A/N: Before I begin, I have want to give a massive shout-out to Diabolical Kitsutora, who has generously agreed to be my beta-reader! She's already been very helpful and her editing has made this chapter that much better (no more of those pesky spelling errors that slip past my nets!). She's written several great stories and I suggest you check out her profile as well.
As always, your feedback and PMs mean the world to me. Special thanks to the people who took the time to review, you rule.
That said, I hope you enjoy the chapter!
~~Home Is Where The Heart Is~~
"I woke the following morning with my wounds cleaned, dressed, and bandaged. The moblins were destroyed, but the cost was high and we lost more than a few good men."
Beaumont was standing across from Queen Zelda, who was sitting at her desk listening with rapt attention. He was finishing his report of the attack on the moblin camp. It wasn't an easy thing to do as the wounds were still fresh; physical, mental, and emotional.
After he'd said his goodbyes to Finn and Stella, he and his men rode straight for Castle Town. They took it slow because of their wounds, but a few days later they were back at the castle. He'd checked his men into the infirmary and had fresh bandages put on his shoulder. The next day he was summoned before the Queen to report the events that had transpired.
"These strangers that helped you … who are they?" asked Zelda from across her desk, intrigued despite the dark implications of Beaumont's story.
"At first glance, I thought they were both Hylian. As it turns out, only the man was from Hyrule, but he left years ago. The lady was from Othera, and she was traveling with him."
"Did you learn their names?"
"Stella and Finn. I don't remember either of them giving a family name."
Zelda pursed her lips, considering the possibilities. She'd never heard of either of the travelers, but Hyrule's population was that of tens of thousands, and this in itself was hardly noteworthy. More intriguing was the fact that they were Hylian.
The Hylian people weren't exactly rare, but neither were they common. Most of them resided in Castle Town and many were nobles in the city itself, their fortune carried over from days past when the Hylian empire was vast and they were the dominant race of men. She could count on one hand, perhaps two, the amount of noteworthy Hylian warriors she knew of, and many of them were knights serving under her.
"Describe them."
Beaumont paused, thinking about the two.
"Stella was athletic and slim. Hylian ears, reddish black hair, and bright green eyes. Finn was about my height. A Hylian. He was in good shape but he wasn't broad. Long blonde hair and blue eyes."
This caught Zelda's attention. She'd been listening carefully before, but now she was on the edge of her seat, eager to hear more and listening with rapt attention.
"And their clothes? What were they wearing?" she pressed a little excitedly.
Beaumont wasn't sure why this was important but he obliged nonetheless.
"Stella wore a dark grey hunting outfit, a leather jerkin, and a black cloak with a hood. She had a longbow and a pair of knives strapped to her —"
"And Finn? What was he wearing?" she cut in, almost breathless.
"Uh, black pants, leather boots, and a white shirt. He carried a bow, a sword, and a shield."
She frowned, but quickly turned her attention back to the matter at hand. What had she been expecting? Link to come sauntering back in a green tunic with that silly grin on his face? He was gone, and she needed to accept that.
"What sort of combat ability did they have?" she continued, keeping the bitterness from entering her voice. "You said they helped you and your men in the fight ...?"
"Actually," he started with a grim smile, "they didn't really help us … They saved us." He shook his said, still a little disbelieving of that night.
There were a few that possessed Beaumont's skill with a blade; his true value was in his skills as a leader. She knew the names of every single one of these men though, a none of them were named Finn or Stella.
"Do tell," she said, her curiosity rekindled.
"Stella was quicker than a whip with her knives, saved my life twice. Took out a club moblin single handed. 'Twas a sight to see."
"Very impressive," mused Zelda. "And Finn, what was he like?"
"Finn … well, I didn't see much of him, he was helping my men, but by their account he destroyed almost a score of moblins single handed," Beaumont said slowly, still not quite sure if he believed the stories his men told him. He trusted them with his life, but a score of moblins? He doubted if even the Hero of Time —
"Sir Beaumont." He looked up, realizing he'd drifted out of the discussion and into his own thoughts.
