he remembers her as clear as day.
beautiful eyes, a lovely figure, and her hands.
oh, he loved holding her hands.
back in his days of youth, he'd always take his gloves off just to feel her skin against his.
he remembers holding their first-born child with his hands too.
he remembers slipping the wedding ring onto her finger, a hearty laugh leaving his throat as she watched her cry tears of glee.
everything he did with his hands.
building their home, cooking for his family, and forming shadow puppets with his hands for his new-born to watch and enjoy the shadow animals.
but now, as the lamented hero of time looked down at his hands- they were nothing but bone.
joints, vertebrae, and hinges. bone.
that was everything he was composed of now.
really the only thing that had kept him alive was that he possessed the soul of the hero.
he wasn't celebrated as a hero in his time, for he was forced to return back to his childhood. just as princess zelda had ordered.
that didn't stop link from meeting the love of his life, however.
he continued to stare at his bony structure- feeling a sensation to simply let his tears spill.
he couldn't, though. he was dry inside and out.
just as a body of only skeletal structure should be.
"link."
wait, he recognized that voice.
that wonderful, soothing tone. the oh-so familiar voice.
the hero of time was petrified to look up.
he knew what stood before him. it was what he desired most.
however, someone else made the decision for him.
her hands touched his cold, golden helmet.
she lifted his jaw up, her striking [e/c] orbs instantly gazing into his now burning red pupils.
he was too baffled to speak.
he was positive that she had passed onto the afterlife already.
he watched as a toothy grin soon appeared onto her lips.
"my, don't you look wonderful. a lot more manlier than you did one hundred years ago."
ah, there it was, her cunning sense of humor.
he spoke back, his voice still the same tone it was when he was married.
"thank you."
she frowned, crossing her arms. obviously she didn't like that response.
"that's all you have to say to me after one hundred years apart? no compliment, no asking how i was, just 'thank you'?.."
well, that certainly took him by surprise. he stammered over his words, a certain glow coming over his body.
"w-wait, i'm sorry, dear. it's just too much to take in and i just-"
she interrupted him, her hands lacing with his.
he looked down in surprise.
there were his hands and body. he had his youthful appearance back.
"it's okay. now, let's go home. i'm sure your descendant will be just fine now. after all, he does take after his great grandfather- link, the hero of time. but also because i'm his strong and wonderful grandmother."
the forgotten hero smiled, looking up from his renewed form. it had definitely been a while since he had heard his wife address him in such a proper way. she returned his smile- except it was much more goofier.
link's armor began clinking off, and soon enough he was left in his traditional green tunic. as it should be.
hand in hand, they left the astral plane together.
remembered as a hero or not, link had [y/n] next to him once more.
and that was so much better than living a life of eternal solitude and darkness.
***
WORD COUNT: 597
[a/n: i thought of this last minute bc i suddenly remembered how tragic the hero of time's story ends. what an epic loss:(]
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desert flower
Short Story[ link + f!reader oneshots - requests open ] perhaps he could make her happy. *** " a desert flower can live and grow where nothing else can. It can survive bad times with no water. It flowers again when it has water. "
