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Lon Lon Ranch was a beautiful place in the winter, Legend decided, as he brewed four mugs of tea in the ranch’s kitchen. The white blanket of snow that cloaked the once green plains was a sight to behold, even if he’d seen snow plenty of times in his life. Though, it was easier to appreciate it when he was able to shelter indoors and watch it from afar, instead of having to travel through it.
The portal leading them to the ranch at this time had been a stroke of luck, really. They had just managed to fight off a band of black-blooded bokoblins, much smarter than the normal kind. They’d escaped mostly unscathed, except for Time, who’d gotten a small gash on his leg. It had been treated with red potion and bandages, but it had seemed as if their leader was going to be unable to keep up with their pace for the foreseeable future, and they hadn’t worked out what to do yet when the portal had appeared and blessed them.
Legend smiled, remembering Malon’s reaction when she had first seen her injured husband. There was the initial shock and fear, which turned to relief after confirming for herself the injury wasn’t severe. Then she had fussed for him to come and lie down inside so he could get properly treated, and the love and affection for him in her eyes was clear to anyone within a 500-mile radius. As much as Legend liked to tease the old man, he was happy for him and the life he’d managed to create here at the ranch.
And the rest of them had been able to repay Malon’s kindness, too, helping with the difficult task of maintaining a ranch during winter. Animals had to be kept warm and fed, dinner had to be made for eleven people, and the usual customers and deliveries to Castle Town didn’t stop, despite the weather. Even though Time made countless jokes (mostly to keep himself entertained) about how they weren’t being treated as guests, Legend could speak for all of them when he said it was the least they could do to give back to Malon, who’d treated them all so kindly.
Maybe there would be some black-blooded monsters to deal with in this world, maybe another portal would appear tomorrow, but for now, Legend didn’t mind this brief moment of domesticity.
Lost in his thoughts, Legend was startled even by the gentle voice that called for him. “Vet?”
Legend turned around with a hand on his heart. “Yes?”
It was Sky. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.” He then gestured at the counter beneath the window Legend had been gazing out of, that contained the four waiting mugs of tea. “I was just wondering about everyone’s tea.”
Of course. “I should be the one apologising now. I just got completely lost in thought,” Legend said sheepishly, handing two of the mugs into Sky’s waiting hands.
“No worries. What were you thinking about?” Sky asked, leading the way into the living room. His voice was curious, non-judgemental, as it often was. Legend smiled.
“Just about how it’s nice to actually get a moment of respite here,” he replied. “It’s been a bit intense on the road recently.”
“You’re telling me,” Sky said. “Though I wouldn’t expect to hear that from you, given how much you’ve complained about shovelling snow the last couple of days.”
“Everything comes with its ups and downs,” Legend told him, which earned him a laugh from Sky.
“In any case, you’re right about it being nice here,” Sky added, as the voices of the others got progressively louder. “You should see the scene that’s unfolded since you left to go and make us tea.”
Sky didn’t elaborate, so Legend watched as Sky led them into the living room. The rest of the boys were there, along with Malon and her father. Four, Hyrule and Warriors were bickering over a game of cards, Wind and Twilight were conversing with Malon’s father, but Legend didn’t think either of those were what Sky was highlighting.
That only left the trio on the sofa on the right side of the room, lit in the soft glow of a candle. Wild was perched on a stool by the sofa, listening as Malon talked to him. And spread across the rest of the sofa, with his leg resting up and his head in Malon’s lap, was Time, looking utterly content as he added the occasional comment or laughed at Malon’s words.
“Wow,” Legend said. “She actually got him to lie down again?”
“She did,” Sky confirmed, with a smile.
It felt strange, seeing Malon and Time like this. They all knew by now Time was a different, more carefree and happy person around Malon, but this was a level of comfort Legend never expected to see the man showing in his life. It was a stark contrast from the cynical, battle-worn leader he was when he directed them through their journey.
Legend couldn’t tell if Sky shared his surprise, his fellow hero only smiling even more as they made their way over. Malon noticed them first, and took her tea gratefully from Sky.
