(My page refreshed as I was finishing up and I want to d i e)
Drake shot a look at Legend as the other snickered, glaring without another word.
"Mm," Lani hummed, nodding. She had a very good idea as to who Wild was referring to, and it didn't surprise her it went somewhat haywire. Though, this haywire?
"I'm to take it there was no return plan that took this into account," she continued, keeping her voice soft. She could easily see how ashamed Wild looked, and she didn't want him to feel worse. "Then we'll have to try to figure out something from here, and hope they do the same. It might be difficult, though, since we don't have the same levels of technology as you."
"Yes, because turning into a blue mist and getting whisked off to god knows where is technology," Drake muttered under his breath. "What next, fairies?"
(Oof)
Time chose to ignore the remark about fairies for the time being and simply nodded in response to Lani's comment. "If there was a way to get here, there should be a way to get back," Warriors said, and gave Wild a nudge. "We'll figure it out."
"In the meantime," Legend said with a smirk on his lips and a glint in his eyes, "maybe we should head somewhere else? More open space, less people? I'd like to prove this asshole wrong," he said. Time narrowed his eye. He'd seen that look before, and the events that tended to follow were… chaotic, to say the least. "Oh, don't get a heart attack, Old Man, I'm not gonna pull anything on him. Wars and I haven't had a good spar in too long, and if we add a little magic in for the drama–" he did a little hand-wave–"then it'll just be that much better."
"That's right," Lani agreed. She was still, ah… a little tripped out, to see these men hear, talking, and acting less like the heroes from her games and books and more like actual people.
"Right, I'm the asshole for not falling for your little act," Drake shot back. "I've seen plenty of 'magic' in my life to know it's all bullshit. Rip each other's hearts out for all I care, you aren't convincing me." Lani rubbed her temples, sighing some.
"Well, there's an open field near where I live, we could go there if you'd like," she offered. She was more than willing to watch the two fight, especially if she got to see the magic in person. She'd seen it plenty in the games, but there was something special about not knowing how to glitch the system so much you were overpowered and a chaos god.
She might be thinking about one game in particular with that but she didn't say anything out loud, with Wild right there.
(dksnva I want to see Drake and Legend get stuck together for some reason lmao, they'd either kill each other or become best friends)
Legend shrugged. "Keep telling yourself that, I'm sure you'll change your mind soon enough."
"Um, guys?" Sky piped up, looking a little concerned. "Are you sure this is a good idea? We don't have a healer with us anymore, what if someone gets hurt?" he asked.
"We've got potions, it'll be fine," Wild assured him. "Besides, I want to see how this will go."
(Also I hope Lani has like. A van or something lmao)
(Yesssss. Drake is still Unconvinced because they're a stubborn prick that no one can tell them what to do but turns out that's something to bond over-)
"Uh-huh, sure." Drake rolled their eyes, arms still folded as they glared at Legend. Lani let out a breath, looking over at them and shaking her head.
"We might as well head out now. I doubt we'll do much to change their mind, but I'm not going to object to this." She was surprisingly hiding the intense amount of anticipation she had for this very well.
"Drake, I'll need to borrow the van-"
"Lani why the hell should I let these nutjobs into my van?"
"Because if you do I'll buy you that new dlc you've been wanting so badly?" Drake fell silent.
"You're a nasty woman you know that, right?"
"Thank you~!" Lani rolled her eyes and hugged Drake a moment, then grabbed their hand.
"Here, the exit to the con's this way."
(Oh absolutely lmao, the best kind of bonding)
The group followed Lani and Drake to this "con"'s exit, glancing around as they did so. Occasionally, someone would point to them and/or make a comment about their "awesome cosplays" again. Legend or Time would simply give a nod of acknowledgement, and Wild or Sky would wave or awkwardly say "Thank you." Warriors probably gave them the most interaction, typically a "Thanks, you too! The shoes really pull it together!" or something similar, though this drew some odd looks from certain people, usually the ones in only mildly-strange outfits.
(Idea: The fanart stall's on the way to the exit and someone sees art of himself and is like "uh excuse me wtf" it's Warriors)
(Yesssssssssssssss. Lani's just like "Okay let's move along" but there's an entire wall dedicated to LoZ and someone comes up to thank Lani for helping out with setting everything up for it)
Lani did her best to act normal, dragging the reluctant Drake behind her. She hummed some, waving to a few of her friends as they passed. She'd also glance back to make sure that their little traveling party didn't lose any members. It would have been more of a concern in a larger con, but this one was local, so there wasn't much fear in that department.
She just hoped no one was cosplaying any Legend of Zelda villains too well. She didn't know the others would react to knowing the fact there were many people who liked them.
Including Lani.
"Okay, we're almost out!" she announced with a hum, pointing to the exit.
(Then let the angst begin >:D oh god it's gonna take a lot for her to build his trust specifically dslkavn idk how much you know about Hyrule Warriors but uhh you might want to look into the game's premise bc yeah Wars is pretty traumatized specifically by stuff like this)
"Great, I think the Captain just might explode if he gets another compli…ment…" Legend's sarcastic remark trailed off, and he looked around. Time followed suit and was relieved to find him only a little ways behind the group. His relief faded a bit, however, when he noticed the horrified look on his companion's face.
