Chapter Text
Link is looking at himself.
Not through a mirror, no, nor a reflection in the nearby pond. Link is looking at himself, the living breathing body of flesh and blood that is him. Or, what is supposed to be him.
He holds this enigma cradled in his arms and can only vaguely question the impossibility of it all, before his attention turns to a much higher priority. The other him is bleeding terribly. The spreading dark stain on the tunic relays a serious message to Link, and he feels a sudden pit of despair yawn wide in his stomach. He doesn't know what to do. There's nothing he can do.
The other him speaks, but Link can't quite understand what he says. His voice is soft, in pain, but so full of understanding. Acceptance. Permission. The doppelganger almost seems apologetic, as though his death is a mere inconvenience for others.
Link feels the pit grow wider and emptier, then, reluctantly, he reaches out to touch his mirror image's face--
"SCRAAWW!"
Link jolts upright in his bed just as his Loftwing screams from the open window. His chest heaves and he gulps down breathfuls of air, blinking in his surroundings. His old dorm. The Knight's Academy. His bed, sheets soaked with sweat. His window, clumsily shoved open to fit his Loftwing's big, dumb crimson head through.
"SCRAAAWW!"
"Red, stop, oh my Goddess, coming, I'm coming."
He peels himself from his bed and unsteadily makes his way to his cabinet, from which he pulls a burlap sack of birdseed to fill the bowl affixed to the window. The seeds barely begin to clatter inside before Red starts inhaling them with a pleased chitter.
Still dazed, Link runs a hand through his damp hair.
"You always pick the worst times to throw a tantrum," he mumbles.
"Chirrup-chirrup!"
"Yeah, yeah."
With the bowl full and his Loftwing now occupied, the young knight drags himself around the room in a routine of familiar morning tasks. He ties off the seed sack and tosses it back into the open cabinet, then he tears his bedsheets from the mattress and piles them into a laundry basket. He plops down in front of his washbasin and splashes cold water across his face with a rag, eager to scrub away dried sweat with something cool and fresh.
It's as he nicks his chin shaving that he feels a cold chill creep up his spine. He stares at himself in the mirror and watches as a trickle of red drips down his cheek. Slowly, he raises a hand to wipe it away. When his fingers brush skin that is not the clammy temperature of death, he lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding. The nightmare had been so vivid. He shudders and shakes his head as though the memory is just a cobweb to be swatted away.
The past several nights have been all the same, but he had hoped somewhere deep down that returning to Skyloft would lift this mysterious fog, that it was simply a result of some buried stress from his journeys. He hadn't had nightmares that felt that real in a couple years. The last time it happened, well...Link tries to put that out of his mind. There is no more Fi to dispense easy answers for him, and he fears worrying Zelda with the assumption of another prophecy. Goddess no, she has enough to deal with. So, Link had returned to Skyloft on an impulse and with a hunch for another lead.
A flash of movement in the mirror's reflection distracts him, and he spins to see Red, who has taken this moment to stretch his head into the room and directly into the still-open cabinet.
"Hey, hey!" Link claps and whistles sharply. "Get out of there! I just bought those!"
The bird squawks in protest and drops the pilfered sack to the floor. Link grabs it and looks inside, only to find that it's now nearly empty.
"You glutton!" Red merely preens on his perch outside of the window, as though to say who, me? That manages to get a laugh out of Link instead of a glare. As mischievous as the bird is, he is a welcome distraction from the more frightening parts of Link’s life.
Just then, there is a soft knock at the door.
“Hoy, Link? Are you in there?”
“Uhhh…” Link pauses, realizing that he’s only half-dressed. “Yes, but no.”
“W-wait, what does that mean?”
“Uh, give me a minute, I’m not dressed.”
“Oh, ha ha…”
Link quickly pulls himself into pants, boots, and shirt. Too quickly it seems, for he stops just short of opening the door, frowns, then adjusts his backwards shirt. He opens the door to see Fledge, who smiles shyly.
“Good morning! Wow, long time no see! I heard you were back in town, so I wanted to see if you wanted to grab breakfast?” Fledge is as soft-spoken as ever.
“Uh…yeah, maybe. Wait, how did you know I was here?” Link glances back at his loftwing, who is regarding the two curiously from the window. “Oh. Right, probably him. I’m sorry, was he too loud?”
“Oh no. Well yes. But, that’s not how I knew. You see, Pipit was on the Night Watch and saw you arrive, so then he told Karane, who told me. So then I said, ‘huh, that’s weird, I wonder why he didn’t say hi to anyone?’ But then I just thought maybe you were tired, you know, from working on the surface.” He trails off.
“Yeah, I was just tired.” It is only partially a lie.
