AN: This is one Story that I've been postponing too long to publish. I cannot overstate how much I love this franchise and its character, so I hope I can make them justice with this story.

As a little side note, I don't know if can say this here, but; I felt deeply moved and inspired to do this fic because of one that I read before by the name of Soul Mates by andrhats. Please if you like this pairing and have never read Soul Mates before, I urge you to do so.

To make it very clear, Sheik is not Zelda in this story. He is his own person and a man.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything on the Zelda Franchise... I wish I did.


The cackle of Cuccos echoing in the horizon announces the coming of morning, with little sparkles of sunshine creeping from behind the mountains in the east.

For Sheik this time is far from past the start of his day. In a sacred routine of his, the young Sheikah boy gets out of his futon an hour before the sun has a chance to wake up. Like every early morning, the small golden-haired ninja-to-be climbs the walls of the impressive royal castle of Hyrule, using the vast and difficult ground of the ornate roof as his playing ground.

No.

Sheik shakes his head. He is a proud warrior of his clan, the Sheikah, and the Sheikah do not play. His time around here serves as training because even if he likes to sneak past the guards in the castle's ground, scurrying around unnoticed with small giggles, this is all part of his training to be the guardian shadow in charge of protecting the royal family.

'This is our sacred duty since the time of our ancestors.'

His master's words echo in one memory of his as the young boy jump from one tower to another. From the moment he learned how to walk, his aunt and teacher Impa, drilled in his head the tenets of his people.

Walk within the shadows. Hear the whispers carried by the wind. Never expose yourself to others. And more importantly than all else, protect the royal family with your life.

Most people would find this life, his life, a crushing burden to carry. But for Sheik this is an honor without equal. This is his duty and he would never blame fate for that.

Dancing from tile to tile with grace and precision only possessed by the ones of his clan, Sheik landed with the tip of his right foot on the northern tower of the castle, the one standing right above the giant gate leading down to the lush green steps leading to the city below.

This would be the point where the small boy would take a long and pensive breath to finish his training session. But today the rising sun brought more than the comforting warmth of its light.

From the corner of his ruby eyes, Sheik notices a spot of green and golden dashing around the gliding plains running up to the open gates. At first notice, the young Sheikah drew a sharp breath, his eyes zooming towards that moving blur.

Taking a cautious step forward, the novice ninja felt his heartbeat at a furious pace. Someone was trying to break into the castle, and for all that he trained, it has never arisen a situation where he truly needed to put to work the skills he horned with such zeal.

As a small note of panic began to creep within his chest, the shifting blur moving between the guards became clear and distinguishable as a very energetic blond boy. Right then and there, Sheik's alarming senses came to a halting calm.

His fearful apprehension turned into a cautious curiosity. And so, he dropped into a crouching position, sitting above the castle like a watchful hawk, staring down at the strange green-clad boy.

Fast but heavy pressing feet sprinted across the trimmed grass. Going parallel to the small road, the boy took a hard turn at the sight of a pair of guards standing in his way. Sporting a shocked look on his face, the blond kid gasped and rolled to the side and then he rolled again.

'That looks… ridiculous.'

Sheik thought to himself. Taking the scene with a slight frown on his hidden face, he felt a strange amusement to the scene. He watched as the wannabe invader rolled his way across the short field, grunting and crying a bit too loudly in every roll.

His small grin of amusement quickly turned into a scowl of disapproval. As much as the boy looks cute doing his bit, this scene is completely inexcusable. How come none of the highly trained and well-paid guards standing on watch at the gates couldn't hear the small rolling boy grunting his way into the castle?

'And Aunt Impa says I could learn from the guards.' The boy snorted in disapproval.

However, as much as he would like to belittle the Hylians that take so much pride in their heritage, there is something far more pressing and interesting for him to focus on.

Shifting slightly in his watchful position, Sheik observed as the boy climbed from the shallow waterway, shaking his body like a wet puppy trying to dry off before he pressed forward to the left side of the castle's ground.

