Chapter 1:

The Race

Link dashed into the plaza, breathing heavily. There was a cut across his torso, and he was holding a bloodied rag to it. A few people had gathered, and all turned and gasped in unison. A large man in an orange robe with white, pointy eyebrows grew wide eyed at the sight of him.

"Good lord, son! What happened to you? Are you alright?" he cried.

Link nodded slowly, regaining his breath, "I'm... alright. Got my bird back. We can... we can start now."

A girl, standing across from him, stared with horror, "Link, I'm sorry that -"

He shook his head, "It's fine. I can explain later." He turned to the large man with the white eyebrows and orange robe, "We can start the ceremony now, Headmaster Gaebora."

A large, burly boy about Links age stepped forward, "Heh, Link, looks like you ran into some trouble! You should keep track of your bird next time! Oh wait, there won't be a next -"

"Groose! Be quiet!" the headmaster said sternly, "Now, I want fair play from all of you." He glared at Groose, "That goes double for you! Now, the object of the game is simple! You fly your bird after the small Loftwing. In his talons, he holds a small statuette. It's fairly simple; grab the statuette, and return here. It's a simple task in theory, but this little bird is going to put up quite the chase! Now, line up, and get ready!"

Link, Groose, and a few other knights-to-be took their positions in front of a large wooden dock. Link took a deep breath, and tossed the bloodied rag aside. He could last long enough. He had to. Zelda was depending on him.

"On your mark!"

Groose grinned as he met eyes with Link.

"Get set!"

Link got ready to run, trying to block out all of the pain from his wound. He could do it. He was just better than -

"GO!"

Link sprinted towards the end of the dock, and jumped off. He fell down towards white fluffy clouds below, spreading his arms, letting the wind batter him for just a moment. In those brief few seconds, he managed to clear his head, and focus.

He then put his finger in his mouth, and whistled. Hardly five seconds had passed before he was swooped up onto the back of a large red bird. He patted her neck, and took hold of some leather reigns.

"Alright, girl. Let's do this," Link said to the bird, snapping on the reigns. It shot forward with a burst of speed. Link looked around him.

He saw Groose and his cronies flying several feet below him; Groose leading the pack. Several hundred yards ahead, a small bird was soaring around the sky. Link snapped on the reigns again, and his Loftwing shot off in the direction of the golden bird.

He looked to his right, and saw Goose shooting by. He nudged his Loftwing on, but she was obviously too tired to go her usual speed. Earlier that day Groose had captured her and stuck her in a small cage, and Link was forced to go through a monster-filled cave in order to save her. That was how he had gotten cut so badly. If Groose had intended to lower his chances of winning, he had certainly succeeded.

He cursed silently under his breath. The odds were against him, but he had to beat Groose, no matter what. Even if someone else won the match, he knew Groose would only be too happy of time alone on top of the Goddess' Statue with Zelda.

Link pulled his bird sharply to the left, towards a large floating rock. As he circled around it, a swirling portal became visible, going through the rock. His Loftwing flew into the portal, and they were shot through, zipping through the air like an arrow out of a cannon. Which, Link assumed, would be an analogy for extremely, death-defying fast.

By the time his bird was slowing down, as the effects of the portal wore off, he had already passed Groose and was now mere feet from the statuette. He had won! All he had to do was finish the job!

He began to reach out, his Loftwing managing to keep up the pace with the golden bird. He almost had it, when a small rock pelted his face. He cried out and fell from his Loftwing. The bird managed to catch him, but he had been majorly set back, and Groose was now way ahead of him, nearing the golden bird.

A small guy about Link's age flew up on his bird, stopping a moment, "That's Groose's prize, Link! Stay out of the way!" He flipped the dark hair out of his eyes, and flew off after Groose, giggling.

Link grimaced and snapped his bird's reigns, taking off towards the statuette. He tried to take angles towards the golden bird, but it was obvious his Loftwing was too tired, and he wouldn't be able to keep up. He was nowhere near a portal, though, so that wasn't an option this time.

He managed to take a good angle as the golden bird took a sweeping turn, and he was now neck and neck with Groose, although Groose was steadily gaining speed.

"Give up, Link!" Groose called over.

Link felt a sharp force on his back. Another rock had hit him, but this time he hadn't been knocked off. He looked up, and saw Groose's friends circling overhead, throwing rocks and eggs his way. He swerved to avoid them.

The golden bird took a sharp turn downward, and Link and Groose tore off after it. They were heading straight for Skyloft, the main island in the sky. The tall, stone lighthouse was rushing up to meet them. Link predicted the golden bird's movements, though, and he grinned with realization.

The golden bird was heading straight for the lighthouse, so Link slowed down a tad. Groose, however, kept going. He had failed to realize the bird's trick, though. The golden bird, at the last second, did a U-turn, and was heading straight for Link. Groose crashed painfully into the lighthouse, and fell helplessly to the ground below.

Link smiled as he grabbed the statuette when the bird passed him with ease. He held it up for the world to see, cheering loudly. He hoped Zelda was getting to see this!

He brought his bird down for a landing, and rolled off of it's back. He tried to stand, but the sudden pain in his torso caused him to drop the statuette and fall on his side. He looked at his bird, and saw that it's back was covered in his blood.

