The Legend of Fairy Tail Revised

by HylianHero5465

Fairy Tail, Lamia Scale, Blue Pegasus. There are many guilds named after magical creatures, yet no one is really sure if these creatures even exist. But that might change when a green clad boy from another world falls into the lives of a certain Guild and brings along a tiny glowing companion. Revised version of my first Fair Tail Fic

4. Spirit of the Forest

The Legend of Fairy Tail

Chapter 4:

Spirit of the Forest

xxx

Link released a deep yawn and he stretched his arms to the sky, an essential part of his morning routine. His back popped a couple of times as he tried to work out all of his morning kinks. The crisp forest air invigorated his senses and the warm rays of the rising sun felt great on his skin. He released a sharp exhalation of air as he finished his yawn and swung his arms down, ready to begin. Today was going to be a good day.

"Good mo-ahhhhhhhrning, Link," Spryte greeted through her own sleepy haze and fluttered down to his shoulder.

"Morning, Spryte. Sleep well?"

"Mmhmm," The little fairy smiled lightly and finished wiping the last dredges of slumber from her eyes. "So what are you planning on doing today?"

"Training of course," Link grunted in reply, already beginning his morning stretches.

"Again?" Spryte groaned in exasperation. "You haven't done much of anything else since we got here!"

The young Hero of Time simply shrugged and bent over to grab the back of his heels, his forehead pressed tightly to his legs. "I have a lot of catching up to do. I'm not the top dog in this world. Not even close."

"Maybe so, but still…" Her shoulders slumped. "Can't we do something else?"

Link paused in his stretching and moved his gaze upwards towards his friend who was now sitting on his head. He could see her about as well as he could his own forehead but it was an unconscious response to where his attention was centered.

"Spryte…if we're going to succeed here then we have to be able to sustain ourselves. I'm strong by Hyrule's standards, probably one of the best, but the average mage in this world is in another category all together."

"You seem to match up with Erza pretty well and she's one of the strongest people in the guild out of your age group."

Link sighed and continued stretching. "You know that's not true. Erza is a lot stronger than me."

"But you're better." Spryte argued with a huff.

It was true to an extent. When it came to raw skill, Link had far more experience with a sword than Erza did. While definitely no slouch herself, if Erza were a Hylian like Link then the young hero would have been able to beat her quite readily. The problem was that Erza outclassed him physically. She was simply far stronger and faster than he was.

Some could argue that superior skill was worth more than physical prowess, but that was only true when the two people fighting were within the same realm of capability. Being able to block an attack meant little if that same attack sent you flying into a wall from the sheer force of it. And while Link had defeated countless monsters of all shapes and size significantly more powerful than himself, he always had an advantage of some kind to help him. Against giant monsters he was smaller and more agile, able to ruthlessly strike at any weak points they had. Other smaller monsters were less intelligent or less skilled. Any other advantages the monsters had over him were usually negated thanks to magic or aparticular piece of equipment. He rarely fought things in his own weight class with similar skills and abilities.

As such some of his most challenging fights had been not with any monsters, but with the Gerudo people. The dangerous desert women were incredibly disciplined with skills and speed equal to that of the young hero. If not for Link's goddess blessed talent and perseverance they could have easily killed him the first time he fought them. Of course that was a long time ago and he was far better now, but the case was still valid.

Here in Fiore, against Erza, he had no advantages beyond moderately superior skill. Erza could dodge or counter any attack or opening that Link's superior skill gave him through sheer speed and her power shattered though his defense.

He hadn't been studying magic for long but Link had discovered that the reason for a mage's superior physical abilities was due to the Ethernano present in Earthland.

Magic was incredibly versatile in Fiore, far more so than Hyrule, a land rich in magical energy in its own right. There were spells for the most mundane things, like changing the color of your clothes and trying your shoe laces, to magic powerful enough to destroy mountains. It was really incredible, even for someone who had seen as much crazy stuff as Link had.

As a mage learns his chosen spellcraft the Ethernano they absorb as they expend their energy begins to alter their bodies to better accommodate the type of magic they use. That was how strange physical appearances or passive abilities like an ice wizards resistance to cold developed. While the extent of these changes varied greatly from mage to mage, one of the universal benefits was an increase in physical capabilities over regular people, especially in mages that specialized in combat. Natsu was a prime example of this; he was just a kid yet he could pick up boulders bigger than he was. Even mages that didn't focus on direct combat like Cana were faster, stronger, and a lot tougher than normal people. Of course most of these physical benefits were also directly tied to the magical energy running through their system. If they were low on magical power then they usually experienced a sharp drop in their physical capabilities.

Being a potential S-class mage who specialized in adaptive melee combat, Erza's physical parameters were through the roof. Compared to that, Link just couldn't match up; at least not yet.

Porlyusica had told him that he had developed a magic container while he had been unconscious and he could already feel the effects of having Ethernano flowing through him. Every time he woke up he felt improved from the night before.

Faster.

Stronger.

Better.

Just the barest of changes, but definite changes nonetheless.

He was weaker than most of the mages of Fairy Tail now, but that would soon change.

"I maybe better," Link shrugged. "But she's stronger. They all are. You know that."

He gave her a pointed look and carried on with his morning calisthenics. The young fairy gave another rather petulant huff of disapproval before slumping forward.

"But I'm boooooored…" She whined. "Can't we do something more exciting today?"

"Like what?"

Spryte blinked, surprised at the genuine curiosity in his voice. She had half expected him to say 'No' outright and continue training for most of the day. This sudden opportunity caught her off guard and she was momentarily lost for words. She covered it up quickly, however, and adopted a thinking pose. While it was true that she was bored and wanted to have some fun, she also knew that Link was right and that he needed to grow stronger. They'd be able to go on the really exciting jobs if he did.

Link was a rather selfless person at heart so she knew that if she really asked him to do something else then we would without much fuss. On the other hand, as his newly self-designated Fairy partner, it was her responsibility to look after his best interests and taking him away from his training at the moment was not in them. So what could they do that was both fun and could still count as training?

She smiled suddenly and flitted in front of his face, a full grin on display, before poking him in the nose.

"Tag! You're it!"

Link blinked nonplussed several times as he watched the little fairy dart off into the trees at high speed. Soon though a grin of his own lit up his face and raced after her.

Spryte laughed merrily as she zipped through and wove around any forest obstacle she came across: flying between trees, around rocks, under logs, through bushes, and over streams. She spared a glance over her shoulder to see Link right behind her, navigating the woods as only a Kokiri could, with a little added flair to the action. In order to maximize his workout and to have a little fun on the side, Link had added some rather impressive acrobatics to his movements. He would side flip over or slide under, swing and flip from tree branches, twist and bounce down slopes, and wall jump up rocky inclines.

Yes, she decided. This definitely counted as training and it was a LOT of fun.

The young hero had begun to close the distance on her when the fairy turned and blew him a raspberry before upping her speed and pulling up and into the trees. Link grinned savagely and leapt high, grabbing branch and swinging up on top of it before vaulting to the next bough. He sprung from tree to tree as Spryte zigzagged through the canopy at breakneck speeds. His flying friend laughed again and dove straight down back to the ground. Link was close behind her, breaking his fall with a forward roll and using his momentum to launch forward with a hand outstretched to touch her. He came within inches but fell just short and she pulled away again. Link was undeterred and raced after her.

