Chapter Text
Looking out at Hyrule Field, Twilight doesn't like what he sees. Monsters, their numbers larger then the ranch hand has ever seen before, sit camped in the grassy area. From his place atop a ridge between Kakariko settlement and the open area, the Ordonian can smell the smoke from the countless fires the beasts have made to stave off the chill of the night.
Beside him, Wind swears, words far more vulgar than any thirteen year old should know slipping softly into the night. Despite the choice of language, Twilight cant help but agree with the sentiment.
"Have you ever seen something like this?" Time asks, the one-eyed hero's voice quiet in the dark.
Twilight shakes his head.
"No. Hyrule Field has always been a hot spot for monster activity - ambushes, the sporadic raid. It was worse during my journey, but nothing like this. This almost looks like-"
"An invasion." Warriors finishes with grim certainty.
"Do you think Dusk knows?" Hyrule asks from the back of the group where he and Wild stand guard.
Thinking about his era's Zelda, Twilight would be surprised if the Princess didn't know.
"Probably," he says after a moment.
"That's not the same thing as a yes," Legend points out.
"You could send her a letter?" Four suggests, creeping forwards to look down at the field and collective monsters. "Though," they say after a moment, "I'm not sure if any postman would be willing to try to get through that."
The rancher looks back down at the horde below them and considers some of the uncanny and downright dangerous places the postman had delivered letters to in the course of his journey, and concludes at the odds of successfully getting a letter to Dusk are, at worst, 50/50.
"It's worth a shot."
"And then what?" Warriors asks. "She gets the letter, warning her about something she most likely already knows about, and we- what? Fight our way to her?" The Captain points to the fires dotting Hyrule Field. "That's an army, and Dusk has an army of her own. If her forces haven't been able to push theirs back at least a little bit, then the nine of us -skilled fighters though we are- will not make the difference."
Before sour despair brought on by the Captain's frank assessment can take root in the ranchers stomach, Time places a hand on Twilights shoulder.
"We're getting ahead of ourselves. Lets write that letter first, then we can worry when the time comes."
Looking up at his ancestor, Twilight nods and the chain of heroes begins the slow walk back to Kakariko village.
The town, as usual, is mostly deserted and made to feel even more empty by the late hour that they arrive. But the inn has room, and when the Ordonian descends the stairs -letter in hand- the woman behind the counter is happy to point him in the direction of the postman. When he finally pulls his boots off and collapses into bed, the letter handed off to an almost worryingly determined postman after hearing the indented recipient, Twilight falls asleep almost instantly.
The sun beats down against his neck, harsh in a way that no other place in Hyrule can match on even the clearest summer days. All around him, the desert sands stretch out in an unforgiving golden ocean, and underfoot the surface makes him fight for every step. It is not a place for fragile things or easy comforts, but in spite of the sound of shattering glass and gutting heart ache that the wind sweeps across the sand, there is also the strange sense of home.
Between one step and the next, an oasis appears, and Twilight gladly crosses the distance and sinks his hands into the clear water, relishing the coolness when he raises his cupped palms and drinks his fill.
"You are back," a heavily accented voice says from behind him, and Twilight turns to face a woman with dark skin and fiery hair, the likes of which he had never seen on another person besides himself until his first time in the desert.
He takes her in; the strait slant of her prominent nose and the single piercing that adorns a nostril, and large golden eyes set under thick red brows. The desert is not a place for delicate things, and her wide shoulders and towering height are testament to that fact. She is like the desert itself, will make him fight for every step he may take against her, and inexplicably reminiscent of home.
Twilight blinks up at her, and her green painted lips pull into a smile.
"You have been gone for a long time. Something has come again to our land that does not belong." She narrows her eyes and tilts her head, smile growing sharp as her eyes rake over the ranchers form. "But you already know that."
She shakes her head and sighs deeply, lowering herself to the oasis edge, gazing out at where a sandstorm rages. In its swirling depths, lightning cracks, illuminating hulking shadows that twist and jump like beasts in battle.
