Hey guys! I've always been a fan of the Zelda series (although I've sadly only ever played the main console games) and I've always wondered how characters came to be about. What inspired OoT Zelda to fight Ganondorf in the shadows? How did Ashei join La Resistance? How did a badass pirate like Tetra get kidnapped by a giant bird? These are a series of oneshots that sort of give answers to those questions. I see this as writing exercise and I'm totally excited to do this. I've never written fanfiction in my life before and I like a challenge. Without further ado:
Mother (OoT)
She runs because of love. She runs because she doesn't know how long this adrenaline rush to the head will last—there's already a gaping wound on the side of her body. Just moments before—was it moments?—her home was attacked and her husband's life lost. His last words were to tell her to run. She was blocked by an enemy soldier at the door when he slashed his sword against her side, but she managed to escape him. She doesn't know how long ago this was. It could have been moments. Minutes. Hours. She doesn't know how to feel. All she knows is that she needs to take her child to safety. Somewhere where there isn't war, violence, death, and hatred. She holds onto her golden child for his safety. He is her last remaining link to her husband.
The fields are dark and menacing. There is a war going on and anywhere she turns could very well signify her last moments. She isn't thinking. She is just acting on pure instinct. She also knows that if she strays from the marked path, the Stalchildren will sense her movements and blood and rise up from their graves, finishing her off and having her child to their mercy. She can't allow that to happen.
When she realizes that she is at the end of a path, some of her adrenaline begins to slow down. She sees a large and hollow tree trunk that takes her into the Forest. She knows it's safe there. She has a child. The children there will understand.
She trips and collapses on the bridge between two tree trunks. Luckily, her child is not hurt and barely felt the pain of her fall, mostly because she falls on her knees. She knows she doesn't have much longer. All of her strength is starting to fade. Her child is growing heavier in her arms. But she needs to get up. She needs—
She hears a noise. A pleasant tune. She needs to keep going. The woman stands up once more and knows she has to go find the source of the music.
The village of children is empty, but the music remains, only growing stronger.
She doesn't see the little girl at first, with her hair blending in with the dark forest night, but there she sits on a small stump, playing on an ocarina. She's the source of the melody. The moment she stops playing is the same moment she spots the woman, but she stays still in her stump.
The woman drags herself towards the odd haired girl. "Miss," she barely recognizes her own voice. It's worn out, hoarse, and weak. "Please help."
The green haired girl is shaking in fear, but when she spots the infant in her arms, she instantly stops. "Is he okay?" the little girl asks in fear.
"Yes. I need him to stay safe. Please," she pleads with the girl. She can't stand the weight of her child anymore. He's too heavy.
The green haired girl raises her tiny arms and in acceptance, she gives her up to the girl. She has a beautiful face for a child. There's something kind about the little girl that would allow her to entrust her son to her. She looks young, but her eyes deceive that fact.
The little girl stares at the child and both lock their blue eyes against each other. Then the girl does the most unexpected thing—she pulls him into a warm embrace. "As much as I want to help, lady, I can't be the one to decide. It has to be the Great Deku Tree. We both need to go to him." The woman knows she barely has the will to go. The world is slowly blurring, her senses dulling. But she knows that her son's life comes first and if she has to convince a Forest Spirit to raise her son, she will.
"I…" her voice falters.
The little girl begins to walk in the opposite direction of the hollow tree trunk. Another child—an orange haired boy this time—is guarding the way.
"Saria! What did you do this time?!" The boy yells in a shocked and angry tone. "You know they can't be here!" The woman is suddenly grateful she stumbled across Saria instead of the boy. Saria. Such a pretty name.
"Mido, let us pass."
"No. You know that as leader of the Kokiri, I can't do that."
"No, as leader of the Kokiri, you don't want to do that. The Great Deku Tree has the final say. Now please, let us pass. If he says no, they'll leave and never return, that I promise. But the child. There's something about him that I just…felt when I saw him. And you know how I get feelings sometimes."
As if the boy knows what she means, he gives her a look the woman knows all too well. This boy—Mido, is in love with the girl. She assumes it's a child type of love, but she saw it in her husband when he was his age. Or looked his age, anyway. She would be with him soon enough, and they'd watch their son grow from the heavens.
"Great Deku Tree. I—"
"Saria, child." The voice of the large tree was unlike anything the woman had ever heard. It was like hearing the wind talk to her. Its voice was soothing, kind even. "This is the Child of Destiny. The Great Hero reborn."
The woman feels a jolt in her body, gooseflesh rising from all corners. Her son…the Great Hero? A feeling of disembodiment shakes her to her core. She is on her side now, the world turning purple and black.
"Thy fate is tied with him, Saria. Guide him and love him as thou own. One day he will grow to leave this forest and save the land."
The woman's world is fading fast. She no longer has the ability to speak anymore. Her time will be over soon. "Thy son will be taken care of," the Tree tells her in a way that sounds implicitly to Saria as well. "Rest."
The woman's eyes close.
Disclaimer: Characters totally not owned by me, and yes, The Great Deku Tree is not easy to write thanks to Ye Olde English. Review? It might make me want to write faster...just saying.