They continued this way for almost an hour, neither of them willing to admit defeat and give up. Spryte, however, was growing tired and knew she couldn't beat Link in terms of stamina. Even before he came to this new world Link could go three days without sleep and still function at full capacity. He had done so repeatedly for a long time during his adventure in Termina, proof that even in his childlike body he was a hardened warrior. Sooner or later he was going to catch her.

Spryte pushed that thought out of her mind and increased her speed with a renewed sense of determination. If catching her was inevitable then she was going to make darn sure that it took him as long as possible. She looked behind her again to see Link less than fifteen yards behind her. She gave a tight grin and burst forward, increasing the distance between them. Link's sudden cry of alarm caused her to burst into giggles as she darted through the bushes and into an open clearing. She was so focused on what was going on behind her that she didn't pay attention to what was ahead of her.

*WHAM*

Spryte grunted in surprise and sudden pain when her momentum was abruptly halted by a wall of muscle.

"Erya?" A guttural sound filled her ears and she felt the wall shift around. "What's this?"

The voice was deep and throaty with a very primitive accent. Spryte shook the stars from her vision just in time to feel something pinch her wings together and pull her up.

"Whoa!" she shouted in alarm from the sudden motion. When her movement stopped she could only blink in surprise at the eyes that stared at her curiously. Large eyes belonging to a very large, green furred, ape-like creature. The two equally surprised individuals stared at each other for several seconds before the ape monster, a Vulcan, if Spryte's memory of what Porlyusica told them lived in the forest was correct, reacted in a rather unsettling manner.

"AWOOOOOOO!" The Vulcan shouted wildy, steam billowing from its nostrils. Spryte could have also sworn she saw hearts in its eyes. "IT'S A TINY WOMAN!"

"Eh!" Spryte flinched away from the Vulcan's creepy expression.

"WOMAN! WOMAAN! WOMAAAN!"

It was then that the little fairy took note of her surroundings and was dismayed to see several more of the ape monsters clustered around her, all chanting wildly in revelry of their sudden discovery.

"SHE'S PRETTY! PRETTY, TINY WOMAN!"

"WOMAN! WOMAN! WOMAN!"

"LET GO OF ME YOU PERVERTED MONKEYS!" Sprtye shouted defiantly at her captors but her words fell on deaf ears. The Vulcans were far too excited to give heed to anything she had to say.

"Ah!" The largest Vulcan, the one currently holding the little fairy, exclaimed happily. "Now we have two women!"

"Huh?" Spryte blinked. "Two? What do you mean two?"

Unfortunately her question went unanswered as the Vulcan holding her turned towards some nearby bushes. At first she was curious about what the ape creature was doing until a quick scan of the foliage made its intentions abundantly clear.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me!" Spryte wailed as the Vulcan thrust her into the middle of a spider web.

"Heehee," The Vulcan grinned widely. "This will keep you from flying away!"

And indeed it did. The surprisingly intelligent plan soon left Spryte completely tangled up in the sticky silk.

"Not again…" the little fairy moaned. She supposed she should be grateful that the Vulcan had squished the former inhabitant of the web prior to throwing her in it, but she found that was a small comfort. It also didn't matter that the threads weren't nearly as strong as a Skulltula's silk, she was still quite effectively stuck.

Sadly, her plight wasn't quite complete yet. As soon as it was satisfied with her entanglement the Vulcan snapped the branches holding the web up and clutched them together in a makeshift bundle to carry away. The sudden collapse of the web and removal from the bushes caused the all of the threads to fall about Spryte in waves and then constrict tightly as she dangled and spun from the end of the lines. The spinning motion caused the threads to twist together into a single strong cord and wrap around the poor fairy in a cocoon just as tight and effective as if the spider had done it itself. The entire affect serving to completely immobilize her and making Spryte feel somewhat like a bug on a leash as she dangled from about a foot of line from the bundle of sticks in the Vulcan's hand.

"Now we take you back to cave!" The large Vulcan exclaimed proudly as he swung her about and turned back to his fellow Vulcans.

Spryte tried not to be sick from the motion and did her best to level a fierce glare at the monster.

"I'm warning you! You better let me go right now or you'll be sorry!"

"Heheh! What you gonna do? Scream?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," Sprye stated smugly.

"Heehee! Yes! Scream good! Heheheheh! Go ahead! You scream now!"

"All right, you asked for it." Spryte inhaled deeply, puffing up her chest as much as she could in the tight cocoon in preparation for…

"KYAAAAAAAAH!"

The response was almost instantaneous. One moment the Vulan holding her was grinning madly at her cry, the next he was sent flying when something hard and strong smashed into the side of his face. Landing lightly in the spot where the Vulcan had just been was Link, his fist still outstretched. He calmly straightened as the Vulcan hit the dirt a few feet away and reached out to catch the suddenly airborne Spryte.

"Well, this looks familiar," He grinned at her. "Have we met like this before?"

"Ha ha very funny," Spryte grumbled sarcastically. "What took you so long?" She glared at him after she had stopped swaying from the sudden transferal of hands. Link merely chuckled at her and raised the stick she was attached to so that she was at eye level.

"Someone decided to take off through some ridiculously annoying terrain ahead of me. Serves you right."

"It's not MY fault you couldn't keep up!"

"Says the one with wings."

"You're the big bad hero, you shoulda been able to catch me."

"Well," Link gestured to her current predicament. "Apparently someone else did that for me."

"This doesn't count!" Spryte yelled. "They surprised me!"

"Sure, sure," Link chuckled. "If you say so."

"Will you just get me out of this?"

Link chuckled again and quickly tore the webbing off her. Now Spryte WAS glad that the web wasn't as strong or sticky as Skulltula silk. Link could tear it apart without injuring her (or drenching her in water again) safely. As soon as she was free Spryte took to the air and hovered behind Link's head, using him as a shield between her and the Vulcans who were quickly regrouping. The big one that Link had slugged rose angrily to his feet.

"Hey! That's our woman! Give her back!"

Link waved a lazy hand through the air. "Trust me guys, you don't want her. She's more trouble than she's worth."

"Hey! I resent that!"

"Grrrrr we gonna crush you!" The Vulcans roared and charged as one.

Link watched them come through narrowed eyes, analysing his opponents with critical attention. They were bigger than we was. Stronger than he was. And dumber than he was.

In short…they were monsters.

And they were right up his alley.

He smirked to himself and held his hand out in front of him, channeling a bit of magic and summoning a sword from his Requip space. Without a word, he lunged towards them.

Two minutes and three dead Vulcans later….

"You know, I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to keep up in this world," Link stated as cracked his neck. "But that was way easier than I expected it to be."

"I never doubted you for a second," Spryte beamed.

"Well, thanks," The young hero couldn't help but crack a shy smile. "That means a lot to hear you say that. Navi would have said the same thing, I think."

"Anytime," Spryte giggled and fluttered down to place a quick peck on the end of his nose. "Thanks for saving me again."

"Of course," Link grinned and turned to leave. "Shall we head back then?"

"Umm…wait, Link?"

"Yes?"

"Before you punched him that Vulcan said something about having another woman."

"Really?" Link raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah…and judging by the way he was acting towards me…I think it was telling the truth."

