase as Wild and Wind burst into snickers, but shook it off and considered the idea. The rancher had a point.

Eventually, someone’s going to find us—or Hylia will just toss us in a portal—and besides, Wind, Wild, and Hyrule will go stir-crazy stuck in this cave for days. None of the knights—Chain or otherwise—know all the details of my adventures, so even if they were to guess I’d left Hyrule, they’d have a hard time figuring out where I might have gone first. But I don’t want to waste any time if none of them have any advice. . .

As it turned out, someone—be it Hylia or her counterpart—got impatient and gave them a different option. A portal swirled into existence on the wall and Twilight snarled at it. 

“Oh, no no no. Hylia ain’t carryin’ us to another era now !”

“Hang on.” Hyrule squinted at the portal. “That doesn’t feel like one of Hylia’s portals—or like the Shadow’s, come to think of it.”

He took a closer look. Sure enough, the magic had a strange feeling to it—but it didn’t feel unfamiliar. It clicked when a young woman with long, dark hair and sharp red eyes stepped out from the wall, and his jaw dropped. 

“Hilda?!”

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Link—though I wish the circumstances were better.” She gave him a wry smile that he automatically returned. “Ravio sent word that you had an issue with a curse.”

“You could say that. Did Ravio ever explain my history with knights?”

Hilda stood attentively as he explained the situation, her expression never shifting. When he finished, she let out a soft noise and tapped her fingers together. 

“I see. That’s a dilemma indeed. So, even the Triforce couldn’t remove this curse?”

“Unfortunately not. It brought them back to life, but didn’t erase the effects. I don’t get it, either.”

“Wait, say what now?” Wind snapped his head around, eyes wide. “Back to life?!”

Ah shit. 

“Not important right now.” He carefully did not look at the sailor and kept his gaze on Hilda. “I don’t suppose you have any suggestions for undoing the effects, do you?”

“I do not, but I have another suggestion.” Hilda bowed her head and gestured gracefully towards the portal. “You are welcome to stay at my castle for as long as you need, and perhaps my library will have something you can use.”

Now that’s an idea—I don’t think the others would be able to cross into Lorule, and that way, I can still communicate with Ravio and Zel!

“That sounds great, Hilda. Thank you.”

“It’s the least I can do after all you did for us, my friend.” Hilda’s smile widened and she turned to the other heroes. “And you are Link’s companions who haven’t been affected? You must come too, of course.”

The four seemed utterly dumbstruck, so he just nudged their shoulders. 

“C’mon, let’s pack up. Who knows how long this portal will stay open?”

                                                                                                      ****

Lorule was brighter than he remembered. Clearly, it had been healing since he and Fable had restored its Triforce. 

Good.

“What is this place?” Wind asked, gazing around with wide eyes. Hilda chuckled.

“This is Lorule, Hyrule’s mirror counterpart. I am the counterpart of Princess Zelda.” She bowed her head to him. “Link saved the land some time ago.”

“Of course he did. He is the Veteran, after all.”

“Is there anything you haven’t done?” Wild asked with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. He made a rude gesture towards the Champion and pointedly turned back to Hilda.

“So, how’s your collection of magical reference resources?”

“Admittedly, there’s been considerable damage and loss during Lorule’s period of chaos, and I haven’t done a full inventory, but we do have a considerable number of spellbooks and Yuga’s old workshop remains untouched. You may well find something in there.”

Wild froze mid-step. 

“You have Yiga too, Vet?!”

He paused in confusion, then it clicked and he shook his head. 

“Not Yiga, Cook. Yuga. He was a dark mage who wanted to shape Lorule in his own image and had a nasty habit of turning people into paintings.” He shuddered at the memory of Yuga’s creepy grin and his words about Zelda’s and Hilda’s paintings. 

“I can hardly decide which of my princess portraits is prettier. . .”

“Sounds like an ugly individual if I’ve ever heard of one,” Twilight quipped. He snorted despite himself. 

“Oh, he was, both metaphorically and literally. He looked a bit like a mix between a Moblin and Ganondorf.”

Wind gagged and Hyrule looked horrified. 

“That’s horrendous!”

“E-yup.” He clapped Wild on the back. “Sorry, Champ, you’re still the only one with Sheikah assassins after your blood.”

“I mean—I’m kind of glad you don’t have to worry about them?”

“Besides, I think he’s busy enough with the knights,” Wind chirped. Twilight cuffed the sailor upside the head. 

“Oi, hush your mouth!”

“. . .Too soon?”

“I mean, you’re not wrong.” He shrugged carelessly before dragging Wind into a headlock. “But you need to learn some tact before you offend any stuffy nobles.”

“I’m a pirate! Pirates don’t need tact!”

“But heroes do.” He let Wind squirm out of his grip as they finally reached Lorule Castle. “Come on. Hilda, where did you say Yuga’s workshop was?”

                                                                                                      ****

Twilight scrunched his nose up as the Vet shoved open the old wooden door. The stale scent of dark magic flooded the air, making his hackles rise. Behind him, Hyrule grimaced. 

“This place feels awful.”

“Yeah, dark magic tends to stick around.” Legend waved his hands through the air—attempting to clear it, maybe?—and headed straight for the large wooden bookshelf across the room. Twilight found his eyes drawn to a large portrait on the wall, showing a pale man with curly red hair and strange lash makeup under his eyes. His eyebrows arched. 

“Who’s this s’posed to be?”

“That would be Yuga.” Hilda stepped into the room and glared at the painting. Wild snapped his head over. 

“Wait—Legend, I thought you said he was a mix between a Moblin and Ganon. He looks—normal.”

“He does in that picture,” Legend drawled. He blew a cloud of dust off a book and began flipping through the pages. “When I fought him, he merged with Ganondorf or something and took on the hybrid form. Ugly bastard.”

Ah. That makes sense, I guess.

He stared at the painting for a moment longer before turning away. The room was chock-full of pretty paintings, except for the wall where a huge desk sat with scattered papers and empty bottles on its top. The air of stale magic hung heaviest there, and he couldn’t help shuddering. 

“So—where did ya need me, Scholar?”

Legend glanced over his shoulder. 

“Hm? Oh. . .right, you’re not fond of magic. Can you come help me look through the books and just pick out any about dark magic, especially mind magic? We might as well take them all out and look through them more closely later. I’d rather not stay here too long.”

“Agreed. He did some seriously dark stuff in here.” Hyrule gazed around the room, looking a little green. Wind nodded, scowling at the portraits. 

“And all these paintings are creepy as shit!”

He reached out to cuff the Sailor again. 

“Language, Sailor!”

“Fuck off!”

                                                                                                      ****

Legend grunted as he dropped the last stack onto the desk in Hilda’s study. Yuga had far more books on curses than he would’ve expected, considering the limited spells he’d seen the sorcerer use before.

Guess it’s a good thing he never used them all, but still. . .

“This might take a while,” Hyrule murmured, staring at the pile of books with wide eyes. Legend snorted. 

“Maybe. We’d better get to work, then.”

Most of the books were written in Lorulian text, so he assigned his brothers to skim through them and see if there were any drawings that could offer clues while he and Hilda actually read. It would make the process take longer, but oh well. 

                                                                                                      ****

“How is it not in any of these?!” He slammed his head against the book in his hands with a groan. “What fucking curse did that bastard use?!”

“Could he have made it up on the spot?” Wild asked. He groaned louder.

“I sure hope not; otherwise this is going to be even more difficult than it already is.”

“Could you make up your own counterspell?” Wind asked, rubbing his eyes. Hyrule answered before he could. 

“Not without knowing exactly how the wizard cast the spell in the first place, and even then, mental magic is tricky. Without experience, you could do more harm than good.”

“What Rulie said.” He rubbed the spot between his eyes and slammed the book against the desk. “Dammit, I was hoping there would be something here. . .”

“Link?” Hilda poked her head into the study, one eyebrow arched. “Princess Zelda would like to speak with you.”

Eh?

He ignored the confused outburst from his brothers and got up, stretching out the kinks in his spine from sitting so long. 

“Thanks, Hilda.”

Chapter Text

Zelda paced in front of the charmed mirror anxiously, glancing at the glass every now and then. She thought the worst of Agahnim’s curse was behind them by now. 

Poor Link. . .he can never catch a break, can he? I hope he responds soon. . .

“Zel?”

She spun and met her little brother’s eyes. A relieved smile spread across her face and she automatically stepped closer to the mirror, even though she wouldn’t be able to hug him through the glass. 

“Link. Are you alright? Ravio told me what happened.”

Link winced slightly, but shrugged a moment later with an air of very-fake nonchalance.

“Eh, it’s not the first time. I’m more worried that it can affect people with a Goddess’s blessing now.”

That was a bald lie, but she knew better than to call him out on it. It wouldn’t get them anywhere. Instead, she just gave him a look.

“You’re not hurt?”

“No, Zel, I’m fine.” Link had the audacity to roll his eyes at her like he couldn’t get into a knife fight while visiting the market. “Anyways, have they actually talked to you yet? I’m sure they plan to if they haven’t.”

“No, they’ve not come by the castle. They did stop at your house, but apparently Ravio convinced them that he knew nothing about your whereabouts.” She bit her lip, remembering the way the merchant’s writing wobbled, done by a shaky hand. “I’ll keep on alert if they decide to come by. Do I need to worry about what they’d do to me?”. 

“Honestly, I’d be shocked. They’re more likely to see you as a victim that I tricked, even if they did know we were siblings.”

“Oh good. I wouldn’t fancy going up against the tall one with the scars.”

Link snickered, and Zelda gave herself a pat on the back for pulling the reaction out of him. Hylia knew her brother probably needed a laugh right about now. 

“Neither would I, Zel. But take my word for it—the one with the cape is better.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Footsteps in the hallway outside shot her into high alert, but when they passed her room without pausing, she relaxed. 

(Even so, she lowered her voice. Just in case.)

“Have you had any luck looking through Hilda’s collection or Yuga’s books?”

The scowl on Link’s face answered her better than any words could’ve, and she sighed. 

I wonder. . .

“I could check Agahnim’s study again,” she said slowly. “With the Sheikah, even. Maybe we’ll find something we’ve missed before.”

“We’ve turned his study inside out and upside down multiple times, Zel.” Link shook his head. “Din’s tits, I worked with the Sheikah to comb through all the secret passages, and there’s nothing. If he wrote it down, it’s not here.” Link rubbed his temples with a groan. “. . .Sorry, Zel. Just. . . frustrated.”

“I don’t blame you.” She turned and resumed her own pacing. 

There has to be something we can do. . .even if this is a spell Agahnim invented, he must’ve written something about it somewhere, right? Maybe it’s wherever he lived before he arrived in Hyrule? Where did he come from, actually?

“Hey, Link? Where did Agahnim live before he came to Hyrule?”

“How in Nayru’s name would I know that?!” Link squawked. “I was eight when he came to Hyrule; all I was worried about was helping Uncle with the garden and practicing swordplay with him when I felt healthy enough.”

“That’s fair. I’ll ask the Sheikah to investigate.” 

“Why the sudden interest?”

She shrugged, still pacing around the room. 

“Agahnim’s magic was something we’ve never seen before, but maybe it’s more common wherever he came from—or at least, they’d recognize what it was. Even if they don’t, surely he had a home there—wherever there is—and maybe he wrote notes about this curse there.”

“Huh.” Link tilted his head, eyes going thoughtful. “Maybe—but with how long it’s been, would it even still exist?”

“It’s worth a shot, right?” She stopped her pacing and stepped up to the mirror, laying her hand on the glass. For a second, she imagined it melting away so she could properly comfort her brother. “We’ll fix this somehow, Link. I promise you that much.”

Link’s lips twitched into a wry smile, even as his hand rose to line up with hers. 

“Always the optimist, aren’t you, Zel?” Link shook his head and sighed. “I’d better get back to the books. Stay safe.”

“You too. Stay in Lorule if you can for now; it’ll be safer.” She hesitated a moment, then pushed onward. “I love you, Link.”

Her brother’s cheeks turned pink and he ducked his head.

“Zelda!” A beat passed, and something in Link softened. “Love you too.”

She had to fight to keep the surprise off her face. 

He must be really shaken if he’s admitting it out loud. . .

“Good luck, little brother,” she murmured as she watched his image fade from the mirror. A moment later, a knock sounded at her door. 

“Your Highness? Some men wish to see you; they claim to be foreign heroes.”

Well, would you look at that. . .

“I’ll be right there.”

                                                                                                      ****

“How can I help you, Hero of Time?” She kept her voice as calm as she could, even as she clutched the armrests of her throne in a white-knuckled grip. She watched Time—the man her brother admitted was like his own uncle—bow before her with an all-too-familiar haze over his eye. “Your party seems smaller than usual; is everyone alright?”

“About that—it seems Legend’s gone missing. Do you know where he is?” To Time’s credit, he held a perfectly neutral expression, even as the other three struggled to hide their scowls. She simply let one of her eyebrows lift. 

“He hasn’t been here. He tends to avoid the castle—he and the older knights don’t get along much.” Technically true, but not the whole truth. Just in case they could tell lies from honesty.

“And why would that be?” The hero with the blue scarf—Warriors, if she remembered correctly—gave her a thin smile, but she could see the suspicion brewing behind his eyes. “Is it related to the wanted posters we saw in Castle Town?”

“Are those still up? Honestly. . .” She dropped her face into her hands and sighed. “I’ll have to scold the knights again—let me guess, they mentioned something about kidnapping, treason, and murder?”

“Yes, actually.”

“I thought so.” She rubbed her temples to relieve the burgeoning headache before continuing. “Several years ago, an evil wizard snuck into Hyrule and brainwashed the soldiers. This wizard planned to keep me captive and Link came to my rescue, but he claimed that Link kidnapped me and sent the soldiers after him. Even after the wizard died, we never managed to convince them that Link was innocent.”

When she glanced at the knights of the Chain, her attention locked on Time and the short one—Four?—in particular. Rather than the automatic disdain and frustration she’d come to expect from those affected by the curse—and that she now saw on Warriors and the one in the white cape—they looked like they were actually considering her words. 

Hmm.

“How old was Legend when that happened?” Four asked. His eyes seemed oddly purple in the light, but after a brief pause, she decided to ignore it. 

“Eleven, I believe. And again, he saved me. There was no kidnapping involved.”

“I see.” Four stood back, brow furrowed with thought, but Zelda watched as Warriors shook the information off as if it meant nothing. 

Just like our knights do. . .

“Well, if you haven’t seen Legend, have you seen the rest of the Chain?” Warriors asked with a polite smile. “Chances are, they might know Legend’s whereabouts, or are even with him right now.”

The hero in the white cape elbowed Warriors in the side, but Zelda pretended not to see. Instead, she just shrugged.

“I haven’t heard a word from any of them.”

“That’s not like them at all,” the white-caped hero murmured, his brow furrowed. “Something must’ve happened.”

“Yes, like—”

“Wars. Not now.” Time sent a look at Warriors, then bowed to her once again. “Thank you for your time, Princess. Will you let us know if you hear from Legend? We’re staying at the inn closest to the castle.”

“I see. I’ll have to keep on the lookout for Li—Legend. This isn’t the first time he’s disappeared without a trace; he’ll turn up eventually.”

Not an outright denial, but not acceptance either. Hopefully, that’ll keep them off the trail. 

It seemed to do the trick well enough. The heroes left after a few more requisite pleasantries, and as soon as they did, she went to her rooms to start writing a letter. 

‘Link,

Your companions stopped by the castle, just as you predicted—yes, yes, go ahead and gloat all you want, you were right again. I told them that you hadn’t stopped by, which is true; and that you had a tendency to disappear without a trace, so I’d keep my eyes out for you, which is also true. They seemed to accept it, but during our meeting, I noticed something interesting. 

When I explained what happened and why you still have the wanted posters up—I’ll have them removed again, don’t worry—Time and Four reacted differently than the other two. (At least, I think that’s who they were.) They didn’t shake off my words the way our knights do; they actually seemed to consider what I said. I don’t know why it’s different for them, especially since the other two reacted much the same as our knights, but maybe you can make something of it.

I hope you find something soon, Link. Stay safe. I’ll let you know if anything changes here.

- Zelda

P.S. I’ll send this via our contact as soon as I can—since the postman delivers to all of you, it might be best to avoid him for now. But even so, I tried to omit details in case this is intercepted. Aren’t you proud of me? Anyway, I suggest you do the same if you write back. Good luck, Link.’

                                                                                                       ****

“Where the hell could Legend have scampered off to? It hasn’t been that long.” Warriors scowled into his tankard as they sat in the inn that night. Time hummed, gazing into his own mug of milk. 

“He could be anywhere. This is his era, he knows it best.”

“And he’s traveled widely; he might not even be in Hyrule at this point.” Four drummed his fingers against the table, eyes shifting between brown, purple and green. “Still, I thought he would’ve stopped in to see Ravio or Fable before dashing off—and if he took the others with him, then I would’ve expected Twilight or Hyrule to alert us.”

“Well, he can’t hide forever.” Warriors drained his tankard in a single gulp and thumped it down. “We’ll find him, and we’ll get some answers as to why he’s a wanted criminal here.” Wars gave Sky a look out of the corner of his eye. “I’m still surprised Fi didn’t reject him because of that.”

Sky shrugged, brushing his fingers across the Master Sword’s hilt. 

“She has no problem with him—in fact, I think she thinks we’re being unreasonable.” Sky pouted a bit, twisting his head to gaze at the blade. “Though I can’t figure out why either.”

Time sipped his milk, deliberately not looking at the accursed blade. 

I mean, we are questioning her judgment; she’s never liked that—but then again, Fable seemed very convinced that the wanted posters were just a misunderstanding—but what about the murder? 

“Time?”

“Hm?” He looked over at Four, raising his eyebrow. “Yes, Smithy?”

“Rupee for your thoughts? You have that look again.”

He chuckled and leaned back, waiting for Sky and Warriors to be distracted by planning to speak with the knights of this Hyrule before he answered. 

“Just thinking about what Fable said earlier.”

“Ah.” Four sipped from his mug, eyes darkening to a shade he couldn’t identify. “I’ve been thinking about that too. You’d think that she wouldn’t support a murderer and traitor, and yet—”

“She seems to have no issue with Legend,” he finished. 

“Exactly.”

“Maybe she feels like she owes him a debt after he got her away from that evil wizard? Murderer or not, I wouldn’t blame her for choosing Legend over that.”

“Agreed. Besides, making Legend angry probably isn’t a good idea, even if he was only eleven at the time. Who knows what kind of magic artifacts he’d already gotten his hands on.”

Something still felt off to Time. He kept looking over his memories of Legend, from the months they’d traveled together, and searching for any indication of the hoarder’s true nature. But despite his sarcastic nature, his distaste for Hylia—sure, he himself disliked the Master Sword, but Legend took it to extremes—and his nasty temper, he still couldn’t see Legend as everything that the wanted posters claimed he was.

