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As Quill got closer to Outset, he could tell something was different. There were more people on the beach than usual. A group concentrated on the wooden deck of Link's home and surrounding beach. This would not be strange with the presence of a certain pirate ship; however, the docks were missing the bigger vessel.
Among the strangers, he spotted Link near the mailbox, waving his arms in the air. The hero was back. Paying no mind to the unusual crowd for now, he prepared to land.
"Quill! Quill!" The boy ran to him.
"It's good to see you again, Link."
"It's good to see you too." The hero in blue greeted back, "Would you mind if I ask you some questions?"
Quill walked towards the mailbox, opening his satchel for the delivery, "Sure thing."
"Have there been any recent monster sightings? Anything unusual in the sea?"
The rito paused from putting letters inside the mailbox. He silently faced Link and gave him a letter.
"Huh?" The boy tilted his head to the side before opening the letter and reading its contents, "Oh."
"Miss Tetra has been looking for you." Quill crossed his arms as he explained. "There have been strange things happening near the Greatfish Isle Ruins. All treasure hunters talk of monsters reappearing. Schools of frenzied gyorgs. More big octo whirlpools. Other monsters not known to these waters have been encountered as well."
Hearing this, the rest of the stranger group came even closer. Quill eyed them but continued on.
"Most attacks have happened in the area northeast of Greatfish; between Tingle Island and Rock Spire. The people of Windfall are nervous; they worry the monsters will keep spreading northeast and reach them. One of our own was also attacked by a strange flying reptile, so we have been avoiding the area as well."
Link cursed under his breath. One of the strangers closest to the pair, a young man with a bright blue scarf, came up and asked, "Has this been happening for long?"
“It's been a few weeks." Quill eyed the man, "And you are?"
"Ah! Quill, this is Warriors. He's one of my traveling companions. We have been following monster attacks for the past months." Link vaguely and haltingly explained how and where he met this peculiar group full of pointy eared humans before introducing the rest of them. Quill just nodded his head and introduced himself back, turning briefly to finish delivering the letters and closing his satchel.
"Do you know of Tetra's whereabouts?" Link continued.
"I saw her and her crew a few hours ago, actually. I came across them near Ice Ring Isle as I was leaving Forest Haven. They were heading up north to Windfall."
The boy groaned as he pulled out his blue stone necklace from under his shirt. "So close...! They are too far from range and just keep getting further..."
Quill chucked silently as the boy mumbled. "Don't worry about that. I need to start making my way back to Dragon Roost anyways, so I'll send them on your way as I cross them again. I'm sure the captain will speed all the way down here just to give you an earful for being gone for so long."
After a few more words and a quick goodbye, the rito mailman flew off.
Wind sighed and plopped down on the front steps of his home. With Tetra's letter still in one hand and a sea chart in the other, he studied both intently.
"Seems like the attacks have been going on for a while this time." Hyrule commented worriedly after sitting beside the younger hero.
"Yea..." the small pirate mumbled. Tetra's letter included a partial sea chart showing all known monster sightings. He's not sure how up to date it is, but it's enough to give him an idea. "At least the area they frequent is... mostly uninhabited now."
“Tetra and her crew have been patrolling the area and trying to keep the monsters at bay.” Wind finally tucked the letter away and stood back up, “Calculating the area Quill crossed them earlier and how long it will take for him to reach them again, they should be getting here in the evening.”
"Well, we still have hours to spare so let's make the most of it." Time announced to the group. A clear dismissal.
The heroes dispersed, some going back inside Wind's home, some walking away towards the beach. Legend decided to return to the terrace.
Sky was asleep, sitting in a shaded corner with his sailcloth wrapped around him snuggly, head resting on the side of a wooden beam. The veteran smiled at the sight, sitting on a stool nearby. The Skyloftian had finally crashed about an hour after sunrise.
"He's gonna stay there all day, isn't he?" came Wind's voice, amused. Legend turned to see Wind and Aryll walking into the terrace.
"Probably." he smirked back.
Aryll rubbed the last traces of sleep out of her eyes, stretched, and made a beeline towards him, wrapping her arms around his middle as soon as she was close enough.
"Good morning." she spoke into his collar. Legend hugged her back, smirk softening into a smile, giving her a light squeeze.
"Good morning, Aryll."
The girl made a little thinking noise before deciding to climb onto the older hero. A small laugh escaped Wind as he made his way to another stool, watching his sister make herself comfortable atop Legend's lap.
He seemed a little shocked at first, unused still to this kind of contact, but slowly relaxed and leaned back on the terrace railing, arms still wrapped around the smaller child.
Having his newly discovered family around him like this made Legend's chest fill with warmth. He thought of the other heroes. He had to tell them, but how? Should he just... announce it? Just tell the rest all at once? That would certainly be faster but just thinking about that scenario made his gut twist painfully. No. That was not an option. But who could he tell next?
He shook his head. He could think about that later, right now there was another thing he could do.
