Link probably was luckier than most people give him credit for.
On paper, he might be just another orphaned tragedy, a child torn too soon from his family...but if one really is honest, Link wasn't alone.
He never was.
He might have lost a lot, but he gained just as much.
...and his phone was vibrating storm again and the teenager pressed a tired hand to his temple to massage the incoming headache away before simply shutting the device off and turning over in his bed to look instead of the ceiling at the wall with the big poster showing a gigantic golden triangle. He knew he'd pay for that action dearly later but he couldn't deal with them right now, not after the last few days.
Because something was off.
He couldn't quite tell what it was however. It was kinda hard to pinpoint because he had no idea where to start following the breadcrumb trail of not quite right.
If he tried, it would probably start with the teenager he met on that damn rollercoaster. He didn't quite understand yet what had urged him that day to go to the fun fare because things are kinda fuzzy that day up to that point. Not even his A.I.s could help him in that aspect unfortunately.
Maybe someone at school had drugged him?
Possible, but unlikely.
As unlikely as a zoo break out simultaneously?
An alarm went off next to him and Link startled, nearly knocking the clock off the nightstand. He jumped to catch it, blinking at his uncharacteristically good reflexes.
Huh, seems like he spend a better night's sleep than expected.
If he were a bit bolder he might say it was main character energy he gave off that morning but he refused to give it off or even admit it because he quite liked his calm lifestyle. He might like the stories given in video games but he really didn't feel like living through one, no thank you.
The note taped onto the clock brought a smile onto his face: "Now don't get lost in your head, little rainbow. You might be late to school ;-)"
Right, school. That boring establishment still existed where mostly useless knowledge is given to sort children into categories as to show them future career options or ruin them. As if some people didn't already know what they wanted to do and now had to wait years to finally pick that option because they needed a certain degree to enter.
Like an unskippable tutorial in a videogame one had to ace or they'd be stuck as an NPC instead of the main character of their own story.
A bit like Kathy, Link realized. She definitely aced her tutorial. But instead of studying at university as she'd always dreamed off, she chose to become a nurse and a foster parent.
Basically a self sacrificing NPC.
Especially considering who likely caused her to do such.
A bit of guilt creeped up. He often took his big sister figure for too granted. She gave so much after hearing about his fate.
School is important, he knew. She reminded him of it often even if it wasn't by word but just her example. He shouldn't disappoint her.
Stretching, he hurried into the bathroom in his mismatched pajamas. A quick teeth brushing later it was his hair's turn to be brushed before his signature green hairband was put into place.
Nodding satisfied, he hurried to his wardrobe to pull out a random jeans and T-Shirt before putting his favorite multicolored hoodie over it. Then he grabbed his already packed bag pack and hurried into the kitchen, raiding the fridge for his breakfast sandwich and the lunchbox Kathy had carefully prepared the evening before.
Sitting at the table, he started eating, headache subsided enough and back on schedule to deal with them.
Powering his phone up, the reaction was immediate.
"What the heck were you thinking?! Why did you shut us down?!" the most temperamental of his A.I.s wrote immediately, the blue speech bubble extra big.
A crying smiley clad in a red speech bubble popped up after the call out message and Link winced. He knew the four A.I.s wouldn't be happy, but he hadn't expected it to be that bad.
A link was send to a quote that wrote "Explain yourself" in a violet speech bubble, small but obviously heavily judging in context.
Link sighed: "...I'm sorry guys...I just...I woke up with a bad headache and your continued arguing kinda only intensified it. You were constantly vibrating…"
The phone remained silent for a moment, then a green bubble popped up, requesting text to speech. Link pressed allow.
A sigh, always freakishly similar to his own sounded, the voice based on his own soon ringing through mechanically: "... it's okay, Link. We get that you are overwhelmed sometimes. We are sorry for arguing, too."
Link offered his phone a weak smile. "...thanks guys."
A red speech bubble popped up, within a smiley of two people hugging.
That weak smile widened, and the teenager continued eating, soon chatting with his colorful A I.s that were quick to forgive him.
Maybe it made Link a bit weird that he preferred the artificial company to everyone else's - except for Kathy - but he couldn't bring himself to care.
He couldn't remember his father or grandfather well...but he remembered that his grandfather was the one to teach him everything he knew now. He remembered the old man dying and being by his bedside…
And then, probably in his grief misted mind things go a little fuzzy. Well, fuzzier because Link wasn't good at remembering his childhood.
