Okay…So here is my first fanfic…Let me tell you this now…

This applies to the first 2 chapters…When text is in italics, it's Malon's POV. In normal, it's Link's POV. When bold, it's first person.

Okay, well, I hope you enjoy! Sorry if it's a little slow…It'll get better, I promise!

Disclaimer: Must we always do this? sigh I do not, nor will I ever, own Zelda characters

Chapter 1 – Just the Beginning

Tap tap tap

'What is that noise!' Link rolled over onto his belly and covered his head with his pillow. However, doing so caused a massive wave of pain in his chest. He yelled loudly, but his voice was muffled by the pillow and no one who would have come to help heard it.

Tap tap tap

'That noise again!' It sounded like a knock on the door. But why was there a door? Where was he? He tried to yell out for someone who may be there, but taking a deep breath hurt his chest even more. So he just lay there, waiting for whoever was there to come in.

The door opened and closed. Footsteps on a hardwood floor grew closer. They were quiet, as if the person were wearing slippers. They probably were, Link concluded, so it must be the morning. And, sure enough, a rooster crow reached his ears.

Now, why was he in a bed…in a room with a hardwood floor…where a rooster crows? Last thing he remembered, he was at Hyrule Castle with the three spiritual stones, on his way to see Zelda…

Wait a minute. The white horse...Zelda and Impa had been running away…Running away from Ganondorf. So now his chance to see her again had been taken away, just like that. And now he didn't know what he was supposed to do next.

Link was mesmerized by her beauty the first time he saw her. Throughout all of the stories she told him that day, he never took his eyes away from hers. He thought he was in love. But, he was only ten, and ten-year-olds don't fall in love...But that's what it felt like…and that's what it still feels like. His enthusiasm for this journey came from her and the hope that success would bring them closer.

And now he hated that man, Ganondorf, and not just because he ruined his chance to see Zelda again. He knew he was a little too young to truly hate someone, but Ganondorf…It wasn't hard to hate him. He'd killed so many people, destroyed so many villages, taken so many innocent lives…And it was up to Link to stop it all. How a ten-year-old boy would save all of Hyrule was beyond him, but he wasn't going to find that out by lying in bed…And this pain in his chest was not going to help matters, either.

The bed mattress tilted with the added weight of another person sitting next to him.

"You're going to have to get up if you hope to get any better."

Link opened his eyes under the pillow, trying to process the voice. That voice, he recognized that voice. He knew that voice…Without thinking, he sat up to face the person next to him, only to be met by even more pain.

"Ow!" he yelled, clutching his chest. He looked at the person next to him on the bed, and instantly he knew the long red hair and big blue eyes.

"Malon?" he said breathlessly. Any deep breath would cause pain. "What happened? Where am I?"

"You're at the ranch," she said, reaching over to dab cold water onto his forehead. "I found you unconscious last night in front of Hyrule castle."

"But why am I here?"

"I brought you here, of course! I couldn't leave you there on the ground all night! You're my fairy boy!"

Link cocked an eyebrow and gave her a curious look. "Your fairy boy?"

Malon laughed. "Oh, you know what I mean!" She put the washcloth on a nearby table and dug in her pouch.

"I most certainly do not!" Link teased.

Malon shook her head and pulled a bottle out of her pouch. Inside the bottle was a red potion. "Here," she said, changing the subject. "Take this. It should help, but ultimately, you'll need sleep if you want to get better."

Judging by the quick change of subject, Link assumed that something was bugging her. Watching her intently for any signs that would tell him what was wrong, Link took the potion and drank it. He felt warmth in his chest and some of the pain went away. But he still ached, and he was still tired as hell. He'd been all over Hyrule with little rest, and he'd gone through three dungeons against many monsters. He was surprised, himself, that he had lasted this long.

Silence stretched between the two for what seemed like and hour or more. Malon took her sweet time to clean the bottle that once had red potion in it, so she could use it for something else later. She also took the washcloth she had dabbed Link's forehead somewhere else in the house. When she came back into the room, she avoided eye contact, as if looking at Link would make her cry.

"Malon?"

Slowly, she turned to face him, but didn't look up from the bottle she was now cleaning. It looked like it had milk in it before now.

"What's wrong?"

