1. Forgotten Footprints

He could have sworn that he had been here before. In fact, Link couldn't shake the feeling. Time travel could do that to a kid, he guessed, but he had never seen this part of the Gerudo Valley before. Little Navi seemed to bore of his confusion, gently nudging him onward. He stumbled - the fairy had a surprisingly strong touch - and continued forward.

"We're bound to run into someone soon, Link! Besides, it's always nice to go for a little adventure, huh?" Link only smiled up at her, silent as usual. It didn't seem to bother to Navi anymore. She had long since given up on trying to get him to talk. And she was right. An adventure would be nice, especially since this Gerudo would be the last of the sages to gather. After that, well, who knew what would happen? He might as well enjoy his time.

They walked a few hours in the ancient, forgotten civilization. He shuddered at the thought of skeletons littering the area. So many people left for dead, unknown to the world. He never wanted to go out that way. "Hey! Watch out!"

During his ponderings he had completely forgotten his surroundings and promptly tripped over a bit of... rock? Metal? He got up, brushed off his tights, and looked at the mysterious object. It looked like it was made out of stone, but perhaps it was just old. It looked sort of like a robot, actually. Link bent down, hoisting it out of its stone prison. Clutched in its inactive hands was a dull purple stone. He glanced at Navi for an explanation. The fairy - who was probably shrugging in her ball of light - only bounced once to show that she had no idea what it was.

"I think we should just put it down and keep going... Link, what are you...? Link!" He had drawn the Master Sword, gently tapping the small stone with its tip in case it exploded. Instead, it began to glow, the area surrounding the robot glowing bright blue. Where there was once sand, suddenly there were flowers. Awestruck, the fairy and Hylian completely missed the robot's revival. It shook itself out, confused, then leaped up happily at the sight of Link.

"Oh, brzzzt! We thought you were never coming back, bzt!" Link jumped, readying himself for battle. The robot cowered. "Oh, no no! Don't you remember, przt? We're friends! It's me, Scrapper! Zzt!" It leaped up again, revealing a small propeller on its head. It began to circle Link slowly. "So, zzt, what do you need me to carry? Where's Mistress Fi? Pzt!"

They both stared stupidly at the robot. Navi awkwardly cleared her throat once it was evident that Link would not speak for them. "Well, uh, Scrapper... We've never seen you before. Ever. So... yeah. We have nothing for you to carry."

Now the robot looked confused, if that was even possible. Its hands dropped, barely dangling from the electricity keeping them attached. "But Link, zrt! We're friends... Oh... are you not Master Link, bzt?"

Navi stilled. "His name is Link, but we've never met you before. Why? Do you know someone who looks like him?"

The robot jerked and hummed, circling Link before slouching again. "I... You're not Master Shortpants... are you related to him? Cause you look just like him. Maybe with lighter hair. And no chainmail. And tights."

"...I see."

The robot looked at them seriously, then motioned back at the now glowing purple stone. "If you could just, you know, hit that again, bzt. I think I want to be deactivated, pzt. Isn't fair that I got to be revived when the rest of my people didn't. Good luck, Master Shortpants."

Silently Link stabbed the stone, watching at the green earth receded into desert again. So the place was familiar... His ancestors had perhaps walked these very grounds, spoken with this very robot... He felt an odd sense of nostalgia, as if he truly knew what was going on in his life and -

His musings were interrupted by a snort from Navi. When she noticed his glare, she bounced once. "What? The name Shortpants is accurate!"

A/N: Hundred Themes Challenge awaaay =P

I know these are old, but I really wanted to get back into writing for Zelda. These are going to vary through most of the games, so I only marked it as 'Link'. There will be romance, suspense, etc etc. :D

Reviews are loved, even though these are simple writing excercises :D