Yay reviews! And thanks for following this fan fic!

To OrangeStreakedStar: There will be Zelink! Not as much as in Skyward Swaps, but it's going to be there. I think you might like how I'm going to push towards it.

Anyway...

Chapter 2. Reluctant hero, sacred forest, and freaky creatures

I had been returned to Ordon spring... but I was still a wolf for some reason.

"Ah, that's right." Zant's voice echoed. "Though you have left the Twilight realm, you still possess the form of a wolf... I wonder why?"

He laughed. "Though I do imagine that you would need a way to defend yourself when you regain your human form... for you see, I will need you to recover a few objects for me, when the time comes. Unless of course you would rather be a wolf for the rest of your days."

"Oh, also, the reason why I haven't left is because I need to keep an eye on you. I trust you as much as you trust me, my Lady Wolf."

I couldn't stand him, but night had fallen across Ordon Village, and I had no choice but to obey Zant.

To make matters worse, the bulbins could be found around my house and without any possible weapon, I had to attack them with my fangs (they didn't taste good. You are better off not knowing what the taste was like.)

Before I could enter the village, I heard someone cry out "Wait!" To my surprise, it was from a tiny squirrel that was perched near the ladder to my house.

"Thank you for taking care of those bad guys!" He thanked me. "They made the forest and village a mess: they kidnapped the village children."

"What?!" I gasped in horror. How could I have not realized that the bulbins would attack the village until now, or even kidnap the other children?!

"But I know your not one of them." The squirrel continued, before advising me to speak to the other animals in my time of need. "You have the smell of the forest about you."

Unfortunately, my current form forced me to sneak around the village, as the villagers would find me one of the 'bad guys.' The village looked relatively intact, but, to my further dismay, I learned from overhearing Beth's distraught father that the children had indeed been captured.

I knew then that I needed to hurry as soon as I could: there was no telling what happened to them.

I took the wooden shield from the house of Malo and Talo- but in the process, I learned that Rusl had been injured, in an attempt to protect the children. And... I may have accidentally scared of the Mayor and Malo and Talo's father off when I unintentionally showed myself to them.

Oh, and I was attacked by a hawk, thanks to Beth's father. All I had to do was scare him off, thanks to the advice of Sera's cat.

I hadn't realized how hungry I was or how long I had gone without food until I saw fruit in a bowl in the house. To make matters worse, the wolf part of me wanted to devour any animal in sight, and I had to restrain myself because... well, would you want to eat something that was nice and could talk to you? Instead, I snatched an apple and hurried out of the house. The whole family possibly had it coming since they left a window open for me to enter through.

When I saw Rusl leaving his house, he was limping off towards the forest and as much as I wanted to stop him, I knew that there was nothing I could do, if he couldn't recognize me.

I needed a sword and, after digging up a pathway that lead from the outside, I entered my old home and found the sword laying by the love-seat.

I almost hesitated when I took it: I felt guilty for stealing from my surrogate family, and especially because the blade was meant to be given to the prince (who rightfully deserved such a fine gift). However, I told myself that I could tell Rusl when this nightmare was over, and I doubted that the prince would mind if I had to use this sword.

"Excellent work, Lady Wolf." Zant praised me. "Now, we must go into the realm of the twilight, that lies waiting in the woods."

I shuddered, remembering what happened the last time I entered the twilight realm. However, I headed off towards Faron Woods with nothing but a prayer and hope for the best.

-Intothewoodsisanawesomemoviemusicalirecmmendit-

When I almost approached the Ordon Spring, an ethereal voice began calling to me.

"Wait... come to my spring."

With some hesitance, I obeyed and walked into the waters of the spring... only to be surrounded by unnaturally shaped stones that came from the sky.

They glowed red, surrounding me with a barrier, and from the sky came the beasts of the twilight.

In a furious rage I lunged at it and bit the beast several times until it fell and disintegrated into black squares.

Then, the spring turned gold and the stones above the waterfalls were lit up with unfamiliar blue symbols.

An orb of light rose from the spring, until a shape formed and became like that of the Ordon goats. It was large, and yet, I felt no fear: only comfort.

"O brave youth..." It spoke. "I am one of the four light spirits that protect Hyrule at the behest of the gods. I am Ordona.

