By: Froggy
Disclaimer: I don't own 'The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time'. As I always say, I could never claim I do, for I am not that cool. Hee hee. Rating: G Author's Note: Another important turning point for Link...imagine how scared he must have been! Kokiri are supposed to die when they leave the forest...and Saria looked SO sad...many, many thanks to my wonderful brother, KKC, who was willing to delete his half-advanced game so I could collect this scene and dialogue. HOW SWEET IS THAT? *huggles her bro* I am also sorry to say that I've added some conversation, some actions that I think may have been appropriate, because the way it happened on the game didn't seem...linear (and because Link never talks.)
Leaving the Kokiri Forest
Link walked solemnly through the Kokiri Forest, where he'd grown up, head low, holding his small Kokiri Sword in his chubby hand. He was thinking, thinking about the Deku Tree, which had just perished after he'd killed a virus Gannondorf had left inside. He bit his lip hard, passing his friends in the woods, trying not to have any conversations. His recent talk with the Great Deku Tree had stunned him, and he knew that a huge and frightening adventure lay before him. He wasn't in the mood for idle chatter. And he knew that he was now going to have to leave the Kokiri Forest. A chill ran down his spine when he thought of that. He'd been taught his whole life that he was Kokiri, and that if he left the forest, he would die. It wasn't easy to overcome eleven years of conditioning that told him the Kokiri Forest was all he would ever know. But now he was certain there was a large and exciting world out there for him to explore. As he was wandering up to the Training Center, Navi, his new and very reliable fairy friend, darted down from floating around his head and tapped his shoulder. "Hey! Listen!" she said urgently, and he realized that he'd been too far in dreamland to notice her summons. He lifted his head and smiled at her, nodding. The world around seemed to fade to black as she continued, "The Great Deku Tree wanted us to go to Hyrule Castle to see the Princess, didn't he? We'd better get a move on!" she warned him. Link nodded and turned, running towards the exit, a large hollow stump embedded into the wall, guarded by a Kokiri child named Kailon and a sign reading 'Forest folk shall not leave these woods.' As Link started to step inside the exit, Kailon ran over and tapped his shoulder, "Hey! We Kokiri will die if we leave the forest!" he cautioned, and Link nodded sombrely at him, "You're not going to try to leave the forest, are you?!" Kailon cried, grabbing at Link's arm. Link smiled at the smaller boy, "The Great Deku Tree told me to go to the Hyrule Castle to see the Princess." he explained, "I don't think the Deku Tree would send me there if I was going to die." Kailon released Link's arm, peering up at him through his shock of red bangs. He gave Link a quick nod, then waved good-bye. Link approached the exit with trepidation. 'I now make a choice that will most definitely change my life forever.' he thought silently, then walked through the log. When he came out the other side, a flurry of excitement ran through him and he ran as fast as he could down the bridge over a slow river, eager to start his adventure. Suddenly, a voice stopped him in his tracks, a familiar voice. Saria. He'd forgotten Saria. "Oh." she said quietly, her voice sad, "You're leaving." How could he have left without saying good-bye to her? How could he have forgotten her? He turned, looking at her standing there by the railing, watching him with her large, sad blue eyes. He walked back slowly, apologizing with his eyes for his haste in leaving. She smiled slightly, communicating her forgiveness. They had been able to think together, almost, for as long as either could remember. Link stood in front of his best friend and only love, Saria, and tried to figure out how to say good-bye, possibly forever. "I knew...that you would leave the forest...someday, Link." she said haltingly, her large eyes filling with tears. She turned her face away from him, seeming to study the lazy stream below them, "Because you are different from me and my friends." For a second, Link was hurt. Hadn't they always had a special bond? Hadn't they always been soulmates? Then she lifted her head and looked at him, a smile curving her little lips, but not touching her eyes. "But we'll be friends forever...won't we?" she asked, the last part tinted with fear and pleading. Link smiled and put his hand on her small shoulder, drawing her into a hug. "Of course." he assured her, then released her and stepped back one step again. Saria's face took on its usual sunny cheerfulness and she dug around in her tunic hastily, "I want you to have this Ocarina...please take good care of it." she said, handing him the little instrument. Link was amazed, holding it up to the sun, his eyes wide. It was the Fairy Ocarina, given to Saria's deceased mother by a Great Fairy of Magic. When they were only four, before she died, Saria's mother had taught Link and Saria how to play Ocarinas, together. It was really Saria's most precious possession, and Link was amazed that she should be giving it to him. "But..." he protested. "When you play my Ocarina, I hope you will think of me and come back to the forest to visit." Saria interrupted wistfully. She stared into his eyes, communicating her fear that he would meet better people, have so many adventures, become such a famous hero that their bond would fade. Link's solemn face reminded her that nothing could break their bond, no matter what. They were best friends...forever. Link's pain surfaced and he couldn't handle looking into her sad eyes anymore. He took two steps backward, memorizing her face, then turned abruptly and ran full speed out of the forest, no longer caring if the outside world killed him, as they'd promised it would. Saria watched him, her face frozen between pain and joy, hoping against all hope that he would never forget her. 'Come back to me, my fairy-boy.' she thought. She stood on the bridge for a long time after that, her hands resting where he'd leaned on the railing.
