The Gemini Twins - Together Forever

When myths become reality

Okok hear me out, boatem knights au but mumbo has a rocket launcher

Every single time I see a take that amounts to "if you write about X happening, or like fiction where X happens, you like X" I'm reminded of this one time I was at a casual friends house as a young kid. We were in her room, pretending to "be orphans" escaping from an evil orphanage and having to take care of each other and fend for ourselves. It was all very Little Orphan Annie/All Dogs Go to Heaven and based on the 80s pop media.

And this girl's mom comes in, hears what we're playing and gets all MAD and UPSET. She says that if we play act something, it's because we want it to happen. So her daughter must WANT HER TO DIE.

First off lady, we were 6 year year olds, so take it down several notches. We barely had a concept of mortality for fucks sake. She made us feel so guilty and ashamed, because she was taking our game personally.

Now I have a 5 year old. And sometimes she looks at me and says "pretend you're dead, and I have to -" Whatever it is. Some adult task she's assigned herself.

And it's just so transparently obvious that she's practicing the idea of having to do things on her own. Which is exactly what 5 year olds are supposed to do. I actually find it very flattering that the only way she can envision me not being available to help her is to be literally deceased. Otherwise, obviously, she wouldn't have to do scary hard things alone.

It's a natural coping mechanism. She's self-soothing about what would happen if I wasn't there by play-acting independence in a perfectly safe environment. She's also practicing skills she needs, and making up excuses for practicing them on her own, without taking on the responsibility of being able to do them by herself all the time yet.

Humans mentally rehearse bad this in their brains all the time. We can do that by ruminating- going over worries over and over again, which tends to lead to anxiety and helplessness and depression. Or we can do it with a sense of play- by recognizing that the fiction is fiction and we can dip our toe into these experiences and expose ourselves to bad things without actually being injured.

My daughter does not want me dead. And I don't want bad things to happen in real life. But fiction and pretend help me face the horrors of the world and think about them without collapsing or messing myself up mentally.

How about All Downhill from Here?

All Downhill from Here-

Four centric~ He experiences fun(damentally miserable) times with snowy hills

---------------------------

“-ur! Four you have to move-”

Wild’s voice pierced louder than all the rest, a scream shrill enough to slice through the snowstorm and jab the words like knives into Four’s throbbing skull. “SHIELD! GET ON A SHIELD!” 

Four -GreenRedamuddyblurofthemall- gasped, tumbling helplessly, every weakening grab for the shield knocked askew as the ringing in his ears grew louder. Something struck his head, sending the world whiting out, and his body jolted, tugged about, a senseless cacophony of roaring snow and metallic buzzing and his own panting breaths, echoing oddly. His skin tingled in the freezing air, head lolling as the roar quietened and the ambient sounds became slowly clearer, a soft keen escaping his lips as everything tipped and the dizziness returned. 

Then, through the loud, jumbled confusion of the Colors, a voice came into focus, speaking quickly and quietly. “-okay, I got you, Four. We’re going to be alright.” That was… Twilight, he slowly parsed, groaning as they lurched and his head lolled where it was drooped bonelessly over… an arm, the hands clutching him to Twi’s chest tightening.

“Don’t move, Four, I’m not- holy shit that was close- as ahaha-” and that sounded a little unhinged Blue-Vio-urk noted blearily “-good at this as Wild is,” Twilight rambled, something very nervous and very strained in his voice, the sound of grinding continuing. Four’s ear flicked at the annoying sound, the motion lost in the cold shuddering of his frame, wind nipping relentlessly through his thin clothes. 

“Cn’t st-stop shivering,” Four managed quietly, all too happy not to move otherwise as everything spun and spun and spun-

‘-our? Four?” Twilight sounded distinctly panicked now, and the taller hero shook him slightly, drawing a weak moan as the jostling kept him from the quiet, dark stillness. “Sorry, sorry, but no, no Four open your eyes, tell me what you see,” Twilight coaxed, as if Four couldn’t, even in his current state, pick out the rampant worry in his voice. 