The black beat you have slain was a shadow being. It had come to seize the light: my brethren in Hyrule already had their light stolen by these fell beasts. Thus, the entire kingdom has been reduced to a netherwold ruled by the cursed powers of darkness. They will never stop with Hyrule: soon, the entire world of light will fall into the hands of the one who rules the twilight.

To save this land, the lost light must be covered. The three light spirits who have lost their light must be revived. There is but one who can revive them and redeem this land... You."

"Me?" I felt uneasy about this. "How could I possibly do that?"

"You still have yet to discover your true power. Those who have been transformed by twilight cannot recover their original forms... Unless..."

Ordona explained that if I found the light, in the same place that I had been changed, I could be returned to my real form, before it disappeared into the spring.

I stared at the water for a moment, as I recalled Ordona's words.

I shook my head and continued on.

When I finally reached the spot that divided my world from the twilight, I almost hesitated.

"You're not scared, are you, Lady Wolf? Or is the pressure of this 'destiny' to cleanse your world too much for you?"

I growled and passed through the twilight.

"Ah, that's much better." Zant appeared beside me when I arrived in a twilight covered Faron Woods. "I prefer this beauty over the brightness of your world... but enough about that."

I felt the weapons disappear off my back.

"There, I relieved you of your burden. Don't worry, Lady Wolf- I merely placed them somewhere safe." The masked being assured me as we heard a strange wailing noise.

"That must be the lamentations of the spirit that resides at the spring." Zant mused. "Why don't you comfort it with your presence? I do trust you know where it is."

I didn't get too far, because when I went further down the path, I met up with three shadow beasts and another enclosed permitter of energy.

"Allow me." Zant let out a chuckle as he walked towards the beasts. "It's been...awhile"

I waited as the monsters approached Zant and he held his scimitars out and slowly held one out in front of him, and the other in front of his back. What was he going to do?

And then, I heard the sound of insanity incarnate as he let out a high pitched sound... and then spun around at a fast pace, like... I don't know how to describe it, but it was like watching a spinning top slaughtering and slicing it's way through the beasts, while letting out manic, high pitched laughing, which I was not expecting from the calm sounding person from earlier.

Zant eventually stopped and took a moment to catch his breath as the beasts fell to the ground and their remains were sent up into the portal above us. Finally, he was able to calm down and slowly stood upright, as if nothing had happened fifteen seconds ago.

"Now then." Zant calmly spoke. "Let us continue on our way."

What in Din's name had I gotten myself into and with who?!

-later-

At the Faron Spring, there was a strange mist above the waterfalls.

"...Please... be careful." A voice weakly cautioned. "These woods have changed..."

"How can I help you, spirit of light?" I asked.

"Look... for my light... retrieve the light stolen by the dark beasts... and keep it... in this vessel... of light."

And then, I was bestowed what looked like glass grapes upon a vine.

The spirit warned me that the dark insects that held the light were as invisible as the people who were trapped in the light. I quickly figured out that I only had to tap into my senses. Sure enough, when I saw a strange blue current of energy, I could see through my senses that it was an insect. Upon killing the creature, a blue light came out, and when I made contact with it, it disappeared into the vessel of light.

"There are fifteen lights to collect." Zant commented. "You best keep an eye out."

-skipping ahead-

How is it that a normal human can see them?!

"W-what's with these bugs?!" Coro, the afro haired mean cowered in a corner. "They're so big... So weird... So creepy!"

His confusion as to why they suddenly disappeared- aka, when I killed them- made it worth my while.

-SKIPPING AHEAD-

The last two I found was near the monkey that Talo chased earlier, by the place that most people referred to as the forest temple.

"Someone...someone saved me?" She wondered. "Boy, lucky for me... ever since the boss went funny in the head, there've been scary monsters everywhere. Those village kids got lead through the woods for some reason..."

When I touched the last two lights, I felt a warmth flow through my body, and everything turned white.

When I came to, I found myself back at the spring, where the golden hues and black squares were vanquished by the natural beauty of the light and the sun.

The most important thing though, was that my body felt the way it was supposed to be again. I could tell by my eye level and that I wasn't standing all fours.

