Y'all Ever Find A Fic That Just Latches Onto Your Brain And Refuses To Let Go? I Have Definitely Spent

Adult Ryoji because he deserves to grow up but also I punted all my headcanons onto him

Ryoji ends up becoming a photographer after high school. I imagine he'd really enjoy photography actually, preserving special moments for people to remember. He's actually really good at getting people to genuinely smile too, so being a photographer would be perfect for him.

He also runs a moderately successful blog to share his photos (he uses way too many emojis.) The blog's fans are mostly people who think he's hot (I know I'm not good at making attractive characters but I'm doing my best) even though only like, 15% of the blog's content includes photos of himself. Still, he has fun with his blog, and likes to travel around a lot to see new places and meet new people. That's what the other 85% of the blog's content is, photos of places he's been. Not necessarily tourist destinations, though he definitely adores those, just places he thinks are beautiful. A nice sunset, or a peaceful view. Ryoji loves just.. preserving those moments.

He's a bit of a fashion disaster honestly, wears the loudest, brightest colors unless someone (usually Makoto or, if she's around, Yukari) tells him to go change into something more sensible. The scarf is a staple in every outfit though, he wouldn't be himself without it.

And finally, of course he still flirts with pretty much everyone. The only thing growing up did was help him learn to read the room, but even then he's kind of a menace.

Sometimes I think my therapist was very wrong and I do, in fact, have ADHD and maybe knowing that fact for certain and getting access to ways to manage it would help a lot actually.

"Oh *****'s such a gifted child, she's very smart and answers all the teacher's questions. There's no way something could possibly be different about her!"

Then the years go by and I get worse and worse in class as teachers start assigning homework and projects but it can't be any sort of neurodivergence because '***** was always such a smart child, she's clearly just not putting in the effort anymore.'

I barely take care of myself because doing things like brushing my teeth or taking a shower or cleaning my room don't... Make me feel accomplished in any way, they just make me feel like I wasted my time and now my mouth tastes like mint and I can't eat or I'm all cold and wet or my stuff is just going to get taken back out anyway. It's probably depression or an anxiety disorder, let's give her some medicine for that.

The medicine helps me with some mild mood swings, but those become a non-issue when I'm out of school and the effort put in driving to the pharmacy and refilling my prescription just isn't worth it anymore.

I should probably go to the doctor, the dentist, the optometrist, but I really don't feel like scheduling an appointment right now, it can wait until my schedule's more free. Then my schedule gets more free and I forget because I always do unless the problem is right in front of me. There's a crack in the ceiling of my room that I should probably tell my parents about but I kept forgetting until my dad walked into my room and saw the crack himself.

Is something wrong with me? Or am I just lazy?

My therapist was probably right. I don't have ADHD, I'm just not putting in the effort.

Got these lads some better references! Not complete ones, but they're still pretty good.

Here are the 8 Links I'm planning on including! I have general characterization concepts for all the others, but they were being kinda annoying designs. I might include em as I continue to figure out this AU, but for now here's what I got!

Our very first hero! I don't really consider the SS prequel manga canon here so Sky's the very first holder of the Hero's spirit. He's a very kind soul, protective of those he cares for and holding the endless determination and courage of any hero.

After the end of Skyward Sword, Sky's taken up a bit of an 'ambassador to the surface' type role, educating those who've come down with while Zelda spends as much time as she can with her family on Skyloft. Though the scars from his fight with Demise still twinge, Sky's happy to move forward with his life on the surface.

Minish is our youngest member, but that doesn't mean you can underestimate him. Minish is quiet, playful, and endlessly curious. He's the best spy this chain has, able to shrink down to the size of a mouse and be completely invisible to everyone but fellow children.

After saving Zelda from being encased in stone and having her light force drained, Minish simply seeks to spend his time enjoying his childhood with his best friend and learning to forge a sword as good as the four sword.

Mask is our resident angst, his life has been far too hard. Mask is mysterious, closed off, and talented. With the body of a teenager and the mind of a young adult, this lad has plenty of tricks up his sleeve.

Resuming his travels after Termina, Mask finds himself looking for somewhere to belong. He's travelled to Labrynna, Holodrum, Koradai, and yet the only place he really felt any sense of family remains in that strange war with Tune and Captain. Perhaps, someday, he'll find his way back to them.

