9 YEARS AGO…

A new day dawned on Lon Lon Ranch in the Ordona Province. The sun rose up and out of the trees, casting bright tints of blue and orange in the sky. A soft breeze drifted across the dewy grass. In the trees surrounding the meadow, bluebirds rattled their stiff feathers and began their morning song. Chicks chirped hungrily in the nest and opened their gaping mouths.

The ranch has a stable, a barn, a dirt race track, a pasture, and a grain silo.

The wooden stable laid at the south corner of the ranch, by the main gate. Built in the style of a log cabin, years of rain and wind had done little to deteriorate its roofing, structure, or support. It would prove a good home to the horses for many years. The race track was north of the stable, with an obstacle course of wooden barrels and fence posts inside the ring.

East of the stable was the barn, built in the same style, where four cows and two calves slept. Thieves trespassed lately in the night and attempted to make off with the cows, so the barn was equipped with brand new locks. No one was allowed in or out of the barn without making sure to lock the doors behind them. Appreciating the new locks a little too much, the proprietor decided to continue renovating; the shabby barn was outfitted with new frames, base boards, rafters, stocks, and shelves. It too would prove a worthy home for the animals for many years.

In front of the barn and stable, and on either side of the race track was a modest pasture Its grass was dyed green with clover and tall fescue. The grain silo rose out on the north side of the race track. The ranch had no wheat to store, so the silo was equipped as a birthing station.

On the west side of the ranch stood a small country home, built slavishly. It was more a home to the cuccos; on the first floor, fifteen cuccos, seven chicks, and one rooster roosted on the rafters at night, and during the day when they weren't in the pasture with the cows, they scurried about on the floor looking for things to peck at.

The second floor was decorated with few ornaments or personal belongings. There were two bedrooms, two beds each, and a living room with a table, chairs, a sink, a freezer, a stove, and a toilet separated by a room divider.

All but one of the beds were empty.

A girl with red hair, tanned skin and freckles, and a little over four feet tall, threw on an oversized dress and a pair of mud-caked boots. She took up a large basket on her arm, and headed for the door. Before leaving, she cast a quick glance at the other bed. Sounds of sleep gurgled from underneath the covers. She giggled and closed the door softly behind her.

She walked into the main room and looked into the small mirror placed above the sink. She combed her fingers through her hair, then tiptoed downstairs where the cuccos stirred and occasionally cooed. At the sight of the girl, they bounced toward her and clucked loudly. The rooster crowed loudly.

"Relax, guys. I haven't forgotten how to feed you."

Malon went over to the barrel sitting on the far side of the room, and opened its lid. The inside was filled three quarters of the way with feed, and a hand scoop rested on top. She stood on the tips of her toes and reached inside for the scoop, pulling out as much feed as it would hold.

"Come and get it!" she exclaimed.

The cuccos huddled around Malon, surrounding her in a fury of feathery madness. To save herself from being engulfed, Malon quickly cast the feed, and the cuccos quickly left her and crowded around the pile of food.

"Good grief, you'd think we starved you guys."

She shook her head and walked over to the roosts and checked them. Out of fifteen, eleven held warm eggs.

"Not bad. Not bad at all." She took the eggs from each roost and put them one by one in her basket, then went upstairs. In the main room, she opened the freezer and put the eggs in an egg crate inside. When she headed back downstairs, the feed was gone and the cuccos were gathered at the door.

"Move, will ya? I can't let you out if I can't get to the door."

Malon pushed a few cuccos out of the way with her boot, then reached for the handle, but found the door was unlocked.

"I guess Uncle Ingo's already awake," she said to herself as she pushed the door open.

The cuccos scrambled outside frantically and raced for the pasture. The rooster lead the way as the fuzzy chicks scrambled after him. One cucco straggled behind nervously, so Malon kicked it and sent it flying a short ways. It gave a loud squawk, went sprawling, and took off after the others.

"That's right! Git! And don't come back until it's time for dinner!"

Closing the door behind and walking into the quickly rising sun, Malon outstretched her arms and yawned. She watched the cuccos run for the pasture, and saw all but one of the horses let out.

With basket in hand, she headed for the barn and unlocked the doors. Inside the barn, against one side of the wall were hanging shelves that held everything from large brushes to syringes and bottles filled with medicines. Next to the shelves sat several empty buckets in a pile, along with three stools. On the other side of the wall, and next to the barn doors, was a trough filled with hot water that buoyed two used buckets. Beside the trough was a huge glass tank, filled with milk and lit by a fire underneath that pasteurized the milk. A nozzle jetted out of the tank, and several empty bottles, all displaying the Lon Lon Ranch logo on their labels, sat below the nozzle ready to be filled. On the other side of the tank were empty crates for the bottles. Hay bales, troughs, and six stalls furnished in hay filled the rest of the barn.

Malon walked inside and saw a rough-looking man, in overalls and a green shirt, milking one of the cows. Two other cows waited by the barn door.

"Good morning, Uncle Ingo," Malon said, and he grumbled something that sounded like 'mornin'.'

"Have all the cows been milked?" She asked quietly.