"My apologies my lady," he said with a sheepish grin.
"Please, continue."
"As I was saying, my men said he was a master swordsman, and I can personally attest to his skill in healing." He gestured at his shoulder. "He was also skilled in the use of magic."
Zelda inhaled sharply. This just got more and more interesting ... and confusing. A Hylian man, skilled with a blade, skilled in triage, skilled in magic ... she knew of only one such man, and she'd already established that it was impossible.
"He could use magic?" A rogue magician of that power could be incredibly dangerous. If nothing else she would have to meet this man.
Beaumont nodded and continued. "Just before I was knocked unconscious I watched him obliterate at least a dozen moblins with a gigantic dome of fire. Never seen anything like it," he said with barely concealed awe.
Din's fire. No other spell could manipulate flame with such potency and still leave the caster on their feet. But this meant ... it had to be him.
"Did they say where they were going? Speak!" Her eyes sparkled with excitement and there was an edge of urgency in her voice.
Beaumont was a little confused by her excitement, but she was his Queen, and it wasn't his place to comment.
"Um, they didn't say exactly where they were headed. I offered for them to come to Castle Town with us, but Finn said he wanted to visit his old home first. Stella said she was just traveling with him."
I need to get in touch with Saria. It has to be him!
She masked her excitement for the time being. She still had to deal with the moblin threat and court before she could sneak off to the Temple of Time to get in touch with her fellow sage.
"Hmm. I will think more on this later. The monster threat is serious Commander; we have much to do. For now, send me Captain Swift. I would also like you to repeat your report in court later this evening."
"Yes my lady," said Beaumont with a nod.
"That will be all for now Commander. Dismissed."
Beaumont left the room with a respectful bow. Zelda sagged in her chair; her fears were valid. Moblins were back in Hyrule, and that thought alone sent some shivers down her spine. Stalfos were back too, and that threat was far more sinister.
And who were the Hylians, Stella and Finn? She had never heard of Stella before, but Finn … could it really be Link?
Every time word of an adventurer passing through Hyrule caught her ear she hoped it would be him, but she was always disappointed. Still … this sounded too much like Link to be coincidence.
And the magic … few these days could summon the magic to light a candle, let alone summon the fire to destroy a squad a moblins. The last man she'd met who could do that left Hyrule more than five years ago.
Was it possible he'd returned?
Link and Stella sat on opposite sides of the small fire, eating a small stew of cooked rabbit that they'd caught and cleaned earlier. They'd covered miles like machines, and they now sat less than a league away from the Lost Woods.
They'd chatted amiably over the last few days, discussing this and that. Stella shared some stories of her wanderings in Othera, and a little of her childhood. Link spoke little of his past, but after some pressing he revealed some of his time in Alta. They talked of this and that, but neither of them mentioned the night they attacked the moblin camp.
Stella was getting a little impatient with Link's secrecy. He still hadn't told her why he'd lied to the knight, and whenever she'd tried to broach the topic he'd studiously avoided her eyes and changed the topic.
Tonight she intended to find out. She didn't think he was a criminal or anything; his actions didn't really fit the mould. Still, she wanted to find out exactly why he was keeping up the facade.
Link, for his part, enjoyed traveling with her. He'd spent a lot of time on the road alone, and he'd forgotten what it was like to have some company. Still, he had to tell her about his history in Hyrule at some point. Better he tell her himself than have her find out from Saria.
Finishing his stew, he looked up at her.
"By noon tomorrow we'll be at my house. We're going to have to travel through the Lost Woods first though."
Stella put her bowl aside, curious about the forest.
"Why is it called the Lost Woods?" she asked. "You said earlier that without a fairy you're pretty much doomed to become a stalfos, and to be honest being a skeleton doesn't really appeal to me."
"I don't know, I think that look would suit you," Link mused. He ducked when she threw her bowl at him from across the fire.