Legend must be an excellent actor—really, the dislike of Hylia and his refusal to let anyone close should’ve tipped us off sooner. 

“I’m getting us another round, do you two want refills?” Warriors asked, pulling Time from his thoughts. He snapped his wrist out and caught the Captain’s. 

“No, Wars. No more alcohol. You don’t want a hangover tomorrow; we’ve got work to do.”

“You’re no fun, Old Man.” Still, Warriors brought their tankards back to the counter and returned without them. “Fine, let’s go to bed.”

They headed towards the back of the inn, but just as Sky let his hand fall on the stair’s banister, a new hand in a metal gauntlet fell on top. Time’s hand instinctively went to the Biggoron Sword as he glared at the stranger. The man—who had quite a few battle scars—held his other hand up in surrender. 

“Easy, strangers. I hear you’re looking for Link?”

Oh-ho, what’s this about?

Warriors brightened.

“Yes, do you happen to know where he is?”

“Sadly, no—he comes and goes as he pleases; not a lick of respect for authority—” the man shook his head, clicking his tongue. “But my men and I have had plenty of run-ins with him. Maybe we can give you some information.”

Sky beamed and bowed his head. 

“We’d be happy to listen, sir!”

“Then follow me.” The man led them to some tables pushed together, where several knights sat and welcomed them. Time hesitated just a moment before sitting down. He could feel a faint shadow of magic spread across the table. 

What is that?

“Time, come on! Let’s get some answers.”

“Right.”

Let’s hear what Legend’s people really think of him. 

Chapter Text

The whispering woke Wild up, and as soon as he processed why he was awake, he scowled into the darkness. 

‘He could kill you in your sleep, you know. He’s got the tools and the experience.’

Legend wouldn’t do that. Shut up. 

‘Why wouldn’t he? He doesn’t care about anyone but himself.’

He does care, he just shows it differently—and even if he didn’t, I think he’d keep me around for my cooking at the very least. He’d probably poison himself otherwise.

‘He’s abandoned Hyrule—’

No the fuck he hasn’t. He’s protecting himself so he doesn’t get thrown in a dungeon or possibly murdered. That’s not abandonment. If anything, I abandoned my Hyrule by sleeping in a cave for a century. Be quiet.

With a growl, he shoved his blankets aside and stretched. Lorule’s castle rooms weren’t as sumptuous as he’d expected after seeing its counterpart—it reminded him of his own Hyrule Castle with the way it bordered on wear and decay. 

He rather liked it. It certainly made cooking on the spot easier, since he couldn’t burn any fancy, expensive furnishings. 

He skimmed through his slate’s ingredient inventory, deliberately focusing on recipes rather than the nagging voice lurking in the depths of his mind. The sensation didn’t feel all that much like Flora, now that he’d experienced it for longer—rather than a soft, guiding reminder or a voice born on the wind, it felt almost slimy and utterly wrong as it forced its way in. 

(At least the discomfort made it easier to ignore its demands.)

The door creaked open and Hyrule poked his head in. 

“Hey, Wild, are you—oh, thank goodness.” Hyrule gave him a sheepish smile and pointed towards the hall. “Uh, I think Wind and Twilight are hungry enough to start eating the furniture, and Legend is about to throttle them both. Princess Hilda just seems amused.”

He blinked at the traveler wordlessly for a moment. 

“. . .Right.” He flicked through his slate and pulled out a pair of baked apples. “Let’s go appease the beasts before I start actual breakfast.”

“That would be much appreciated.”

                                                                                                      ****

‘What about those knights he’s fought with before? Maybe he’ll target you. He almost sliced your throat open the other day even when he realized who you were. You’re a threat to him, and what does he do with threats? He—”

For the love of Hylia, would you shut up,  you stupid curse?!

“Uh, Wild? Are you okay?”

He glanced up from his notes and met Wind’s concerned gaze. It took a moment for clarity to strike. 

“I said that out loud, didn’t I?”

“Yep.”

“Is the curse getting stronger?” Hyrule jumped up and fluttered around him, hands hovering around his face. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Legend’s face go pale, and he hurried to try—keyword try—to reassure his brothers. 

“I don’t think so; it’s not any more believable. It’s trying really hard to convince me that you’re going to kill me, Vet.” He shook his head with a huff. “Honestly, I like to think I know you better than that. You like my cooking too much, for one.”

“Oh, fuck you.” It still earned a snort from the veteran, so Wild counted it as a win. Then Twilight raised a hand.

“Still, ‘s there any way we can block it? Prob’ly shouldn’t let it chatter away, just in case.”

“I mean, it’s not a bad idea, but—” Hyrule froze, eyes blowing wide. “Oh my Goddesses. I’m an idiot. We’re all idiots.”

“Hey!”

“Rule? What’s wrong?”

Hyrule smacked himself in the face and spun to face Legend, pointing so aggressively that Legend actually leaned back a little. Wild couldn’t help snorting. 

How does this curse think it’ll convince me that he’ll hurt us?

“How did neither of us think of this?!”

“You’re going to have to get a little more specific there, Rulie,” Legend said slowly. Hyrule groaned and buried his face in his hands. 

“Legend, what do you do when you’re dealing with a magical trap in a dungeon? One that you’ve never seen before?”

“Um.” Legend blinked. “I mean—look at the effects and the trigger if it’s known, try to see the magical signature so I know what type of magic I’m dealing with, then—” Legend paused, eyes narrowing suddenly. “Hang on. Are you getting at what I think you’re getting at?”

“Mind sharing with the rest of us, you two? Some of us don’t know much ‘bout magic,” Twilight asked, propping his head up on his fists. Hyrule threw himself into the nearest chair with a dramatic groan. 

“We have Wild, and Wild is affected by—even if he isn’t controlled by—the curse on Legend’s knights. That means we can use him to work backwards!”

Eh?

Wind and Twilight shared equally confused looks, but Legend burst into a torrent of swears.

“How did I miss that?!”

“Still confused over here, you guys.”

“Right—basically, we can poke around at the traces of the spell on Wild and use it to reconstruct the magic more precisely, and maybe we’ll be able to find a way to break it,” Legend explained, massaging his temples. Wild felt his forehead wrinkle. 

“Like what I do when I try to recreate a dish without a recipe?”

“Same concept, yes.”

OH! That—that makes a lot of sense, actually.

“Do you really think it’ll work?” Wind fiddled with his baton, sending a light breeze throughout the room. Legend glanced over at Hyrule, who shrugged. 

“It’s the best idea we’ve got right now.”

                                                                                                      ****

Legend couldn’t stop mentally kicking himself. He’d even tried it physically as soon as he had a moment alone. 

(Didn’t work too well, but maybe that was for the best. He didn’t need an injury on top of everything else.)

How did I miss the possibility of reverse-engineering the curse by looking at Wild? Honestly, I’ve been dealing with magic long enough. . .

“Legend? Ya comin’?”

He shook himself out of his self-reprimands and gave Twilight a look.  

“Don’t get your trousers in a twist, Farm Boy. I’m coming.”

Twilight cheerfully made a rude gesture and Legend carefully ignored the warmth in his chest. It felt so normal —he had to keep reminding himself that Wars wouldn’t join in and that Time wouldn’t interfere with feigned long-suffering sighs.

Oracles, I hope Hyrule’s plan works.

He followed the rancher to the room Hilda had graciously prepared for them, and he took a deep breath to steady his nerves. He saw Wild seated in a ridiculously-overstuffed armchair with Hyrule at his side. The healer glanced up and gave them a small smile. 

“Ready to give this a try?”

“Sure.” He pushed past Twilight and stood on Wild’s other side. “Comfortable, Champion?”

“As much as I can be in this situation.” Wild gave him a thin smile that tugged unnaturally on the scars around his mouth. “I hope you get something out of this.”

Me too, Wild. 

Rather than respond, he just settled his hand on Wild’s shoulder and closed his eyes to focus and bring himself into the proper state of mind. Immediately, his senses flooded with the essence of his brother—untamed, playful energy that swirled around him and hummed with the same song as that of the trees and plants of the Champion’s world, along with the faintest hint of four other magics, woven deep into his soul. It was chaotic and natural and utterly Wild .

It made finding the curse shockingly easy. The dark magic felt sticky, clinging to the edges of Wild’s own magic like particularly stubborn cobwebs, and the shadows that seemed to radiate from it turned his stomach. He grimaced. 

“Found it.”

“Me too.” Hyrule’s voice shook ever so slightly, and Legend risked distraction by opening an eye. The healer looked slightly green, but when Hyrule looked up, he gave a firm nod. “Let’s take a closer look.”

“Right.” 

He brushed his own magic ever-so-lightly against the curse, and it immediately let out an unearthly soul-screech that rattled his teeth despite making no sound. Wild hissed. 

“Whatever you just did, the curse did not like it. It just got a hell of a lot louder.”

“Noted. Don’t touch the curse too much,” he muttered back, tracing around the edges of the dark magic. “Now, where does this come from?”

The taste of honey and mint exploded on his tongue and the fizz of fairy magic brushed up against his own as Hyrule hummed. 

“It goes deep. Hang on. . . oh.”

“What? What did you find?”

“Here, try and follow my magic.”

Legend raised his eyebrows, but did as he was told and followed Hyrule’s magic. Slowly, ever so slowly, it worked under some of the curse threads, and he carefully squeezed after it.

Oh indeed.

The curse sat deep in Wild's mind, spreading out like some sort of nefarious root system. When he hesitantly poked at it, screeching metal filled his ears—along with a faint voice he hadn’t heard for years. 

‘He’s invading your mind with one of his items, surely! Kick him out before he makes you do something dreadful! You know what he’s like—’

“OH SHUT UP! YOU’RE NOT EVEN BELIEVABLE!”

That voice was far more welcome, and the sheer honesty in Wild’s mental words made Legend’s throat close up. He absently squeezed the cook’s shoulder in thanks.

Of course, that only seemed to make the curse angrier. It pulsed once and Wild’s magic proceeded to live up to its owner’s name. The energy around him picked up until he felt like he was in the middle of a specter storm, and something like lightning cracked around him. 

“Legend, back off!”

He didn’t need to be told twice and carefully drew his magic back. When he dared to open his eyes, Wild sat hunched over, clutching his head.

“Owww. . .I didn’t know it could do that. . .”

“Sorry, Wild.” Hyrule looked distinctly greener now. “That curse is definitely somewhat aware and it does not want any interference.”

“Can a curse even be aware?” Wind asked, brow furrowed. Legend grunted. 

“Unfortunately, yes. It’s rare, but some curses can develop a sort of sentience if left on their own long enough. I guess Agahnim’s is one of them—I really shouldn’t be surprised; everything about that asshole was trouble.”

 “Sounds like it.” Twilight came over, balancing a tray with three glasses of water. “Here, y’all look like you need it.”

“Thanks, rancher.” He snatched a glass and gulped half its contents down. “Sorry about setting it off like that, Wild.”

“It’s not your fault. You didn’t know.” Wild accepted his own glass with shaking hands and sipped at it slowly. Hyrule glanced up. 

“I wonder—maybe I could go deeper on my own? Maybe it was Legend’s presence that triggered the reaction, since the curse is set against him.”

“Definitely could be.” It wouldn’t surprise him in the least at this point.

Damn you, Agahnim. . .

“It’s worth a try.” Wild set the cup down and leaned back. “Whenever you’re ready.”

“Wait, Wild, we can take a break—”

“I’ll be fine.” Wild smiled gamely up at Hyrule. “Besides, now I really want to break this curse for sheer spite.”

Can’t blame him on that one.

Hyrule shut his eyes and his hands began to glow ever-so-faintly. A hand on his elbow shook Legend out of watching and he glanced to the side. 

“Want to fight a training dummy? You have the murder look again,” Wind offered. 

That actually sounded like fun. He had some. . . feelings to vent.

“Lead the way, Pirate.”

                                                                                                       ****

“We got something!”

Legend nearly dropped the sword on his foot from the shock. When he spun around, he found Hyrule’s beaming grin right in his face. 

“Huh?”

“We found something that might help with the curse!” Hyrule bounced on the balls of his feet, uncharacteristically exuberant. He raised an eyebrow even as he forced down his anticipation. 

Don’t get your hopes up too soon. . .

“What?”

“So, the curse was originally designed to make the knights devoted to Agahnim and believe in whatever he tells them; I found that at its core,” Hyrule started, hands flailing a bit. “Thing is, after he died, there was still enough residual energy that it wouldn’t break, so it sort of—shifted, I guess? It adapted itself to follow along with the last order Agahnim gave, which is—”

“To kill or capture me,” he finished. Hyrule nodded. 

“Exactly. The curse focused on that, but without Agahnim to reinforce it, it eventually would stop being believable and that would let the knights realize something was wrong and therefore break the curse. To avoid that, it adapted itself. Now, it alters a person’s perceptions so that they won’t believe anyone that says something contradictory to what the curse wants, and it actively suggests alternative explanations that make you look bad.” 

He blinked. 

“I’ve never heard of a curse doing something like that on its own.”

“Neither have I. My only guess is that Ganon was involved.” Hyrule grimaced. “Was Agahnim connected to him in any way?”

“Yes, actually. Agahnim was apparently his alter ego?” He shook his head at the memory. “I’ll admit, I’m still confused by that.”

“I see. That would probably do it.” Hyrule ran a hand through his curls. “But, that means we probably will be able to reason with the Chain if we do it right, and if we break the curse on them, then we might even be able to reverse it on your knights.”

Legend’s throat closed up a bit as his mind flicked back to the time before his adventure, when knights were friends and mentors. Could he really have that again?

Don’t. Get. Your. Hopes. Up.

“Let’s focus on the other heroes first—who knows when Hylia will get impatient.” He rolled his eyes out of irritation, not to hide the tears that wanted to fall. Hyrule gave him a knowing look that had no place.

“Of course. Let’s start planning, shall we?”

Chapter Text

This was almost certainly a bad idea, but it was all they had—well, if they didn’t want to do something seriously traumatizing to the others, at least. Still, as they emerged from Lorule and back to Hyrule’s Pond of Happiness, Legend couldn’t stop his hands from trembling. Twilight—damn his observant nature—squeezed his shoulder. 

“We got this, Scholar. We know the plan.”

  “Yeah! Twi distracts Time, I’ll distract Wars, and Hyrule can distract Sky so you can talk with Four!” Wind chirped. “Wild’ll be there for support, too, and if things go sideways, you can just use his Stasis and run!”

“I know that!” He ruffled the sailor’s hair a little more aggressively than was perhaps needed. “Brat.”

“Hey!”

“Are we sure Four is the best option to start with?” Hyrule asked, absently tugging a curl. “Not that I’m doubting it, but Sky does have the Master Sword. . .”

“Sky’s also a formally trained knight and a bit of a zealot,” he countered. “Warriors is very much a knight, so he’s out. Time—honestly, Time’s more likely to listen to reason, but I’d rather not face him without some extra support, especially if this method of getting them to stop hunting me doesn’t work.” 

(The thought of that Biggoron Sword pointed at him was enough to make his knees knock together.)

“Besides, Four is generally very reasonable; I think we’ve got a good chance of convincing him! And the letter from Fable seems to back that up,” Wild added. Hyrule hummed.

“Right—but just in case, Vet, you do have a backup plan of some kind, right?”

“I mean, technically. . .but I’d really rather not have to use it.”

If I actually had to use Yuga’s painting spell against them, I might lose it completely.

Hopefully, it wouldn’t come to that.

“Anyways, we need to actually find the others. . .”

“Right. And how should we go about doin’ that?” Twilight raised an eyebrow. 

Good question. Hmm. . .Ah!

“I’ve got contacts throughout Hyrule; let me send a few letters and—”

“Mr. Hero!”

He nearly jumped out of his skin, but relaxed when he saw Ravio’s bunny hood and Sheerow’s telltale white feathers. The merchant hurried up the path, waving wildly. 

“Ravio. How’d you find us?”

“Hilda told me you were coming.” Ravio flipped his hood back, grinning at him. “And I have news for you~”

Uh oh. 

“For the Oracles’ sakes, it better be good,” he grumbled. Ravio shrugged. 

“Half good, half bad.”

“ Ugh. ” He rubbed his temples and plopped down onto the stone floor. “Right. Hit me with the bad news first.”

“Ah—Mr. Captain Hero and Mr. Sky Hero made friends with the local knights,” Ravio said slowly, twisting his scarf around his fingers. Legend’s heart skipped a beat. 

“They what?! ”

Oh that is NOT good; they’re going to be a hell of a lot harder to convince now, who knows what my knights have been saying—

“BUT they’re all in and around Castle Town! Mr. Captain Hero and Mr. Sky Hero are in the town proper, and Mask and Mr. Smith Hero are wandering around in some of the smaller outer villages,” Ravio said, interrupting his spiral. He parsed through Ravio’s naming conventions for a moment.

“You mean Time and Four are outside of Castle Town right now?”

“That’s right!”

Well then. That makes our work a bit easier.

                                                                                                       ****

“Well, this brings back unhappy memories,” Legend grumbled to himself as he lurked in a tree. Wild patted his shoulder, though the champion never looked away from the street below. “I thought my days of stalking knights were over.”

“There, there.” Then Wild stiffened, ears twitching. “I hear him coming. Ready?”

Not remotely. 

“As much as I’ll ever be,” he said instead, sliding out of the tree and stepping behind it. Sure enough, a few minutes later, he heard footsteps coming down the road and Four’s familiar muttering reached his ears. 

“Where could he be. . . ? How does nobody know where he is? People probably do know, but why wouldn’t they tell anyone? He’s got a lot of support for someone accused of murder and treason. . .”

Oh brother. This is not going to be easy.

Still, he was a Hero of Courage for Farore’s sake, so he took a deep breath and cleared his throat. 

“Y’know, it’s rude to talk about someone like they’re not there,” he drawled. Four’s footsteps stopped dead, and he risked a peek around the tree. Four stared back, jaw hanging open and looking more surprised than Legend could ever remember seeing. 

(Honestly, that was an accomplishment all on its own. He hoped Wild could get a picture of it.)

“Legend? Where have you been ?!” Four blinked a few times before his expression darkened. “Where are the others?”

“They’re fine!” Wild poked his head out from the foliage above, beaming sweetly at a once-again-dumbstruck Four. “We’re all good!”

“Then where—how—” Four sputtered, at a rare loss for words, and Legend braced himself. Hopefully, the surprise would keep Four off-balance enough for his words to gain a foothold against Agahnim’s spell. 

“I needed to hide once I realized that you and the other knights in the Chain were affected by the curse that corrupted my knights in my first adventure,” he blurted, cautiously stepping out from behind the tree. “Hyrule confirmed its existence and everything.”

“What curse?” Four’s face screwed up and suspicious eyes locked on his own, shining an odd blue-green. “I think I’d know if I was cursed.”

“It’s a curse that makes people think the worst of me.” It was considerably more complicated than that, but it would do for now. “An evil wizard used it to make the knights obey him when he tried to send Zelda to the Dark Realm so he could bring Ganon back to the Light World.”