"I see…"

Without another word, Link crouched down and began to sweep his gaze along the ground. After a moment he stood and walked a little ways away before bending down again and running his fingers along the grass.

"What are you doing?" Spryte fluttered over curiously.

"Looking for their trail. These Vulcan's came from somewhere, so we're going to track them back to their den."

"Do you think you can do it?"

Link smirked and stood up straight. "I've already started. Let's go."

The two companions moved through the woods at a steady pace following the trail left behind by the Vulcans. Despite their large size and intelligence, they were still creatures of the forest and they moved through it well. Their tracks were far less distinct and intrusive than any regular human strolling through the forest would be. Nevertheless, Link was able to follow them readily.

It took them quite a while to find the Vulcan den. The trail didn't lead directly back to it and the duo had to backtrack through the entirety of the Vulan's recent activities. They found a nice area with a small stream and a pond that they must have used to drink or bathe in, another place with several berry bushes, a clearing full of surprisingly large strawberries (Spryte was particularly excited by this find), and other random spots that the Vulcan's had been to. After several hours of trekking, they finally located the Vulcan's den at a cave in the base of a rocky cliff and quickly discovered quite a few more of the large monsters in the vicinity.

"Well now," Link mused from his spot crouched in a tree overlooking the area. "I think it's safe to say we've found their den."

"Mhmmm," Spryte agreed quietly. "So what are you going to do?"

"First we have to find out if they really have someone in there."

"And how do you plan on doing that? I hope you don't expect me to fly down there and check, those monkeys give me the creeps," Spryte shuddered.

Link chuckled lightly. "No, I don't. I'll admit the thought occurred to me, but I have something else in mind."

"Like what? Walk right up to them and ask?"

"Something like that."

Xxx

"Ok, I'll admit it. This is pretty cool!" Spryte whispered excitedly from underneath Link's hat.

Link couldn't help but grin in agreement, though nobody could see it from behind the mask he wore. He didn't respond verbally however as that would have alerted the Vulcan's around them while they walked straight towards the cave. The mask Link wore was one of twenty four special masks that he had acquired in Termina. Like its name suggested, the Stone Mask was dull gray and rocky in appearance; not a particularly attractive item, but it had the unique ability to completely suppress the wearer's presence. It didn't turn them invisible per se, but made it so that anybody that looked at them would be unable to distinguish the wearer as anything other than a natural part of the background.

A person could stare directly at them from two feet away and would be unable to notice them unless they had a powerful device capable of negating the mask's own magic or had such concentrated focus and perception of their surroundings that they could recognize something odd happening around them. But that was very, very, unlikely to happen. Even Link, himself, needed to use the Lens of Truth, an enchanted device of Sheikah origin specifically created to see through all deceit, in order to see the man who had worn it in Termina before giving it to him. So it was with no small amount of satisfaction that Link and Spryte found themselves walking right through the crowd of Vulcans without so much as a second glance their way. They entered the cave without incident and quickly began searching for the captive woman.

The cave was unsurprisingly large, needing to fit a large number of the big ape creatures inside, and they could see much evidence of the Vulcans' prolonged tenancy. It was also poorly illuminated and Link could barely see into its depths even with his sharp eyes. However, that was enough for him to make out the distinct outline of a person lying at the very back of the cave. Link's eyes narrowed when he confirmed that the person was indeed female in shape and he also thought he saw something tied around her ankle.

That was all Link needed to see.

Without hesitation he turned and strode directly out into the middle of the clearing and removed the mask. To say that the Vulcans were surprised at the sudden appearance of a young boy in their midst was an understatement.

"Hey! Where did you come from?!" One of them demanded and jumped in front of him.

Link didn't answer. Instead, he looked directly into the Vulcan's eyes and glared.

"Release the girl."

The Vulcan blinked in surprise, then laughed. "Hahaha! Why should we do that? She's our woman! We like woman!"

"Let her go or I'll make you. Last chance."

"Hah! Whatcha gonna do? We kill-"

It didn't get to finish. A quick flash of light and the Vulcan fell backward, dead, from a massive slash up its chest. Link stood with a dark look, his sword still raised upwards.

"Wrong choice." He breathed.

A moment of stunned silence filled the area before every one of the Vulcans around him charged forward as one. Link didn't move, except to raise his free hand to chest height. A bright ball of red light erupted into life over his palm. He watched the Vulcans approach as one from all directions impassively and calmly closed his fist around the ball, beams of red light piercing between his fingers. At the last possible second, Link slammed his fist into the ground with a loud cry.

"DIN'S FIRE!"

A dome of powerful magical flame erupted around him and burst outward in a rapidly expanding circle, engulfing every Vulcan around in its violent fury. When the flames died down not a single Vulcan was left standing, every one of them having been charred to a crisp. Some were still alive, though they wouldn't be for long thanks to the fatal burns they received.

Link surveyed the scene around him and sighed in dismay. "I really need to work on that…"

"Work on what?" Spryte asked.

"This," Link gestured to the destruction around him. "The other guild members would have beaten these Vulcan's without killing them."

"Is that so bad? I thought monster slaying was a pretty regular thing."

"It is," Link nodded. "But the mages of this world rarely use their magic with the intent to kill. That's something I need to work on."

"Ah right," Spryte frowned sympathetically. "I bet that's really tough for you."

"A bit," Link grunted half-heartedly. Throughout his life, Link had fought and killed countless monsters of all shapes and sizes. It was never in question whether or not he would end up slaying them or not and he rarely gave the action a second thought once he had. It was always either him or them; not that hard of a decision. Anything that was a threat to him or his land he killed without hesitation, including people. That wasn't to say he was a cold blooded killer, though, far from it.

Link was a guardian. A protector and chosen Hero of the Goddesses. He would much rather solve problems without having to fight and he only killed if he felt his opponents really deserved it. If he fought, won, and they surrendered peacefully, Link was more than willing to end any conflict then and there. Unfortunately in his experience that was rarely the case.

The idea of fighting an opponent that truly meant you harm without lethal intent was an entirely foreign concept for him. But that was the standard by which the magic council held all of the registered guilds by and Fairy Tail was particularly staunch in keeping this ideal. While monster slaying jobs occurred regularly, whether or not they were actually killed was usually a decision based on the intelligence or threat level of the particular beast. The fights with human opponents, even bandits and other criminals, was far less likely to end in death.

It was a rather fascinating experience for Link to learn that the magic people used in this world acted as much based on the mage's intent as it did based on its very nature. Natsu's fire for example could easily melt metal and destroy boulders, yet he could also blast somebody through a wall without them sustaining fatal or even permanent injury simply because his desire was entirely focused on defeating his opponents, not killing them. The same thing applied to Erza's swords and other weapons used by mages. She could slash an enemy full force directly across the chest, an attack that would be easily lethal in any other circumstance, but they wouldn't die from it because it was not her intent to do so.

Now that he was well on his way in developing his own new magical abilities, Link found that this same principle applied to him as well. Unfortunately it was a lot more difficult for him to maintain that mindset in a fight. Old habits and instincts honed from countless life or death battles were extremely hard to suppress and Link often ended up using lethal force despite himself.

This instance being the most recent example.