Chuckling, he continued. "Well, to be honest, it's actually just impossible to navigate unless you're a Kokiri."
"And what exactly is a Kokiri, pray tell?" she asked, arching an eyebrow at him.
"They're the forest children that live in my village. They're immortal and they never grow up."
"They never grow up?"
Link nodded. "I know, sounds crazy, but you'll see. It looks like a village full of 10-year old kids, but some of them are well over three hundred."
Stella whistled. "I hope I look that good when I'm that old."
"Somehow I doubt it," Link quipped.
"There you go, picking on me again," she pouted.
Link laughed before rising.
"Get some rest. We're going to enter the woods at daybreak."
"Wait. You said it was impossible to navigate unless you're a fairy or kokiri. You're neither."
"I lived with the kokiri for a time and had a fairy companion of my own once," he said as he packed up the stuff for the night. "Getting lost is more due to human temptations and lack of perception; the woods will test you," he finished cryptically.
"I don't really understand," she said, confused.
He chuckled again.
"Sleep now. Tomorrow you'll see."
Link and Stella stood outside the Lost Woods in the chilly morning air. The morning sun cast bright rays across the land and caused the dew laden blades of grass to sparkle brilliantly.
They walked towards the forest, Link in the lead. Stella found it difficult to believe any forest could be as hard to navigate as he proposed, but if the alternative was becoming a stalfos then she'd take her chances with Link.
They stopped in front of the forest line, but instead of entering Link turned right and followed the trees. They walked in silence for a few hundred yards before Link stopped in front of a cylindrical hollow.
"What is that?" Stella asked.
"They're like teleports between glades in the Lost Woods. Only way to get around; traveling the woods on foot is truly impossible. Like I said, it's a place of magic."
"Why I can't I see through it," she said, squinting at the pitch darkness of the wooden tube.
"Just the way they are. Wouldn't want to make it too easy now."
With that he turned and strode through it. Instantly he appeared on the other side, already deep inside the forest. He stood on the same bridge where his adventure in Hyrule had begun all those years ago. Funny how things always tended to come full circle.
Stella stepped through the portal a second later, appearing on the bridge next to him.
"Whoa. That was weird."
Link nodded. "It's a funny feeling but you'll get used to it. We have to go through a lot of these things before we get to my house."
He walked across the bridge and through the next gateway, appearing in a small clearing. Gnarled woods surrounded him, blocking any attempt at traversing the woods on foot. Three other wooden teleports were in the clearing.
"This is why it's easy to get lost," Link said to Stella, who'd just appeared next to him. "Take your best pick; which one do you think we go through next?"
She frowned but quietly accepted the challenge, walking from one portal to the next. As soon as she got to the one on the right, she waved excitedly.
"It's this one. I can hear voices and music playing from the other side too, maybe your village is through here."
Link shook his head.
"You've just discovered why the Lost Woods are so perilous to the unwary. If you had gone that way, you would have been lost to the world. It's this one," he finished, gesturing to the one in the center.
And so they spent the morning, Link leading the way through the forest. They went through many portals, all of which led to clearings which looked more or less the same to Stella. Link seemed to know what he was doing though, and that was good enough for her.
A few hours after they'd started, Link finally stopped in front of another wooden tube.
"This is it," he said. "The village … my village … is through here."
Link was excited, but he was also nervous. Many of the village kokiri wouldn't recognize him; they didn't form strong attachments to things outside the forest. Once they learned who he was they'd happily accept him again though, just like children.
He smiled, remembering all the fun he'd had here as a boy. The kokiri were an innocent people that cared only for the happiness of each other and the forest. The closest thing to an evil kokiri was Mido, and he wasn't even really a bully. He just had a little problem with hubris.
"L-i-n-k. You there?" she asked, waving a hand in front of his eyes.
He blinked, returning to the present.
"Sorry," he smiled sheepishly, turning to her. "I was thinking about some old memories. Shall we?"
She nodded, and he stepped into the wooden teleporter.
His breath caught as he appeared on the other side.
