A Hero's Ally (A BOTW Fanfic)

A Stranger In The Desert

It was a cool, breezy night beside the Kara Kara Bazaar. I could hear the gentle lapping of the water against the shore. This was a serene, relaxing place that tired travelers from all across Hyrule came to rest before proceeding to Gerudo Town; a paradise in the middle of the scorching desert. A quiet, tranquil lullaby that sounded vaguely like jazz was playing from within the Bazaar.

I had trained in Hyrule castle as a knight a couple years ago before the Great Calamity, but when Calamity Ganon wrecked havoc upon Hyrule, I hid. I hid inside a doomsday bunker that preserved my age and youth. In fact, I had looked exactly the same as I did a century ago.

Ashamed of my cowardice in the midst of the Calamity, I decided to become a vigilante, to protect the citizens of Hyrule against the monsters that scoured every singe part of the land. I had come here after long, intense battle facing a group of Yiga Clan assassins in the Gerudo Desert Gateway and right now, all I wanted was dinner and some sleep.

 As I began unfurling the mattress and sleeping bag, I spotted a boy with a load of gear out of the corner of my eye. Something about him felt oddly familiar, as if we've known each other for our entire lives. "Man, it's late. Who could be wandering the desert at this hour?" I thought. He sported a Hylian tunic and trousers, dyed yellow as camouflage to evade the Electric Lizalfos. This was definitely an experienced adventurer, to dye one's clothes to match the color of their surroundings. He was carrying a sword with a purple-gold scabbard, adorned with jewels and patterns lined the sides. I'd never seen such a sword, but it looked pretty. He was also carrying a golden shield and bow, again adorned with various symbols and patterns. Perhaps he was a member of the royal guard?

But no, that couldn't be. Members of the royal guard would be heading to Gerudo Town regardless of gender; they were important members of the Hylian royal army, their importance surpassed that of the Gerudo traditions. No, the stranger was clearly heading towards the Bazaar, probably for the inn they offered there albeit at a ridiculously high price because of the demand. By the looks of him, even with the exquisite items he was carrying, he definitely wouldn't be able to afford a night there. I hoped he at least had a cloth to sleep on. The desert was searing hot by day, but by night it could reach sub-zero temperatures that made it almost impossible to sleep in. "Wouldn't want someone with those looks to be cold." I laughed stiffly, rubbing my hands together and positioning my sleeping bags closer to the fire, which was already crowded . The heat of the fire slowly faded around an invisible arc; and I was in the cold zone, separated from the warmth by a wall of people.

The stranger walked into the Bazaar looking more tired every second. "Maybe he has enough Rupees." I sighed and took out the blankets purchased directly from Kakariko Village. The salesman was kind enough to give me a discount because he claimed I was the "Guardian Angel" of the neighborhood.

I glanced at the Bazaar and I spotted the stranger shuffle out looking rather dejected. 

"So he didn't have enough Rupees after all." I turned around in my sleeping bag, conflicted. Dare I share with him my extra sleeping bag? Because of the constant amount of monsters in Hyrule, I carried 2 of almost every item in my inventory just in case they got lost, or were destroyed by monsters while fighting.

The stranger looked like he was about to lie in the sand for the night. I winced. He would get all that sand is his shirt, and the sleeping quality would be dreadful. I decided to trust my instincts, be a nice person, and lend him a sleeping bag.

I walked over to him, and took a closer look. He had golden hair and sideburns, with bangs parted slightly to the side. His Hylian tunic was slightly tattered and grimy along the corners, probably due to wear and tear because of all that travelling he did. As he started lying on the sand, I drew out the extra sleeping bag from my inventory. 

"Hello! I see you don't have anything to rest on, so would you like to have my sleeping bag? Don't worry," I added, "I've got another one myself." He didn't respond, but instead smiled slightly and accepted my sleeping bag.

Strange. Most Hylians were quite open, so it was unusual to see such shyness, especially in a bustling place like Kara Kara Bazaar. "Oh well. Maybe he doesn't like talking to people." I thought to myself. With that situation out of the way, I decided to spend the night further apart from the mountain of people huddled around the campfire. Sure, it was colder, but a little but of space would help me think.

The stranger set up the sleeping bag a few meters apart from me, and handed me a small piece of what looked like a loaf of bread. 

"What is this?"

"Nutcake. I picked it up from Rito Village." His voice sounded like a golden waterfall. It was perfect. It also sounded strikingly familiar, as if I'd heard it before. And all of a sudden, from the edge of my memories, I remembered something, but it faded away just as I tried to grasp onto the thought. He began unpacking slowly unpacking his gear. I tucked myself under the blankets and shivered; it was getting chilly. I yawned and closed my eyes, the crackle of the campfire barely audible...

And suddenly, I realized who he was.

Link.

Author's Note: This was the first time ever writing Zelda fanfic of any type, so I borrowed a little help from music, the Gerudo Valley theme from OOT. *laughs* I hope you enjoyed this part cus it was really a TON of fun for me. I tried to imagine how seeing botw/Link from another person's perspective would be like and also had to revisit Kara Kara Bazaar from botw many times and stayed there for a couple of nights too. *laughs* Oh, and I forgot to save once and lost an entire paragraph of story... guess we'll never see that again.