“I’ve never heard of a mind-control spell that strong, let alone one that could last so many years without someone to recast it and still not fade,” Four countered, stepping closer. Legend’s heart dropped as the smith’s hand moved to the hilt of his sword. “Sounds awfully convenient for you, Hoarder.”

Shit.

Wild smoothly stepped between them, placing his hands on Four’s shoulders. 

“I can corroborate his story, Smithy. The curse is trying to affect me, too.” The champion tilted his head, making eye contact with Four. Four scowled further. 

“Champion—”

“It points out every little flaw and annoyance and links them to a deeper plot,” Wild interrupted, placing one finger over Four’s mouth. “It says that he’s treacherous, that his hatred of Hylia means he’d betray the kingdom or hurt Her descendants, and that his distrust of knights means he’ll attack in a heartbeat. Does that sound like what your thoughts have been saying lately?”

Legend swallowed his nerves and added his own piece. 

“Ask any commoner in my Hyrule about the knights and they’ll all tell you that they changed after Agahnim’s period of rule. Even after I killed the guy and the knights mostly returned to normal, they still defaulted to aggression and were more open to corruption than before.”

Four narrowed his eyes once again. 

“Captain Brent said you tried to murder him and half his men, and it was a ‘miracle’ that they survived.”

He couldn’t help wincing.

Of course he shared that story. . .

“In my defense, they tried to eviscerate me on Agahnim’s orders, so I didn’t have much of a choice, and I used a wish on the Triforce to bring them all back.” 

(It didn’t stop the nausea rising on nights when he dreamed of the blood coating his hands and the horrible screams and groans of men he’d grown up with choking on their last breaths—)

“Hm.” Four still looked skeptical, but at least he didn’t seem one wrong word away from drawing his sword. Legend would take small mercies. “And the kidnapping?”

Oh for the love of—

“I rescued Zelda and the other Sages. If I recall correctly, the posters you saw were in reference to me taking Zelda from the palace during Agahnim’s takeover. She herself would tell you that I didn’t hurt her.”

“She did mention that, yes.” Four tilted his head, the light shifting to give his eyes a purple glint. “She also said something about knights refusing to listen when she told them that.”

“Yup. Agahnim’s curse apparently twists what they hear or see so it won’t disprove their assumptions.”

Silence hung in the air for a moment, and Legend bit his lip as he watched Four’s eyes flick back and forth, mouth moving silently. Something hardened in the smith’s gaze. 

“Wait a minute—how could we be cursed? We’re all blessed by Hylia and Sky has the Master Sword, which according to Twilight can break any curse.” Four folded his arms across his chest and glared, eyes back to their blue sheen. “Explain that. ”

Bother. 

“I mean, I tried with the Master Sword before, and even after being resurrected by the Goddess-damned Triforce, it still held solid.” Old anger seeped through his voice and he barely kept himself from swearing further. Four reeled back a bit. 

“How in Hyrule—?!”

“I wish I knew. Trust me, I’ve tried to figure out this fucking thing, but I still haven’t. Rulie looked at it and confirmed that it was mental magic, it warps perception, and it’s rooted deep in the depths of the unconscious mind.” He rubbed the bridge of his nose, trying not to scream in sheer agitation. “I know it doesn’t make sense, but it is what it is and I don’t like it any more than you do.”

“Think about it logically, Four,” Wild added. “Name one instance—one personally verifiable instance, not just the knights’ opinion—that would point to Legend being treacherous, or a kidnapper, or whatever else your thoughts have been leaning towards lately. We’ve traveled with him for months now. What do your own observations say?”

That definitely gave Four pause. Legend waited with baited breath as Four thought, and—yep, his eyes were definitely changing color. 

What’s that all about? No, no, worry about it later. Now is not the time.

Finally, Four’s shoulders slumped. 

“Alright, let’s say I believe that something nefarious is going on that Legend isn’t responsible for. How do we fix it?”

“Absolutely no idea. Hyrule might be able to make something work,” Wild mused, already pulling out his slate. “If you come with us, he can check you over.”

The suspicion blossomed on Four’s face once more, and Legend quickly lifted his hands in surrender. 

“I’ll stay away if it makes you feel better. No involvement from me.” 

His nerves drew tight as a bowstring while he watched Four think it over. After what felt like an eternity, Four nodded once. 

“Fine.”

“Then I’m off. Good luck.” He didn’t wait for Four to change his mind and scurried off into the woods, activating his Pegasus boots.

I’ll just head back to the Pond and wait. . .Goddesses, I hate waiting.

                                                                                                      ****

Hyrule panted, ducking into a hollow tree to catch his breath and avoid a mother-cucco named Sky. 

Of all the conclusions to draw, that’s the one he chooses?!

‘Just hold still, ‘Rulie. I’ll get rid of the curse on you. You’ll be alright.’

The irony tasted bitter, but he forced it down. If Wild’s message was to be believed, Four had agreed to be checked for curses, so maybe they’d actually make progress today.

We can only hope. 

Finally, he heard Sky’s footsteps grow quieter as the Chosen Hero left. Only a few minutes later, a familiar whistle floated along the breeze. 

Thank the Great Mothers.

He scurried from his hiding spot and whistled back. When the Champion whistled once more, he followed the sound to another small clearing, where Four and Wild sprawled out on the grass. He gave the Smithy a hopefully-welcoming smile.

“It’s good to see you, Four.”

“You too.” Four’s eyes darted over him, sharp and calculating as always. Hyrule forced himself not to wince at the dark tint coloring Four’s already-turbulent magic. Even from across the clearing, he could feel the slimy texture of the curse that clung to Four, and if he’d needed confirmation about whether it was the same curse as the one trying to corrupt Wild, that would’ve given it to him. 

Goddesses, I hope I can fix this.

“Has Wild explained the situation?” he asked delicately, crossing the clearing and settling in front of his brothers. Four hummed. 

“Apparently Time, Wars, Sky and I are all cursed to look disfavorably on Legend and to want him captured.” Something twitched in the smithy’s expression, gone too fast to identify. “I’ll admit, hunting him down sounds like a wise idea to me—and Wild pointed out that we’ve personally seen nothing to corroborate that.” The purple in Four’s aura grew stronger. “So, apparently you could fix this?”

“I can try to fix it,” he corrected. “But I should at least be able to prove the existence of the curse.”

“Then by all means, go ahead.” Four leaned back, but the suspicion in his eyes cut Hyrule to the core. He bit his tongue and closed his eyes, refusing to let the pain shine through, and reached out to take Four’s hand.

Here goes nothing. 

He pushed his magic into Four, gently maneuvering around the corners and twists of Four’s own magic. That bitter taint of curse-darkness hung heavy on his senses, but he pushed on, following the rushes of dark magic into the depths of Four’s being. Hissing whispers filled his ears, though the voice sounded like Four’s own.

‘Legend put them up to this. They’re covering for him. Don’t trust them right now. You need to take the traitor out—’

Dear Hylia, that voice is annoying. I have new sympathy for Wild for being so aware of it. 

That’s when the idea hit him. 

Is that how it makes them believe it? It makes itself sound like their own thoughts? If that’s the case, then just maybe. . .

He prodded the curse a few times and barely kept from wincing when it flared. Four grunted. 

“Ow, Hyrule, what are you doing?!”

“Sorry, sorry, the curse doesn’t like to be poked.” He pulled up more of his magic and looped it around the curse. A new stream of lies spewed from it. 

‘He’s doing something to you now—Legend may be manipulating him, but it’s all lies that they’re saying—’

Alright, Agahnim. You want to talk so much? Please do—but don’t hide behind my brother’s voice.

He’d only ever heard about this spell once before, used to reveal the thoughts and identities of hidden traitors, but compared to other mental magic, it wasn’t too difficult since it didn’t alter anything. So he murmured the words under his breath and tugged.

Immediately, the same voice he’d heard in Wild’s head filled the air, snarling and grating and far deeper than Four’s could ever be.

“He’s going to control your mind! The false hero must have given him something to allow it! Leave now before you fall, too; warn Sky and Warriors and Time so they can prepare!”

“Agahnim’s really grasping at straws, isn’t he?” Wild said, gazing around the clearing with wide eyes. Four’s jaw hung slack and his eyes—and aura—shifted colors faster than Hyrule could truly process.

“What the—that can’t be right—that’s what I’m thinking—but it doesn’t sound like us—does Legend even have magic that can control people?”

Does he? I don’t actually know the answer to that.

Finally, Four growled and reached to the hilt of the Four Sword. 

“Fuck it, I need to think properly—”

A flash of light left Hyrule blinking rapidly, trying to clear the spots from his vision. At last, his sight cleared—but wait, that couldn’t be right. 

Why were there four of Four?

“This has to be a trick!” the blue one shouted. The green one nodded, even as he—they?—turned in a slow circle, ears flicking at Agahnim’s continued ranting. The purple one hummed. 

“They all make good points and you know it. We’ve not seen any evidence to prove Legend’s guilt, and somehow, I find it unlikely that he would be able to control Hyrule so subtly—or Twilight, come to think of it; presumably, the rancher’s with Legend as well, and we’ve seen that he’s good at fighting dark magic.”

“We’ve also seen that Legend does care,” the one in red agreed, twisting the hem of the tunic in shaking hands. “And that voice definitely isn’t ours, but it’s still saying the exact same thing in the exact same words? It doesn’t make sense.”

“It’s Agahnim. I hear him in my head too.” Wild leaned back, folding his hands behind his head. “Annoying, isn’t he? He keeps waking me up at night, babbling about Legend planning to kill me. Absolutely ridiculous, I know.”

All four copies of the Smith turned to Wild slowly. After a moment, the green one stepped up. 

“This really isn’t Legend’s doing?”

“Nope. This is an old wizard curse that is somehow spreading. Legend’s just as frustrated and confused as you are; apparently it shouldn’t be doing this.”

“It really shouldn’t.” Hyrule waved when the four Fours turned to him. “I’m not sure why it’s affecting you now when it’s never done so before, or how it’s stayed around this long in the first place.”

The purple Four gained a thoughtful expression. 

“Could it be the Shadow and the black blood? It would certainly slow us down—”

“You believe this, Vio?!” the blue one interrupted, shoving the purple one. ‘Vio’ glared. 

“It’s the only thing that makes sense, Blue. Over months of traveling with Legend, he’s never shown anything that would point to the wanted posters’ claims being true.” 

“And he’s saved our lives plenty of times even after knowing we’re a knight—surely he would’ve done something already if he planned to do anything,” the red one murmured. The green Four narrowed his eyes before sighing. 

“They have a point, Blue. And if it is a curse, then maybe that’s why it’s so hard for you and I to believe it.”

‘Blue’ growled, but didn’t argue further. The green Four gazed at the other three. 

“We should rejoin now that we’re not fighting. Then—” Green Four glanced over to Hyrule, and actually blushed. “Ah, this wasn’t exactly how this reveal was supposed to go, but we’ll explain later, I guess. For now, just—figure out this curse? If we are under one, we’d like it removed.”

“Uh—” he managed eloquently. “Yeah, we want that too. That’s fine. I mean—”

Thankfully for his dignity, Green Four just nodded and reached for his sword. The other Fours did the same and with another flash of light, only one Four—in his standard colorful tunic—remained. The smith massaged his temples. 

“Right—that was a mess, but oh well—about this curse.” Four glanced up. “He’s still going?”

“Apparently so?” He glanced up as well, grimacing at Agahnim’s continued ranting. “I don’t suppose you believe that these aren’t your thoughts now?”

“Oh, definitely. If those were my thoughts, they’d be different now or would’ve split when I did.” Four’s eyes narrowed. “So a wizard was poking around in my head, was he?”

Hyrule opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, Four flinched back, grabbing his head. 

“Owww . . .”

He scrambled forward, but before his hands could even light up with healing magic, Four straightened up, blinking. 

“Huh. His voice doesn’t sound like mine anymore.”

Hyrule watched as the dark tint over Four’s magic receded, and before he could think twice, he whipped his hand out and snatched Four’s wrist, focusing on the smith’s magic. The curse steadily drew back until it resembled the mess in Wild’s mind. 

. . .By the Three, we actually did it. I can’t believe that actually worked!

“Oh, Legend is going to be thrilled.”

“We can bring you to our hiding place!” Wild chirped, bouncing to his feet. Four hummed.

“Sounds good to me—if you’ll have me.”

“Of course! Like Rule said, Legend is going to be thrilled that you’re back!”

Damn right he will.

Chapter Text

“We’re baa~aack~!”

Legend jerked up, shoving his book aside as Wind skipped up to the Pond of Happiness. Twilight sauntered up behind the teenager, hands folded behind his head. 

“How’d it go?”

“Not great, but not horrible, I s’pose,” Twilight answered. “Time clearly didn’t believe me, but he heard me out at least.”

“That’s better than Wars took it. He thought you put me under some kind of mind-control spell of your own.” Wind wrinkled his nose. “Can you even do that?”

“No, I actually cannot. I mean—I might have an item somewhere, but I didn’t bring it with me on this quest.”

“I reckon if you can’t even remember what it is or if you have it, you don’t use it that much, if ever.”

“That is also true. I’ve never seen the point.”

Also, mind control just gives me the creeps. I’ll avoid using it, thanks.

“Good news, everyone!” Wild burst in, startling Wind so badly that the pirate fell into the pond. “Rulie is a magical genius and we have a new ally!”

Wait. . .does he mean. . .?

“Did Four—?” he cut himself off, clenching his hands in his sleeves to stop their shaking. Wild’s grin—already almost ear to ear—spread even wider. 

“We have successfully converted a knight! Four, Rule, c’mon in!”

                                                                                                       ****

Four’s stomach flipped with nerves as he crept into the cavern behind Hyrule. The look of absolute shock on Legend’s face sent spikes of guilt right through his heart and he fixed his gaze to the floor as he self-consciously adjusted his headband. 

“Uh, hi?”

Wow, real smooth there. That’s sure to make a good impression. How the hell am I gonna apologize?

“So, um, sorry about how I acted earlier, Legend. I was a real—”

The rest of his apology got cut off as the wind was shoved from his lungs and his feet left the floor. For a moment, he flailed in panic, and the wizard’s voice—Agahnim, according to Wild and Hyrule?—grew louder. 

‘He’s attacking you! Fight him off!’

Oh shut up! How did I even fall for this before? Wild’s right, you’re not believable in the least! Besides, I’d probably deserve it. . .

The colorful thought ground to a stop when he realized Legend wasn’t doing anything, just—hugging him? His jaw dropped as he finally caught what Legend was murmuring under his breath. 

“Oh thank Din, Farore, Nayru and Hylia; this means there’s hope for the others, this is the best news I’ve had all week; thank fuck I didn’t lose you for good—”

Is—is he crying?!

He hesitantly raised his hand and patted Legend’s back, rubbing small circles into the muscle as his brother’s shoulders shook and Legend attempted to squeeze the air out of his body. Snickers and the click of Wind’s pictobox sounded behind them, but Legend didn’t even twitch.

“Ledge, not that this isn’t sweet as all get-out, but I think you’re smothering our Smithy,” Twilight drawled from somewhere in the background. Legend jumped, and Four found his feet back on the ground.

“Right. My bad.” Legend rubbed the back of his neck, ears tinged pink. Four blinked up at his brother, then made the executive decision to process this later.

“No worries. But yeah, sorry about—all that.”

“Not your fault, it’s that fucking—”

“Language, Vet!”

“Wind’s heard worse! He’s said worse!”

“That’s a good point.”

“Not that this isn’t an interesting conversation!” Hyrule’s voice rang out in the cave, making them all flinch, and the healer turned pink. Still, Hyrule pressed on. “But we should regroup and go over what happened. What worked with Four might not work with all the others.”

“Oh, good idea. Rule, what did you even do? It clearly worked a treat.”

Before he knew it, they’d all seated themselves on the floor of the cavern—Legend still sitting just a hair too close to him, not that he’d protest—and Hyrule started explaining the events of the clearing. Part of his mind paid attention, but the rest of him focused on how Legend’s hands still shook and the veteran looked more tired than he’d ever seen. The guilt returned with a vengeance. 

This must’ve been really bothering him—damn you, Agahnim-whoever-you-are; if you weren’t dead I’d kill you myself.

“You projected Agahnim’s voice?”

He tuned back into the conversation at Wind’s incredulous yell and Hyrule’s sheepish chuckles. 

“Yeah. . .it’s a spell I’ve only heard of once before, but it can reveal hidden traitors by projecting their thoughts so all can hear them. I’ve never done it before, and I don’t know if it’ll work for the others, but it might help convince them that the thoughts aren’t entirely their own.”

Wild glanced over to Four, who felt himself stiffen. 

“Hey, Four, do you think that trick would work on Wars, Time, and Sky?”

He opened his mouth, then paused to think it over. 

“It might with Time; he saw a lot of the same contradictions I did after we talked with the princess. Sky and Warriors I don’t know about.”

“Probably not. Wars thought Legend was mind-controlling me,” Wind said with a grimace. Hyrule pointed to the pirate.

“Sky thought something similar about me; he tried to use Fi to ‘break the curse’.”

“Seriously?” Legend massaged his temples with a groan. “Knights. . . zealots . . .”

“Hang on.” Twilight sat straight up, ears perking in a way that reminded Four of Wolfie. “Maybe we can use Fi to talk sense back into Sky. He listens to her like she’s his own mother.”

“I. . .did not need that image,” Wild murmured. Four couldn’t help but agree. 

I don’t even want to think about that, honestly.

“Well, the point still stands!” Twilight folded his arms across his chest with a pout. “Fi can tell the Hero’s Spirit no matter what—and Sky’s more likely to listen to her than to us!” Twilight turned to him. “Smith, d’you think that would work?”

He flopped onto his back and gazed up at the mossy stone above them as he thought it over. 

“It might. Sky’s on good terms with your knights, Ledge, but he did say that Fi had no problem with you and seemed to think we were being unreasonable.” His lips twisted into a wry smile and he rolled his head to the side to meet Legend’s eyes. “Of course, she was right in this case, but he didn’t believe her then. If you put it together with whatever spell Rule cast, you might actually convince him.” Then he grimaced as he thought of the Captain. “Warriors is going to be a lot harder; he thinks you might’ve hoodwinked the Master Sword.”

“How would I even do that?! It’s a literally divine weapon! I’m good, but I’m not that good!” Legend squawked. He shrugged—at least, as well as he could while laying down. 

“Beats me. Even before Rulie did his whole projection spell, I thought that was a stretch.”

“Thank you.”

“I’d say the best bet would be talking to Time, then?” Wild asked, poking at his Slate and pulling out mushroom skewers. Four accepted his own with a watering mouth and a growling stomach. 

Damn, I missed the Champion’s cooking. . .which is technically my own fault, but still—

Right, I got asked a question. 

He shook himself and nibbled on his skewer. 

