Lowering, the sun's light dimmed ever more to twilight as the afternoon crept towards eventide. The wind blew the dust from the surrounding earth banks onto the stone pavement, and oak trees alongside birch trees stood about the yard overseeing the roadway. And as the road took a bend, there was a gate of iron bars that stood from bank to bank with a stone archway and guard house.

"Link," Navi stated, "Those guards are not going to let us through." And she gestured to the guard at the gate and others standing at post. "Only those on official business with the royal family will be permitted and they're not going to accept a child's word to want to see the princess."

But then a girl who had been observing them walked up. "Oh, you're from the forest, aren't you?" She didn't seem much younger than Link. The girl had red hair while wearing a white dress, with simple patterns that bespoke the culture of the rustic outdoors in the country, that extended down to just above her ankles. And the girl's bright eyes were filled with playful curiosity.

"Yes." Link said plainly.

"But my dad says that only Kokiri children have fairies in the forest." The girl added with furthering her observation. "Not that anyone ever sees one."

"Yes, I'm a Kokiri." Replied Link, "Though, we're typically told to not leave the forest."

"I knew it! You are a Kokiri!" The red head exclaimed with bursting excitement. "And your fairy, does it have a name?...Does it change colors?...Does it do tricks?"

"Why yes!" Navi bursted angrily with a red orb, "My name is Navi! My color changes with my moods as you can plainly see now with my angry red! No, I don't do tricks as I'm not his pet! I'm his guardian! … And as you have found out by now, I can speak for myself!"

"She's so feisty!" The girl laughed, "I like her!" And when she paused to catch her breath, she turned to enquire of the forest boy's name.

"Link." He told her plainly and he was unamused.

"Link" She muttered to herself with disappointment. Then she replied with disapproval, "No, that won't do. You don't look like a Link."

"And just what do I look like?" He asked with his head cocked.

"Not a 'Link'" She persisted.

"And just what do you propose to call me? You got a better idea?" Link said while pressing his arms on his hips while also raising a brow of irritation.

"I'll call you 'Fairy Boy'" She nodded with excitement.

Then Link's eyes widened and he shook his hands and head with disapproval. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no…That is Not My Name…Don't call me that!"

"Too late!" She remarked sarcastically, "It suits me and it's decided." To which Link gnashed his teeth and squeezed his fists as she was becoming annoying.

"I am Malon." The girl introduced herself with a smile.

And Navi returned with sarcasm. "I suppose you're not from the forest."

"No." The red head simply answered with a shake in her head. "I come from Lon Lon Ranch. … You can find it at the grove of rocks in Hyrule Field."

"So, that was your place that we saw this morning. The home amidst the rocks." Link replied with a curiosity that answered. And Malon nodded.

"So, are you trying to find a way in?" Malon asked.

"Link already found a way, thank you." Navi answered with snark, but Link interjected.

"Actually, I only know of a way how to get IN to the castle, but not how to pass the guards." Link replied.

Then Malon returned, "Oh, I know of a way that you can potentially get pass the guards, but you have to promise me something." She paused, "You see, my dad was delivering some milk to the castle, though he doesn't go IN to the castle. And he was supposed to be back this afternoon when it's now almost eventide. So, if you find him, could you please tell him I'm waiting for him outside the gate. … I suspect that he's fallen into one of his heavy naps after his lunch break. And when he takes a nap, he tends to fall into a heavy slumber where he is unpredictable for when he might ever get up. If it weren't for me, he'd sleep the schedule away at the ranch."

"So, that's how you got so pushy." Link spoke out as a matter of fact while forgetting his manners.

And Malon's face turned red as it was then her turn to get angry. "Look, do you want help with finding a way pass the guards or not, Fairy Boy?" She said pressing her arms against her waist.

"Alright, I promise to fetch your dad for you if I find him." Conceded Link.

Then Malon let up. "Ok." She said, and then she gestured to the vines on the bankside. "You can probably climb those vines up the hill out of sight in those bushes. And as you make your way to the other side, you'll see there's a shaft that stands above that cave on the side with the marble entrance." And as Link nodded in acknowledging her, she went on to say, "That's the Great Fairy's Fountain and a special place. Great Fairies are wonderful and wise folk, and they say that the princess visits her from time to time. … But if you wait there, the night will set in better for you so that you can move more easily about the guards without being spotted."

"You seem to know a lot about it." Link observed.

"Well, I've watched other men try it. But they can' fit in the shaft and so they try more difficult and more tedious ways." She answered.

Then Link curiously asked, "Why haven't you tried it?"

The girl's eyes narrowed, "Do I look dressed for adventurous exploits of climbing banks, crawling through bushes, and jumping into fountains?"

"Ok, well I better get going." Link told her as he turned to start climbing on the vines. "I'll be sure to tell your dad you're waiting for him if I see him, Malon."

"Thank you, Fairy Boy!" She replied with a smile, and Link rolled his eyes as he climbed up.

As Malon described, Link crawled through the bushes on the bankside and when he came to the other side of the gate, he found a shaft that lead to the fountain below. However, he couldn't find any way to climb down it as he was left with no other alternative than to just drop in. And so that was what he did. Which to his irritation, Link then landed in a pool of water with a splash. Soaked and chilled, the boy waded out of the pool which he discovered was not the fountain itself. For this was a small pool which served as a cistern. And it was filled from the water which flowed from the greater pool upstream that boiled up as cool water that flows from a spring.

Then as Link stood in straightening his posture he beheld the fountain, the water moved with a new stirring until it blew up like a geyser to the ceiling through the shaft in cutting off the light. As the room went dark in that moment with the water giving veil, Link was unable to see what transpired. But the geyser eased down as light returned to illuminate the chamber of marble floors and walls of stone about the pools. And there stood a tall woman before him as she stood upon the water. Many vines entwined about her figure in form of a fine and elegant dress in fitting her beautiful image, though her discretion remained. And her hair flowed in rivers of ruby as so that they matched her eyes. Moreover, in her left hand she bore a golden harp. And her hand played the strings in a gentle ambience which comforted Link's ears.

"Long has it been since I have received an unannounced guest." The woman greeted as her voice flowed as a whispering wind of music. "I am the Great Fairy of Hyrule's palace." She paused as she observed the lad with a warm smile, and before Link could greet her, she addressed him. "I know well who you are, Link. Oh child of the Kokiri." And Link stood stunned while he listened to her as she went on. "I am grieved for him, the Father of the Forest. For he will be dearly missed."

"You know?" Link returned with wonder, for he indeed was filled with awe upon beholding the woman.

"Yes," She replied stoically, "for the daughters of Hylia's spirit are in close relation with the sons and daughters of Farore's spirits, and most of all of the fairies have a special relationship with the woodland forests of Faron. Indeed, the Great Deku Tree was a close friend of mine."

At that moment, Navi lolled her orb as though she were presenting a curtsy to the great fairy. "Ah, little sister…" The Great Fairy started. "You also share my grief, do you not. … As hard as life is for you now, your service to your fae son as the Father of the Forest tasked you is a great honor, and the path you fly is one that is to be famed among our kind. Take heart, little one. For your part in this story will be rewarded."

Navi nodded her blue orb, "Thank you, my mistress."

"Why do you live here?" Link enquired out of curiosity.

And the great fairy answered him, "As I am the Great Fairy of the Palace, my place is to serve the royal family here as Hylia wills it. For upon time to time, the king or queen will visit me in seeking my counsel. Though now the queen has been dead for some time, and the king visits me less often as my face grieves him due to the memory of his belated wife. … But the princess comes to me more as she has grown each year. Now more than ever as she worries much. But my answer remains the same as she only must have patience." As Link's interest perked greatly, she answered him, "That Time must have it's course as it will resolve its own journey. And that Time will provide for what she needs."

"How do I get to her?" Link asked plainly, "For I must see her and speak to her as the Father of Forest had asked of me."

"You are already on the right path." The Great Fairy answered, "Find the drain and your way into the castle, and then follow your instincts. You will reach her."

Then the fairy turned her gaze from his eyes as she looked to his chest as though she were gazing upon his heart, and her eyes turned about thereon as if she were searching with an intent purpose. When after she finished her search, her eyes were filled with delight. "You brave much, dear child." She said, "But such is a heavy road whereon you walk." She began to play a different tune upon the harp's strings as the notes became heavier as though they bore the depth of earth's caverns and deep crust. "I will give you this gift to aid you with your quest. Listen earnestly as you now will bear Din's Fire." And her words spoke then in a tongue of ancientness that resembled nothing of Hylian, of Farore's children, nor of any creature known to speak, and her notes became the ever more vigorous and tense.

"Navi…" Link muttered, "What is she doing?"

And as Navi observed with equal amazement, she explained to him, "While different spirits and relics house different powers, there is also power in music and song. Each manifesting differently by the notes, instrument, and even the heart by which they are played."

Then as Link listened to the song as the great fairy had instructed, the song caused a stirring in his heart as the beat changed in rhythm with the music. His eyes closed as his heart brought into motion a word of his heart's newborn fire, "Firea!" And out of moment in the motion, he brought his fist down as if it intended to crack the stone floor (though, that be in expression only). Then a hemisphere of fire enveloped about him and expanded from him until it reached the walls of the chamber and lifted to the ceiling before fading away. And the remaining torches of the chamber were lit in the process. "Bear it well." The Great Fairy said solemnly.

Link nodded to her then in a bow, "Thank you."

The light had left the shaft for some time during the visit. "Night has fallen. … Go, Link...while you may more easily evade the guards." She said, and Link left out the doorway.

Indeed, Link found it easy to evade the guards as he crossed through the yard of grass and oak trees in the night. And Navi hid under Link's cap to hide her light so that Link could remain concealed. But then there was a fence of iron bars that stood about the castle with a pair of guards who stood post at the road to the castle.

'I wonder how tight the bars are?' Link thought to himself as he mulled on the possibility of squeezing through the bars. For being the child that he was, he was quite small, and the bars did not seem that tight for a child. Then while he had to adjust his items and remove some gear, he indeed managed to fit through.

The draw bridge which served as the gate to the castle across the mote was closed. But Link already knew to look to the north side as he had overheard the man say in the market. Yet when he came to the northside, there stood many crates marked with a particular brand which represented the silhouette of a cow's head, and in Hylian the inscription read 'Lon Lon Milk'. Then Link observed that a man who was advanced in years sat asleep upon the pavement with his back propped against the crates. He looked a bit rough with his neck tanned red from his days of work in the sun, he had a rough dark brown mustache and short beard which all connected with his sideburns, he had a bald round head with a round nose, and he had thick eye brows that grew out in bush. Indeed, the man's figure was round as well while his hairy arms were quite stout. He wore a red shirt covered with blue overhauls, and beside him sat crumbs upon a red and white farm cloth besides an empty bottle of milk save for the white creamy droplet which still resided inside.

"I believe that's Malon's dad." Navi observed, and Link nodded.

Link tried poking and prodding the man to hopefully wake him up, but his snore only deepened. So, link resolved to fill his cap with water when then he poured the water upon the man's face. Then by time that the pouring of water was finishing, the man abruptly stirred in wake. "What the…?"

And then the man looked up in the dark to find a boy of green garb standing over him with the light of a fairy adding to the man's waking irritation. "Why…who…what's the meaning of pouring water on me." He asked firmly.

"We're visitors of the castle." Navi began.

Then Link enquired, "Are you Malon's dad?"

The man's eyes furrowed, "Why yes, I'm Talon of Lon Lon Ranch…"

"Well," Link replied, "your daughter asked us to wake you if we found you."

At that moment, the reality of the time struck Talon's realization. "Gah!" Talon huffed, standing quickly to his feet. "I better get going! Thanks kid." And without hesitation, Talon ran off immediately.

Link could overhear the guards from the distance, "Looks like the rancher has slept in again. Haha."

Afterwards, Link searched the castle wall at the mote, and sure enough he found the drain pouring from the wall into the mote. Link understood then how the man from the market got stuck as it was just large enough in perfect fit for Link to get through. Of course, he had to adjust and work with his gear.

Entering the castle, Link found himself in an irrigation drain for the standing fountains of the castle, for there were many. He stepped out into the garden. But the garden was vast with hedges, trees, and flowers along with monumental decorations of stone. In the dark, the garden served as a maze, and what was more, there were guards standing post about here and there. But they were not collectively too concentrated in watch as Link was able to manage weaving his way about them.

Link eventually came to a door leading down where he made his way into a cellar. There were no guards posted and the chamber seemed otherwise unoccupied in the present. So, Link sat himself down amidst the crates of produce and milk and he mulled in his thoughts for a bit.

Link thought aloud, "Well, I'm in the castle, so now what?"

"The Princess is bound to be asleep right now." Navi interjected, "We should probably wait until morning and maybe see or hear about where she is."

Agreeing with Navi, Link looked around and eventually resolved to take an empty barrel and lay it down. Then after lying himself down in it, he brought the lid up to him for a partial close.

The next morning, Navi woke Link up with flashing light in the barrel. Link swatted his hand at her with half opening eyes at first but soon he came to.

Navi was buzzing with anticipation, "Get up! Get up! … While we have the break!"

As Link stood up from the barrel and moved to pull himself together, he countered her. "But we don't know where we're going yet."

"No! You don't know where YOU'RE going yet!" Navi replied with energy, "But I already scouted early this morning and I saw the princess along with where she's going this morning."

Link sobered at hearing that and quickly hearkened. "Alright, then let's go."

While activity in the castle was stirring, the traffic of the serving staff were still moving slow. Among the nobles and royalty, few were awake yet and moving, and those that were awake were attending to the king in his court. But Navi saw that the princess was awake early as the sun had just ascended the horizon.

Now as Link came to the causeway to a great garden that stood in courtyard, the sun had risen to the hour of business as the palace activity had waxed to full circulation. Link had arrived at the garden not a moment too soon. And then there, before him, stood a royal figure of a child at his age standing across on a dais at a window.

Soberly, Link strolled across the garden as his breathing became long and his heart almost stopped at the suspenseful anticipation. The princess stood with a white dress of formal attire with robes of lavender that represented her status with crimson and golden embroidery. Particularly, the design of the golden triangles standing as one was embroidered upon her robe, and she wore a white and lavender cloth that covered her hair which Link could just see enough to perceive that she was blond. And she was peering attentively through the window's glass that stood before her. She was so attentive that she did not notice Link's approach until she sensed his presence.

Then when the princess turned, she brought her hand to her mouth in a startle. "Oh!...Who… Who are you? … How did you get pass the guards?" She paused with quick observance and questioning in her bewildered mind, but then she saw Navi who unveiled herself from Link's cap who was about to intercede for the speechless boy. Yet the princess broke silence with a new marvel. "Wait…is that…is that a fairy?"

Navi nodded her orb as if she were attempting to imply a curtsy. "I am."

The princess then returned her focus to Link with anticipation. "Then…you're from the forest, aren't you?" She enquired of Link, and when Link nodded in confirmation, the princess smiled. "Then do you have it? The Spiritual Stone of the Forest?" She asked.

Link was astonished at this and he presented the emerald before her highness. "This is the Kokiri Emerald. … The Great Deku Tree sent me to bring it to you."

Then the princess laughed, "Just as I thought." And with relief, she took breath in hope, of which she had long been without.

"How did you know?" Link asked in wonder.

So, the princess explained. "At the beginning of the year, I had a dream. I dreamed that there was a great storm of shadow which brewed over the land and it covered all life that grows therein. But that tender life could not grow under such darkness, and ever greater it loomed until there was no light left to grace even the hand before my face. And great malice gave thunder in that storm as it quaked the earth as if to rule it if not destroy it. ... Yet ... there was then a light that grabbed my attention. So, I looked south with eyes afresh. And there from the forest, the light shined as a boy came out, and there was a fairy with him. But the light came from the bright jewel that the boy carried. The jewel was emerald, and I recognized that it was the Spiritual Stone of the Forest. ... And as the boy bore the light, other lights shined forth to meet it. Those light came from the other spiritual stones. And the people of Hyrule aided him by giving the boy the other spiritual stones: of fire and of water. Then as the lights met, a new light broke forth through the clouds above and washed the lands whole from the darkness that was then no more."

The princess paused as she allowed Link time to absorb her narrative. "For all of these months I was left to mull over the dream to discern what it could mean as I watched the events of today's world unfold, and as any who are left to discern the unknown, I was afraid. But seeing you now, I know that the dream is coming to fruition." But then her eyes widened with trivial shame. "Oh!...I am sorry, I got so caught up in the moment that I failed proper introduction. …" She paused again with mulling, "Though I expect that you already know who I am…"

But Link corrected her, "I actually do not know. … The Great Deku Tree only instructed me to see the princess without telling me who you are."

And as the princess startled, Navi elaborated, "In the forest, the Kokiri are little aware of the affairs in the outside world."

"Oh!" Zelda exclaimed, "A Kokiri!...How foolish I was to not realize that a boy from the forest would mean that he would be of the Deku Tree's children!" She paused as she regained composure to introduce herself in more proper conduct. "I am Princess Zelda Hyrule in descent of Hyrule's Royal Family. … I am the heir descendant of The Zelda who had founded the kingdom of Hyrule as she was, herself, the goddess Hylia incarnate. It was she who created the Hylians." Zelda took breath in proper pause before enquiring of Link, "Now who may you be, dear boy of the forest?"

"I am Link." Link returned soberly and nervous as though he had just uttered his first words in learning to speak, but he gained composure as he maintain humility. "I am just a Kokiri boy who was sent to bring this stone because of a wicked man who demanded it."

Zelda's widened with suspicion. But her demeanor changed as she became cryptically sober. "Link, I need to explain some things to you that are sensitive and kept knowledge only among the Royal Family and its most trusted advisors. … Can I implore to join my cause and keep this, what I am about to tell you, a secret?"

Link thought hard on it, but as he had faith in the Deku Tree's word in being sent here, Link also believed in her. So, he nodded in agreement to her request.

"Are you aware of the Triforce?" Enquired the royal girl.

Link answered sincerely, "Yes. … The Deku Tree explained to me how the three goddesses created the world and left the Triforce as a relic of their divine power behind upon this world."

Zelda acknowledged with a nod. "Then what I am about to tell you is a legend of the Triforce. For the three goddesses hid the Triforce containing the power of the gods somewhere in Hyrule, the power to grant the wish of the one who holds the Triforce in his hands. … If someone with a righteous heart makes a wish, it will lead Hyrule to a golden age of prosperity. … But if someone with an evil mind has their wish granted, the world will be consumed by evil. … That is what has been told …" She paused as Link listened. "The task of the royal family is to hide and take of the Triforce to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands of those who seek its power to bring the world into their darkness. … So, long ago, the ancient sages built the Temple of Time, which stands in the city of Castle Town. Perhaps you had seen it when after you entered the city?"

"I have seen it." Link acknowledged.

Zelda nodded, "The Temple of Time protects the Triforce. For it is the entrance through which one can enter the Sacred Realm from our world as it is there where the Triforce is kept. … But the entrance is sealed with a stone wall called the Door of Time. And, in order to open the door, it is said that one must have the three Spiritual Stones. And then there is one more piece to complete the key to open the way, and that is the treasure that the Royal Family keeps along with this legend. That piece is the Ocarina of Time!"

