A/N: Ok. First and foremost, the disclaimer that I do NOT own Zelda. That disclaimer applies to this chapter and all those following, mostly 'cause I don't wanna type it again and again and again….. Ok, now that that's out of the way, allow me to explain this here story. This is a novelisation of OoT, kinda experimental in nature, but my friend liked it so I now offer it for your critique. ^_^ However, it is not does not stick to the game's plotline very often. This novelisation is based on 1) the game, 2) the manga (yes there is a Zelda manga and it's quite good, only you have to read it from right to left :S), and 3) whatever my own mind thinks ought to be in the game or manga that isn't. So, be patient with me. lol. I think you'll enjoy this! Just read it. And then review. I'll shut up now. :D
"A long time ago, before spirits and life existed," began the Great Deku Tree. All around the Kokiri children sat sprawled on the grass, listening to the story with rapt attention.
"Three golden goddesses descended upon a distant nebula, the chaos that was to become Hyrule."
In the nearby village, a young Kokiri boy beat footsteps into the dusty dirt road, sprinting towards the Great Deku Tree's meadow with a look of urgency. He was late! Mean old Mido had tricked him, and now he had missed the beginning of the Great Deku Tree's story! The Tree was like a father to all of the Kokiri, and the boy wouldn't want to upset him. He raced to the gap in the forest that lead to the Tree's clearing, and was promptly stopped short by the same Mido.
"What are you doing here, Link?" The boy spat.
"Move, Mido," the one called Link said breathlessly.
"And why should I do that?" Mido asked without moving an inch. "You can't hear Father's story. You're not even a real Kokiri!"
"Yes, I am!" Link said through gritted teeth.
"You don't have a fairy!"
Okay, so that was true. Link didn't have a fairy, and the rest of the Kokiri did. "Please, Mido!" Link was close to begging by now.
"Let me think. . . ." Mido paused for a moment. "Nope," he said, and gave Link a shove, which sent the tired boy falling backwards into the spring with a splash.
"Heh," Mido chuckled to himself, then turned and walked into the path towards the Great Deku Tree's meadow, leaving Link wallowing in the water.
"Link!"
The boy turned to the source of the voice. It was Saria! Saria, his best friend!
"What happened to you?" She asked. Saria was a kind girl with big green eyes and a head of green hair that somehow fit in the forest. She was not only Link's best friend, she was often his only friend. Mido, after all, was the leader of the Kokiri, and if he didn't like Link, the rest of the tribe would usually follow suit.
". . . I fell," Link said, picking himself up.
"After Mido pushed you?" Saria said. Link looked up from wringing out his hat to meet her eyes. She always did know exactly what he was thinking.
"Well, who died and made him boss anyway," Link grumbled.
His friend laughed. "Are you all right?" She asked. Link nodded. "Then come on, let's go," she said. They went through the path Mido had disappeared down.
"Why weren't you there listening to the story already?" Link asked as they walked.
"I was looking for you," she said. "Where were you?"
"Mido had told me the story wouldn't start until later," Link muttered. "I was out practicing."
"Practicing what?"
"Oh, didn't I show you yet?" Link's expression turned to excitement. "Look at this!"
From the back of his belt, Link pulled out. . .something. . . . "What is it?" Saria asked.
"It's a slingshot!" Link beamed. In his hand was a forked twig with a string pulled across in the formation of a slingshot. Making sure Saria was watching, Link set a seed on the string, pulled back, and fired the seed off into the trees.
"Cool," Saria said. ". . .what are you gonna use it for?"
"Well, I don't know," Link admitted. "But it sure is fun!"
Saria laughed. "Come on, we're already late," she said, and ran off down the trail towards the meadow.
"Hey, wait up!" Link called, putting his slingshot away and running after her.
"Now that their tasks were finished, the three golden goddesses departed from their new land of Hyrule," the Great Deku Tree was saying as Link and Saria entered the clearing. "And at the point where they left the world, the Triforce remained as a symbol of the goddesses' power. One triangle for Power, one for Wisdom, and one for Courage."
"What happened next?" One of the Kokiri asked with enthusiasm.
"Well, then Hyrule began, and the Triforce was locked away in the Sacred Realm," the Deku Tree replied.
"Tell us about the Sacred Realm!"
"No, that's another story, for another day," the Tree said. The Kokiri groaned in disappointment. The Tree chuckled. "Come now, if you are all very good, maybe I'll tell you tomorrow."
The Kokiri brightened again. "Run along, there's much to be done in the village, I'm sure," the Great Deku Tree said. The children hurried off to their city, buzzing about the story they'd just heard. Mido smirked at the still-damp Link on his way out. "Oh, and Mido?" The Deku Tree said. Mido stopped short and turned around. "Yes?"
"Make sure that the back of the shop's arranged. If it's not, would you be so kind as to correct it?"
"No problem," Mido said, suddenly downtrodden. The back of the shop, cluttered and crowded with many items, was never arranged.
"Thanks," the Tree said. Mido turned and ran towards the village.
"If it isn't Link and Saria," the Great Deku Tree, turning his attention to the two Kokiri who had just entered the clearing. "How are you two doing?"
"Sorry we weren't here for the story today," Link said apologetically.
"That's quite all right," the Tree assured him. "You musn't let Mido get to you."
"I know. . . ." Link said. He looked up. "Wait. How did you know that Mido tricked me?"
The Deku Tree chuckled. "I know of everything that goes on in the forest."
"Oh."
"And I know of your practice with the slingshot. How has it been going for you?"
"Pretty well," Link said brightly. "I hit some seeds off a tree today!"
"That's wonderful," the Tree said. "You keep practicing until you become an expert."
"Will do," Link said with a mock salute.
"And Saria, dear girl, what's new with you today?"
"Father, if you know everything that goes on in the forest, could you explain why Mido is always so mean to everyone?" Saria asked.
"He's not really bad inside," the Great Deku Tree said. "He's just unsure. There are some things he doesn't know how to say, if you understand."
"I'm not sure I do, but thanks just the same," Saria said.
"I'll tell you both the story you missed another time," the Great Deku Tree promised. "If you can remind me, then I'll tell it to you whenever you wish."
"Thank you," Saria said.
"Now, run along, surely there's work for you in the village," the Tree said. Link and Saria nodded and hurried off back towards the town.
The people of Kokiri Village were always taught by the Great Deku Tree, their guardian, to coexist peacefully with the forest in which they lived as well as with each other. They were but elf-children, never growing to a physical maturity past about nine, but they shared the work, and under the guidance of the Great Deku Tree, Kokiri Village prospered.
The village itself was hidden away far within the Lost Woods. The Kokiri lived isolated from Hyrule's society, not knowing anything about the outside world save for what the Deku Tree told them in his stories. The Great Deku tree was an ancient being, and Link supposed he was far more old and wise than any of the Kokiri ever thought to consider.
That night, Link lay awake in his bed. He had been dreaming again. The dreams he had were never quite complete, though they always seemed to revolve around the same instance. Tonight he had seen a white horse with two riders he didn't recognize fleeing far off into the distance. It seemed to go with the dreams he'd had from nights before, equally fragmented, but he didn't bother to try to put the pieces together. He simply sat under his window, gazing at the stars.
The thoughts in Link's mind chased each other around, never stopping for a moment to rest on any particular subject, but they always seemed to come back to one idea: the matter of the fairy. All the Kokiri children were given fairy companions from birth, a little friend to watch over and help them. But Link didn't have one. And he could find no good reason as to why not.
The boy tried to get back to sleep, but now that the thought had settled, it simply refused to get up and leave. Why didn't he have a fairy? Link tossed and turned for a little while before, completely restless, he decided to go and ask the Great Deku Tree about it.
The boy pulled on his boots and left his house, striding quietly through the sleeping town. He crossed the spring he had fallen into earlier, and made for the parting in the trees that led to the meadow where the Great Deku Tree's roots grew deep.
The Tree appeared to be sleeping. "Father. . .?" Link said, walking closer.
The great wooden eyes opened. "Link?" The Tree asked, his gaze settling on the boy. "What are you doing up?"
"I couldn't sleep," Link said.
"Something troubling you?"
"I. . ." Link hesitated. "It's just. . .well, why don't I have a fairy?"
"Is that what was keeping you up?" The Tree said. "There is a good reason, my boy, and one day I will tell it to you, a day that grows sooner by the minute. But not today."