Zant pulled out of my shadow and look his hemet off. Though he was only a dark outline of himself, his eyes still glowed with their true color.

"It looks like all is well for you... and you regained your true form." He hummed in approval. "You are quite beautiful in your true form, Lady Wol-"

"I'M NOT YOUR LAPDOG!" I yelled, and relished the ability to speak again with each syllable. "I am grateful for your aid, but I never said that I could help you."

I quickly calmed down and sighed. "But I suppose I have no choice... and my name is Zelda."

Zant let out a chuckle. "You're voice sounds as lovely as you do... well, I best return to the shadows."

And then he vanished.

Like at Ordon Spring, a spirit emerged from the waters, only this time, it resembled a monkey, similar to those who roamed in Faron Woods.

"My name is Faron." It greeted me. "I am one of the spirits of light who dwell in Hyrule. I use the life force of the gods to protect this forest, and I thank you for restoring the light in these woods."

"O, brave youth. In the land covered in twilight, where people roamed as spirits, you were transformed into a blue-eyed beast... that was a sign. It was a sign that the powers of the chosen one rest within you... and that they are awakening. Look at your awakened form..."

In confusion, I looked down, only to see that my clothes had changed.

I wore dark boots over white leggings. I wore a white dress that almost reached my knees, and a purple-pink vest or shirt over it. I had leather shoulder guards attached to this shirt, but they were shaped so that I could wear a belt for a sword's scabbard over my body. My dress had sleeves which were covered by leather gauntlets, but my hair remained as it had been, before my transformation

-fourthwall-

"So in other words, it's a mashup of her original costume, with a little Hyrule Warriors in Skyward Sword in mind. Unless you want to picture something else, which is fine by me. Or in other words: FINALLY! I'm finished with covering a boring part of the game!" The fan fic writer then collapsed.

-sorryaboutthat-

"This was the garb intended by the gods, with inspiration of the past chosen hero." Faron explained as I admired the clothes. "She who possessed the power... She who was the Hero of Time... that is the true power that slept within you."

"Your name is Zelda... You are the hero chosen by the gods."

I was stunned.

"I..." I didn't know what to say. "I... I..."

"A dark power rests in the temple deep within these woods." Faron continued. "It is a forbidden power, that I and the other spirits locked away a long, long time ago. Because of it's nature, it is a power that should never be touched by any who dwell in the light."

"I'm just a shepherdess!" I protested. "I know the stories of the past heroes by heart, but I don't consider my self to be one. I was named after the Hero of Time and Hylia's champion, but that is only a mere coincidence!"

"The world weeps beneath a mantle of shadows, and so there is no other choice... You must match the power of the ruler of the shadows. Do not sell yourself short, young one...for much good tidings shall surely come about in your destiny."

And Faron vanished.

I sighed and examined my new attire, when Zant suddenly appeared in front of me.

"So, you are a chosen hero?" He seemed fascinated by this. "Perhaps that is why you became a wolf in the twilight. Yet, you do not wish this... why is that?"

I sighed. "I wish to save the children of my village... and I would willingly save my kingdom from the twilight, if it meant saving them from being mere shades, as well as bring back our future king to his throne." I closed my eyes. "It's just that-"

"You don't understand! She's been branded by the gods!"

I shook my head. "Never mind." Then I frowned. "Why are you still-"

"Regardless, I need to go to this temple myself. Perhaps you're friends are there."

"Are you going to be hiding in my shadow the whole time?"

"I am not as familiar with this world as you are. What would be the alternative: me ridding upon you- like a horse- or be carried around like a spoiled child?"

I didn't like that picture he just put in my head.

Then I realized something."There's one thing I need to do."

-Ordon Village-

I had returned back to Rusl and Uli's house, where I saw that Rusl was in very bad shape and Uli was tending to him.

"Zelda?!" Uli got up when she saw me. "You're safe!" She sighed in relief. "Thank Farore you were delivered back to us."

I glanced to Rusl- he had suffered great injuries and had fallen asleep.

"I know what happened to the children and Ilia." I began. "I don't know why, but..." I bowed my head in shame- I couldn't tell her that I had been spared over her own son when he had been kidnapped and I still couldn't understand why. "I am sorry."

I walked towards Uli. "I-" I took the sword out. "I also found this."

