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Time startled when he heard a gasp and a shuffle of movement near the edge of camp. In an instant, he dropped his fire poker, snatched the gilded dagger from his boot, and slowly crept closer to where the sound had originated.
It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but as he got closer, he could just make out a slim figure sitting up amidst the scatter of bedrolls. He relaxed, and placed the dagger back in its holster.
It was their new join. The sword had called him Wild. Most likely had a nightmare—if Time had to guess. He watched the teen hurriedly swipe a hand across his eyes, before hugging his knees tightly to his chest.
Sensing the boy’s distress, he tread carefully between the still sleeping members of their group, and made his way closer to the young hero.
“Everything alright,” Time asked softly, kneeling next to him.
Wild shook his head, then buried his face between his knees.
“Okay,” Time said, his voice soft with understanding. “Do you want to talk about it?”
Wild raised a hand to sign, then let it drop and shrugged.
Time nodded in understanding. “Alright, that’s okay.”
He looked around, wondering if— hoping— one of the others had woken up so they could deal with this instead of him, but it was just the two of them.
Time looked at the sky with a low hum, then turned back to Wild. “It’s barely midnight. You should try to get back to sleep if you can,” he suggested. Blue eyes snapped up to meet Time’s with a silent plea, making the man’s heart skip a beat. Fear still lingered in those orbs from whatever dream had spooked him into consciousness. Time huffed. He wasn’t equipped to deal with this sort of thing…
Still. He couldn’t just leave the kid alone now, could he.
Time got back to his feet, suppressing a groan when his knees popped. “Come on then.” He reached out his hand. “You can help me keep watch for a bit while you settle down.”
Wild hesitated for a moment, then nodded and took the proffered hand, allowing the older man to pull him up. He looked at his hand when warmth lingered after the brief contact ended. Time then patted him on the shoulder, sending jolts of electricity through his body, and he let the man gently steer him toward the dying fire.
Once there, Time resumed his spot on the log bench they’d acquired, and methodically stoked the fire back to life, adding a few more logs as needed. Next to him, Wild settled on the ground, hugged his knees to his chest, and stared into the growing flames with tired eyes.
For a while, they sat in silence. The only sound between them was the occasional rustle of wind through the trees, and the everpresent crackle-pop of the fire as logs split to release steam.
Time exhaled and leaned over, resting his chin on his fire poker, trying to think of something to say or do. Anything to rid them of the heavy silence. But as much as he wanted to help, he didn’t know this Link at all yet. The rest of them had been together for months now. They’d had time to adapt to each other’s idiosyncrasies. He knew them enough to know what helped and what didn’t. But his lack of overall experience was coming to bite him now.
In a moment of frustration, he silently cursed the goddess Hylia. He wanted to know what possessed her to send this hero to the group now, of all times. He stifled a groan, took a calming breath, and gazed up at the stars. Malon, help me .
He knew what she would do in this scenario. She’d be gentle and steadfast. She’d hold on and not let go until he was back on solid ground. She’d done it so many times already in their marriage. And more recently, she’d done it for some of the boys.
Unsure of how to proceed, he peered down at the somber kid next to him and sighed again. He should say something at least.
Finally deciding the only way for them to move forward was for him to try, he cleared his throat loud enough to get Wild’s attention without startling him. But before he could get a word in, one of the logs shifted and fell, sending glowing embers spiraling up through the darkness.
Wild inhaled sharply. Then he went incredibly still, his eyes fixed on the space where the embers had died and turned to ash. When the teen remained unmoving, Time felt unease settle in his gut.
“Wild?” he said, trying to get the boy’s attention, but the boy didn’t so much as twitch. “Wild,” he tried again, more firmly. He reached out a hand and placed it on the young man’s shoulder, thinking touch might get a reaction, or a turn, or, well, anything.
When he again got no response, Time frowned. He left his perch and moved to kneel in front of the boy. It became obvious that something was not right. He waved a hand in front of Wild’s face, but there was no reaction in those half-lidded eyes.
Fear spiking, he quickly put two fingers to Wild’s carotid artery and let out a breath when he felt a strong pulse there. He then gently took Wild’s face in his hands and carefully tilted the young man’s head up, but Wild just continued to stare straight ahead, eyes glazed over and focused on something Time couldn't see.
“Hey.” Time softly patted the boy’s cheek.
Nothing.
“Link, can you hear me?” He tried again, hoping that the boy would snap out of whatever this was, but he did not.
Time let go of Wild’s face and sat back on his heels with a frustrated groan. Where did he go from here?
A soft gasp elicited from Wild then and Time watched helplessly as tears started rapidly forming in the boy’s bright eyes.
