Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story.
Youmu and Link easily cut through some Deku Babas after they had grown and started snapping in the air. "What the heck were those?" Youmu asked.
"Deku Babas. They usually tend to snap at you when you get too close." Navi explained.
"Too bad for them." Link said as they kept walking until they saw the Great Deku Tree in front of them.
"Great Deku Tree, I'm back!" Navi greeted.
BGM: Deku Tree (The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time)
"Oh Navi… thou hast returned…"
Did that tree just talk? Youmu thought.
"Link… Youmu… welcome…"
How did it know my name?!
"Listen carefully to what I, the Deku Tree, am about to tell thee… Thy slumber these past moons must have been restless and full of nightmares…"
Actually, I rarely even have nightmares… Youmu thought.
"As the servants of evil gain strength, a vile climate pervades the land and causes nightmares to those sensitive to it… Verily, thou hast felt it…"
I guess? Youmu mentally shrugged.
"Link, Youmu… the time has come to test thy courage… I have been cursed… I need thee to break the curse with thy wisdom and courage. Dost thou have courage enough to undertake this task?"
Poor guy's been cursed… how can I say no to that? Youmu thought to herself and looked at Link as they both looked at each other and nodded.
"Yes." Link said.
"Then enter, brave Link and brave Youmu, and thou too… Navi." The Deku Tree requested. "Thou as well, mysterious person."
"Mysterious…?" Link wondered and on instinct, he quickly unsheathed his sword.
"Now now, why would you point such a sharp knife on a beautiful lady like myself?"
Youmu blinked. "Yuuka? What are you doing here?"
"I only came to help." Yuuka replied. "Now come on, I want to save this beautiful tree from whoever cursed it." She said as they nodded and walked inside the Deku Tree.
End BGM
Inside the Deku Tree...
BGM: Inside the Deku Tree (The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time)
"So…this is what's inside of a tree?" Youmu asked.
"That's very good to know." Yuuka replied as they walked around and noticed a Deku Baba attempting to snap at them, but Link got rid of it easily. After that, they noticed a huge spider web smack dab in the middle of the ground.
"Hey, I can see something down there!" Link said and looked down. "I think it's a passage down there."
Youmu unsheathed her sword. "I'll cut it open!"
"I have a better idea." Link said as he climbed up some vines. "We jump down!" He said and then jumped off, but as soon as his feet made contact to the spider web, it stretched down a little, but not enough for it to snap.
"I think it'd be much faster if I were to cut it open." Youmu said.
"I actually agree." Navi said.
"Yep." Yuuka nodded.
"I say we need to go higher." Link said and then started climbing up more vines, only to get attacked by Skulltulas and thrown down. "OOOF!" He yelled. "Where did those things come from?!" He asked as Yuuka, Youmu and Navi came over.
"Hey, what's in that treasure chest?" Yuuka asked, pointing towards it. Youmu walked over to it and opened it while Link got up, brushing himself off as Youmu pulled out a map.
"Who puts a map in a treasure chest?" Youmu asked. "That doesn't make any sense."
"I have no idea." Yuuka shrugged.
Youmu sighed. "Next thing you know, we'll be finding keys in treasure chests. I hope that'll never happen." She said and then Yuuka looked at the Skulltulas.
"Perhaps some Danmaku can tear these things apart." She said, reaching for her umbrella but Link noticed a door.
"I wonder what's in there?" Link wondered, curiously walking over to it as Yuuka and Youmu stared at it.
"Why is there a door in a tree? That doesn't make any sense." Youmu said.
"I don't know, but next thing you know, that's probably going to catch on by placing doors in trees like… I dunno, a forest full of tiny woodland creatures or something." Yuuka said as Youmu and Navi looked at her.
"That seemed oddly specific." Navi said as they walked to catch up with Link.
"That was the first thing that popped into my head." Yuuka shrugged and they then noticed a Deku Scrub running by and Link turned his head.
"What took you so long?" Link grinned and kept walking to the next door as he noticed a platform. He quickly jumped on to it…but it easily crumbled and he fell. "WHOOOA!" He yelled, but then Youmu caught him.
"Let's not get too excited." Youmu said.
"Sorry…" Link chuckled and then noticed something. "Wait...are you flying without any wings?" He asked.
"It's how we usually get around in Gensokyo. We can walk but flying is actually more fun." Yuuka explained as they got to the higher level.
"I see. I wish I could fly." Link said.
"Too bad for you~!" Navi giggled.
"Ouch…" Link sighed and then walked over to the other treasure chest and pulled out a slingshot. "Nice!" He grinned and looked up to see another one. "What's in that one?" He wondered as Yuuka flew up and opened it, revealing a heart.
