A/N: Thanks for getting this far! Hope you're enjoying it. This chapter is a little bit short because I'd had to either have it short, or have a really long one! Please, read and review. Thanks!

CHAPTER X:THE BURNT VILLAGE

Nariko led the group through a hidden path that was covered with vines. "We have arrived at my village. I am sorry about the state it is in."

The path opened up, and it was clear that the village was in ruin. Buildings were crumbled and destroyed, with scorch marks everywhere. Massive chunks of earth had been ripped up and thrown into other houses, leaving nothing but piles of rubble. The village would have been beautiful had it not been destroyed. Each building was quite small, but in perfect balance, every side the same as the other. The roofs, or what was left of them, were beautifully designed, and the four corners curled up into dragon heads. All the houses were surrounding a massive, now fallen, tree with tiny pink flowers.

Aqua was shaken at how much damage had happened here. "How did this happen?"

"A great beast came here and breathed black flames all over my village. Anybody that was touched by it became nothing but a writhing mass of shadows which were soon snatched up by the beast. The monster… was a dragon. Even when it had taken everybody, the dragon still destroyed everything. There was no purpose in it." Nariko dropped her head in shame. "I was unable to help… I couldn't save anybody that I loved. Everyone… gone. This is why I must go with you. I need to get my revenge, even if it kills me in doing so."

Zelda sensed that there was more to the story, but did not wish to pursue it. Sometimes she wished that the Triforce of Wisdom could be turned off when she wanted it to be. "It sounds like your village was attacked by a heartless, and an especially powerful one at that."

"These heartless, they are what attacked us earlier?"

Zelda nodded. "We have fought quite a few, but I know that there are many more different types we have yet to encounter. I suspect that the dragon-heartless that attacked this place is the guardian of a keyhole."

Nariko did not want to hear the whole story about how the heartless worked, nor did she care. She just wanted them destroyed. "We can set up camp in the sanctuary where we kept this blade. It was breached by heartless, but it is the safest place for us to be. Someone will have to keep watch at all times." Nariko walked off, without further explanation.

Aqua followed, with Link and Zelda leading Epona. Navi was resting inside a spot in their pack, still refusing to talk.

Link turned to Zelda, and whispered in her ear. "I think there is something she isn't telling us."

"Don't ask her about it. We have all lost a lot, and I think that she has something too painful to share. She will tell us when she is ready." Zelda replied. "Besides, I don't want to make her angry. She's… scary."

Link and Zelda continued drifting behind, taking in all the sights around them. The damage here reminded them of their own home. They could never go back there, never rebuild it. At least Nariko's village had things that could be salvaged, nothing remained of Skyloft. This saddened Zelda greatly, but Link saw things a little differently.

"Zelda, think about it. We may have lost our home, but at least people can still come back here and start again. I am happy that the heartless haven't completely eradicated this place, and you should be too. We can't let things like this get us down. We have to remain strong in the face of adversity, for everyone. Have hope."

He stopped and held Zelda's hands, looking into her eyes. "Be strong."

The two of them picked up their speed so they could catch up with Aqua and Nariko. It was a short walk to where they set up their camp. Aqua found it very hard to be here, seeing how utterly destroyed this place was, especially considering how her city did not take much damage. She shuddered to think of what remained of Link and Zelda's home.

Nariko took them to a large, ornately crafted building with a large round door. "It is just through here. Set up what you need to while I am gone. There is something that I must take care of."

Link carried all of their goods into the sanctuary before tying Epona to a tree outside and fetched the horse a large tub and filled it with water. Link stepped inside and said goodbye to Nariko.

"I will be back shortly." With those words, Nariko picked up the door and put it back in place.

Link walked inside to meet the girls, who were chattering about their new companion.

Aqua was bouncing around excitedly. "She is so pretty! Her hair is amazing; I wonder how she keeps it clean! I bet she puts soothing botanicals in it!"

Link cleared his throat and tried to change the topic to something he could talk about too. "She is a great fighter; I've never seen anything like her. She must have been training hard for a very long time to get skill like that."