“Hey, you back with me? Are you okay?” Time asked, finally getting Wild’s attention when the bright blue eyes shifted up to meet his own. “Link?” Time tried again, urging him to speak.
Wild opened his mouth to respond, but the words got trapped in his throat, and his breath hitched as he started to unravel.
Assessing the situation, Time made a decision and moved quickly, saying, “Hey, you’re okay. Here, come here.” He dropped down right next to Wild and pulled the now quaking teen into a tight hug. The boy tensed initially at having his space so suddenly invaded, but Time persisted, because the instant he’d started to pull away, Wild had clung to him, grasping the back of his tunic with shaking hands.
Overwhelmed by a flurry of emotions, from the nightmare to the…whatever vision he’d just had…to the unexpected physical affection, Wild squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to block the flood of tears that had built up on his lashes. Despite his attempt to quell them, the tears fell anyway. Unthinking, he shoved his face into the crook of the older man’s neck, needing to hide his weakness, and feeling safe now he was hidden from view.
In response, Time tightened the hug and started slowly rocking them from side to side, whispering, “It’s okay, you’re okay,” over and over again. Sitting this close, he could feel every shuddering breath Wild took as the boy tried to keep his sobs at bay. He didn’t know what else he could say to soothe the boy, so he just kept holding him, trying to at least be an anchor while this storm passed.
They stayed like that for a long while and he felt the tears seep through the thick material of his tunic, forming a damp patch on his shoulder. Eventually though, the boy stopped shaking and started to relax against his chest.
Still swaying gently, Time chanced a peek down at the mop of blond hair to see if the boy was still awake.
To his surprise, Wild’s eyes were indeed still open, but they were red, and puffy, and he looked utterly exhausted. Giving the boy one last squeeze, Time readjusted them so he was leaning more comfortably against the log, and pulled Wild tightly to his side so he could continue resting against him.
Time took a deep breath and rubbed his hand up and down the boy’s arm. He desperately wanted to ask if he was okay, but he also didn’t want to come off as being too pushy, fearing the boy would think he was a burden for having cried so thoroughly.
“’m sorry,” a soft voice whispered, breaking the silence for him.
“You’ve got nothing to be sorry for,” Time said, giving the boy a gentle squeeze. “If anything, I should be the one apologizing,” he said with a slight laugh before continuing. “I really don’t have any idea what I’m doing in these situations. I’m not the best at knowing when or how to comfort others. My wife is usually the one that deals with the emotions and all that. She’s good at talking and getting others to talk. But not me. I never know what to say. How can I, when I don’t even know what I’d want someone to say to me?”
He felt Wild shrug. “I think you did a pretty good job,” the boy said supportively, his voice subdued and raspy from crying.
“Yeah?” Time laughed, moving his hand to tousle the boy’s hair before letting it settle back on the slender shoulder. “Well, thank you. I need all the positive feedback I can get. Also, sorry for grabbing you out of nowhere before. I panicked and my body just kind of moved.”
Wild shifted his head to rest more comfortably on Time’s shoulder with a yawn. “S’okay,” he breathed. “Don’t think I’ve been hugged like that since…I dunno exactly…Can’t remember being hugged…but…felt familiar so I musta been at some point…”
Time’s face pulled in confusion at that. He could tell that Wild was half-asleep the way he kept murmuring, but what he’d just said didn’t make much sense. Even he, having grown up with the forest children, had received hugs from Saria on the regular.
It was underhanded to take advantage of Wild’s exhausted state, but hoping to glean more information from the boy, he prompted him once more because this seemed important. “You don’t remember being hugged before now? Not even by your mother? Or a close friend?”
Wild shook his head slowly and yawned again, body going a little more slack against him. “Don’t remember anything ‘fore the shrine…”
Shrine? Time thought in confusion. “Hmm. I see. And when was that?”
“Month ago?” Wild mumbled, sounding unsure. “Woke up…There was…an old man…gave me his paraglider…” Blue eyes fluttered closed.
Woke up? A month ago? A feeling of foreboding washed over Time. “Hey, Wild? Link?” He gave the boy a light shake, suddenly needing him to be more awake so he could answer his questions.
“Hmm?” The boy’s head lifted an inch before falling back down.
“Where were you before you joined us?” Time asked, his hand tightening on the boy’s shoulder as he waited for a response. “Link? What were you doing?”
“Was...running…” Wild sighed, fading fast now.
He had time for one more question.
“Why? Where were you going?” Time pushed urgently, needing Wild to say it.
“Princ’ss…needs me…” And with that last slurred utterance, Wild faded into a dreamless sleep and relaxed fully against the older man.
The fire crackled and sent another burst of sparks into the night sky, seeming to mock him.
Time closed his eyes, coming to terms with a realization.
This Link wasn’t done with his quest yet.