Luckily he hadn't ended up killing any people yet. The few humans he had ended up fighting were often dealt with without major difficulty, instances that Link could have easily avoided killing even before he ended up in Magnolia.

"Well, it's too late to worry about it now," Spryte chirped up. "Come on, let's go help the girl."

"Right."

They quickly turned and made their way back towards the cave. Now that the way was clear, the Spryte was able to increase her ambient glow to illuminate the area around them. Link took a quick glance around just to be sure that there were no more Vulcans present before they headed towards the woman at the back of the cave.

"Are you all right, miss?" Link called when they got close, not wanting to scare her more.

The woman didn't respond verbally but they saw the figure shift slightly at his voice.

"Don't be afraid," Link said, putting on his most reassuring smile. "We've come to res…cue…you…"

His words trailed off as Spryte's light finally revealed the person the Vulcans had held captive.

He blinked.

Then blinked again.

"Uh…Link?" Spryte ventured cautiously. "I don't think…"

"Yeah…" Link agreed, just as lost for words.

The figure was indeed a female, rather young in appearance perhaps late teens, and would be considered exceptionally beautiful by many. She was rather willowy in frame, though not exceptionally tall, with long hair that fell almost to her thighs.

There was just one rather interesting feature that made her a bit different than normal women.

She was green.

Her skin was tinged a pale shade of light forest green off put by several large patches of dull brown. Her hair was also forest green, though a darker shade, with brow vines and wilted flowers all woven through. The only part of her that wasn't green was her soft pink lips several shades paler than a regular human and her golden eyes.

Her dress consisted mostly of leafy vines that twisted around her body in an elegant manner. Or at least they did once. Like her hair, the vines around her body were all wilted and dry exposing much of her skin though they still managed to conceal her modesty.

Her strange appearance made one fact rather clear: she wasn't human.

"Well this is a surprise," Link stated simply as he knelt down to get a better look at her. The strange girl's eyes widened at the motion and she scrambled backwards with a sudden burst of motion.

"Whoa!" Link yelped in alarm and raised his hands in supplication. The gesture did little to stop her movement but the now taught rope tied around her ankle did. Link frowned at the cord restricting her movements, anchoring her to a large rock she had no hope of moving on her own. It wasn't very long and she had quickly pulled it tight from her scramble away from him, giving her just enough length to press herself against the cave wall. He could see that the knot around her ankle had been worked on but she had lacked the strength to undue it despite her obviously nimble fingers.

She must have been there for quite a while, he could see the chaffing on her ankle and even a blind man couldn't fail to notice how weak she looked. Link didn't doubt that the sudden burst of fear induced energy had cost her greatly.

"It's ok…" He murmured gently. "I'm not here to hurt you…I want to help."

The fearful expression on the girl's face didn't change.

"I don't think she can understand you…" Spryte said and fluttered down. "Let me try."

She gently glided towards the green girl whose focus immediately shifted from Link to her. Her expression morphed immediately from fear to something more surprised and perhaps a bit…curious? Link watched silently and unmoving as Spryte hovered inches from the green girl's face. The two stared at each other for several long moments before the little fairy drifted over and touched the green girl's forehead. Almost as soon as contact was made, both of them bowed their heads slightly and closed their eyes. Link remained motionless, watching with rapt attention. A few minutes later, Spryte broke the contact and fluttered backwards towards him without taking her eyes off the girl who watched her go warily.

"Well?" Link prompted gently when his partner was beside him.

"She's a forest spirit."

"A forest spirit?" Link tilted his head slightly. "Like a Kokiri?"

"In a way…but vastly different as well. Think of her more like...a combination of a Great Fairy and the Deku Tree but not as powerful."

"Ah, ok," Link nodded. "Anything else."

"Yeah, she doesn't understand you for one thing, like I thought," Spryte sighed. "She communicates with a series of mental pictures and emotions that blend together in place of words. It's rather interesting."

She took a moment to let that sink in before continuing.

"From what I can tell, the Vulcan's aren't actually native to this forest. Granted they've been here long enough that they've settled into the natural environment but they were originally from somewhere else. Before they came, this forest used to be full of other spirits like her. They're shy and kept themselves hidden from humans with their abilities and intrinsic connection to the forest, but the Vulcan's changed that. They could apparently smell the spirits whenever they were out of their hiding places and quickly began to track them down and catch them. Eventually the spirits hid themselves away almost completely and managed to avoid the Vulcan's for many years. She," Spryte gestured to the captive spirit. "Got tired of hiding recently and came out to see the sun for a bit. That's when the Vulcan's got her and she's been here ever since."

Spryte turned to her friend with pleading eyes. "Link we have to help her…She's directly tied to the Earth and the forest. In this rocky cave she's cut off from both. It's killing her…"

Link nodded having surmised as much from her appearance after Spryte had said she was a forest spirit.

"Can you heal her at all?"

The little fairy shook her head in dismay. "She's too much like me…If I was a Great Fairy then I could probably do something but right now I don't have that kind of power…"

"I see," Link murmured. "Then what should we do? I don't think she'll let me near her, she still looks too afraid."

"She is…" Spryte sighed "and I wasn't able to convince her otherwise. You appear human to her," she shrugged helplessly. "And she's naturally afraid of people, even before all this happened to her. You'll have to figure out a way to prove you're not a threat."

"Hmmm…" Link rubbed his chin for a moment in thought. After a minute he noticed that the forest girl's golden eyes were staring directly into his own. He could tell that they had lost much of their life but they were still piercing, watching his every move.

Link was faced with a bit of a dilemma. If she were human then the fastest way to deal with this would be to cut her free and deal with whatever came next, but he couldn't do that here. Spirits were different than regular people. They existed on a different level than humans and while this may give them some powers and abilities beyond regular mortals in some ways, it also made them incredibly delicate in others.

The forest spirit was weak. Very weak. And terribly frightened. Suddenly moving towards her with a weapon, even if it was with the intent to help, might send her into a panic that could very well kill her and the rope holding her wasn't so long that he could just cut the far end without being close enough to frighten her. The lack of communication didn't help matters either.

What to do then…

Suddenly an idea struck him and Link almost kicked himself for not thinking of this earlier. He broke eye contact with the spirit and sat cross legged on the ground with a relaxed sigh and leaned against the rock she was anchored to. Link made his body as relaxed and disarming as possible, modulating his breathing accordingly. He avoided looking at the captive spirit and concentrated on his breathing for several moments. After a while he slowly raised his hands and summoned his ocarina. He could tell without looking that the display of magic had both startled and intrigued the spirit but he paid it no mind.

Taking a deep breath, Link brought the instrument to his lips and began to play. He started slow and soft, playing a modified version of the song Impa had taught him long ago that connected him to the royal family and had been used as the princess's lullaby as a child. Having played an enormous role in all of his adventures, Link was particularly aware of how powerful music could be. It could move mountains, change lives, and even transcend the boundaries of time. Zelda had often referred to music as the language of the God's and Link readily agreed. He was hoping that it would help him once again here.

He continued to play after he had finished his first song, smoothly transitioning into the Song of Time, and then into the song Malon had taught him. He maintained his slow tempo and soft pitch, focusing on calming the spirit with the gentle tones. After a while he cracked his eyes open to look at her and inwardly smiled at that he saw. The forest spirit's eyes were half closed and she seemed to be shifting ever so slightly in time to the music.