‘S dark,” he murmured wearily, head lolling back and forth as they… swerved?. “Colors… bleeding ‘tghtr.” 

“You’re bleeding?” Twi’s voice sharpened, commanding now. “Four, no, open your eyes!” 

He- oh, yes, hm. Four slitted his eyes open, giving a soft hum at the just… whiteness there. A slow blink did nothing but add further pale shades. “S white,” he slurred, unimpressed. Twilight spoke again, too quickly this time for Four to understand the words as anything more than a lilting rise and fall of tonality, and he continued to stare as their surroundings became clearer, exposing a strange, alien landscape. Great icy pillars held aloft a sheet of frozen snow far above, the pale sky and growing blizzard visible through holes in the roof, openings marked by the thick fall of snowflakes whirling wildly beneath them. There was visibility down here, even if everything was white on pale on ice glazed stone. 

They were moving fast, and Twi wasn’t running-

“What- wait, what?” Four twitched, head twisting, only for Twilight to clutch him tighter as they both wobbled on the shield he was surfing down with Four in his arms holy shit-

He immediately grasped Twi’s shirt, curling in tighter, adrenaline spiking as pillars flashed past that would very much kill or maim them if they crashed, and then the word avalanche filtered through the panic and color-ridden whirl of his thoughts and that was even worse-

It had a very different feel to it then when Wild had first shown them down a gentle grassy slope, Four thought hysterically. Between the hiss of the shield on the ice and his own wavering hearing it was impossible to tell if the rumbling roar was only echoing off the snowy bilayer or if it was right behind them or if it was only his body trying to pass out once more. He was too afraid to crane around for fear he’d unbalance Twilight, who thankfully seemed to be better at out-shield surfing an avalanche down an icy obstacle ridden slope than Four certainly would have been. 

He’s pretty sure he’d be hylian mush somewhere back under the avalanche, actually. 

But Four was very used to ignoring reminders of his own mortality, and it was all too easy to let the fear slip away into the gentle fog permeating his mind, the Colors still a water-whorled blur within him even after a few faints, thoughts slippery and sluggish as molasses. “Okay,” he whispered shakily, lifting his heavy-weighted head and tucking it into Twi’s chest, light-headed and sick. He could trust the Ranchhand to keep them both alive, no matter how it itched that he was so useless. 

“I’ve got you, Smithy. I think we’re good, but I’m gonna keep going just to be safe-”

Four listened to Twi’s rambling assurances, shivering viciously with no way to get anything warmer on. Then all at once they passed under open sky once more, blinded by the snowstorm as the icy cover was left behind, any trace of the avalanche’s thundering lost all at once to the screaming wind. Four couldn’t see anything but white before he shielded his face in Twi’s shirt but the shield was still zipping along, spinning them once more as the ground dipped, his head going light as the inertia sent his equilibrium wobbling. 

The shield rocked violently beneath them, Twilight tensing up and leaning hard to stay atop it but next moment there was a slight jolt and a yelped curse. 

A distinct sense of being airborne, Twi curling around him. 

They hit rock hard ice and skidded along it, rolling and being ripped apart from one another, and then- free fall once more, Four’s lungs too frozen for a proper scream, and-

-------------------------

It was cold. Four’s body was all but convulsing as shudders wracked its freezing form, pulling him back to consciousness. He let out a soft sound of pain, so cold it hurt, trying to draw up the memory of what had happened- a portal, then… a landslide? No, Vio pushed, Blue-muddled and blearily pissed, an avalanche, and Twi had managed to shield surf them down the mountain and then… 

And then crashed? Gone over a ledge? Something sudden, Four knew that much, but the whole unbelievable scene was almost dreamlike, all a pale, confused blur. 

There was a whirl of panic in his mind, a sluggish consensus that he should really, really change into something warmer now. He unfurled in the snow slowly, getting a general bruised feedback from his body but too bitterly cold for anything more specific. He dragged his bag open with his teeth, layering the winter clothes over his tunic and leggings, pulling on a hat and gritting his teeth as he tugged off the pegasus boots to replace them with another layer of woolen socks and proper winter boots- gloves topped off the whole set, precautionary gear they’d all taken to carrying considering how seasons swapped between worlds. 