Both girls looked at each other before looking to Link.

"Yes, but she is very beautiful, don't you think?" said Aqua.

Link suspected that they were trying to trick him into saying someone other than Zelda was beautiful, so he answered very carefully. "I guess so, but she isn't really my type."

Zelda lit up with a huge grin before turning to her pack. "We should set up our sleeping stuff. We don't need tents, just bedrolls."

The room was quite large, with many pedestals and ornaments around the outside. In the centre was a raised basin with logs inside. Link was relieved when he realised that he wouldn't have to dig out a fire pit for that night. He quickly set up his own bedroll before rushing over to do Zelda's. It was laid out perfectly, and he even plumped up her headrest.

Aqua noticed this display and smiled slightly. As she was lighting the fire, she lost concentration for a while as she thought how nice it would be to have someone who would care for her the way Link did. She summoned her Keyblade and used it to light the fire which crackled to life, casting an orange light all around the room. With everything illuminated, the paintings that covered the roof became visible. Each picture flowed into the next, creating a beautifully detailed depiction of the tale of the Heavenly Sword. Aqua made a mental note to ask Nariko about it. While she was relaxing by the fire, Link got up and said he needed to do something, and walked outside.

As soon as Link had left the room, Zelda burst with excitement. "I have been dying to tell you something! You're going to love this!"

"You found some chocolate!" shouted Aqua gleefully.

"No! Even better, Link and I finally kissed! It was perfect…" Zelda sighed as she remembered.

"Better than chocolate! Maybe I should try my hand at wooing him, although, judging by the way he acts around you, that would be impossible… So, when did this happen? Tell me everything!"

"Well, two nights ago, it was just us two at camp. You had gone off to get firewood, and he told me to come over to him. He gave me this necklace, and then… it just happened. We kissed! Well, I kissed him first, but then he kissed back. And then you came back with Navi."

As soon as they had said her name, Link entered with the fairy flying behind him. She flew straight up to Aqua and hovered there for a brief moment, as if working up the courage to say something.

"Aqua… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have acted the way I did, I was being unreasonable… we knew what we would have to do when we chose to help the Goddess. I just miss Tatl so much, and it pains me greatly to know that I will never see her again."

Aqua stayed quiet for a moment. "It's okay, Navi. I forgive you."

Link spoke up now, a big smile on his face. "Guys, I think it's time… for a group hug!" He pulled everyone in and squeezed tightly. He wouldn't let go until he felt everyone else hugging properly as well. "Next time, we have to get Nariko as well. She is going to travel with us, after all."

Nariko walked along the paths of her village. She took in every sight, sound and smell around her, trying to memorise them before leaving this place for good. Even though this place was filled with hardships for her, it was still Nariko's home, and the few friends she had were from this place. Nariko at last reached the steps that led to the view of the waterfall which ran far up the side of the valley. Upon reaching the top, she took a deep breath and knelt down in silent prayer. Nariko stood up and walked to the edge of the platform, where she could see everything below her. She held in her hand a branch of the tree in the centre of the village. There was three cherry blossoms still attached to the end, possible the only ones that remained unscathed by the attack on her village.

"My dearest sister, Kai. I love you so much, and I hope you can forgive me for not being there when you needed me. You were always by my side whenever I needed you… I will miss you." She plucked the largest flower off the branch, and dropped it down into the water below. She watched it drift in the wind until it landed on the surface of the water. "My father, Shen. I am sorry for all the pain I have brought into your life. I can only hope that what I do now will make things right." She did the same with the second flower on the branch. "And mother… I never knew you, but… I hope I am making you proud." Nariko cast the last flower off the edge before turning away. She surprised herself when a tear ran down her cheek. Nariko wiped it away hastily before returning to her new companions.

Link was out with Epona when Nariko returned. She nodded curtly at him and asked if he needed help cleaning her reigns and brushing her hair. He gratefully accepted and they finished up in half the time it would have taken alone.