"It's working," Spryte whispered excitedly in his ear. Link gave the barest of nods and made a slight gesture with his eyes. Spryte smiled at him and after a moment to sync herself with the rhythm she began to sing along. One of the things Link had quickly learned about his new fairy partner was that she had a beautiful singing voice, which she employed now to full affect. The pair wove a beautiful melody of music that filled the cave. The addition of Spryte's voice seemed to pull the forest spirit deeper into a sense of calm and Link quickly took advantage of it. He trailed off with his ocarina, allowing Spryte to take over for a solo part, and slowly rose to his feet.

He moved deliberately and silently towards the spirit, discreetly bringing forth a small dagger as he did, being careful not to startle her. Her eyes were almost fully closed now and she seemed oblivious to his approach. It didn't take him long to reach her and quickly cut the loop around her ankle with a speed and gentleness that could only be achieved by one whose blade was an extension of their body.

The instant the bond was severed the spirit's eyes snapped open and she stared wide-eyed at the young human crouched inches away from her. While Link had made the knife vanish immediately after his cut that fact didn't seem to help her reaction. Without warning the spirit bolted away with surprising speed, making a mad dash for the cave entrance.

"Whoa!" Link grunted in surprise, having not expected the sudden burst of energy from the enfeebled spirit. He had been certain that she didn't have the reserves for that kind of action.

Unfortunately, he was right.

The spirit only made it a short distance before she slowed dramatically, stumbled, and then collapsed onto the cave floor. Spryte gasped in alarm and immediately flew to her side followed quickly by Link.

"This isn't good!" Spryte panicked as she touched the spirit's forehead again. "She's lost most of what little energy she had left; I don't think she can move on her own anymore!"

Link immediately knelt beside the spirit, staring directly into her frightened eyes once again.

"Please…" He whispered gently. "I only want to help you…"

The spirit stared at him unblinkingly for what seemed an eternity. Link met her gaze with equal measure, trying to convey his intent through his eyes. They stayed that way for an endless moment until finally the spirit moved. Ever so slowly, she raised a shaky hand towards his face and touched his cheek with the very tips of her fingers.

Immediately Link's mind was flooded with a barrage of images and emotions that were not his own. In one breath he felt all of her fear, pain, weakness, and despair; emotions so profound and vivid that they almost made him cry. Along with the emotions came a series of images that culminated in the appearance of a large tree somewhere in the forest. The tree was so clear and detailed in his mind that he felt like he knew everything about it right down to the number of leaves on its branches. It was truly a surreal experience.

The vision suddenly ended and Link was snapped back into reality when the spirit's hand fell limply from his face. He blinked several times to try and orientate himself before he released a breath he didn't know he'd been holding.

"Link?" An uncertain voice to his left caught his attention. He turned to see Spryte hovering nearby with a concerned expression.

"I'm all right," He breathed. "More importantly, I know what to do."

He quickly leaned forward and scooped the forest spirit up into his arms. She was incredibly light for her size, far lighter than he had expected her to be even with willowy stature. She was taller than he was since his body was that of a preteen, but he carried her easily.

"We have to go to her tree."

"Do you know where that is?" Spryte asked.

"She showed me," Link nodded and without another word dashed out of the cave and into the forest. They moved quickly, driven by a purpose far more desperate than a game of tag. Link stretched his abilities to the absolute limit and cut through the forest like wraith. There was no fancy manoeuvring or acrobatics now, only whatever action he needed to do to reach his destination with the fastest possible speed. Sprite was actually a bit hard-pressed to keep up with him and she was neither running nor carrying anything. It seemed that Link's true abilities always seemed to manifest when he was trying to protect something.

Even so, despite his haste, Link could tell that he would be very lucky to make it in time. He could literally feel the forest spirit dying in his arms and he could do nothing about it. He grit his teeth and pushed himself even harder, doing his best to cradle the forest girl as gently as possible against the motion.

"This isn't going to work!" He panted angrily. "We're not going to make it there in time!"

He leapt nimbly over a fallen log before glancing at Spryte out of the corner of his eye.

"Is there nothing we can do to buy a little more time?"

Spryte bit her lip in response. "Maybe…"

"What is it?"

"She's a spirit vitally connected to this forest and its trees…If…if that's the case then she should be able to draw some strength from it."

Link grunted in response as he weaved through small group of saplings. "How?"

"She'd probably have to be in contact with the ground or a tree…I..I don't think it would heal her completely…but it could give her the boost she needs to reach her tree."

The young Hylian grunted again and slowed his pace enough to look around. After a moment he found a large tree with thick roots stretching out from its base. He quickly ran towards it and found a nice spot where the sun shone warmly all over. He gently laid the spirit on the ground and leaned her against the great tree. On an impulse he withdrew a water canteen and tipped some water into her mouth. She responded slowly, but he was relieved to see her drink as much of the liquid as she could. When he took the canteen away she looked at him through tired eyes, confusion apparent on her features.

Unsure of whether or not it would work, Link stretched out his hand and gently touched her cheek in much the same manner as she had him. From Spryte's earlier description of her way of communicating Link doubted he would have been able to do what he did if he hadn't experienced it first; but after he had felt what it was like himself, he had an idea of how it worked. While he knew that he wouldn't be able to have a real conversation with her this way, at least not without some serious practice, he simplified his thoughts and emotions into a few plain concepts and projected them with as much concentration as he could to her.

Rest. Heal.

From the widening of her eyes, Link could tell he had succeeding in saying something to her…he just hoped she got what he meant. He was only slightly surprised when she suddenly grabbed his hand and sent a powerful response that almost knocked him back on his heels. He managed to maintain himself and was surprised to notice that she had formed her reply to him the same way he had tried to send his thoughts to her, albeit far more clear.

Terror. Panic. Exposed. Monsters. Find her. Capture. Must reach home.

She was afraid to be captured again, that was easy enough to understand. By stopping they risked the chance more Vulcan's would pick up on her scent and come for her. A fate she refused to go back to even though she was dying.

Link wrapped his fingers around her hand reassuringly.

Rest. Heal. Safe. Protect.

At his response, the spirit did something he hadn't seen her do at all since they had met: she blinked.

The surprise was evident on her face and neither one of them moved or 'said' anything for several moments. Finally Link felt a very hesitant query enter his mind.

Pro…tect?

He smiled at her and squeezed her hand gently.

Protect.

Once again she stared at him. Her beautiful, piercing, gold eyes momentarily gaining a spark they hadn't possessed before as she regarded him. Finally, after what felt an eternity, she nodded once and closed her eyes, her hand falling limply from his. If it wasn't for her very shallow breathing, Link would have thought her dead.

He watched her silently for several long seconds. He wasn't sure what to expect now. He idly wondered if she had fallen asleep or if she was soaking up sunlight like a plant. Just as he was about to stand back up and give her some space, he caught the barest twitch from her body. Then slowly, like a flower unfurling its petals to the sun, countless hair like tendrils stretched out from her skin. Most sank into the ground like tiny roots but the ones that came out of where her body leaned against the tree buried into its bark just as readily.

