Opia: Okay... I am sooooooooooooooo sorry for the -looks at the last time she updated and gringes- almost 2 months of no update... At first I was just busy, doing a lot of stuff with my youthgroup. And then after that... well... I got into a sort of writing slump. I didn't write a word in my stories and I sure couldn't bring myself to type any of the existing chapters. But that seems to have gone away now... I hope. I would have had this up sooner, but I was distracted.

Cari: You mean you were playing the FinalFantasy X game you got for your birthday?

Opia: Yeah, yeah, whatever. On with the chapter...

Cari: Oh wait! Just for your information, there are no Goddesses speaking in this chapter. So the italic centered text is not Nayru, it just looks like that for show. Yep.

"Still no fairy I see," Mido sneered.

"Shut up Mido," Link glared back.

The Kokiri bully pushed him roughly, "Don't act so high and mighty. You're the only orphan here without a fairy, " He tapped the fairy shaped mark under his eye, "Can't be a Kokiri without a fairy!"

"The great tree hasn't deemed me worthy yet."

"And it never will, freak."

"Mido, lay off," Saria walked over to the two children, "Wanna play with me Link?"

"Sure…."

They walked off, leaving Mido to snicker with his posse. Picking up some rocks the two of them went over to Link's tree house and began to color on the roots.

"Don't listen to him Link," Saria said, "You'll get yours in time."

Link hacked at the bark with his rock, "But Saria, I've performed the ritual eight times. I don't think I'll ever get a vision."

Saria sighed, "Do you think you did something wrong?"

"No! I gave the offering, I climbed to the tallest branch, I picked the deku nut, I drank its milk and chewed the flesh… I didn't mess up once, but I still just ended up watching the clouds go by!"

"Hmm…" Saria put down her rock, "Maybe the Tree wishes for you to have another purpose."

"But… I want to be a Kokiri…."

"… I know…."

They sat there in silence, neither one really wanting to draw anymore. Link turned to Saria.

"What did you see in your vision?"

"What did I see?" She looked at him, "I… I saw a family. I guess it was my family because there was a man, a woman, and me. We were happy…."

Link smiled, "Anything else?"

"Yeah. Suddenly I was grown up. I had a child and a man next to me." She closed her eyes; "Do you know who that man was?"

"Who?"

"You."

"What?" Link's eyes widened in surprise, "A-are you sure? But… But I hadn't found this place when you took the ritual!"

"I know…."

Link thought about this for a moment then spoke up again.

"Do you… remember your parents?"

"I have one memory, but it is fuzzy and I cannot make out their faces."

"You're lucky. I can't remember mine at all."

"I bet your mom was beautiful."

"I bet she was a five rupee whore!" Mido yelled from a distance.

Link grew tense with anger. Saria placed a hand on his shoulder in an effort to calm him.

Mido continued, "And I bet your mom slept with so many guys she had no idea who your father was!"

Saria gasped as Link's eyes flashed red. She shot up and whirled around urgently to Mido.

"Run Mido!" She screamed, "It's happening again!"

Fear filled Mido's eyes at the sound of those words. Link slowly rose to his feet.

"Run!" Saria turned back to Link and grabbed his arm, "Please! Please don't hurt him! He didn't really mean—"

Link smacked her away, glaring at her with intensely hot, fiery red eyes. Mido saw this and ran with all his might, but Link was faster. He tackled the bully to the ground and rained down upon him with a flurry of punches and kicks.

"My mother was not a whore!" He shouted, his voice much harsher than before.

A ring of children had formed around them, all too scared to do anything about it. Saria begged Link to stop his attack but he did not falter. The green-haired girl turned to the children around her.

"Stop him! We have to stop him! He'll kill Mido if he keeps this up!"

That seemed to snap the other Kokiri out of their frightened daze and they leapt onto Link, pulling him away from the now bloody Mido.

"Let go of me!" Link growled, clawing at them and struggling in their grasp.

