Wizards and Warriors
Chapter one
"Princess Zelda, Will you tell me again," Link said testily, "why you felt that you only needed one guard on this silly trip?"
Zelda frowned and gave him a disapproving glance. "Link, this treaty is important. I know it's all talk and no action, but we really need this treaty. You know we're rather ally-starved right now, and Marenga would be a strong ally," Zelda said.
"But why just me?"
"Because spies have infiltrated my guardsmen and you are the only one I trust with my safety…I've told you this already."
"The safety of a poor, defenseless Sheikah princess," Link scoffed. In return, Zelda gave him an exasperated look.
"Link, whatever is the matter with you this morning?"
"Well, let's see…you came to Lon Lon Ranch and woke me up in the middle of the night, then insisted I write Malon a note telling her that you required my assistance. I don't even want to think about how she'll react to that."
"Are you finished?" Zelda's voice was as sharp as the chill of icicles
"No, actually."
When Epona stopped suddenly and snorted, Link's first instinct was that the horse was startled by the angry chill between he and the princess. But when she tossed her mane and snorted again, Link's sword was out of his scabbard in a flash. Zelda reigned in her steed.
"Do you see anything?" Zelda said, peering nervously around at the dense forest growth around them.
"Nothing but trees," Link said sarcastically. "What is it, Epona?"
The hero patted her neck and felt her nervous twitching. He tried to reassure her, but the horse remained tense and alert. Beside him, Zelda's horse began to act similarly, rearing slightly and pulling at the reins.
"Link, remember when I said I required your assistance?" Zelda said, doing her best to calm her own horse while trying to keep an eye out for their own safety. "Well, start assisting. What's going on?"
"Well, if the queen of wisdom can't figure it out, I sure can't," he said, inching a nervous Epona further down the road. "Be prepared for anything."
But nothing could have prepared them for the ground giving way beneath them. They fell into a long winding tube of pure light, while in the clearing above them, the ground silently sealed itself.
The best days of Harry's summer vacation thus far were only just beginning. Diagon Alley was quite an exciting place to explore, especially when he had spent the greater part of the summer locked in his room with nothing to do but think of his Hogwarts friends and count the days til he would return there. After a quick but memorable trip on the Knight Bus, he was finally among his own kind. His room above the Leaky Cauldron wasn't half bad, and there were no Dursleys. Life, at the moment, was pretty good…but it could be better. Say, if Ron and Hermione were there.
As if she had heard his thoughts, Hedwig flew out of the sky and landed on his shoulder, affectionately nibbling his ear. He smiled up at her and stroked her chest with a gentle hand. She was still his only friend here, but at least the stranger witches and wizards were friendly and respectful to him.
"Come on, Hedwig," he said. "Let's find something to eat."
Diagon Alley had no shortage of eating establishments, but thanks to some people at the Leaky Cauldron, he knew where the best ones were. Following the directions as best he could from memory, Harry headed for the most highly recommended; the Centaur Café.
The Café was in sight; one narrow alleyway and he was there. But as soon as he set foot on the damp flagstones, it seemed the ground was no longer there beneath his feet. He fell into a tube of light like a waterslide.
Harry could think of nothing but survival. They were going so fast that Hedwig didn't have time to fly free, but could only hang on for dear life.
Meanwhile, back on Diagon Alley, the large hole closed up in silence.
Ron Weasley couldn't believe his luck; his brother Charlie had brought him along to explore a pyramid. It was something his other brothers had never done, and that Ginny was immensely jealous of him for. Charlie assured him that most of the curses had already been cleared, so he was safe to explore the anterooms, examining hieroglyphics and, albeit timidly, mummies.
Currently he was exploring a wing of the pyramid which Charlie had finished the day before. Still, the cold stone and thick shadows gave him the creeps. He kept his wand at the ready, wishing that Harry and Hermione could be there to enjoy it with him. Hermione, in particular, would have loved to spend hours deciphering the hieroglyphs.
Scabbers suddenly shrieked and leaped from his perch on Ron's shoulder as they rounded a dark corner. Ron tried to catch him before he hit the floor, but missed.
"Bloody rat, come back here! Scabbers!" Ron called after him, but the Rat seemed rather keen to scamper back the way they came, and not to go any further.
"What's wrong with you! Come back here!" He shouted, but the rat was long gone. Turning back to see what caused the rat to start, he understood all too well what had frightened it. Several large hairy spiders.
"Not spiders!" Ron whimpered, backing away stiffly. His nightmare was complete as the spiders, alerted by his shouting, began to advance upon him. He screamed and took off running in the opposite direction.
Ron paid no attention to the floor beneath his feet as he ran as fast as he could. When the floor disappeared from under his feet, it was a long moment before he even noticed.
