Okay, this is all I have written at the moment, so please be patient and stick with me. This story is probably going to be quite long, and it will take me a while to finish it. I hope you all enjoy this chapter! I really liked writing the small section about Epona. I love horses, and I had a strange connection with my own before he was sold. _

Disclaimer: All characters from Zelda belong to Nintendo. Vollys belongs to Gail Carson Levine, one of my favorite authors.

The two had returned to the castle just as the rain began to fall. It was a cold, dark rain, and Link shivered as he untacked Epona in the stables. Zelda had already retreated to her quarters. She had said that she had something to do, and Link knew she would be pouring over notes and books.

"She seems very distracted," he said to Epona, "I hope nothing is wrong."

Epona, sensing her master's worry, whinnied and nudged him gently with her nose. Link reached up and patted her neck. He loved this horse. They had been through a lot together, and other than Zelda, she was his only friend.

Epona whinnied again and nipped at Link's pocked, smelling food. Smiling, Link brought out the apple he had gotten from the feed room. As he watched Epona eat the apple, all his worries of Zelda left his mind.

Meanwhile, Zelda was worried. She had rummaged through her private library looking for a specific book that she seemed to have misplaced. Finally she found her prize. The book of her choice was very tattered, despite its somewhat young age. The red cover was worn, and the spine was ripped. It even looked as though someone had dropped it into a fire; some of the pages were burned. Carefully, Zelda brought the book over to a table and pulled over a chair to sit on. Then she opened the book, searching for the information she wanted. She found it shortly after. She read the passage with disbelieving eyes.

"Less than one hundred years ago, a deadly dragon plagued the land of Hyrule. She was a fire demon, born in the pit of Death Mountain. The villagers called her "Vollys", or fire dragon. Vollys destroyed many towns, some of which were never rebuilt. It seemed as if no army could stop her.

"But there was one man, whose name is unknown at this time, who was favored by the Goddesses. They granted him with a gift, the most powerful sword known to Hyrule. The Master Sword. Only a real hero can wield it. Along with this, the Goddesses each blessed the man. Nayru gave him her protection; Farore gave him courage to face great evil; Din gave him the power and strength to win any battle. With their gifts, the Goddesses sent this one man alone to fight the Great Dragon.

"After many days of battle, Vollys was defeated and sent to the Underworld until her time comes again. Not until after a greater evil has been beaten, and the sacred Triforce found, will Vollys rise again."

Zelda read the passage once more before standing and walking to a large bookshelf. She ran her finger past title after title until she found what she was looking for. Going back to the table, she opened the book. It told more of the defeater of Vollys. Zelda didn't know why she was reading this, for she didn't think it would be much help. Then she found this.

"Later it was found that the warrior, whose name was William, was married to a noble woman of another land, Amelia. They had one child, a son named Zachary. Zachary was married to a village woman, ignoring his noble title and came to live in Hyrule. He and his wife, Aurora, also had a son, whose name was never known. Later, Zachary fought and died in Hyrule's civil war. His wife fled to the forbidden Lost Woods with her son. Aurora was later found, lifeless, just inside the Woods. She had been attacked. The child was never found, although it is rumor that he grew up in the forest, under the protection of the Deku Tree. The villagers even say that he is the legendary Hero of Time, although no one knows for certain."

Zelda stared blankly at the passage. Words kept returning to her mind. "Never found", "Lost Woods", "Hero of Time". Something inside her knew that she had just found Link's past. All thought of Vollys left her mind as she wondered what to do. Even though Link would want to know what she found, Zelda thought it best to wait to show him. She didn't want to cause him any pain, and knew that this was the one thing that would strike Link's heart.