But apparently his father died too if the records were to be believed and Link ended up in foster care. The reason why he couldn't remember details was apparently trauma.
And from there on he was passed around like a troubled kid because they couldn't deal with him properly. Or so they said.
Though that's not the real reason, it's not his fault some of them covered up illegal activities or decided to have kids themselves whether biological or by adoption and thus stopped being fosters one way or another.
He met Kathy shortly after the fostering started and the two hit off immediately. And while he was passed around like in a game of hot potato, the homes blurring together, she changed her whole life determined to get him out of his circle of misery by becoming a foster herself.
And after two years, she did. And since the children's services were running out of foster homes to stuff him into, they decided to give Kathy's application a shot. And it worked out perfectly fine.
And yet... something felt off. After this phase of happiness, Link kept on his toes because this was almost too good to be true.
The amusement park incident only proved it, too.
Especially because not even his A.I.s could entirely pinpoint how they all got there.
It was weird and very suspicious.
Another alarm went off by the door and Link startled before realizing it was time to catch his bus. Packing in the lunch, he grabbed his phone and ran, a smile reappearing as he noticed the note on the second alarm clock: "Don't get lost in your daydreaming, or you'll be late for school. Have a great day! I'll pick you up today."
"Thanks, sis" Link muttered, taking his keys and locking the door to the flat behind him. Then he sprinted to the bus stop.
The bus ride was uneventful but entering school, Link realized it wouldn't be as easy.
A bully Link never bothered to remember the name of was picking on one of the freshmen again. He could feel the phone vibrate in his hoodie's pocket, the camera of it angled so his A.I.s could watch his life. Link didn't need to check to know it was probably a quote warning him to chose the path of least resistance.
Too bad he wasn't in the mood for it.
"Hey muscle man, chose someone your own age to pick on if you must!" Link called out, drawing the jock's attention.
"Stay out of it, nerd!" the guy replied, knocking the young redhead's glasses askew, the poor teenager trembling.
"How about doing your own homework instead of forcing a random kid to do it and using that dusty brain of yours for good for once?!" Link shot back, unyielding. With his smaller frame he had no chance in wrestling in a one on one to free the younger student but words were a weapon he wielded too well.
"Dusty?!" the bully snarled, dropping the underclassman. "You're dead meat, shorty!"
"Gotta catch me for that first!" Link gave out and booked it, the jock giving chase, disadvantaged at the crowd of students whereas Link easily slipped through, unconcerned about the threat in his neck as opposed to his A.I.s.
"...if he smashes us again, Blue will be having words with you" the A.I. warned quietly to not disturb Link's run.
"He doesn't have his lackeys this time" Link pointed out instead. "We'll be fine."
"... Link, last time we weren't all fine" the talking A.I. continued and Link bit his lip as a bit of guilt rose up again.
Squeezing into a small spot the bully ran past not noticing Link, the teenager sighed and closed his eyes.
Yes, last time which was a few years ago all that were meant to be fine originally were fine.
The exception was the virus that had made quite the mess out of his A.I., breaking one into four less able ones before trying to corrupt the now only part able to access the internet. However, that part of the A.I. had instead tricked the virus and given it a mind of it's own, at which it was redeemed into a dorky A.I. that was able to talk in gifs.
And when the phone had been broken, that particular one had unfortunately been unable to be recovered because originally it never had been meant to be on his phone or any phone in the first place.
"I know" Link mumbled. "I'm sorry, okay? I had no idea…"
"We know" the A.I. interrupted, sounding almost pained by the topic, talking for it's siblings, too. "We're sorry too."
Green then remained quiet.
The four, in the past five, had uncreatively decided to name themselves after the characters in a manga they had found in Link's browse history a few years ago, their names truly oddly fitting, especially after the loss.
Link sighed, then pushed himself out of his hiding place. "...we gotta go to class" he mumbled, his phone vibrating, signaling his A.I.s talking to each other in their own way of chatting Link couldn't understand.
"Please be quiet or you might get taken away again" Link added and the phone silenced it's vibration.
"Thank you" he uttered and entered class at last.
oOo
"...so…how long do you think we need to stare at that hospital until she comes out? We've been here since way too early" Wind mumbled sleepily, firmly cuddles into Warriors' scarf by his side as the elder used his superior position on the roof they huddled on to keep a keen eye on the entrance to the building.