“Probably. He’s the most likely to let you explain yourself, at least; Sky and Warriors are too quick to react. Your projection spell would probably work on him, too—” he cut off as a distinctly violet idea crept into his mind.

Maybe. . .

“Actually. . .you would say Miss Malon is a good judge of character, wouldn’t you?” he asked slowly. Twilight cocked his head. 

“Yeah, I’d reckon so. Why do you ask?”

Legend’s eyes sparked with understanding. 

“Smithy, that’s sneaky!”

Wind brightened a moment later. 

“Oh, you think if we bring up that she likes Legend, Time’ll be more understanding, right?”

“Yup. We know Time values Miss Malon’s opinion like no one else’s. Surely, if she liked Legend and saw nothing wrong with him, then he can’t be that bad.” He shrugged again. “Of course, it could backfire horribly and just make Time think that you deceived Miss Malon, which will likely enrage him.”

 Silence fell at that idea, and Four caught a couple of his brothers shuddering at the idea of an angry Time. He couldn’t blame them. 

(His angry face was scary and that sword was twice his size at least.)

“Maybe we’ll keep that as a last resort,” Hyrule said eventually. “For now, it sounds like our plan is to talk to Time, then Sky, then Wars—assuming we can’t permanently break the curse before that, which is of course the best outcome. We keep using my thought-projection spell, and we stay low until we get at least an idea of how to fix all this.”

“Sounds good to me.” Legend fiddled with his skewer, and Four bit his lip as he realized that the veteran hadn’t eaten a bite. “I’m ready for all of this to be over, once and for all.”

                                                                                                       ****

“What do you mean, he hasn’t come back yet?!”

Time looked up from his newest letter from his wife—ah, he missed Malon—at Warriors’ shout, and he hurried to stow the paper away in his pack. He poked his head out of the inn room and gazed down the stairs.

“Captain? What’s the matter?”

Sky appeared at the base of the stairs, leaves and sticks poking from his hair and his cheeks ruddy from exertion. 

“Four! We haven’t seen him in hours—Time, he was with you last, right? Have you seen him?”

He thought back to when he and Four went their separate ways to interview some of the citizens outside Castle Town and felt the blood drain from his face. 

“Not since we split up earlier. Neither of you have heard anything?”

“No—it’s like he disappeared off the face of the earth!” Warriors stood next to Sky, scowling. “Legend’s behind this, I’d bet my position on it. He’s got some hold over the Sailor; Wind tried to convince me that I was cursed earlier.”

“Hyrule said the same and ran when I tried to use Fi to break the curse he’s under,” Sky agreed. Time narrowed his eye.

That sounds an awful lot like what happened with Pup earlier. . .

“What exactly did Wind and Hyrule say?” he asked slowly. Sky blinked up at him. 

“Rulie said that the brainwashing on Hyrule’s knights is still in effect, and now it’s affecting us.”

“That’s what Wind said too—but there’s no way a spell could last that long without fading, and we have the Master Sword and Hylia’s blessing. It’s a ridiculous lie; I thought the Veteran was more creative than that.” Warriors grimaced and ran a hand through his hair. 

Time gnawed lightly on his lip. Something felt very off. 

“Twilight said the same, and he’s a dreadful liar.”

“Whatever magic Legend is using must be strong if it can get all three of them—and that’s not going into Wild and Four. Has anyone actually seen Wild since Legend went off the map?”

“No, the cook’s been missing, too—I guess he’s with Legend and the others.” Sky fiddled with the edge of his sailcloth. “Hopefully he’s alright—he’s a knight too, isn’t he?”

Warriors’ frown deepened.

“That’s a good point—but I somehow doubt Legend would be so quick to attack Wild; if anything, his cooking skill should keep him in Legend’s good graces, and since he seems to be taken in by Legend’s spell, the Hoarder might not see him as a threat at all. Also—Legend isn’t stupid enough to antagonize a pyromaniac with infinite bombs and the ability to pause an object’s time.”

Maybe. . .but something still doesn’t seem right.

“Well, no matter what the details are, we clearly need to find Legend sooner rather than later,” he said after a moment of hesitation. “The others could be in serious danger, and we need to get to the bottom of how much of a threat Legend truly is.”

“But no one in Castle Town knows where he is—or will admit to it, at least,” Sky protested. “And he could be anywhere in Hyrule—or even outside of it; he said he traveled extensively.”

That is definitely a problem—oh!

“Could you dowse for him with the Master Sword?”

Sky smacked his forehead. 

“How did I forget about that?! Yes, I can, if we have something of his.”

“Would his fire rod work?” Warriors bolted up the stairs and reappeared a minute later with the borrowed fire rod in hand. “This technically belongs to him.”

“Worth a try. Let’s step out.” Sky accepted the rod and hurried outside, and Time trailed after him. Once they had some space in the alley by the inn, Sky touched the Master Sword to Legend’s fire rod, then held Fi out and closed his eyes. After a moment, the sword chimed and gained a soft glow. Sky turned in a slow circle before stopping with the sword pointing toward the woods outside Castle Town. 

“I think he’s that way.”

“Then let’s get going at first light tomorrow.” Warriors clapped once. “We should find Four and the others as soon as possible. Who knows what Legend could be doing to them?”

                                                                                                       ****

“Dammit, Sailor, I know you’re cheating!” Legend slammed his cards down and glared at the other teenager. Wind stuck his tongue out and winked. 

“How could you, Ledge? I thought you loved me! Would I do that?”

“Yes, in a heartbeat you would.” Four quipped back, his voice dry and eyes glinting purple. The guilt and anxiousness from earlier was nowhere to be seen, and a pleasant warmth flooded Legend at the sight. 

It’s good to have him back. 

“Four!” Wind clutched his heart and collapsed sideways onto Twilight, who didn’t even falter. “Have I no true brothers left?”

“Get those sneaky eyes of yours off my cards, Pirate.” Twilight lifted his cards away from Wind, and the hero whined.

“But Twiiii. . . ”

“Maybe we should play something else?” Hyrule raised a hand, setting his own cards aside. “Because if this ends up in a fight, I’m not healing stupid injuries.”

“What if they’re not stupid?”

Hyrule gave Wind a Look, and Wind—wisely—shut his mouth. 

“I come bearing dinner!” Wild sailed into the center of their group, holding a steaming pot aloft. The scent of curry rice made Legend’s mouth water and he reached up automatically. 

“Champ, I’m so glad you weren’t affected by the curse. I don’t know how I would survive without your cooking in these trying times.”

“Oh, I see how it is. You only love me for my food.” Even as he spoke, Wild scooped out healthy servings of curry rice and heaped it on plates before passing them out.

. . .How does he do that without spilling anything or dropping the pot? He only has two hands.

Then his own plate arrived in his hands and he abandoned existential problems and abstract thought in favor of inhaling his dinner. The curry rice deserved his attention far more.

Chapter Text

“Uh, boys, we got a problem!” Twilight’s voice cut through the early-morning grogginess hanging over Legend’s thoughts, and he blinked heavily, rubbing sleep-grit out of his eyes. 

“Whuh?”

“Hmpfh. . .Niko, you do it. . .” Wind slurred beside him, nuzzling further into his side. He stared blankly at the Sailor for a moment before the situation clicked and he shoved the teenager aside. 

“Oi, personal space, brat!”

(It didn’t matter that it didn’t feel bad. Wind needed to learn to ask, dammit.)

“Are you two awake? ‘Cause I just got back from checking the perimeter, and I smell Wars, Sky, and Time on the wind. They’re coming here.” Twilight paced around the pool of water, voice just above a growl. That woke him up in a hurry. 

“They’re what?! How’d they find us?”

“Beats me, but we need to get you hidden now, just in case. Think you can mosey back to Lorule?”

“Not without a portal, I can’t.” He growled and lunged to his feet, already reaching for his bag. Wind squawked as he hit the ground, but he ignored the other hero. “Ganon’s shrunken—”

“Language, Vet!”

“I am being hunted, fuck off!” He dug through his items, tossing them aside in search of something that could help. 

“Could you transform, maybe? You mentioned you had some methods to do that.”

“Nothing that’ll stand up against Time’s stupid Mask of Truth or the damn Master Sword. No, I need a way to get out. Fast. ”

Tornado Rod? No, that only brings me up and down—no sand around here for the Sand Rod—shit, where is it, I know I brought it—ah-ha! 

He pulled his Magic Cape out of his bag with a triumphant noise and tied it into place. 

“This will make me invisible, but it takes a lot of energy, so I’ll be pretty useless later.” He tapped his fingers together as he thought of a new location, then snapped his fingers and dug into his bag again. “Here, I’ve got a map—head for the Sanctuary; it’s marked in blue. We can meet back up there.”

“I’m sorry.”

He spun on his heel. Four stood by the water’s edge, not meeting anyone’s eyes. 

“I might have drawn them here—this is my—”

“They would’ve come eventually, Four.” Hyrule patted Four’s back and gave him a sweet smile. “We can’t stay here forever, anyway—and I’ll stay with you; we can find out how they tracked us down and try to talk some sense into them if we get a chance, then we can meet up with the others.”

“Right.” Four shook his head, but leaned into the contact. “You’re right.”

“Do you want any of us to come with you to this Sanctuary?” Wild asked, pulling out vials of blue potion from his slate and. . .a bowl of soup? He stared at it for a moment before the question registered in his mind. 

“Uh—nah, I’ll move quicker on my own, and I can make sure there aren’t any monsters in the Sanctuary.”

“If you’re sure.” Wild stood, arms full of bottles and only just keeping the bowl from spilling. “Here, take these. They’re my strongest hasty elixirs, and the bowl has some hasty veggie and cream soup. It’ll boost your speed so you don’t have to spend as much time invisible.”

Oh.

His eyes—traitors that they were—stung a bit at the gesture, but he blinked them back and accepted the vials. The soup smelled delicious, and he rummaged in his bag for a spoon. 

Might as well eat this first; it’ll be harder to eat on the road and I haven’t had breakfast yet.

He made it halfway through the bowl before Twilight gave him another warning. 

“I’d say you’ve got just a few more minutes, vet!”

Shit!

He tossed the spoon aside and lifted the bowl, gulping down the last of the soup. Energy buzzed along his bones and he kicked the Pegasus boots into action. 

“I’ll see you all at the Sanctuary.” He pushed his magic into the Cape and watched as a faint shimmer filled the air. Based on the slack jaws and wide eyes of his brothers, it worked perfectly. 

Good.

He trotted down the steps of the Pond of Happiness, but as soon as he hit flat ground, he burst into a sprint—and almost tripped over his own feet. The hasty soup had definitely done its work, and when stacked with the Pegasus Boots. . .

Yeah, assuming I stay on my feet, they’re never catching me.

It took a moment for him to stabilize, but then he was moving again, the wind stinging his eyes and almost stealing his hat. He ended up stuffing it in his bag for safekeeping. 

Of course, running at ludicrous speed meant that changing directions on a rupee was. . .difficult, and by the time he realized that he was on a collision course with Sky and an outstretched Master Sword less than a mile from the pond, he knew that there was no way he could swerve—especially since Wars and Time were on either side of the Chosen Hero. So he decided on an alternate method and reached into his bag, clutching his Roc Feather.

Here goes nothing.

Moments before his chest slammed into Fi, he jumped and pushed more magic into the Roc Feather. The feather activated and lifted him further off the ground, letting him just pass Sky’s head. 

Phew.

As his feet touched the ground, Sky spun, the sword moving to lock onto his form. He paused, staring at the Master Sword with narrowed eyes. 

Hang on—he was dowsing for me?! No wonder he found us.

“Sky?” Warriors laid a hand on Sky’s arm and the Chosen Hero’s brow furrowed. 

“Fi suddenly shifted direction; Legend must’ve moved. Now he’s this way, but he’s still close.”

Oh shi—

“Sky? Time? Wars? What are you doing here?” Four’s voice pierced the air and the knights of the Chain whipped around, Fi’s directions forgotten. Legend heaved a sigh of relief and started running once more.

Right. Sanctuary, here I come.

He made it to the road before he whipped off the Magic Cape to preserve his energy. He had a long way to go if he wanted to make it to the Sanctuary. 

Thank the Three that my Hyrule isn’t as large as Wild’s or I’d never make it.

Fortunately for him and his remaining sanity, he had an uninterrupted journey to the Sanctuary. He heaved a sigh of relief as the familiar pillars came into view, and he finally let the magic leave his boots before he scurried up the steps and pulled on the doors. For a moment, the doors stuck with years of disuse, but after a few more minutes of tugging, the hinges creeeeeaked and the door slowly opened. 

“RAAAAAHH!”

He barely managed to dodge the Bokoblin’s strike, rolling to the side and pulling out his Tempered Sword. A small pack of Bokoblins emerged from the Sanctuary. 

Shit—how did they even get in there?!

He swung at the nearest monster and cursed again when it essentially bounced off their skin. What cuts he managed revealed shining black. 

Black blood. Of course.

He gritted his teeth and pulled out his sturdiest shield. Something told him that he was going to need it.

                                                                                                       ****

Wild perched in a tree, watching as Sky, Time and Warriors fussed over Four—who looked more than a little overwhelmed. Then Sky happened to glance up. 

“Wild! We’ve been so worried about you!”

Whoops.

Still, his cover was blown, so he crept down from the tree to give some support to Four. As soon as his feet hit the ground, Time stood in front of him, cupping his face and checking him over for injuries. 

“Are you hurt, Champion? Where have you been all this time?”

He gazed up into Time’s single eye and tried not to wince at the glassiness he saw there—just like what Four had had before. 

I hope Four and Fable were right when they thought Time was more likely to listen to reason. 

“I’m fine, Time. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You’re sure?” Time glossed over the question entirely and continued his examination. He forced himself not to roll his eyes. 

“Yes, I’m sure. We’re all perfectly okay.”

“Why would you just vanish like that? You could’ve gotten seriously injured or worse!” Warriors scolded Four. Said smith gazed at Wild out of the corner of his eyes, mouthing ‘help’ repeatedly. So Wild carefully wriggled away from Time and went to step in front of Four. 

“What would’ve hurt him? The black-blooded monsters? A reasonable concern, yeah, but—”

“No! Well, yes, but I was talking about Legend!”

“What would he do? We’re all Heroes of Courage here.” He gave Warriors the sternest look he could. “Fi would’ve burned him otherwise, and Ledge has held her plenty of times.”

“But—” Warriors looked almost constipated, and Wild could see the way his mind struggled to rationalize what the curse was telling him. He left Warriors to it and twisted his torso to give Sky the same look. 

“Surely the sword would have warned you if Legend was a danger to us, right? And the worst he’s ever done to us physically is lash out after someone got too close when he woke up from a nightmare—and none of the rest of us are any better in that regard.”

“I mean, he’s got a point.” Four peeked around his side, eyeing Warriors and Sky cautiously. “I nearly took Wind’s eye out that one time, remember?”

The knights of the Chain remained silent. Wild saw how Time’s face grew thoughtful even as Sky and Wars seemed both confused and in denial. 

Better than nothing, I guess. 

Before anything more could be said, a piercing whistle filled the woods. 

“C’mon, you landlubbers, we’ve got places to be!”

Well, there’s no denying that. 

He grabbed Four under the armpits and lifted the smith onto his shoulders, then booked it towards where Wind’s whistle came from. 

“Hang tight!”

“OI!” Four whacked his head. “You didn’t have to do that!”

“It’s faster this way!” He twisted his head just enough to catch sight of the other three starting to run after them. “My legs are longer!”

“Fuck you!”

“That’s fair!”

His eyes locked on a random tree branch, hanging just low enough for him to reach up and grab. In one smooth motion, he swung himself up and into the foliage. Four scrabbled at his shoulders as he nearly slipped off. 

“Hey, careful, careful—!”

He slapped a hand over Four’s mouth and carefully scooted across the branches. Time’s voice floated up from below. 

“Wild, Four, come down now. We don’t want you to get hurt.”

He did not answer and just hopped to the next tree, keeping a careful hold on Four. Once they made it a few trees away, he slipped back to the ground and sprinted off, still keeping Four’s legs pinned to his shoulders. 

Surprisingly, Four put up with it until they made it to Hyrule, Twilight, and Wind. Then the smith started kicking. 

“Alright, put me down, you—”

“Okay, okay!” He pushed Four off his shoulders and backed away, hiding behind Twilight just in case. “I’m sorry!”

“You better be.” Four dusted himself off, grumbling under his breath. “Let’s get to that Sanctuary before the other three realize they can just dowse for Legend again.”

“Oh, they won’t be able to!” Wind chirped before holding up a familiar fire rod. “This’ll slow them down, at least.”

Wild blinked at the younger hero. 

“. . .When did you get that?”

“While you guys distracted Wars!” Wind tossed the magical artifact a couple times. “Speaking of dowsing, Four, d’you wanna go grab your stuff? You did just kinda vanish without your gear, and we can meet the others at the Sanctuary later.”

“That—is a good idea.” Four shook his head. “We’ll meet you there, then—do you have another map?”

“Actually, let me just—” He held out his hand, and when Hyrule gave him the map, he unfurled it, had Twilight hold it up, and snapped a picture with his Slate. “There. You guys take the map.”

“That’ll work.”

“Good.”

“Then let’s get goin’. Legend’ll be wondering what kept us.”

Four and Wind headed off, and Wild took the lead with his picture of the map. The path was straightforward enough—enough that Twilight had to grab his collar when he started wandering off path. 

“Don’t you dare, Cub.”

Killjoy.

However, as they grew closer to where the Sanctuary seemed to be marked, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end and Twilight’s shoulders went ramrod stiff. The older hero took a few deep breaths, nostrils flaring. 

“I smell blood.”

Both he and Hyrule froze. 

“Hylian or monster?” Hyrule asked, voice shaking. Twilight’s frown deepened.

“Both.”

Uh oh.

They shared a look and broke into a run. Before long, the snarling of monsters grew audible and Wild’s heart dropped—especially when he couldn’t pick up the sound of metal on metal. 

Oh, that’s a really bad sign.

They rounded a corner and the Sanctuary came into sight—along with two Bokoblins dancing over an unmoving red lump. His breath caught in his throat, but Twilight was already moving. 

“Hyrule, tend to Ledge! Cub, with me!”

“Right!” He pulled an Ancient Short Sword out of his Slate and dashed after Twilight. The Bokoblins spun as they approached, but Twilight shifted into the wolf and went straight for the throat of the first. He leapt over Twilight and sliced at the second Boko’s face, forcing it back several steps. Drops of black blood seeped from the wound. 

Of course.

He didn’t let up on the Bokoblin, and before too long, it crumpled to the ground, dissolving into black smoke. He ignored its remains for once and spun to help Twilight with the last one—except Twilight was already done, jaws and fur covered in black stains. 

Well then. 

“You okay?” He returned the ancient sword to his Slate as Twilight shifted back into a Hylian. The rancher nodded once. 

“More or less. It truly is disgusting to maul something to death.”