"It's nothing," Malon said quietly. "I'm just tired."

That had to be the saddest tired person Link had ever seen. But he didn't push her. "Okay." He stood up, ignoring the pain as much as he could, but he couldn't help but wince once or twice.

"Wait!" Malon said, holding up a hand to his chest. She put it down quickly. "Where are you going? You're still hurt!"

"To Hyrule Castle. There's something there I need to get."

"What?"

"I don't know. But it's in the moat."

"In the moat? What would be there?"

"Again, I don't know, but Zelda threw it there, and I need to go get it."

Malon lowered her head at the mention of Zelda. For some reason, there was a part of Zelda that she didn't like. Maybe it was the part of Link thinking he loves her…

She cleared the thought from her mind and looked at Link. "Then what are you going to do?"

"I don't know. Save more of Hyrule, I guess."

Malon looked down at the ground again. Then she looked up quickly, a serious look on her face. "I'm going with you."

"What! Malon, no! It's too dangerous! I'll never be able to live with myself if you got hurt!"

"I can't stay here knowing you're risking your life to save me and other people. I want to help."

"But…"

"I hate Ganondorf as much as you do."

Link was silent.

Malon sighed. "I can tell you hate him, I see it in your eyes when you think of him," she whispered.

"Malon…"

"I'm going, and you can't stop me!" she yelled.

Link raised his hands, signifying his surrender. "Okay, fine, but on one condition." He raised an index finger like a Mother scolding a child. "You stay behind me in fights. I don't want you getting hurt."

Malon nodded, grinning. "Okay!"

I made Link stay over one more night so he could regain some of his lost energy. It took some time, but he finally gave in and agreed to stay. He's so shy. It's kind of cute. It was a good thing we had a spare bedroom, or he would have to sleep with my dad or Ingo…Dad snores, and Ingo is…Ingo…Both were bad ideas…And if he slept in my room, that would not sit well with my dad.

Plus, I'd feel a bit uncomfortable. Link is a strong, courageous hero, and I'm a simple little ranch girl. Ever since I've met him I've liked him as a bit more than a friend, but it's nothing much. Plus, Link is practically in love with Zelda, and she's a princess. A guy like him would never choose a ranch girl over a princess.

I got up early that morning to tend to the horses before I had to leave. After work, I changed into my most comfortable jeans and a simple white t-shirt. My hair was back in a ponytail and I wore a pair of flat boots, no heels. Unlike most girls, I hated heels, they just hurt your feet. I'd never been out of the ranch except to deliver milk, so I didn't know if I was dressed appropriately. Link always wore a tunic, but I didn't have anything like that, so what I had on would have to do, unless Link told me something otherwise.

Breakfast was quiet…Ingo and Dad kept glancing at me and Link back and forth. Ingo glared; Dad just looked curiously, asking me questions with his eyes I didn't quite understand.

"So," Link said quietly, trying to break the silence. "You like working at the ranch?" He asked this looking at Dad. He knew Ingo's answer; He hated it. He always complained, "Why must I, the Great Ingo, work at this old ranch!" It was a little funny, actually, when he complained, because he knows it won't make a difference, but he does it anyway.

"I like it," Talon said. "I love working with animals." He looked at me and smiled. "And it's a great way for me to spend time with Malon."

I heard a 'Psh' noise coming from Ingo's direction, but I paid no mind to it.

Dad continued the conversation, but on a new subject. "So, Link, why do you travel so much? A little boy like you has to have a home. And parents? Brothers or sisters?"

"Well I sort of have brothers and sisters," Link said. "The Kokiri. I grew up with them. They're pretty much all the family I have, even though I'm technically not related to any of them." He closed his eyes for a few moments. Then he opened them and said, "My mom…she died because of Ganondorf's destruction…She left me at the forest before she died, and I was raised there. I never knew my dad. Truth is, I'm not a Kokiri; I'm a Hylian."

The table was silent save for Ingo's incessant chewing. He didn't care at all…What a heartless man…I was ashamed to live with him…At least I was leaving soon…

I looked at Link with sad eyes. "I'm so sorry."

Link shook his head. "Don't be. I love the Kokiri, and I'm grateful for being able to live with them." He smiled at me. Then he looked back at Dad. "I better be going." He stood up. I stood up after him.