Wild also took his with a thank you, but when Legend offered a mug to Time, he simply waved it away with a casual hand. “Put it on the table, if you don’t mind. I’ll have it later when I can actually get up.”
“That’s not going to be for a while if I have anything to do with it,” Malon replied. “Honestly, you’re the only man I’ve ever met who wants to be walking around as normal after getting his leg stabbed.”
Wild looked at the floor sheepishly, as Legend said with a laugh: “Well, you must not have met any of us, then.”
“Don’t remind me!” Malon groaned. “You’re all as bad as each other. But Link is the one I chose to marry, so all of his problems become my problems too.”
“You wouldn’t have it any other way,” Time smiled, settling even further down into the sofa.
Malon sighed, deeply. “I suppose I wouldn’t,” she replied, beginning to run her hands through his hair as he closed his eyes.
Legend looked at the floor, holding his mug of tea in his hands. Watching Time and Malon gave him the same feeling as he’d had earlier, looking out of the window at the snow. It was warm, soft and domestic - it was everything Legend thought he didn’t need in life.
Maybe it would be nice to have a life like this one, but he was a traveller first and foremost. And it had been years since there was anyone he would have considered, wanted, this with.
Legend took the first sip of his tea, before moving away to go and join the card game in the corner.
What he didn’t see, though, was Sky’s eyes following him as he went.
The next day continued the trend of the ones before - there were no new threats to deal with, and it seemed as if they were going to stay at the ranch for the foreseeable future.
The only difference was that Time seemed even better, moving around the house with almost his usual mobility. Despite his efforts, though, he still couldn’t hide the slight limp that hindered him.
“A certain someone is going to be very unhappy if she sees you prancing about like this, you know,” Warriors told him that morning. A few of them were gathered in the kitchen, Wild working on breakfast for everyone.
Time shrugged. “I couldn’t go another day sitting down and being useless.” He peered at the snow outside, still covering the ranch. “And it looks like there’s a lot to do. You could all use another pair of hands helping out.”
“Or,” Legend suggested, “you could live up to your title of old man and get back to dozing on the sofa.”
Time gently hit him on the shoulder. “It’s precisely because of that certain nickname that I need to pull my weight more.”
“Is that going to be before or after breakfast?” Wild asked.
“...After,” Time conceded, and they all laughed.
Once Wild was done cooking, Legend sat himself down at the table with a plate of bread and eggs, joined by Warriors, Time and Wild. They all took a few moments to simply chew and enjoy the meal, the only talking being to thank Wild for the food.
“I have to say,” Wild began after a while, “cooking in your kitchen definitely beats doing it in a single pot in the middle of nowhere in the wild.”
“The most important part of our marriage has been building up our kitchen supplies,” Time replied with a laugh, “That being said, though, I thought you enjoyed the challenge of cooking out in the wild?”
Wild shrugged. “I mean, this way is definitely more convenient.” That earned him a few more laughs around the table, and they settled into content silence again. If everyone hadn’t been so quiet, they probably wouldn’t have heard Wild softly adding: “...And you know, I do have my own house. It’s a long way off, but I catch myself wondering what it’d be like to, I guess, settle down there and stuff?”
No one else spoke, taking in his statement. Then, Time put down his fork and wiped at his face. “Well,” he began, “you don’t have to sacrifice one thing for another. I spend most of my days taking care of my life here, but even I can still have an adventure or two. You lot are evidence enough of that,” Once they’d all laughed at that too, Time turned his attention back to Wild. “You’re still young - well, technically not, but never mind that. You’re all young to me, except maybe the captain here. You all have enough time to make your choices about whatever you want to spend the rest of your life post-slaying evil doing. Though one thing I will add is that sleeping in an actual bed every night is a major plus.”
WIld nodded, flashing a grateful smile at Time, and with that the meal continued normally. And only a few minutes later, Malon emerged, and spotted Time sitting up at the table with everyone else. Her only response to that was a deep sigh.
