Author's Note: Hey readers! I decided to finally get off my lazy butt and get to editing this story. I added some stuff, most noteably my new "Zelda Calender" system which is pretty much marking what year these are taking in. This being what I think is about 401 years after Skyward Sword (thus the A.H. which means "After Hylia"). I'll give a more descriptive explanation to it on a later story since this one doesn't require it as much. But if you want it now look up my DeviantArt account (MetalshadowN64) and it'll be in a journal entry.
Chapter 1: A Dream?
Hyrulian Calender: 401 A.H.
"You call yourself a hero? You're nothing but a small child!" a male adult voice screamed at the Young Hero.
"I am a hero! I saved the world-" the boy began.
"Silence! You did not save the world on your own! Do you not forget who aided you?"
"But I can control you!"
"You only think you control me! My power is beyond your comprehension and strength!" the entity screamed as it raised its massive sword that was double or triple the boy's height and brought it down; ripping through the boy. The boy screamed in defiance, but the being continued regardless. The boy tried to reach for his sword and shield but neither was on his back, he then tried to move to avoid the onslaught of pain, but he found himself bound by some unknown means. The being continued his battle cries as he continued slashing at the boy, constantly ripping the boy into halves, only to be reconstructed. The young hero screamed on without end.
Link awoke screaming, sweat dripping down his whole body, when he calmed down he looked around to see where he was; he was in the Knife Chambers room in the Stock Pot Inn in the land of Termina. He placed a hand on his face and wiped away the sweat. What a nightmare… he thought as he ripped the blankets off him and looked through his pouch full of his gear till he found what he suspected caused the nightmare; the mask of the Fierce Deity. The mask's empty eyes staring back at him, and he could feel that the eyes were trying to pierce his soul. This mask absolutely terrified him to the core. Majora and Ganondorf plagued his dreams on the rare occasion but lately it has been this one mask that has caused the young hero to lose many hours of sleep.
It has been a year since he saved the land of Termina from Majora's Mask, and 2 years more since his adventure in Hyrule. He was coming up on his 13th birthday - or at least that's what he's considered it. He doesn't actually know when is actual birthday is, so he considers the day he was summoned by the Great Deku Tree to begin his adventure to be his birthday. He has tried to remember anything of his actual parents, but all he can picture is a pair of figures; a man and woman, both looking down at him and smiling. He can't remember their faces, names, or anything about them. He wondered a lot when the truth was finally revealed to him by the Deku Tree Sprout, but all he got was that semi-memory. He looked at the calendar on the wall and found it was just tomorrow. He then remembered that the girls at Romani Ranch had invited him over to celebrate his 'birthday'. Link looked at the Clock Tower that could be seen from his window and noticed it was about quarter to 7 AM. "At least I got some sleep tonight." he muttered as he got dressed and exited the room.
He groggily walked down the stairs, as he turned the corner he noticed that Anju gave a concerned look to the young hero in green. "You okay, Link?" she asked, deeply concerned. "Me and Kafei could hear you screaming again."
Link gulped softly – as of late his nightmares have caused him to awake screaming in terror and often enough the young couple that owned the Inn had approached him and tried to comfort him. This morning was no different. "It's okay, Miss Anju. I'm just having some bad dreams. That's all." he said giving her a smile that he had to muster to make. Anju just gave a concerned and skeptical look as she then focused her attention on the baby in the crib beside her – now used to Link's attempts to avoid this almost daily questioning. Link looked over at the baby, and truly smiled. He never saw a real baby before until he came back to Termina to find that the couple had one.
"Hey, Link, When is your birthday, if you don't mind my asking?" Anju suddenly asked, extremely curious after noticing Link looking over.
Link looked up to the question. "Oh, it's tomorrow." Anju's face suddenly brightened.
"Is that so? So is little Dutor's, here!" she exclaimed.
"Really?" Link said as his face lightly blushed.
"Yeah, how old will you be, Link?"
Link stood there for a moment as his smile disappeared. "I'm not totally sure. I think I'll be 13. I'm not even sure if tomorrow is my birthday…" The sentence hung there in the air for an awkward minute.
"So you're an orphan?" Anju asked with a somber tone. Link just nodded, remembering once again that he has had no real family his entire life. "Well, Link. If you want we can celebrate it as your birthday, too." Link smiled to the offer as it was tempting however he shook his head.
"No thanks. I actually already have plans anyway. Cremia and Romani invited me over to the ranch to have a birthday party tonight; I'll be staying over all day tomorrow too. Anyway, it should be a time for you and Kafei to spend with your baby's first birthday, not me. I don't know my birthday, after all!" he said with a more genuine smile. Anju smiled to the boy's honesty and nodded however still having the somber look on her face mixed now with a bit of disappointment.
"Okay, but please stop by so we can say happy birthday on the one day that you think is yours? You're a good friend of the family, and we feel we are in your debt." Link opened his mouth ready to say something along the lines "its no problem" or something but he didn't feel like dragging the same "argument" he's had with the couple dozens of times whenever they insisted on doing him a favor. One such favor was his very staying at the Inn; they offered him originally to have no rent but after some arguing they eventually excepted some rent from him even though it was only half price and they only charged him once a month rather than weekly. He nodded and began to leave, looking down at the Fierce Deity mask in his left hand – carefully hidden from Anju.
Over at the ranch, Romani was rapidly running around preparing for the birthday party. She was just finishing on putting up a banner that read; "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GRASSHOPPER!" when Cremia approached and looked at the banner and shook her head at her younger sister.
"You do know his name is Link, right?" she asked to the little girl. Romani looked over to her big sister and stuck out her tongue.
"Romani knows that! But Romani is used to calling him by that name."
"Do you insist on talking in the third-person? I know I've heard you talk normally. He has heard it too." the elder sister pointed out as she placed her hands on her hips, but Romani just stuck out her tongue again. "Oh come on, Romani; we both know you're not a kid anymore." she continued as a devilish smile formed on her face. "Cause I know you're in love!" she teased as she made kissing faces and sound effects, while holding her hands together, rubbing it in. Romani's face went beat-red in blush and anger. She then jumped down from the ladder and chased after her older sister, whom ran away, continuing the kiss faces.