The village hadn't changed a bit. It looked exactly the same as when he'd left it all those years ago; he could even see his treehouse in the distance. That was the amazing thing about Kokiri Village; even when all of Hyrule had fallen under darkness, the worst that was felt here was a few rogue Deku Scrubs.
Nothing changed this place.
He heard Stella exclaim in wonderment behind him. It was truly a pretty sight; the village always seemed frozen in time. The sun was never bright, but it always shined warmly here. The air was cool and a multitude of forest scents were carried on the light breeze. A strange music permeated the air, but it seemed to come from everywhere at once and nowhere in particular.
"What do you think?" he asked, curious for her input.
"It's amazing. How everything is built out of the forest, the warm sunshine … and where is that music coming from? Are those Kokiri?"
A few children in green played happily a few hundred feet away.
He smiled, happy that she liked it.
"It doesn't really come from anywhere; it's just part of the forest's magic. You can hear it outside the village if you have a proper ear, and that's how I led us here. And yes, those are kokiri. We'll meet some after we stop by my house."
"Sounds crazy, but I guess magic is just weird like that," she shrugged.
"It can be, yeah." He looked over at his treehouse in the distance.
"That's my house," he said, pointing. "Let's head over there."
They walked through the village, which was still fairly empty and peaceful in the morning. Link knew the boys slept late and the girls were probably already off in the forest tending to it.
They arrived at the bottom of the ladder. Link took a deep breath. It had been a long time.
"Watch your step on the way up."
And with that he swung a leg onto the first rung and started to climb. As he made his way up the ladder he thought of all the times he'd done this as a boy, and how different it was now. The last real home he'd had was this one … the only real home. Since he'd left his house at the age of ten he hadn't stayed in any place for more than a few weeks without moving. He'd spent the last twelve years on the move.
And he was finally coming full circle.
He reached the top of the ladder and stood outside the small door, uncertain. Already he noticed changes; the last time he was here there was no door at all and just a simple cloth covering the entrance. It all felt like a dream; being back in Hyrule, back in the Lost Woods, back at his house.
He shook it off as Stella reached the top of the ladder.
"Well, time to see if everything is still here," he said, and grinned. "Or if Mido has made off with all my stuff."
"Who's Mido?"
"Self-proclaimed kokiri boss. Never liked me much. We'll meet him later."
With that, he grasped the handle of the door and turned. And he was very surprised with what he saw.
It was almost exactly as he remembered it, minus the mess. There wasn't any dust, Mido hadn't relieved him of all his possessions, and everything was tidy and organized. He his own suspicions about who was responsible for keeping it clean.
"So this is your house?" Stella said as she walked through the door.
"Yeah. It's kind of small, I know, but it's home," he said quietly.
"I think its awesome. I mean, how many people have a tree house?" she said enthusiastically.
"You think so?" he said, happy she liked it.
"Yeah, I think its great."
"Thanks. I thought we'd stay here for a couple of days and just relax. You can have the bed and I'll take the loft." He pointed to another small ladder to a small second floor he'd built before he left Hyrule.
"No one is taking anything. Who are you, and what are you doing here?" said a small voice from behind them.
Link froze, not out of fear, but because he knew exactly who it was. Slowly he turned around to face the small green-haired girl who stood framed in the doorway.
He didn't speak, and just looked her in the eye, holding her gaze. Stella stood awkwardly off to the side, not sure what to do.
With a small gasp the girl whispered, "It cannot be."
"In the flesh," he said with a grin.
They were both silent for a few moments, staring at each other.
Then Saria broke into an excited grin and charged him.
"Link! I knew you'd come back!"
She clutched him in a vice grip so tight Link didn't think someone so small could be capable of such a hug.
"It's so good to see you! They all said you were gone for good, but I knew you'd come back, just like last time!"
Link knew she was talking about when he'd spent 7 years asleep in the Temple of Time while his body aged, but that was technically a little different.
He smiled again and patted her shoulder.