Link stared with mild fascination at the sight. He hadn't expected her to lay down roots like a plant, though it sort of made sense now that he thought about it. He watched carefully for several minutes after she had finished 'planting' herself for lack of a better term for any sign that she was all right. He was a bit alarmed at first that he didn't notice her breathing at all but he soon calmed when he noticed her skin color improve slightly. With a sigh of relief, he settled down against one of the large tree roots to wait.

"Think she'll be ok?" He asked Spryte who drifted down to sit on his shoulder.

"Hard to say," the fairy shrugged in response. "But I think she's out of immediate danger…"

"That's good," Link nodded then leaned his head back to stare at the leaves above. "Do you think any Vulcan's will come?"

"It seems likely. From what I gathered earlier, the Vulcans were very persistent in their hunt for the forest spirits. They were able to sniff them out no matter where they hid. If she's in the open now, I doubt it'll be long before one of them shows up."

"I wonder what they smell off them," Link pondered "I don't smell anything weird about her."

"Who knows? Whatever it is, the Vulcans can find them pretty easily."

"You know," Link frowned. "I think I might have to do something about that."

"Heehee," his partner giggled. "I thought you'd say that. What did you have in mind?"

"Hmmm…Well I think that…" He blinked, breathed in deep, and stood up. "We'll have to talk about it later, we have company."

He hopped up onto the root he had been leaning against and narrowed his eyes at the trees. He watched as a Vulcan stepped into view, its nostrils flaring.

"Mmmm smell something good!"

Link let out a huff of disdain. "Well, that didn't take long."

The Vulcan lumbered forward with surprising grace and quickly spotted the resting spirit.

"OOOH! A pretty green woman!"

It moved forward, eyes focused solely on the spirit, before Link called out to it.

"Oi, stop right there."

"Hm?" The Vulcan stopped and looked at him. "Who are you?"

"This girl is under my protection," Link indicated the green woman. "Leave."

"What if I don't wanna?" The Vulcan grinned widely.

Link glared and Requipped a bow and arrow. "Then you won't be leaving at all."

"Try and stop me little boy!" The Vulcan leapt forward, arms raised for a double fisted hammer blow. An arrow sank between its eyes midflight, dropping it short of its mark.

"That's one," Link stated calmly, dismissing the bow. "I wonder if any more that show up will think twice after seeing his body."

"Maybe," Spryte chirped whimsically. "Want to bet on it?"

"Not really," Link plopped himself down on the root. "I got a feeling we'll be seeing more of them soon."

He wasn't wrong.

Within the span of a few hours several more Forest Vulcan's attempted to take the spirit. The first few refused to leave and died alongside the initial one but after several bodies bore testimony to Link's threat many of them headed his words and left. It wasn't long before Link was able to sit in relative comfort and send them away just by speaking. The Vulcans weren't inherently evil creatures, though they were regarded as selfish monsters by most of Earthland, so Link felt no need to slaughter them without cause. He was fine with letting them leave in peace if they chose to do so.

A couple of hours later, Link turned his head to when a light rustling caught his attention. He stood up as he watched the 'roots' from the spirit slowly retract into her skin. It was an interesting thing to see, Link would never have suspected she could do that without seeing it, her skin became perfectly smooth afterwards. He crouched down just as she woke and their eyes met once again.

She blinked languidly, though Link could tell it wasn't from sleepiness, her golden eyes alight with renewed strength. Link smiled at her and gently offered her his hand. She stared at it for a long second before hesitantly taking it, allowing him to pull her to her feet. She stumbled slightly, forcing her to lean on him a bit, but she was able to stand.

Link was glad to see that she looked much healthier than before, though that wasn't saying a whole lot. There were still large patches of brown coloring marring her skin, albeit less than before, and her appearance was still bedraggled and wilted, but she had at least recovered enough strength to stand on her own. She was no longer in any immediate danger and that was an incredible relief to the young hero.

He smiled at her again, still providing silent support, and helped her take a few steps. They didn't go far before the spirit saw the bodies of the dead Vulcan's and she immediately stopped. Due to their contact Link caught a brief flash of emotions from the spirit: surprise, fear, wonder, relief, and…sorrow?

Yes…that last one was definitely sadness. He supposed that made sense; being a spirit of the forest she must have a high regard for life and seeing the deceased Vulcan's would probably hurt something inside even if they were her enemies.

The spirit slowly turned from the sight and looked at him again. Another flash of images and emotions assaulted his mind. He blinked and shook his head in surprise, trying to make sense of what he saw. It was like that first vision he had of her tree, far more colourful and complex than the few words they had exchanged before she had slept. Compared to this latest message, his earlier attempts at communication could be compared to trying to talk to someone one word at a time without conjunctions. He was understandably a little overwhelmed. After a moment the sensation stopped and was replaced by something he could interpret.

You? Death?

Link let out a slow breath and nodded, sending his own reply back.

Safe. Protect.

Silence fell between them for a moment while the spirit regarded him.

Regret?

Link shook his head, hesitated, then tried to show her what had happened. This time it was the spirit that blinked and shook her head in confusion. Link let out a sigh of frustration at his inability to communicate effectively with her before Spryte suddenly flew between them.

"Here, let me."

She reached out and touched the spirit's forehead again. Link sighed with relief, once again thankful that he had a fairy partner to help him out when he needed it. He waited patiently for the two of them to finish talking, a process which took a surprisingly short amount of time, until Spryte broke away.

After Spryte fluttered back, the spirit looked at Link with a curious expression. She tilted her head slightly to the side as she did, giving the impression that she was thinking very deeply concerning him. After a minute Link felt her reach out to him again.

Take me home?

Link happily nodded and tried to escort her away. They only made it a few steps before she stumbled again and Link had to brace against her fall. He looked at the spirit's downcast expression before he silently swept her back up into his arms. She let out a gasp of surprise and instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck. Link couldn't help but chuckle at her reaction before he dashed off in the direction he knew her tree was at.

He moved briskly, his pace fast but far more sedate than their initial mad dash away from the cave. Due to his endurance and her lack of substantial weight they were able to travel at a steady rate, making good time through the woods. Link was still careful not to jar the forest girl in his arms and it wasn't long before she had fallen asleep. The Hylian smiled at that, reminded of the times he had carried his childhood friend, Saria, through the woods in similar manner when they had stayed out too late. How interesting it was that he hadn't been in this world for more than a month and he was already getting involved with mythical forest beings. He grinned ruefully at the thought and continued running. After about an hour, Link slowed as he came upon a sight that was both relieving and saddening at the same time.

They had found the tree that the spirit called her home. But something was wrong.

In Link's mind it had been healthy and strong, a large and beautiful specimen of the forest. But now, like the spirit in his arms, the tree was withered and greying; a shell of its former self. The few leaves left on its branches were brown and shrivelled and its bark was peeled away in many places. It was truly a sad sight.

Shaking his head, Link gently shook the spirit awake. She blinked lethargically before she caught sight of her home. Link's heart nearly broke at the look of absolute sorrow that fell across her beautiful face. Without a word, he steeled himself and strode forward to the base of the tree. The spirit halted him a few feet away and he set her down on her feet. He made to help her stand but she brushed him aside, insisting on standing on her own. She stared up at the tree with sad eyes before she turned to look at Link. She reached a hand out to him which he took and sent him a single clear message.

Wait.

