Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda.

That would be cool, I guess, but

None of the games would have

Turned out as good as Nintendo

Made them. Enjoy my story!

The Legend of Zelda

A Hero's Path

An Ocarina of Time novelization

Chapter One: The Beginning

In the vast, deep forest of Hyrule...

Long have I served as the Guardian spirit.

I am known as the Deku Tree.

The children of the forest, the Kokiri, live with me.

Each Kokiri has his or her own guardian fairy.

However, there is one boy who does not have a fairy...

Thunder blasted in the air, and the sky was lit up by lightning. As fast as it was light, it got dark again, and all Link could see was two torches hanging in front of him. All he heard was the pitter-pattering of rain falling on the field around him. Then he heard a scary, unfamiliar clanking sound and the clatter of horses running. As lightning lit the world around him again, Link saw the wall between the torches in front of him fall, and two people on one horse rode out on it. One was a woman in dark clothing, and the other was a girl dressed in purple. As the horse came closer, it finally turned and passed beside him. The girl stared at him desperately, and they rode off. As Link was pondering the girl, and where he was, another horse came riding up to him. It was a scary, dark horse, and on it rode a scary, dark man. This horse stopped in front of Link, and the man laughed. He raised his hand in front of Link, and fire erupted from his palm. The fire formed a fist-sized ball and flew at Link...

"Navi... Navi where art thou? Come hither..."

A small, glowing, white fairy flew to her caller, the Great Deku Tree.

"Oh, Navi the fairy..." He paused to breathe, something he normally didn't have to do. Something was terribly wrong, and Navi sensed it. "Listen to my words, the words of the Deku Tree... Dost thou sense it? The climate of evil descending upon this realm... Malevolent forces even now are mustering to attack our land of Hyrule...

"For so long, the Kokiri Forest, the source of life, has stood as a barrier, deterring outsiders and maintaining the order of the world... but... before this tremendous evil power, even my power is as nothing...

"It seems the time has come for the boy without a fairy to begin his journey... The youth whose destiny it is to lead Hyrule to the path of justice and truth... Navi... go now! Find our young friend and guide him to me..." He groaned in pain. Navi was nearly crying in fear for the Deku Tree. He was her closest friend, and much like a father to her. "I do not have much time left..." He said.

"No, don't say things like that!" Navi cried.

"Fly, Navi, fly! The fate of the forest, nay, the world, depends upon thee!"

These words drove Navi to great ambition. The fate of the forest, the world, and the Great Deku Tree depended on her. She flew faster than she had ever flown before.

Out of the Great Deku Tree's Meadow... down the path to the Kokiri Village, Deku Babas snapping at her as she passed... over Mido, the self-proclaimed boss of the Kokiri children... and into the village. Now if she just knew where the boy without a fairy lived. All her life she had just been the Great Deku Tree's scribe, writing whatever he told her in the book he started long ago. If only she had spent more time in the village she'd know. Well, she'd just ask the Kokiri where he was. She didn't want to ask Mido. When he'd visit the Deku Tree he was punished for being mean to fairies. She spotted a girl sitting on the awning of the village shop. She flew to the girl.

"Hello!" Navi said. "What're you doing up here? You could get hurt."

"Oh I could?" The girl looked down at the ground. "Agh!" she screamed. "I'm afraid of heights!"

"Okay..." Navi said. "Calm down... You can get down easy, but first, do you know where I can find the boy without a fairy?"

"Uhh... he... he's wearing green."

Navi looked around. Every Kokiri's clothes were dyed with oils from leaves. "Everybody's wearing green."

"Oh, he... he's the one without a fairy."

"I know that!"

"Oh sorry. He sleeps late sometimes, so he might be in his house. He lives in the tree."

"Thank you," Navi said, and flew away. She was aware that all the Kokiri lived in trees, but decided she wasn't getting anywhere with that girl. She moved forward and spotted a boy in a grouping of stones.

"Hey! You!" she said.

"Hey!" he replied. "Look, guys! It's a fairy without a Kokiri! Listen, you should go see Link. He's a Kokiri without a fairy! See, a perfect match!"

"Actually," Navi said, "I'm looking for that boy. Link?"

"Yeah. He lives over there." The boy pointed behind Navi. "Big, tall tree. Hard to miss. Hey, good luck. You'll make him happier than Mido during tax season."

"Tax season? Where'd he...? What makes him...? Ug, I'll deal with him later." Navi turned and looked around. Big, tall tree. She spotted it across the way. She flew at the speed she only found she could reach today, straight toward the treehouse. Unfortunately, she failed to notice the fence in her way until it was too late to slow down or dodge through a gap. She hit it head first with an "Ow!"

Regaining her senses, she flew through a gap in the fence and went into Link's house. It was a nice home for being carved out of a tree. There was a small, round table in the center of the room, which was actually part of the tree. There was a sink and mirror on one side of the room, and an eating table and cabinet on the other. Leaning against the walls were tools he had been taught to use for tending the forest gardens, and against the back wall was a bed with a window over it. In the bed was a boy, shivering.

"Hello, Link! Wake Up!" He didn't stir. "The Great Deku Tree wants to talk to you! Link, get up!" Nothing. "Hey! C'mon!" She started buzzing all around his head, making all sorts of noise. "Can Hyrule's destiny really depend on such a lazy boy?" she asked herself.

