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Too Much Thinking Is Bad For My Health (Part 3)

"Time, c'mon. Let's try 'nd make it t' th' spring." Twilight said gently, cradling Warriors so very gently to his chest. A hand behind his head, as if trying to shield him from the world. Time looked over at Warriors. His poor, poor brother. The man who raised him. More than The Great Deku Tree did anyway. Forget his father being a tree, his father was Warriors, more than anything.

"Twilight, we'll... we'll never make it." Time's voice cracked, and his eyes teared again. How could he have let this happen? Again, his thoughts were spiraling, repeating themselves. How could he have fixed this? When did he let it get so bad? After all this, was this how his brother died? Cradled in someone's hands, like a delicate scrap of flower? Did-

Warriors' chest gave an odd heave, the sign that his heart was trying to quit on him again. Twilight jumped. "Time, the fairy-"

Time's hands were already grabbing for the fairy bag, carefully taking out the last one.

Time's hand brushed something, as he lifted her from the bag and released her from her bottle.

The-

Oh.

His ocarina.

Time pulled it out of the bag, staring at it with wide eyes. The last time he'd used it was... was Termina. Time travel, those three days. Over and over and over. Those people that didn't remember him, oh how little he was. Tiny. Playing with time like a toy, until he realized just how important it was to stop the moon from falling. Frantically running through temples, trying to get to the final chamber before the final day. Over and over, those days. Repeating and doing the same thing. Mikau. Anju and Kafei. Darmani. Kamaro. Gone, lost to time and Termina. He'd never see them again.

What if he playing the song now? Would this cycle repeat too? Of him seeing his brother die over and over and over and see him collapse and convulse and seize and cry in his sleep and then never move again? Would he have to witness Wind's sobs and cries and pleas over and over and over until his voice died? Wild's guilt, Sky's fear, Twilight's remorse? Legend's buried horror and sorrow, Hyrule's hopelessness, Four's despair? See all of them go through it all over and over and over and over until he collapsed till the moon fell till everyone died and no one could be saved and he couldn't bring the ocarina to his lips anymore and had no more air to breathe-

"Time! Breathe!"

Twilight had set Warriors down gently in a patch of grass, and was currently gripping Time by a shoulder. "Set the ocarina down, unless you fancy smashin' it by grippin' it so hard. Take a couple breaths, Old man." Time's hands shook, and his chest heaved as he took panicked breaths. "The ocarina." He said, voice barely heard through the wavering tone and lack of air.

"The what?" Twilight asked gently, trying to figure out why Time had suddenly panicked as soon as his fingers had wrapped around his instrument.

"The ocarina. I can save him. I can. The Song of Time. Three days. I can-"

"You can take a breath, and talk to me, Time. You're spoutin' a whole lotta gibberish. I don't speak gibberish." Twilight had crossed his arms, but his face was worried.

"You said you can save him. How? What will it cost?" What would it cost? No one would remember the panic, the fear, the hurt. Only Time. Only Link, who was too young in body and too old in soul, would remember. Three more days to add to the never ending tally. But Link would remember. He'd remember the screams of horror, the sound of Wind's knees hitting the ground. The sound of his sobs and wails as he watched Warriors die. He'd remember Legend's quiet crying, into the hat that Warriors had stitched up for him so many times. He'd remember Hyrule wearing himself to magic exhaustion in the effort to try and ease his brother's pain. To heal it. He'd remember Wild's frantic guilt, as he wondered if he'd suddenly been the cause of all this. He'd remember Sky's shaking voice, as he tried to soothe. He'd remember Twilight's hiccups and shudders as he held onto Warriors' hand through a watch. He'd remember Four's erratic shouting, as they seemed to fall apart from the inside out.

Link would remember when others wouldn't. Oh, how he'd remember.

"Just a little air. Then we'll go back three days and this would've never happened." Time lied easily, getting up. Twilight visibly brightened. This seemed like a cure-all, though mildly sketchy. Anything to try and save Warriors.

Time lifted the ocarina to his lips, hands shaking, and began to play.

XXX

The moon was falling was the moon falling where were the masks he needed did he lose one no where's the deity mask I need that to fight which was next what to I do where's Saria WHY WON'T IT COME OFF NAVI HELP HELP HELP TATL COME BACK-

"LINK!"