"…Who puts a heart in a treasure chest?" She wondered before tossing it behind her, landing on the ground near the others as they noticed a ladder just dangling from a spider web, so Link found some Deku Seeds and aimed carefully and shot it to bring it down.
"You can fly, I'll just take the long way." Link said.
"Suit yourself." Youmu said as they flew down and decided to go on ahead while Link was climbing the ladder.
"Hey, wait for me!" Link ran off after them, and discovered that the two women were firing Danmaku at the Skulltulas to easily destroy them. "Did they just fire energy things from their hands?"
"Well, at least you don't have to waste any Deku Seeds." Navi pointed out as he decided to climb the vines where he met up with Youmu and Yuuka… and Youmu holding a compass.
"Where did you get that?" Link asked.
"In the other room… and we also found this." Yuuka said, pulling out a Gold Skulltula Token. "It came out of that golden spider."
"A Gold Skulltula? Those are rare to find." Navi said.
"Well, we might save those for later." Link said and looked down. "Yeah, we should be high enough." He said as he backed up, completely unaware of a Skulltula coming down and making Youmu tense up just by its appearance. Yuuka brought out her umbrella, aiming directly at it.
End BGM
BGM: Face It! (Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories)
"You…are a freak of nature!" Yuuka said as the Skulltula swung forward to try to hit them but they jumped to the side… and went straight for Link.
"And here… we-" The Skulltula slammed into him, launching him off the platform. "AAAAAAAAAAAH!" He yelled, unaware of Yuuka launching a Master Spark at the Skulltula as they looked down, seeing him faceplant in the spider web as it stretched out big time.
"I'm sure it'll hold." Navi said.
SNAP!
"…Or not."
End BGM
"Link! Aim with your feet! YOUR FEET!" Youmu yelled, but unfortunately… Link unintentionally did a belly flop when he hit the water, making the three cringe at this.
"Oh, that'll hurt in the morning." Yuuka said as they flew down after the poor kid.
"Ooogh…" Link groaned as the women landed.
"Are you okay?" Youmu asked.
"Yeah… what in the world just hit me?" Link asked.
"A Skulltula." Navi replied.
"Oh…" He said as he got up. "Next time… I'm not going to take a running start…" He groaned as he saw two Skulltulas who were easily dispatched by Youmu and Yuuka.
"So, I've been wondering something." Yuuka said.
BGM: Just Wondering (Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories)
"Yeah?" Youmu asked.
"Why is it that you're here in this world?" Yuuka asked. "Yukari told me that you needed help, but she never explained why."
"Well, I had this dream…" Youmu said and explained the dream, and then mentioning that Link told her that he had the same dream.
"Interesting…" Yuuka mused. "As someone who came from Gensokyo's Dream World one time, maybe I can figure this out." She said. "Can you describe what they looked like?"
"Well, the two girls were on a white horse and the first girl was a small child probably around Link's age. She was wearing this purple robe and had this… thing on her head." Youmu explained. "As for the other woman, I couldn't tell what she was wearing, but she had these blue markings under her eyes… and she had the appearance of a grown adult like you, but she had silver hair."
"Okay… and what about this man?"
"From what I could tell, he was on a dark horse and he was dark skinned, had red hair, had this… really pointy nose and was wearing dark clothing… and a very brown cape." Link explained.
"I see…" Yuuka said, grabbing a Deku Stick and drawing it on the ground. "And what were you doing, Link?"
"He looked at me and I could've sworn he said something before he aimed the palm of his hand at me with this really powerful energy coming out of his hand…"
"Did you do anything?"
"No, I was just standing there in fear."
"Interesting…" Yuuka said and looked at Youmu. "And you weren't in the dream at all?"
"Not really."
"Hmm…" Yuuka rubbed her chin in thought. "From what I can tell, this probably isn't a nightmare or a dream, but rather… a vision into the future."
"But how come I got it?" Youmu asked.
"Well, this evil man you mentioned… he could be powerful enough to not only destroy this world, but Gensokyo as well. Sure, Reimu and Marisa could probably take him down, but we don't know how strong he really is. I say you two would need to exercise caution when approaching this man." Yuuka advised as the two nodded.
"And as for you, Youmu…" Yuuka looked at her. "You said you weren't in the dream, but who's to say you weren't? You were probably coming to Link's rescue at the last second before you abruptly woke up."
"You think so?" Youmu asked.
"Most likely." Yuuka nodded and then put the Deku Stick away.
End BGM
BGM: Inside the Deku Tree
"Now, let's move on." Yuuka said as they nodded and walked forward, burning up spider webs in the process. They came across a Deku Scrub that fired a Deku Seed at the group, but Link reflected it back with his shield as it screamed and ran off, but Yuuka raised her hand and tied the Deku Scrub with sunflowers.
"What the…?!" Link exclaimed as he rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was seeing things.