"Warriors? Are you alright?" Sky asked, already heading in his direction. Time quickly followed suit with Legend hot on his heels, and a collective gasp sounded from the group when they looked into the doorway that Warriors was staring through.
They were looking at a large room, with a number of what Time assumed were booths of some kind. Various pieces of artwork and trinkets hung along them. Front and center, however, was a particularly large booth featuring a golden-yellow depiction of the Triforce and the Hylian Crest at the top, along with symbols that had been on a lot of places at the event but whose meanings were lost on Time. And the art in this booth… most of it appeared to be different depictions of the Heroes, though there were other people depicted in them as well–was that… was that his wife?!–but Time noted that there weren't many of the scarf-wearing Hero of Warriors. Having said that, the first one that he saw was… well, Time had a basic idea of the story behind that one. In the drawing, Warriors looked like he wanted nothing more than to get away from the barely-dressed woman holding him by the scarf and stroking his chin.
Time placed a gentle hand on Warriors' shoulder. "…Come on," he said.
"Lani…" Warriors' voice sounded… terrified. Concern for the other man pierced Time's heart like a spike. "What… what is this…?"
(Me, after getting back from a quick overview: Ah shit this is bad)
"Don't you know?' Drake interrupted Lani, not seeming to be affected by Warrior's voice. In reality, they just didn't realize it was real.
"That's the fan art booth for the Legend of Zelda. A bunch of people draws their favorite scenes, or characters, or scenarios. What, aren't flattered by-?!" Drake was shut up by Lani punching them in the stomach. She hissed something at them the others wouldn't be able to hear, making her way over to put herself between Warriors and the booth. She understood all too well this was not the place for him to be seeing these things, displayed with pride.
"I think we really should go…"
Warriors took a step back. "N-no, she's… if she's here, we…" He looked around frantically, as if trying to find someone–or rather, to make sure someone wasn't anywhere near him.
"Warriors." Seeing him like this, when he was normally so composed… it hurt, and caused an almost parental protectiveness to rise inside of Time. He put that thought away; it wasn't parental, it was just that he was worried about a friend. "She's not here. No one, from any of our times, is here," he tried to assure the man.
Thankfully, Lani hadn't seen anyone cosplay a certain someone, but she couldn't be one hundred percent sure.
"He's right," Lani contributed. "You guys are the only ones here, and no one else has ever been able to come to this world." Drake faltered some when they saw how Warriors was reacting to all of this, arms loosening some from their chest and dropping a bit. They didn't say a word- this wasn't really their expertise.
Warriors shook his head. "No, that's… that hasn't stopped her before," he insisted. Time felt his shoulders tense–he hadn't been able to recall much of his time in Warriors' Hyrule as a child, likely due to some sort of magic meant to keep things in order for those going back to their own eras, but he did know that he had been brought there due to the sorceress's magic.
"Maybe so, but think about it–there were nine of us traveling together for a good while. If she was able to get to us, she would have jumped at the chance," Time argued. Legend, Sky, and Wild all exchanged looks, but it was doubtful that they'd ask anything. All of them had their own sensitive topics, and all of them knew that sometimes prying could do more harm than good.
Lani didn't say a word either. Warriors was obviously deeply affected by what had happened, and she knew enough to know exactly why. She let Time handle this, for now, looking at Drake. Her friend had backed up some, then turned to head to the door. Even if these men were just scammers, that pain was real, and Drake wasn't comfortable enough with their own to be around someone else's.
"I'll go get the van…" they mumbled, doubting anyone heard. Lani looked back to the men before her. Others were starting to give them weird looks, and they needed to get out of there soon. She glanced back at the booth, feeling a pang of guilt to know she'd helped to set it all up. That they'd had a good laugh over the picture as they hung it up.
(👀Drake backstory??)
Warriors took a deep breath, and to Time's relief, he nodded. "That's… yeah. That's a good point. Thank you," he said, though the tension didn't quite leave him and it took him a second before he took a shaky breath and looked away from the room. "I… sorry, that was immature."
"Nonsense." Goddesses, Time just wanted to give him a big hug and tell him that everything would be fine. It wasn't fair, none of it was. That any of them had to go through this, time and time again… His own battles had frustrated him for long enough, but after meeting the boys, the entire scenario downright infuriated him.
(Dad Time Dad Time Dad Time–)
(shshsh that's for later ;)
(Lani's too aha)
Even Lani had to admit, the thought of what was actually going on in the games had always bothered her. Still, she'd always been able to accept it as the company needing an excuse to keep making more games with the same three characters.
Seeing it affecting real people, now, not just on a screen… it hit differently.
"Why don't we head out to the van and get out of here?" She offered. She knew it might be easier for all of them to not be surrounded with the glorification of everything that had ever happened to them.
Lani was just glad it was only these men, and not more of them.
(Dad time Dad time Dad time)
(Ohoho?)