"Take it." Uli gave me a weak smile. "Please keep using it- it is safe in your hands."

"I need to tell you something." I began. "I'm going to go find the children. I don't know how but." I gulped and nodded. "I will go save them- especially Colin."

Uli didn't respond, and I worried that I had scared her, until she drew me into a hug.

"I appreciate that." She thanked me. "I would have understand if this terrified you, but I can't thank you enough."

"Besides." I responded as I hugged her back. "I'd rather it be me than Rusl. He needs to recover from his injuries."

Uli let go of me and then placed her hands on my shoulders. "Look at you." She smiled. "You look like you are ready to go off into the world."

"I promise I'll come back when I need to." I promised her before I turned to the door. "And send Rusl my regards."

"Wait."

I turned back to face Uli, who reached for a small wooden box near the sofa and she opened it up as I approached her. "Colin remembered your stories and wanted to give this to you."

I knew what she meant: Colin talked about this awhile ago.

I took the object from her and looked at it. "You both were fond of the old stories." Uli added. "I knew how much hope they gave you, and how much they inspired Colin. I believe that it will give you good luck on your search."

It was a gold brooch in the shape of the loftwing- an ancient bird, and part of the symbol of Hyrule- and in it, was a circular red stone.

I closed my eyes as a memory came to pass.

"-So he turned the crystal from a sky blue to a blood red." I recounted the tale to Colin. "So that he could be remembered and that a part of him would always be with her, should her story be passed down throughout the ages." I traced my finger over the illustration over the fabled hero in my book and over the red brooch that she wore.

"And that's why carrying or wearing red stones on a journey are important..." My voice trailed off as I felt a strange sorrow overcome me. "We wear them in hopes of becoming legends... but also so that we will never forget our friends and loved ones."

"Would you carry one, so that you won't forget me when you go on an adventure?" Colin asked.

I smiled. "Objects can hold our dearest memories. Even if we forget, the objects can help hold onto our memories for us."

I was able to clasp it onto my dress as tightly as I could. It gave me a strange sense of completeness that I couldn't explain.

"I hope you will return again to show me your shining face." Uli softly spoke as she helped pin the brooch somewhere on my outfit, over the bands that kept the leather shoulder guards tied together. "It does my heart good to see you well."

I clasped her hands when she finished. "I promise," I began to my surrogate mother. "That when I return, I will either have news, or that Colin will be beside me, along with the others."

I had to save Colin, Ilia, and the children. I was not a hero, but I wanted to be like one, so that I could save them.

-later-

I had been kindly warned by Coro that the forest had become foggy, and he sold me a bottle of lantern oil for my lantern.

"So, what is so special about this temple?" Zant asked me as I headed off towards the temple.

"A long time ago," I began "these woods were inhabited by the kokiri: children who never aged and were protected by the Great Deku Tree. These woods were protected by magic and cursed at the same time- those who were lost would turn into skullchildren or stalfos. When the last great war occurred, the kokiri were driven out of their home, and the magic vanished. All they left behind was the remains of their homestead, which became what we refer to as the temple- some suspect that the temple could even possibly what is left of the Great Deku Tree."

And sometime later, I found myself in a now purple fogged area of the woods... and the monkey from earlier stole my lantern.

Before I could curse at her, she placed it on a large stick and waved it at part of the fog, which vanished. She then gestured for me to come and she hurried off.

"Quite the little thief, isn't she?" A voice chuckled. "You were bested by a mere monkey."

However, the monkey meant well, and she lead me through the area and to the other end, where there wasn't any fog.

The journey to the temple lead me to a bridge that somehow found it's way into the woods, and, when I reached the final part of the pathway, I encountered a beautiful golden wolf with a red eye. I stopped, remembering that I was not an animal anymore and that the wolf would attack me.

The wolf growled at me, and I readied my sword.

And just when it lunged at me... all turned white.

I found myself in a strange foggy white world, where I could see landmarks in the distance.

Sensing that I wasn't alone, I turned to see the top part of Hyrule Castle and what looked like a stalfos in front of it: A stalfos with a single red eye, with a sword and ivy covering it's golden armor and shield. It held it's sword out and ready, as if to attack me.