Saria hugged him tightly. He froze.

"Link," She cooed, "Snap out of it…."

The boy blinked a few times, his eyes turning back to their usual blue.

"W-wha?" He looked about him, startled at how many Kokiri had gathered, "What… What happened?"

"You went 'dark' again," Saria said softly.

Link's eyes shot over to Mido, who was being helped up by some of his friends. The boy's eyes grew wide in horror as he saw Mido's condition.

"No," He backed away from Saria, "I-I'm sorry! I didn't… I didn't mean to!"

He ran. Away from Saria, from the other children, from the boy he might have killed. He ran far, far into the woods where an old ruin lay. Collapsing onto the stone platform in the middle of the forest clearing he cried.

"Link?" Saria's voice cut through the quiet forest as she approached the sobbing boy. When he didn't respond she sat down and wrapped her arms around his shaking shoulders, "They know it's not your fault…" She whispered, "They don't blame you."

"I-I know," Link wipe the tears from his eyes, "I just keep thinking it will go away… if I could become a Kokiri."

Saria sighed, "I don't know if the great tree has that power."

"Do you… Do you think I could fake it? Pretend I had a vision? Then maybe Mido won't provoke—"

"That's impossible Link, you know it is," The girl touched the bluish-purple fairy-shaped mark under her eye," The mark comes with the vision. No vision, no mark, no Kokiri," She watched as Link's face grew sadder, "You know what Link… you do have a mark."

Link's head shot up, "Huh?"

His hand reached up to touch the skin under his eye, but Saria stopped it.

"No Link," Her fingertips brushed the back of his left hand, "The triangle."

"Oh," Link said, disappointed.

"Look, look at where we're sitting. There are three triangles etched into the stone. I once heard this place was a sacred temple; those triangles must mean something important. You triangle is the same color, that must mean it's important too!" Saria smiled, "It may turn out your life will be more significant than any of us 'Kokiri'. You don't need a silly old mark."

Link smiled weakly back, "Thanks."

She kissed him on the cheek, "No problem."

"Saria! Saria!" A blond Kokiri girl ran up, "Some men and a huuuuge lady with silver hair are at the village, they want to speak with Link!"

Saria and Link looked at each other, surprised, and ran back with the girl towards their home.

..-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-..

I told the King giving you magical weapons was a bad idea.

But he didn't listen.

.:':..:':.

Link, now fifteen, stood ready. In one hand was a simple shield. In the other a sword emanating a shimmering blue light. It grew brighter with each passing second until, finally, it reached its peak power. With a yell Link spun rapidly, sending out a wave of blue energy out in all directions. He stopped gracefully as the armada of wooded polls encircling him fell to the ground, sliced clean through. Link was breathing hard, but his eyes didn't show a hint of fatigue, the shining blue orbs were hard with anger and long pent up frustration.

They flashed red.

.:':..:':.

If I had known of your…

condition…

I would have pressed the matter further…

but the damage was done.

.:':..:':.

Link stood in the middle of the chamber. Discarded weapons and splintered polls were strewn all around. He lifted up his left hand and examined the glittering symbol, his face was expressionless. It was night, and the light from the moon shone off a dagger as he lifted his other hand. Tilting his head up, Link pressed the blade to his throat. His whole body began to shake. After what seemed like eternity of no further movement he lowered the blade and hung his head.

He couldn't bring himself to do it. Death was the coward's way out, but he didn't have the courage to do even that. Link sighed and gazed at the curious markings running down the dagger's blade. He couldn't read it, but it was nice to look at. Turning his gaze to his other hand he saw the scar he had caused so many years ago, the one that split the Triforce in two. Anger flared up in his eyes once more and his grip on the dagger's handle tightened. Then with one quick swoop he ran the small blade through his hand, retracing the scar perfectly.

A bright light flashed and, with a yell, the young warrior fell into darkness.

.:':..:':.