Tune's our resident navigator! He can read and create maps and starcharts like no other, plus he knows his way around a boat. Despite the more pirat-y aesthetic, Tune's really a sweetheart. Sure, he enjoys finding abandoned treasure and sailing, but he's hardly a ruthless bounty hunter or thief. He just loves meeting people, and wants to help anywhere he can. A trait practically required for the hero life.

After his adventures, Tune's living a life of travel on the Great Sea. He has his own boat, but broadly he sails with Tetra, the two finding buried treasures from Hyrule. He's always had that itch to go somewhere, to do something, and maybe he's about to get exactly what he wants.

Wolf's a bit of a mysterious edgy man himself, but this time it's all appearances. Our resident furry is just a big huggable rancher with a protective streak when it comes to his family. He's amazing with animals, and with the help of a certain amazing nose, he can track basically anything.

I'm diverging from canon a lot here. Midna's never shattered the mirror of twilight in this universe, she's just not around in the light world because it would hurt to be anything more than a shadow there. Instead, after their adventure Wolf and her hang out frequently. Wolf's pretty content with his lot in life, he's got his family, his home, and his best friend. Really, what more could he ask for?

Unabashed favorite character alert, Four's a bit of an asshole. Like, they're very heroic and frankly, often right, but they've still got an arrogance problem. They're fiercely loyal and incredibly smart, and will take the role as supposed leader because frankly, no one else wants the title.

After returning the Four Sword with Vaati and Ganon completely obliterated, Four's gone back to their life as a knight. There's still a fierce purple ache in their chest for a certain Shadow, but the teal confidence easily shoves that to the side in favor of being the perfect warrior. Now, Four's rising through the ranks of Hyrule's guard, ready for whatever challenge comes next.

Wild fits their name very well. They're quick to explore every mountain and valley, loot every chest, and find every korok. Incredibly different from the Link from before the Calamity, they share memories but not so much experiences. Wild is the best archer in the group, even without their champion ability.

I can't quite decide whether I want Wild to be pre or post TOTK, but it doesn't make too terribly much of a difference. After his adventure he continues to explore Hyrule and the lands beyond it. He's verrryyy close with his Zelda, and the two like to do a bit of mad science with Purah every so often. He's happy with his new lease in life, but if the chance comes to explore something new? Well, Wild's definitely going to take it.

Cap's here! And he's a bit of a mess. Traumatized from his fights with Cia and Dark Link, Captain has trouble being confident in himself at all anymore. He's always been naturally confident, but ever since that first battle with Dark, Captain's been suppressing that part of himself. He's a very skilled leader and tactician, with the most experience working with a large group.

After the war Captain.. didn't really know what to do with himself. His friends had left, and there was no longer anything to fight against. He decided to dedicate himself to being a guard, but he still felt a little empty. He's never really moved on from the events of the war, but maybe soon he'll return to some old friends.

Plus, for Storm, my LU OC, they'd end up a cat. Very snarky, very cat. Because I will never give up on self inserts because I don't care if it's cringe.

My headcanons for what each link would become when exposed to the shard of twilight/to the dark world and why.

Skyward sword Link (sky): straight up puppy. He's a very friendly, sociable, and loyal Link. Maybe more like a golden retriever

Minish cap Link (minish): Mouse! Very tiny mouse. I think he's generally pretty shy, cautious, so a small rodent would make a lot of sense.

Ocarina of Time/Majora's mask (time): Canon wolf.

ALTTP, Oracles, & Link's awakening (legend): Canon bunny

LoZ I and II (Hyrule): I don't really know em that much but I think dog, maybe even Retriever, like Sky. Mostly based off LU.

Twilight princess (twilight): canon wolf

Four swords adventures: Rats! Since they're very social, could split into a rat pack. Rats can have a very wide range of personalities, like most other pets, but I think they fit Shadow Link a bit more, so by default I go rat.

Wind waker & phantom hourglass(wind): Frog, because I want them to be able to handle both land and water.

Spirit tracks: I got no clue I never played that.