Dad stood up and walked around the table to reach me. "Malon…" He wrapped his arms around me and held me in an embrace as he talked. "Keep in touch. Don't get hurt, be careful out there."

I pushed myself out of his embrace to look up at him. "Dad, it's okay. I'll be with Link."

I turned to look at Link, who was smiling at me, but the look in his eyes told me it was a fake smile. I figured it was because of our previous discussion. I smiled back to reassure him and turned to face Dad again. I hugged him once more and he let me go. I looked at Ingo. He was on his way out already. Trying to be a nice person, I called after him. "Good luck at the ranch, Ingo. Bye!" He merely stopped walking, turned his head to look at me, and left.

Link walked up and put a hand on my shoulder. "I know you'll miss your family, but we have to be going. By now the thing in the moat may have washed away, and I have to find it."

I nodded. I yelled one last "Good-bye" to dad before we left the ranch and stepped onto Hyrule Field.

Malon was so excited the whole way to Hyrule Castle. I don't think she's ever traveled this far without her dad.

"Excited?" I asked, even though I knew the answer. It was a way to get conversation going, so I took the chance I had.

"Yes! I get to go on a real adventure for once!"

"Isn't riding horses, milking cows, and chasing chickens adventure enough for you?" I teased. I knew Malon was more adventurous than that, but I love picking on her, she always gave the cutest smile when I did.

She pushed me playfully, causing me to stumble. "Hey! You make me sound like some boring, lazy city girl!"

I smiled back at her. "You're not, I assure you…But I love picking on you."

"Why!" she asked loudly, laughing.

"Cause that smile you get when I do, it's funny."

"Oh? Funny how?"

"I don't know, it just is." Her smile faded and she looked at the ground. "No, I mean, not laugh out loud funny, just…cute funny."

She laughed. "Cute funny?"

"Well, yeah…Your smile is cute."

She laughed again. She blushed, and she tried to look down and hide it. "You always act older than you really are."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, if some other boy picked on me, he'd say it was because he felt like it, or because it's fun to see me cry, or something."

I looked at her, my smile gone. "I'd never do that. I'd never make you cry on purpose."

She looked up at me again. "I know."

The rest of the day was mostly silence, just questions from her every now and then, like, "What's it like to fight all those monsters? Do you ever get scared?" and "Don't you ever get lonely?" But the entire time was full of laughter. She was so innocent. Everything she did was for the right intentions. It was good to get away from everything and spend time with an old friend for once.

But Zelda was still on my mind from time to time, during the lulls in our conversation mostly. I really, really wished I knew where she was, or that I could somehow contact her. I wanted to talk to her so much. I kept telling myself I'll see her soon. I didn't know it, but I felt it, sort of. I kept hearing in my head, "You'll see her soon," and I don't know if it was me telling myself that or something else. Either way, I hoped it was right.

"Look!" Malon yelled, pointing ahead. "There's the castle!"

The castle cast a shadow on us as we neared it. The clouds didn't get darker as we approached it this time, as it did before, when I saw Ganondorf. The sun was just setting, so it did get darker, but it wasn't because of Ganondorf's presence, thank God.

We walked to the edge of the moat, to where Zelda had thrown something. I laid on my belly and looked down into the water, putting my face in a little to get a better few. Dang, that water was cold! But whatever it was, it wasn't at that spot anymore.

"Come on." I stood up and walked down the moat in the direction it was flowing. "It should be down here somewhere."

"It flowed down river, right?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I hope it did. If someone else took it I'm gonna track them down and hurt them."

Malon's face grew serious, even a little scared. I smiled at her. "I'm only kidding."

"Oh." She smiled. "Okay."

We walked down the moat a ways, stopping every now and then so I could look in the water for whatever it was Zelda had thrown. God, I wanted to find it so bad. First of all, I knew it would help me find out what I'm supposed to do next. Second, my face was getting REALLY cold from being shoved under water so much.

"Link," Malon said quietly as I brought my face up for another breath.

"Not now, Malon."

"But, Link…"

"Malon!"

Instantly she backed up and put her hands up to her mouth. I quickly got up and walked over to her.