A week and a half later...
She was sitting in the Sacred Woods Meadow playing her favorite Ocarina song, the one her mother had taught her when they were alone. Link hadn't learned it. She smiled to herself, thinking about her lifelong friend. She would never forget him, even if he didn't come back or keep in touch with her, despite the message she'd sent out among the Kokiri that she wanted to meet with him at 'the usual place'. He knew to come, if only he'd return home... Then he was there, right in front of her, smiling and tugging on her sleeve to talk to her. She put down her Ocarina and hugged him. He hugged back. Her heart swelled until she thought it would burst. Link looked wiser, and she could tell he'd spoken to the Princess and recieved his assignment. "I've been waiting for you, Link!" she said, full of excitement, "This is the Sacred Forest Meadow. It's my secret place. I feel..." she started, then she was full of a wistful sort of emotion. 'I feel like you should stay here with me. I feel like we shouldn't ever be apart. I feel like I'm not important to you anymore. I feel like you're growing up and leaving me behind. I feel...' she thought. All the things she didn't know how to say to her young hero. "...this place will be very important for both of us someday." she said softly, going with the one thing she knew to say, "That's what I feel." she assured him, in case he'd felt some of her anxiety, "If you play the Ocarina here, you can talk with the spirits in the forest. Would you like to play the Ocarina with me?" she asked, desperate for some of their old play together, to feel like old times and share somthing special with him. They'd only ever played the Ocarina with each other. A cheerful smile broke the look of contemplation on Link's face, "I'd love to!" he said eagerly, drawing the special Ocarina she'd given him out of his tunic, "It'll be just like old times." "I'll teach you a new song." she said, deciding to teach him her special song, "Okay, try to follow along with the melody I will play. Are you ready?" After a quick nod from Link, she put her lips to the mouthpiece on the Ocarina and blew the three cheerful notes that reminded her of her mother, repeating them four times so Link could catch them. She knew he was already an expert player, and he would catch on very quickly, but she wanted him to know it well. He smiled, lifted his Ocarina to his lips in a mirror movement to hers, closed his eyes and played the three notes. Their music echoed through the forest, creating sharps and flats of her song off the tree trunks and leaves.
Saria couldn't suppress a giggle, "Great! Great!" she said happily, glad he'd come back and cheered her up, then became slightly sad again, "Please don't forget this song! Do you promise?" He nodded emphatically, "Good. When you want to hear my voice, play Saria's Song. You can talk with me anytime." she said, adding in such a quiet whisper that he probably couldn't hear her, "Please call often..."
He held up the Ocarina in front of his face, eyes wide, as it sparkled with learning the song. She smiled at his cute, chubby little face.
"Bye." he said hastily, "I have to go to Death Mountain to collect the next Spiritual Stone." he informed her, "I'll call a lot!" he yelled over his shoulder as he ran back out of the Lost Woods.
Saria watched him go with a feeling that one chapter of her life had ended and another begun.
She lifted her Ocarina to her lips and played her song to the empty skies.
Author's Note: Sad, hey? Anyway, please, please, please tell me what you think of these stories! Thanks! BYEEE!