"Hey Wind, you have a pictobox, right?"
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Making their way out of the Forest of Fairies, Hyrule and Four crossed the high wooden bridge atop Outset, stars starting to become visible above their heads. Having time to spare, the two decided to explore the island. Hyrule eventually caught sight of the small forest on the very tip of the island's mountain and wanted to go there immediately.
As expected, the forest was small, but it was surprisingly full of nature magic. This, of course, was welcomed by both heroes. They hung around and talked for a few hours as they thoroughly explored every nook and cranny of the place. There was even a fairy fountain! That definitely explained the name of the woods.
Currently, as both made their way down the mountain, Hyrule spoke up. “Say, Four, how do you think Legend knows Wind’s grandma?”
This came as a surprise for the shorter hero. He wasn’t expecting anyone to bring it up.
“I couldn’t say.” The smith hummed in thought. “It’s quite strange, actually. Going by what we know, Legend and Wind are not even from the same timeline, both have previously confirmed this. It should be impossible for them to have any kind of connection.”
“Legend is very guarded with his adventures but we know he has traveled to other worlds and traveled through time.” Four crossed his arms as he continued, “Who is to say both haven't happened at the same time?”
“Wait, you think Legend has been here before?” the incredulous Hyrule questioned.
“It’s a possibility.” came the shrugged response.
“But Legend didn’t know of Outset Island.”
“Maybe not, but he definitely knows Wind’s grandmother. Not only that, but he recognized her younger self in the pictures. Think about it. Is it really that far-fetched that in one of his adventures, Legend somehow ended in this era and met a younger grandma in one of the many islands across the Great Sea? Aryll did mention that she used to travel in her youth.”
Hyrule ponders on this. It made sense. Many strange things happen during their journeys, and Legend has had the most by far.
“Do you think he’ll tell us about it? I mean, it did kind of happen in front of us. I imagine Wind, Wild and Warriors will only hold their curiosity for so long.”
“Oh, Wind knows already for sure.” Four said confidently. “Aryll probably knows too. It’s most likely a matter of time before everything spills.”
“Huh?! How do you figure?”
“After the vet’s breakdown, everyone has been keeping an eye on him. He’s been acting differently since then and we’re all worried. So was Wind. However, after their time in the watchtower, he seems completely at ease now. Aryll too was there with them and now she barely leaves Legend’s side. Whatever it is, Legend already told them.”
Hyrule stayed silent as he processed Four’s words. He hadn’t realized before, but he was right. The traveler felt himself relax, “Well, at least that means it’s something good, right? Watching Legend break down like that... It was terrible. But at least it seems to be alright now, yeah?”
“Well, I don’t know if it’s good or bad, but whatever it is, the vet seems more at peace now and that's certainly a good thing.” the smith agreed.
"Ah! Look, they're here already." Hyrule stopped in his tracks as soon as they reached the border of town and points. So engrossed in their conversation, neither had realized there was a big ship on the docks, pirate flag waving proudly in the wind.
Speeding up their leisurely stroll, they soon noticed Wind having a loud discussion with a girl slightly taller than him. Tetra, most likely. There were men of various sizes walking up and down the vessel, a few of their own group carrying their things onto the ship.
"Hey, you finally came back." Twilight waves at them. "We're already taking our stuff on board. You should go bring your things."
Both of them nod and head inside Wind's house to gather their belongings. They notice Legend and Grandma speaking softly in the corner of the dinner table and they hurry to grab everything and allow them their privacy.
Soon they are outside again and a big man who introduced himself as Gonzo instructs them where to store their things on the ship.
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Back inside the house, Marin had a handful of pictographs in her hands, a stack of a dozen small squares of paper.
Wind and Legend had spent some time in the morning taking pictures and they were finally freshly printed thanks to some help from Sue-Belle and Sturgeon.
There were pictures of Wind and Aryll with the other heroes, playing and hanging out at the beach and town, but most of the pictures were of her family.
That is to say: Wind, Aryll and Legend. Marin herself was in a few of them too.
She looked down at her favorite pictograph, held in her hands atop the small stack. It showed her, sitting in her chair by the fire, Aryll was sitting on the floor besides her, Legend was kneeling behind them, each arm wrapped around their shoulders, and Wind, sitting slightly further away from them at the front, only showed his upper torso and head, arms extended as he held the pictobox up. Their smiles could rival the sun.
"I love them.", she sighs, full of happiness.
Legend huffs a small laugh, "I'm glad to hear that. We printed multiple of each so you can keep all of them."
"I also had them make a copy of this one." Legend gives her another pictograph, one actually much older than the rest. A copy of their picture in Koholint, one looking brand new and unmarred by age or water damage.
"Oh." Marin's eyes water slightly at the sight, a warm smile on her face. "This is wonderful. What a lovely gift, Link, thank you."
She stands from the table and heads to a small nightstand by the beds. "There's something I want to give you as well."
