Disclaimer: I still don't own any of the Zelda characters, they are all property of Nintendo.
A/N: Before I'll start writing on chapter 2, I just want to thank you, reviewers! Thanks, I didn't think that this story was that good, but as long as I get reviews, I'll keep writing on this story!
Fierce Diety Zelda: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it!
JobuRule: Thank you! And here's the next chapter, so please read and tell me what you think! ^_^
Hokaru: Yeah, and I promise I will, as long as I get reviews! Thanks!
foofbunny: Thanks very much! And I don't know if the "mighty" Ganondorf is going to be in the story yet, honestly I barely know how to continue this story... I've started to write on this story but I've got a few other stories to write as well, but I'll find out later...
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Chapter two: Make new friends
Zelda was soaked, weary and dirty as she approached the glittering lights coming from the village. Eventually she was standing by the edge of the forest, the village right in front of her. It seemed to consist of small wooden houses, but no one of them was similar, they all looked different. A few of them had two storeys, and some of the houses had paintings on the walls. The village consisted of maybe ten houses, so it did not seem like a lot of people lived there.
Zelda walked along a path through the cosy village, and it was pretty dark around her, yet the people in the village seemed to be awake. She passed by a house that seemed to be some kind of store, and she could hear laughter and loud, shrill voices. She wanted to approach the house to see who the people living in this village were and what they looked like. But yet she was scared of what they would say if they saw her.
"Excuse me, miss-" Zelda yelped as she heard a gentle voice and quickly turned around. In front of her stood a girl about her age, with blue, beaming eyes and – to Zelda's surprise – green hair. It was short and the girl had a dark green headband in her hair. Her clothes were also green, with some kind of short tunic and a pair of green boots. The girl laughed at Zelda's surprised look.
"What's so funny?" Zelda exclaimed harshly.
"I'm sorry", the girl said and smiled at her. "I haven't seen you around before... who are you? I can tell you're not from the woods, you wouldn't have been wearing that kind of clothes if you were from here, would you? That dress looks pretty uncomfortable."
"Yes-"
"You'll need some new clothes, and a bath", the girl stated, "and you look pretty tired too. You know, you could sleep at my place tonight."
"Thank you", Zelda said as they started walking. "What's your name?"
"I'm Saria", the girl responded, "and who are you? Wait, let me guess – you're from Hyrule Castle Town, are you not?"
"Yes, how could you -"
"It's not difficult", Saria laughed. "Just look at the way you're dressed! Oh gosh, I've never understood why people would like to dress that way! I mean, just look at that skirt, it must be very uncomfortable when you're climbing in trees, for instance."
"Yes, but I'm not actually climbing in trees", Zelda said, a little annoyed. "I'm a Princess, I'm not allowed to -"
"Oh! You're Zelda! The young Princess!" Saria looked at her, beaming. "I know it was something certain about you... oh, wait, this is my house. Welcome, I suppose."
Saria stopped in front of a cosy little house, with just one floor, and unlocked the wooden door. Inside it was nice and warm, and Zelda noticed a crackling log fire, a low wooden table with a few chairs and a soft carpet covering the floor.
"Er, it's very nice, Saria", Zelda said, "but I'm not sure I would be allowed to stay here with you... my father surely is very worried about me, and-"
"Don't worry, dear", Saria said and giggled. "I'm certain he wouldn't be less worried if you went home right now. There are a lot of dangerous things like Stalchildren out there on Hyrule Field, I've heard. So you better stay here tonight and go back to the Castle tomorrow."
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The next morning Zelda woke up when the light from the sun hit her face. She yawned and gazed out through the window. At first she expected to see the sunlit courtyard in the Castle, the flower beds and the high marble walls, but instead she saw the peaceful village and recollected where she was. She saw some clothes on the bed and realized that Saria had given her those clothes. It was a green, short dress, a pair of green boots, similar to Saria's, and a hairband too. Zelda put on the clothes, but as she couldn't find anything to comb her hair with, she went out to the kitchen.
Saria sat by the wooden table with someone else, a boy that looked to be about Zelda's age, maybe a year older. Zelda was surprised to see that he had blond hair too, and beaming blue eyes, just like her. He wore a short green tunic, a green, funny hat and a pair of boots, despite those weren't green, they were brown. He smiled slightly at her as she approached, and she smiled back.
"Good morning, Zelda", Saria said and winked. "I did not expect you to be awake already. Oh, and this is my best friend, Link. Link, this is Princess Zelda."
The young boy got to his feet, somewhat clumsy, bowed slightly and held out his right hand. Zelda took it and they exchanged a firm handshake.
"Nice to meet you, I suppose", said Zelda shyly.
"It's nice to meet you too, Princess", Link said.
"Please call me Zelda", she immediately said. "We're not in the Castle right now, so it wouldn't do any harm."