"Easy Saria, you're squeezing the life out of me." She let him go a little sheepishly. "Saria, this is someone I've been traveling with, Stella. Stella, this is my best friend Saria."
Stella introduced herself a little nervously, not sure what to say, but Saria was excited as ever.
"Its great to meet you Stella!" she squeaked. "So you're traveling with Link? I bet he's gotten you into lots of trouble already!"
Before she could respond Saria had already moved on.
"So Link, where have you been? You didn't even say goodbye," she pouted.
"Well ... here and there, you know. I left Hyrule and sort of just wandered," he said. "Um, Stella, would you mind if I spoke to Saria alone for a few minutes? Got a few things I need to clear up."
Stella nodded slowly and left the tree house.
"Saria, there's a few things I need to tell you. They're important."
She nodded, her face serious. She seemed excited and bouncy to most people but Link knew she took things very seriously. It was one of the reasons she was chosen as the forest sage.
"Alright; first things first. I don't want anyone to know I'm in Hyrule quite yet, at least not until I've seen Zelda. I've been traveling under the name Finn. Please don't tell any of the sages I'm here, not until I've had the chance to see her in person."
"Can't she sense you through your Triforce bond?" Saria asked, curious.
All Hylians had the ability to speak telepathically, but few ever had the opportunity. Forging a mental bond between two Hylians is incredibly intimate and few chose to sacrifice their privacy for the bond. While Link and Zelda did not share a Hylian bond, they both possessed a Triforce piece and that was something entirely different. It did not grant the ability to communicate, but if the wielder knew what to search for they could detect another wielder of the Triforce.
"Not yet," said Link, shaking his head. "I've been gone so long, and the signs she would have to read are no longer the same. Even if she tried I do not think she would succeed until we've met in person again." He looked her in the eye. "Do I have your word not to tell her before I can?"
Saria hesitated for a moment, reluctant to lie to a friend and a fellow sage. She trusted Link though, and she caved.
"As long as you promise to do it quickly."
"I promise," he said, smiling. "Secondly, I haven't told Stella my history in Hyrule ... you know, Hero of Time and all?"
"What? Why? Have you told anyone anything?"
"Well ... I'm not embarrassed or anything, but I don't really know how to tell her something like that. Kind of awkward to just announce you're a chosen hero."
"I suppose that's true," she said, nodding sagely. "You should tell her before you meet Zelda though. Better a friend finds it out from you than from another."
"You're right. Thanks Saria, I knew I could count on you."
Her excited demeanor returned and she skipped to the door. "Anything for you Link! Let's go, the rest of the kokiri will want to meet you and your friend!"
Sighing happily, Link made for the door and slide down the ladder.
They said home is where the heart is, and his heart was back in Hyrule.
After a few hours of talking with some of the kokiri children and sharing some of his adventures, Link finally needed a break from all the noise. He loved the kokiri, he just wasn't used to so much talking after so many years alone.
So he politely excused himself and told them he was going for a little walk. He headed past the kokiri shop and down a narrow path. He smiled thinly, remembering Mido not letting him pass this very spot until he got himself a sword and shield.
Enjoying the relative silence, he happily thought of all the people he would be seeing again very soon. Zelda, Nabooru, Darunia ... maybe he even missed the imperious Ruto and forbearing Impa ... if only a little.
"Link. It is good to see you return..."
He stood before the Deku Tree Sprout, but he saw the sprout was now a respectable sized tree. A long way from being a 'Great Deku Tree', but he was well on his way.
"Um...it's good to be back. Truly." Conversations with a tree were never easy, no matter how wise and great you knew it was.
"Remember your friends Link. You have been gone for several years, but you have not been forgotten. You have not been forsaken."
"Right, um..." He trailed off, unsure of how to reply.
"Friendship will be important in the days ahead. Evil is stirring in Hyrule once again."
Link was a little alarmed now. First moblins, now warnings from the Deku Tree. Wonderful way to welcome him home to Hyrule.