"It is different this time. You have gone alone to places not even the sun can see, but one grain is not a storm," she says after a moment, "It is your desert, and her sands are yours to command. But will you, I wonder?"
She looks at him, deep and observing, and for the first time Twilight is aware that he is expected to respond. He clears his throat and the words spring to his lips without thought.
"Where do do I find them?"
The woman beams, his question apparently the right one to say.
"You know where," she laughs. "Come find you grains of sand, my Chief. Your storm will be waiting."
He opens his mouth to respond, when a loud crash makes him jump. Twilight rolls off his bed in a tangle of sheets, landing on the floor with a thump. In the dim light of morning, Hyrule apologizes for the noise and twilight slowly extracts himself from the bedding, all the while wondering what exactly his dream was about.
After a quick breakfast, Twilight concedes to a brief tour of the village. It is a subdued affair, in part because of the general state of the town - the combination of people lost and of those who fled and have yet to return apparent with every still boarded building. Some have made a come back, and its good to see the planks of wood taken down and doors thrown open again, but it still makes for a sobering sight. But even the state of the village on it's own isn't enough to claim the full cause of the usually rambunctious groups quiet air. The memory of the fires that littered Hyrule Field looms large in all of their minds.
Afterwards, the group splits up - some off to explore the shops, while an handful of the others decide to go back to the inn and hot spring. Time and Warriors, not content to spend time idle, make their way to Renado, hoping the elder might be able to provide some information.
Twilight means to join them, really he does, but when he gets to the round house at the front of the village his feet carry him past it and to the spring of light. The memory of his dream swirls round his mind, and the longer he thinks over it, the less certain he becomes. He doesn't notice that another person has joined him in the shallows until a hand ruffles his hair. The rancher starts at the contact, glaring as Sky once his heart returns to normal and combs his red locks back into place with his fingers. Sky smiles back, unabashed.
"Rupee for your thoughts?" the Skyloftian asks, and Twilight sighs.
"A rupee might not be enough, and you don't have that kind of money."
"Maybe not, but I am a good listener."
Looking down at the water, the rancher's reflection stares back at him; blue eyes and red hair highlight his troubled face. After a few moments, Twilight speaks.
"What worries you more, a dream you don't understand or the dream that you do?"
Beside him, Sky goes still and Twilight looks over at his friend. After a few moments, the knight responds slowly.
"It would depend on the dream."
After a second of consideration, Twilight laughs softly.
"That's fair,"
Sky relaxes slightly, bending over to retrieve a stone from the water.
"So, you had a dream?" the blonde asks casually.
"Yeah, and I can't figure out if it makes perfect sense or none at all."
Sky runs his thumb over the stone in his hand.
"Its been my experience that if it feels important, it probably is."
"That's what I'm afraid of,"
The two lapse into silence, the sound of the spring filling the air. It's peaceful, and surrounded by the calm water, Twilight is able to put his thoughts away for a moment.
"HEEEY!!!"
The sound pierces the quiet, and Sky and Twilight turn towards the main road. There, his flag torn and the white uniform spattered with dirt and other stains, jogs the Postman. He runs up to Twilight. Up close, the Ordonian spots a missing tooth when the man grins and hands over a pristine envelope. The Rancher takes the letter with wide eyes, unable to look away from the man before him and the two arrows sticking out of his cap. The longer he looks, the less he wants to know how some of the stains found their way onto the delivery man.
At a loss for anything better to say, Twilight stammers out the first thing that comes to mind.
"That was fast,"
"I take my job seriously," the Postman says with pride, puffing up his chest. "Do you need anything else delivered?"
"No, that was it." Sky chokes out, voice strained.
"Then I am off!"
With that declaration, the Postman touches hid fingers to the brim of his shako in a brusque salute, and turns away at a jog back down the road. The two heroes watch him go until he is out of sight, before turning to look at each other.
"I guess Dusk got your letter."
"Yeah," Twilight agrees, turning the Princesses response over in his hands. "I just wonder what she has to say."