With caution I approached it, with my own sword out, but just as I made to attack, it beat me and sent me flying, without killing me.

"A sword wields no strength unless the hand that holds it has courage." A deep echo of male voice growled. "You may be destined to become the hero of legend... but your current power would disgrace those who came before you."

"I never asked to become a hero." I got up and glared at the specter. "I only seek to protect those I care for."

"And you must find the courage to seek that power." The specter replied. "And find it you must. Only then will you become such a person, as well as the hero for whom this world despairs. If you do find true courage and you wish to save Hyrule from the horrors it now faces... then you will be worthy to receive the secrets I hold!"

I took my blade out and glanced at it before looking up. "I consider myself more of a scholar than a warrior, ancient swordsman." I told him. "But though I have been taught how to fight with a blade, I am not one to refuse any aid I can receive."

The specter nodded in approval. "You are off to a good start."

He taught me but one lesson: the ending blow. He told me it was an old technique that would take life from the enemy while they were down, before they had a chance to recover. I only had to plunge my blade into their body when they were lying on their backs.

"Good." He approved when I had finished my lesson. "There are but six lessons left to teach you. Those are only for one who carries the blood of the hero... the one whose spirit is that of the sublime beast."

"Grow powerful. Test you courage. And when you find that you need another skill to overcome the threats that face you... search for the statues that howl with the sound of the wind. Seek the sound that calls to the spirit of the beast to awaken me again."

Everything around me turned white.

"A sword wields no strength unless the hand that holds it has courage. Remember those words... farewell!"

-reality-

I got up with a groan.

"If only that had been a dream." I grumbled as I rested my head in my hand.

"You only fainted for no reason, Lady Wolf." I heard my companion reply.

That confused me. "You didn't see the golden wolf?"

"I saw nothing but the majestic trees."

-Forest Temple-

I had always been curious as to what exactly happened to the kokiri, but their mark was still in the temple, like an old memory from long ago.

Unsurprisingly, my monkey companion had gotten herself kidnapped. When I freed her, she wanted me to follow her somewhere.

She had wanted to lead me across a certain bridge, but then a large baboon came from the other end and not only scared her off, but sent a white boomerang that was covered in black smoke at the bridge and destroyed it. The monkey almost didn't make it off the bridge and I was horrified, but she quickly rejoined my side and clutched at my leg.

The baboon laughed at us and... slapped it's butt at me before he left.

...A baboon slapped it's butt at me. Somehow, that was the most disturbing and weirdest thing I had ever seen, after all I went through the last few days.

"Juvenile humor aside, shouldn't you be following the monkey?" Zant asked as the monkey gestured for me to follow her again.

At one point, I noticed a pot that was moving and a very human like head poked out of it. Out of curiosity, I made to pick it up, and dropped it- freeing the creature inside. It... was some sort of hybrid of cuccoo and human.

Ok never mind: this was the most disturbing and weirdest thing I had ever seen, after all I went through the last few days.

"Phew! Out at last!" the creature was relieved. "Gracious... Once I got in there, I couldn't squeeze back out! You were a big help- thanks!"

"...Who are you?" I managed to ask.

"I am Ooccoo!" She chirped. "I am currently seeking something in this temple. I do hope I can find it."

Was it the same thing I was looking for? "Uh... great." I waved and walked off. "I hope you find it."

"Thank you, ancient hero from Skyloft!"

I turned around in confusion. "What did you call-"

She was gone.

I shrugged and continue on.

Anyway after... that... the monkey wanted me to help rescue her friends. My journey lead me to the baboon and a room full of totems. As payback, on behalf of the monkey, I easily took care of him: see, I quickly found out that the totems were loose and wobbly and I knocked him to the ground when I could.

I gave him a proper 'spanking' with my sword, and the old baboon hopped into a totem while cradling is rump. When he fell, a nasty looking bug fell off his head and promptly died on the spot in a puff of smoke.

With a groan, the baboon got up while rubbing his head but when he realized that I was still there, he ran off through an opening in the room as fast as he could.

The boomerang-which he lost in the fight- then suddenly twirled up into the air and came towards me. It now glowed with a soft light and let out tiny leaves and a gale of wind.

-?-

"Oh! This is where I come in!"