"I just finished those last two," Ingo said gruffly without looking up from his work.

"I'll take the last one then," Malon replied. She moved awkwardly to the wall where the empty buckets sat. She placed her basket next to these and took one of the buckets, then passed to the last stall where one cow fidgeted, pushing lightly at her gate.

"Now now, girl. Malon's gonna take good care of you." She pulled the latch from the gate, took the cow by her rope, and led her back to the milking station. She grabbed a three-legged stool, carried it back to her cow, sat down, and investigated the cow's sack, and saw it was full to bursting. She quickly placed her bucket underneath the cow and pulled at its teats.

"…It looks like it'll be a bit chilly today," Malon muttered. "I wish spring would hurry."

"Are Talon and the boy still asleep?" Ingo interrogated, and she sighed.

"I didn't see Dad, but Link is still in bed."

He grumbled something under his breath and stood up. He picked up his filled buckets and dumped their contents into the heated tank. He threw the emptied buckets into the wash tub, then took a large broomstick and a new bucket, and briskly left the barn, leaving the door open behind him and his cow where she stood.

Malon watched him leave, then went back to milking her cow until the sack was emptied. She struggled to pick up the heavy milk bucket and carry it to the tank. Some milk sloshed over the sides and splashed onto the hay-ridden floor as she walked. She put the bucket on the ground next to the tank, then ran back to her cow and grabbed the stool. She ran back and placed in front of the tank. Picking up her bucket, Malon got up on the stool, stood on the tips of her toes, raised the bucket high above her head, and emptied the milk into the tank.

With her tall task complete, she threw her bucket into the washtub, then grabbed all the cows' ropes and led them out of the barn and into the pasture.

"Uncle Ingo could've at least taken a few out," she mumbled.

It didn't take long for the cows to find their favorite spots and start chewing their cud alongside the grazing horses and picking cuccos. Malon went back inside the barn and picked up her basket, locked the doors on her way out, and headed to the stable.

There were stalls for the horses, hay bales, and shelves with brushes, syringes, clips, hammers and nails, horseshoes, etc. Once inside, however, Malon found that all but one of the windows' shutters had been sealed. She peered inside and saw Ingo and her father squatting down next to a mare lying on bed of straw ground. The horse convulsed occasionally, amniotic fluid seeping from her vulva. At the sight, Malon dropped her basket.

"Dad, what's going on? Is she ready?" She took quick steps towards them.

"Don' worry, Malon," Talon looked up from the mare at Malon. "Ingo, brin' me the scissors, and a cloth please. Malon, go an' wake Link up. He's been waitin' for this, you know."

A big smile spread across Malon's face. She rushed out of the stable, back into the tiny house, up the stairs and into her room, and began jumping on the occupied bed.

"Link! Wake up! Get up, hurry!"

"Ehh?"

A boy with a bedhead of blond hair sat up in bed and looked up at Malon with dazed blue eyes.

"Wha…what's going on? Did the cuccos get out again?"

"It's the mare, Link!" Malon kept jumping excitedly.

Still half-asleep, Link replied hazily, "What mare?"

"The mare, Link! C'mon! She's giving birth!"

"Birth…?" Link looked up confusedly.

Then, his eyes snapped wide open.

"Ahh! The mare!"

Malon jumped down from Link's bed and looked the other direction while he leapt got out of bed and threw on a pair of trousers. She danced impatiently, and no sooner had Link pulled up his pants did she grab him by the wrist and start dragging him downstairs.

"Wait a second! I have to go to the bathroom!" Link cried out frantically.

"Well hurry up! I'll be in the stable." She let go of his hand and ran for the stairs.

"Are the cuccos in the pasture yet?" He called after her.

"Yes, so you don't have to worry about them." She hurried out of the house, muttering the words "Scaredy cat," under her breath. She raced into the stable to find Ingo pacing the floor, and her father still bent over the mare.

"Link's coming. He'll be a minute." Neither of them looked up.

"The foal got turned into breech position," Talon announced.

"Will it be ok?" Malon asked, putting her hands to her mouth.

"It'll be fine as long as this ol' girl don' move 'round too much."

Talon gently patted the mare's neck.

"Malon, go get a bucket o' water from the barn, an' bring it here ta me. Carefully."

She raced out the stable, unlocked the doors of the barn, and went inside. She grabbed an empty bucket and dipped it into the water-filled tub. Now with a heavy bucket, she strained to carry it back to the stable when Link appeared at the barn door.

"Has anything happened yet?"

"Nuh uh. Lock the barn door for me. and help me get this to Dad."

Link bolted the door then reached out for the handle of the bucket. With the two of them carrying the bucket, they made their way into the stable and brought the bucket to Talon.

"Anything else, Daddy?" Malon asked as they placed the bucket next to him.

"For now, nothin'. I'll let you two know if there's any change, but for right now, you need ta wait outside."

"But Dad-"

"No buts. If there's too many people around, the mare can get scared and hurt the foal durin' the process."

Talon dipped a cloth into the bucket of water and wiped his hands with it.

"Don't worry 'bout a thing, you two," he put one hand on Malon's head and the other on Link's shoulder. "You'll be the first to know if anything happens. Now git."

Link and Malon dragged their feet as they headed out the stable, with saddened looks on their faces. Malon picked up her basket and followed behind Link, closing the door behind them. They walked into the pasture.

"Aww," Link whined. "I wanted to help." He kicked a stray pebble.

"Yeah, me too. Except I also didn't." Malon sat on the grass and set the basket in her lap.

"What do you mean?" Link asked as he sat down beside her.

"It looked really gross. There was a bunch of icky stuff coming out of the horse's butt when I first walked in."

Link's face turned green.

"You're gonna make me puke!"

Malon reached out and wiggled her fingers toward him.

"No! Don't you dare!"

She tackled Link and started tickling him. They rolled in the grass and screeched hysterically, Malon tickling Link's armpits while he tried desperately to push her off. Finally, she released him and gave him room to breathe, continuing to laugh. After a few deep breaths, they sat in silence and watched the horses and cows graze, the two calves leeching onto their mothers' udders, trying to suck away at whatever milk was left.

"Oops," Malon thought out loud. "I took their breakfast away. Well, I guess now is as good a time as any to start eating grass."

A loud gurgle rumbled next to her. She looked over at Link, who had a miserable look on his face.

"I'm so hungry," he groaned. Hearing this, Malon remembered her own stomach.

"Yeah," she agreed. "I could eat an octorok."

She grabbed her basket and stood up.

"Dad says horse birthing takes forever. Let's go to our secret place while we wait! On the way we can get those berries you like."

"Sounds good to me," Link answered happily, smacking his lips.

They heard the barn door open and close behind them. They saw Ingo run for the house with both hands over his mouth. He darted inside and slammed the door behind him.

"Told ya it was gross," said Malon, and they both giggled.

"Race ya!" She yelled and took off running toward the main gate.

"Hey!" Link ran after. Malon's red hair trailed behind her as she raced, laughing as she went. In seconds, she reached out for the gate and slammed her hand down onto its metal bars. Link slammed his hand down the moment after.

"I win," she gasped as she caught her breath.

"You cheated," Link heaved. "You didn't say 'go.'"

"I didn't cheat."

"Did too."

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

Link glared at Malon, and she glared back. They stared each other down, until Link broke their gaze by giggling.

"Okay fine, you didn't cheat."

Malon raised an eyebrow.

"It… it doesn't matter," she said finally. "I bet when we're grown ups, you'll beat me without even trying. Let's go get those berries."

Malon walked slowly down the path and toward the tall berry bushes that leaned back against the fence.

"Did you have to do all the morning chores by yourself?" he asked quietly.

"Ingo milked all but one cow," she replied. "And I guess Dad moved the horses into the pasture, so there wasn't much left except for the cuccos, and you wouldn't have helped with them anyway."

Malon shoved branches out of her way, picking as she went. When she realized she was the only one in the bush, she turned around. Link was standing behind her, staring at the forest beyond the field.

"Don't just stand there, Link."

"Huh… what?" He snapped out of his trance and looked at her blankly.

"Help me get some berries."

"Oh, right."

He joined her in working on the bush.

"What were you lookin' at?" Malon asked, but Link kept foraging, staring intently at the berry bush.

"Hello? Anyone in there?"

"Hmm?" His head snapped up.

"I asked what were you looking at."

"Nothing," he said quickly. Malon brought her face closer to Link's.

"You sure were staring at nothing for a long time."

Link looked away, trying to lose Malon's gaze, but she moved to his other side to face him again.

"I thought I saw something, but it was nothing."

"What do you think you saw?"

"It looked like… a light, I guess?"

"A light?"

"Yeah, except it also wasn't a light."

"A light that wasn't a light," Malon laughed. "You sure are weird."

"No, I'm serious!" Link threw his hands in the air. "It was huge, and it looked like a wolfos!"

Malon blinked.

"A wolfos made out of light?"

"That's the only way I can describe it," Link replied.

He thought for a moment, and started scratching his head. "I'm sorry. That must sound really weird."

Malon brought her thumb to her lower lip.

"Maybe you can ask Dad about it when we get back."

When Link looked down sheepishly, she punched his shoulder lightly.

"Help me with these berries," she said. The two returned to gathering their breakfast and filled the basket with the sweet, tart berries. They then headed for the bordering woods.

On the far east side of Lon Lon Ranch, across the meadows of the Hyrule Field, lies the Ordona Wood. It was through these woods that Link and Malon walked. The sun had risen out of the eastern mountains and climbed slowly over the trees. It shone through the branches, and cast a green light that scattered sparkling shadows onto the earth.

As soon as Link and Malon entered the forest, the birds grew still, and all sounds stopped. No woodland creatures darted away to their nests. No insects flew about. No rustle of wind shook the trees. Even the fallen leaves and branches that littered the path went quiet as they broke them under their feet. All they heard was their own footsteps. Malon felt a sense of dread creep up her back.

"This place sure is creepy today," she thought to herself, looking in all directions. She felt eyes peering out from behind every tree, underneath every rock, and between every branch.

"Link, let's hurry. There's something really weird about the forest today."

