Happy Birthday!

It was a hot day on the little Outset Island, as it was named. A little girl, who looked to be about five years old ran about the island screaming at the top of her lungs, "BIG BROOOOOOOOOTHER!"

She searched every nook and cranny of the island.

The island's watchtower caught her eye.

Aryll, as the girl was named, grinned. She hadn't looked there. She ran eagerly to it, and climbed the ladder.

"Aha!" she exclaimed, finding her brother, snoring soundly on top of the structure.

Her brother was a twelve year old boy with messy blonde hair, who was wearing a blue shirt with a white crawfish on it, and tan/orange colored long pants. He highly resembled a hippie.

The young boy slowly opened his eyes. He felt stiff from sleeping on wood, but slowly got to his feet. Our young hero's name, by the way, was Link.

Link turned to see Aryll standing next to him.

"You finally woke up!" Aryll exclaimed.

Link stared plainly at his little sister, his eyes glazed from sleep. "Don't you remember what day it is?" Aryll asked with a small frown. Link thought for a moment, but was too tired to even shrug his shoulders.

"It's your birthday! How can you forget?" Aryll said.

"Oh, yeah, that's right!" Link said, perking up a little at this remark.

"Grandma's been waiting at the house for you! She said she has something to give to you. Get going then!" Aryll hissed.

"Fine, fine!" Link said hastily, jumping down from the crow's nest into the water.

He swam to the shore. He ran to his house, and opened the wooden door. He found his grandma in the kitchen area of the house.

"Oh, hello Link!" his grandma exclaimed when he came.

"Hi. So what is it you want?" Link asked curiously.

Link's grandmother grinned widely.

"Today is the day you come of age," said grandma.

"Eh... Obviously...what do you want?" Link asked nervously. Grandma handed Link a green outfit.

"Try this on!"

Link put it on.

"Eh... It's kind of... Tacky...and... Well, let me put it this way, it's just plain ugly," Link said, staring down at the green tunic, tights, and boots, "Oh my God... You're trying to convert me to homosexuality, aren't you!"

He wore the same ugly green elf hat and dress that the hero in the legend wore.

"You look just as the hero in the legend is said to look!" said Grandma gleefully.

"You can't convert me old woman! I won't let you!" The young boy shrieked.

"Now go with Aryll while I plan your birthday party. Shoo now!" said Grandma happily.

Link obeyed, rather relieved that he was being shooed out. The boy eyed his grandmother warily on his way out. He knew why she wanted him to go with Aryll. She wanted Aryll to teach him how to be a girl! Sometimes Link wondered if his grandma had cracked.

He walked back to the crow's nest, finding Aryll looking out at the sea and then the sky with her orange and yellow telescope. She turned to look at him when he came up.

"Oh... Wow, you must be hot in that..." She said quietly, staring at Link's tacky green clothes.

Link frowned slightly. "Not only that, but it's a total fashion no-no! Grandma obviously wants me to switch to a different sexual preference!" Link shouted, picking at the white tights with disgust.

Aryll giggled slightly, "Well, I must admit, it sure seems like it! Hmm. Well, anyway, close your eyes and hold out your hands! I've got a surprise for you!"

Link obeyed, beginning to think he was having to take a lot of orders for his birthday.

Aryll laid something in his hands.

"Ok, you can open your eyes now!" She said.

Link opened them, and found himself staring at Aryll's telescope. "You can borrow it for one day!" Aryll said.

Link was beginning to think he was getting a lot of stupid presents.

"It has your germs all over it though... Can't you give me something else?" He said.

"Will you at least try it out?" Aryll asked, frowning.

Link held it up to his eye and looked out.

"Oh, there's the postman!" Aryll said, pointing downwards.

The postman was a strange looking fellow. He had bird wings, a white powdered wig, and a beak. Link looked through the telescope at him.

"Woah, what a loser," He said.

"AH! HURRY! LOOK UP!" Aryll shrieked.

Link looked up. "Hey, cool! That cloud is shaped like a scottie dog!" He exclaimed, marveling at it.

"No, no!" Aryll shouted, squeezing Link's arm, "Look to the right, to the right!"

She began to shake him.

Link looked more to the right, only to find a large bird carrying a girl who appeared to be about his age in it talons. Hearing shouting, Link looked down again. There was a pirate ship, full of pirates shouting and shooting rocks at the bird. One of the rocks whacked the bird in the side of the beak, and it dropped the girl into the Forbidden Woods atop Outset Island's Summit.

The bird flew away, and Link slowly lowered the telescope.

Aryll shrieked again.

"Link! You have to help her! That girl-she-she fell into the woods!"

"Why don't you? I have better things to do!" Link said tiredly as he sat down.

"'Cause you're older, and the storyline says you have to! And what better things do you have to do?" Aryll replied.

"Like, for instance...sleeping!"

"Sleeping? That's a lame excuse! That girl could be dead!"

"You are so naïve... You see Aryll, it's about time we had a little talk about the cycle of life," Link kneeled before his little sister and put a hand on her shoulder, "Well, little sis, living creatures need food. Therefore, they eat other living things to survive. And right now, that girl is probably making a nice meal for some coyote, so it can eat, and live. So she'd be helping society, right? So I say we pretend like this never happened, you know, like the time I set the neighbor's house on fire..."

Aryll looked horrified.

"But big brother... She-she's a person! Please, go save her! I don't want her to get eaten!" Aryll began to cry, "And when did you set the neighbor's house on fire?"

"Uh... It...never happened?" Link said, remembering just then that Aryll didn't know that he had set anything on fire.

Aryll continued to sob.

"Alright, ALRIGHT! I'll go save that girl!" Link said, trying to stop his sister's tears.

Aryll instantly perked up.

"Ok! But you'll need something to defend yourself with!"

Link knew just the place.

He wandered to his neighbor's, Orca's house with a frustrated groan.

Orca was an old swordsman, and Link knew he could offer him a weapon.

"'Sup Orca?" Link said once he entered the house.

"Welcome, and happy birthday Link," replied Orca.

"Thanks. Well, I need a weapon. Some kid fell into the woods and the storyline says I have to go save her," Link said.

"Very well," said Orca. "I will teach you."

Orca handed him a sword, and taught him how to use it. By the time they were done, there were many sword marks in the walls. Orca let him keep the sword.

"When you're done with your little "rescue", make sure you pay for the damages. Good bye," said Orca, as he shoved Link out the door. "Uh, see ya Orca!" Link said quickly as the door shut behind him. With a last shrug, he made his way up the long trail to the woods. Then he crossed the bridge, and he was finally there...