He couldn’t remember whose idea that had been, but he owed them a hug after all this was over with. 

Feeling warmer already, Four huddled into his knees once more, still shivering and sick from the portal, head spinning and thoughts a mess as the Colors tried to settle back in from the blender that was cross-dimensional travel. Then all at once the background wrongness finally focused in on the reason his sluggish mind had been grasping after since he’d woken up still in his light clothes, alone. 

Where was Twilight?

He dragged his head up to scope around, trying to force his fogged brain to work properly. All Four could currently make out was some rocks nearby and what looked to be a tundra, going by the plants poking through the snow and how flat it was past view. Still, he patted and kicked around him, just in case, heart sticking worriedly in his throat as no Twilight showed up in the heavy, wet snow nearby. Four squinted around, trying to gauge where he’d come from and where Twilight could have landed, getting up and wading determinedly through the deep snow at the foot of the cliff he’d fallen off towards what he thought to be farther uphill where they’d been separated while falling. He was a hair wobbly, the path behind him marked with multiplied body prints in the snow where he’d toppled over, and… 

Oh, damn.

Four looked around, hugging himself for warmth, absolutely lost for where he was in relation to where he’d woken in the snow and with no idea when he’d managed to get onto the tundra. He thought, maybe, those were boulders through the pale wreath of whirling snow, and was staggering his way over in hopes of finding the foothills again when he heard it-a howl, barely discernible from the wind, lilting through the air. It must be close, with how clear it was despite the snowfall was muffling things, and Four tried to call back, heart leaping at the thought of Twilight, of help when he so needed it, of Wolfie and any additional warmth. His voice broke in the cold, though, and he whistled instead, shrill and tremulous. There was another call, longer, and Four answered back, waiting. A few minutes passed before Twilight called out again for a pinpointing whistle, then-

Nothing. Four whistled again, gasping desperately as he stood uselessly watching the snow whirl around him, leaning on the rock to remain upright. His head was spinning again from overexerting himself while still suffering from the damned portal, balance completely shot, grappling for Red’s optimism instead of Vio’s knowledge of hypothermia and only running himself in whirling circles as he tried and failed to struggle through the baseless confusion miring his thoughts. A plan, he needed a plan, but trying to look at the facts was useless when they were meaningless to him right now, and Four was left standing helplessly, knowing he was rather screwed and utterly unable to wrangle himself together enough to figure out what to do about it but stand there, lost enough to feel tears burning behind his eyes. 

He had to find Twilight, who must have been injured to not have come to him right away, who could be passed out right now by his silence. He had to… do something, anything but get more lost or just sit and wait when Twi could need help. There was nothing wrong with him but his own brain being stupid and slow and useless, and he couldn’t wait for it to clear on its own like he usually did after the accursed portals messed badly with him. 

It… wasn’t the first time Four had been helplessly furious at his unlucky incompatibility with their only means of moving between worlds. 

He hauled himself up, driving forwards and whistling again desperately, determined to push his body until it gave out rather than sit and wait. He could rest when he passed out.   

But then, not too long before it would have come to that, a familiar silhouette blurred into view against all the white, head low and searching, trotting through the snow. Four shouted, waving his arms as he fell forward, scrambling for Wolfie. “Twilight! Over here!” Ears perked his way, the snow clumped figure running for him, a bark just legible through the storm. Four laughed, falling to his knees and then forward onto his hands, all but sobbing with relief, feeling about ready to faint now that the panic that had been all that was keeping his portal-wracked body up and moving was draining all at once for weak-limbed relief. 