"Malon, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell. I'm just irritated I can't find this stupid thing."

She pointed over toward the end of the moat, where it went through a gate on the left side of the castle and emptied somewhere I didn't know. "There's something on the bottom of the moat against the gate."

I looked under the water as deep as I could, and, sure enough, there was something being pushed onto the bottom of the moat by the water's current.

I stood up and took of my sword and shield.

"What are you doing?" Malon asked, watching me, wide-eyed.

"The extra weight will make it harder for me to maneuver underwater."

She gasped, and, if it was possible, her eyes grew even wider. "You're…going IN there? But Link, you'll freeze! And you're not totally healed yet!"

"But I have to get it. It's the only thing that'll tell me what I need to do next."

"Link, I won't…"

Before I let her finish, I jumped into the moat.

The cold water made me lose my breath instantly. I swam back up to catch my breath and adjust to the water's current before I went too far under.

"LINK!"

I ignored Malon's frantic yelling and dove under. The moat was deeper than I thought it was. It got darker as I got deeper, and on top of that, the sun had gone down already. It was impossible to see. I felt the bottom of the moat, but I was already out of breath. But I couldn't go back up. I was so close…I felt around for the object…My fingers clasped around something…I was near passing out…

"LIIIINNNK!" I yelled with all the breath I had to try to get Link to hear me from underwater. "Link, come BACK! You'll DROWN!"

He didn't hear me. He just kept going deeper and deeper until his green figure disappeared in the dark moat.

Minutes went by, and still no Link. I saw bubbles come up from deep underwater. That couldn't be good.

I sat down and started taking my boots off. If he was about to drown, I was going in there to save him. I got my boots of. Yelling at myself for wearing jeans, I ran up to the edge and prepared to jump in…

…And out pops Link, gasping for breath. He splashed me a bit, and the surprise of the cold water and of Link popping up like that made me lose balance…and I fell right on top of him into the water.

What happened next is hard to describe, because I could barely see anything. I flipped around over top of Link. He dove underwater to avoid my frantic kicking, trying to reach the surface. The fast contact with the cold water had left me breathless, and the temperature of it kept my breath from coming back even a little bit. I was never a good swimmer. Eventually my vision was gone and I couldn't see anything. I felt like passing out…

Then something warm clasped itself around my wrist and pulled me up to the surface. I felt the person lay me down on the ground. I knew it was Link, I just was too worn out to open my eyes to look at him.

I heard yelling, probably from Link, but I couldn't make out what he was saying. I was too tired. I kept thinking the same things over and over again. Maybe I wasn't cut out for this. Maybe this was all a bad idea and I should head for home as soon as I can stand…But my thoughts about all that were cut off when I fell asleep.

I don't know how long I lay there, but when I woke up, Link was gone, and it was morning. I sat up quickly. I coughed once, and once I did, I felt as if I could breathe a little easier. Then I stood up. I hated being wet when I had my clothes on. It was horribly uncomfortable. And to make it worse, I was wearing jeans. Wet jeans are always a bad thing to be wearing. But the more important thing was, I was alone. Link was gone.

"Link!" I called out. "Link, where are you?"

No response. Did he leave me? Did he just decide I was too much of a burden and go on his own? I sat down on the ground in defeat. He probably did. It was just the first day and I had messed everything up. Who knew what trouble I'd get us into if I stuck around? I stood back up and turned toward Lon Lon Ranch. I was going home.

A few minutes into my walk, I heard quick footsteps behind me, as if someone was running. Then they yelled to me.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going? We've barely gotten anywhere yet and you're giving up?"

I smiled and turned around. "Link! Where were you?"

"At the market," he said, holding up a brown bag. "I got you a new outfit," he said, looking me over. "I think you'll need it."

"Yeah, I do, I hate wet clothes."

He laughed. "I'll have to keep that in mind," he said with an evil smirk.

"Oh, God, I'm keeping a close eye on you from now on."

He laughed again. I loved to hear him laugh. "What else did you get?"

"Well," he said, digging through the pack. "I got a few potions, red for both of us, green for me…Umm…I got two fairies at a fairy fountain…"

"Wait, where is there a fairy fountain in the market?"