“I can imagine.” He stepped around Twilight and crouched by Legend and Hyrule. Their healer’s hands glowed pink, and Wild watched as several cuts and bruises faded into nothing. “How is he, Rule?”

“Could technically be worse, but could definitely be better.” Hyrule shook his head. “He must’ve taken on more than just those two Bokoblins; he’s covered in black blood and he’s got several broken bones that I’ve gotten back in place, far more blood loss than I’m comfortable with, bruises over what seems to be every inch of skin, and a nasty concussion. He’ll live, but he’s going to be in quite a bit of pain when he wakes up, even with my healing.”

“Sheesh.” He laid his hand on Legend’s wrist, sighing in relief when Legend’s pulse came through—steady, if faster than it should be. “Where d’you think they came from?”

“No idea.”

“They were stuck inside the building, from the look of it,” Twilight called from the steps of the Sanctuary. “It’s a real mess in here. Blood and who-knows-what-else scattered all around, bones. . .doesn’t paint a pretty picture.” 

Oh dear.

Legend groaned and Wild snapped his eyes down. The veteran twitched, eyes fluttering before cracking open and revealing differently-sized pupils. 

“Whuzzat—Rulie? Wh’r’d you c’me fr’m?”

“Shush, Vet. Let me finish healing that concussion.” Hyrule moved his hands to Legend’s temples and the glow brightened. Slowly, Legend’s eyes cleared up. 

“What hap—Shit!” Legend shot up, or attempted to, at least. Hyrule instantly slammed his hands on Legend’s shoulders and forced him back to the ground. “The monsters—”

“You got all but two, and Twi and Wild got the last of them,” Hyrule said firmly. “Don’t move yet; I’m not done. They really did a number on you, Ledge.”

Legend muttered something under his breath, but let Hyrule continue. Finally, the glow sputtered and Hyrule sat back. 

“That’s all I can do right now. You’ll need to replenish the blood on your own; we’ll set up camp so you can rest. Wild, get some soup or something going, he needs fluids.”

“On it.” He scurried away to set up his cookpot. There was no way he was arguing with that tone of voice.

Chapter Text

This was not how Time envisioned this particular visit to Legend’s era going. Half their group missing, Legend probably—possibly?—being a wanted fugitive, and no black-blooded monsters anywhere. At this point, he was seriously considering trading his milk in for some of the whiskey Wars always kept squirreled away.

(Not that he would ever admit that. He had a reputation to uphold.)

“What do you mean the fire rod is missing?!” Sky squawked, shaking him out of his thoughts. He spun around just in time to almost catch one of Warriors’ hands to his face. 

“I don’t know! I had it in my bag earlier, but it’s gone now.” Warriors scowled. “I don’t know what could’ve—wait. Do you think the Sailor would’ve swiped it?”

Time felt his face screw up. Wind definitely had the ability to do that if he wanted.

But did Legend put him up to it, or did he decide to do it on his own? Either is perfectly plausible with Wind.

“Well, that makes things inconvenient.” Sky massaged the bridge of his nose. “We should head back to the inn, it’s getting late. Maybe we can try dowsing with Four’s gear tomorrow.”

“It’s worth a shot.”

                                                                                                       ****

Four’s belongings were nowhere to be seen. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me!”

Time stared at the conspicuously empty corner as Sky and Warriors lost their minds. His mind raced. 

Four must’ve picked them up at some point after we ran into them—this had to be planned. But Legend couldn’t have told him to do that, could he? He vanished so suddenly and we saw the rest of the Chain without him, so they’ve definitely been separated. What’s going on here?

The thought tormented him through the rest of the evening. Things weren’t lining up no matter how he looked at them. 

I thought Pup was a good judge of character, and same with Wild—yet they’re both unwaveringly on the Hoarder’s side. And Hyrule’s so drenched in fairy magic that I’d honestly be surprised if Legend could use magic to manipulate him. Even the locals here—not to mention Fable—seem to be on Legend’s side with the sole exception of the knights. So why does it seem so obvious that Legend’s up to no good? I must be missing something.

As darkness fell and his brothers eventually retired to bed, he remained awake, sitting by the inn’s hearth. He knew the Zeldas to be excellent judges of character, and he doubted any dark magic could manipulate the princesses’ thoughts as insidiously as this magic seemed to. Force them to be a puppet or possess their body, perhaps—but not like this. And as for his boys, Twilight had some sort of resistance to mental magic from his experience with Twili magic, while Wind couldn’t act to save his life—and Wild wasn’t too good at it either.

All evidence points to Legend’s innocence, but that doesn’t make sense—!

He growled and reached for his bag, digging around for his masks. Surely he had something that could help. 

His hand landed on the familiar shape of his Stone Mask and he paused. 

There’s no better way to see how Legend truly acts than to watch him while he thinks he’s unobserved, right?

He put the mask back in his bag and pulled out one of his spare tunics. Then he slunk up the stairs and into their shared room. Sky snored away happily in the far bed, but Warriors still sat up, reading a book by candlelight. The Captain glanced up from the pages with one eyebrow arched. 

“Time?”

“I thought of a plan, but I’ll be gone for a while. Hopefully, I’ll be back by tomorrow evening. If not. . .” he hesitated. “If not, use the Master Sword to search for me. Here.” He tossed the tunic on the nearest chair. 

“How do you plan on tracking them down, exactly?” Warriors’ other brow rose to meet its partner and Time glanced away from his older brother. 

“I thought of asking some fairies if they’ve seen Legend. Surely they’d recognize him.”

“I see. Be careful, Old Man. Don’t underestimate Legend.”

Oh, I don’t plan on it.

                                                                                                       ****

As soon as he emerged from the streets of Castle Town, he put on his Great Fairy Mask and waited. It only took a few minutes before familiar glowing spheres zipped towards him. He held out a hand and smiled at the little fairy who landed there. 

“Hello, Little One. Tell me, have you seen your Hero anywhere around here?”

The fairy chimed and flew up, circling his head before heading towards the north. He turned to face her. 

“Could you lead me to him, please?”

Another chime. The fairy flitted off and Time hurried to follow. 

Let’s hope this works.

                                                                                                        ****

For all his issues with Hylia, he had to appreciate that Legend’s Hyrule was one of the smaller ones. It made crossing the place much easier. By the time dawn broke over the horizon, the fairy had slowed, and Time could see the trees thinning out up ahead. He paused. 

“Is he through there?”

The fairy bobbed up and down and Time dug into his pack, pulling out a sugar cube.

“You have my gratitude, Little One.”

The fairy gave a delighted trill and scooped up the offering before vanishing in a burst of light. Time replaced his Fairy Mask with the Stone Mask and pressed on towards the thinning of the trees. Between one blink and the next, he emerged from the woods and found himself in front of a weathered stone building. Familiar voices floated out from an open window.

“Damn, this stuff sticks everywhere! How long were those Bokos stuck in here?”

“I really don’t want to know the answer to that question, Sailor. Ledge, how are you feeling?”

“Hyrule did great. Why are you keeping me tethered to this fluffy confinement?”

“Because you took on a pack of black-blooded monsters by yourself, Veteran. Don’ you go pushing yourself too far, or Rulie’ll have your head.”

A pack of black-bloods?! Alone?!

Time forced himself to close his jaw and crept closer to the open window, peeking over the sill. The rest of the Chain sat gathered around a small fire, while Legend appeared to be bundled in every soft blanket they possessed—and looking rather grumpy about it all. 

“I’m fine now,” the hoarder grumbled. Hyrule turned from where he appeared to be scrubbing a wall and gave Legend a sweet, very dangerous smile.

“Don’t. You. Dare. Move. You’ve still got blood loss.”

“Healer’s orders, Vet.” Wild shrugged and Legend swore. 

“Like you don’t ignore him—”

“Are you all done bickering like a bunch of cuccos?” Four asked, glancing up from Twilight’s chainmail. Scandalized gasps echoed through the building. 

“We’re not that bad!”

“Four, how could you say such a thing?”

“We’re nothing like those spawns of Demise!”

The whole scene felt so natural. Time’s heart ached with the urge to go and join his boys—and Legend was acting so normal—

It must be a trick—but why would he bother putting on a front if he’d already hoodwinked the others?

“Uh-huh, whatever you guys say. Twi, your chainmail’s all fixed. Any other repairs I need to make?”

“Thanks muchly, Smithy.” Twilight retrieved the chainmail and set it aside as denials rose from the others. “Cub, how’s breakfast looking?”

“Just about done.” Wild ladled what looked like porridge into bowls and passed them around. “So, what’s the plan for today?”

“Rest,” Hyrule replied promptly, still smiling all-too-sweetly. “Legend needs to replenish his blood.”

“Rulie—”

“Shush, Vet.”

Legend’s pout deepened even as he accepted his bowl of porridge. Wind half-raised a hand, spoon sticking out of his mouth already. 

“Uh, is it safe to stay here that long? How do we hide the Vet if they show up?”

“I mean, we got all the stuff they can dowse with. Vet, what are the chances they could hunt us down anyway?”

Legend shrugged, shoveling porridge into his mouth. 

“Greater than our last hiding spot, but other than that, I can’t really say. Depends on who they talk to. And as for hiding, there are a few spells I know, and some—other methods.” 

“Maybe we could shrink you?”

“Do you want him to get stepped on?”

“I don’t actually think I have anything that would let me do that. I do have some other transformation items, but Time’s Mask of Truth would see through them in a heartbeat.” The hoarder huddled in on himself further, something shockingly vulnerable flitting across his face. The ache in Time’s heart intensified. “I’m really getting tired of all this—if I ever run into the bastard responsible for making this curse spread, I’ll kick their ass so hard they’ll feel it for several generations in either direction.”

“Oh, I’ll join you. Agahnim refuses to shut up and it’s annoying.” Four screwed his face up, eyes glinting harsh blue. “And the fact that he managed to hoodwink me. . . his kneecaps will be mine.”

Agahnim?

“I know! I feel like he’s dredging the bottom of the barrels for insult ideas and ways to convince us to turn against Ledge,” Wild chuckled. The Champion lowered his voice into some kind of dramatic mockery. “‘He’s got some kind of artifact that he must be using on you! He’ll slit your throat in your sleep! You know he isn’t stable, you’ve seen what he’s like in a fight!’ Honestly.” Wild shook his head with a louder snicker. “You’d think he’d have more imagination, considering he did such an intricate job with the curse in the first place.”

“I still can’t believe I fell for it in the first place.” Four scowled into the fire. “And again, how in Hylia’s name is it thwarting the Master Sword?”

“My only guess is the black blood, or maybe the Shadow’s magic. It wreaked havoc with Twi’s injury before, remember? Maybe it can influence other magic, too,” Hyrule mused. “What else could coax such old magic into spreading now, let alone pushing past Hylia’s holy blessings?”

Time furrowed his brow. Hyrule had an excellent point—they all did, as a matter of fact. His mind continued to war with what he’d observed with his own eyes.

The only way that everything makes sense is if they’re right and some type of curse has twisted both Legend’s knights and us. It would explain why he’s wanted for horrific crimes despite being apparently popular with the kingdom’s inhabitants, as well as why it’s so difficult to believe. . .but surely not! Hylia, for all her faults, wouldn’t let that happen to us—but the black blood— ugh!

He let his head thump against the windowsill, but froze as the conversation inside the building cut off. His breath caught in his chest and he held himself very still as the familiar footsteps of Twilight approached the window. 

“Old Man? Where are you?”

Shit.

He debated scurrying away, but there was no chance he could evade his Pup’s tracking now. So he reached up and removed the mask. Twilight blinked down at him, jaw falling slack. 

“Hi, Pup.”

“Wait, Time’s here?!”

“How’d he find us?!”

He winced and straightened up, ignoring how his knees and back popped with the change in position. Twilight raised one eyebrow, body tense and ready for action. 

“Old Man? Care to explain?”

“Things weren’t making sense, so I wanted more information.” He shrugged, forcing his expression to remain neutral. “It seemed like this was the best place to find it, and if you didn’t know I was there, you wouldn’t put on any act.”

“Huh.” Twilight stared at him long enough for him to want to squirm—not that he would—before relaxing ever-so-slightly. “You want the truth, Time? And proof of it?” Before he could answer, Twilight twisted. “Oi, Rulie, now’d be a good time to try that spell again!”

Huh? What spell?

Hyrule bounced over to the window, hands flicking erratically at his sides. 

“Right, okay—Time, can I hold your hand? This shouldn’t hurt, but it might feel a bit strange.”

“It doesn’t hurt until the curse realizes you’re trying to fight it. Then it hurts,” Four chimed in, far too cheerful for the meaning of his words. “But it’s worth it just to spit in that asshole’s metaphorical face.”

. . .I feel like I should be concerned. 

Still, he held out his hand and felt the warmth of Hyrule’s magic wash over him. Sweet honey flowed through his veins and burst on his tongue, and he couldn’t help relaxing into the sensation. Hyrule’s magic always carried the sweet nostalgia of Kokiri Forest, and he could never resist that—  

A throbbing ache drove into his temples and a rush of paranoia rose in the back of his mind, fighting the familiar touch of fairy magic. He grimaced instinctively. 

Maybe this is what happened to Four to change his mind; maybe Hyrule is working with Legend to control us somehow; I have to fight back and save my boys—

“—before Legend corrupts them all!” An unfamiliar voice filled the air around them and his eye snapped open. He glanced up and around, but there was no one else there aside from him and his boys. Wild scowled up at the ceiling. 

“That’s Agahnim. Annoying, isn’t he? He never shuts up.”

Legend growled, his eyes glimmering mutinously as he burrowed further into his blanket cocoon. 

“Wish I’d never had to hear that stupid voice again—goddesses, I despise him.” Then Legend peeked over at Hyrule. “Wait, is this what all the knights are hearing all the time? No wonder they’re all so unreasonable.”

“That would be my guess. The curse shifts the wizard’s voice to make him sound like their voice, making it more believable.” Hyrule shook his head. “He really isn’t very imaginative though, is he?”

Time tuned out the rest of his boys’ conversation and focused on the strange wizard’s voice. It said everything that had been lurking in the back of his mind for the past several days and more—but it sounded considerably more desperate. And far less convincing.

“You have to fight him now! You must save your brothers and Hyrule before it’s too late—you need to defeat Legend now! One swipe of your sword—”

He stiffened. Sure, he didn’t trust Legend right now, but the very thought of truly harming the teenager—or Hylia forbid, killing him—made him sick to his stomach. He stumbled back, bringing one hand up to his mouth. 

I couldn’t—

“It’s only defeating another villain.”

Okay, FUCK no!

Something white-hot sliced through his head and blood roared in his ears, along with something that sounded like inarticulate screeching. By the time it cleared away, he felt hands on his arms, rubbing up and down. The wizard’s voice had gone silent. 

“Easy, Time, deep breaths—the pain passes quick from what I’ve heard—”

He blinked tears out of his eye and focused on the form of his Pup before him. Twilight coaxed him through the window and to the mossy floor of the building. Hyrule fluttered beside him.

“Time, are you alright? I’m sorry—I know it hurts a bit—”

“Not your fault,” he croaked. “I just—wasn’t expecting it.” He shook his head and sighed in relief when the motion didn’t hurt. “Where’d the voice go?”

“I—I ended the spell; from the looks of it, we don’t need it anymore.” Hyrule wrung his hands as he crouched. “Are you alright? Need a potion? Do you still hear Agahnim in your head?”

Now that he thought about it, there was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind. When he focused on it, he caught the wizard’s voice.

“You have to stop Legend before it’s too late—”

“Yeah. I hear him. But it doesn’t sound like me anymore.”

“That’s a good sign!” Wind poked his head out from behind Twilight’s bulk. “Means the worst of the curse is gone from what Rulie’s said.”

“Yes, most of the curse has retreated. It’s still there , but it’s lost most of its power.” Hyrule gave him a shaky smile. “Four and Wild are in the same place.”

“It’s easier to ignore when you know it’s lying to you—and, you know, when it doesn’t sound like you.” Four approached, holding a blanket. He accepted the offering and nearly jumped when the smith leaned against him. “Still, that’s the most. . .aggressive he’s been.”

“He’s getting desperate again. That’s the only explanation for why he suggested you kill me.” Legend’s voice made him jump, and he twisted around to see the veteran giving him a surprisingly soft look. “Glad to have you back, Old Man.”

A lump grew in his throat and he bowed his head. Guilt curdled his stomach. 

How could this have happened?

Chapter Text

Eventually, they’d all settled back down, and Legend munched on one of the cook’s freshly-made celebratory crêpes as a new discussion began. 

“So, that leaves two. Sky and Warriors.” Wild leaned forward, his eyes glowing in the dim firelight. “Any chance that spell of yours will work two more times, Rulie?”

Hyrule shook his head, curls bouncing. 

“I doubt it. Maybe with Sky, but Warriors is. . .stubborn.”

“I might have an explanation as to why that is,” Time murmured, gazing into the fire. Legend snapped his head over to the eldest hero. 

“Seriously? What?”

“Warriors has issues with traitors,” the Old Man explained. “It relates back to the War of Eras—he’s had to field a lot of assassination attempts from traitors to Hyrule, so I imagine the curse is preying on that latent paranoia.”

“That. . .would explain a lot.” He took a particularly savage bite of his crêpe anyway. “If I ever take up necromancy, I’m bringing Agahnim back just to kill him again.” 

“Oh, I’ll join you.” Four smiled silkily as he sharpened the Four Sword. Time chuckled.

“You’ll have to leave enough for Sky and I, Smithy. Probably the Captain, too. Once he realizes what’s going on, he’ll feel absolutely awful.”

“I’m sure we can adjust so there’s enough of him to go around.” Four’s smile widened until it vaguely resembled a river Zora’s, and Legend forced himself not to shudder.

Note to self: don’t get on the Smithy’s bad side. I like having my kneecaps and I prefer keeping my blood inside of my body.

“Right. . .well, as much as I enjoy plotting murder, we should probably figure out how we’re fixin’ to handle the other two,” Twilight interrupted. “Any suggestions, Old Man? Have they had doubts about Legend’s apparent nasty nature?”

Time sighed, running a hand through his hair. 

“I’m afraid not.”

“How ? It doesn’t make sense!” Wind squawked. Then the youngest hero’s brow furrowed deeper. “Actually, how come you and Four were doubtful? Apparently that’s never happened before?”

That’s—a good question, actually. 

They all sat in silence before an idea struck him and he sat straight up. 

“Wait—Time, Four, were either of you formally trained as knights?”

“No, mine was mostly a position of honor, although I’ve done a few tasks at Lullaby’s request,” Time answered. Four shrugged. 

“Sort of? My dad is a knight, so I’ve learned a few things, and I technically hold the rank, but. . .”

“Then maybe that’s why.” Pieces clicked into place. “Wild could hear Agahnim from the start but was never affected, and we thought that might be because he used to be a knight but doesn’t consider himself one anymore. Twilight never heard it at all, but according to him, his rank as ‘knight’ is purely lip service, while from the sound of it, you two take some form of a knightly role—”

“And Sky and Wars were formally trained as knights and consider that a core part of their identity,” Wild finished, eyes going wide. “Is that the difference? The more of a ‘knight’ or ‘soldier’ you consider yourself, the more you’re affected?”