Malon turned around and saw only the empty path behind her. She halted, and her face turned white.

"L…link?"

A branch broke in the distance. She whipped her head toward the noise, dropping her basket.

"Who's there?!"

Another branch broke, much closer, and Malon shrieked.

"Don't hurt me!"

She bolted forward, hugged the closest tree, and began crying.

"LINK!"

"Yes?"

Malon squealed and jumped several inches in the air. She twisted around and saw Link standing behind her, extending his arms toward her. She marched up to him, hot tears streaming down her face.

"Where did you go?!"

"Me? What about you? You were gone for hours."

"What?"

Malon's eyes grew wide. They stared at one another, terrified.

"What happened?" Link finally said.

"We were just walking down the path like we always do and when I turned around you weren't there anymore. Where did you go?"

"I didn't go anywhere. I was following you when all of a sudden you disappeared and everything turned black. And then the ground faded away and I thought I was gonna fall but I… didn't…"

Link's face turned deep red. Malon's terror gave way to anger. She threw her hands in the air.

"What the heck are you talking about?! Is this some kind of joke? I bet it is, isn't it?! For that race earlier!"

"It is not!" Link cried, and started following Malon in her pacing. "You know I'd never do that!"

He reached out and grasped Malon's arm. She instantly stopped pacing.

"Malon, please," Link whispered.

Malon looked deep into Link's eyes, trying to find an answer. Finding nothing, she brushed his hand away.

"Forget it," she mumbled. She turned her face away so he couldn't see the tears in her frustration. They stood silently at the fork in the path.

"Let's just go," Malon groaned, and took the left fork. Link stood where he was, watching Malon walk down the path without him. She glanced back to see him rooted at the spot.

"Well? Are you coming?" She called.

"You dropped your basket," he whispered.

"What?"

"You left the basket over here!" He called back.

Link took two big steps to where the basket laid overturned and the berries littered on the ground. He stooped down set the basket upright, then began picking up the berries, one at a time. Malon watched quietly from her end of the path as he plucked all the berries from the dirt path and placed them in the basket again.

When he finished, Link grabbed the basket by its sides, and carried it in both hands as he carefully approached Malon. He held it out to her, but she walked away.

"I didn't mean to scare you, Malon! Honest! I'm sorry, okay? Will you please take the basket?" He chased after her, berries falling from the basket as he ran. Malon stopped, and Link stopped short to keep from running into her.

"Maybe we should go back," she sighed, her voice breaking.

"What? Why?" Link nearly dropped the basket.

"Never mind. Let's just hurry," She yanked the basket from him and continued on, with him following closely behind.

The forest hummed with life. A warm breeze rustled through the leaves, and bees buzzed back and forth between branches. Guays gathered in groups to dig for bugs. Beetles crawled through the thick grass. Life stirred all around, just as it did before they'd entered the wood. The Ordona Woods are deep and heavy with tall trees springing from the earth. Thicker leaves jut from the branches, absorbing the sun's rays and filtering them into a green fluorescence onto the path, revealing mirages that bounced to and fro from the trees. Sometimes, someone would claim to see fairies, dancing across one of the paths or flitting through the leaves, but most chalked it up as a trick of the light.

Link and Malon came to their favorite spot: an out of place meadow, with gold grass two feet high and no trees within a hundred-foot radius. In the center of the meadow was one lone tree, tall enough to pierce the forest canopy, with low branches as thick as the trunk. Malon approached the tree, jumped for the lowest branch and began climbing. Link jumped up after her.

"Don't drop any of those berries," he called up.

"I won't," she called back, and laughed.

Within minutes, she and Link found their way to the top, and found a comfortable perch to sit on while they ate their berries.

"I still can't believe how big this forest is. We're so far out, you can't even see the ranch anymore."

All around them, the decades-old forest surrounded their tree for miles.

"Mmpshr. Yeh, mnd hw burg dis furesh gut."

Bright red juice dripped from Link's lips.

"Link, you pig! Don't eat all the berries!"

Malon yanked the basket away from him. He swallowed hard and tried to climb over her.

"But I'm hungry!"

"So am I!" She shot back, grabbing a huge handful of berries.

"No fair! That's way more than I've eaten so far."

Malon set the basket between them.

"There's still a ton left. Eat those."

Malon and Link sat up in the tree for hours, laughing and gobbling berries and looking out at the forest. After they emptied the basket, Link pulled a tiny wooden flute from his shirt and began to play. Malon sang along beside him.

"You really like that thing, don't you?" She asked. "Maybe someday when we go to Hyrule City, we can find you a nicer one."

When the sun was higher in the sky, they climbed down and played hide and seek in the meadow, finding hiding spots more suitable than the last every round. When they finished that, they looked for stones to throw from one end of the field to the other and see whose stone got farther.

Now, the sun now hung low, streaking the sky red and yellow. Malon had sat down and watched as Link threw the rest of the stones across the clearing.

"How far did that last one go?" She asked after one of his tosses.

"I think it hit that tree at the other end of the clearing."

"Yeah right. You wish."

"It did! I swear!"

"You're not strong enough yet."

"Are too!"