"Ron?" Charlie said, peering around the corner from where he was working. He thought he'd heard something, but there was nothing but a dark, empty hallway. Shrugging, he went back to his work.
Even surrounded by the beauty of France in the summertime on vacation with her parents, Hermione Granger still found time to do what she did best…study. Her parents had attempted to lure her away from her books for a drive in the country, but she eventually won the battle. She had essays to write. Besides, Harry and Ron would surely be nowhere near done with the work when they were reunited, and she was sure they would need her help to finish theirs.
She rose from the table where she sat and went to retrieve her transfiguration book from her trunk. After quickly checking the answer to a question, she returned the book to its bag.
Her mind was so much on her homework that she didn't notice at first that the floor had vanished beneath her feet. She very soon noticed that she was falling at a very rapid speed down a twisting tube of light. Above her the boards of the floor slowly reappeared one by one.
Link and Zelda were the first to shoot out of the tunnel of light. Their horses hit the ground traveling at a dead run. As soon as they were free of it, Link yelled whoa to Epona. Epona reared up and came down with a neigh. Zelda reined in her own steed and guided her back to Link.
"What just happened and where do you suppose we are?" She asked.
"I don't know." Link sighed. "But definitely not in Hyrule. You do realize that Malon is going to kill me!"
"And how will she do that if…."
Zelda was unable to finish her sentence. A portal filled with light opened up in the clearing before them. A boy with messy black hair and strange foreign clothes tumbled out of it as something snowy white flew up into a tree. Zelda made a quick gesture and changed into Sheik.
The boy was feeling about on the ground for something, his eyes squinted in a strange expression. Zelda glanced at Link with confusion and saw the same reflected in his face. Unable to find what he was looking for, the boy scrambled to his feet, looking wildly about. His eyes soon fell on the princess and her guard, and he jumped visibly.
Another portal opened up behind him and a second boy bowled down the first. Link saw that this one was taller and had red hair. Then before either of them could regain their feet, a third portal opened. A girl with bushy brown hair landed on top of them.
"This is interesting." Sheik said, dumbfounded.
"Very," Link said.
The three of them quickly untangled themselves and scrambled to their feet. The girl spotted Zelda & Link and stared in amazement, but the boy with red hair was helping the black-haired boy find his spectacles.
Harry soon found his glasses with Ron's help. He replaced them firmly on his face and then turned his attention to the two strange figures on horseback. Their horses were gorgeous, especially the one rode by the man dressed in a green tunic and leather leggings, a distinctive medieval look. The second strange figure wore a unique costume that Harry thought resembled a cross between a Ninja and a mummy.
"Who are they?" Ron whispered fearfully, having finally noticed the two strangers.
"I think I know," Hermione whispered. "They look like characters in a Muggle video game… something about a Legend?"
"How do you know this stuff?" Ron asked.
"I'm Muggle-born, Ron…."
"What's a video game?" Ron asked.
"Hermione, if they really were from a video game, " Harry, who knew what a video game was, having seen Dudley playing them many times over the summer, whispered, " why would they be here?"
"I don't know, I'm just telling you who they look like to me."
The five stood staring at each other, not knowing what to say.
"Well, there's only one way to find out who they are." Harry whispered. "I'll ask them."
"Yeah, you go right ahead and do that." Ron said, giving him a weak pat on the shoulder.
"Thanks, Ron."
Swallowing hard, Harry slowly approached the two.
"I think I would prefer to be facing Buckbeak again instead of this..." He muttered.
Link watched the boy with black hair approach with apprehension, glancing quickly at the princess for diplomatic instruction.
"Who are you?" Harry asked lamely before he got too close to them.
"Sheik?" Link whispered from the corner of his mouth.
"Tell them our names, but don't call me by name..." she whispered.
"I know better than that…." Link hissed, then looked to the boy. "I am called Link and this is my companion Sheik, a Sheikah warrior."
"He's cute…." Link heard the bushy-haired girl whisper.
"Which one?" the boy with red hair asked.
"The Sheikah…."
"How can you tell?" The red haired boy rolled is eyes. Link felt just about the same way. He glanced at Sheik with a slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
"Sheik, you have a admirer!" Link said out of the corner of his mouth as the girl, realizing she had been overheard, blushed.
"Oh, shut up." Sheik muttered.
"And who are you?" Link asked the black haired boy.
"I am Harry Potter. " The boy said. " And these are Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger."
The boy and girl nodded.
"Strange names." Sheik said.
"Yours aren't exactly common," Ron said.
Link quickly cut in.
"Do you have any idea where we've landed?" Link asked.
"No…were you two dropped here as well?" Harry asked.
"Literally," Sheik said sarcastically.
"Well, bugger…" Ron crossed his arms. "So where is here, Hermione?"
They all stared at her expectantly, but the girl shook her head.
"I have no idea…no idea at all," Hermione said apologetically.