"What do you mean 'stirring'? What is it?"
"I do not know Hero, only that it is older than living memory, and its fury runs deep."
"What must I do?" he asked, now deeply concerned.
"Be ready. Hyrule will need you again Link. You must be strong."
With that the lids of the Deku Tree's eye's slipped shut and he went silent.
"Wait! I don't understand!"
But the Deku Tree was done talking and Link's shouts simply echoed back at him. Shaking his head he left the Deku Tree's clearing, more confused than ever.
Stella found him hours later, alone, sitting with his back resting against an old chest. Saria had told her where he'd probably gone, but it hadn't been easy to get there.
"He used to crawl into a hidden grove when he wanted to be alone. No one else was brave enough to venture in there. It's where the kokiri sword is kept. Its just over there," Saria told her, and pointed her in the right direction.
She turned to leave when the little kokiri caught her arm.
"And be careful. The grove is treacherous to the unwary."
She'd brushed the warning off and headed for the area Saria had pointed to.
She found the small tunnel and crawled through, not fully comfortable in the tight space.
Reaching the other end she stood and stretched, glad to be out of the cramped tunnel. The path to her right was a dead end so she headed left, walking in the evening light for a few minutes.
Eventually she reached another fork: she could either continue on straight or go right. Crouching down, she searched for signs of Link's footprints the same way she'd tracked him in the forest. After a few minutes of searching, she saw some faint disturbances in the dirt heading to the right, but they were considerably flattened, like something heavy had compressed them. It was hard to tell since it was getting dark and it was difficult to see in the shadow of the forest.
She headed right and walked for another few minutes before the path took her left. She walked for another few seconds before she heard a rumbling coming from the path behind her. She paused, curious. She'd never heard anything make that sound before. Her hands drifted to her knives, just in case.
The rumbling grew in strength until the plants and trees around her were shaking. She started to back up, nervous now.
Suddenly a gigantic boulder rolled around the corner, rumbling towards her. With a cry she turned and sprinted for her life.
Looking over her shoulder she saw the rock was gaining. If it caught up to her she'd be crushed like a mosquito being swatted.
She ran harder, putting all her energy into surviving. The boulder was still gaining, and she was tiring.
Just as she thought she was about to be flatter than a pancake she heard a voice call from her right, "Stella! In here!"
She saw a little alcove open up in the shadows and dived in just as the boulder rolled by. It rumbled away almost angrily.
She lay sprawled in the dirt, panting and exhausted. Looking up, she saw Link looking down at her in bewilderment, his back resting against an old chest.
"How did you find me?" he asked, still surprised. He stood and reached down to help her up.
"Saria ... said .. that you used to come here ... to think," she gasped, her lungs still heaving from the dash.
"And she didn't warn you that 'the grove is treacherous?'" he said, raising an eyebrow.
Stella blushed for a second before straightening. "She might have mentioned it, but I didn't really take it seriously."
He laughed for a moment, happy she'd come to see him. It probably wasn't healthy to sit out here thinking dark thoughts about the future. He'd take each day for what it was, as he'd always done.
"Lesson learned. Just because Saria's the most excited person you've ever met doesn't mean she doesn't know danger."
"You're right ... I just never thought ... I mean, green hair and that bubbly personality? Didn't think treacherous meant a gigantic boulder out to turn me into a patty," she said, a little peeved Saria hadn't been more specific.
"They're not allowed to be more specific," Link said, reading her mind. "This is where the kokiri sword is kept, and if someone seeks it by entering the grove they're supposed to face the challenges alone. I remember when I —"
He cut himself off, knowing he'd already revealed too much. Stella already caught the slip though, and pressed it.
"Yes?"
"It's nothing," he said, deflecting the probe.
"Link, come on. You haven't told me much about yourself, especially about stuff you've done in Hyrule. How do you know Saria and the Kokiri? How can you even navigate the Lost Woods?"
He sat silent for more than a minute, wondering what to tell her.
"Link," she pressed softly.
