Translated to English by MissQuestions-LaAmazingNabo.

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The Legend of Zelda series and its characters are property of Nintendo.

Chapter 9
The spirit Ordona and the Sacred Grove

Two days were left to return to the castle, but first, Zelda and Link had to visit Ordona. They left early that morning towards Ordon, where the spirit's spring was located. Zelda was on horseback and Link walked next to her. Surprisingly, the horse didn't seem startled in the slightest by the wolf's presence.

The princess held the soul pearl in between her fingers, observing it attentively. Setting its unusual color aside, it looked like a normal pearl. By the spirit's words, it was clear that this pearl was very important. Since Link couldn't safeguard it while he was in his wolf form, Zelda decided to carry it on her always, just in case.

In the bags that hanged from the horse's saddle, they carried the same equipment from the day before, except the bow, which had been replaced by the light one.

Approximately an hour after leaving the manor, they arrived at Ordon. They stopped at the town's entrance and Zelda dismounted.

"How do we do it?" Zelda asked. "We have to cross the town to get to Ordona's spring and I don't think people will find a wolf wandering around amusing."

Link entered the town, ignoring Zelda's question.

"Wait!" she exclaimed, pulling the horse's reins. "You can't just go in there like that."

"It's the wolf!" a child was heard yelling. "Look, the wolf came back."

A group of children ran towards them and lunged at Link. A few adults also approached, but stayed behind the children.

"It's been a while since the last time you came," said a woman, crouching next to the children. "I see you brought company," she added at seeing Zelda besides them. "What brings you here?"

"Um… I…" she stuttered at not understanding well the situation. "I came to see the spirit's spring that's around here," she replied. "Where do you know Link from?"

"Link?" the woman asked, confused. "Oh, you meant the wolf. So you managed to name him. We tried to several times, but he never answered to them."

"He saved me once," said one of the children. "I fell in the river when there was a strong current and he jumped in and got me out."

Zelda looked at Link with a raised eyebrow and he lowered his head, embarrassed. She was certain that if he were to be with his real appearance in that moment he would be blushing.

"I see you're famous," she said with a grin.

"He's helped us several times," said a man. "It's hard to believe, but he has saved our goats from wild dogs many times."

"And he's saved us from bandits," another man added. "Normally he keeps his distance from people, but when there's trouble he's always there to help, he's a strange and surprising animal."

Zelda was impressed, not only for getting along with Ordon's people, but also because of the feats that the residents were numbering.

"Miss, how long did you have him?" one of the children asked. "Because we haven't seen him in a long time."

"Yes," a woman affirmed. "It's been about three months since the last time he came by here."

"Well it just happens that I first saw him three months ago," Zelda said. "He saved me from being attacked by wild dogs. I saw him several times after that until we became friends and he began to accompany me in my walks to the forest."

The princess saw herself surrounded by a bunch of people that made her questions and told her anecdotes about the wolf. She was happy, that way she could have an idea of the life Link had before meeting him.

"You know, I find the name you gave him curious," said the first woman.

"Is there something special about that name?" Zelda asked.

"No, nothing like that, it's just that a few years ago, a boy with that name lived here."

"Ah, yes!" a woman exclaimed. "Elana's son. He was a precious boy, with big blue eyes and blond hair. What was the father called? I recall he was a reserved man and of few words.

"And very attractive," another woman added with a giggle.

The other women laughed with her.

Zelda looked at Link sideways, who kept his head bowed. He seemed sad.

"His name was Líon," a man said.

"What happened to them?" Zelda asked. If they were truly Link and his family she wanted to know more stuff.

"They left to Castle Town," the man replied. "Apparently, he had been part of the castle's guard, but decided to move into town in search of a calmer place to raise their son."

"I still remember them clearly," said a third woman. "He, despite being something of a reserved man, was very kind, willing to help others; she was a sweet woman and very good with children, she was often surrounded by them, teaching them things or reading some book to them; and little Link was such a sweetie, always running from here to there with a smile on his lips, each time you saw him, as sad as you were, you couldn't help but smile also."