Did those sunflowers appear out of nowhere?
Yuuka walked forward to the Deku Scrub, who looked scared. "Now, why did you do that?"
"I... I… I don't know! B-B-But… please… let me go!"
Yuuka said nothing but gave a sadistic grin. "If I do let you go, you'll probably attack us again… and I won't like that one bit." She said. "Now, promise me that you will NEVER do that again… or else."
A shiver ran up Link's spine. "She's creeping me out!"
"Me too!" Navi shivered.
Wait until you see the other Youkai in my world. Youmu thought. This is nothing.
"O-Okay! I won't!" The Deku Scrub exclaimed. "I-In return… I'll tell you a code…!"
"Code? Give it to me."
"2-3-1… Twenty-Three is number one! PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!"
"…Twenty-Three is number one, eh? Good to know." Yuuka said. "Alright, we're done here."
"A-are you going to let me go?"
Yuuka chuckled, aiming her umbrella at it and sadistically grinned. "I never forgive those who shoot at me for no reason." She said and then unleashed a Master Spark while Youmu and Navi sweatdropped while Link fainted from the sadistic personality that is Yuuka.
"That seemed a bit too much." Navi said.
"She always takes things a bit too far since she's a sadist." Youmu said as Yuuka turned around with a sweet innocent smile.
"Well, let's keep moving forward, shall we?"
SPLIT PERSONALITY, MUCH?! Navi thought.
Later…
"Wait, did we go into one gigantic circle?" Link asked.
Yuuka sweatdropped. "…I guess we could've just flown up after you explained the dream to me."
"How were we supposed to know that?" Youmu asked and then Yuuka pulled out the Deku Stick, put it near a torch and lit it, and then burned the spider web as they all jumped down, this time, Link landing in the water with his feet.
They soon got out of the water where they noticed three Deku scrubs glaring at them. "…2-3-1." Yuuka recalled. "Link!"
"Got it!" Link nodded and did the exact code, and then Yuuka trapped the Deku Scrub and walked forward.
"Alright, who do you work for?" Yuuka asked.
"Like I'd ever tell you!" He said.
"Very well." Yuuka said, pointing her umbrella to the side and using another Master Spark and killed the Deku Scrub's friends as it went wide eyed.
"OKAY OKAY, I'LL TELL YOU! IT'S QUEEN GOHMA!"
"What's her weak spot? I need to know this."
"WHEN HER EYE TURNS RED!" He yelled and cried. "I'M A TRAITOR!"
"But a very helpful one." Yuuka said… and then destroyed it while the three sweatdropped.
"How do you put up with a crazy woman like her?" Link asked.
"Simple… don't piss her off." Youmu said. "…Or destroy flowers in her presence." She added.
"…Good to know." Navi said as they walked into the next room, where they noticed Queen Gohma scurrying around, as if she was looking for something.
End BGM
"The stone..." Queen Gohma spoke, surprising the four. "Where is the stone?"
"So… you're the cause of all this?" Yuuka asked, catching Queen Gohma's attention.
"I am..." The beast replied as she landed, roaring at them."Should I curse you three as well?"
"Hmph… you don't even look threatening." She smirked as they got ready to take her out.
BGM: Gensokyo, Past and Present ~ Flower Land (Touhou 9: Phantasmagoria of Flower View)
Queen Gohma swiped at them, but they dodged and then noticed her eye glowing red. Yuuka fired a simple Danmaku bullet at her to stun her. "Now!" She ordered as Youmu and Link went right to work on it before Queen Gohma snapped out of her daze and attempted to flee and climbed on a wall, but Yuuka grabbed a hold of her. "Oh no, you don't!" She said and threw it to the ground, knocking the wind out of her and stunning her.
Link quickly slashed her several times before jumping back. "Youmu!"
"Got it!" Youmu said and slashed her before pulling out a Spell card. "Hesitation-Cutting Sword: Slash of Departing from Hesitation!" She shouted and then slashed down, cutting Gohma in half and ending the battle.
End BGM
"Wow…" Link said in amazement.
Youmu put her sword away and then noticing it disappearing, leaving behind a Heart Container and a portal to leave the Deku Tree as Link took a look at it.
"Hmm…interesting." Link mused as he curiously picked it up, and then it was absorbed into him. "Weird, why do I feel a bit stronger?" He wondered before the four of them walked into the portal… and appeared right in front of the Deku Tree.
BGM: Deku Tree
"Thou hast verily demonstrated thy courage… I knew that thou wouldst be able to carry out my wishes… Now I have yet more to tell thee, wouldst thou listen…?"
The four of them nodded, although Yuuka couldn't help but wonder if the Deku Tree was slowly dying.