“Could be.”

“It wouldn’t be the strangest curse trigger I’ve heard of,” Time mused. That brought up a whole new slew of questions. “The question is, how do we stop it? Realizing that the thoughts weren’t ours did the trick here, but I don’t know if we’ll be able to convince the other two.”

“I still think we might be able to use Fi to convince Sky—he thinks her words are gospel truth.”

“I mean—”

THUD.

All heads spun around, and Legend narrowed his eyes at the white blob that had just run into the window. 

“Sheerow?”

The bird—laden with a wrapped package more than three times her size—made her way over to him and plopped onto his lap, presenting a parchment-wrapped leg. He raised an eyebrow and removed the message.

- Link,

Hopefully this will help you out. You have good friends.

- Ravio and Zelda

“What’s it say?”

He ignored the rancher and turned to the package. His eyes blew wide as he took in the stack of parchment and sickeningly familiar handwriting. 

Holy shit—did Zel actually. . .

He rifled through the pages faster and a little scrap with different script floated to the floor. He snatched it up and scanned it.

- Heard you were having some trouble. It took a little experimentation with my harp, but I think we found the right place and the right time to get you your answers. We managed to grab the originals, too—Ralph’s pretty good at distraction when he wants to be.

Hope this helps end the curse. Call if you need any more help. It’s the least we can do after what you’ve done for us.

- Your friends, N & R

P.S. This was all Zelda’s idea. Has anyone ever told you that you two are creepily similar sometimes?

“Is everything okay, Vet?”

He read over the message again and again, feeling a smile grow across his face. Finally, laughter burst from his chest. 

“I should’ve guessed—Zel, you’ve outdone yourself this time.” He shook his head, still laughing. “Someone hand me my bag, I should write a reply.”

Four handed him his bag, eyebrows raised, but he just dug through it until he found his stash of writing materials. 

- Zel, you never cease to amaze me. Well fucking done. Send N & R my thanks as well, if you wouldn’t mind—it’ll probably get there faster.

- Link

P.S. How did you get in touch with them so fast? It’s only been a few days, for Lolia’s sake.

“Sheerow, can you take this to Zelda?” He waved the parchment at Sheerow, who chirped twice and held out her leg. “Thanks.”

He tied the parchment to the little bird’s leg and carried her over to the window. As he watched her fade into the distance, footsteps drew close. 

“Alright, spit it out! What in the name of Hylia’s holy undergarments was that all about?”

“WIND! LANGUAGE! ”

He ignored the honestly horrifying curse and spun around, letting his smirk widen. 

“Fable is a gift to the world. She got in contact with some friends of mine from my—hang on—” he quickly counted on his fingers. “Fourth adventure, right. Basically, she called in a favor for me. One of said friends happens to be the Oracle of Ages, and if I’m right, then she actually traveled back in fucking time to get Agahnim’s original notes .” He cackled and rubbed his hands together. “I’ll have to translate it, but this might just be the break we need~”

“Don’t jinx it,” Twilight muttered. He made a rude gesture towards the Rancher, but knocked on the wooden window frame a few times. 

“There. Now don’t disturb me while I translate this. It might take a while.”

                                                                                                       ****

“Should we. . .intervene? He’s been at this for over four hours already.”

“Do you want to have him try to kill you? You know what he’s like when someone interrupts him!”

“He should probably eat something, though—or at least have something to drink? Has he even moved?”

“Well, I’m not risking my limbs, thanks muchly.”

“Coward.”

“Why you—”

Legend snapped his head up and slammed his pen down, glaring at his idiot brothers. 

“Can you all shut up? I can’t focus with all your yapping!”

Wind had the audacity to look skeptical. 

“You’ve been off in your own little world for hours, Veteran; we’ve been talking for ages! How much more do you still have to do?”

He automatically glanced down to the mess of notes before him. After a few moments of flipping through pages, he set the stack down with a huff. 

“Still far more than I’d like. For all that I despise Agahnim and everything related to him, he was thorough with his research.”

“Hm.” Hyrule came over and peeked at the pages. “Well, that might make breaking the spell easier—got anything good yet?”

“Sort of. Lots of notes on mind control—looks like he saw that the spells could be easy to break, so he wanted to find ways of circumventing that. A few notes about the power of perception. . . but still nothing that could explain how powerful the curse was or became.”

“Maybe because he was an alter ego of Ganon—whatever that means?” Wild mused. “I mean, Ganon was able to corrupt both Guardians and Divine Beasts in my era, and he maintained perfect control for one hundred years. If it was Ganon’s power adding strength to the curse. . .”

“But that still doesn’t explain why Fi couldn’t fix it!” Wind argued. Something dark flashed across Wild’s face. 

“Not necessarily. It wasn’t Fi that cleansed the Divine Beasts, it was clearing the Malice. Against the Guardians—she didn’t fix them at all. She couldn’t undo the Malice infections back during Calamity either.” Wild stood and began to pace, scratching absently at the scars along his left arm. “Maybe that’s why she can’t do anything with this curse, either—something in Ganon’s essence can resist her.”

“That’s—not a good sign,” Twilight muttered. “But then, does that mean that some sort of power outside of the Goddesses could help?”

“Beats me.”

Dammit. That puts yet another knot in things.

He glared down at Agahnim’s notes and his own translations. There had to be something that could break the bastard’s spell. 

But if he really did have Ganon’s strength—and therefore, possibly Demise’s strength, meaning the strength of a fucking god—behind that spell, maybe there really isn’t anything we can do. . .

He gritted his teeth hard enough for his jaw to hurt and returned to his translations. Entertaining that doubting voice wouldn’t help anything, and Four and Time were already free of the worst of the curse’s effects. Surely they could save the others, too.

(He could only hope.)

                                                                                                       ****

Hyrule heaved a sigh as he stared across the room to where his predecessor sat slumped over his work. Beside him, Four tilted his head. 

“I think he’s asleep.”

“Me too.” He stood, stretched out the kinks in his spine, and moved to pull a blanket over the snoozing veteran. Legend snuffled in his sleep, tucking his face further into the blanket, and Hyrule bit back a coo. 

Wind didn’t bother with such kindnesses. 

“Aw, isn’t he just precious?”

“Don’t let him hear you say that.”

Overgrown children, all of them.

He shook his head and stood back up, then turned to Time and Twilight. 

“I’m heading out for a while and I don’t know when I’ll be back.”

Twilight shot to his feet. 

“You’re what? ”

“I have an idea for how to get some information, but I need to go alone, and it might take a while. I’ll be safe, I promise.” He gave them the most sincere smile that he could. “No one’s even going to see me.”

Time’s eye widened in understanding, and the eldest hero laid a hand on Twilight’s arm. 

“Be safe, Traveler.”

“Of course.” He grabbed his bag and Magic Sword—just in case—and slipped out of the Sanctuary. As soon as the door closed behind him, he let his magic skitter over his skin and felt his entire being compress. 

Moments after his transformation, the forms of his cousins filled the air and delighted chimes rang out. 

“Cousin! Cousin!”

He chimed his own greeting back. 

“I have a very important request. Can you take me to the nearest Great Mother?”

“Of course! Come come come!”

He brightened and followed after the fairies eastward, until they came to a pool with familiar-feeling magic around it. The fairies swarmed around the water and the air rang with their music. 

“Mother! Mother! A cousin has come to visit!”

The pool rippled and a tall woman in a bright green dress rose from beneath the water. The magic in the air spiked, leaving Hyrule almost dizzy from the head rush. Her eyes fell on him and an indulgent smile spread across her face. 

“Well, well. Greetings, little cousin.” She held out a hand and he delicately landed atop her palm. A single finger rubbed the top of his head and he bit back a purr of delight. “You’re far from home. . .what brings you here?” 

The influx of magic around him scrambled his thoughts, and it took a moment for him to pull himself together enough to answer. But finally, he got his tongue under control. 

“Lege—Link, the Hero—he needs help. So do the rest of my brothers. Did you know that an evil wizard cursed all of the knights here several years ago?”

She hummed and sat on the edge of the pool, still petting his head. 

“Yes, I recall that. . .poor little thing. So frightened—my sisters and I did what we could for him, and he was so kind, even to the soldiers who wanted him dead. He even helped one of my sisters when Ganon’s magic cursed her into an unsightly form. Why do you ask?”

“It’s still active.” He bit his lip and plucked at a loose thread of his tunic. “And recently, it spread to some of our brothers, other Heroes, who are trained knights.”

“I see.” The Great Fairy’s eyes narrowed. “Tell me everything, little cousin.”

So he did. He explained the whole story and everything they’d discovered about Agahnim’s curse so far, and the Great Fairy listened in silence. When he finished, she leaned back and tapped her finger against her lips. 

“That is a dilemma indeed. Even the Goddess Sword and the Triforce couldn’t break it entirely?”

“No—we worry that it’s because Ganon’s and Demise’s magic is fueling it to an extent that the Sword cannot stop.”

To his surprise, the Great Fairy shook her head. 

“No, I don’t think that’s why.”

He blinked.

“. . .Beg pardon?”

“This curse may have started as dark magic, but that is not what pushes it on,” the Great Fairy said. “I cannot be absolutely certain without seeing your companions myself—”

“We can go!” one of the smaller fairies chimed. Hyrule jumped and nearly fell off the Great Fairy’s palm. “We can check on the heroes and the curse on Hyrule’s knights!”

“That would be wonderful. Thank you, daughters.” The Great Fairy blew a kiss to the smaller beings as they fluttered off, then turned back to him. “As for you, little cousin—you look exhausted. Rest awhile, until my daughters return.”

He opened his mouth to protest, but the Great Fairy hummed softly and the magic around him swelled. Before he knew it, his eyes fluttered shut and he drifted into sleep.

Chapter Text

Fi knew the intricacies, blessings, and flaws of the Hero’s Spirit intimately. Over the millenia she had worked with her many masters, she’d come to know them all well, and she loved them all as much as she was capable of.

With that said. . .they were Heroes of Courage, not Wisdom, and 50-60% of the time, she truly did just want to smack them upside the head. The lack of common sense gave her a headache, and she wasn’t even supposed to feel physical pain. 

Honestly. 

(She knew she couldn’t blame her masters this time around—it was a curse, after all; it wasn’t their fault—but really. The chances of any criminal, Hero’s Spirit or not, being able to wield her was less than 0.00387%.)

Beyond her irritation at her Chosen Heroes lay frustration with the curse itself. She’d felt it slip over the Hero of the Sky, and despite her best efforts, she could not burn it away. The curse remained, dark and insidious and horribly familiar. Her heart still ached at the memories of Agahnim’s corrupted soldiers as they hunted her Hero of Legend, and the terror that the poor boy learned to live with. 

One of her greatest failures still. She hadn’t been able to help then, and she couldn’t help him now—it was the feeling she hated more than anything.

“We should really look for Time now; it’s been hours and according to his own estimations, he should’ve been back by now.”

The Hero of Eras’ voices brought her out of her reverie and she returned her attention to her masters’ conversation. 

“I still can’t believe you let him go off on his own,” her Chosen murmured, voice laden with disapproval. The Hero of Warriors huffed. 

“It’s Time! Do you really think I could stop him? And besides, if any of us could handle whatever Legend could throw, it’d be him—I’m pretty sure we still haven’t seen all of his masks, and who knows what else he’s got up his sleeve.”

“You do have a point. . .but still. Do you have anything of Time’s to dowse with?”

This again?

“I do indeed; Time left a tunic behind.”

“Perfect.” Her Chosen drew her from her sheath, and he felt his mind nudge against her own awareness. 

‘We need to find Time. Please help once again, old friend?’

She hesitated. 

‘You’re being ridiculous, Master Link,’ she thought back, though she doubted he could hear her words. If he hadn’t heard her before when he’d asked her to find the Hero of Legend, he wouldn’t listen now. ‘You should not be hunting down your sword-brother.’

“Uh, Sky? Is everything working?”

“It should be—Fi, please? We need to find them.”

She sighed and sent out her own senses, mingling with the Hero of the Sky’s own magic and creating a tether to the Hero of Time’s specific soul-resonance to track the man down. 

Found him.

“Got it!” The Hero of the Sky cheered as she moved to point towards the Hero of Time. “Let’s get going!”

This has a less than 15% chance of going smoothly.

                                                                                                       ****

As they approached the old Northern Sanctuary, Fi felt the auras of her other masters light up in her sphere of awareness. Moments later, someone screeched. 

“What in the name of Bellum’s twisted tentacle—?!”

“LANGUAGE, SAILOR!” The boom of the Hero of Warriors brought back fond memories of the War of Eras. “Honestly! What is it going to take to curb your swearing?”

The chances of actually cleaning up his language are 6% or less. There are better things to focus your energy on, Captain Link. 

“What are you two doing here?!”

“Looking for Time. Have you seen him?”

“Right here, Captain.” The Hero of Time sighed loudly, but Fi focused on the dark taint over his soul. The pattern had shrunk by 75.274%.

Well now. How did they manage that?

“Where have you been?! We were getting worried about you!” her Chosen scolded. The curse around him fluttered and darkened for a split second. “You could’ve gotten hurt—”

“I wasn’t, although I apologize for worrying you. I heard some very interesting information, actually, and I got a bit distracted.” A pause, and then, “Did you see Hyrule as you came up here? He’s been gone for a while.”

“What?!”

This is going to be a long day. 

Still, traces of hope bloomed in her chest. If the curse had shrunk on the Hero of Time—just like it did with the Hero of the Four Sword before—then perhaps they’d found a solution. It was better than nothing. 

                                                                                                       ****

Sky wasn’t sure what to think anymore. Seeing the wanted posters with Legend’s face came as a shock, but then it made sickening sense. He’d never liked Hylia, had criticized her openly, had a quick and nasty temper—

So why were his other brothers so convinced that something was going on behind the scenes? Even Four and Time had shifted sides, and he’d thought they were the most reasonable of the Chain. 

He kept his hand firmly on Fi’s hilt as Time ushered him and Warriors into the old building, despite how the metal warmed to the point of discomfort. Better safe than sorry, after all—especially after he saw the faded bloodstains on the walls. 

“What happened here?!” Warriors stared around with an open jaw and Time sighed. 

“Black-blooded monsters, apparently. The boys have been working to clean up the place.”

“It was a lot worse when we first showed up.” Twilight’s voice sent him jumping out of his skin and he spun around, nearly smacking the rancher in the face. Twilight just raised an eyebrow. “Easy there, Sky. They’re all long gone—Legend took care of most of ‘em, and Cub and I got the last two.”

Wait, say what?

“How many were there?!”

“A small pack by the time I got here. The Shadow must’ve dropped them in here, but the doors were blocked off from the outside, so they got stuck for a while. I expect there were more originally.”

He instinctively stiffened when Legend spoke and glanced around for the veteran. His eyes locked on red near one of the windows, and his breath caught at the unreadable expression on Legend’s face. His stomach flopped uncomfortably. 

Wars looked a little hesitant, too, but after a moment, his fellow knight set his jaw. 

“Care to explain what this is all about, Legend?”

“I’ve been trying to, and so have the others,” Legend replied coolly. Sky couldn’t help wincing. “You’re the ones who haven’t been listening.”

“Well—”

“Wars, not the time! ” he hissed, elbowing the captain in the ribs. He ignored the responding glare and turned back to Legend. “Time said Hyrule was missing?”

Something sparked in violet eyes and Legend’s mouth twisted just a bit. 

“Oh, I heard. I was asleep when the bastard snuck out, but he is definitely getting a tongue-lashing when he gets back. Going out on his own with black-bloods around—what was he thinking?! ”

“I can’t blame him,” Warriors muttered, definitely loud enough for Legend to hear. Time’s expression darkened further. 

“Captain. . .”

“Don’t bother, Old Man. Might as well let Pretty Boy get it out of his system.” Legend folded his arms across his chest and raised a single eyebrow. “You know we can’t convince him otherwise.”

“Don’t say that! We’re getting close, Ledge, you know that.” Wild appeared out of nowhere, laying a hand on Legend’s shoulder. Sky watched Legend’s eyes soften ever so slightly before the impassive look returned. 

“Not as close as I’d like, and without the Traveler to cast that spell—”

“What spell?” His senses went onto high alert, but Wind popped into view. 

“It just brings certain thoughts out so you can hear them clearly, and it stops any weird ones from sounding like you!”

. . .Whut?

“What the sailor means is that it identifies foreign thoughts and projects them into the air around you, in the voice of the person who put them there,” Four clarified, climbing in through the window—what was he doing outside? And why come in through the window? “Based on mine and Time’s experiences, the curse takes hold by mimicking your internal voice so you think that what it’s saying is coming from you.”

“But that doesn’t make sense.” Warriors snapped. Legend scoffed. 

“Of course it doesn’t. That’s part of the spell.”

“Look, I don’t know what the knights ever did to you to have you cause them so much trouble, but this is too far, Legend!” Warriors’ face turned red. “I don’t even know what to think of you anymore! You’d seriously go against the kingdom and attack the army—”

“I grew up with knights, you know?”

Everything stopped, and Sky stared at Legend. The veteran’s gaze remained fixed on the floor. 

“My uncle was a knight, and so were most of his friends, so they were always coming by the farmhouse,” the pink-haired teenager continued. “I was—I was sick a lot, when I was little, so I didn’t go out very often—but they would always sit with me when they came over in the evenings. They’d play cards and tell me stories until I dozed off, then they’d sit and gossip with my uncle. I practically worshiped them; I wanted to be just like them when I got older.” 

What?

He flicked his eyes to his other brothers, but they looked just as surprised at the uncharacteristic openness from their most guarded Link in the Chain. Legend ignored them all as he spun to stare out the window. 

“Then Agahnim showed up and cast his spell, and next thing I know, my uncle’s bleeding out in the sewers after getting stabbed by one of his oldest friends, I’m sneaking Zelda out of the dungeon cell that Agahnim locked her in, and all the knights I’ve grown up with now want to kill me.” Legend gazed placidly out the window, but the way his hands tightened until his knuckles went white on the sill said it all. “I tried everything to break it after I killed Agahnim—I talked with witches, I used Fi, I tried the fucking Triforce. This is the first time in seven years that I’ve made any progress at all.” Legend’s throat bobbed and he ducked his head. “I still feel their blood on my hands and hear their voices at night. I did what I had to do to survive and save Zelda, but I failed every single one of them, and now that I finally have the chance to make things right—I owe them that much.”

Sky’s heart sank and his eyes burned as the world went blurry. That. . .might be the saddest story he’d ever heard. Warriors sputtered, going pale. Twilight stepped forward, eyes big and watery and hands reaching out.

“Legend—”

Slam.

“I’m back, and I have news!” Hyrule burst through the door and skidded to a stop, taking in the scene with wide eyes. 

