courage - a trans girl link fic

• 4 - recover •

Forest.
Forest surrounded Link from all directions.
Almost fuzzy, some things unfocused and discolored.
The smell was focused, though.
The thick and adventurous scent of pine needles and thick loamy soil was very real.
Ahead was a large stump, and sitting on it was a woman with incredibly long green hair and a white silky dress.
She was giant.
An incredibly tall woman with scars running up her legs.
"Hello, Link Smith."
Link bristled as he realized that he was noticed.
It didn't help that he was shot the last time he heard his full name.
"H-hello. Who are you?"
Link was sure that he should be scared right now, maybe a bit clammy, but he felt nothing physical.
"You are a spirit right now. Your body is back in the physical realm healing— I thought we should have a talk."
She gave an apologetic smile.
"Sorry. I could sense your confusion. My name is Farore."
Link would have fallen to his knees if he still had knees.
This was one of the three goddesses!
Farore, the goddess of courage, was sitting right in front of him.
"O-oh I uh-h um- it's l-lovely to meet you?" Link stammered.
Farore smiled.
"This isn't actually our first meeting. From birth, you've been my chosen host of the Triforce of Courage."
Farore explained with an apologetic look, as if she found herself to be the cause of Link's recent strife.
"Triforce?"
He asked, finding it slightly hard to show respect or emote without arms or legs.
Farore lifted her hand, and the glowing right side of the triangle stack from Link's hand lifted into the air, albeit in a three-dimensional form.
"During the dawn of humanity, my sisters and I created a legendary power that could grant the deepest desire of any person. It surpassed even our powers. As those with corrupt will began to seek it out, we realized that this was too much power to be left out in the open for any pursuer to find."
The ghostly outlines of two more triangles appeared, arranged in a stack with Link's, although they appeared wispier, with a more gossamer quality to them.
"We split the Triforce into three— One representing each of our ideals. The Triforce of Power, Wisdom, and Courage. You, Link, have possessed the Triforce of Courage ever since you were born. Even as a child, your potential for unbreakable will was evident. This was why I entrusted you with this."
With a wave of her hand, she dispelled the ghostly Triforce pieces and sent the Triforce of Courage floating back into Link's spirit.
Link thought for a second before responding.
"With all due respect, I'm not sure this should be entrusted to me. I... I don't have an unbreakable will. In all honesty, I crumble at the thought of my body. I have a lot of... um... gender dysphoria. It kind of hinders me, and prevents me from being who I want to be— or who I need to be, according to what you're saying."
Farore smiled comfortingly.
"I am aware of this. My sister, Din, enforced it as a sort of trial for you. I can't say I fully agree with her methods, but she has said that if you're truly a host deserving the Triforce of Courage then you will have to overcome the pain that your body brings you."
Link felt conflicted by this.
On one hand.. Link was a girl. He was intended be a girl. He was supposed to be a girl. On the other.. he wasn't. The goddesses put him through the pain of being born in the wrong body as a trial.

Farore looked at Link sympathetically.
"To pass my sister's trial you'd have to be as a Shiekah—" she waved her hand and scowled, showing distaste for the idea— "Genderless, without personality, and entirely goal oriented." Her scowl relaxed into a frown. "I have nothing against the Shiekah, of course. They are an honorable people. I simply believe that a hero should have opinions, weaknesses, fears. I wish Din could see that, instead of insisting that you should be unaffected by all which surrounds you. Even Nayru agrees with me, and that's not entirely common."
Farore snapped back into reality and smiled down on Link.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't be troubling you with my ramblings."
She made eye contact with Link before continuing.
"Link Smith, no matter your name, your appearance, or your gender, you are my chosen hero. The Triforce of Courage is yours to protect, and I trust you."
Link's vision became fuzzier, and he felt as if he was falling backwards.
"Goodbye, hero. I'll be watching over you."

Link's eyes fluttered open to see the drab whites of a hospital room.
No sooner than he woke up, a green emblem depicting two waves and a ball appeared on his chest, right over his bullet wound.
Farore's symbol.
The wrappings covering his wound lifted from his chest as the wound itself healed miraculously and closed up, leaving only a scar. The wrappings fluttered to the floor as Farore's magic faded and disappeared.
Taking a deep breath, Link sat up straighter and fully scanned the room.
In front of him was a TV playing some trashy game show on very low volume. To his left, a nightstand with cards from various friends and acquaintances.
From Fledge, "get well soon! the room isn't the same without you!" With a doodle of Groose yelling attached.
From the girls next door from the orphanage, "We hope you get better soon!!" Though it had Nabooru's signature, Link severely doubted that she actually had anything to do with it.
From Pumm and Kina, a plate of cookies.

On his right.. Zelda?
Zelda.
Zelda?
It was Zelda.
Zelda was sitting in Link's hospital room.
She was slumping on the vinyl chair in the corner of the room with her hair ruffled and a bit of drool on the corner of her mouth. She was wearing a pastel sweatshirt and jeans.
Link tried to get up to find a nurse and find out how long he'd been asleep, but entirely neglected to realize that he was hooked up to an IV and ended up plummeting toward the ground with the IV in tow, making impact with a loud clang.

"SHIT–FUH—" Zelda awoke with a start and fell onto the floor facefirst.
"unh.. Hey Link? Was, uh, that you?" Zelda spoke up from the other side of the bed.
"yyyeaaaahhhhh" Link slurred, rubbing the back of his head as fluids from the IV spilled across the floor. Zelda stumbled to her feet, and helped Link do the same. "I just thought I'd watch over you given that, uh, y'know, I caused you to get shot." Zelda muttered, wiping the IV juices off of Link.
"Besides—" she lifted up her hand to show the left Triforce piece glowing on her hand.
"—We have some things to talk about."