Warriors simply nodded. "Best idea I've heard in a damn minute," Legend agreed, looking rather irked. Time noticed his eyes flicker over to a red-haired woman with a pink flower behind one ear and heard him huff. It was odd, and Time filed it away with many other things he'd noticed from all of the others, to keep in mind. "Hey, Wars, you decide on what you're gonna fight me with?" he asked.
The other man looked grateful for the distraction. "Fire rod, what else?" he answered, with a smirk that held a little less confidence than usual. And as glad as Time was that he wasn't panicking about a certain obsessive psycho coming back, he hoped that Hylia heard the prayer he sent up. Please, for the love of everything sacred, keep him from starting a grassfire.
"Goodness, does that mean Wild's on fire control?!" Sky exclaimed. He and Time weren't exactly practiced with that particular kind of magic, meaning that the arsonist of the group would need to use his Ice Rod to ensure that nothing burned down. Said arsonist almost looked offended.
"You start one forest fire–and we put that one out before anything serious happened!" he argued.
(They's connected uwu)
(There's a reason Lani Vibes with that song I sent you aha)
Lani noticed too, not saying anything about it. So, that's who he was? She hadn't connected just how many games he was in yet, so it didn't affect her much. It would eventually, though. After all, she knew more about these men than they probably knew of each other, or perhaps even themselves.
The, uh, the mention of 'fire' seemed to have an effect on Lani, though, and it wasn't a very… innocent one.
"Well, this world has plenty of its own ways of putting out a fire," Lani mentioned. She knew Drake had a fire extinguisher in the back, in case Lani did something stupid. Again.
Look, there was a reason Lani had so much time on her Breath of the Wild save file, and it wasn't all saving Hyrule.
(Oh no–)
Wild and Warriors grinned at Lani's reaction, and Time felt himself age another five years and could have sworn he heard Sky mutter a quiet "Oh no" to himself.
"Our goal is to find a way back to our world, not burn this one to the ground," Time reminded, only half-joking.
(Fire makes her feel powerful)
Lani offered an innocent, 'I have no idea what you mean' smile, nodding some.
"This world would have burned long ago if it could, with her." Drake had made their way back inside when they'd seen everyone calming down, shaking their head.
"The van's up and running, Lani." Lani lit up, nodding.
"If you try anything I'm revoking your driving privileges for a month." Lani dimmed a bit, but she was still grinning.
"Okay, okay! No more waiting." Lani moved to head to the exit, looking back to make sure everyone was following. Drake let out a sigh.
"So, who mentioned setting fires?"
Time chuckled. "Wild and Warriors may take that as a challenge," he warned with a lighthearted tone. Warriors rolled his eyes.
"If possible, avoiding property damage is great, but if not–" he shrugged, "–then it's a small price to pay to take care of a horde of bokoblins, that's all."
"Ooor to catch a good updraft," Wild chipped in, earning a light smack in the back of the head from Legend.
"Not a good enough reason to start a grassfire, you pyromaniac," the Veteran said, a teasing tone to his voice.
(Angst intensifies)
"Oh god there are three of them now," Drake said softly to themself.
"Any reason is a good reason to start a grass fire!" Lani piped up, turning as she walked to offer a smile.
"Or just, fire in general. Oh my god, too bad it isn't July-"
"Lani don't tell me you plan on doing that again!" Lani just laughed, turning back as she headed out of the convention. She hummed, spotting Drake's plain tan van and climbing into the driver's seat.
And the Boys were left to wonder not only what had happened in July, but how to van as well. None of them had ever come across something quite like this. After a few moments of just staring confusedly at the thing, Sky broke the silence. "So… how does this work…?"
Lani had to stop herself from facepalming at her own eagerness. Drake rolled they eyes, opening the side door to the van.
"One person to a seat," they said. "And don't forget to bucket up." Drake themself got into the passenger's seat in front, looking back at them.
"Three of you will have to sit in the back seat row together," Lani explained further, pointing.
"Once you're sitting down you grab the bucket on the strap and put it into the locking mechanism on the opposite side of you."
(I'm assuming you meant to say buckle lol)
"Ah, okay, thank you," Sky said with a smile. If Drake was being sarcastic, it had either soared over his head or he just ignored it, sometimes it was difficult to tell with Sky. The five Heroes piled into the vehicle; Legend, Time, and Warriors sat in the back, and Sky and Wild sat in the middle. It took him a second to figure it out, but Wild actually managed to close the door.
"So, what are the buckles for?" he asked once the door was shut.
("They're for losers but unfortunately it's illegal to be cool")
(hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh yes thank you aha–)
Lani glanced in the bus mirror to make sure everyone was in their seats, turning her head completely at the question.
"They're a safety precaution for if we get into an accident. Though, it's highly unlikely we won't, so most don't wear them."
"I insist you do, though," Drake interjected, "Because it's illegal to not wear them and I don't need to get fined. And it's better to be safe when you're going sixty miles an hour down the highway." Drake shot Lani a look and she just chuckled nervously.
"Or when you're going twenty miles over the limit and almost run into a damn deer." Drake didn't like deers.