“Uh—everything okay?”

Part of him wanted to burst into hysterical laughter—things couldn’t be less okay right now. Before he could do that, though, Legend breezed by him and started berating Hyrule. 

“What were you thinking?! You could’ve been ambushed like I was earlier!  Why didn’t you take someone—” the tirade cut off when Hyrule smacked a hand over the veteran’s mouth. The shock on Legend’s face almost made him laugh again.

Okay, maybe Legend isn’t controlling him, if Hyrule’s doing that.

(In the back of his mind, Fi rang, and something in the sound told him that if she could still manifest physically, she’d be rolling her eyes at him. Huh.)

“It’s not Ganon that’s fueling the curse!”

Silence once again. Legend blinked. 

“Mmhphf?” The veteran reached up and tugged the hand down. “Say what now?”

“The curse isn’t sticking around because of evil god powers; the Great Fairy near here confirmed it. That’s where I went; I wanted to see if she had any ideas.” Hyrule jogged past Legend and spun around, facing them all. “Oh, hi Wars, Sky—anyway, she also explained why Fi can’t break it!”

“Do tell.” Time raised his eyebrow. “I’ll admit, I’ve been struggling to figure out why that’s true.”

“Okay, so this is going to sound weird, but hear me out. Basically, Fi can’t break the curse because it’s not dark magic anymore.”

“That’s impossible!” Four put his hands on his hips, eyes flashing blue and violet. “It’s literally—”

“I know! Agh, how did she explain it—so, basically, it started out as dark magic, but when Ledge used the Triforce to restore everyone, it messed with the curse a bit. Now, there’s still a core of dark magic that influences what the curse does and how, but most of the power behind it is just raw energy. That’s why the Master Sword can’t get rid of it—the dark magic is sort of wrapped up in all the neutral energy fueling it and she can’t reach it.”

Is that even possible, Fi?

She didn’t answer, but Hyrule just kept talking. 

“So, you have your dark magic core and your neutral energy powering it, and to keep itself from fading, it continues following the last objective it was given.”

“You make it sound sentient,” Warriors said skeptically. Hyrule shrugged and waggled a hand. 

“It sort of is? It’s not intelligent, but it’s aware enough to know it exists and to want to maintain that, so it continues doing what it was meant to do in order to keep itself going. It’s strange, I know, but some curses can do that, especially strong ones.”

“So. . .it’s working in a loop?” Time’s brow furrowed, making the odd markings on his face stand out even more. 

“Close enough.”

“But. . .how would the curse keep itself going if it keeps running? Wouldn’t the magic run out?” Wind cocked his head, face all scrunched up. 

This time, Legend answered.

“Some spells—especially dark magic—feed on energy from people, particularly if it’s related in some way to the spell. This curse might well be feeding on the energy generated by the actions taken by the people it affects—let’s say a knight goes after me. Since the curse is causing that, it could feed on the spiritual energy caused by that action and it would make it stronger.”

“. . .Magic is really fucking weird sometimes.”

“Language, Wind!” The response was so instinctive that he couldn’t stop himself, and he felt his cheeks grow hot as his brothers snickered. Twilight let out a long-suffering sigh. 

“That’s not the worst he’s said lately—and this is why I don’t mess around with magic.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Legend waved Twilight off—fueling a spike of irritation in Sky’s mind—and turned back to Hyrule. “So, you’ve got the why it’s the way it is—now how do we break it?”

Hyrule went a little pink and glanced away.

“You guys are not going to like it. . .”

                                                                                                       ****

“No, no, absolutely not! Are you insane?! ”

Fi couldn’t massage her temples, but by her Creator’s name she wanted to. The explanation that the Hero of Hyrule gave provided some long-awaited answers, and while she didn’t particularly like the plan, at that point, anything was better than this mess, and when she ran the calculations, she found a 65% chance of success. 

However, the majority of her masters really didn’t like the plan.

“I know it’s risky and it sounds counterintuitive—”

“We would literally be handing over control of our minds!”

“Rulie, I think you’re an incredible successor and I trust you with my life, but sweet Oracles this is not a good idea.”

“How would we even do that?”

“Would Fi let that happen?”

Well, I can answer that, at least. 

She pulled together as much of her energy as she could and let her image flicker above Sky’s head. Gasps filled the air, but she ignored them. 

“I would not allow the Hero of Legend to manipulate you, Masters,” she said calmly, glancing down at Legend in particular. “This plan seems to have a 65% chance of working successfully—and I am sorry I could not prevent this from happening in the first place.”

“So—we really are cursed?” Sky croaked, staring up at her with wide eyes. She couldn’t help it this time. 

She rolled her eyes. 

“Yes, Master. I could feel it covering you and the other heroes, but alas, I could not dispel it despite my best efforts. The Hero of Hyrule seems to have found the answer to that.” She nodded to the Hero of Hyrule before turning back to Sky. “I would not allow a criminal to wield me, and do not forget, Hero of the Skies—I can see into the hearts of those who would try. The Hero of Legend is as pure as any of you.”

Her energy faltered and she let her physical form shatter, returning to rest in her sword. As her consciousness faded into sleep, she caught faint snatches of words, but more importantly, she could feel some of the barriers around her Chosen’s mind weakening. 

Maybe he’d finally listen to reason. 

Chapter Text

Legend’s stomach churned as he painstakingly marked out runes on the stone floor of the Sanctuary. The pages of translated notes he held for reference crinkled from how his grip tightened. 

I can’t believe I’m about to do this. . .

“Legend?”

Thankfully, Wild’s question came as he lifted the chalk away from the floor, so he didn’t mess up his runes. He still smacked the champion on the shoulder with his sheaf of papers. 

“Don’t do that, you’ll make me mess up!”

“Sorry.” Wild crouched near him and offered a cup of warm milk. “Here, you looked like you could use a bit of a break.”

“I’m fine.”

“. . .You’re about to break your chalk.”

He glanced down and scowled at the web-thin cracks along the chalk. He deliberately placed it to the side. 

“Seriously, I’m fine.”

“Right. Do you want the milk or not?” Then Wild’s tone turned wheedling. “I have honey candy, too~”

Dammit, Cook.

He took the milk, but he wasn’t happy about it.

(He still drank every last drop.)

Wild, damn him, stayed next to him as he finished the drink. As he lowered the mug, Wild leaned closer and passed him honey candies.

“Are you sure you’re doing alright? It’s completely understandable if you’re nervous.”

“Nervous?” He scoffed, but when his eyes fell on the Chain’s knights, all huddled up in a corner, his shoulders slumped. There really wasn’t a point in hiding it—he didn’t have much pretense left anyway. “I’m terrified, Wild. This isn’t a type of magic I’ve ever done or have wanted to do. There’s so many ways this could go wrong—”

“We won’t let that happen.” Wild squeezed his shoulder and gave him a warm smile, eyes shining with sincerity. “Twi and Wind will be on standby with the Master Sword and potions, and Hyrule’s going to be monitoring everything from the magic side. If anything goes off-plan, we stop, pull back, and figure it out.”

“I wish I had your confidence,” he muttered. Wild snickered and squeezed his shoulder again. 

“Hang in there, Vet. We’re almost there.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He tolerated the contact a moment longer—definitely not leaning into it—before shoving Wild off. “Now shoo; I need to finish this unless you want to do it in the middle of the damn night.”

“Alright, alright, I know when I’m not wanted,” Wild teased, getting to his feet and snatching up the empty mug. “I’ll be over with Twi and Hyrule; call if you need anything.”

He grunted and returned to his work sketching out runes. If his grip on his notes had loosened a bit while he sucked on honey candy, that was no one else’s business but his.

                                                                                                        ****

“Are we sure this is a good idea?”

Legend took a deep breath through his nose. 

“Sky. My brother of the sword. I understand your reservations, I really do, but if you ask me that one more time—”

“It’s the best idea we’ve got,” Hyrule interrupted, smoothly covering his mouth once again. Legend narrowed his eyes at his successor and licked the palm over his mouth. 

It didn’t even faze the other teen. 

Why do I even try?

“Alright, knights, get ready and huddle together. Wild, get near the circle and make sure you’re close to the line since we might need physical contact,” Hyrule continued. Wild trotted over to the circle without complaint, while Time and Four waited just a few steps away. Sky and Warriors hesitated, but eventually joined Time and Four. 

That’s step one. Easiest part down, the worst part yet to go. . .

“Don’t get too lost in your head, vet. It’s gonna be okay.” Four gave him a surprisingly calm smile, considering what was about to happen, and he leaned away from Hyrule’s hand. 

“I am literally about to cast one of Agahnim’s spells on you.”

“Yeah, but you’re not an evil, kingdom-conquering wizard, so it’s different!” Wind chirped. He shot the sailor a disbelieving look, but Hyrule tapped his shoulder. 

“Let’s get going. Twi, Wind, are you two ready?”

“‘Course we are, you two are goin’ slower than cream rising on buttermilk.” Twilight smirked gleefully in their direction, but tapped the Master Sword on his back reassuringly. “If something goes wrong, we’ll step in, and we’ve got both weapons and potions. You’ve plowed the furrows down to bedrock, Vet, rest the poor horses.”

He blinked, his brain stalling.

Dammit, speak plain Hylian, would you?!

“. . .Moving right along from that. Legend, Hyrule, are you ready for this?” Time stepped over and squeezed their shoulders. “I believe in you boys.”

Don’t you dare go making me cry now, Old Man; I’ve cried enough this past week for the next few years at least. 

He stubbornly spun out of Time’s grip and retrieved the notes, handing Hyrule a copy for himself before stepping into the circle. 

“Let’s get this mess over with.”

Hyrule eyed him, but merely nodded and joined him in the circle. Legend took a deep breath and pushed his shoulders back. 

Here goes nothing. 

                                                                                                       ****

If he didn’t have enough reasons to hate Agahnim, the sheer complexity of this damned ritual was enough. It only took a minute of chanting before he could feel the strain on his magic. After a moment, Hyrule joined in, and some of the pressure eased, though the honey-and-mint of his brother’s magic was cloyingly sweet before it crossed a line into burnt . It made him even more sick to his stomach. 

Goddesses, I hate dark magic. 

The grimy, sticky mess washed over him and the circle on the floor glowed bright red. He did his best not to focus on it and kept his eyes on the directions in front of him. The magic around them steadily grew as he and Hyrule lit candles and continued their incantations. Finally, Hyrule fell silent and Legend braced himself once again. 

Here goes nothing. 

“With weaving word and winding spell,

Inside your mind my voice will dwell.

For I’m the will and you my hand, 

My every wish is your command.”

A rush of energy flooded him as the last words left his mouth and the glow on the floor brightened. He felt the magic in the room descend and wrap around him before spreading out, out, out and connecting with more. In a heartbeat, he felt the pulsing of dozens of other minds, nestled against his own. Something in him just knew that with a single thought and a little push, he could see through any of their eyes, hear whatever they did, and send them to do his bidding with little more than a word. The power rush was like nothing he’d ever felt before. 

“Legend?”

He blinked and pulled himself out of the haze enough to see Hyrule’s eyes, dark with worry. He glanced away from his successor and towards the rest of his brothers, and something heavy landed in his stomach at the vacant, emotionless look on Four, Time, Sky, and Warriors. Wild just kept twitching, expression flicking from empty to annoyed. 

“This feels weird,” the cook muttered, pawing at his ears. “This feels really weird.”

Right. Snap out of it, Link. This is a power you neither need nor want. Focus and help your brothers for Din’s sake, dammit.

He shook his head to resettle his brain and held out his hand to Hyrule. Immediately, the traveler took hold and squeezed.

“Let’s do this. Wild, are you still okay with being our anchor?”

Wild gave him a small smile. 

“Absolutely I am. I trust you both.” Then Wild’s grin widened into something downright evil. “Give the curse absolute hell, from me. And the others, probably.”

“Don’t forget about us!” Wind added, waving from his spot on the sidelines. Legend couldn’t help the snort, even as Hyrule sniggered beside him.

“Right. Then what are we waiting for? Rulie, are you ready?”

“On it.” Hyrule closed his eyes, and soothing mint overpowered the burnt sugar and bitter ash that still lingered at the edges of his senses. He took the opportunity to breathe in deep and settle his nerves—at least, as much as he could in this situation. 

After an eternity—which was probably only a few minutes, but who gave a fuck—Hyrule squeezed his hand.

“Ready?”

“Mhm.” He squeezed back and reached out to take Wild’s hand, then closed his eyes and opened his senses. Wild’s and Hyrule’s magics danced around him, and it only took a moment of probing before he felt the grimy touch of the curse as well. “Let’s finish this.”

He let Hyrule’s magic lead the way at first. The energy of the curse throbbed around him, but unlike the first time he’d poked at it, it didn’t lash back out. Hyrule hummed. 

“The energy around the curse is different now; what we did must’ve done something at least.” Hyrule prodded it carefully. “Okay, follow me.”

Just like before, he felt Hyrule’s magic worm its way through and between threads of curse energy, and he slipped after it. The pressure of dark magic grew stronger the deeper they went, and his lungs seemed to shrink two sizes. Agahnim’s voice floated around them, fading in and out.

“Stop him—in danger—too late— stop him —”

“Shut up, would you, Agahnim?” he muttered. His heart skipped a beat when his old enemy’s voice abruptly vanished, replaced by an echo of his own voice.

Okay, that’s really disturbing.

“Maybe be careful with what you say,” Hyrule murmured. He winced. 

“Yeah. My bad.”

“You didn’t know that would happen.” Hyrule’s magic paused for a moment as the energy around them swelled. “I think we’re almost deep enough. Do you want to try affecting the whole curse from here?”

“Worth a shot.” He tentatively reached out and wove his own magic into the energy around them. His awareness of both his brothers and the kingdom’s knights spiked, and—after a moment of adjusting to the head rush—he dug in metaphorical fingers and pulled at the curse. 

SCREEEEEEEE!!

He flinched back, teeth rattling in his jaw and his head pounding like he’d been hit with a club. Hyrule’s magic surrounded him, pressing in like a gentle hug. 

“You okay, Ledge?”

“What. . .was that?” he gasped as the initial shock died away. Hyrule hummed. 

“I think that was the dark magic not taking too kindly to interference—BUT take a moment to take in the state of the curse.”

Eh?

It took some time for his senses to open again, and a few minutes longer before he realized that the magic around them no longer felt so heavy. His jaw dropped. 

“Wait, did I—”

“Weaken it? Yeah, I think so.” Hyrule’s magic pressed in on him once more before withdrawing. “Could you pull it off again?”

“Pr—wait.” He pushed his consciousness further, grimacing as he caught that familiar taint of Agahnim’s magic. “It didn’t really hurt the dark magic, just its fuel—if I break that, then what if I’m not able to undo the rest?” He shook his head. “No, I think we have to get rid of all traces of Agahnim first. Until we do that, it’ll just keep digging in, and it might hurt the people affected.”

“Ah. Good point.”

He probed at the edges of the magic around him until he found a tiny, tiny little gap—just enough to worm his own magic in.

The torrent of sludgy, sour-tasting, downright nauseating energy that rushed out nearly knocked him out of the space. It was only a quick snap of honey and mint that caught him and allowed him to stabilize.

What the fuck was that?!

“Are you alright?! You almost got drowned out there.”

“I think so.” He coughed around the bitter magic surrounding him. It felt like the traces that still clung to Agahnim’s old study, despite all their cleaning—thorny-sharp and tasting of unripe berries. He instinctively smacked his lips to try and get the gumminess off his tongue. “I think we reached that dark magic core you mentioned.”

“That’s definitely what it feels like. Now—how do we get rid of it?”

Isn’t that the thousand-rupee question?

He carefully nudged at the remnants of Agahnim’s magic and winced as it lashed back, sending vibrations through his bones. A moment later, another blast of dark hatred evil hit and  he felt his concentration flicker. 

“Hang in there, Ledge. . .” He felt Hyrule’s magic surge around him, giving him an anchor—and a moment later, a different voice echoed in the space, muffled as it was. 

“Kick its ass, Legend! You already beat this guy once!”

. . .Thanks, Wild. Although, how’d he know to say that?

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, he shook it off—considering what had happened last time they’d done something like this, Wild was probably feeling the pain of the whole mess. 

So I should end this as soon as possible for yet another reason. The only question is how. . .

Hyrule’s magic flared again and he backed off as the smell of woodsmoke filled the space. Agahnim’s magic screeched again. 

“What are you doing ?”

“Trying to burn it out—figuratively speaking.”

Huh. Burn out the evil, eh? That does sound. . .familiar. . .wait just a damn minute!

His breath caught in his chest and he gazed around at the wicked magic surrounding him and Hyrule. It felt just like the miasma that had surrounded Hyrule Castle during Agahnim’s takeover, and the haze of the tower where he’d finally beaten the bastard.

Which means, maybe—just maybe—a different sort of magic would do the trick. Zelda never did try to use her goddess power against this, did she? Can I even use it? How would I even manage that?!

Only one way to find out. 

                                                                                                       ****

Hyrule gritted his teeth and sent another burst of ‘fire’ at the dark magic. He couldn’t use proper fire—not without hurting Wild, or the others affected by the curse—but he could mimic it well enough. 

The only problem was, it wasn’t doing much, if anything. 

Was the wizard this annoying for Legend to fight?!

Before he could send out another blast, the air became charged and magic swelled—strangely familiar but not at the same time. His senses burned from how bright it was, and he hurried to close himself off.

That lasted about as long as it took for the dark magic to let out an unearthly wail and start writhing around them. He immediately re-opened his awareness and his jaw dropped at the golden light stabbing at the dark magic—a golden light that he’d only seen in a few places before.

How in the Mothers’ names—?!

“Oi, Rulie, can you give me a bit of a boost here?” Legend’s strained voice snapped him out of his shock, and he hurried to send a wave of energy to his predecessor. 

“Legend, what are you doing?! ”

“Something I never thought I could or would do.” Legend grunted and the light of Hylia’s Blessed grew even brighter. “Is it working?”

He checked the dark magic and felt a burst of relief at how its presence had already dwindled by half. 

“Yes. Yes it is!”

“Thank fuck.” Legend grunted and the light flickered before returning. Hyrule hurried to send another pulse of magic towards his brother. 

How much magic is he using?

Slowly, the air of evil and malice shrank, folding in on itself under the assault of light magic. Even so, Hyrule could feel how Legend’s own energy waned and thinned under the strain. That wasn’t good. 

I wonder. . .

He took a step back and turned his focus inward to his own magic. The power of his Triforce hummed under his skin. 

Surely I can just push a little extra so Legend’s not doing so much. . .

He tugged at the Triforce and shaped some of its power into a little arrow. Then he sent it flying into the heart of the dark magic. The divine light around them intensified so much that he could practically feel his senses burning, and he hurriedly blocked them off. 

The sound-sensation-vibration-thing that the magic released was like nothing he’d ever encountered. It left his whole body shaking and his magic jittering around, trying to guard against an attack that never came. But as he settled, he couldn’t help the laugh that escaped his chest.

