Chapter Fourteen – Changes
Link awoke to a rooster crowing. Wondering when his neighbors got a rooster, he got out of bed, got dressed, and, on a whim, grabbed his sword and strapped it to his back. He also grabbed a block of wood he was working on turning into a shield. He opened the door and stepped outside, only to be bowled over by Sarah, who, upon seeing him, grabbed him in a hug.
"Link! Oh, thank the heavens you're alright!" she exclaimed.
"Calm down, Sarah. What's wrong?" he responded.
"Haven't you seen? Have you looked outside at all?"
"I just woke up. I've barely had time to get dressed."
"Look!" she shouted, pointing outside.
Instead of the usual setting of suburban houses stretching across the road, there were brick houses here and there. Instead of the usual hustle and bustle of town, there were just four carpenters working on a building and a guard guarding a path upwards to a large mountain.
"Sarah, what happened to the village?"
"You think this is freaky? Wait until you see the castle that appeared overnight."
"A castle? You gotta be kidding me..."
"That's still nothing. Today, we were investigating the castle, and one of the guards saw us. He ran over and started fumbling with his words. Somehow, he managed to say that 'Princess Zelda needs to be in the castle, not wandering the streets.'"
"Princess? Talk about an unneeded ego boost. Where are they now?"
"Zelda's at the castle."
"And Ruo?"
"Some mermaid-like guy ran up and grabbed her, saying that her father was requesting her presence. Called her Princess Ruto."
"Ruto? Strange. And what about you?"
"Only thing different is I'm shorter than usual. I also have a strange craving for candy and ice cream."
"Eh, join the club on the food bit. Now, we need to figure out what's going on." Link drew his sword. "Onward! To your forest-house!"
-
After several minutes traversing the new landscape, Link and Sarah arrived at a densely wooded area. As soon as they entered, a mob of little kids surrounded them.
"Who dares enter the realm of the Kokiri?" a boy said.
"Mike? Is that you?" Sarah looked at him closely.
"Never heard of him. Name's Mido, Leader of the Kokiri. And who might you be?"
"Sarah."
"Link."
"Link? As in Link who left with Navi and never came back, even after she did?" As if on cue, a blue ball of something shot through the air.
"LINK!" The blue ball materialized into a fairy. "Oh Link, you're back! You're alive!"
"Hello? And who might you be?" Link asked.
"Link? You don't remember me? Saving the Deku Tree, the Gorons and the Zoras? Rescuing Zelda from that meanie Ganon? You don't remember?"
"Nope, sorry. Never even heard of Goras and Zorons."
"They're Gorons and Zoras!" the fairy said and took off, obviously upset.
Link turned to Sarah, confusion registering on his face. She shrugged as they looked around. Everywhere they went, the group of kids followed them. They never said anything, save the time they tried to enter a small pathway. Mido jumped in front of them.
"You're not allowed in there unless the Great Deku Tree says so."
As if on cue, there was a low rumbling and a deep voice echoed towards them. "Let them pass, Mido. Link and I have important matters to discuss." Mido hid.
Link and Sarah walked along a flowering path to a large clearing dwarfed by an old, very large tree towering over everything.
"Link! And Sarah, if I am not mistaken, yes? I thought so. I see you're still tall. Give it a while. However, we have important matters to discuss. Sit, and I shall explain," the tree said.
-
"And so, you see, when you brought the Stones together, the curse was lifted. All traces of life as you remember it were erased, except for you two, me, Rau, Ruo, and Zelda. Even as we speak, we still change. Sarah, I believe you have been shrinking, yes? That is because you are not a Hylian! You are a Kokiri, a child of the forest. In a bit, you will shrink to the size of Mido and the others." The Deku Tree lifed its gaze from them. "NAVI!"
Instantly, the fairy from before, flew to them. "Yes, Great Deku Tree?"
"I believe you know Link? He has lost all knowledge of anything. Please go with him once more until he does remember."
"You'll be calling in a favor, you know."
"I figure I have enough in reserve."
"No memory whatsoever?"
"None."
"Might as well start from scratch." She flew over to Link. "Hi! My name is Navi and I'll be your Fairy today. Anything on the agenda?"
"Well, I was hoping to visit Zelda and Ruo."
"Zelda as in Princess Zelda, yes?"
"I guess."
"Alrighty! Sarah, you coming?" She nodded and the new group started toward the large castle.
-
As Sarah, Link, and Navi entered the town, they were almost slammed by a large cart full of milk bottles. Stepping around it, they made their way to the large castle up ahead. They snuck past guards, following the path Navi showed them. Passing through the courtyard, they entered a small area. In the middle stood Zelda, but not the Zelda Link was used to seeing. Replacing her usual outfit was a long dress of strange material, fancifully designed. On the front, the symbol on the gates to the castle was emblazoned on the fabric. Three golden triangles which, together, formed a larger triangle.
"Link. You return."
"How's life treating ya?"
"Let's see, first I get dragged into a palace, then I get shoved into a large room and told to change clothes to something more 'suitable,' then I finally get a chance to escape, but only to here. So, it's actually been pretty good. What's with the fairy?"
"She doesn't remember either?" Navi asked.
"Nope. None of us do," Sarah answered. Suddenly, she shrank about half a foot.
"Well, that's unique," Link remarked, looking down at Sarah.
"Shut up Link. Let's go back to the Deku Tree and see if he can tell us what's next, as well as where Ruo is."
"Oh, I have a good guess where she is," Navi casually commented.
"Where?" Link asked.
"She's probably down the river in the Zora's Domain," Navi said. "And looking at Sarah, you're not gonna recognize her right off the bat. That I promise."
A/N: My updates are done for now. Hopefully, I can pull out of this writing slump and bring the mysterious stranger back in. Maybe soon we'll know who he, or she, is... Maybe...