Warriors' voice.

Time had suddenly scrambled away from the fire, eyes wide. He'd tossed his ocarina across the camp, to where it skittered to be near Sky. Sky picked it up gently and started to clean the dirt off of it, frowning. Time had then proceeded to curl up in a ball, grip his hair, and scream.

"Sprite, Link, come on. Talk to me, please. What happened? Are you hurt?"

Warriors' voice was frantic but he was there and he was okay and he wasn't pale yeah he was still painfully thin but he was there and he was okay and he wasn't dead or dying or-

"Link, please. Breathe." Time's chest heaved, whines and gasps leaving him. Warriors held him tight. This sudden breakdown... what could've happened to make Time break so thoroughly?

"No no no no no no no the moon is falling where's the moon what day is it one two or three where's Tatl? Please, I don't want to go back to Termina-" He was speaking aloud. Warriors increased the pressure of his hold.

"Link, look. See?" He pointed between the trees. "The moon is right there, nice and far away. A crescent, tonight." Time looked up.

There it was, the moon. No evil grin. No Majora. No numbered days.

Time took a steadier breath.

"There you go. Can I ask what set this off?" Warriors' voice was gentle, a hand cradling Time to his neck, like he'd do when Time was little. Fresh out of Termina. Time shuddered with a sob, crying instead of screaming. His hands came to latch onto Warriors' clothes- Warriors, alive and not well, but alive. Heart beating steady.

"You died." Time sobbed quietly.

"I-... Link, I'm not dead. I'm not dying any time soon. What brought this on-"

"You died so many times. Over and over and over and there weren't enough fairies to get us to Ordona's spring. Poison, Wars. You poisoned yourself and you died." Time shuddered again, tears pouring down his face.

Warriors froze. Poison. How did Time know?

"How did-"

"The Song of Time. Three days. I moved back three days. We were having chili that night. Then you didn't eat and so Wild made you snacks but you didn't eat and on your watch I surprised you so it was my fault you poisoned yourself and died-"

"Slow down, Sprite. Slow-"

"And everyone was screaming and crying and we couldn't save you and so I-" "Mask."

Time froze, hiccupping and crying. The camp was quiet.

"You used the Song of Time?"

Time nodded, gripping the back of Warriors' shirt hard enough it was ripping holes.

"I... I died?"

Another nod, another sob.

Warriors just held Time for a moment, thinking to himself. He'd died, huh. Funny how it was something he was so paranoid of dying to.

"Warriors." Wind's voice was quiet, as he came by. Wars looked up. Wind was holding out a blanket with worry evident on his face.

"Thanks, Sailor. We'll be fine."

Wind frowned, but he turned away to leave them be. Warriors looked back down at Time, still crying and clinging to him.

"Dad." Time's voice was small. Full of fear.

Time had only called Warriors dad exactly three times, when he was Mask. Once when he was so sick that he couldn't even open his eyes; he'd called for Warriors to read him a story book. Once when he'd gotten an an arrow through his side and was convinced he was going to die.

And once again, as he held Warriors' hand so tight and was transported home.

"Shhhhhhh. It's alright." Oh Hylia, Warriors couldn't do this.

"I don't want you to die again, please don't let this be another cycle-"

"It won't be. In the morning, we can have a nice long chat about this, okay? About the poison problem, I mean. It's probably high time I talk to someone about this." Artemis had told him that for years.

Time rubbed his eyes, and tried sitting up, realizing just how ridiculous he probably looked. Crying into Warriors' shoulder. Wasn't he supposed to be the leader? Strong and mighty and unshakable? He had an apology ready on his tongue when Warriors pulled him back in.

"Sit your ass back down, Link." Time sat back down, tears still pouring no matter how fast he rubbed his eyes. Ridiculous. He was (somewhere) in his thirties, why was he crying? The crisis had been averted. Warriors wasn't dead.

But he had been.

Warriors cradled Time as close as he could, given the height difference.

"I'm sorry, Link. We'll have a talk in the morning, okay? For now, get some sleep."

Time closed his eyes, and relaxed into Warriors' hold. He slept through the night. There would need to be a big, long talk in the morning, but for now, they were okay. And they'd be okay.

fin.

@rrainydaydreams and @rebornofstars IT'S DONE RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA