Author Notes:
Story: Legend of Zelda: The Fading Triforce
Chapter: His Friend
Rating: PG
Genre: Action, Drama, Romance
Summary: Link had to leave Zelda after he defeated Ganondorf, but not to go to the past, but to go save a distant land from perishing. Zelda then must fight along side of him once again as the power of the sages must be called on once more. But, will it be enough? When they find out that the triforce's powers are slowly disappearing and slipping away from them, will their power be enough?
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"Saria! Where are you?" I call her name again as I wander through the Lost Woods. I can scarcely see the separate tunnels through the thick brush. The thick trees let little sunlight filter through; leaving me to a guessing game.
Which tunnel am I supposed to take? Some tunnels have an odd light coming from them while the others seem to have only blackness. Oh, how quickly I learnt that the black tunnels were good and those with light carried me back to the entrance of the Lost Woods. But after many attempts, I somehow manage to find someone else in the Lost Woods. A child stands in front of a tunnel about a dozen or so feet from a small, underground pillar of water. The pillar must be the entrance to the Zora's Domain. Link told there was something like that in the Lost Woods.
There is something different about this place. .it is well lit. Even with the dark alcove of trees blocking so much of the sunlight, there is still plenty of light to see. I look back at the boy, he glares stubbornly at me.
"You lookin' for Saria?" The small boy who looks about eleven, continues to glare at me. I wonder. . .Impa told me stories about the Kokiri children. She said that they were children who lived deep within a forest that was guarded by the Great Deku Tree. She said that all the children looked young, but they were all much older then they appeared. However, no matter how old they grew they could never leave the forest otherwise they would die. That always struck me as odd, why would the Kokiri children die outside of the forest?
This place is where Link grew up. At least until he was eleven and sent on his journey to save Hyrule. I wonder what it was like for him to live here. . .
I look at the boy in front of me. I tower over him yet he glares at me with all the arrogant confidence in the world.
"Yes, I am looking for Saria. Do you know where she might be?"
"Yes." He answers flatly.
"Where is that?"
"None of yer business! You are no friend of Saria's if you don't know where she is!" He yells at me.
I look at him stone faced. "This is my first visit to the forest so I do not know where the Forest Temple is located."
He takes a step back. "How do you know about the Forest Temple?"
"Do you know who I am?" He shakes his head. I smile, this is going to be quite a surprise for him.
"I am Princess Zelda of Hyrule."
He looks at me flushed. "Princess! I-I'm so sorry! But. .I still cannot allow you to go to the Forest Temple. It is forbidden to all except-"
"The Hero of Time, the Princess of Destiny, and the Sages." I cut in.
He pales. "H-How do you know. . ." Well, I seem to be doing quite a good job of getting to him.
"Because I am also the Princess of Destiny."
He lowers his eyes. "That's right. . .I remember Link telling me about the Princess of Destiny also being a princess of another sort. . .one of a great land. . ." His voice trails and he keeps his gaze on the ground.
Aww, the poor guy, here I am, some intruder, coming into his forest and demanding to see the Sage of the Forest. I almost feel bad for him. . .but wait. .I wonder what his name is. . .Link told of some kid always guarding the entrance to the Sacred Forest Meadow which led to the Forest Temple.
"What is your name?" I ask him.
"Mido."
"Ah," That was the name Link told me. "By any chance, Mido, are you guarding the entrance to the Sacred Forest Meadow?"
He looks at me with surprise etched on his features. "H-How did you know?"
I wink. "Link told me."
"Link!?" He gasps. "When was the last time you saw him? How is he? Is he all right? Did he save Hyrule?" He rushes to within barely a foot of me and sends a barrage of questions at me.
I take a deep breath before kneeling before him and placing my hands on his shoulders.
"Mido," I say slowly, "I haven't seen Link in two years. I'm sorry, but I don't have very recent information about him. The last thing he did before he left," I smile at him, "Was save all of Hyrule."
Mido lets out a deep sigh of relief. "Good. I knew he could."
I look at the boy for a moment before standing up again. "May I see Saria now?"
He narrows his eyes at me. "I need proof. Prove to me that you know Link and Saria."
I chuckle. A brazen little guy. But I don't have my ocarina with me, I let Link have it when he left for his mission.
I watch him walking away. So what if there are other people to save! So what if a distant land needs help! So what! It isn't fair! I need him! Link. . .please stay with me. . .I need you.
I shake my head to get the tormenting thoughts out.
"Link!" I yell at him. He stops but does not turn around. "Link. . ." I say his name weakly.
Slowly, he turns around. His eyes stare into me. "What is it, Zelda?"
I walk up to him, my steps unsure. "Link. . ." I say his name once again. He continues looking at me, his gaze slowly hardening.
"I. .I want you to be safe." I whisper.
"Zelda, of course I will be safe. You know that," He says quietly.
"But. .but I want to be sure!" I dig into the pocket in my dress and pull out the Ocarina of Time. "Take this," I push it into his hands. "Use it to warp yourself from danger or just. .to talk. .to me. . ."
"Zelda. . ." He slips the ocarina into his own pocket before holding me once more.
"Link. . ." I whisper his name as he begins to walk away again.
"Mido, I can't really prove that I know Link and Saria because I gave Link my ocarina." I say quietly.
"But he already had an ocarina. The Fairy Ocarina that Saria gave him."
I shake my head. "But a Fairy Ocarina and the Ocarina of Time are different. True, they both have magical properties but the Ocarina of Time can. ." I pause for a moment before finishing. "Warp you from one place to another."
He narrows his eyes at me skeptically. "I don't care how you do it, but prove to me that you know Saria and Link."
