Claustrophobia

Part 8

As they passed underneath the arcing sign of Kakariko Village, Twilight still had not come up with a plan to keep Wild from leaving. Some of his ill-fated strategies included holding him down and tying him up. Bribing him. Challenging him to a duel. Begging him.

The bigger thought was simply... letting him go. The kid could take care of himself. With or without memories, he was still a force to be reckon with. Twilight could not spend his days chasing after someone who didn't want to stay. Wild also had a good point: was it wise to force him to remember something so immensely traumatic? It broke him once, it could break him again.

But what would Twilight tell his Zelda? Oopsie-daisy, we lost him?

They entered the village. Twilight scanned the area, looking for his companions. There were children running around, men and women in Sheikah clothing doing everyday activities, and a couple of tourists enjoying themselves. His friends were nowhere in sight.

"Ah, perfect," said Wild. He was looking at an inn sitting right next to the entrance of the village. "I can drop you off here."

He had no plan, he had no plan, he had no plan. What the hell was he going to do?

They entered the warm and welcoming inn. The empty front desk had a sign telling patrons they will be back in a few minutes. Wild helped Twilight over to the nearest seat, sat him down gently and took a step back.

"There," he said. "Now we're done. Have a nice day."

Twilight reached out and grasped his wrist. "Wait, wait. Don't go."

Wild sighed. "Look man, this was our agreement."

"I know. But we're brothers. I can't just sit here and watch you walk away forever. It doesn't feel right."

"Feels right to me."

"I-"

"If it's meant to be, we'll meet again. Yeah? Let the gods decide."

With that, he pulled his arm out of Twilight's weak grasp and turned for the door. He slid it opened. Standing on the other side, blocking the way, was Time.

Surprised by the sudden appearance of a broad chest in his face, Wild took a step back. "Oh, excuse me-"

Time swooped down and pulled him into a hug. "It's good to see you kid," he said gently. "You gave us a scare back there but I'm glad to see you're safe."

Wild stiffened in his arms. "What...?" With a grunt he shoved himself back, his hand instinctively going for the Sheikah Slate on his hip. It was gone. Wild gasped. He patted himself down like he'd lost a set of keys instead of large magical item when realization hit. He twirled towards Twilight, his eyes flashing in accusation.

Twilight had filched the slate right before they entered the village. He wasn't proud by what he did but he was not about to let Wild disappear on him again. At the moment the slate sat safely in the giant potted plant by the door. "Time," he said. "Don't let him leave."

Had any other Hero heard that, they would've hesitated or waste precious seconds asking questions. Time was too experienced for that. Once he heard Twilight's command, his expression turned serious. He reached behind him, sliding the door shut.

"Bastard," Wild hissed at Twilight. He backed away. "You planned this from the beginning!"

"You need help," said Twilight.

"I should've left you in the damn forest like the animal you are!" He turned to Time. "Get the hell out of my way!"

Time was not at all intimidated. "I don't know what's going on, but clearly there's things we need to work out."

Wild pulled his sword. The blade was clearly old, with scratches marring the surface and chunks missing from the edge. It was a piss poor weapon that would shatter after a few uses. Still, a shitty weapon was better than no weapon at all.

In this peaceful village Time dressed casually. He wore no armor, carried no weapons, nor was there a single blade strapped to a boot or thigh. He was unarmed against a very angry Champion. Despite this, he stepped forward, his fists curling in challenge. "Put down the weapon," he said in a deadly calm. "I will not ask twice."

"Wild, we don't need to fight!" Twilight urged. "Put down the sword and we can talk about this!"

"You've already lied to me about your intentions before!" said Wild. "So you can go fuck yourself."

Just as Wild raised the sword, his legs tensing to charge, the door behind Time slid open again.

It was Wind. He wasn't wearing his usual sailor garments. He was dressed in the same clothing as the local children; he had on a white puffy jacket with red sashes around his torso.

He began saying, "Hey Time, Legend wants to know if you-" and stopped. He stared at everyone. Everyone stared at him. Either Wind chose not to read the room or sorely misunderstood the situation because a great big smile spread across his face.

"Wild!" He boomed out, and he ran across the room like the excitable fourteen year old he was, throwing himself at Wild, his arms wrapping around him. "We've all been so worried!"

Wild jerked like he'd been slapped. He didn't seem to know if he wanted to push the kid away or move back himself. He still held the sword high, his arm trembling from the sheer effort of it.

"Oh!" Wind gasped. "I should grab the others, they've been worried sick as well! I'll be right back!"

As quickly as he came, he ran out, yelling for the others to come and see.

There was a look on Wild's face Twilight could not comprehend. He appeared stunned, like someone had told him he'd been naked this entire time and never noticed. He slowly lowered his sword, his shoulders going limp.

He turned to Twilight. "Is he my brother as well?"

"We all are."

He looked over to Time. "Even him?"

"Yes."

"Great," said Wild. He dropped his sword. "What a shit way to find out my mom's a whore."