Guardian Guide
Summary: Even heroes need a guide, a sometimes guardian. A short tale exploring the relationship between heroes and their guides, a connection between past and future. Skyward Sword, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask and beyond.
a.n. This is my first Legend of Zelda fic and I'm a bit worried about how it turned out. I have yet to finish SS or PH, so those parts are more or less based on what I have read (in fact, I haven't played PH in years, so I really had to rely on research to figure out where to go). This went off in a slightly different direction from my original idea concept and I can't quite figure out if I like it better or not. I am especially proud of the SS section and the first part of the OoT section, but I'll let you be the judge. Remember to read, review, and enjoy!
My analysis indicates that there is a high probability we will meet again in another life.
With these parting words, the sword spirit known as Fi bowed her head towards the one she had called Master these many weeks, the one she had silently, internally, regarded as a friend. She watched as he bowed his head respectfully back and was taken aback by the acute moisture seeming to develop in his eyes. She was not surprised to see such a thing coming from him. During her time with him, she had seen the wide range of emotions that humans were capable of: anger, fear, joy, sadness, even regret and repentance. Yet, try as she might, she had never truly understood their need or their purpose. Logic. Probability. Analysis. These are the things she understands, the concepts she is capable of expressing. However, as she stood there looking at her traveling companion for what may very well be the last time, she had a sudden burst of understanding. She could fully comprehend the whys of those things called emotions; she could see their purpose, their reasons for existence. Looking at him, she felt the stirrings of something she'd never felt. Was it grief? Sadness? Longing? She could only turn away from the one she called Master.
Master? No.
Though she had called him that, he had never treated her as a servant or slave. He saw her as the voice of wisdom and reason, a guiding light. He knew that she was much wiser in the mysterious ways of the land below the clouds; she was chosen by the Goddess to guide Her chosen hero, after all. He had respected that, trusted that, trusted her.
She had originally regarded him with indifference; as a servant to and messenger of the goddess, she was merely meant to guide the hero, teach him, and advise him in his battle against evil, nothing more. Yet, through their long journey, the many battles, the many highs and lows, she had come to realize that she was no longer seeing him as her master; she was his companion, someone to talk to during the lonesome travels. As he grew stronger and more sure of himself, he called upon her less and less for advice and more to just talk, as he would to anyone else he considered a friend or even an acquaintance. She had begun to suspect that he saw her more as a partner and less of a tool, but, having minimal experience with the latter and none with the former, she did not know what to do, what she should do.
When they became separated after the volcanic eruption in Eldin, she had missed his presence. Never before had she known what it would be like to miss something, or someone, so much. She had gotten used to his presence. When that was taken away, she almost didn't know what to do with herself. Never before had she felt like such a huge part of her being was missing. Their reunion had been bittersweet: yes, she had been glad that he had returned and survived whatever ordeal he had obviously been through. But she was chagrined to realize how much his missing presence affected her. That didn't bode well for the inevitable future. Particularly now when they were on the verge of being parted forever.
She raised her head and saw a small smile on his face, his eyes wet from the tears he was trying to hold back, unsuccessfully. That bright smile, brighter than any she'd ever seen grace his face confirmed her suspicions that he saw her as so much more than a mere device; she was truly his friend.
Fi quickly turned around and retreated back into the blade she called home, now so much more than it had ever been. Her parting words echoed in her ears long after she spoke them, reminding her, even as she prepared herself to sleep eternally. Her analyses were always based on probability and logic. She was sure they would indeed find each other in another time, another place.
Farewell my master…my friend."
Every Kokiri was paired with a fairy; everyone knew that. It was a fact of life, just as no Kokiri left the forest, for anyone who did was sure to perish. Kokiri and their fairies were life partners; one never went very far without the other. The pair were so much in sync, so much a part of one another's lives that they were considered kindred spirits, sharing personalities and traits. There was the ever-helpful trio of the Know-It-All Brothers whose own fairies were known to pass on their own words of wisdom when needed. There was the oft-mean spirited Mido who often collaborated with his own fairy partner to pull off pranks. And then there was the loyal and sagely Saria whose kind heart and giving nature were reflected in the generous spirit of her sprite. Yes, the Kokiri and their fairy partners were truly symbiotic lifelong companions.
Yet there had been one forest resident, a young boy, who had never had a fairy to call his own. He was different than the rest: his hair was the color of the golden sun, his face was a little rounder than the others and his skin lacked the slightly verdant hue that the other Kokiri seemed to share. While most accepted the youth as just a quirky member of their close-knit society, a few, such as their self-proclaimed leader Mido, never passed up the opportunity to tease and mock him whenever they could. There were few, very few, who chose to see the young boy as something more than a blemish in their otherwise utopian society. Chief among these kind souls was the good-hearted Saria who refused to see the boy as anything but a genuine Kokiri, in spite of his many differences. She was the boy's friend, his one true friend, and when most would tear him down, her kind words rebuilt his determined spirit and strengthened his ever-strong soul.
On that very fateful day when the children of the forest lost the one thing that they had known all their lives, the one thing that they had depended upon, one life amongst all others was changed forever. The day the Great Deku Tree died, the entire forest mourned. The Kokiri, his children, had lost their guardian, their voice of wisdom and guidance, the one who was so much more wizened in the ways of the world and the woods. Everything they had known, the stable life they had been living, was suddenly turned upside down. But, like all great sages, the Great Deku Tree knew that every great destiny must come with an equally great sacrifice. When darkness befell the sanctity of the forest, the great protector of the woods gave his life so that a destined child, the one who was prophesized, would be able to do what was asked of him. This fated child, the one chosen by a long-ago prophecy, was blessed with one final gift by the Great Deku Tree: a fairy to call his own.