Link picked up another pebble and waited for Malon's inevitable 'are not,' but it never came. He turned around and saw she had a thoughtful look on her face, and was poking the ground with a stick. The front of her dress and her hands were covered in loose dirt, and her hair was a tangled wavy crown on her head. Even through the dirt, her tanned skin glowed.

"What's wrong?"

"Hmm?" She looked up at him. "Oh, nothing. I was just thinking."

"What about?" Link dropped the rock in his hand and sat down next to her.

"The foal. I hope it's a girl. We've got too many geldings, that's what Dad says."

"Oh yeah," He replied blankly.

"Don't tell me you forgot about it."

"Of course not!"

"I bet she'll like you best."

"We don't even know if it's a girl."

"I still think it'll like you the most. And when we're all grown up, we can finally use that racetrack!" Malon stood as she spoke and raised her hands to the sky.

"And when we're grown up, when we're done with all our chores, we can spend the rest of the day racing!"

Link stood and did the same. They held their hands high in the air until one of them―and to this day neither can remember who―broke the silence.

"Shouldn't it be born by now?"

Link and Malon dropped their arms and looked at each other.

"The foal!"

"We missed it!"

They were motionless one second, then fell sprawling to the ground the next, painfully rubbing their temples.

"Watch where you're going!" Malon shouted angrily.

"You watch it!" Link shot back.

"Come on! We have to get back!"

Malon picked herself up and snatched her basket off the ground, then pulled Link up by his arm. They raced off into woods and followed the path back to the ranch. From the meadow, Link's calls to Malon, yelling for her to wait up, could still be heard. A gust of wind suddenly swept through the meadow, then just as quickly disappeared, and the woods were silent once more. The sun began sinking into the west mountains, and dusk slowly set in.

In recent years, travelers entering the forest claimed to see even stranger illusions, other than the occasional fairy. Once in a while, someone would claim to have seen a large creature made of light, wandering the woods at any part of the day. Some have even stated coming close to the creature, and hearing it speak the language of the Goddesses. For now though, most continue to regard this creature as another prank played by the sun and mischievous forest.

Quiet circled the clearing. No dragonflies buzzed across the grass. No guays cried. No tektites skittered. The meadow was still.

Steady footsteps approached the clearing. A golden creature with broad shoulders and burning eyes―a wolfos―emerged from the forest and entered the meadow. It moved to the tree, and raised its head to look up at the perch where they had sat, then turned to the path they followed. The sound of Link and Malon's laughter, as they ran back to the ranch, could still be heard. The wolfos made of light turned back to the tree and slowly sauntered behind it, but did not reappear on the other side. Instead, a swift breeze blew through the meadow and into the forest.

The setting sun painted a a golden glow on Lon Lon Ranch. Grazing in the pasture were fifteen cuccos, seven chicks, one rooster, four cows, two calves, two geldings, one stallion, one mare, and a new addition to the Lon Lon Ranch family; a stumbly-legged foal latched tight onto the mare's teat, nursing for the third time that day. Talon and Ingo leaned against the barn doors, looking out into the pasture.

Link and Malon came clamoring out of the woods, breaking as many branches as possible while running, and made a mad dash for the main gate. They ran until they reached the barn, where Link fell backwards onto the soft grass, and Malon bent forward with her hands on her knees. They both breathed heavily.

"Where've you troublemakers been all day?" Ingo spat. Talon laughed heartily.

"I'm sure they were out doin' kid stuff and who knows what else." He looked out into the pasture. The foal was now wandering the pasture without venturing too far from her dam.

"Dad, can we please please please go see the foal please?!"

"That ain't a good idea, Malon. The mare's been awful protective since it went out a' labor. She about bit my hand off, and I won't risk either of ya gettin' kicked in the head."

"Aww, come on! First we can't help with the birth, and now we can't even go see it!"

"You can see it fine from here, darlin'."

"Barely!"

"Please, Mr. Talon, sir."

Everyone looked over to Link. He felt his face growing hot and wished he hadn't spoken, but continued.

"You said it before; if we want the foal to get used to us, we need to get to know it early. So…please?"

Talon kept his eye on Link, then finally laughed.

"Seems I can't argue with that, Ingo. If you two go over, approach slow-like, ya hear? An' keep it quiet."

"We promise," they chimed, then made their way into the pasture. Once near the mare and foal, they edged forward carefully.

"Easy now, girl," Malon whispered out loud. The mare looked to the two nearing children. She brayed nervously and lowered her head.

"It's okay. We're friends, remember?" Malon slowly drew near to the mare, and scratched her behind the ears. "We just want to see your baby. Can we, please?"

The mare raised her head and whinnied as it laid down.

"'Atta girl," She cooed and ran her fingers through the mare's mane.

"I'll never understand how you have such a way with horses," Link said in a hushed tone.

"They're not that different from people. If you're nice to them, they'll be nice to you. Come on, lets go see the foal."

The foal wobbled on its new legs a few feet from where the mare now laid down. It nipped at a stray butterfly and missed. Link and Malon inched their way closer to the foal. When it saw them approaching, it took up canter and walked off.