Link observed with mulling understanding, "So, this Kokiri Emerald is one part of the key for opening the way."

Zelda acknowledged, "Indeed." And then she brought attention back to the moment. "You said that a wicked man was after the Spiritual Stone of the Forest?"

Link's eyes were downcast then. "Yes … And as the Deku Tree refused him, he caused an ancient enemy of the forest to devour the tree to the point of its death. … While I managed to destroy the beast, the Deku Tree passed as he sent me away for you."

Zelda's eyes closed with grief, "So, the Father of the Forest is gone." She sighed heavily, "Please allow me to show you what I was doing just now." She gestured to the window behind her. "This window peers into the court of my father, the king. And I was spying to see the affairs of this man, the king from the desert, as he does dealings with my father. … Will you please look to gaze upon him?"

At hearing that, the boy of the forest swallowed a heavy gulp in his throat and the moment seemed to be eerily remote. So after he nodded in agreement, he approached the window as Zelda added. "He is the man in dark armor with 'evil eyes'" And as the boy peered in, he beheld columns of marble about a vast hall he could but partially see, but treading on crimson carpet was a man of crimson hair with dark armor that absorbed the light as it deceived the eyes of its audience to the time of day as it suddenly appeared or felt very late. A unique golden ruby shined in the crowning circlet about the man's forehead, and his eyes seemed to shift betwixt crimson and yellow irises. … Link could hear nothing as he only observed King Dragmire (as the Deku tree called him) as he knelt upon a single knee before the Hylian king.

"His name is Ganondorf Dragmire, King of the Gerudo of Gerudo Desert. He swears allegiance to my father in his devotion to peace for Hyrule. But I believe he feigns it insincerely."

In that moment, Link jumped away from the window, being startled. For Ganondorf had tilted his head toward Link in a glance. "Did he see you?" Zelda asked.

Link shook his head in bewilderment. "I…I don't know."

"It's alright." Zelda said calmly with a comforting smile as if she had the first friend in years, though that wasn't far from the truth in context to understanding her. "He can't possibly know our plans."

Then Zelda went on to elaborate. "There was a war between our peoples until Ganondorf swore allegiance to my father in pledging truce. That was shortly after my dream. I believe that the darkness in my dream represents this King Dragmire as he seeks to lay a foothold in our realm. Nay, I believe that his ambitions are far more sinister than to simply wage war with us now. For he as, to the blindness of our staff, infiltrated our every level of security and archives of information that can be misused to dire purpose. … But my only course of action in due process is to make my plea before my father and his judgment. … Yet he only believes of me to be a naive and incapable child who has no understanding of her own concerns and dreams. … Simply to say, he does not believe me. But then I have since then been intimidated by Ganondorf, directly, and I know, myself, that he has tried to search for and steal the Ocarina of Time. … And now, with your report at what he has done in your forest, my fear is now realized. … He is after the Triforce. … And if I attempt to bring accusation of him, I would only face allegations of bias to be left with no investigation in fruition of my efforts."

Zelda sighed then as her heart began to descend back into despair while her mind slowly attempted to mull over what could be done. For she was certain that at this rate of Ganondorf's cunning, he will inevitably reach his goal in obtaining the keys to the Sacred Realm in giving him access to the Triforce. But then as her eyes came to rest again on the Kokiri Emerald in Link's hand, she knew what she must do. "Link, we have no choice but to protect the Triforce ourselves. I'll need your help with that!"

Link was rather startled at first that he would be chosen for such a mission, but then he believed in her as much as he believed in the word of the Deku Tree. So, he believed in her dream. But it was of great comfort to him to know, as well as see for himself, that she believed in him also.

"Alright." He answered her.

"What's the plan?" Navi asked in reply.