"I'm not sure how long this shift will take" Warriors replied to that. But it couldn't be too long because they've been here since dawn. Right. Right???
Wrong.
After a nap, Wind awoke and realized it was around mid-day. What kind of work times were that?
"Did she come out yet?"
A sigh, a shake of his head. Warriors looked exhausted. "...maybe she lives there? In the basement or something?" Was that possible for this world's rights?
Wind sighed, stomach grumbling in protest at having skipped Wild's breakfast to be here with Warriors at way too early am in hope of catching the suspicious nurse once she left for home.
But...he needed to be strong. He told Four to succumb to this world's spell. He needed to get his friend back and fix his mistake.
Warriors shot the younger hero a look, having heard the youngest Link's bodily protest. "...they seem to sell food in there...maybe we can use that card Babble's Zelda gave us for something different than just a vehicle...she did say we could use it for anything."
"...I still think the two wheeled thing we're using is a death trap" Wind revealed. "Even if Wild does use a similar one."
"Did the medicine Impi gave you at least help?" Warriors easily shifted into concerned older brother mode. Wind didn't seem to mind that repeat of a tidbit of the War of Ages.
"Yeah...I'm not in need of throwing up any- wait! There she is!" The young pirate cut off immediately, pointing excited when spotting a familiar dark head of hair.
Warriors nodded, his older brother senses proud of the teenager: "Good observation, sailor. Let's not let her get away."
"Aye-aye" Wind replied, quickly scrambling down the roof with a dexterity learned through climbing a ship even during storms.
oOo
School was... uneventful. Highly so.
Except maybe for a history pop quiz that was decently easy.
Link yawned as he left the building, his phone vibrating softly in his pocket, the four A.I.s within chatting with each other again. Stretching, the small student casts a glance around to try and see if he could catch sight of Kathy or her car.
With a smile he soon did, seeing her energetic waving, the dark circles under her eyes underlined by a bright smile that appeared the moment she caught sight of him. He beamed right back in happiness at seeing her before hurrying towards her.
But suddenly he froze, the feeling of being watched overwhelmingly strong. He cast a look around, trying to catch his stalker but only saw other teenagers reuniting with the family that chose to pick them up on the school's parking lot.
Two mothers were hugging their son.
A dad was patting his daughter's shoulder as he guides her to his car, the girl red faced as she was embarrassed by her dorky father who was making dad jokes at her.
A teenager clad in blue was protesting against his hair getting ruffled by his older brother, the elder leaning on the steering of his motorcycle. As if sensing Link's gaze, he looked up and the colorful teenager quickly looked away, caught.
He still was feeling watched... probably now rightfully so as he had stared and the older brother now stared right back.
Link quickly shuffled to Kathy's car and sat down, pulling his hood up, slightly uncomfortable, a feeling of familiarity he didn't know how to place overcoming him.
A hand on his shoulder snapped him out of his spiraling thoughts however. The brunette in the driver's seat looked at him worried: "Are you okay?"
"...yeah. Had a pop quiz in history. I'm a bit nervous" Link half lied.
His older sister figure looked a bit reassured. "Don't worry, little rainbow" she stated, starting the car's engine. "You're good at history. And even if you fail, I believe you can catch up easily. It's just a pop quiz."
That's Kathy. Always supporting, not judging. She believed in him.
"Yeah" Link felt warmed by the unyielding trust she had in him. "I hope so too."
Should he tell her about the weird feeling he's been having?
As if sensing he still had darker thoughts, Kathy offered a happy smile: "I made Lasagna for dinner. And there's a surprise for dessert."
"Something chocolate?" Link asked, a genuine smile sneaking on his lips, the dark thoughts fading.
"You know it" a happy chuckle.
"You spoil me, sis" Link uttered, eyes sparkling in delight. "What's the occasion?"
"Am I not allowed to spoil my little bro?" She's grinning and Link found himself grinning widely too.
"Nope! Not when I can't spoil you back. You already do so much" Link replied half sincere, half fun and games.
Kathy made a thoughtful sound. "...how about you bake something this weekend and we'll call it square?"
Baking, one of Link's minor hobbies and something both had a sweet tooth for.
"Deal" Link stated, determined to make a great cake this time for the two of them. Or cupcakes. Or both. Or just anything tasty. He wasn't too picky.
Baking helped his darker thoughts. Like how he hid something now from the person he trusted most.
He tried not to feel too guilty but failed.
The cake was going to get big this time, definitely.