There was an unhappy growl, and Four tried and failed to drag his head up, just this close to collapsing. “I’ll be alright, I jusneedamomen’-”

A too tight grip on his shoulder, padded by his coat, hauling him forward and onto his knees in a harsh tug that snapped him back to dizzying awareness. “Hey,” he protested weakly, flailing his arms out to shove Twi away, vision refusing to focus past a blur. “‘M not doing so hot, gimme a min…”

He blinked heavily, not quite putting together why Wolfie’s eyes were gold or where the markings had gone on fur that was a washed out gray, not the mossy slate he’d expected- 

The biting grip on his shoulder suddenly clamped down, teeth piercing skin and bones sending warning signs as the pressure grew to crushing levels, Four shrieking and flailing blindly in startled agony, still not understanding why Twi would- 

Wolfie shook him viciously, and at some point between the first and third head rattling snap of his body Four lost his tenuous grip on consciousness, still grasping for an answer.

Jackie the pirate mushroom by Khuc Cay

Free crochet pattern here

Top-Tier Villain Motivations

They will be safe. It doesn't matter who else or what else burns as long as They will be safe.

I will be safe. The hunger and the cold will never touch me again.

Fuck any bitch who's prettier(/cooler/better-liked/better at making dumplings) than me.

Yes, Master

Love me. Love me. Love me. Love me. LOVE ME!

I know the terrible things these so-called "heroes" will do if I don't stop them (<- is absolutely wrong)

I don't want a better future, I want a better past!

No other way to get performance art funded these days

Are you still doing fic requests? I've always had this weird headcanon that Four eats four times as much as a normal person (cuz he's four people lol). What if he was too shy to tell the others that he eats the equivalent of half the team's food so he's starving himself? What if he and Wild were buffet buddies? The possibilities are endless! Feel free to go angst or fluff or humour, or to ignore my ask altogether! Love your work~

Hey fun fact this was supposed to be fluff 😂

I’m always doing requests! I love doing them, so if anyone has any I’d be thrilled to write it!

Thank you, lovely anon! I hope you like it!

1695 words, warnings for malnutrition? Kinda? Accidental but not really starving yourself? Eating issues? And one (1) very brief, undescribed mention of vomiting. Let me know if anyone wants me to add something!

~~~~

Four hides it well, in the beginning.

When they’re still fresh in supplies, coming across towns on a regular basis, they’re in the woods where he can sneak off and find some berries or fruit if he’s lucky.

The others catch him snacking, and he shrugs it off as a personal preference to snack during the day instead of having full meals.

And it works.

For a while.

Until they stop coming across towns, they leave the safety of the woods, and they’re running low on supplies.

At first, he tries saving the food Wild makes from breakfast, stretching it and eating on the road until lunch, doing the same with his lunch, and then stretching out dinner until he goes to bed.

But then he’s aching with hunger all day.

So he tries eating the full meal, which… well, helps for a little bit. Then he’s starving again.

Either way, he’s practically starving himself.

He didn’t think the effects would be… this bad.

But he gets lightheaded, dizzy, any time he moves quickly he’s convinced he’s going to either pass out or throw up for a second.

Once, in the middle of the night, he woke up shaking uncontrollably. Blankets did nothing- he was shaking until his muscles ached and he was so nauseous.

Somehow, he’d managed to crawl out of his bedroll, stagger far enough away from camp to throw up his dinner, swear Hyrule to secrecy, and go back to sleep.

The others notice, of course. He must look terrible, he feels terrible, he’s so hungry, all the time, and the lack of proper nutrients to his body makes him exhausted.

They’re convinced he's sick- which… maybe he is. Technically. He’s not… healthy.

Wars always looks at him with an understanding glance when it comes up, never arguing with him.

Just always finds a way to sneak him an apple, or even an orange if they find a tree across the massive plains of Wild’s Hyrule.

So he’s not surprised, that when the awful shakiness comes back again, this time in the evening as they’re getting ready for bed, Wars knows what’s going on.

He’s leaning against a tree, ignoring the rumbling of his stomach, fighting to focus on the book in front of him.

His head keeps drooping, though, eyes falling shut, until he dips too much and jolts right back awake.

“Goddess, Smithy, just go to sleep. You’re clearly exhausted.” Legend jokes softly, sitting next to him.

His stomach growls. Loudly.

He doesn’t feel well.

“Hey, you hungry? Four?” Legend feels his forehead, arm wrapping around him when he groans softly.

Wars glances up at them, standing.

The veteran digs in his bag for a moment before sighing. “I’ve got nothing to eat.

Wars produces an orange from out of nowhere, peeling it and handing him a slice. “You alright? Just hungry?”

He accepts the orange, popping into his mouth with a shrug. “I… just feel… weird.”

Wars nods, handing him another couple slices. “I get that too. Low blood sugar- your body isn’t able to release enough glucose into your bloodstream, causing all sorts of adverse effects.”

He nods, finishing up the orange.

“Sugary foods help. Pretty much any fruit, juices, honey. Oranges are my go to.” The captain smiles gently, handing him a cup of water.

“Thank you.” He says quietly, already feeling a ton better.

Wars nods, patting his shoulder before moving away again. “I’m off to sleep, need anything else?”

He shakes his head, getting another smile.

“Alrighty, if you need anything, you can wake me up. I got another orange or two in my bag, too, if you need.”

“Thank you.” He says again, and gets a salute from his friend, making him smile.