"I see you decided to disregard my orders about sneaking onto the castle's roof."

A familiar voice sounded from behind him, startling the boy back on his feet.

"Nobody sees me here…" Sheik reasoned, his small ruby eyes going upwards to meet the stern face of his aunt looking down at him.

"I saw you, did I not?" Impa replied with a small frown. "And that is beside the point. You're far past the age to be playing around. Our duty is to-"

"To serve and protected the royal family." Sheik finished the sentence before his master could, his head downcast and his voice mellow. "And I don't play around. I come here-"

"To train." This time Impa finished her nephew's sentence, giving him a short but friendly smile. "Keep saying that and one day I may believe it."

Hating to be treated like a small child, Sheik folded his arms against his chest, sulking with a fierce frown. Then, before an awkward silence could settle between the two shadow warriors, the rustling of leaves captured the small Sheikah's attention, taking him back to the object of his curiosity.

Turning back to look down at the edge of the waterway, Sheik frowned when he found no one standing there, not even the fat man that was snoring for goddess know how long.

"Where is he?" The question slipped past his lips, making his aunt give him a questioning look. "There was a boy in there. Blond, dressed in green and with a blue ball following him." He pointed down before Impa could ask. "I saw him grunting his way past the gates in the most ridiculous way possible. Should we alert the guards?" He turned to Impa as he asked.

Taking a pensive stance, the silver-haired Sheikah stared down at her pupil, her gaze fixated on him but at the same time as distant as it could be.

"No… we will leave him be." She said slowly and softly, her gaze wandering back to the open courtyard inside the castle's walls. Noting the silent confusion coming from her nephew, Impa turned back to him and smiled. "He is a guest… the princess has been waiting for him."

Sheik tilted his head to the side. Zelda never mentioned a guest to him.

As the thought crossed his mind, the boy quickly shook his head, biting his lower lip slightly. He should not be addressing the princess in such an unceremonious manner. Even though she is his only friend and a very close one at that, she still is the precious charge he is responsible for protecting.

The flash of a Deku nut startled him, in his wandering thoughts he failed to notice his aunt taking the useful seed from her pouch and throwing it down at the jaded roof tile.

Sheik sighed, he never understood why Impa always used a Deku nut to disappear away after their conversation. Surely, she could just walk or jump away as any normal person would do.

'Who I am kidding?' He shook his head slightly, a short smile on his lips. 'We will never be normal.'.

Taking his aunt's flashy departure as permission to continue spying on the curious boy. He took two steps forward, and then the nimble Sheikah leaped to the large tower next to the courtyard, his eyes quickly finding the small form of the strange hat-wearing boy. Wanting to take a closer look at his attempt to sneak past the guards standing watch over this area, Sheik carefully slid down on the wall, landing on a tall column standing in the perfect spot to watch the entire endeavor.

'A Kokiri?' The question floated in Sheik's head after getting a proper look at the blond boy's attire. 'No… he cannot be one.'

He has heard the tales of the Kokiri people, or more correctly, the Kokiri children. The legends say that the Kokiri live forever, never growing up, but they are incapable of leaving their home in the forest or they risk dying before getting anywhere of notice.

Dismissing the distracting thoughts away, Sheik focused his eyes back on the energetic boy. A sneaking smile crept on the corner of his lips, pulling slightly at the silk mask hiding his mouth.

'So clumsy.' He thought to himself. 'But he is so fast too.' His curious red-eyed widened when the boy effortlessly jumped from the ground onto the ledge of the wooden support holding the green wall of leaves standing in the middle of the courtyard

This stranger surely is a sight to behold. Not remotely close to being as flexible and silent as a Sheikah, but what he lacks in those skills, the boy makes plenty with ingenuity and energy. His chubby and small legs propel him forward with way too much momentum than they should, making his ridiculous attempt to sneak past the guards a firm reality.

It is with bated breath, that Sheik watched as the boy reached the last point before his goal. The point with the least cover and places to climb over.

'Two guards on patrol. One always covering the blind spot of the other.' Sheik analyzed the scene with a professional acumen that only one of his kind could. 'How will you do it?' He asked in his thoughts. 'What trick can you pull to surprise me?'

What first started as a disinterested curiosity turned into a heart-pumping adventure. It is puzzling as to why Sheik got so engrossed by this boy and his little adventure, to get this excited about someone else was never an occurrence for the young Sheikah.

'He is going!' Sheik announced with his inner voice, his eyes widening in anticipation as to how this unknown strange boy would get around his predicament.

Then, right before his ruby eyes, the most ridiculous thing yet happened. Taking the steps forth with stride, the green-clad boy just ran his way behind one of the guards and rolled right in between the man's legs, with the grunting and all.

In the most uncharacteristic thing ever do to, Sheik bent forward in a fit of laughter. The corner of his eyes watering as his muffled voice battled with his hand to fly past his lips.

'When cornered… he ran straight forward...' He wiped the tears away from his eyes, his gaze watching the small back of the boy running onto the private garden of her highness. 'So ridiculously lousy and weird. So naive…'

Having nothing else to see in the lush and beautiful royal garden, the golden-haired Sheikah pulled on the rope that he attached at the top of the tower and brought himself up to his playing… training ground up with the clouds.

Still giggling from the absurdity of the scenes that just played in front of him, Sheik turned his red innocent eyes to where the boy ran towards. 'If we meet again, I would like to speak with you.'

Then with one last hopeful glance towards the private garden, Sheik turned towards the other side of the castle and effortlessly jumped out of the roof. He was now more than ready to attend to his various duties for the day.


If anyone had told Link that his life would turn upside down in the span of a few days, he would have laughed at that crazy person's face. Every day the young boy would jump out of his bed, run across the Kokiri woods, and play games with Saria and a few of the friendly spirits of the forest that would come to him.

Having spent most of his life without a fairy unlike the other Kokiri around him, Link scarcely found common ground with the spirited children, some going as far as to bully him away because he was different from them. All his life he wanted nothing more but to have a fairy of his own and to finally be accepted as just another Kokiri playing pranks and music day in and day out.

It never occurred to Link that when his dream of having a fairy finally became true, he would never stand among the other green wearing child, he would never be a normal Kokiri.

Has been weeks since the Great Deku Tree passed away. Most Kokiri children blamed Link for their Sage and Guardian's fate. In small words, he tried to explain to them what happened, how the wicked man from the desert had cursed and killed their beloved tree just to try and get a hold of the Kokiri Emerald.

Yet his words fell flat onto deaf grass, as Mido overwhelmed not only him but everyone else with the wrongful accusations pointed at Link.

Link has his fairy now, Navi. His companion and friend, the one trusted to him by the Great Deku Tree, the only other being aware of the giant journey ahead of him. After so long, he gained his fairy companion, but he will never be one of the Kokiri again.

"Link, Link!" Cried out the shining blue fairy, bouncing around in the air in the way she always does to get his attention.

With a mouthful of dry bread in his mouth, the young blond boy frowned and rolled his eyes. For the little time they have spent together, Link has come to love the little fairy, he truly does. But Navi can be one of the loudest and most annoying things in the world when she wants to be, especially when Link tries to ignore her forceful suggestions.

"Link!" Navi cried out again, this time tackling softly against the boy's forehead, almost making him drop his tasteless bread on the waterfall below him. "This is no time to be lazing around! We have the stones; the princess is waiting for us."

"Shtop it!" He spat back still trying to gulp down the piece of bread. "We ran around the world for two weeks straight, a few hours won't make that much of a difference…" Link said with a pout, his cerulean eyes glancing down to the hard and not very appetizing treat in his hands. He really didn't want to eat this hard bread he got on Kakariko Village, but the grumbling noises coming from his tummy forced him to sink his teeth in and tear another piece to chew for a few minutes

Chewing down the tasteless bakery with a hard expression on his face, Link glanced around the beautiful but very chilly area outside Zora's Domain. Sitting at the very edge of the platform in front of the waterfall, the curious boy dangled his feet in the air, thinking about the crazy and sometimes scary adventures he experienced so far.

First his incursion inside the Great Deku Tree. Not something so different from what he was used to. A little bit too much Skulltulas and Gohma Larvae, but nothing he hadn't dealt with before in his explorations of the woods.

His time with the Gorons and that hot dark lizard lair was very unsettling. Dealing with the Dodongos and Lizalfos was not so hard or spooky. The worst part was the welcome back party waiting for him outside. A horde of the towering Gorons ready to crush his small body with those rock smashing hugs.

A cold shiver ran across Link's back, just imagining what would have happened had he not rolled his way around his newly declared brother and his giant friends.

Then, his mind wandered to the worst of the tree cave divings, spelunking, or whatever people will call what he does. Of all the places this last stone could be hiding, it had to be inside a giant fish/whale thingy called Jabu-Jabu. That place was definitely scary and weird.

Fighting overgrown arachnids and humanoid Lizards was easy enough, but to tackle the living cells and… stuff inside that monstrous fish. His shoulders shuddered at the memory of fighting that weirdo parasitic thing shooting thunderbolts at him.

And just to top it all, he now has a bride to him. Not that he knows what a bride is or does, but he certainly doesn't feel like having one, if his last experience with Princess Ruto was anything to go by. He cannot live his days carrying a girl in his arms everywhere, that would slow him down and everyone would make fun of him.

"Link, Link!" Navi bounced on top of his head again, this time with enough force to topple his green hat onto the wet ground. "Get up already! We have to get back to the princess."

Raising his gaze in an almost stiff look, Link sighed in exasperation. It would be easier for him to get up and move forward than for Navi to sit down and let him enjoy his awful meal. Giving his bread one last look, Link decided to drown the hard thing down onto the river and took his now wet hat from the ground with his other hand.

"Okay Navi, let's go meet with the princess again." Link jumped to his feet, waving his hat in the air to try and get it dry, then putting it right back on his head. 'Maybe the fishes will have better luck chewing on that thing.' Link thought with a playful smile as he jumped from his platform to the other one below.

Realizing that his journey is heading towards its end, gives a weird feeling in the boy's chest. Sure, the places he had to go in his quest for the princess were weird and dangerous, but deep inside he loved the thrill of exploration and the freedom he felt running around Hyrule.

What Link didn't realize in his young and innocent heart, is that his journey was not hearing close to its end, instead, going exactly to where it will truly begin. For Hyrule is not done with him and neither are the forces that threaten to destroy this newfound world he grew to like so much.


Taking a long leap across Zora's river, Link landed on top of the wild grass of Hyrule Field. A small smile of contentment crossing his lips after a well-done jump, as for the last time he tried to do the trick he landed with his bum deep in the cold water.

Dusting the moist dust from his green tunic, the young boy turned his gaze towards the giant city on the horizon.

As normal as the breezy field looked, something felt very amiss. Not only Link noticed this heavy and strange air, Navi too waved around, flapping her small wings in distress.

"There is no one around…" A barely audible whisper escapes Link's lips, his blue eyes darting to the fishing spot at the ledge of the river.

His skin crawled a little. Days before his adventure in the Zora's Domain he passed right by this point, where he, unfortunately, fell in the river. On that occasion, a pair of fishermen had chuckled at him, then waving a friendly hand over at the embarrassed boy.

A worried glance floated on the spot where he remembered the two older men sitting, but now only silence and a strange sense of desolation sits there.

Shaking this heavy dread away from his head, Link pressed forward with a newfound uneasiness, his small legs purposefully trampling over grass and dirt.

"Link!" Navi danced around him, pointing towards the west way past the city. "Look, there is something over that way."

His cerulean eyes shifting onto the foggy spot far behind Lon Lon Ranch, a cloud of dust rising as far as the sky, moving as an impending force coming towards Hyrule.

Link continued moving forward, the phantom pain in his guts forcing the boy into a full sprint, his gaze fixated on the city gates. He ran and ran, gasps of exhaustion flying from his mouth, and the more he went forward more his chest began to ache.

Flashing light scared his eyes upwards to the sky, the darkening clouds trashing and exploding with thunder. Sounds of heavy rain began to follow in Link's steps, making him heavier, making the ground sticker as if the world itself was trying to hold him back from his destiny.

Then, at the foot front of the giant wooden gate, Link saw the heavy chains give in and the towering door slowly sliding down to give passage.

Staring at the sliding gate with heavy panting, the neigh of a spirited horse echoed from within as if almost announcing the full fall of the chains.

Eyes widening in surprise, Link saw the princess of destiny on top of a horse riding in furious gallops with the silver-haired woman at the back. His jaws went rigid, he tried to call out to her, to give the good news that his quest was over and all the stones are with him. He wanted to shout that now they could save everyone just as she wanted to.

But he could only watch as the girl got farther and farther away. Her only action was to look back at him, a look of panic and distress all over her face. And in a desperate act, she threw her family's most prized treasure to the fairy boy, who was so stunned by the events that could only watch as the sparkling objected flew into the water pit next to the gate.

"Watch out!" Navi's frantic cry pulled Link back to reality, to his surroundings, making the boy turn and look at the towering figure standing right behind him.

"Aarhh! I lost her!" A voice of pure malice and contempt breathed in the air.

Link stared in agape at the terrifying figure standing tall on the equally evil-looking horse. He had one chance to look at this person, the man with yellow/green eyes, that bowing in humility to Hyrule King when Link first met the Princess.

But standing a few paces away, right in front of this man, it is completely overwhelming. The wicked man of the desert, there is no other way to describe this man adorned in full black armor.

"You, over there! Little Kid!" Link shuddered as the man's evil gaze fell onto him. "You must have seen the white horse gallop past just now… Which way did it go?!"

Link's lips moved but no word passed them by.

"Answer me!" The man demanded in darkened fury.

A singular thought crossed the boy's mind. 'He… He knows…' Link clenched his teeth, taking a step back.

"So, you think you can protect them from me…" Something looked different in the Gerudo's expression, his lips curled into an amused expression, not really a smile but something to show his entertainment. "You got guts, kid."

Drawing his sword, Link recovered the single step he had taken. "I will stop you." He declared with certainty. "You will not harm the princess!"

Then a sinister smirk crossed the man's lips. "You want a piece of me?!" The Gerudo chuckled. "Very Funny! I like your attitude!"

Brushing his left hand at the handle of the sword sitting at his waist, the man fidgets with his fingers, pulling his arm forward and pointing an open palm towards the defiant boy.

"Pathetic little fool!" Ganondorf called to his power, summoning a bright ball of chaotic energy and then hurling it forward.

Stepping to the side with his right foot, Link pushed his left one onto the ground, gaining enough support to swing his weapon against the incoming projectile. The two connect with a violent force, stopping the ball in its track but only for a moment. Crackling with energy, the ball exploded angrily at the cold sword pushing against it, the bolts of lightning that came from it pushing and carving into the steel, easily destroying most of the blade of the Kokiri Sword.

A cry of pain exploded from Link, the powerful impact taking him by surprise and forcing his arm back in an unnatural way, bending the bones and nerves. Feeling pain like none other before, Link fell to his knees, his left hand grasping at his broken arm.

