New Home - BotW Link x Reader (Undergoing Revisions)

Chapter 37 - The Blizzard

It was, in a word, cold.

It was, in more words, absolutely awful with bitter air that made my lungs burn, the dry flakes of snow that would cling to eyelashes and clothes, and somewhere within this snowy weather my hair had come loose of its tie so that was somewhere in the wilds now, carried away somewhere maybe warm...

I was shivering. This cold wasn't the type one could get used to, not like a quick flurry or stepping out into the snow briefly, where one might shudder right away but eventually get used to it or at least stop shivering.

This was not the type of cold one could get used to. Simple as that. Somehow, impossibly, it seemed as though it was only growing colder and colder.

Dammit, I was not enjoying myself here. Not at all.

Link, on the other hand, looked like a child almost with the way he watched the snow flurry about his head and fall to the drifts to either side of the road. Though he swayed slightly with the wind, and his eyes blinked whenever snow got too close to them, he looked utterly at peace here.

Meanwhile, I was huddled up in two cloaks, my thickest tunic fitted uncomfortably snugly over my regular tunic, and three - not one, not two, but three - pairs of pants.

I unfortunately had only my fingerless gloves and nothing more, but I kept my hands busy by clenching and unclenching the reins just to keep them from growing numb.

At least, and I do mean at the very least, I had some pretty scenery. We were well and away into the snowfields and Link had insisted that we didn't stop to rest, not yet. There would be a stable up here somewhere, and there we could rest, but it was obvious to both of us that it would be a bad idea to stop and rest while still getting pummeled by snow and wind.

In places like these, in environments like this, complacency could prove deadly.

The roads here were at least fairly well-kept. The snow on either side of the road was up to the horses' shoulders or nearly, but stable hands and locals would go out often and clear the roads as best they could and I was incredibly grateful for it right about now. Their regular hard work meant safer passage for travelers like Link and myself, after all.

I risked lifting my head just to look out at the landscape. As the sun shone over the drifts, it was a bit hard to see, but for what I could see of the sparkling snowscape, it was lovely.

...I'd have just preferred seeing it from far away. Much further. Or maybe from this distance, but from the relative warmth and safety of a stable or, better yet, a cabin of some kind.

The trees here were now far and few between, but there were tall evergreens that towered above the others, those that had such vibrant hues of green that stood out well against the rest of the barren backdrop.

There was a tower, a brief spot of rest for us before the next stable, glowing an eerie orange and standing imposingly over us partway up a mountain trail, still seemed so far away even though we were so close.

We were nearly to the foothills of the snow capped mountain that the tower itself sat upon, and from there we'd be forced to wind up a trail that twisted around the side of the mountain.

Riding in the snow was no fun, being in the cold no more so. Riding up a hill in these conditions did not seem like a good time to me.

Honestly though, I'm sure I'd still prefer this over the desert, though.

Link stared up at the gently falling snow with a childlike amusement and a twinkle in his eyes. His cheeks bore red patches from the cold and the tip of his nose was red, as were his ears. And though the wind nipped at his bare neck, he didn't seem to care.