Awakened Hero

Chapter One

By Coffee Drinking Elf

Editor's Note: This is my first story I've posted up on Fanfiction, and I hope you enjoy. If people really enjoy this, I'll make a chapter two. If not, I'll just keep this one chapter up. Although, some of my friends might convince me to make another chapter. Anyway, I'm excited about getting more stories up here. There are so many stories I have, and I can't wait to see what others think about it!

All Legend of Zelda characters are copyrighted and belong to Nintendo. I do not own these characters, I simply write stories about them.

"Tell me again…the story?" I closed my eyes as I lifted the plastic cup to my lips.

After having taken in a sip of the rich, brown liquid, Jaimee squirmed in her seat, the wait for my long reply aching her so. It was a cool, spring day and my friend and I were sitting in our favorite coffee shop. It was a very different kind of coffee shop, having been themed after medieval times. Strange as it was, it was our favorite place to hang out in. Jaimee and I were of about the same age, 16. She had blonde hair, blue eyes, while I had brown hair and brown eyes. "Aren't you sick of that story by now? I've told it so many times…" I sighed as I set my cup down. She shook her head furiously. I smiled and began.

A long time ago, a peaceful land called Hyrule was threatened by a great evil. Link, the Wielder of the Master Sword, traveled all over Hyrule, vanquishing evil whenever he saw it. He fought countless evils of all shapes, sizes and power. At times it seemed impossible for him to win, but he would always come out on top. He saved many races and most importantly, Hyrule. Ganondorf, lord of evil, captured the fair Princess Zelda to use her so that he would dominate Hyrule and all its inhabitants. He had greatly underestimated the Hero of Time, and soon found himself facing Link in a great battle. It was tough, but eventually he defeated Ganon. Although, the madman had yet one more trick up his sleeve. He used all of his power, and turned into a beast, more or less, a demon. He was three times larger than Link and much stronger as well. Link doubted himself as he saw the terrible beast. How could he defeat this madman now? 'Believe, Link…believe…' He clenched his fist around his sword as these words rang through his mind. "Your end has come!" He shouted, and lunged at Ganon, thrusting his sword into his leg. The beast howled and swiped at Link. He gracefully leapt out of the way, and made another stab to his back. Ganon snarled and swung both if his enormous swords, clipping Link along the leg, causing him to fall. Ganon lunged at him, hoping to crush him. In a second, Link rolled out of the way, and stood up. He pulled out his bow and two light arrows and cocked them into position. Aiming for the head, he released the arrows. Ganon raised his swords, and blocked the arrows. As they fell lifeless to the ground, Link rushed around to the back of Ganon, and jumped on. While Ganon tried to shake Link off, Link made his way to the beast's head. Without having the opportunity to take out his sword, Link grabbed another arrow, and thrust it into Ganon's head. The beast moaned and shook his head, throwing Link to the ground. Link looked over, to see Ganon wavering as he stood. With a final howl, the beast fell to the ground; dead. It was finally over. Link had won. A great celebration was held, and all races attended. The Gerudos, Gorons, Zoras, and all of Hyrule, including Princess Zelda. They celebrated long into the night, until it was time to depart. After departing, Link and Zelda meet in the halls of the Temple of Time, where she expressed her gratitude for Link's heroism. After handing back the Ocarina of Time, Link is returned to childhood in the Kokiri Forest, with only the memories of his heroism, the epic adventure he had yet to relive, and the image of a beautiful princess.

"But, it is my belief that Link was not alone during this great journey. That he had friends of great stature and strength. Noble people worth being respected." I grinned at the thought. Jaimee smiled and sighed. "Wow…how is it that you're the only one who knows this story?" She said in disbelief. "Many times I've asked others if they know the story of 'The Wielder of the Master Sword and the Ocarina of Time', but they just shrug…" She mused. "Maybe they choose not to say, for fear you would have them tell you all the time!" I joked. Suddenly, I made eye contact with a stranger. He was staring straight at me. I brushed it aside. 'A lot of people stare, so what's the big deal?' I thought to myself. But, as I glanced over again, he still stared at me. He wore denim pants and a dark green long-sleeved shirt, his black trench covering his sleeves. He had blonde hair and blue eyes. Something odd poked out of his hair. Ears? Were those ears? I couldn't tell. He looked normal, except for his boots that he wore. They seemed different from the ones I usually saw. I became nervous as he continued to stare at me. "Uh, Jaimee? Let's go…now." I said firmly. She sensed something was wrong. "What is it?" she whispered. I took a deep breath. "There's a guy sitting a few tables behind you, - don't look- and he's making me uncomfortable…Can we please leave?" Jaimee nodded and we both rose, the stranger doing the same. "Quickly!" I said, panicking. We ditched our cups and hurried outside, the stranger not too far behind. With trembling hands I reached inside my purse, and wrapped my fingers around my keys. We made our way across streets, hurrying back to the neighborhoods. As we neared the houses, I turned back to see if the stranger was still there, but he had vanished. "It's okay, he's gone..." I said relieved. We slowed our pace and tried to talk of other matters. "Come on, you can hang out at my house, and then after supper, you can head on home." I smiled and agreed. You see, Jaimee and I live close by. It took about ten minutes to go back and forth, but it was convenient. As we talked and played video games, I quickly forgot the mysterious stranger.