But she still took the seat next to him and gave him an affectionate peck on the cheek, and as their lighthearted morning with everyone continued, Legend sat back and once again indulged the same thought Wild had. He quietly observed the domesticity of the ranch and wondered if his life would ever turn out like this, too.
Legend’s hands felt slightly numb after spending a good chunk of an hour clearing snow off the path leading to the front entrance of the ranch, but the satisfaction of a job well done was staving off the worst of the cold (For now. He could still do with a warm drink inside).
He was so caught up in mentally patting himself on the back that he didn’t notice the approaching footsteps of Malon, who was wrapped up in her own winter gear. “Oh, are you done out here? Thank you so much, I must confess I wasn’t looking forward to getting rid of this snow myself.”
He only jumped slightly when he finally registered her presence, giving her a small smile. “It’s no problem. I’m used to having to clear out snow often enough at home myself.”
“Your home?” Malon inquired, with a tilt of her head. “I thought you were a traveller?”
“Well,” Legend began, looking for the right words in his head. “Primarily, yes. I do spend a lot of time on the road, but I also have a home to return to. Inherited it from my uncle.” With a smile, he added: “It even has an orchard.”
“An orchard? That’s wonderful! I’ve always considered having one here, but we have our hands full enough as it is,” Malon replied. “I assume you’re very proud of yours.”
“I mean, I wouldn’t like to boast too much,” Legend said, “but yeah, our apples are absolutely the best in Hyrule.”
Malon laughed, beginning to make her way back to the house and gesturing for Legend to follow her. “I trust you on that. There’s nothing like homegrown food.”
“Clearly, the people who buy our apples must think that too, seeing as my roommate is getting away with selling them individually at a ridiculous price,” Legend told her.
“A roommate as well?” Malon asked, as she held open the door to inside for him.
Legend didn’t know how he’d ended up sharing so much with Malon in such a short space of time, but there was something about her that made her ridiculously easy to open up to. Plus, it was nice to talk about home when the portals hadn’t dropped them there in a long time. “Yeah, his name is Ravio. He’s a bit odd, and he isn’t even supposed to be living with me, but I think I’ve just accepted at this point that he’s always going to be there when I least expect him. And it is good to have someone looking after the house when I’m away for so long.”
Taking off her scarf now they were indoors, Malon nodded. “Well, I’m delighted to hear that. It’s good to have some stability to return to when you spend so long travelling.”
“I enjoy travelling,” Legend told her, “but you’re right. I just wish a kingdom didn’t need to be saved every two seconds so I could explore the world in peace.”
“Well, I’m afraid it seems like you haven’t got that wish on this journey,” Malon said, “but I hope my husband is good enough company to make up for that.”
There was a twinkle in her eye, and Legend made a ‘so-so’ gesture with his hand. “I mean…”
“I can hear you!” Time called from another room.
Malon and Legend made eye contact for one brief moment, before bursting out in laughter.
“Don’t you think they’re sweet?”
Legend looked across at Sky, who had softly spoken to him out of nowhere. They were all together in the living room, minus Malon and Time, after Time had finally stopped being stubborn and admitted he probably needed an early night after helping out all day. That had prompted various mutterings amongst the rest of them about how they should probably retire to bed as well (with little action, mind), and so Legend was a bit surprised to hear Sky ask an unrelated question all of a sudden. They were the only two left sitting on the comfortable sofa on the right of the room, and so Sky didn’t have to speak loudly to get his attention.
Legend made a little bit of a face. “Who? Malon and the old man?”
“Who else?” Sky replied. “I know I’m being a sap, but I still can’t get over the fact that he’s managed to settle down and find a happy life here. You wouldn’t have expected it when we first met him.”
“...No. I wouldn’t have,” Legend said, after a moment. Sky was exactly right, but he couldn’t help being unnerved by the same topic that had been on his mind more or less constantly during their time at the ranch being brought up again.