Hyrule warriors (warriors): cat. Very pretty, very opinionated. Will tell you if you're annoying them.

Age of Calamity (Champion, different from post-memory wipe Link): A dog. But now, a very specifically trained dog, like a German shepherd.

Breath of the wild & tears of the kingdom: They're a blupee. If you'd prefer a real animal, a mischievous little rat. But I prefer blupee because he is very much a little blue guy that runs around the forest

Some very important additions, I had no idea that conversation with Pharos existed but I actually adore it and think they really should've had Pharos interact with more of the main cast actually, he's such a little guy™

I need more people to write Aigis and Ryoji as friends, post-game or in some canon divergence au. They are made to be opposing forces, to clash for the fate of the world, but the purpose designated for them by their creators is not the purpose they chose to follow. They become friends in both because and in spite of what they are, because who would better understand their struggles? Neither is truly human, but they are both people. People who doubt their own humanity. They validate each other's struggles in a way no one else could, before affirming that yes, you are a person, you worked so very hard to be a person and I recognize that struggle and say that it is ok if you don't understand all the nuances of humanity right away, I won't judge you, because I am the exact same way.

Yes, Aigis initially saw Ryoji as dangerous, and he was, but I want them to grow past that. I want them to be able to look back at their first clash and think about how much they've grown since then. I want them to tell each other that the fact that they feel remorse for the lives lost is a clear sign of their newfound empathy for others, and that yes it's difficult, grappling with those feelings, but they should face them head on for the sake of those lost lives. I want them to come to see the other as one of their closest friends, the one they can turn to whenever they need.

Aigis and Ryoji should be friends, because they chose to be more than the enemies they were when they first met.

Excuse me was I RIGHT ABOUT THERAPIST DARK?

Four Swords Returns Pages 445-447

The fun thing about Dark is questioning if he's being genuine and caring or just stating what he thinks is an obvious fact.

Looking for a LU fic! Please help. Four ends up stuck with Dink, and in a vein similar to Threats and theatrics by hrtruona has to pull off a big act of the colors fighting each other. Details may not be entirely accurate, but I really wanna find this fic

"That little kid didn't like anyone."

From the original fic that's acting as the basis for my AU, got a blog just about set up for it! @beyondthemirrorau

I really don't know peeps I'm comfy tagging soooooo

Last sentence tag game

RULES: Post the last sentence you wrote (fanfic / original / anything) and tag as many people as there are words in the sentence.

Thanks for the tags @mistresslrigtar and @dubiiousfood !! Here is what I have, from the next of the depths:

Losing his arm had been a shock, but the loss of his gear was devastating.

Tagging: @flutefemme @leiladebees @louwhose @cooking-with-hailstones @embyrinitalics @ladyhoneydee @hyylia @aurathian + anyone else who wants to play!

Excuse me this is genius lemme just writes down frantically

I'd love to see, like, a zelda/terraria fic where links newest incarnation or whatever gets spawned in as the player character. Maybe a specific Link?

Because terraria is absolutely chock full of enemies to fight, dungeons to loot, weapons to find or forge, people to save, quests to fill. And it'd be about link surviving all of this, working his way up to defeating the moon lord. Making friends, figuring out how to build, going fishing, gathering cool items, just generally a lot of stuff he could do before, yeah, but it'd be a nice change of pace. Maybe zelda can be there!! That'd be fun!

Heck, maybe it could be a sort of dream fish or eventide situation, where link wakes up with nothing but the clothes on his back and has to defeat the moon lord to break the barriers around the island that terraria takes place on. Maybe there's time dilation?

But it'd be a really interesting thing to imagine, all the different things link could do! Him strategising against invading armies like in hyrule warriors/aoc, him delving into the mines to gather materials like totk, finding npcs and inviting them home to keep them safe and building a whole community (totk/botw), practicing sword forms with the increasingly extra and flashy swords, small blonde elf putting on his armour to face giant new bosses. WINGS!! Him working with summons and archery and giant shoulder mounted cannons XD.

Ooh, what if it was the whole chain in terraria?? And hylia gave them a break for enrichment XD.

Basically it's a random idea but wouldn't it be cool to give link cool glowy swords and wings and armour?? And he could run on water???