“Sooo what do you say?” Fledge seems to notice Link’s hesitance. He fumbles back and forth. “It’s a beautiful day outside, and I was thinking of getting some breakfast from Piper. Well, but, if you don’t feel up to it, I get it! But I think maybe it could be nice to catch up sometime?”
"Well, I actually had some stuff to do later…" Link looks at the empty burlap sack in his hands and makes a split second decision. “But I guess that's not till later. Besides, I officially have some errands to run at the Bazaar now too, would you mind?”
“Yeah! Er, I mean, no. As in, I don’t mind. Sounds great!”
Link pretends not to notice the overly excited look on the other knight’s face as he turns to gather his things.
Fledge was right, it is a beautiful day outside.
As the two make their way from the Knight’s Academy to the Bazaar, Link can’t help but bask in the sights and smells of home. Trees hanging over their path rustle their leaves pleasantly and dapple their faces with shade. A butterfly lazily coasts by on the warm breeze. Farther down the road, he can see Gully prowling after a bug with a determined look on his face. A woman laughs loudly in her home, a baby squeals. The clatter of cookware and the sizzle of hot food rises from the Bazaar. The rhythmic thump thump thump of Beedle’s shop propeller passes somewhere nearby. Home, yes, where the things are familiar and warm. There is nothing for Link to be afraid of here. So he shuts out the worry and loses his head in the clouds.
In spite of the tumultuous times he, Zelda, and Groose have experienced, things have been just as quiet here in the Sky as they always have. Perhaps even more quiet than usual, actually, since many Skyloftians and knights are now busy settling the new Surface town. Most of the folks left behind here are from older generations, or teachers at the academy, or - like in Fledge’s case - Academy undergraduates.
By the time he tunes back in, he and Fledge are sitting at one of Piper's tables and he's missed about half of what the other knight has been chatting with him about. Fledge leans over the table with an excited glint in his eye.
"So? What's it like in Faron?"
Link looks down and notices there is already a bowl of warm cinnamon porridge in front of him. He savors his first spoonful while he thinks of a good answer.
"Well, it's kind of like Skyloft, but wider and more trees. They're so big that they obscure your view of the sky, sometimes even the sun."
"What! Ok, I can't believe I haven't gotten to visit yet. Time flies when you’re studying for exams, I guess. Did they finally settle on a name for the new town? People keep telling me different things, I don't know what's gossip and what's true." He snickers a bit at that.
"We voted on Roostburrow. Me and Groose wanted Hylia's Landing, but they said it was too long for the sign."
"Pssh, you're the one who made it safe to go down in the first place, you should get to name it. And it’s practically the same amount of letters. The nerve.” Fledge gives an exaggerated sigh which they both laugh at.
They float through easygoing conversation like old friends on a lazy creek. It's hard to remember the last time Link didn't feel a nagging anxiety pushing him out of every interaction. His brain normally liked to tap him on the shoulder and say unhelpful things like sorry no time to chat, I'm the one who got us down here so it’ll be all my fault if this town fails, so off I go! Thus, he's quietly thankful when Fledge pivots back to the topic of his upcoming graduation ceremony instead of the Surface. They talk flying techniques and nerves, both of which Link is excited to help with. It keeps him distracted.
It’s nearing midday when they finish their breakfast and Fledge stops Link from pulling out his wallet.
“No, no, I got you. I can’t let the Hero of Skyloft pay for his own drink, can I?” Fledge grins and thankfully doesn’t notice the way Link winces. “Geez, look at the time! I better get going so I can get some practice in for the ceremony, but don’t be a stranger ok? It’s been really good seeing you! Seriously!”
Link tries to reflect the same amount of enthusiasm in his face. It’s not that it isn’t genuine, it’s just that the worry is creeping back over him like a lengthening shadow at dusk.
“Absolutely. Hey, good luck next week, you’re gonna do great out there!”
They exchange a hug and Fledge hurries out, leaving Link at the table while Piper takes their empty ceramic mugs. He thinks he sees her give a warm smile, but he tries not to make lasting eye contact when he says “thank you”, lest she strike up a conversation about The Hero of Skyloft. Without Fledge present, Link suddenly feels very aware of everyone else in the Bazaar. An alien feeling tickles the hairs on the back of his neck as though he’s in danger, as though everyone is looking at him. Sorry, sorry, no time to chat, off I go.
He quickly pushes himself up from the table, buys his birdseed - he insists on paying in spite of Rupin echoing the same sentiment as Fledge - then leaves the Bazaar for some blessedly quiet air and open sky. He is home and there is nothing for him to be afraid of.
So why is there always such an empty pit in his stomach?