The dark taint was nowhere to be found. 

“Legend, I think we got it!”

“We did.” Legend’s voice grated from exhaustion, but he could hear the triumph clear as day. “Give me a minute and I should be able to bring an end to this.”

He sent one last brush of magic against the Veteran, bolstering his reserves just in case. Then he waited and watched as the energy around them shifted, bending to Legend’s will. Slowly but surely, the cinnamon and citrus of Legend’s unique magic filled the space left by Agahnim’s curse, wrapping around the neutral energy and weaving through it until it was near impossible to separate the two. Then Legend murmured something, too soft to hear, and yanked.

The whole space shook as magic slammed into it, crumpling and twisting into something smaller, smaller, smaller before—nothing. He waited, holding his breath, but nothing. 

Did we—well, only one way to check.

He reached out for Legend’s energy—wincing at how it sputtered and dimmed—and nudged it along. 

“Let’s go, Ledge. I think you did it.”

“I better have.”

That’s fair.

The trek out of the depths was far easier, and before he knew it, Wild’s lightning storm-and-whispering woods aura danced around them, welcoming and friendly. He huffed a sigh of relief as he finally pulled away entirely. 

The real world crashed back into him with the force of a Hinox and he nearly toppled over, blinking owlishly to let his regular sight readjust. The afternoon sun streamed through the Sanctuary windows, and Wild stared right at him, beaming ear to ear.

“You’re back!” Wild’s eyes darted to the left. “Legend, you—Vet!”

Hyrule spun and instantly reached out to support Legend. His predecessor was pale as a Poe, shaking like a leaf, and blinking slowly and unevenly. After far too long, dazed violet eyes managed to focus on him and Wild. 

“Mhm—thanks, ‘Rule. Couldn’t have done it wi’out ya,” Legend slurred before his head rolled and his gaze fell on Wild. “Champ?”

“Yeah?” Wild stepped into the circle, supporting Legend’s other side. His smile never dropped. “You did amazing, Vet.”

“Tha’s good.” Legend blinked hard, and for a moment, his eyes cleared. “If I failed—don’t tell me ‘til after I wake up.”

“Uh—”

“‘M gonna sleep now.” Neither he nor Wild had a chance to respond before Legend’s eyes rolled back and his legs buckled. It was all he could do to catch the veteran before he hit the ground. 

Shit!

Twilight pounded over, potion bottles already in hand.

“Is he gonna be okay?” Twilight scanned over them both, brow steadily furrowing. “Traveler, are you gonna be okay? You look worn slap out.”

“Wha—yeah, I’ll be fine, I’m just tired. Ledge and I used a lot of magic.” He shook his head and glanced down at Legend, checking his brother’s pulse just in case. Fast and fluttery, but not stuttering—a good sign. “Once Legend wakes up, I’ll pour a green potion down his throat and he should perk up a bit. He just needs rest and to recover his magic.”

“I see.” Twilight bit his lip, but didn’t argue. Instead, the rancher dug into his pocket and pulled out a green potion, thrusting it at him. “Here, have some yourself.”

“I don’t—”

“Hyrule.” Twilight gave him the Look, and while it was nowhere as intimidating as Time’s—despite the rancher’s best efforts—he didn’t really have the energy to argue. Instead, he just accepted the bottle. 

Besides, I still need to check on everyone else. . .

As he sipped the potion, he glanced over to where the knights of the Chain were huddled. Sky and Warriors were both on the ground, but before he could do more than shift, Wild’s hand flew out and landed on his shoulder. 

“They’re okay, they just weren’t expecting all—that. Give them a few minutes.” Then Wild snickered. “Fair, really—it lifted really suddenly.”

He nodded along, only pausing when Wild’s words sank in.

“Then—”

“Yeah.” Wild’s eyes sparkled with pure delight and his crooked grin only grew wider, heedless of the scars. “You two did it, Rulie. You broke Agahnim’s curse.”

Chapter Text

Warriors had never felt more disgusted with himself—and considering everything with Cia and the War of Eras, that was saying something. 

How in the hells did I fall for that?!

“Wars?” Wind sidled up next to him, tugging at his scarf just like Mask did during the war. He glanced down, swallowing the bile that kept rising in his throat. 

“Yeah, Sailor?”

“Quit being mad at yourself. We already did that shit with Time and Four; it’s not your fault.”

He blinked down at the teenager, jaw falling slack. Wind couldn’t be serious. 

I know he tends toward optimism, but really, Wind—

“I tried to arrest him. I thought he was gonna kill you guys with no actual evidence!”

“And Legend’s knights tried to murder him for alleged kidnapping when he was eleven. I don’t know much about magic, but I know enough to say that it messed with your common sense. Based on how Legend reacted with Four and Time before, I think he’ll just be relieved that you’re back to yourself.” Wind patted his elbow before trotting towards Sky. Warriors stared after him for a moment, then turned his eyes toward Twilight. The rancher adjusted the still-unconscious Veteran in his arms, and another wave of self-loathing washed over him as he watched Legend’s head loll.

If I’d just used my brain and realized something was wrong, he wouldn’t be in this state—

“Captain.” Time materialized beside him and he nearly jumped out of his chainmail.

“Dammit, Old Man, how do you do that?!”

Time just gave him that knowing smile before looking away. 

“Four and I have been thinking of ways of doing something nice for Legend as a way to try to make amends—words don’t seem quite right in this instance. Care to join us?”

He blinked at the older hero. 

“Eh?”

“You’re gotten worse at hiding your thoughts since traveling with us, Captain. And also, it’s rather obvious. Four and I feel the same way, after all, and clearly Sky does as well, if that green tint to his skin means anything.”

Okay, fair enough. But still. . .

“How could we possibly make up for this mess?”

Time grimaced. 

“And that is why we are brainstorming. We made a horrible mistake, and frankly, I’m astonished Legend hasn’t been truly angry about it. I doubt I would be so forgiving, especially if I’d dealt with similar events in the past.”

“I know I wouldn’t.” He still wasn’t forgiving to traitors, even four years after the War. It had come back to bite him in the ass now. “How does he not hate us?”

“I think most of the hatred is directed towards the wizard behind the curse in the first place—and as much as he likes to disagree, our Veteran does have a good heart.”

Warriors’ chest ached at the blithe comment. Two days ago, he would’ve thought the Old Man was crazy or had been affected by some sort of nefarious magic if he’d said that, despite all evidence to the contrary. 

Cruel irony at its finest.

“Right.”

Time gave him a long look, but said nothing more and just patted his shoulder before striding towards the front of the group. He let his mind drift again.

How could this even happen? Hylia’s blessing notwithstanding, we’ve got enough magical protections around us to block spells like that, and we’ve been in his era before without this happening. What’s different this time?

His stomach churned harder as they moved through Castle Town. How was he going to be able to face Fable after all of this?

I basically accused her Hero of treason!

He jolted a bit when a small hand slipped into his own, and he glanced down to see Four at his side. The smith looked up and gave him a wry smile. 

“Strength in numbers, Captain. We’ll all be remorseful idiots together.”

He snorted despite himself. 

“Thanks, Smithy.”

“Anytime—and remember, the knights from here have done a hell of a lot worse.”

Less helpful, but I appreciate the thought.

They turned onto one of the side roads in Castle Town and walked until Legend’s house came into view. Wind ran ahead and banged on the door. 

“Oi, Ravio, open up!”

The door swung open just as the rest of them arrived—but it wasn’t Ravio on the other side. His jaw dropped.

“Fable?! ”

What is she doing here of all places?

The princess ignored them all and rushed to Twilight, brushing her fingers across Legend’s forehead. 

“What happened?! Is he alright?”

“Magic exhaustion. He’ll be alright once he gets some shut-eye and a green potion,” Twilight soothed. Fable’s shoulders slumped.

“I see. Come in, all of you; set him on the couch—wait.” She froze, eyes darting amongst them. “Did you—”

“Yeah, he fixed it.” Wild grinned at her, rubbing his hands together. “Wiped himself out in the process, but he and Hyrule managed it.”

“They completely broke it!” Wind added. Fable blinked. 

“. . . How?! He tried using the Triforce! ” Before any of them could answer, she held up her hand. “Wait, never mind—let’s get him settled first. Ravio’s out at the market now, but he’ll be back soon.”

Warriors shared confused looks with his brothers, but after a moment, they followed Fable into the house. At her urging, Wild and Hyrule cleared off the couch and Twilight set Legend down, covering his limp body with a blanket. Warriors’ eyes lingered on his brother’s sunken eyes and too-pale skin for a long moment before Four squeezed his hand and pulled him to an available armchair. Fable emerged from the kitchen with a tray of steaming mugs and passed them out. He hesitantly accepted his own, unable to look her in the eyes. The tea tasted sour on his tongue.

“Right.” Fable sat right by Legend’s head with her own mug and leaned back. “So, how did he finally fix it? Did he use the notes Ralph and Nayru got for him?”

Wait, who? Nayru as in the goddess?! Who the hell does Legend know?!

“He did!” Wind chirped, completely at ease with this monumental information. Warriors didn’t know how he managed it. “He re-cast the spell the way Agahnim did, then he and Rulie did. . . something.”

“We had to destroy the dark magic core directly before we removed the spell,” Hyrule explained, cheeks turning pink. Fable’s eyebrows raised.

“The core?”

“Mhm. The curse got—wrapped up, for lack of a better term—in neutral energy, which kept typical methods of breaking dark magic from reaching it.” The traveler traced his fingers around the rim of his mug. “So we broke through the neutral magic and reached the core. Legend’s the real hero here, he did something I didn’t even know he could do to beat it back.”

Now that was an interesting statement. 

What could Hyrule mean by that?

“Once we’d gotten rid of the dark magic, Legend lifted the rest of the spell—since he was the one to cast it, it listened to him once the last of Agahnim’s touch was gone,” Hyrule finished. Fable hummed. 

“When you say he ‘re-cast it’. . .”

“He basically put every knight in Hyrule under the spell again, us included,” Wild finished. The Champion grimaced. “It felt weird.”

“You weren’t even fully affected, Champion,” Time drawled, sipping his tea. “But I concur—it was very odd to hear the Veteran’s voice in my head and know that I’d do anything he asked.”

(Odd was one way to describe it. That feeling of detachment had been terrifying.)

Fable blinked.

“That would explain why all the knights in Hyrule Castle suddenly went still as statues for almost an hour before simultaneously collapsing. I wondered what that was about.”

I’m sorry, what?!

“Are they okay?” Sky fretted. Fable nodded.

“I think they are now, although they’re being looked over by physicians just in case. It was a bit. . .exciting for a little while.” She sipped at her tea, then let out a sudden snort. “I imagine things are going to be rather interesting at the castle for the next several days at least.”

For a moment, they all sat in silence, drinking tea. Warriors’ head whirled with half-baked ideas on how to properly apologize to Fable—and Legend. Before he could come to any sort of decision, Legend stirred on the couch and cracked his eyes open. 

“Hmm. . .whu?” Legend shifted around, staring at the wall with bleary eyes. “When did we get here?”

“Your friends brought you, Link.”

“Oh.” Legend settled back down, only for his eyes to fly open. His brother shot up, falling off the couch and into a blanket tangle as he tried to twist to Fable. “Wait—what the fuck are you doing here?!”

“I came for my twice-monthly tea and gossip session with Ravio.” Fable leaned into the couch cushions, a calm opposite to Legend. Said teenager’s jaw fell open.

“Since when do you have those?!”

“Since he moved here from Lorule, of course. His tea selection is wonderful, and we always have such fascinating conversations.”

Legend’s eyes narrowed. 

“That purple rat, what has he been telling you?” Legend went a little pale. “What have you been telling him?”

Fable just smiled serenely and sipped her tea, and Legend snarled, fighting his way out of the blanket.

“Dammit Zel—”

“What in Hyrule are you so worried about, dear Hero? Afraid we’ll share embarrassing stories about you?” Fable fluttered her eyelashes and stood up, deftly avoiding Legend’s clumsy attempts to grab her. Legend let out another strangled noise and tried to chase after her, but stumbled and nearly fell back onto the couch as his skin lost color. Despite that, his glare lost none of its venom as he reached for Fable once again. 

“You come back here—!”

“I feel like we’re intruding on something,” Wind whispered loudly, leaning over to Warriors’ ear. Legend froze, but Fable just chuckled. 

“This is nothing unusual for us—when we manage to talk, that is. Link here has a nasty habit of avoiding me for months on end.”

“I send you regular letters; don’t you go acting like we never talk!”

“You two argue like an old married couple,” Twilight muttered. Legend’s face exploded in red and he choked on his spit. 

“You—what—Zel and I—no—”

“You haven’t told them yet, have you?” Fable gave Legend a Look . “Didn’t you mention that at least one of them had a romantic relationship with their Zelda? It’s not that surprising of a conclusion.” She shook her head and turned back to them. “This is my far-too-reckless younger brother—to be fair, neither of us knew that until recently. As such, it is my sisterly duty to nag him, and I’ve got several years I need to catch up on.”

Legend is Fable’s brother?! He’s ROYALTY?! Why the hell hasn’t he mentioned this?! Oh my sweet Hylia, I accused a prince of treason. . .

At least he wasn’t alone in his astonishment. While Hyrule looked like he was having a revelation, the rest of them had the same face they’d had when Sky asked who Ganon was. Wind, Sky, and Twilight had even dropped their mugs, spilling tea all over the carpet. Fable blinked at them, then threw her head back with a loud laugh. 

“Oh my—your faces—”

“Really, Zel?” Legend buried his face in his hands and collapsed back against the couch cushions. “You just had to tell them, didn’t you?”

“I’m sure they’d have figured it out eventually.”

“We’re Heroes of Courage, not Wisdom.”

“That’s fair.” Fable sighed and sat next to her brother—oh Goddesses, her brother—and rubbed his back. “I’m sure they won’t treat you any different—and I’m sure they don’t think your existence is heretical.” The glare she fixed them with cemented that, and Warriors made a private note to try and not treat Legend like a royal.

“Wait, back up—what do you mean, heretical ?” Wild asked, brow furrowing. Both Legend and Fable winced. 

“Short version is religious zealots. Hylia’s bloodline isn’t supposed to have princes.” Legend grimaced and shook his head. “So I’m in the habit of keeping it quiet—don’t need another excuse for the knights to try and kill me.”

Oh my—what the fuck?

“Well, you don’t have to worry about that now; apparently the knights won’t try to kill you anymore!” Wind chirped, still a little wide-eyed. Legend blinked at the sailor. 

“Eh?”

“You did break the curse, Vet,” Four said, kicking his legs. Warriors watched as a faint flush crawled up the small hero’s neck. “None of us feel Agahnim’s influence anymore.”

Legend blinked again, and for the first time, the pink-haired hero looked him and Sky in the eyes. It took all of his willpower not to look away as guilt gnawed at his mind, but he maintained eye contact. As such, he got to see how something sparked in violet eyes and they grew glossy with unshed tears.

“Ledge—” He didn’t know what to say, not really—what could he say, after such a betrayal? But that didn’t seem to matter. Legend pushed himself off the couch and flew across the room, crushing his lungs in a desperate hug. Warriors’ heart stuttered and his thoughts blanked. 

. . .Well, this is a first.

“Thank all the Goddesses,” Legend whispered, tension melting out of him. “I thought you’d end up like the rest of them—Sky, where the fuck are you? Get over here.” Legend only let go long enough to grab Sky’s sailcloth and pull, leaving them entangled in a group hug. Warriors gazed at Sky, meeting equally wide eyes.

Now I’ve definitely seen everything.

“I hate to interrupt this, but you should really sit back down and have a green potion before you pass out again, Legend. You used a lot of magic.” Hyrule’s voice broke through the hug and Legend grumbled. 

“Fuck off.”

“You used Hylia’s holy power to expel seven-year-old dark magic. I’m shocked you’re conscious already. So help me, you are going to rest.”

“Is that how he managed it?”

Wait, he did WHAT?!

“Hylia’s power?!”

“I mean, if he’s Fable’s brother, I guess it makes sense. . .?”

“Does anyone else have any hidden family relations we should know about?”

The cacophony faded to the background when Warriors felt his unarmored shoulder grow damp. Legend trembled ever so slightly in his arms and he instinctively tightened his grip before bowing his head.

“I’m so sorry, Link.”

“I am too,” Sky whispered above them both. Legend snorted—a suspiciously wet sound—and leaned back just enough for them to see his face.

“Both of you shut up. It wasn’t your fault.” Then a familiar smirk crossed the veteran’s face. “Besides, I’m sure I’ll think of ways for you all to make it up to me~”

The pure mischief in Legend’s voice left Warriors chuckling. The weight over his heart lightened ever so slightly.

Maybe we really will be alright.

                                                                                                       ****

Legend couldn’t be more grateful for his brothers. He really couldn’t. 

With that said, if they didn’t let him up from his second feathery prison in as many days, he was going to turn violent, and he had the tools to do it. 

“I’ve rested plenty!”

“No you haven’t. I saw the state you were in earlier.”

He scowled at his traitorous successor, then at Zelda—who had the audacity to giggle at his misfortune. 

“And you’re not going to help your own brother?”

“I would never go against a healer’s orders.” She danced forward and ruffled his hair, grinning wider when he squawked. That was unnecessary! “Besides, you need a break, considering everything.”

. . .A break did sound nice, but he had a reputation, dammit. 

“Hey, um—hate to interrupt, but we thought we should talk about what happened and why.” Wild appeared in the doorway, fiddling with his slate. “Since the curse never affected us before, what happened this time?”

Fair concern.

“It has to be the Shadow, doesn’t it? It’s infecting the monsters—maybe it did something similar to the curse.” Hyrule bit his lip. “I can’t think of anything else that could cause something like that.”

“Legend? What do you think?” Wild turned to him, and he shrugged.

“I’m with Rulie on this one—nothing I’ve come across in my other adventures was like this. But if it was the Shadow, then as long as the rest of us don’t have any curses causing people in their Hyrules to try and kill them, it shouldn’t happen again.”

Wild and Zelda both nodded, but Hyrule very obviously went pale and bit his lip. He narrowed his eyes at the Traveler.

“Rulie. Do you have any curses like that in your era?”

“Not—not exactly?”

Oh for the love of. . .cagey, secretive idiots—

(He chose to ignore the fact that he was just as bad.)

“What kind of curse is it, Hyrule?”

“It’s—well—it’s more a curse on my blood? Monsters want it because it, um. . . itcanbringGanonbacktolife!”

He blinked, working his way through the run-together sentence, then his jaw dropped. 

“Your blood can do WHAT?!”

His shrieking brought the rest of the Chain to the room, and as Hyrule stumbled through an explanation, his mind spun. 

What other secrets are the others hiding? What even are our lives? 

He watched as Sky proceeded to thoroughly mother-cucco Hyrule and felt his lips twitch up into a smile. 

Well. . .this part’s not so bad.