Link sat down next to Epona. "Care to join me? I've got some chocolate, and you better get in now before Aqua finds it."

The corner of Nariko's mouth rose in a slight smile. "Thank you." She sat down in front of Link, so that she could reach Epona's head. The horse looked at her before resuming her snacking on the grass. Nariko reached out to scratch her head. "You have a beautiful horse. I have not seen a creature quite like it in my lifetime."

"She is a lovely girl, I am glad to have met her. She is very special too."

"How so?"

"She can take me anywhere, as long as I know what it looks like or what it's called. She can't cross water though."

Nariko's eyes widened in amazement. "You certainly are lucky to have her. She seems quite attached to you, Link. How long have you been with her?"

Link thought hard for a moment, trying to count the days since they met. "About 3 weeks, I'd say."

"Not long at all, then. It would seem that you have a way with animals."

"I think being with my Loftwing for so long gave me the right techniques for caring for them."

Nariko raised her eyebrow. "Your Loftwing?"

"Where I come from, everyone in my city was paired with their Loftwing at a young age. My city was called Skyloft, and before the heartless came to it, it floated through the sky. We used the Loftwings to fly around to the different islands above the clouds, where many of us lived."

"Your city… In the sky? I've never heard of anything like that. Where is your Loftwing now?"

"Skyloft was kept in the sky by the magic of our Goddess. When the heartless came, they corrupted it, and it came crashing to the ground. There is nothing of it. My Loftwing… He must have tried to find me, or even just tried to escape, but… he didn't make it. A while ago, Zelda and I found both of our birds' bodies in a forest. Our Loftwings were always close, much like the two of us are now. At least they ended up together."

Nariko frowned, before looking straight into Link's eyes. "We will stop the heartless. I cannot let anything more be destroyed by those creatures."

"I know we will." Link smiled. "Anyway, enough about me. Tell me about you, and your people. This place is quite beautiful."

"Very well. Long ago, before my time, and even my father's time, there was a great war on earth. There was an evil king who sought complete dominance over these lands, and even went as far to try and wipe everyone out. When all seemed lost, a heavenly warrior descended from the sky, carrying a magnificent weapon that is said to have been forged by the gods themselves. The warrior used this weapon to defeat the evil, and once his task was done, he vanished and left behind this sword. Many men killed each other over this weapon, so my clan took on the duty of keeping it out of the hands of men. We travelled as nomads, changing places during each calendar cycle. It was written that 23 years ago, in the year of the fire-horse, a deity would be reborn in the body of a mortal man. A saviour, destined to take up the sword and unite our people and lead us to the Promised Land. Instead, I was born from my mother's dying body. My people wept, and they told me that I was a portent of doom. I had singlehandedly destroyed their prophecy, and taken out their beloved leader. Part of me believes that my father will never forgive me for that… He raised me as a teacher first, and father second. I grew up as an outcast, forever remembered as the one who would destroy our clan. But now that my clan is gone, it falls to me to keep this weapon out of the clutches of evil."

Link sat silently, taking in everything that had been said to him. "Nariko, I'm sorry. Your life must have been hard."

She looked down at her feet. "It was."

Link patted Nariko on the shoulder, and they went inside. Aqua and Navi were already working together to prepare dinner, which made Link smile. Zelda was lying on her bed, taking in the paintings on the ceiling. She sat up as soon as she heard Link and Nariko re-enter the room.

Zelda bounced over to the two of them. "Nariko! I've been waiting for you to come back, so you can explain the paintings to me." She said, pointing straight at the ceiling.

Once dinner had been cooked, they all sat together and listened to Nariko's retelling of how her clan came to be in possession of the Heavenly Sword. Everyone, even Link who had already heard it, listened intently to the story. After the story, Link revealed the chocolate he had taken from Haurum, and made hot chocolate for everyone. It was a pleasant evening, after which everyone retired early.

Zelda lay awake for some time. She knew that there was still something Nariko wasn't telling them. She just hoped that it wasn't something that could put them all in danger.