I sigh. "Fine." I make my harp appear in my hands before gently running hands along its delicate strings. Letting the notes of music come from it in a sweet solace. Silence befalls Mido as he becomes entranced by the music. I close my eyes as the serenity comes over me. The music flows through the forest allowing for all to hear it. As I play, the birds stop chirping as small squirrels and other creatures come to me, standing a few feet way.
Slowly, I allow the music notes to fade as I open my eyes and gaze at Mido.
"Mido, that was the Minuet of Forest. Do you know that song?"
"Y-Yes. .I heard it once. ." He says nervously. "I. .I went to the. . .Forest Temple once. .and. .I. .saw. . .a man there. . .he stood on the concrete with the symbol on it while he played a song on his ocarina." He touches his chin thoughtfully, "But the ocarina wasn't a Fairy Ocarina, it. . .was different."
I smile, "Did the man you see look kind of like Link?"
Mido's brow furrows in concentration. "Yes! He was just taller and looked a little different but he did look like Link! Was he. . ."
I nod. "The man you saw was Link. And the song you heard then was also the song I just played."
"Link! I can't believe it! So he really could warp to places! Otherwise I would of known if he was there."
"Yes, so may I now see Saria?"
He hesitates looking around the audience I had gathered. They seemed to be urging him to allow me through but he was still hesitating. To let an unknown person into the Sacred Forest Meadow could mean that it could be captured by another like Ganondorf.
"Mido," I kneel before him, allowing him to peer into my eyes. "Look into my eyes and tell me what you see."
He looks into my eyes. Slowly probing the shadows and the light within them. He stares into me silently. Then he moves several feet to his left.
"You may pass, Princess," He says quietly.
I nod gratefully before moving forward. But I stop. There is something wrong here. . .
"Mido, how did you know that the Princess of Destiny was also the princess of another kind?"
"Link told me," He smiles.
When could have Link told him? Mido didn't recognize Link as an adult but I remember Link saying that he had never befriended Mido. In fact, Saria was his only friend - apart from the Great Deku Tree - and there was one child especially that bullied him. Link said his name was Mido. . .
"But when did Link tell you?" I persist. Something isn't adding up.
"He told me. I saw him. He told me that he would be there soon to protect Saria and all the others here."
"But when did he tell you?" How could Link have told him? When could Link have told him? He was either saving Hyrule or in the seven year sleep. . .
"There was one other time that I went through the Sacred Forest Meadow and to the Forest Temple. I went there because I had a bad feeling that something was going to happen to Saria. I stepped onto the steps that led to the small meadow right before the Forest Tempe and Link appeared in front of me. He told me that something was happening. To Saria." He looks down with guilt on his face.
"He told me that Saria would be fine. But. . .I didn't listen to him. I should have. He would have never hurt her. That much I knew, even then. She was his only friend. . .But I still went to the Forest Temple. And in the small meadow before it, I saw a dark aura surrounding the temple. I began to feel an evil presence there and knew that it was from an evil man by the name of Ganondorf. But the weird thing was, was that I had never heard of or seen Ganondorf. But at the moment I stepped onto that small meadow, I knew who he is and who he was after.
"I still remember the feeling of dread that I felt as I struggled up that tree right be the stairs. I remember finally getting to the top of the stairs and then getting blown off by this negative energy. I remember thinking that I wasn't going to be able to save Saria. That I was going to die. I was going to die from a silly fall and Saria would be harmed. But the most important thing to me was that Saria would be hurt." He sniffles slightly recalling the memory.
"And then I felt some strange feeling of reassurance. A feeling that allowed me to drift to the ground slowly. Then I stood up, and saw him. I saw a translucent form of Link. And then I knew, I may not have been able to save Saria, but I knew who could. The one person I despised the most, the one that bred my contempt. And you know what? He was also the person I admired the most not only for his fighting skills but for being able to win Saria's affections. The same reason why I couldn't befriend him. Link. He had the girl, the skills, even got a faerie, and he even had the Great Deku Tree's blessings! Link. What a character!" He gives a harsh laugh. "Link was the only person who could win Saria's affections! And he wasn't even a Kokiri!"
I listen silently. Poor Mido, he has so much frustration that he has kept to himself for so long. Years worth of pent-up anger, admiration, and confusion. I know how that feels. . .
"Anyway, when I saw Link, he told me the truth. He told me everything, including something about a 'long sleep'." I narrow my eyes slightly. There is no way Link could have known about that. Not even I knew about it until after he had begun it.
"But I'm not sure what he meant by a 'long sleep'. All I know is that I didn't see him for another seven years. And I didn't even recognize him. . ." His tone sounds mournful but he continues his story. "In everything he told me, he included that there were six legendary sages, he was the Hero of Time, and that there was a special princess. He said that she ruled the land outside of this forest and that it was vast and prosperous. He said it was because of her love for her people. He said that she was a very special princess. . ." I color slightly as I catch what he means.
"Yes, he said she was the princess of a place called Hyrule. But he also said that she was the Princess of Destiny. But in all the legends I have heard, the princess is only supposed to have one role besides bearer of a piece of the triforce." I look at him perplexed. One role? I'm the Princess of Destiny, am I supposed to do something else? Ganondorf has already been sealed. Hyrule is safe.
The distant land!
Where Link is!
Is it that I am supposed to fulfill another legend? Perhaps become the bearer of prophecies once more?
Or. . .is there something else? Something not even told of in the prophecies or legends?
Was I meant for more?
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Author's Notes:
Well, as usual the author wants to know what you think, so to spare my sanity, please review. It is very much appreciated :D As all other authors will agree with me on ^_~
I know I said this last time but it didn't er..*quite* work out that way, but I will have the next chapter up by this Sunday. I already have most of it written. The next chapter is about Zelda meeting up with Saria. But things are not quite what they seem and Saria seems to be hiding something. . .