Navi the fairy, a spirited sprite, was chosen to help guide the young hero on his quest against the darkness that threatened to engulf the land. She came to "the boy without a fairy" to help guide him and advise him in a world previously unknown to the youth. He overcame many trials in dark woods and scorching infernos. He conquered death, scouring dangerous, watery depths and vast deserts. And he battled shadows and darkness, both within and without, traversing time itself to vanquish the evil blight and bring light back to the land. She had traveled far with him on the arduous journey and throughout the dark times, the close calls, the near misses, they had grown closer, traversed the line between guide and partner to true friend. Their friendship blossomed and flourished throughout it all and when those sacrifices had to be made, when they faced the most difficult of trials, they trusted in their care and mutual respect for one another to get them through it. They were able to survive because they both had strong spirits and unbreakable wills powered by their love for each other, the land they called home, and the people they called friends. The fairy had watched the lad grow from a shy, quiet young boy into a determined youth who was ready to defend his beliefs to his very last breath. And he very nearly had, for in the darkest of dark times when the final battle raged fierce, she could not help him, could not offer words of advice, only encouragement; she could do nothing but watch the raging battle from the sidelines. She had failed her partner, her friend.
He had been winning but the battle turned when that monster, that otherworldly creature known as Ganon, appeared and threatened to destroy the hero and the land of Hyrule in the process. She was determined, as he was, to not let that happen. She had failed him once; she would not, could not, do it again. She joined the hero in his fight, determined to end the madness and despair once and for all.
It was long.
It was gruesome.
It was battle.
But it was worth it, for in the end the two of them, along with the powers of the seven sages, defeated the hellish beast, imprisoning him so he would never again wreak destructive havoc upon the world.
All was right in the land again: the evil was sealed away, wrongs were righted, peace was restored, history was rewritten. Time flowed as it once had and all was put back as it should be. The hero had brought back order to the land. He was returned to his place in time, his reward for his courageous deeds. He returned to his childish form, with only the memories of his adventure remaining with him. Other than the fair princess Zelda, and the wise sages, no others would remember his heroic deeds and courageous heart. He was a child once more, Hero of Time in spirit but not body. His task complete, he was returned to his former time to live his life anew, to live for himself and not for others.
Yet, one thing remained in his restored life, one thing he held apart from the memories of his adventure: his fairy partner. She had been with him through all of his trials and had journeyed through time and space to be with him, never far from his side. He had come to rely on her knowledge and companionship on the long, often lonely journey.
When he returned to his child form for the final time, she was no longer by his side. With his quest complete, she had fulfilled her purpose as his guide and disappeared. Kokiri and their fairies were life partners, but Kokiri never grew up, never left the forest, never became heroes. The "boy without a fairy", though a Kokiri at heart, was Hylian by birth and as he grew into the hero he was meant to be, he truly grew up. His fairy, his partner, his friend, could no longer teach him what he already knew. The Great Deku Tree had given her a purpose: to help guide the hero. That purpose fulfilled, she left his life as mysteriously as she had appeared in it. She may have vanished, but the memory of her and the ghostly touch of her friendship lingered with the boy. She was out of sight, but certainly never out of mind.
The boy, his quest completed, traveled far and wide, searching for the partner and companion he could never forget. He came upon a darkened land, shadowed by a malicious spirit. A new companion joined him, this one much more abrasive and less helpful than his dearly departed friend. They managed to form a tentative partnership, both of them searching for something: he his lost companion and she her wayward brother. He found himself in the midst of a new quest in this strange land as he, once again, found himself in the position of hero, poised to take on the malevolent force that was threatening Termina. He and his new companion could never form the relationship he still felt for his lost partner. But they held a mutual respect for one another; each was a means to the other's end.
His quest was short and in the end, though he managed to reunite a sister with her brother and help friends find each other, his own personal quest was not yet over. He mounted his loyal steed and rode off once again in search of another faithful companion.
In a vast ocean, fresh from a grueling adventure, a young, green-clad hero embarks on a new quest. Searching for a new land to call home, he was pulled into a growing conflict that threatened to destroy the land. A fairy companion, Ciela, found herself joined to this hero, helping him defeat the phantom minions and restore her own memories. They formed a bond throughout this adventure, a bond strengthened by the mysterious connection felt when she rediscovered her other half and was awakened as the Spirit of Time and Courage. With the freeing of the other Spirits, Leaf of Power and Neri of Wisdom, the trio helped the young hero and fought against the phantom menace known as Bellum before he plunged the world into darkness. The companion fairies, alongside the great hero, rescued the spirit of the trapped Zelda and saved the land and Oshus, the Ocean King. The fairy trio watched with their master as the hero journeyed off with the princess and her pirate crew, searching once more for a new land. None noticed one fairy, finally made whole, break into two all over again as her partner and true friend departed. As the ship sailed past the horizon, this small guide felt a part of herself vanish as well.
This was the way it was, the way it must always be, for the heroes and their guardians, their guides, their true friends. Purposes fulfilled, quests ended, battles fought, obstacles overcome. Ways must be parted, partnerships must be ended. But the memories would always remain, the feelings would never fade. For every hero who would rise, there would always be a partner, a companion, a guardian, a guide.
A friend.