"Shoot. How're we gonna get it to come close to us?"

"Maybe if you sing that song?" Link suggested. "All the other animals on the ranch seem to like when you sing to them. Maybe she will too."

"I guess it can't hurt to try."

Malon took a deep breath, and began her song. A mild wind swayed through the grass and carried her song to the foal. Almost instantly, the foal twitched its ears upward and galloped back to Malon.

"Well that was easy," Link laughed. He put his hand out to the foal, but it trotted behind Malon and away from him.

"Maybe not."

"Maybe you should sing, too," giggled Malon.

"I can't sing, but I can still play." He pulled from his pocket the wooden flute, and began to play Malon's song. As he played, the foal peeked around and carefully approached Link, resting its head against the side of his leg.

"Aww! It likes you! I knew it would!" Malon squealed with joy and put her hands to her face.

"Shh!" Link stopped and put a finger to his lips. "Not so loud."

The foal smacked Link's leg with her head, so he continued playing. He would've played all night if Talon hadn't called out 'dinner time.'

"We have to go now. Bye guys!" Malon waved to the mare and the foal, then she and Link walked out of the pasture to the barn where Talon and Ingo waited for them.

"Looks like you've made a friend," Ingo said playfully. Link looked back and saw the foal standing right behind him.

"Go back," Link said nervously. "Your mom's gonna get mad at me."

"We should think of a name for the little filly," Talon scratched his chin.

"Can Link and I name her?" Malon clasped her hands together.

"Ehh, why not?"

"I've already got the perfect name!" Malon scratched the foal behind its ears. "I remember a book that Mom read a long time ago, about a goddess from another land who watched over all the horses in her world and took care of them. I'm gonna call her 'Epona.'"

"That sounds perfect," Talon smiled.

"Sounds good to me," Link agreed. Then his stomach growled, and everyone laughed.

"Can we please go eat?" Link painfully asked, and rubbed his stomach.

"Let's get all the critters in, and then we can go eat. I'm hungrier than a Goron," Talon gruffly replied, rubbing his giant belly.

The horses and cows were taken into the stable and barn, and the cuccos were brought back into the house. The family was finally ready to eat dinner. All four sat at the table, Talon thanked Ingo for preparing the dinner, he roughly replied not to mention it, and they ate in silence.

"Oh!" Malon spoke suddenly. Everyone looked up from their plates.

"Link! Tell Dad what you saw today in the forest!"

"The forest?" Talon asked, his tone serious. Link flushed, and he looked down at his food. He poked at a pea with his fork.

"What did you see in the forest today?" Talon repeated. Link's face turned a bright shade of red.

"I think I saw a wo…" he mumbled.

"A what?"

"A wolfos," he said a little louder.

"Well shoot, that ain't nothing special," Ingo intervened. "Wolfi run through those woods all the time."

"Tell them what else!"

Malon dropped her fork in her excitement. She bent down under the table to pick it up.

"It was a wolfos," the words barely escaped his mouth. "Made out of light."

Made outta light?" Talon raised his eyebrow. "Well that's a head-scratcher."

"I have been hearing some people say they saw something like a creature made of light wandering those woods," Ingo informed his brother.

"That sounds like trouble to me. Link. Malon. From here on out, try not to go too deep into the forest anymore. I never liked you two going in there so far to begin with."

"But Dad!" Malon lifted her head up quickly, hitting it on the table's underside. The plates clattered from the impact. She let out a gasp of pain and started rubbing her head.

"No buts. I'm not saying you can't go in, I'm saying I don't want you to go trekking all night through the forest. Am I clear on that?" Both kids gave the obligatory and exasperated 'yes sir,' and dinner continued. It was Talon who broke the silence this time.

"I don't know how I'm gonna make it to the New Year's Festival this year. So much work has piled on in the last few days, and I still need to head to Ordon with Cremia tomorrow."

"I could head to the festival instead if you want," Ingo replied with a mouth full of fish.

"That'd be great, but that still leaves the youngin's alone on the ranch and I don't want that, especially with a new foal."

"Link and I can take care of her while you're gone! Honest we can!"

"Absolutely not. You kids don't have the first idea as to how ta take care of a mare and her foal. It takes years to know how ta handle it, and even longer ta know what ta do in an emergency."

"Then let us come with you to Hyrule!"

"No way! The festival's way too big and crowded. It would only take a few seconds for the two of you to get into some sort of trouble, or worse, to get swiped from under my nose. And besides, there are some things in that city the two of you just aren't ready to see yet."

"Aww," Link thought to himself. "I really want to go, too."

"Then let us go with you to Ordon, Uncle Ingo! Pretty please!" Malon clasped her hands together and batted her eyelashes. Her puppy eyes had no effect on Ingo.

"If everyone leaves the ranch, who will be here to watch it?" he said, taking a bite of fish.

"Mhm. Smmwun mght wunn stil fa nu ful," Link muffled from his fish-stuffed mouth.

"Link! Don't talk with your mouth full!" Malon covered her eyes and looked away. "No one likes 'see-food!'"

He swallowed hard and tried again.

"I said, someone might try to steal Epona."