End BGM
"Now… listen carefully… a wicked man of the desert cast this dreadful curse upon me…"
BGM: Organization XIII (Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 Remix)
What?! Youmu thought.
"This evil man ceaselessly uses his vile, sorcerous powers in his search for the Sacred Realm that is connected to Hyrule… For it is in that Sacred Realm that one will find the divine relic, the Triforce, which contains the essence of the gods…"
The Triforce? Yuuka wondered.
"Before time began, before spirits and life existed… three golden goddesses descended upon the chaos that was Hyrule… Din, the Goddess of Power… Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom… Farore, the Goddess of Courage…"
Power, Wisdom and Courage… hmm… fascinating. Yuuka mused.
"Din… With her strong flaming arms, she cultivated the land and created the red earth. Nayru… poured her wisdom onto the earth and gave the spirit of law into the world. Farore… With her rich soul, produced all life-forms who would uphold the law. The three great goddesses, their labors completed, departed for the heavens… and golden sacred triangles remained at the point where the goddesses left the world."
Wow… Youmu thought in amazement.
"Since then, the sacred triangles have become the basis of our world's providence and the resting place of the triangles has become the Sacred Realm."
The four of them were just amazed by the story, thinking about those three triangles.
"Thou must never allow the desert man in black armor to lay his hands on the sacred Triforce… Thou must never suffer that man, with his evil heart, to enter the Sacred Realm of legend… That evil man who cast the death curse upon me and sapped my power… because of that curse, my end is nigh…"
What?! Youmu and Link thought.
I knew it… Yuuka thought.
"Though your valiant efforts to break the curse was successful, I was doomed before you started. Yes, I will pass away soon… but do not grieve for me… I have been able to tell you of these important matters… this is Hyrule's final hope… Link, Youmu… Go now to Hyrule Castle… there thou wilt surely meet the Princess of Destiny. Take this stone with thee, the stone that man wanted so much that he cast the curse upon me."
It was then that something glowed in front of them and a stone rested on Link's hand as Youmu, Yuuka and Navi took a look at. The Kokiri's Emerald, also known as the Spiritual Stone of the Forest.
This must be the stone Gohma was looking for. Link thought, recalling Queen Gohma mentioning a stone.
"The future depends upon thee, Link and Youmu… thou art courageous… shouldst thou ever lose thy way, seek a vision of the path from the Sheikah Stone that stands besides thy home."
That we'll probably never use… Navi thought.
"Navi the fairy… Help Link and Youmu to carry out my will… I entreat thee… Navi… good…bye…"
It was that moment that the Deku Tree slowly lost its color before becoming gray completely, signaling that he just passed.
End BGM
Yuuka sighed and walked forward and then raised her hand, as sunflowers rose around the Deku Tree. "There, that should be good enough." She whispered and walked forward. "This man that the Deku Tree described… if he means to get this Triforce… then he will do anything he can to get it." She said and looked at the two. "Don't let him get to it."
"We won't." Youmu said.
"Good." Yuuka nodded, hugging Youmu. "Gensokyo's counting on you… and so is Hyrule." She said and then a gap opened up. "Take care." She said, waving them goodbye and walking into the gap.
"…Come on, let's go to Hyrule Castle." Navi said as the two nodded and walked off, as Navi looked at the Deku Tree one last time. "Good bye… Great Deku Tree." She said and went away with the other two as they walked in silence, thinking what the Great Deku Tree said to them.
Until a little something got in the way to ruin the moment… and by a little something, I mean Mido.
"Hey!" He exclaimed. "What did you do with the Great Deku Tree?! Did you kill him?!"
"No… we didn't." Link told him.
"I bet you did and your girlfriend helped you!"
"Girlfriend?" Youmu asked, blushing a little.
Link walked forward and then walked around Mido, glaring at him. "Mido, you might want to shut up if you know what's good for you." He quietly said and walked to the other side of Kokiri Forest with Youmu in tow.
"…Was it something I said?" Mido wondered as all the other Kokiri children wondered what had happened to the Great Deku Tree while Link and Youmu walked out of the forest and walked across a bridge.
"Oh… Link… are you leaving?" A voice asked as Link and Youmu turned around to see Saria approaching them.
"Saria…" Link looked at her.
"I always had a feeling you'd leave the forest someday, Link… because you're different from me and my friends… but that's alright… because we'll always be friends forever… won't we?" She quietly asked as Link had a saddened look on his face.
She then handed Link something. "I want you to take this Ocarina… take care of it for me."
Link took it. "I will."
"I hope that whenever you play the Ocarina, I hope you'll think of me and come back to the forest to visit." She said as Link nodded.
"…Goodbye…" Link solemnly said and took off running and Youmu and Navi went after him.
"Goodbye, Link…" Saria sadly said as a tear ran down her cheek.
And thus, the adventure is just beginning!