"All right... Zelda." Link gave her a warm smile. Zelda decided that she liked him and Saria too. Saria seemed gleeful and always happy. She couldn't take anything seriously. Despite that, Zelda really liked her. She was so different from the servants and the other people in her home. They neither laughed nor joked and there weren't any children for the young Princess to play with. Link, on the other hand, seemed a little shy and more reserved than Saria, but Zelda thought that if he had been like Saria, it would've been way too much.
"So, Zelda... would you like to explain how you got here?" Link asked anxiously. They sat behind Saria's house, on an old tree trunk. It was early in the morning, and the sun slowly rose over the crones of the trees. The people in the village were awake already. Zelda watched a ladybird climbing up a blade of grass and sighed sadly. She explained everything to Link, how she got lost in the forest, how the Skullkid helped her and how she came to the village. Link just listened without interrupting her, and he nodded slightly in agreement or shook his head as she told him everything.
"My father surely is very worried about me right now", Zelda mused. "I think I should go back..."
"Yes, but how?" Link asked her, and she suddenly realized that she had not thought about that part. But yet she was unsure of what to do. A part of her wanted to be back in the Castle, and the other part of her urged her to stay in the forest. She really liked the forest and the village, and she wanted to stay. Yes, that was what she wanted. To stay with "the small people"...
"You're right, Link", Zelda stated and sighed deeply. "I don't know how to find my way out of the forest."
"I could lead the way. I mean, if you want to go back... but I don't think it's a good idea."
"Why not?"
"The entrance to the forest is sealed by a very strong magic spell", he declared. "The Kokiri people can't walk through the entrance, they'll die if they walk further than the edge of the woods."
"Are you sure?"
"Certainly. I don't know why, though. But I don't think it's a good idea to take that way. I have never been outside the forest, but Saria told me I would die, like all of the Kokiri, if I walked to far from the village. She told me that the Great Deku Tree put the spell on the entrance long ago, during the war, so that no people could enter the forest... I don't know if it's true, but I always believe what Saria says. She's like a mother to me, you know."
"But you two seems to be the same age!" Zelda exclaimed.
"Yes, I know. But she's older than me. I don't know exactly how old she is, though. But the Kokiri never grow up..."
"I see. That's why you're called "the small people", isn't it?" Zelda asked.
Link nodded. "They might have the bodies of a child, but still they've got brains of an adult."
"Sounds cool", Zelda said. "Hey, Link, would you mind showing me the village? I want to see everything."
"Sure."
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"Are you sure?" King Harkinian looked worried and anxious. He sat down in his throne in the Castle, impatiently tapping his fingers against the armrest. He looked at the middle aged woman that stood in front of him. She was apparently a Sheikah, with a pattern of a scarlet eye on her left sleeve. She was dressed in black, dark blue and grey and her short hair had once been brown, but now it was almost grey, with spots of brown left here and there. Her icy, blue eyes gazed gravely at the King, and she held a dagger in her right hand. She stroked the blade with her fingers as she responded.
"Yes, I am, Your Highness. Your daughter is still missing."
"Impa, send one of the knights to the Lost Woods to search for my daughter!" the King commanded. "And tell him that he won't give up until he finds Zelda, unless he dies in the process!"
Impa nodded. It was the day after Zelda had gone astray in the Lost Woods. Her nursemaid had been looking for the young girl for hours, but she was nowhere to be found. Impa had found her wooden basket with mushrooms, which lay beside a tree in the soft moss. Impa had returned to the Castle with the sad news, and the King was very upset. The queen had died some years ago, when Zelda was born, and the King's oldest son, Marth, was far away in a land called Termina. There was some trouble in a city called Clock Town. King Harkinian had not seen his son for two years, and highly doubted that he was alive. And now Zelda had been taken from him, too. Impa understood how the King felt. Many years ago, when she had been a young girl, Impa's own family had been killed in an "accident", and she knew how it was to lose someone you loved. She didn't want to think about all of her own sad memories right now, so she bowed slightly and left the room. She only hoped that Zelda was alive. Without her, there would be no heir to the throne, if Prince Marth was dead as well. Without the Princess, there surely would be no hope for Hyrule.
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A/N: So, how do you like it so far? Please review and tell me! I'm sorry if the spelling was bad... but I really wanted to put chapter 2 up, so I barely looked at it after I wrote it. And I hope you won't mind that I called Zelda's brother Marth… he's in a lot of other stories, as I think you already know, so I thought it wouldn't matter if he was in mine story too! Please don't sue me, okay? And I know this chapter probably was too short, but I just wanted to finish it. The next chapters might be short, but if they're short that means I can update more often. That is, if you want an update or not. In my other fic I wanted 3 reviews to update, so I'll do it again. 3 reviews=update!
..::Hylian Heroine::..