Link rode through Hyrule's lush field happily celebrating the end of the war. In the distance he spotted Lon Lon Ranch. Picking up speed, he turned Epona and headed straight for the tall wooden barriers. He rode up the small hill leading inside and was met by the grumpy face of Ingo.

"Whaaat!" He shouted. "Where did you get that horse? That's ours!"

Link sighed inwardly.

I guess I have to deal with the fact that Ingo hasn't been changed yet…

He dismounted and turned to face his angry foe. "I found her outside. I was bringing her back."

"Well, you should just-"

"Ingo!"

Ingo paused and turned. A very irate Malon was walking towards the two. She stopped in front of Ingo and glared.

"You leave him alone!" She yelled.

Ingo began to argue but Malon held up one finger. Ingo huffed and stormed away. Malon turned back to Link and smiled.

"Thank you for bringing her back, Fairy Boy!"

Link chuckled, remembering the old nickname he had been given by her. It seemed like so long ago. "She's a good horse." Was his answer.

Malon giggled and nodded. "Hey, maybe you should stay for dinner!"

Link opened his mouth to answer when Malon grabbed him and dragged him into the house. Talon was sitting on the floor, dozing against the table surrounded by his hoard of cuccos when Malon and Link walked into the room.

"Daddy!" Malon shouted.

Talon jerked awake and looked wearily at his daughter.

"I told you to take the cuccos outside!" She shouted.

"Oh, well, uh, yes. Of course Honey. I'm sorry. I'll do that now." He said and jumped up.

While he shooed the cuccos out of the house, Malon turned to Link.

"So, where have you been, Fairy Boy? I haven't seen you around here in a long time."

You have no idea…Link thought.

"Oh, just here and there." He shrugged.

Malon giggled as Talon came back in, huffing and puffing, his overalls covered in feathers. "So," He coughed and feathers flew everywhere. "Who's hungry?"

Link lay back, completely stuffed, while Malon cleared the table. It felt like ages since he had eaten a home cooked meal. He watched Malon clean up and considered offering to help again. Then he remembered the large lump on the back of his head from his first attempt and changed his mind. He closed his eyes and allowed his thoughts to wander as he lay digesting. He thought about Kokiri Forest and all of his friends there. He would never hear the end of it from Mido if he returned like this. After all, it had only been a few weeks since he left as far as their concerned.

"You couldn't do it, could you." He'll say. "You may have a fairy but that doesn't mean you're a true Kokiri."

Link glared inwardly at the image of Mido in his mind.

If only he knew…

Link shook his head. Thinking of Mido was only upsetting him. He thought about the other Kokiri's. They were decent to him (When Mido isn't around) but none of them were really his friends. Did he even want to go back there? He spent his days and nights alone most of the time when he was growing up. Growing up. That was another thing. He would grow up and they would remain kids forever. He couldn't stay there, he wasn't one of them. Then he thought of Saria. She would be there, and she would remember what they had done together.

He smiled thinking of her. She was his best friend and he missed being able to talk to her. Ever since she was awakened as the Sage of the Forest temple, their relationship had changed. It was all business. He wondered if going back would change that. Did he want that to change? He knew that just before he left Kokiri Forest he was starting to develop feelings for Saria but when the Great Deku Tree asked for his help, he didn't have time to dwell on those feelings.

It felt weird to him to be thinking these things. After being an adult and not only understanding what it's like to be in love, but actually experiencing it, it felt weird to be back in his child body. He could still remember what it felt like to have romantic feelings for someone but now the thought seemed almost foreign to him, like it was something he saw in a picture. It was strange to him.

Thinking about the possibility of love brought his thoughts to Zelda. He could still remember the strong feelings he had for her as an adult but now, the thought of acting on them seemed wrong. It wasn't that the feelings had disappeared, but they were different. Part of him was still screaming at him that girls were icky and the other part was screaming about how wonderful they are and how much he needed to have one in his arms.

He shook his head and opened his eyes. Malon was still yelling at Talon about falling asleep at the table. He chuckled and stood up.

"I have to go." He said.

Malon and Talon both stopped and turned to face the small boy in green. Malon gasped and jumped over to him.

"Why?"

Link looked at her shocked. "I…I have to go home now. It's getting late."

"You…You can stay with us tonight!" She said.

Link blinked. "Uhh…I…" Malon was leaning into him with big puppy dog eyes. Link shook his head. "No, Malon. I can't."

Maybe I could…I don't even know if I want to go back to Kokiri Forest yet…his mind argued.

Malon looked at him with sad eyes and he groaned

"Alright Malon…I'll stay."