"My past in Hyrule is a long story," he started. "And parts of it I'm not ready to reveal."
She started to protest, but he waved her off.
"As for the kokiri, well ... I was raised here. I never had parents and Saria was the closest thing I had to a sibling. I can navigate the Lost Woods because ... because I had a fairy once too."
He said the last part wistfully, still missing his fairy companion. Things weren't the same without Navi.
"Wow ... that's amazing Link," she said quietly, not expecting that. "I'm sorry you never knew your parents."
"I don't have any parents," he started to explain, then realized it probably wasn't time to reveal he was a mortal sliver of Farore. "Um, I can't really explain right now."
"I understand," she said softly. "Thanks for telling me Link."
"No problem. Now let's get back before Saria gets worried that boulder crushed us."
"How do we get back without getting flattened?"
"It'll roll by again soon enough. As soon as it passes we'll just follow it around. It rolls around in a circle ... and before you ask where it gets its momentum, I have honestly no idea."
She chuckled at that, and the next time the boulder rolled past they followed it to the exit.
Crawling back through the tight tunnel, they made their way back to Link's treehouse. Saria was standing with her fairy thirty feet away, gardening, but when she saw them she came running over.
"Stella! I'm so glad your okay! Every time someone goes in there and I have to give that vague warning I'm so worried they're going to get hurt. I'm so sorry!"
Stella melted a little at the sight of the little kokiri. "It's alright Saria, I made it out okay."
"Thank the goddesses!" She turned to Link. "Would you mind coming over to my house for a minute? I need to speak to you."
Link nodded and turned to Stella. "Get the gear unpacked and make yourself at home. Tomorrow we'll fix our stuff up and do some washing."
She nodded again and headed up the ladder.
Link and Saria headed over to her house. She opened the door and entered. Link had to duck to fit inside it now.
"Link, Zelda contacted me today through our bond as sages. She said she heard of a traveler named Finn who fit your resemblance and was coming to his house ... she wanted to know if I'd seen you."
Link immediately looked a little nervous. "And what did you tell her?"
She slapped him on the arm playfully. "What do you think Link? I promised you a few hours ago not to tell her it was you ... I told her that I hadn't seen you in five years but I hoped you'd return one day."
Link sighed in relief. He wasn't sure why he wanted his anonymity so badly but he wanted to surprise his friends himself, and on his own time. He didn't want any of the sages to feel slighted because he was visiting other places before them.
"She also asked me if I'd heard from or seen of some travelers named Stella or Finn." She grinned slyly. "I'm proud of myself on this one; I said that when I was roaming the forest the other day I helped a man and a woman who had camped in the edge of the Lost Woods and became lost. I gave her your general descriptions and said that the man told me he was returning to his home in a village south of Kakariko."
"What would I do without you Saria?" he said, laughing.
"Seemed to do just fine without me all these years," she pouted. "And you'd better go see her soon, she sounded really disappointed when I told her it wasn't you."
"I will, I will," he said, holding his hands up in mock surrender. "I'll talk to you more tomorrow. Thanks again."
She said goodnight and he ducked from her house, heading for his ladder.
He sighed happily as he whistled a tune he used to play with the skull kids in the Lost Woods.
It was good to be back.
Closing Note: Writing of this chapter wasn't exceptionally tough, but there were some spots that didn't feel right until I re-wrote them 8 times. Even then they didn't always feel on-par with the rest of the story ... thankfully my awesome beta pointed out something else that could work. In the end I think we put together a read-able interlude, and I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it (I get a considerable amount of joy playing god over a story). Expect the next chapter in roughly two weeks; I'm already hard at work on it.
As for real life, I'm going out to my formal tonight. The theme is a Twisted Fairytale, but I'm not really sure what that means. Anyway I'll let you know next chapter how many times I stepped on my date's toes. She's about a foot shorter so its going to be an interesting night for dancing.
Thanks again for reading, your input, and your support. Give yourselves a pat on the back from me.
Cheers, Kab