"That's right," Ingo agreed. "With all the raidings lately, leaving the ranch alone wouldn't just irresponsible. It would be dangerous."

"I just don't know what I'm gonna do," Talon sighed, picking at his fish.

"What if…"

Everyone turned to Ingo.

"What if Link and Malon go with Cremia to Ordon instead?"

"Eh, I don' know. I don't wanna put the girl out. She's tryin' to run a ranch of her own, and raise a sister who's practically a baby herself. I'm not sure I wanna give her two more to look after while she's trying to do business in town."

"We're not babies anymore!" Malon shouted out.

"I know you aren't, darlin'," Talon hushed. "You two are shootin' up faster than I can watch, but there's still so much you don' know about the world, much less runnin' a ranch."

"Now's a good chance for them to start learning," Ingo replied. "They're old enough to start seeing a bit of the world. It would be easier than taking 'em to the big city."

"But I still don't wanna bother Cremia anymore than necessary. That poor girl's too young to be runnin' a ranch by herself. And what about those thieves? If they've been hitting us, they've been robbin' the Romani ranch blind."

"Please Dad! Can we go? I don't wanna be away from the foal, but I don' wanna stay on the ranch and do nothing all day! I want to see things in the world, even if it's only the next town over! Pretty pretty please!"

Malon held her clasped begging hands out for all to see and hung her head low.

"Don't you start begging me, girl; you know how I feel about beggin'. If you two go to Ordon Village with Cremia, you'd be there on business, not to have fun. This ain't a field trip for youngsters! And on top of that, I just got done explainin' that I didn't want you trekkin' through the forest in the middle of the night, and this job would require just that! Not to mention the-"

Talon stopped his mouth, then tried again.

"No. Absolutely not. I won't have you running through the forest and all over creation, causin' trouble for Cremia."

"You could take us to Romani Ranch. That way we wouldn't be going through the forest alone in the middle of the night. And when we got back from Ordon, you could pick us up too! We promise not to bother Cremia! We'll be too busy having fun with Romani, right Link?"

Malon shoved Link's shoulder, prompting him to chime in.

"Uh, yeah! We promise we won't bother Cremia."

"That's just what I'm talkin' about! There's business ta be done in Ordon, and if you're too busy foolin' around, playin' games with her sister, then that business won't get done," Talon began to pinch his forehead between his fore finger and thumb.

"We've been there lotsa times, Dad," Malon reminded him. "I've seen what you do every time we go. We just have to fill out the shipment forms so all the milk can go to Hyrule, right? I've seen you fill those forms out, and I've been practicing my writing lots and lots! I could do it! Plus, Link is so strong, I bet he could carry all the milk onto the cart by himself! We're gonna have to do it by ourselves someday!"

Talon muttered something that no one else could understand. Ingo put his hand on his should

"They've been to Ordon plenty of times. It wouldn't be goin' to another country. If they gotta start getting used to the adult world, this would be a good way for them ta start."

"I know, I know! But still…"

Talon pinched hard on the skin above his nose, then jerked his head up and glared at Link. Link darted his eyes over to Malon, then Ingo, and realized everyone was staring at him.

"Why is everyone looking at me?" He thought, reaching a sweaty hand to the back of his head, which grew hotter by the second. After an eternity, Talon turned his excruciating glare to the tabletop. No one else said a word, but finally, Talon gave up.

"If you're going to Ordon tomorrow, the two of you are to be up and at 'em early in the mornin', before the sun rises. I wanna see you bright-eyed, not fallin' asleep on the way to Romani Ranch. That means your both goin' to bed right after dinner! Got it?"

"Yes sir!" Malon announced happily.

"Yes sir…" Link murmured.

"We've gotten up early to go to Ordon before, remember?" Malon giggled, wearing a giant grin.

"Don't get smart with me. I can change my mind any time I please. You're not to get in Cremia's way on the ranch, or in Ordon, or at any point between the two places. You'll do anything she asks ya, and mind yer manners, and behave yourselves while your in Ordon. Remember that your there on business, not to mingle and do 'diddly do daa'. If that business don't get done, I'll have both your heads, got it?"

"Yes sir."

"I'll explain the rest to you two tomorrow morning after you've woken up. Since it looks like you've both finished dinner, it's time for bed."

"Yes sir!" They immediately stood up from the table and took their dishes over to the sink. Malon led the way to their bedroom, marching with her head high and shoulders straight. Link huddled slowly after her.

"You really think they'll be okay, Ingo?" Talon sighed.

"They'll be fine. She's your daughter after all. And you've done a fine job taking care of the boy."

"God, I hope you're right. I got such a bad feeling in my gut and I wish to hell it'd go away."

"Think somethin' bad's gonna happen?"

"Of course I do! That boy―He's…" Talon groaned miserably. "I'm being depended on to raise him, but now I'm lettin' him go runnin' through the woods, goin' to strange places all by himself. He's already started seeing things, and he's not even of age yet! Just when is―"

Talon cupped his face in his hands, and his shoulders scrunched tightly.