Sky hummed, and didn’t say anything more. Legend thought that was it for their conversation, and was just about to get up when Sky’s voice stopped him again. “Are you alright, vet?”
Legend eased himself back down, and turned fully to properly face Sky. “Pardon?”
“It’s just - the last few days, you’ve seemed… distracted,” Sky told him. “Whenever one of us goes to talk to you, you’re always surprised, like you’ve been completely lost in thought and forgot you were in the real world.”
Ouch. That last comment stung a little, but Sky would have no way of knowing that. Legend tried his best to give him a reassuring smile. “Have all of you noticed?”
“Nope, just me and my intuitive brain, as far as I know,” Sky replied. “I didn’t want to bring it up, in case it was a sensitive topic or I was wrong… but I’m not wrong, am I?”
There was no point in lying to him, and Legend didn’t want to anyway. “You’re not, I’m afraid. But it’s nothing for you to worry about. I’ve just been thinking a lot, recently.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Sky said, watching across the room as Four was the first of them to bravely get up and actually go to bed, stretching his arms out and yawning as he did so. The others were all still talking loudly enough that Legend and Sky’s murmured conversation on the sofa would stay between them. “And do I get to hear what you’ve been thinking about? Or is that a secret?”
“Not a secret,” Legend half-laughed. “It’s more… I don’t know how to put it.” And that was true; he’d never really discussed any of this with anyone else. There was the time he had opened up to Twilight, but only vaguely. And he thought he’d keep it that way, but… perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to share something now and then. Especially with Sky and his puppy eyes. “Do you ever look at the life the old man has here at the ranch, and wonder if that could be your life one day?”
Sky nodded. “I don’t just wonder. I know my future involves settling down with Zelda and establishing the kingdom of Hyrule together. And we’ll probably end up being pretty good at it, too, considering the kingdom turns out to be a pretty big deal.”
Legend laughed. “Of course. How could I forget? You and your Zelda are going to be so disgustingly sappy that you end up making a whole kingdom out of it.”
“What can I say, it’s a professional skill,” Sky said. “But I assume that’s what you’ve been thinking about, then? Having a life like this one?”
“Maybe? I don’t know,” Legend frowned. “I’ve been travelling across Hyrule and beyond ever since I was young, and I don’t really know anything different. More than that, I enjoy it. I’d get bored sitting around at home all day. But since we got to the ranch a few days ago, I can’t stop thinking about the idea of giving up travelling for good, one day. About how maybe I would enjoy that, too.”
Sky paused at his words, the silence between them thoughtful. In a way, it was a huge relief to have finally just said it. Once the words were out there, it didn’t seem to be nearly as much of a big deal. Legend hadn’t made any huge decisions yet or anything like that - he was just thinking.
“Well,” Sky said eventually. “I can see why that’s been playing on your mind. Though I might not have any decent advice to offer, sorry.”
“That’s fine.”
“What I mean is… I think your circumstances are quite different from mine. Well, obviously they are. But ignoring the whole different eras point for a second… you started your journey and your adventures at a young age. For me, it was later. Before I became a hero, I was living a calm and peaceful life. Sure, I was training to be a knight, but being a knight in Skyloft was different to how it seems to be in Hyrule. We lived on a small island floating in the sky. There weren't any threats to deal with. It was more of a community role than anything.” Sky sighed, adding with a small smile: “And even then, I still spent most of my time daydreaming about Zelda and all the stupid adventures we’d go on together after I became a knight.”
“And then you actually went on an adventure,” Legend supplied for him.
“Yes,” Sky replied, and his smile curved into a frown. “And it wasn’t anything like Zelda and I had expected. It tore our lives apart, and we almost couldn’t repair them again. When it all happened, we were already seventeen, and we’d had some of our lives established. The adventure we went on… changed everything.” With a sigh, he added: “Don’t get me wrong, I love all of you guys, but once I go back home after all this? I think I’ve had a lifetime’s worth of adventure.”
“That’s what’s got me torn up too,” Legend admitted. “I don’t know what I’m going to do once I return home, either.”