"Wha-" the boy uttered. He felt his chest and sighed in relief, which confused Navi a little. He sat up and yawned and stretched.

"You finally woke up! I'm Navi the fairy!"

"Oh, hi, Navi the fairy," he said, rubbing his eyes. "My name's Link. What're you doing in my house?"

"Oh, sorry. The Great Deku Tree asked me to be your partner from now on! Nice to meet you!"

"The Great Deku Tree... WHAT! You're my fairy partner! YAHOO!" He jumped up and started dancing on the center table, singing: "I got a fairy! I got a fairy! Now Mido can't hate me! I got a fairy!"

"This is sad," Navi muttered.

"What?"

"I said I'm so glad... to be your partner!" Then she muttered, "This'll be a long journey..."

"What was that?"

"I said, 'You really dance funny'."

"Oh. Thanks, I practiced."

Navi sighed out of necessity to retain her sanity in the presence of such a weird boy. He really needed a fairy partner. She continued. "The Great Deku Tree has summoned you! So let's get going, right now!"

"Of course!" he said nodding. He jumped off the table and said, "Let's go!"

"By the way, if you eat over at that table, why do you have the center one?" Navi asked.

"Oh, I basically just use it for dancing. Well, come on!" He ran out the door and Navi followed.

Just as they walked outside, a girl came running down the path to the treehouse. She had green hair, and was apparently very excited.

"Yahoo!" she cried as she came to a stop at the base of the tree. "Hi, Link!"

"Saria!" Link replied. "Look! I got a fairy!"

"Wow!" she replied. "Finally, a fairy came to you, Link! What took you so long, little fairy?"

"Uhh... I couldn't find him," Navi responded.

"Oh. Well, wow! That's... Wow! That's great news! I'm so happy for you! Now you're a true Kokiri, Link!"

"Oh, yeah! Thanks... Hey wait! Are you saying I wasn't before!"

"No, no! You know what I mean! You were a great Kokiri before, but you were like, um, half a team, you know?"

"Oh, right. I got you. It's like a fairy's half the team, so it's kinda like I didn't have a fairy... or... wait." Everyone just stood or floated there for a moment. It was one of those awkward silences after someone says something stupid.

"Come on, Link!" Navi finally said. "The Great Deku Tree summoned you, remember!"

"Oh, yeah. My fairy's kinda in a hurry," Link explained to Saria.

"Is that right? Summoned? It's a great honor to talk to the Great Deku Tree! Unless you're Mido, that is... Anyway, I'll wait for you here. Get going! Go see the Great Deku Tree!"

Link jumped out of his tree and started running, while Navi flew in front of him. "Faster!" she cried.

"Man, did I get a fairy or Mido's ghost?" He started jumping rocks to cross the pond.

"Link, Mido isn't a ghost."

"Oh, well a guy can dream..."

Navi flew down the path to the Deku Tree's Meadow, and Link started to follow, when BAM! He fell backward on his bottom.

"Hey you! 'Mr. No Fairy'! Where do you think you're goin'? Huh? What's your business with the Great Deku Tree? Huh!"

Link stared up at Mido, the boss of the Kokiri, holding a Deku stick. He had an ugly face and a really bad haircut. He wore a hat, probably to hide his hair that he probably cut himself. "Without a fairy, you're not even a real man!"

"Link? Where'd you go?" Navi came flying back down the path and stopped when she saw what was going on. "Get away from him!" She said. She pulled the stick out of Mido's hand and dropped it on his head. It then fell on Link's head.

"Whoa!" Link said. "I've got a cool fairy!"

"What!" Mido shouted. "You've got a fairy!"

"Actually," Link said in a dazed state from multiple concussions, "It looks like I have four fairies..."

"Link! Come on!" Navi said. "Get up! The Great Deku Tree summoned you, remember!"

"Hey, that sounds familiar..." Link said. "Did somebody else say that?"

"The Great Deku Tree actually summoned you? Whaaaaaaat! Why would he summon you, and not the great Mido? This isn't funny..."

"Go throw a pity party somewhere else, Mido," Navi said. "We need through!"

"I don't believe it! You aren't even fully equipped yet!" Mido continued.

Link got up. "What do you mean, 'Not fully equipped'?"

"How do you think you're going to help the Great Deku Tree without both a sword and shield ready?"

"What do you mean?" Link asked. "I'm just gonna talk to the Great Deku Tree, right Navi?"

"Umm, actually he has a point," Navi said. "Oh well, we don't have time!"

"What's the hurry?" Link asked. "Hey wait, you don't have a sword and shield, Mido! What makes you any better?"

"What?" Mido said. "Okay, I don't have it ready, but I could go get it! If you want to pass through here, you should at least equip a sword and shield! Sheesh!"

"Mido, you're right," Navi said. "Link might need a sword and shield to help the Great Deku Tree, but we've got to see the Great Deku Tree now!"

"Wow, Mr. New Fairy. Your new fairy's really annoying!"

"No she's not! She's cool and only a little annoying."

"Hey!" Navi said. "You're supposed to stand up for me, Link!"

"I am!"

Just then, Mido snatched Navi out of the air. "If you don't go get a sword and shield, I'll squish her! Now go!"

"Navi!"

"You wanna see her again? Get a sword and shield!"