Link met her eyes once again and nodded once to indicate he understood. At his nod, the spirit did something that she hadn't done once since they had met.

She smiled at him.

It was small and gentle, but unmistakable for what it was. Link returned the gesture and watched as she turned away from him and moved to place her hands on the tree's trunk. He watched in amazement as she sank into the wood as if it was water, completely disappearing into it.

"Well then…" Spryte announced. "That was neat."

Link nodded in agreement, continuing to stare at the spot she had entered. After a while he turned away and moved over to spot on the grass to make himself comfortable.

"She told me to wait," He stated to his partner as he sat down. "Might be here a while. Wake me if anything happens."

"Ok," Spryte laughed as Link laid out flat on the ground and promptly fell asleep.

xxx

"Link…wake up," Spryte lightly smacked her partner's cheek. "You need to see this."

"Hmm?" Link mumbled, slowly cracking an eye. "What *yawn* is it?"

"Look at the tree."

"Huh?" Link sat up and turned to look at the tree. "Whoa!" he gasped in awe.

The tree, which had looked so close to death before, was now healthy and strong; it's leaves practically sparkling green with life.

"That's…impressive," Link whistled lowly. "I think it's safe to say she's going to be ok."

"Haha," Spryte giggled merrily. "Yeah."

They stared at the tree in awe for several minutes. Suddenly they felt a…shift in the air.

"Huh…" Link glanced around. "You feel that, Spryte?"

"Yeah…" Spryte nodded.

A few seconds passed and then they felt it again. It felt like a ripple in the air...an almost imperceptible swell. It wasn't a breeze that caused it or a heavy impact of some sort, it wasn't that kind of feeling. It felt more…intangible…like the feeling of certain emotions floating between people in a room, only not quite the same.

They felt it again moments later and Link turned his attention to the tree. The ripples seemed to emanate from its base. He focused carefully for the next wave and when it came he noticed it take a physical form. He watched the pulse spread out from the tree as the tiniest shift in the grass and leaves. It was so subtle that had he not been focused solely on it, it would have been impossible to see. The pulse washed over them, shifting the grass and leaves on the other trees and bushes by the barest of margins.

"What is that?"

"I don't know…" Spryte whispered uncertainly. "But it feels like…a call of some sort."

"A call? You mean like a signal?"

"Yeah."

"A signal for what, I wonder?" Link mused.

The tree continued to pulse at varying intervals, each one washing over them like shiver through their bodies. They couldn't figure out the reason or purpose behind them, but they hoped to soon find out. After about half an hour or so, the pulses suddenly stopped. Link stood up after a moment, expecting something to happen. He wasn't disappointed.

A lilting giggle echoed around them, emanating from the tree. Link and Spryte turned their attention to the tree to see the forest spirit step out into the open. Their eyes widened in surprise and Link's breath hitched at the sight.

The spirit was beautiful. Gone was the weak, wilted, and dishevelled woman who had entered; replaced by a healthy being of radiant magnificence. Her smooth, supple skin was now purely a light shade of green, free of the brown blemishes, which seemed to sparkle in the sun. Her hair was long and flowed around her in shimmering waves of forest green streaked with gold and thin leafy vines wove through it and sprouted flowers of the purest white. The spirit's clothing was also restored, consisting of a thin practically see through green filament that stretched between more leafy vines which wrapped around her curves in a manner that would be impossible on a normal human. Her clothing fully covered her modesty but still portrayed an impossible mix of sensual innocence that made her seem like a goddess too pure to be touched by mortal men.

Not only was her physical presence glorious, but the aura about her filled the air with life and vitality. If all forest spirits were like her it was no wonder that the Forest Vulcan's had hunted them. Link had known she was beautiful before and had suspected she would only grow more so after being restored, but nothing could have prepared him for this.

His eyes met hers, brilliant golden irises that glowed with vitality and strength, and he had to force himself not to take a step back. He was forcefully reminded of his first encounter with a Great Fairy, except this creature was even more beautiful. It was incredibly intimidating.

The spirit smiled at him again, a gesture that literally stopped his heart for several seconds, and moved towards him. She didn't walk so much as glide forward, moving with ethereal grace and elegance. When she stood before him Link saw that she was about a foot and a half taller than his current body, which would make her a little shorter than his adult body would be in the future. That casual thought passed by immediately when she bent down and wrapped her slender arms around him in a warm embrace. Instantly his mind was flooded by feelings of intense gratitude and care, the depths of which were overwhelming in their scope and sincerity. A part of him wanted to push away from her, so intense were the feelings, but the rest of him adamantly refused to move. Unfortunately what started out as a pleasant experience quickly turned harrowing as his mind tried desperately to keep up with her emotions.

When she finally released her embrace and pulled away slightly, keeping her hands on his shoulders, her joyful expression transformed into a frown when she saw his pallid, sweating face, and heavy breathing. She stared at him in confusion for a bit before turning her head to Spryte who was floating next to them.

The little fairy blinked in surprise when she felt the spirit touch her mind without the need for physical contact. Her renewed strength must have eliminated that necessity. It took her a second to catch up but soon realized that the spirit was asking her about Link's wellbeing. She giggled slightly before explaining that Link, as a mortal, was probably having trouble dealing with her way of communicating. This caused the spirit's frown to deepen and she cocked her head to one side in thought. After a moment she smiled again and turned back to Spryte. After a brief explanation of her intent, Spryte turned to Link in order to convey her message.

"I'm sure you've figured this out already, but she's very grateful to you for saving her."

"Yeah," Link said dryly. "I kinda figured that much…"

"There's more to it though," Spryte continued soberly. "She owes you a great debt and that is no small thing amongst her kind."

"She doesn't owe me anything," Link shook his head immediately, meeting the spirit's golden gaze. "I would have done that for anyone."

At his words the spirit once again turned to Spryte who provided a translation. The spirit's face lit up in a smile once again and she let out a tinkle of laughter.

"What?" Link turned to Spryte with a confused expression.

"She likes you," Spryte giggled after another silent conversation. "You're quite the charmer apparently."

"What do you mean?"

"Well…hmmm...how to explain…" the Fairy mused aloud for a moment. "Basically since she owes you her life and has deemed you worthy, she wants to…bind…yeah I think that's the best way to describe it, bind herself to you."

"Whoa, wait what?!" Link's head snapped over to her. "What do you mean 'bind herself to me'? What in the name of Din does that mean?"

"I'm not one hundred percent sure myself," Spryte admitted. "But remember that book we read about some wizards having familiars?"

"I think so…those were magical servants or helpers right?"

"Yeah, that's probably the best way to describe our situation now…from what I can tell she wants to be your familiar spirit. She'll be there to serve and support you in any way she can."

"Wha-?" Link's eyes went even wider. "But isn't she tied to this forest? I seem to recall something about her ALMOST DYING from being away from it!"

"Well that's true and she'll always be stronger in the forest, but by binding herself to you she can draw off your magic to survive instead. There are other benefits as well, not the least of which is the fact that you'll be able to communicate."

"Really?" Link turned back to the spirit in front of him. That part intrigued him at least, though he was uncomfortable with the rest of it.

"Yeah," Spryte nodded. "At least that's what she says."

"And how do you feel about this?"

Spryte shrugged. "It's not really my place to decide. I can't say I really see much difference between this and our relationship or the relationship between all Kokiri and their fairies either way."