She rummages through the nightstand's cabinet and pulls out a yellowing paper envelope. Legend watches her curiously as she returns and sits back at the table. Pulling out three specific pictographs of her own from the envelope, she hands them over to him.
"They are of Lillian."
Lillian. Their daughter.
Marin had spoken about her to Legend. Telling him stories and answering any questions he had.
The first two pictures were copies of some he had already seen on the wall the day before. One of them had Marin and their young daughter sitting on her lap. The other had who he now knew to be Lillian and her husband with a toddler Wind and baby Aryll.
The last pictograph, however, took his breath away. This one actually had color and showed Lillian in a simple but beautiful wedding dress and Marin standing besides her, both smiling happily at the pictobox.
He felt his eyes start to water as he looked at his daughter in color for the very first time. Her eyes were blue like his and her long hair was a peachy color with light orange undertones.
Legend pushed a hand to his eyes as soon as he felt his tears break loose and lowered his head, trying to keep his composure.
"I wanted to commemorate the special occasion and hired someone with a deluxe pictobox." Marin explains softly, "I'm very glad I did."
He just nods his head and sniffs, croaking out a shaky "Thank you.... I'm glad too.."
After a few minutes, Legend puts a hand under the front of his tunic and pulls out a necklace, hand gripping it tightly, not showing whatever is tied at the end.
He sniffs one last time before rubbing his eyes and sitting straight once again, pulling the necklace over his head in one fluid motion, still not showing what was in his hand.
"Listen, I...." He hesitates for a second before pushing on. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't able to find you sooner. I'm sorry I didn't properly ask for your hand before the island disappeared. I'm sorry things turned out like this."
"Link-" Marin frowned and started to interject but Legend pushed on, determined.
"Even so, I'm very happy to be here. I never thought I'd be able to see you again, much less learn that I had a real family of my own. I'm so glad to have met you and-"
He hesitates again, light embarrassment coloring his face. "And I know it's too late now. I know it's not the same anymore; I should have given it to you sooner but..." he extends his hand over to her and opens his fist. On his palm, at the end of the necklace, rests a golden ring with an encrusted red carnelian.
"I want you to have it now. I-If you'll take it, of course."
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After giving Wind an earful and having her crew help the heroes store their things in the ship, Tetra was ready to set sail again towards Greatfish Isle and finally get rid of all the invading monsters now that they had enough manpower to do it.
The dimensionally displaced heroes were saying their final goodbyes at the docks, Aryll hugging every single one of them and insisting they write her letters before they walked up the plank.
Tetra crossed her arms and leaned back against the mast as she watched them all finally board the ship, taking her time to properly study them.
They are all older than Wind and had varying appearances ranging from full armor, to warm traveling clothes, to having a carcass draped on their back or a get-up so colorful she'd assume they were actually part of a traveling circus if she didn't know better.
What a peculiar bunch.
She didn't actually mind what they looked like, of course. She had seen their weapons: sturdy, well used, and with some type of magic or blessing more often than not. As long as they had the skill and disposition to help Wind and her crew get rid of all those monsters, she didn't care if they looked like they would start juggling flaming knives at any second.
The last ones to board were Wind and a red-clothed young man. Something about the man caught her attention and it wasn't the stupid floppy hat on his head. No, it was the necklace hanging around his neck. An old golden chain necklace with a red diamond pendant.
Why the hell did he have Grandma's necklace?
Tetra frowns as she stares at the object. Wind notices her then and quickly realizes the question in her mind. He just smirks and mouths 'later'.
Wind easily gathered everyone on deck and took care of introductions. It was nice finally having a face to match the names Wind constantly mentioned in his letters, though she was surprised to learn that the Hero of Time was the one in full armor and not one of the heroes garbed in green.
Chatter soon started among the heroes and her crew but she claps her hands to get their attention. She gives quick orders to raise the anchor and get on route. With a swift twirl of the Wind Waker, they started heading north, the breeze strong against the sails.
Tetra nears Wind and promptly inquires, "Well?"
"Ah-" He stops mid conversation with Legend and Sky. The latter looks curious but the former raises a questioning eyebrow at them.
"Right. I'll be back in a minute!" He exclaims sheepishly as he drags her away.
They end up at the front of the ship by the catapult, far from the rest of the crew and any prying ears.
"Is it really that big a secret why that guy has your Grandma's necklace?" She questions, hopping onto the bowsprit and leaning back on her arms.
"Yes, actually." He scratches the back of his head. "You can't tell anyone about it. Legend is explaining it at his own pace."
"Oh? Then why are you telling me about it?"
"Because you already noticed and would keep publicly prodding until you found an answer." Wind crosses his arms and huffs with a mock frown that does nothing to hide his smirk.
Tetra barks a laugh at the conclusion. He knew her well. "Then? What is it?"
"Well," He sobers and rummages the pack strapped on his belt, pulling out a couple of pictographs, smiling down at them with a fond expression, "let me tell you a story."