~~~~

He’s a nauseous, shaking mess the entire next day.

He manages a few bites of breakfast, giving up when he feels like puking and gives the rest to Legend.

When the shaking starts right before lunch is served, his heart sinks.

But he hands Wind his lunch with hopefully unnoticed shaking hands, the sailor accepting it without too much questioning.

They continue walking, after their lunch break, and he’s shaking so much he keeps stumbling.

The sun bears down on them, the day warm though there’s a nice breeze.

“Wild?” He manages, drawing unwanted attention to himself. Wars is already making his way toward him. “How long until we reach that stable?”

“If we go fast, we can make it tonight.” The champion says confidently.

“Are you alright?” Time asks, voice ever so steady.

“Just a bit lightheaded. I’m alright. We can keep going.”

Everyone just stares at him.

“Four-”

“I’m alright. I’m fine- not even dizzy. I swear. Wild said we needed to get going, let’s go.”

Though they’re concerned, the thought of a real bed and maybe a warm meal pushes them to accept his request and continue down the road.

“Do you need to eat something?” Wars asks softly, hand reaching out.

He bats it away, stomach growling as if on cue.

He feels his cheeks flush up to his ears, not meeting Wars’ eyes.

“He didn’t eat lunch.” Wind rats him out, frowning at him. He throws the sailor a scowl.

“Why not?” The captain asks immediately,

“He’s been shaking all day, too.” Hyrule points out softly.

“I’m fine. Really. Just-”

“Smithy, I need you to be honest.”

“Hungry. I’m hungry.” He sighs, fidgeting with his hands.

“Well… yeah, you skipped lunch, Four. Why’d you do that?”

“We don’t have enough to feed us all.” He mumbles, not looking at the captain. “I wanted Wind to eat.”

“And breakfast?” Legend asks with a raised eyebrow.

He doesn’t answer that one.

Wars gives him an oddly gentle look, reaching into his bag and sighing slowly. “I’m out of oranges.”

“I’m fine. Really.”

“Four, you’re really pale. You sure you’re just lightheaded?”

His feet drag, Legend gently wrapping an arm around him. “Easy, Smithy, you need to sit?”

“No- no, I’m fine-”

“I think your blood sugar is low again, buddy.” Wars says gently, taking his hand.

Feeling his pulse, he realizes.

He frowns up at the captain, pulling his hand back. “I’m fine.” He repeats for what feels like the hundredth time.