"There isn't, really, but I went to see the great fairy again," he groaned. "She is so freakin' scary. Anyway, she gave me two fairies, and that's all I got."

"Okay, sounds good to me. Now gimme my clothes, I REALLY have to change!"

Link handed me my new set of clothes. I examined them. There was a pair sand-colored cloth shorts and a light blue tank top.

"And these are fine for traveling?"

"Yeah, unless you want a tunic, too."

I shook my head. "No, thanks. S'cuse me." I walked behind the big rock Link had yet to blow up. Before changing, I peeked out from behind it. "Look back here and I'm going to hurt you."

Link's eye grew wide. "Oh, no! I don't plan to!" He turned away and covered his eyes. "Tell me when you're done!"

I went back behind the rock and changed…and it was harder than I thought it would be. The wet jeans clung to my legs and wouldn't come off. It took a good 5 minutes just to get them off with as little pain as possible, and it also took a little bit of yelling at Link to get him to stop being impatient. But after about 10 minutes, I got into the dry clothes, and it felt SO good!

"Okay, I'm done," I said, walking up to Link with my wet clothes. "Where should I put these?"

He held out an empty sack. "In here. You can carry it."

I put my clothes in the pack, closed it, and hung it over my shoulder. "That seems fair. So, what now?"

"We need to go to the Temple of Time," Link said, heading back toward the market.

I ran to catch up with him. "How do you know?"

"Well, the item I got from the moat…It was this…" He held his hand out. In it was a beautiful blue ocarina.

"What is so important about that?"

"Everything. It's the Ocarina of Time. Whoever has it can open the Door of Time. If someone evil had this…like Ganondorf…well, let's just say that would be REALLY bad."

"So how do you know we need to go to the Temple of Time?"

"Well, when I picked up the ocarina, I saw Zelda…it was sort of a dream. She taught me the song I'll need to play in front of the altar."

"Altar?"

"I'm not sure, either, but we'll find out soon."

We walked into the market. It was full of people, even at this early hour. According to a clock on a wall, it was about 7:00 AM.

We ascended the steps to the temple. I had never been so close to the temple before, and it looked a lot bigger than I thought it was. We walked inside.

The first step I took off of the carpet at the entrance echoed throughout the whole temple. The ceiling was so high I couldn't see it. The stone walls had colorful windows on each side. The floors were black and white, like a chess board. Every step I took echoed throughout the temple, even the steps on the red carpet that ran through the middle of the floor.

We approached a tall black altar. Behind it were steps leading to a wall…steps to a wall, why would you need that? At the top of that wall, a few inches below the ceiling, was a triforce mark. It was gray, and barely noticeable.

I walked around the temple, taking in its beauty. Link stayed at the altar, putting three stones set in gold on the altar. Soon my ears were filled with an ocarina tune echoing through the temple. I turned toward the altar and saw Link playing his ocarina. The song sounded like a sort of hymn, without the chorus.

The song stopped, and a moment of silence hung in the air. Then the sound of stone moving on stone hit my ears, and I turned. The stone wall behind the altar was opening, and the triforce above it glowed gold. A minute later, the door was completely open. Link started walking in.

"Wait! Link!" My voice echoed throughout the temple. I ran to catch up with him. "What's in there?"

Navi, Link's fairy, flew out from under his hat. "Link, is that…!" She flew ahead of us, toward…a sword. It was a sword in a pedestal of stone. The pedestal had a triforce on it. "…It's that legendary blade…" Navi mused. "The Master Sword!"

Link walked up to the sword and put his hands on the hilt.

I was standing next to him. "Link, what's gonna happen when you take that out of the pedestal?"

Link sighed. "I don't know." He looked at me with a grin. "But there's only one way to find out."

He went to pull it. I put my hand on his. He looked up at me, confused. "What?"

"Are things going to get worse from here? What if I mess up again?" I felt stupid for asking, childish, maybe…well technically I was a child, but in front of Link…I felt older, mostly because he acted so mature.

He grinned. "Malon, this is just the beginning." With that he pulled the sword from its resting place with a jolt. I didn't take my hand off his. We were surrounded by blue light. Then I lost sight of everything…

I guess this is where our journey really begins…

That's all for chapter one! I'll be back soon with more! And thanks for reading! Byes!