“Maybe you don’t have to know,” Sky said. Legend gave him a slightly incredulous look. “What? It’s true! We don’t know when this journey is going to end. You have plenty of time to think about it, and maybe you don’t have to make up your mind at all. Maybe when you return to your home you’ll want to stay there for a while, or maybe you’ll be itching to get back onto the road. You won’t know until all of this is over, so why worry in the meantime?”
“Because…” Once again, Legend breathed in, gathering his thoughts. “Because I’ve been travelling for so much of my life, I don’t really know who I am outside of it. Outside of being a hero.”
There was another pause in their conversation. Legend observed as a visibly sleepy Wind tried to protest that he wasn’t tired.
Sky cleared his throat. “Perhaps maybe that means it could be about time to discover who you are outside of being a hero, then. That’s actually the point I was going to make to you - that I view adventure and journeying as something that upended my life because it happened a bit later, whereas you’ve always been a traveller.”
“And yet, the old man started the youngest out of all us,” Legend said, “and travelled long after his kingdom-saving days were over, too. Yet he’s the one with the comfortable, domestic life to return to here. I think I’m just trying to wrap my head around it.”
Sky hummed. “You’re seeing it in a pretty literal way. That he went from being someone who travelled the world to someone who has a small, stable life, and that’s what’s brought him happiness. But I think it’s different. I think that what makes the old man happy is that this is the life he chose.”
Legend looked around the living room, at the trinkets and pictures of Time and Malon displayed on the walls, at the blankets and pillows dotted around the whole room. This wasn’t just a house necessary for the people maintaining a ranch to live in - this was a home, one loved by those who resided in it. The evidence was laid out as clear as day for anyone to see.
“Fuck,” Legend whispered. “I think you might be right.”
Sky, to his credit, didn’t look too smug. “It could have been a permanent life on the road for him. It could even have been a life in court married to his Zelda. But it’s this quiet life on the ranch with Malon that he wanted, and he gets to have it. That’s what makes him so happy every time we’re here, I think.”
“What are you two mumbling about in the corner over there?” Warriors asked, before Legend could respond to Sky.
“None of your business, pretty boy!” Legend snapped immediately, practically on instinct. It was always worth it to see Warriors huff.
“We were just discussing the agriculture of Hyrule, actually,” Sky added. “ A truly fascinating conversation, if you’d like to join us.”
Warriors waved a hand. “I’ll pass. I was just going to tell you both that we’re all going to bed, now. WIll you be joining us?”
Sky looked at Legend meaningfully; Legend shrugged and stood up. “Don’t worry,” he said. “We’re just coming.”
“Alright,” Warriors replied. “See you in a bit.”
Caught up in their conversation, Legend hadn’t noticed the others leaving or making their way to the door. But judging by the sheepish look on Sky’s face, he wasn’t alone in that.
“We’d best head off to bed, I guess. I didn’t realise how late it was,” Sky said.
“I’m just that entertaining to talk to, right?”
“You’re joking, but yes! I’m actually very glad we had that conversation.”
Legend swallowed. “So am I,” he admitted. “I, er… thanks, for all of that. I was getting caught up in my head and it was probably best I talked to someone about it. And your advice was helpful, in the end.”
“No worries,” Sky replied. “I hope I gave you something to keep thinking about it, but I also hope you don’t stress too much.”
“I won’t,” Legend promised. “I think I’m just going to try and enjoy the rest of the days we have here, even if they keep being absolutely freezing.”
“You all mock me for the amount of layers I wear, but look where we are now!” Sky said, earning a gentle shove from Legend on the shoulder.
“I still stand by that. There is no need to be wearing the layers you do.”
“Bold from the person wearing no pants in snowstorms.”
“I have a specific pair of pants for winter, you literally saw me wearing them today-”
And so in the end, Legend finished the day squabbling with Sky as they headed to bed. But once Legend had said goodnight to everyone and closed his eyes in his makeshift bed, there were no thoughts swirling around his mind, and he fell asleep with his heart content.