-backinthestory-

"Hi!" A sweet, energetic voice greeted me. "I am the fairy of winds that resides in the gale boomerang. But you can just call me Lexi! Poor old Ook was only possessed, but you freed us from that bug, and now I got my power back!"

I was a little surprised. "You're the-

"Yeah, I'm technically the boomerang itself. Yeah, artificial weapon spirits used to be a thing back in the old days."

"So the old legends were true." I mused.

"So anyway, if you toss me at five different targets, I can hit them, no matter the order. Other than that, I'm actually supposed to stay asleep and wait for my intended master...along with serving as something else, but it's no problem."

There was a pause before Lexi added "By the way, that totem is moving on it's own."

I turned my head to see the shadowy form of Zant giddily moving on the center totem like the baboon and laughing his head off.

...I slowly turned my head back, all the while wishing that I hadn't just seen that.

"Anyway, I'm going to be going back to sleep now, but if you have need me, you know what to do."

As soon as I grabbed the boomerang, it stopped spinning.

"Um... thank you...Lexi?" I looked up, eager to find a way out.

-?-

"Yup!" Lexi cheered. "The gale boomerang is the one whose helping to manage this story!"

There was an awkward silence.

"Hey, it's better then the last three who helped manage the last fan fic! And I'm more focused than them! I'm not going to interfere with the story THAT much. Besides- what's the worst that could happen?"

-reality-

In the second to last chamber, the monkeys that I rescued formed a makeshift rope, and look me to the final room of the temple.

In this room was the biggest, deadliest plant that I had ever encountered. However, thanks to my attention to the environment, bomb bugs, and Ook, who actually delivered the bugs to me, I was able to defeat the beast.

When it died, the beast's remains dried up into a husk that turned into familiar black squares, which reformed into a strange artifact that I couldn't recognize.

"Well done." Zant congratulated me as the artifact came towards me and I took it in my hands. "That's what I've been looking for."

"What is it?" I asked.

"It is a Fused Shadow." He took it from my hands. "It's what the light spirit called dark power. Do you recall that the spirit told you how you must match the power of the ruler of the shadows? There are at least four known Fused Shadows... and I could tell you about them, but you must help me find the next one."

Zant made the Fused Shadow and a portal appeared under him. "Shall we be off?"

I looked around the room: because of this 'ruler of the shadows' this sacred place had become polluted with the darkness. The once poisonous water had been cleansed, and the monkeys were all together, with their leader Ook, and were watching me from a safe distance.

"...Thank you for your help!" I waved to them and smiled. "And I'm sorry about earlier!" I told Ook, who only waved in appreciation.

I guess I'm not a hero... but I was able to help the monkeys and restore peace to the reminder of a race that inspired many stories and played an important role in one well known story.

I turned to the portal and was sent back to the outside world.

Never mind. I finished it all in one go!

And in case you are wondering, this version of Zelda isn't a vegetarian...LOL. On a side note, the fact that Ooccoo looks like something from a Remedios Varo painting makes sense to me, in regards to her design.

The Hero of Time: It can be easier to deduce in the game that the tunic belonged to Skyward Sword link (the tunics look EXACTLY the same) but in this case, this outfit is in honor of Ocarina of Time's Zelda. Clearly, there's lots of questions coming from this, which will be answered in due time.

Wearing or holding a red stone on your journey: this addition to the story has two meanings. First meaning: look at all of Zelda's designs and tell me what is the one thing that remains the same, despite hue or placement. Second Meaning: some of you already know the reason to this. Guess which chapter I'm looking forward to writing. :)

Objects hold dearest memories: After I wrote that, I realized I accidentally wrote a bit of foreshadowing... but just how much foreshadowing am I actually hinting at? *evil laugh*

Why isn't the Hero's Shade the Ocarina of Time Zelda?

I already have something planned. End of story.

Spirit in the boomerang: Or Lexi, as we must call her. (She's rather well connected to some other characters too.) Anyway, remember the whole thing in Skyward Sword about spirits in swords? Yeah, I remembered that connection and applied it to this fan fic. You guys possibly remembered that too.

Lexi won't be popping up within the main storyline to talk or anything like that. Which is probably for the best for a number of reasons.

Next time, I'm going to be splitting events in half because... ugh...