"Do you realize who you are dealing with?!" A thunderous growl flew from the Gerudo, his evil eyes sneering down at the boy. "I am GANONDORF!" Raising his hand again, the evil warrior unleashed another ball of lighting at his adversary.

Link's eyes widened at the incoming attack, he tried to get up on his feet and slide away. But the pain at his hanging limb flared up like a burning pyre, throwing right back down to the grassy ground. Then, a flash of blue flew right in front of him, getting in the way of that cruel spinning magic and the boy of the prophecy.

"Navi!" Link cried in horror as his little friend exploded with the yellow ball, leaving only a silent cry of pain and a trail of sparkly dust falling into the mud.

Ganondorf saw the trembling on the boy's shoulders, hints of heavy tears coming onto those hateful blue eyes. This gave him no small amount of pleasure but also ending his interest in this pathetic creature in front of him. "And soon, I will rule the world!"

Kicking at the side of his massive horse, Ganondorf stormed forward in a rapid gallop, his eyes settled in the empty horizon to where the princess had escaped.

A muffled sniffle came from the kneeling boy, his eyes now blurred by the tears flowing down. "Navi…" Link crawled forward, his hand working towards the shining dust over the grass, his fingers digging on the dirt. "No… No… You can't leave me."

He curled down against what remained of his companion, his sobs echoing against the sad tune of the falling rain.

"I'm sorry…" Link said in between his sobs. "I-I am sorry I called you annoying that one time. I am sorry I didn't always listen to you… I am sorry, Navi… please don't leave me."

Again, and again, Link pleaded with the shining dust between his fingers, not once receiving a whisper of a reply back. As the pain in his chest began to grow stronger than the one in his arm, he latched on the words of the Great Deku Tree, the words of Princess Zelda… the words that Navi gave him.

'You need to save Hyrule.' They all said at the same time, their voices singing in the same tune, carrying the same hope. Hope that filled him with enough energy to get back on his feet and walk over to the ledge at the open gates.

Still sniffling in sadness, Link glanced down at the object lying at the bottom of the waterway, a shining and ominous Ocarina. Holding tight to his right arm, he jumped down at the cold water and reached towards the gift Zelda left him.

And as soon as the ocarina rested in his hand, a flash of light engulfed his world, taking him somewhere deep inside his own mind.

"Link…" The soft voice of the princess played to him as a memory recorded. "I leave you the key to the Temple of Time. You have to open the Door of Time. You have to claim the Master Sword. Only then you will be able to stop the dark clouds over Hyrule and save the entire world."

In a state of daze, Link tried to open his mouth, to speak back, but nothing came from him as the Princess began speaking again.

"I will teach you the Song of Time. Place the Spiritual Stones you have collected on the altar and play this song with the Ocarina to open the path to your fate." Another flash of light came from the sky, this time taking the image of the princess away, and in its lingering sensation, the tune of a song began playing to Link's ears.

Opening his eyes back to reality, Link noticed that he is standing in front of the gates. He has no clue how he climbed out of the waterway with his broken arm, but his gaze rested single-minded onto the giant cathedral at the back of the market center.

Carrying the precious Ocarina in his hand, and a heavy burden in his heart, Link stepped forward into the city. His head held low, he ignored the buzzing sound of people speaking and gossiping around him.

Hurting too much from the loss of his friend, scared and scarred from the events that just unfolded, Link marched onto the Temple of Time.

"I will stop him…" Link said in a hushed whisper to himself. "Navi… he will pay for what he did to you… I swear."

Once more the clouds hovering over the town cried with heavy thunders. This time not only from the darkness that was brought here by the evil Gerudo King but also by the glint of the dulled pain in the young hero's eyes.

A sparkle that should not be there. One emotion that, the innocent and pure-hearted, chosen of the goddesses should have never made to bear…

Hatred.


If you have any criticism or just want to leave a note on how you feel about this chapter, feel free to do so and I will reply in this end note at the next chapter.

For now, Thank you for reading.