He gently pushes away from Legend, stumbling immediately, both the veteran and the captain jumping to steady him, and he sees the twin looks of concern before he hits the ground and passes out.

~~~~

“Four, time to wake up, bud.”

Pain. Throbbing behind his eyes, skull pounding.

“You need to eat something, or the medic is gonna shove a tube up your nose to feed you. That’s going to be very unpleasant, Four.”

“Speaking from personal experience, yes. Very uncomfortable.”

Even with his eyes closed, he can tell it’s bright.

Painfully bright.

“Link, kiddo, we need you to open your eyes.”

A gentle hand in his hair.

He squints in the harsh light, eyes watering immediately.

“Hey… there ya are, you scared us pretty good, kid.”

He blinks, still squinting.

Eyes finally finding the rancher, who looks worried.

“ ‘m’nota kid.” He slurs out, hearing a small laugh.

“Yeah, he’s alright.”

“We’re gonna prop you up, can you drink some water for me? Wild’s making some food, we managed to find a deer to hunt for some stew.”

He obediently sips the cool water, the light slowly turning less painful.

“Small sips.” Wars reminds him gently, taking the cup away for a moment. “Eyes on me? Good.”

The captain eyes him, looking for something that he doesn’t care enough about to find it odd. He’s hungry and he’d like the water back.

“Four. Where are we, do you know?”

He blinks, wondering if this is a trick. “Wild’s world?”

A nod. “Remember what happened?”

“I… erm. Passed out.” He does remember that. Oops.

He tries to reach for the water Wars is still denying him, though the limb feels much too heavy to lift.

“Water?” He asks weakly, getting awarded another drink.

“Four, don’t chug it, you’re gonna make yourself sick.” Wars chastises him softly, taking the water again.

He makes a protesting noise that makes him sound like a child.

“Food’s almost ready, bud, can you wait a minute?”

His eyes flick to Twi, nodding.

Which makes his headache worse, slowly rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“How you feeling, Smithy?”

“Tired.” He mumbles honestly, leaning back against Twi’s chest. “Head hurts.”

“Hungry?” Wars asks gently. “When’s the last time you’ve eaten enough food to be sufficient?”

His eyes flick away despite himself.

“I need… more food to… suffice.”

Wars frowns.

“That’s why I had snacks all the time.” He explains, still looking at his knees. “Then… I ran out. And we got low on… everything, so-”

“You haven’t had enough food to suffice you in weeks?” Wars interrupts, giving him the water back when he reaches for it. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

He sighs slowly as the group all glances up at him.

“I didn’t… want to cause problems. We’re all hungry, making sacrifices.”

Wars nods understandingly, patting his knee awkwardly. “I understand.”

“He does.” Time agrees, shooting a glance at the captain with a small smile. “And you’re a hypocrite, Captain. You’ve skipped more meals than he has.”

“That was different!” Wars defends himself. “We were feeding an army, not nine people!”

Time raises an eyebrow.

Wars looks away, ears flushing.

“Ignore him. He’s lying.” The captain mutters, and he manages a shaky laugh.

“He’s not!” Wind calls, making the group laugh.

“Here, this is ready.” Wild says gently, approaching him with a bowl of stew. The look he gives is all too understanding.

“I had to eat a lot more than your average person after I woke up. Guess it was a side effect of not eating for a hundred years.” The champion says, though, pressing a bowl into his hands.

He nods, looking down at the food. “Thanks, Champion.”

“Anytime, Smithy. Now eat- you need it, man.”

“Goddess knows that right- there’s no way you weigh any more than forty five kilograms.” Wars chimes back in with a grin.

He has to smile, rolling his eyes as he takes a bite.

~~~~

Thanks for reading! Any interaction is appreciated :)

all these posts about who's the worst LU Link, who's the best LU Link, your favorite LU Link....

C-Can't I like all of them? *coughs* Four *aggressive coughing* H-How are some of you guys so...mean?? *coughs* it's Four don't lie to yourself *coughs*

old polish* names are metal as fuck, cause they can literally mean something like "the destroyer of peace" (Kazimierz), "the rage has come"(Przybygniew), "the one that praises killing/murdering" (Morzysław), "the one that does not know peace" (Nieznamir), or, my personal favorite, "the one that avenges his comrades" (Mściwoj).

it gets even more badass - because the pre-christian slavic traditions and language were rather poorly documented, and throughout history, there have been attempts to erase the records, we can't actually know for sure what exactly some of them were supposed to mean, or how were they used. we're left with names that could belong to a demonic antagonist in a fantasy book, their sound harsh, their origin shrouded in mystery.

*many of those are names in other slavic languages, too, but i'm talking specifically old polish names because i am polish and that's the language i know the most about.