"See you tomorrow!" Jaimee called as I headed down the street. I waved in acknowledgement and set a quick pace back to my house. It had grown a bit dark during my stay at Jaimee's house, which made me want to move faster. As I walked on, I heard a soft padding of feet. My heart froze. I spun around, but could see no one. I shivered and walked fast, determined to get away. I heard the footsteps again, and even though my blood ran cold, I did not turn around, but kept going. I tried to act normal, and not to panic. The footsteps quickened, so I quickened. They went even faster, so I mimicked as well. I trembled as I tried to reach in my purse and grab my keys, but my hands refused to cooperate. Suddenly, a hand grabbed my arm tightly. I tried to scream, but another hand was clamped over my mouth. I kicked and tried to scream through the hand. "Quiet!" He whispered into my ear. "I'm not going to hurt you…I need to speak with you…" His voice was pleasantly sweet. I calmed and he let go. I spun around to face him, afraid this was a trick of some sort. "What do you want?" I growled at him. "There are better ways of getting my attention!" I hissed. "I'm sorry." He apologized. 'Cut him some slack, he probably didn't mean to scare you so bad…wait! I don't even know this guy! What if he wants to hurt me?' I thought to myself. "You're in great danger right now. We need to talk." He said firmly. I grew serious. "First of all, who are you!" I demanded. He looked at me for a moment. "I'm Link, Wielder of the Master Sword." He bowed. I glared at him. "Is this some kind of a mean joke?" I said angrily. Obviously he had heard my story in the coffee shop, and was making fun of me! "This isn't funny!" I yelled at him. He stood up and scowled at me. "I'm not joking! I wouldn't fool you about something as serious as this!" He shouted back. He sighed and calmed himself. "Something bad has happened…Ganondorf has returned…"

"Shut-up!" I yelled at him. "How dare you follow me and then mock me! Ganondorf isn't real! He's made-up character in a fairy tale!" How could this 'Link' person be so rude! Why would he go through the trouble of mocking me? "Just stop it! Leave me alone, you creep!" I stormed down the streets, frustrated and upset. "Stop!" He yelled and ran after me. "GET AWAY FROM ME!" I screamed and began to run. I heard him curse and then the fast pace of his feet hitting the ground. I looked back, tears blurring my vision. A muddled blur of his body was gaining speed quickly. I pushed myself to run faster, hoping to catch my second wind before he did. "Stop! You're making a mistake! I need to talk to you right now!" He called to me. I threw a colorful word at him. I had not learned these words from my family, but from school. I heard them as I walked down the hallway. Some were aimed at me, some at others. Nonetheless, I had heard them. 'Keep running! You can make it to your house!' But, it was 10 minutes away! I couldn't run for that long and still keep a steady pace! Nevertheless, I would try. But, Link had caught up and grabbed me before I got even half-way there. He grabbed me by the shoulders tightly, making it hard to squirm. "Please, you must listen!" He begged. "The longer it takes for me to tell you, the closer he gets!" I looked at him in disbelief. "Who are you talking about? Ganondorf? He's not real, remember!" I said enraged. "If you value your life you will be quiet and listen to what I have to say!" I stopped short. "What?" Link sighed. "You are in great danger. That 'fairy tale' you know, isn't fake, it's true! It all happened along time ago. As you know, Ganondorf was locked up in the Dark Realm. Now, after hundreds of years, someone has disturbed that realm, causing Ganon to wake and break free. We don't know who, or why yet, but most likely that person is dead, or had some purpose of opening the realm. Ganondorf is now looking for the only two people that can bring him down and destroy him for good..." I waited in agony for him to say. "Who!" I said impatiently. "You…and me..." He said quietly. I looked at him as though he was crazy…maybe he was! "You're insane!" I replied to him, after a moment's silence. "Listen, you must believe me. If you don't, you will be dead before the sun rises tomorrow. You have to believe me. The Sages have chosen you. You are a hero who has been asleep. Now is the time to awaken and fight! We have no time to consider this. If we are to save you and this land, we must depart at once!" I was silent, thinking about what Link had just said. 'What if he's right? What if this is all true? But, then again…what if he isn't? This could just be some lie…' I looked up at him. "I can't…I can't just put my whole life on hold and run off to save this place! I have friends, and family and school! We don't even know how long this will take! What if it takes 2 years? What if it takes 20! How am I supposed to believe that this is real! I DON'T KNOW YOU!" Link shook me. "You have to believe!" Tears fell down my face. I was so confused. This story I had heard was real? I shook as I cried. 'Believe…it's what you want…isn't it? ...To believe...' I looked into his eyes. "…I believe..." I whispered. "It's not easy to, but I do anyway…something tells me…this is real…" He let out a sigh of relief. "I am glad." He replied. "Come, we must leave." He gently pulled me along. "Wait! You mean right now? But I thought…" He glanced back. "Yes, we must leave now. He knows where you live, and is most likely waiting for you right now." I shivered at the thought. "But don't we need provisions? Or some weapons?" I asked confused. "That can be dealt with later. But now we must go!" We walked on in silence for a while. That gave me time to think this all through. "Hop on." I looked up as he spoke and saw a black motorcycle parked in front of me. I gave him an odd look. "Whatever happened to Epona?" I joked. He quirked a brow. "Nowadays, you need something less conspicuous in small neighborhoods." He smiled as he tossed me a helmet. It was weird…here I was joking with a guy I hardly knew…and yet, it felt like I do know him. "You can trust me." He said as he swung his leg over the motorcycle, settling himself on the leather seat. Reluctantly I put the helmet over my head, and sat down behind him. He pushed the kickstand with his heel up, and turned on the motorcycle. He turned the handle and looked back. "Hang on!" He yelled over the noise. I nodded and wrapped my arms around his waist. With a jerk, we were off, speeding down the street. Without thinking, I smiled, enjoying how great it felt to go this fast. But then, reality kicked in. 'I'm leaving my entire life behind…my family…my friends…everything…' she thought to herself. 'Oh please, let this be the right choice…' She laid her head against Link's back and closed her eyes.

'…please…'