Evening
Evening was a tricky time among the trees. Sometimes it seemed to last until true dusk, when the sun set- but many days, and in an unpredictable manner, typical of the moodiness of the lost woods- the afternoon light would be swallowed by the forest, and the children who wandered its meandering paths would all too quickly be shrouded in darkness.
Saria, unlike anyone else, remembered everything. Link remembered everything, too, but after five years, she didn't count him, for he refused to speak of the before-times. Before Time was torn asunder by a sword and a king of evil and a princess' prophetic dreams.
And Link. Her Link, caught in the middle. Wielder of the blade, pawn in a deadly game. It was too easy for her to blame the princess. The Princess of Destiny, a fellow sage who saw the way out of the Age of Darkness that Ganondorf sought to begin. For she called to him with the power of her dreams, drew him into this- and, conveniently, she had blamed herself. But no- the blame lay with Ganondorf. It was wrong to blame Zelda for having the wisdom to put Link in danger- against her own wishes, Saria was sure- for the sake of the world. Still...
Saria shook her head of these evil thoughts. She had come to the Forest Temple in search of peace- and still it eluded her. Even now, in the strange early twilight of the twisted trees... was there not a way to find quiet, to soothe the soul, to let fall these bitter thoughts?
But on an evening like this, it was near impossible. For the forest felt too alive... and she missed him too much. This was just the sort of evening when, once, not too long ago, he would have sought her out in the Kokiri village and insisted she go on an adventure with him.
Five years ago, all that changed. She should have known- he wasn't like the rest of them, after all. She always knew she wouldn't have him for long. But all too soon, he was gone.
Saria went to the Forest Temple often. From there, she would scry him, watch his adventures, make sure he was safe.
She couldn't just see Link- she could see all the happenings in Hyrule. A privilege of being a Sage. She could especially see what occurred in the forest, and it was forest that concerned her. For the Deku Tree Scrub was taking over the many duties of the Deku Tree- but Saria was afraid. The memories of the old Deku Tree were lost. Things had changed. For the first time in hundreds of years of living, Saria had a deep feeling that the peaceful existence of the Kokiri would end. And soon.
But maybe it wasn't as bad as all that. Maybe it was just that she missed Link- with all her heart and soul- so much that she felt like a raw nerve, that any moment, she would be consumed by the ache and welcome the end. Perhaps missing Link just made her fatalistic. Perhaps the Kokiri Forest- and all of Hyrule, really- were doing just fine.
In the meantime, she came here more and more often. Played her song, even though she knew he'd never come. Not here, to the Temple. Sometimes he visited the village, but he was becoming a man now, and the children barely recognized him.
Saria let out a sigh, pulled out her ocarina as the light changed ever so gently in the Forest Temple's clearing. She was playing for a friend who would never truly return, it was true- but she was also playing for the trees.
Playing for them now, releasing those soft, sweet notes into the quiet, she could feel the presence of spirits from long ago. One day, she knew now- she would join them. And others would take up the song, and play to her.