"Did he have a cute smile?" asked the princess.

"Precious," the woman replied.

Zelda's lips curved slightly upwards. It seemed there were things that didn't change, she had noticed that Link smiled a lot and that, just as that woman had said, he had a very cute smile.

"I think we should continue on our way," Zelda informed. "It's getting late."

"It's true, you were heading to the spirit's spring. I'm sorry to have stalled you," the first woman apologized. "If you go through that road there," she informed, pointing at a faraway road. "You'll arrive in about ten minutes. There's only one road, you can't miss it."

"Thank you."

Zelda bid them all goodbye and she and Link continued their way. The children didn't seem like they wanted Link to leave, for they tried to follow them, but the adults didn't take long to stop them.

Just as they had been told, in approximately ten minutes, they arrived at their destination. Ordona's spring was similar to Faron's, but rockier. Throughout the way, Zelda wanted to ask Link about what the villagers had commentated, but preferred to wait until he could answer her with words.

Just as it happened with Faron, the spring's water began to glow and a ball of light emerged from it, but, unlike the other spirit, what appeared before them was a light being in the shape of a goat with the ball in between its horns.

"I am one of four light spirits that protect Hyrule at the behest of the gods. I am Ordona," the spirit said with a solemn voice. "I know why you have come, you seek the soul pearl I protect. For that, I will temporarily remove you of your wolf appearance, for the trial that you will face can only be done with your real form."

No sooner said than done, the light spirit used its power to transform Link.

"After all this time of being myself only during the nights of the new moon, I find it strange recovering this appearance so often," Link said with a feeble smile.

Zelda hurried to give him his clothes.

"You will find a cave behind the spring," the spirit said. "Once you cross it you will arrive at the site of the trial."

Link nodded and took his sword, which was hooked to the saddle of Zelda's horse.

"I need you to leave me the bow."

"But I can carry it," Zelda replied.

"It's best that you stay here," he suggested. "Since you can't interfere, you're not allowed to attack the enemies that could be there. If you come, you'll be defenseless in there."

"You mean I'll be a nuisance for you" she said crestfallenly.

"Of course not" he hurried to say. "It's just that I don't want you to risk an unnecessary danger."

"Fine," she said after pondering a few instants. "But you better come back safe and sound."

Zelda took the bow and the quiver full of arrows and handed it to him. He, after receiving it, moved even closer to her and gave her a brief kiss on the forehead.

"Thanks," he whispered with a small smile.

The princess felt her cheeks burn and how her heart accelerated. Why did it have to happen to her? She knew since she was little that she was not allowed to love in that manner, that her husband wouldn't be chosen according to her feelings. But there she was, in love like a fool with a man she could never have. She wanted to shout, but had to restrain herself and see how Link moved away from her, on his way towards the second trial.


The cave wasn't very deep, though it was more of a tunnel, for he could see the exit from afar. When he came out, he found himself before a luscious forest, but wasn't a normal forest, the trees were placed in an ordered manner and at the same distance from one another, as if they had been planted by someone. He advanced a few meters until he stumbled upon a bifurcation. Between both roads there was a wooden sign. He approached it and read: "If your destination you want to reach, your surroundings you do not have to see". He scratched his head with a finger, thoughtful. The sign indicated that, or what he was going to see was tricky, or it wouldn't be helpful. Seeing that all the corners of the forest were identical, it was probably the second one.

He closed his eyes and focused on the sounds of the forest. He could hear the rustling of the leaves and the branches rocking with the wind and the happy song of the birds. He listened more carefully, ignoring those sounds. His hearing wasn't as acute as when he was a wolf, but he still kept a great portion of his perception. He began to hear something else, a faraway music, barely audible, that came from his left.

He followed that music. As he advanced, this one was louder each time, although he still had to concentrate to follow it. He stumbled across several enemies on the way, the majority seemed like scrubs that spat nuts and rocks through their mouths. It was a bit complicated to defeat them, for they hid in the ground each time he went near them. He managed to do it in the end, with a large stick that he found in the ground, he returned their projectiles, stunning them enough time to attack. He could have used the bow, but he didn't want to waste arrows. The majority of them, seeing that they were doomed, had asked for mercy and hid again to never reappear.