"But I'm not actually a Kokiri…"

"Doesn't really make much of a difference at this point," Spryte waved dismissively. "You were raised as one, you still dress like one, and you still intend to live in the forest like one. You might not be a true Kokiri by blood but you're definitely one in spirit. I'd say you're an honorary one at the very least." She shrugged again. "Besides, aren't I your third fairy partner anyway?"

"Well yeah, but that's different isn't it?"

"In some ways maybe, but in others…not so much."

Link sighed in frustration. "Tell her I appreciate the offer but it's ok, she doesn't need to do that for me."

He smiled gently at the spirit and tried to brush her hands away. He was quite surprised when she abruptly seized his hands in a surprisingly strong grip, her eyes wide with something…frantic in them. Link was brought to his knees when a sudden surge of panic, grief, and desperation slammed into him.

"Link!" Spryte shouted in alarm and sent a sharp rebuke to the spirit who recoiled almost instantly, backing several steps away from the young Hylian. "Are you ok?"

"She…really wants this…" Link gasped after a moment. "That was…not pleasant."

"It might be crueller of you to turn away from her," Spryte added. "You'd leave her with a debt she cannot repay, and spirits like her hold those to a different standard than humans."

"I see…" Link sighed and stood up straight. He stared at the spirit for a long moment before sighing heavily. "I guess if this is what she truly wants…I won't object." He looked at the spirit again who returned his gaze with one full of hope. He smiled at her and reached out his hand. "Tell her I accept."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth then the spirit was in front of him, beaming with radiant delight. She entwined her fingers around his left hand and closed her eyes. A golden glow soon emanated from their hands, turning into ribbons of light that snaked around and up their arms. The beam that wrapped around Link coalesced around his upper arm, weaving itself into an intricate vine armlet tattoo the same color as the spirit's hair. The light that wove around the spirit was a little different. It spiralled up both her arms as opposed to just Link's left, leaving behind swirling lines of gold that spread up her arms and across her collarbones. They then gathered at the center of her forehead and drew a tear shaped leaf symbol before finally dissipating.

Link blinked a couple of times as the light died down, a strange new sensation filling his body. He stared at the spirit who returned his gaze with an affectionate smile.

'Thank you.'

Link blinked again. "Wha- did you just…speak?"

The spirit laughed lightly. 'In a way I suppose you could say that. Thanks to our bond, our ways of communicating are filtered into something the other can understand. I'm not really speaking to you so much as you are now able understand me and vice versa.'

"I see. So does that mean I can talk to other spirits too?"

'No,' She shook her head. 'Only me for now. But you can probably learn to do so given time.'

"I might have to look into that," Link rubbed his chin. "Anyway I still don't think you needed to do this, but it obviously meant something to you so I won't argue."

'Thank you once more,' the Spirit hugged him once more. 'I had lost hope that I would ever see the trees again. I owe you a debt I can never truly repay.'

"I didn't do it for any reward. I would have helped anyone in that situation of my own free choice," Link stated. "But what's done is done, there's no point in arguing about it. I'm just glad that you're all right now. You had us worried." He smiled again. "My name is Link and this," He gestured to his fairy partner. "Is Spryte."

"Hi!" Spryte greeted cheerfully both aloud and in the spirit's own language.

'Pleased to meet you both! I am called Lyre."

"That is a beautiful name," Link smiled at her.

'Thank you.'

"So what happens now?"

'Now, you meet the others.'

Link blinked. "Others? What others?"

Lyre didn't need to reply. As if on cue, he sensed several other presences surrounding them. He looked around curiously, unsure of what to expect, and had to forcefully resist the urge to gape as he watched more forest spirits step tentatively into view.

"Whoa…" Spryte breathed in astonishment.

"Lyre?" Link raised an eyebrow to his new familiar, a question plain on his features.

'I called them here. I wanted them to meet you.'

'Well that explained the pulses from the tree earlier,' Link thought as he watched the other spirit's tentatively approach. They looked very similar to Lyre, though none of them were completely identical. There were differences in height, colors of flowers in their ensembles, and skin tones that varied between various shades of green and brown. All of them were remarkably beautiful and all of them looked at him with varying degrees of wariness.

"Oh?" He turned back to Lyre. "Why?"

'Because of what you did for me,' She replied. 'We've been hiding from the monsters for so long…I doubt humans even remember we exist, more so since we avoided your kind as much as we could before then. But after the monsters came it was almost impossible for us to leave our trees without being caught.' She sighed sadly and then gestured to the bodies of the Vulcans nearby. 'What you did to them…we…have no concept of…We could do nothing but run and watch even as they tore us away from everything…'

"You don't know how to defend yourselves?" Link was surprised. He had felt the power Lyre possessed when they had bonded and it wasn't insignificant. If Lyre was an example of the norm then the spirits should have been more than strong enough to defend themselves from any number of Vulcans.

Lyre shook her head lightly. 'It is against our nature to bring harm to another. We nurture and guide the forest and its creatures. We understand the balance of predator and prey but such a cycle poses no threat to us. But these…monsters are not part of that cycle and we have no means of stopping them.' She bowed her head sadly. 'Even if one of us falls to them, the rest can only watch…"

"I see…" Link nodded slowly. He understood their predicament in a way. While it was surprising that beings of such power were helpless before creatures as mundane as a Forest Vulcan, he could understand it. Vulcans were physically very strong and surprisingly fast. If they had no regard for the sacred nature of the forest spirits it was easy to see how they could be a threat to things that had no concept of how to defend themselves despite their power.

Their situation reminded him a bit of Zelda's predicament during his alternate life. Being the sole surviving monarch of Hyrule during Ganondorf's reign, Zelda held far more power than Link did. The power to lead a country was far greater than anything Link could do, yet she had been utterly helpless against the King of Thieves' machinations. While it was true that she knew how to defeat him, Zelda couldn't make those plans happen. She had needed that one vital piece to come to the board, a piece she waited seven long years before she could move. Lyre's situation wasn't quite the same, Zelda was a very capable fighter in her own right, but there were similarities.

The young Hero of Time opened his mouth to speak but paused as he considered what to say. He had been about to say that he could teach them to defend themselves but something Lyre said stuck out to him. She claimed it was against their very nature to hurt another creature. If that was the case then Link wasn't sure that they could even learn to do so at all. Supernatural beings tended to be rather unchangeable in that way. With that thought in mind, Link made a decision.

"If that is the case, then let me fight for you."

Lyre's face lit up with rapturous joy. 'Would you?'

Link nodded and Spryte squealed with delight, clapping her hands rapidly.

"We were planning on living in this forest anyway," Link said. "I don't see why I can't help you while I'm here."

'Oh thank you!' Lyre threw her arms around him in a tight embrace causing Link to blush at the contact.

"You just can't resist a pretty face can you, Mr. Hero?" Spryte giggled.

Her laughter only increased under Link's glare.

"Looks like the others are coming to express their appreciation as well," the little fairy said as she watched the other spirits come forward more quickly. "I'll leave you to it."

She fluttered up to the branches of a nearby tree to enjoy the sight of Link awkwardly trying to escape the attention of a group of ethereally beautiful spirits he couldn't understand.

"I wish I had a recording lacrima…"