"Sorry, girl..." he muttered, fighting to stay conscious.

"Link!" Zelda, the blond girl in the red dress, cried. She dropped down on her knees by his side, "Oh no, are you okay?"

"Let's get Link here patched up, so he can continue the ceremony," the headmaster said, lifting him up easily.

"Father, I don't think he's in any condition -"

"Zelda, hush now. This is important. Link has to do this ceremony in order to become an upperclassman. He's worked too hard to turn back now."

Link nodded weakly, trying to offer Zelda a reassuring smile.

The headmaster carried Link off towards the Knight's Academy where most of the knights-in-training and their teachers lived. They had a medical ward, and would be able to patch Link up temporarily.

Link blacked out, and did not become conscious again until later in the evening, in his bed. The headmaster shook him lightly.

"Link, it's time for you to head over to the Goddess' Statue. Your injuries will be fine for awhile. You can go ahead and stand."

Link managed to sit up, and was surprised to find his wounds did not hurt as bad. They were bandaged tightly, and he felt like he would be able to do this, just like the headmaster said.

"Run along now, Link."

He nodded, "Thanks. I'll be back soon."

Link left the academy, and started out for the Goddess' Statue, a looming, ancient statue in the distance. Along the way, he started to feel nervous. What exactly did the final phase of the ceremony entail? He looked at his feet the whole way over, fiddling with a loose bit of bandage.

At the foot of the statue, he met Zelda. She rushed over to him, embracing him in a hug.

"Link! I'm glad you won! How are you feeling?" she said, smiling.

"Good, I think. How's my bird?" he asked.

"She's fine. I got her cleaned up. You sure made a mess!" She laughed, and Link couldn't help but laugh too. Zelda just had that personality that made a person smile no matter the circumstance. Link was glad they were friends.

They climbed a ladder high up the statue, and arrived at the top, where there was a platform on the Goddesses hands, which were cupped together. She took the statuette from Link, and placed it in a hole in the statue, where it fit. She said a small prayer where she asked the Goddess to bless the ceremony. After this, she withdrew a harp from the pouch at her side, and played the Goddess' Song, and song Link had heard many times. He liked it when Zelda played it though, she had a wonderful singing voice. She turned back to Link.

She smiled warmly at him, "Link, every year someone plays the Goddess, and gives the winner of the challenge a gift. The gift is a symbol of knighthood. I spent many long nights making this, and I hope you like it."

There was a pause. Link waited anxiously.

"You're supposed to get on a knee."

"Oh, um, sorry."

She giggled, "It's fine."

She withdrew some white fabric that she had been wearing as a shawl, and handed it to Link.

"This is the sailcloth. When you jump, you hold it over your head, and it will slow your fall. It's very useful. I... I hope you like it."

Link took it, and stood again. He examined it. It was very well made, and seemed sturdy. There was a blue emblem of a bird on it. He knew it would come in handy.

...It smelled pretty nice, too.

He held it up, "Wow, this is great! I'm gonna jump from all kinds of stuff, now!" Link said.

Zelda laughed, "Link, quit goofing around, this is a sacred ritual, remember? Now, you know the Goddess was said to give it to her chosen hero long ago? Even this harp is said to be like the one she said. That's why I played it today. It's a treasured tradition, and..."

She blushed, "I'm glad I got to share it with you, Link."

He smiled, giving her a small nod.

"Take good care of it, okay? Now, we really should finish up this ritual..."

She started to walk towards him, "You... do know what happens at the end, right?"

Link shook his head. She came even closer. Suddenly the world started to fall to pieces around Link. It was just him, standing inches from her. She smelled just like the sailcloth, and her blue eyes glistened. He had never paid much attention to her eyes before.

His heart was pounding, and he knew he was probably red. She got closer, and stood a moment. And then she playfully pushed him around, "You jump off of the statue, of course!"

Link wasn't sure if he was supposed to feel crushed or relieved.

"See that circle down there? You have to jump off of the statue, and use your sailcloth to land safely in the circle. After that, you've finished!"

Link nodded, looking down. He sure was high...

Zelda suddenly shoved him, and he plummeted. The ground was racing towards him, much like when he jumped from a dock down towards the cloud bank below. He grabbed both ends of the sail cloth, and raised it up over his head. Instantly he slowed. He dropped down for a graceful landing, and tucked the sailcloth away.

Zelda flew down beside him on her Loftwing, "It's getting late, Link. I think you've earned some rest. But meet me tomorrow, okay?"

Link nodded, giving a small wave.

"Hey, and good job today! You flew really well!" she said, snapping the reigns on her Loftwing.

It shot off, and Link waved by, yelling a thank-you after her. He turned, blushing. Had she noticed him go red earlier?

Why had he felt so strange atop the statue, he thought to himself. Zelda was his lifelong friend, so why was that whole ceremony so tense? It was like he had feelings for her. Whatever that was had passed, though, so that was reassuring. He liked them as friends better. Although, she was cute...

...But of course, they were just friends. Nothing had changed.

In no time Link was shutting his door behind him, and climbing into bed. He was out the second his eyes were closed, and he had never slept so peacefully before.

A/N: Anyone who has seen this story earlier knows it's changed many times. But, I decided to go more along with the actual game. My ideas were waayy too off, and would have only messed things up. So, enjoy the ride!