Then Zelda explained, "We do not have the means to prevent Ganondorf from getting the keys to the Sacred Realm and from getting the Triforce. … So, our only option is clear. We'll have to race him for it as we gather the keys together to acquire the Triforce ourselves. With the Triforce in our own grasp, we can use it against him instead to ensure that his ambitions are never met."

"So, what do you need me to do?" Link wondered.

"As I must remain here in the castle because I am the daughter of the Royal Family, I will keep an eye on the affairs here and watch our enemy. But I need you to go and find the other two spiritual stones, the Spiritual Stone of Fire and the Spiritual Stone of Water. Then when once you have them, bring them to me. And then you and I will take the Ocarina of Time and all three of the Spiritual Stones into the Temple of Time and meet at the Door of Time. There we will open the door with the keys and enter the Sacred Realm."

But then Link was startled as a new presence stood behind him. When he turned, he found it to be a woman of tight and dark tunic robes. She was advanced in years with white hair, crimson irises, and she bore a mark on her forehead which resembled a single eye with a tear drop descending from it. The mark was a signet of a Shiekah.

"I wasn't aware that you had a guest, my princess." The woman greeted Zelda, "… I was told that you attended the garden alone."

"Impa…" Zelda replied, "This is Link from the forest. … Impa do you remember the dream that I told you of those months back."

Impa returned gaze with concern. "Yes, the dream of your portended prophecy?" She looked over both Link and Zelda with scrutiny. "You believe it to be this…this boy?"

"Link." Zelda calmly said, "Will you please show her the stone."

In obedience, Link again drew out the Kokiri Emerald, and at the sight of it, all doubt left Impa's mind. Then Impa joined counsel as she heard Zelda's plan, and at that she acknowledged. "Very well, then I will show you the way Link. But first I need you to learn a song."

Link was thrown off for a moment, but as he complied, he drew out the ocarina that Saria had made for him. Zelda strolled off for the time as they practiced their music. "This is a song of the Royal Family," Impa said, "and only members of the family and those who are entrusted with it may learn it. After Zelda's mother died, I have served as her maiden in raising her. And I would teach her and play this song for her in lullaby." And she cupped her hand with particular blades of grass that she picked from the lawn. When she blew through her hands, her hands would shift as she expressed a melody into the wind.

The song of Zelda's lullaby was simple and sweet, as it glided with majestic royalty while yet it's humming elegance carried the weight of history's foundation. It bespoke of the royalty well. Then Link took to his ocarina, and he followed his ears as he tuned in to the music. For a while they practiced it.

By the time that Link had mastered it, Zelda returned with a sealed envelope in her hands and she presented him some new pouches that she made of leather in her craft shop. "I have made this pouch and satchel for you to go with your gear. I have blessed it in tune with the fairies of Hylia's charm, and so these pouches posses a magic that allows you to carry as many items as you need in your journey. There is no limit aside from the size of its mouth. … Also, here is a letter for the guard in Kakariko Village. For while I'm not exactly sure where the Spiritual Stone of Water is, the Spiritual Stone of Fire is with the Gorons on Death Mountain. You will have to go through Kakariko Village to ascend it."

Impa tapped the boy's shoulder, "I will show you out of the castle and point out the way for you to Kakariko and Death Mountain."

Link nodded in response, but Zelda stopped him. "Wait." And as Link turned again to her, she held his hands. "While I lost my mother before I got to really know her, I dreadfully hope and pray that I can prevent losing my father in these events that are to come. … Coming to my point, as much as I hate the prospect of losing my father, I know that losing the Great Deku Tree was not easy for you. … I am sorry. … And I am sorry that I could not stop it."

Link looked in her eyes and saw her sincere care. And she recalled to him of Saria's own demeanor in kindness. He nodded, "You have done what you could. And … and we are doing what we can now."

"Please be careful. … Please come back safely." Zelda bade him.

"Thank you." Link replied. "I will be back when I have the stones."

And then as they took parting, Impa escorted Link in showing him out.