TW: Alcohol, sad, implied suicidal thoughts.
'The flow of time is always cruel. Its speed seems different for each person, but no one can change it. A thing that does not change with time is a memory of younger days...time passes, people move. Like a river's flow, it never ends. A childish mind will turn into a noble ambition. Young love will become deep affection.' — Sheik, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998, 2011)
She stood. She saw her reflection in the mirror. She saw her face...one she had not seen for a while. The one she had to hide for 7 years. The one she barely recognised. Blue eyes stared back at her as she lamented her losses.
Zelda.
A name she hadn't used in 7 years. A name she had been known for. A name that had cursed her from the beginning. A name that belonged to a girl who had a dream...a nightmare that became true.
Well, that girl doesn't exist anymore.
She was replaced with a woman that carried the weight of all the deaths on her shoulders. A woman that saw the horror of the world. A woman that had no innocence. A woman who was but a shell of who she was 7 years ago. The woman that missed her family and friend...Why did she do what she did?
She stared in the mirror and that girl stared back. Forever trapped in a reflection, lost to the world. Only to be viewed by the woman that replaced her.
She took off her crown. The girl staring at her within the pink jewel. She traced the words engraved in the crown.
Princess of Hyrule.
She deserved no such title. She was a monster. She ran instead of protecting her people.
She never deserved her title.
———
He stood and stared at his reflection in the puddle of water as rain poured. He saw his face...the one that had not belonged to him for 7 years—but mere months ago for him. The one he recognised so clearly...but he never wanted it back. Blue eyes stared back at him as he lamented the fact he was an adult stuck in a child's body.
Link.
A name that a certain fairy had spoken so often...along with 'Hey listen!'. However that name didn't define him anymore. It didn't mean anything. It belonged to a boy who knew nothing of the horrors of the world. The boy who knew nothing of what it felt like to lose a friend. The Boy Without a Fairy.
Well, that boy was gone now.
A man replaced him. A man who had lost his innocence, killed people and felt more alone than ever. While that man may be trapped inside the boy's body, the boy's mind was long gone...the emotionless man's mind replaced it.
The boy was trapped in the reflection, only visible by the man. He took off his green flappy cap and held it in his hands. He remembered the title that he was given to him.
The Hero of Time.
He deserved no such title. How could he be called a hero when he killed people and failed to protect the people who looked up to him and he was the cause of Ganondorf's reign. He was a failure.
———
She kneeled and looked at her reflection in the leaky faucet. She saw her face...she had stared at it everyday as she counted the days she was imprisoned in this hell that they called a lab. She had grown over the months. Her face had matured, her body had become more ladylike and her hair had grown. Brown eyes lamented her lost brothers and her dying hope.
Omega.
That name had been always wrongly pronounced by her brothers. It was hilarious...was...Hearing Hemlock pronounce it wrong made her hate her own name. In fact she now wished she could not have that name. It came with death and unfortunate events. It belonged to a girl with a bright smile and acted innocent, oblivious to the cruelty of the world.
Well, that girl...was still there, but she was faded.
A young lady was beginning to replace her. This young lady had no innocence, seeing the torturous things that were happening at Tantiss.
That girl was trapped in the reflection, only visible to the young lady. She took her Clearance Badge and looked at it. Tracing over the title she had been given.
Scientist Assistant.
It may as well say 'Prisoner'. It was what she was. She was a prisoner of not only Tantiss, but her mind too. She was a burden.
———
He sat, taking another shot of whiskey. Drinking his sorrows away seemed to be the best thing for him. He looked at his reflection in the glass. He scoffed at the stupid skull tattoo covering half of his face. It once a symbol of courage and pride, but now it just reminded him of his failures and the fact that the 'Regs' were right; it's stupid. His smokey brown eyes lamented his lost brother and sister.
CT-9901.
It was a name he refused to tell. If you could call it a name...it was a number more than a name. He went by his nickname now. Though he hadn't questioned it when he was a child, he grew to hate it in his teen years. His brothers gave him his nickname and he only stood being called his number by the Kaminoans. The boy who never questioned the name was fearless, living recklessly, with not a care in the world of what could happen.
Well, that boy was gone now. He was replaced by a man...who knew of the cruelty of the world. Who had been hit by the reality in the hardest way. Death. Death and unfortunate events.
That boy was trapped in the reflection, only visible by the man. He took his bandanna off and looked at the skull on it. He then remembered the title he had been given.
Sergeant of Clone Force 99.
He had failed at being a Sergeant. He led his own brother into death, he got their youngest kidnapped and here he was drinking instead of searching for her—his sister—his daughter. To think he could do anything right. Yeah right. He's a defect...it's all he'll ever be. A defect.
———
'The flow of time is always cruel. Its speed seems different for each person, but no one can change it. A thing that does not change with time is a memory of younger days...time passes, people move. Like a river's flow, it never ends. A childish mind will turn into a noble ambition. Young love will become deep affection.
Listen to these words and be careful what you wish for—for everything has consequences.
She wishes for her Kingdom to be safe, but she ruins a young boy's life.
He wishes to be great, but he loses friends and family.
She wishes for a family, but she causes them more trouble than she thinks she's worth.
He wishes for peace...but as you know, it never lasts.
Fate is cruel. It will pull you all different direction, it was try to tear you apart...but as long as you have hope, than anything is possible.
Perhaps the Princess will learn to heal with hope. Perhaps the hope that the Hero has to find his long lost companion will make him step into the role of Hero once more. Perhaps the young lady will escape and be returned to her family—on her own with just having hope. Perhaps the Sergeant will learn to accept his brother's death and take hope with him and try to save his sister...or daughter...
Maturity is hard, but everyone learns their place...everyone has their demons and their hope...sometimes you just have to let hope guide you.'
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Fanfiction'Is anybody out there?' 'The flow of time is always cruel. Its speed seems different for each person, but no one can change it. A thing that does not change with time is a memory of younger days...time passes, people move. Like a river's flow, it ne...