Link knew that was all he would get out of his guardian. "All right."
The Great Deku Tree felt sorry for him. "Don't look so sad. Here, I'll tell you the story from today."
"Okay!" Link grinned.
The Deku Tree smiled as well. "Here, sit down. Now, once upon a time, many, many years ago, three golden goddesses, all sisters, descended upon a distant nebula. Their names were Din, Nayru, and Farore, and they were, respectively, the goddesses of Power, Wisdom, and Courage.
"The three sisters had a plan. They decided they were going to create a land, called Hyrule, that would be full of beauty and light, a paradise for all things good, and dedicated to equality, freedom, and justice. The goddess Din came down first, and with her strong flaming arms, she created the red earth. She made it rich in minerals so that fine plants could grow, and spent quite a long time pulling up mountains and pushing in lakes, forming the world specifically to her liking. In the east she made Death Mountain, her crowning jewel, a fearsome volcano. One her labors were complete, Din left the land and went back up to join her sisters.
"Next came Nayru. Nayru's gift to the land of Hyrule was the spirit of law—she gave the world color and light, filling up lakes and leaving dry deserts. She designed it so that some things would be beautiful to anyone, and some things would only be beautiful to the people who stopped to really see them. For her own mark on Hyrule, she created Lake Hylia, a shimmering lake full of clear water in the southwest. Once she was satisfied with her work, Nayru returned to her sisters, who were now waiting in the newly-established sky.
"The final goddess, Farore, created all the living beings that would uphold the law. She poured all her energies into making each one unique and beautiful, from the ancient dragons on Death Mountain down to the very grass that you are now sitting on. Farore did not have any one gift like Death Mountain or Lake Hylia, but instead selected six species to be called sentient, or able to think for themselves, and these species were the Hylians, the Gorons, the Sheikah, the Zoras, the Gerudo, and we Kokiri. She blessed them all with knowledge, and designated for them lines of kings and queens who were particularly wise. And for the Kokiri, she made myself to watch over you.
"Now that their labors were completed, the three golden goddesses departed for the heavens, and at the point where they left the world, the Triforce remained. The Triforce was the goddesses' relic, a triangle composed of three smaller triangles representing Power, Wisdom, and Courage. Since then, the Triforce has become the basis of our world's providence."
Link got to his feet. "Is that story true?" He asked curiously.
"Of course!" The Great Deku Tree smiled. "There's more to it than that, but it may take hours to explain, so I'll save it for another day. For right now, Link, there's something I want to show you. Climb up into my branches, up to the very top."
Link was a bit confused, but all the same he slowly scaled the Deku Tree until he reached the branches. Up there were glowing fairies—maybe hundreds—all resting peacefully. Link had the sudden desire to reach out and grab one, but he ignored it and kept climbing. At the Deku Tree's very top, his head broke through the leaves.
"Whoa," was all the boy could say.
"What do you see?" The Great Deku Tree asked.
"Everything!" Link exclaimed. "I can see beyond the edges of the forest! There's a great field to the north, and at the far end is a big wall, and waaay on the very edge of my vision is a huge white building with lots of towers! In the east I can see—is that Death Mountain? And"—he turned southwest—"Look, there's Lake Hylia!"
The Deku Tree chuckled. "You have excellent night vision, my boy. It's beautiful, isn't it? This is Hyrule. A land we must all work together to protect and continue."
"I don't get it, Father," Link said. "If we're here in the forest, how are we doing anything to help Hyrule?"
"Everyone must do their part with what they are given. We were all placed here in the forest. We must do the best we can here in the forest."
"I think I understand," Link said. He looked up. "Wow, look at the stars. . . ."
"They are remarkable," the Great Deku Tree said. "It's late, Link, perhaps you ought to be getting to bed."
"I guess so," Link said, and slowly began to descend from the canopy. When he reached the ground at last, he turned to the Deku Tree one last time. "But what am I doing to help Hyrule?"
"This really means a lot to you, doesn't it?" The Tree smiled. "I am sure that the nation will appreciate any efforts you may one day make, Link. Don't worry about it now. All things will set themselves right with time. For tonight, just try to get some sleep, all right?"
"Good night, Father," Link said, and headed back towards the village.
"Good night," the Deku Tree said before returning to sleep himself.