Focusing on following the music and defeating those 'scrubs' helped him to distract himself from the conversation Zelda had with Ordon's inhabitants. All of them still remembered when he had lived there as a child. He had been very happy in that time, but now he preferred to leave all that behind, at least until everything was finished. Now that he knew what was really happening, he couldn't allow himself to be distracted by remembering the past.

Another one of those scrubs suddenly appeared in front of him. He wielded the stick tightly, preparing to return whatever it threw at him.

"Wait, please!" that creature exclaimed. "I know you've defeated my companions. I don't have any possibility of defeating you so I won't attack. Spare my life, please," it begged.

"How do I know you won't attack me once I turn around?" Link asked with suspicion.

"I give my word, I'm just a humble Deku Scrub who appreciates its life," it supplicated with its hands together in a begging gesture. "If you spare my life, I'll sell you a magnificent shield at a good price."

"I don't have money."

"Fine, I'll give it to you," the Deku Scrub said with desperation. "But don't kill me, please."

"Okay, okay," Link said after a long sigh. "I'm not going to hurt you. It's also not necessary for you to give me anything, just your word that you or your companions won't attack me again."

"Of course we won't, sir. But I must insist that you keep the shield, for the trouble we have caused you."

The Deku Scrub took out a wooden shield and left, hiding underground. Even though he said that it wasn't necessary for it to give him the shield, truth was that it really came in handy. The day before could have been useful when facing that kind of monster-tree. He took it and placed on his right arm.

He continued walking. Just like the Deku Scrub promised, he didn't meet with any of them again, just with some skultulla and a couple of wolfos. That music was louder and closer each time. It was a happy melody and it seemed to be interpreted by a flute.

Finally, he arrived at a clearing, in which there was a small and strange creature playing the flute and dancing with the song's rhythm over a tree trunk. It was dressed with ragged clothes of brownish and green colors and a pointy hat. Seeing Link arrive at the clearing, it stopped playing and gave a high-pitched giggle.

"Sorry," it said grinning. "But I can't let you pass."

Just like its laughter, its voice was also high-pitched, like a child's.

"I came to look for something," Link said. "It's important that you let me pass."

"No, no," it shook its head with an amused look. "I know what you're looking for and I can't give it to you," it said after laughing. "I'm a skull kid, the guardian of the Sacred Grove. No one can pass through here without passing the trial first. You want to try it?"

Link nodded. The skull kid laughed again and gave a big jump, vanishing among the tree branches.

"You're brave," it was heard saying in a fun tone. "Let's see where that courage takes you."

Once the skull kid's voice faded, something fell in front of Link. It looked like a giant wooden doll and it had face similar to the skull kid's, but with a macabre smile painted in.

"Another wooden giant?" Link asked with a sigh.

The giant doll raised its arm and lowered it forcefully over Link. The boy rolled on the ground, dodging the attack. Quickly, before the doll could move its arm away, he lunged at it and cut its arm by the elbow. The doll raised its opposite arm and Link repeated the attack, leaving both arms on the ground, motionless.

The skull kid's laughter was heard again and, as in response to that laugh, the giant's arms began to move again and joined the rest of the body.

Link clicked his tongue. He had to find a way for them to not join again. He observed hi opponent's moves, they were very strange. Its head leaned to a side, while its extremities moved by their own accord, those moves reminded him of a puppet. He observed one of the arms carefully and then saw it, a thin barely visible string that went from the wrist to some place among the tree tops.

It was impossible to control something so big like a puppet in a normal manner, so Link supposed that someone, or something, was magically moving those strings. If he wanted to defeat that giant puppet, he had to find the puppeteer first.

He looked for the strings by sight. All of them went towards a particular area in the forest, but he couldn't pinpoint an exact spot. He sheathed his sword and brandished the light bow. While he dodged, he looked for his objective. Among the branches of a faraway tree, he saw movement. Taking advantage of the puppet's few instants of immobility, he readied his bow and fired an arrow to that spot.