Such a strange thing,

two souls inhabiting one small boy's body.

Maybe the Goddesses had this planned.

.:':..:':.

Red eyes blinked groggily open. As they focused they recognized the face laying still unconscious not even a foot away from them.

It was his.

The eyes' owner screamed, scrambling away from his body. Something tripped him and hurt as he fell on top of it. Black feathers filled his vision as he tried to roll off whatever was hurting. Wings, two big, black wings were sticking out of his back. The boy yelped in surprise and reached for a large sword beside him. He pulled it closer to look at his reflection and had to stop himself from screaming again.

His skin was dark, so dark it was almost black, and his hair was the color of the night sky, slightly longer than the body's lying a few feet away from him. His left hand felt wet and the boy looked at it. Blood trickled from the stab wound he had caused earlier but the right half of his Triforce was gone, the triangle ended at the cut.

"What… What's happened to me—"

The boy clapped a hand over his mouth. His voice was strangely wispy, but with a harsh undertone to it. Clearing his throat, he crawled over to what he had thought was his body. He reached out to touch Link's face.

But… I'm Link.

His hand stopped, then retracted.

No. That's Link, I… I'm not a part of him anymore. But then… who am I?

He looked at his hands, so much darker than his counterpart's.

Dark? Yes, that is who I am… Dark Link.

The sound of stone grinding against stone drew the boy's attention to the door; it was opening. Dark Link stood and stepped back into the shadows, using his wings for balance and cover.

Impa strode in, carrying food and a roll of bandages. She sighed as she saw Link's condition. Setting down the food, she proceeded to bandage the boy's hand. Dark Link shifted and Impa's head shot up. She gasped.

"Goddess!" She cried, "What on—?"

Dark Link's eyes glowed and he bolted out the door, moving as swift and as gracefully as the wind.

.:':..:':.

I thought it might have been a figment of my imagination.

But Lady Saria believed fully my tale of the shadow boy and told me many stories of your other half.

Fate was strangely cruel to boy,

you were destined to meet him again.

..-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-..

The full moon hung high in the sky as Dark Link fled across the field, half running, half flying. He was hopelessly lost, nothing looked familiar. Originally he had thought of going back to the Kokiri, but quickly thought against it, they would never accept him, not as the monster he was now.

The boy tripped over a rock well hidden in night shadows and grass, sending him tumbling down a steep hill. A sickening snap and a wave of pain informed him one of his wings had broken. After he rolled to a stop Dark Link staggered to his feet, the pain and weight of his wing making it hard to move. He could see white bone shining in blood in-between his feathers. It dragged on the ground as he trudged onward, sending fire through his body with each step.

Soon the pain and blood loss began to take its toll on the boy. His vision blurred and spun, causing him to not notice a growing light up ahead. Dark Link collapsed, his strength gone. After a moment the sound of footsteps reached his ears and a large hand placed itself on his head.

"Well what do we have here?" A deep, kind voice said, "You remind me of a lost little bird who's fallen from his nest."

Dark Link looked up, his eyes focusing for a moment. A tall, redheaded man smiled warmly down at him. Two strong arms wrapped themselves around the boy and picked him up, being mindful of his wings.

"Let's get that wing looked at," The man said, "You look like you've been through a lot. Are you aware enough to grace me with a name young man?"

"D… Dark Link…" The boy groaned weakly.

"Wonderful. I am Ganondorf. You're in good hands now, don't you worry."

Tiredness washed over him and he fell into a deep, dreamless slumber.

"Gan… on… dorf?"

Opia: Whoot. Review time!

Vladimir - I love Dark Link, don't you? XD I'm happy I'm writing him moderately well, I try.
Dark Fire 23 and Child 0 - Thanks.
Alexander Vampiro - Dang it what gave that away? XD Just kidding, it's pretty obvious. Friends? Hmmm... not quite what I was going for... I'll work on that...

Cari: Reviews are loved dearly!