Chapter Text
A lone figure stood atop the towering Talonto Peak. He breathed in deeply, smiling as the icy wind cut his cheeks. He exhaled as he surveyed the Hebra region that sprawled beneath him. It was majestic, paths carved out of snow and stone creating a beautiful patchwork, interspersed with majestic and regal trees dusted with white. Not many have shared this sight with the figure, most turning back before they’ve reached the summit, but that didn’t bother Link. In fact, he reveled in the fact that he was totally and completely alone right now. Being the champion of Hyrule certainly had its perks, but damn does it blow having the responsibility of the title also attributed to him. But that didn’t matter right now. All that mattered was shredding some snow.
Link flipped onto his shield and grinned as he picked up speed. The snow crunched beneath him as he leaned his weight forward more. Sure, he probably shouldn’t be using his incredible ornamental and beautiful shield fabricated by the most skilled blacksmiths from each corner of Hyrule for surfing down a mountain; That didn’t stop the delight shooting through him as he took a sharp swerve down the trail.
He laughed to himself softly as the powdery snow was flung in a sweeping wave, quickly disappearing from sight as he slipped even faster, bending his knees more to retain his balance. Hey, if it was a gift, then he had every right to use it the way he wanted it. Who cares if it was inlaid with countless gems and was strong enough to parry a hit from (probably) Ganon itself? The gems were most likely harvested with his own hand.
He scoffed while doing a sick flip onto a felled tree trunk, spinning and landing with a flourish. Even before he was forced into the more diplomatic duties of rebuilding Hyrule, he was nearly solely responsible for kickstarting the kingdom's economy. He waved away that train of thought. It didn’t matter right now. All that mattered was the adrenaline rushing through him as he rounded another curve down the mountain.
Rock. Jump over it. Tree. Swerve around it. Another rock- wait no that looks like pebblit, yeah no it’s definitely a pebblit- he vaulted up and bounced on it, cackling as it fell apart beneath his wrath. Korok. Wave hi as he whipped past. The wind bit into his face and eyes, but he couldn’t care less, letting out a whoop. He cut into the snow with a sharp turn taking care of the deep gulch next to it, all his worries being swept off him into the trail of flurries kicked up behind him, he was free, he was totally alone, he was wild- There were people on the trail.
A group of very under-equipped looking travelers were there. Not where they were supposed to be. Especially not supposed to be in the MIDDLE OF HIS PATH-
In a brilliant split second decision Link deduced that if he were to complete his turn he’d run the entire group over, injuring however many there were there (because he simply did not have the time to count in this split second monologue) and himself as well, so he used all the wisdom passed down to him that had been accumulated throughout the ages, that had withstood the tests of time and the attempted collapse of a kingdom thousands of years old, that had rubbed off on him simply by being in Zelda’s mere presence, and concluded that if he kept going straight he simply would not crash into anyone. So he kept going straight. Right off the ledge that happened to have a steep ravine next to it.
He screamed as he proved the existence of inertia, his shield falling away from his feet. Somewhere in the afterlife, he was sure Revali was wiping away a tear of awe after finally seeing a Hylian fly. He desperately tried to unfurl his paraglider but he wasn’t quick enough before he crashed right into a tree dead-on, snapping the top right off as he ragdolled into another's piney branches, thankfully slowing his final crash into a third and final trunk. He slid off and landed in a heap in the snow bank surrounding it, wheezing as the last bit of air was pushed out of his lungs.
A fairy crawled out of his pocket, shaking itself from the rough awakening but thankfully unhurt. He would ask how his companions seemed to never get injured, but he supposed that the Great Fairies had already tried to do so by upgrading his gear. Whatever. Not important right now… Okay maybe a little important. But later.
He tried to inhale but his lungs did not cooperate. Those traitors , he thought, affronted. His eyes lazily wandered down to his chest and oooooooh those are not supposed to bend like that , his ribs thought it was a good time to play opposite day, and by fucking Farore did that hurt as he tried to gasp another breath. But not just his chest, since apparently nothing can be easy, his entire body was in agony.
The fairy shook as if shaking off dizziness and daintily floated onto his concave chest, tinkling as warmth spread through the contact. It was either due to internal bleeding or healing magic, but he wasn’t one to choose his gift horse. Is that how the saying goes? He didn’t care right now, shaking his head to help clear his mind, although the shaking didn’t disappear from his vision after he stopped. Oh great.
The fairy chimed, stealing his attention again as it bobbed on his chest and currently reminding him of the current dilemma at hand being that he couldn’t breath. He stared in confusion before the fairy let out the sparkliest scoff he’d ever heard in his life and bobbed up and down on his chest again, which was- hey! His chest was back to being convex! He took a shuddering breath and sputtered it back out as by Nayru that hurt but at least he could breathe again!
He winced and gave the fairy a wobbly grin in thanks, blinking rapidly as the vignette he didn’t even notice started to fade from his vision. Got to love oxygen, huh? He took a deep breath and held it for a second, feeling his muscles spasming around it, then screeched out a raspy “HOLY HYLIA,” that echoed down the mountain. The fairy, deeming its job of keeping him simply alive well done, floated off into the wilderness. Link weakly lifted the arm that didn’t feel like it was broken and gave it a thumbs up.
Using that same arm he tapped at the Sheikah Slate that somehow managed to not get dislodged from his hip, must be part of that Sheikah tech Purah was always telling him about, and summoned a fairy tonic. He flicked the cork off and shakily lifted it to his lips, hissing at the movement as his muscles protested. Whose good idea was it to connect arm muscles to shoulder muscles and neck muscles and chest muscles? He’d like to have a word with them. As soon as he reached a goddess statue he definitely was.
He tipped the liquid into his mouth, spilling half of the glittery liquid onto his face and onto the snow beside his head. He swallowed and coughed as his neck muscles protested, but the ache he was feeling dulled and soothed as the tonic did its job. He sighed in relief as bones reconnected and organs returned to their correct shape, but grimaced as he thought of the bruise he’d surely have. That was a problem for later though, as his eyelashes fluttered sleepily. His snowquill armour and ruby circlet were very warm and toasty (he thanked his amazing foresight for wearing clothes today while attempting the slope) and he was very tired after proving how deadly trees can be.
Before he slipped out of consciousness he asked himself
what would Wolfie do?
His brain brought forth the memory of Wolfie burrowing into a snow drift for the night, so Link brushed some snow over his form as if it was a blanket, because if a wolf could sleep in the snow then obviously a Hylian could as well.