"It's so hard acting like everything's normal when it's not. My own daughter… Someday, she might have to watch that boy, who's practically her brother, die in her arms. I don't know if she could handle that. He might as well be my son, Ingo. I don't think I could watch him die either. I –"

Ingo grabbed his brother's shoulders and held them hard.

"He won't die, Talon. I promise you, that boy will not die. It is his destiny to live. He is alive now and he will continue to live. If you don't let him go running wild through the woods every now and then, he'll be miserable, and then what good would he be to anybody? If anything does happen on this trip, they've got Cremia and Fado, and everbody in Ordon to watch out for them. But if you don't give the boy some leeway now, then he'll never have it later. When he's grown up and doing what his destiny dictates… When he's facing everything the world is gonna throw at him, he'll need to recall his time on the ranch, and remember you, and Malon, and all the people he knew and loved."

Talon brushed Ingo's hands from off his shoulders.

"You can be awfully smart when you wanna be. But you're right. Maybe I'm just letting myself get caught up in all this. I don't know if I could run this ranch without your help. It makes me wonder how a girl like Cremia can do it by herself."

"I think it's time we headed to bed ourselves," Ingo interrupted, looking up at a worn out clock on the wall.

"Suppose so."

Link lied motionless in bed, his hands cupped behind the back of his head. In her bed next to his, Malon talked away.

"I can't believe Dad is gonna let us go to Ordon by ourselves! It'll be so much fun! We'll get to hang out with Cremia and Romani! And I finally get to try to run the ranch for once! And we get to spend the New Year with everyone in Ordon Village! And you get to see Ilia, Link! You wanna go see, Ilia, don't you?" Malon giggled and waited for Link to throw his pillow for mentioning her, but it didn't come.

"Is Talon mad at me?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" Malon sat up in bed and looked over at Link.

"He was staring at me real hard while we were talking about Ordon, like he was really angry. And before that, after I told him what I saw in the woods, he said we couldn't go in anymore."

"That's just Dad, Link. He said he didn't want us to go deep into the forest, not go into it at all. He probably just doesn't want us to get eaten by mobgoblins or something."

"It's a good thing I didn't tell him what else I saw in the woods," Link thought, then continued out loud, "But why was he staring at me so hard, before he finally said we could go to Ordon?"

"Maybe he's afraid you'll drop all the milk bottles and break them."

"Shut up!"

The pillow finally came and hit Malon square on the chin.

"You're not getting this back," she giggled.

"Oh, come on! I only have that one, and you've got three over on your bed!"

"Now you know what to ask for your birthday."

"Fine!"

Link turned over on his side to face the wall.

"Aww, I was only joking. Here, you can have it back." Malon tossed the pillow back to Link's bed. It gently hit the back of his head, but he pretended not to notice. Under the bottom of the door, they saw the light in the main room shut off.

"That's our cue to sleep. Good night, Link. I'm sorry I was mean. I'm just really excited to go to Ordon Village."

Malon turned off the lamp on the nightstand between the two beds, then pulled her covers up to her chin.

"I know. Good night, Malon."

Link took the pillow and readjusted it, then turned onto his back again and stared up at the ceiling. All day long he thought about the things he'd seen in the forest; the wolfos made of light, and when Malon disappeared in front of him. He remembered the vision clearly.

"I was following Malon in the woods, just like always, when all of a sudden she disappeared and everything turned black. The ground faded away, and I thought I was gonna fall but I didn't. I was walking through the dark sky and all around me was darkness. Everywhere I looked I saw stars. Some of them were really small, as if they were far away, and some of them were huge, and they were the most beautiful colors I'd ever seen.

"And then I heard voices, and one by one they told me the names of each star, but I was so scared and excited that I can't even remember any of the names.

"After drifting in the darkness and looking at all the stars, I suddenly flew forward really fast. I was moving so fast, I thought I'd never stop ever again. But then I did stop. When I looked up, I saw the biggest star of all. It was a hundred times bigger than any of the others, and there were so many colors flashing before my eyes. I felt like I was under water, watching the surface from underneath.

"I closed my eyes, only a second, but when I opened them again, I saw a bright light and a big green hill. Standing on it were the three tallest ladies I'd ever seen. I tried to call to them. They didn't answer back, but I kept hearing these voices in my head, and knew they were their voices. I smiled and waved, and when they saw me, they waved back.

"I turned around, and saw Malon crying on the tree and calling my name, so I came back."

Link thought these words over and over again to himself, recalling the vision to himself until he fell asleep, and had the same dream he'd had every night for the past week.

I'm walking through the field outside of the ranch when Malon runs up to me and hugs me. She's crying, so I ask her what's wrong. She tells me she misses me and wishes I'd never gone away. Before I can tell her I never left, she fades away, and so does the field. Everywhere I look is nothing but light. Suddenly everything goes dark, except for one light above me. When I look up to see what it is, I see three gold beings flying straight down at me. They fly around me in all directions, and suddenly I see Hyrule beneath me. Then the golden beings fly up into the sky, and there's a big flash. I shield my eyes and turn away, but when I look back, there are three gold triangles, spinning, and floating down toward me. I reach up to take them before they can fall, but before I can get close enough, everything goes dark again…