There was a high-pitched cry and something fell towards the ground. The puppet didn't move, so Link took advantage of that and ran towards the place where the puppeteer had fallen. It was a skull kid, but it was a bit different from the one before. This one sported a smaller hat and its clothing were a bit different. Apparently, the arrow didn't paralyze it, for it still conserved its mobility.

"Brave and cunning," Link heard behind him.

He turned quickly and saw the first skull kid at a small distance from him, grinning.

"You've passed the trial, so you can collect what you came for."

The skull kid jumped, disappearing again and with him the other skull kid and giant puppet. Link followed the path that was blocked to him before and arrived at another clearing, much smaller than the one before, with a small fountain of water on the other side. He moved closer to it and saw the pearl over a rock, he took it and observed it. It was exactly like the other one, of the same size and color.

A light began to shine behind him and he turned around. Before him he saw a circle of light.

"That circle will take you back to my spring," said Ordona's voice.

Without wasting a moment, Link walked towards the circle and placed himself in the middle. A strong, white light blinded him and, once it vanished, just as he had been informed, he appeared right inside Ordona's spring, with his bare feet in the water.

"Link!" Zelda exclaimed, hugging him. "You took so long, I was worried."

Link gave a small smile and placed his left hand over her cheek.

"Now you see I'm okay."

He saw how the princess gulped and how a small blush tinted her cheeks.

"You have successfully passed the trial," Ordona informed. "Now I will return you to your wolf form."

"Fine," Link nodded.

He felt sorry for having to be turned into a wolf again. Each time that happened, it was becoming more difficult for him, especially since he met Zelda. He wanted to talk to her, touch her cheek again and feel her softness again. He wanted her to hug him in the way she only did when he was in his real form. But there wasn't anything he could do to stop it. He had begged Faron hundreds of times to return him his appearance definitely, but the spirit was adamant that was the best way of protecting him. In the past, he had been okay whit it, but he wasn't a child anymore, he was stronger and more skillful with the sword. He could defend himself on his own, and most importantly, he didn't fear that man, he hoped anxiously to meet with him again. Even so, he hoped being able to conserve this appearance, even if it were a few minutes more.

"Wait!" Zelda yelled. "Can't you leave him like that for a bit more?"

"It is risky, Highness, someone could see him."

"Just a few minutes, please," the princess begged.

"Very well," the spirit said after a few moments of meditation.

Link was surprised, he wasn't expecting Zelda to also wish that he stayed with this appearance a bit longer.

"Link, I need to ask you something," Zelda asked very seriously. "It's about what the inhabitants of Ordon said."

He could already guess what she wanted to ask. Although he didn't want to talk about that topic, by her look, Zelda seemed determined of that. Link sighed and nodded, indicating her that she could ask.

"The boy they were talking about was you, right?" she asked, not daring to look at him in the eyes. "You and your parents left the village to go to Castle Town, but you never got there. Something happened in the way and your parents ended up dead and you turned into a wolf, right?"

At first, he didn't answer, remaining thoughtful. He still remembered that day like it had been yesterday, the hardest day of his entire existence, the day everything was taken from him.

"Yes," he answered finally.

Zelda looked at his eyes and he saw great sorrow in hers. Zelda hugged him tightly and buried her face in his chest.

"I'm sorry," she said with a shaky voice.

"Why are you apologizing? It's not your fault."

"I know, but…" she stuttered. "I can only say I'm sorry."

Link placed his hand over her head and then lowered it, caressing her cheek, until it reached her chin, lifting it and forcing her to look at him. He could see tears peeking through her eyes.

"Don't worry, Zelda," he said with a calming voice. "I don't feel much sorrow as before, all thanks to you."

Slowly, he lowered his face and softly placed his lips on her forehead, again. He also kissed her eyes lightly, making those tears disappear. Then he turned towards the light spirit again.

"You can transform me now."

"But…" Zelda retorted.

Before she couldn't continue, Link silenced her by placing his index finger over her lips and looked at her.

"Until the next new moon," he said with a smile.