Summary: When a wolfos mother adopts a keaton pup, controversy arises in the pack. What happens when the keaton later learns of his hidden past? And what happens when he stumbles upon a Kokiri child in the forest? How will all of this affect his future?
Rating: K plus, but this might change in future time.
Flames? No flames, please, although a bit of constructive criticism is nice. But, by all means, am I not refusing the offer of a friendly review! Don't be shy in reviewing; I won't bite!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, or characters of these games including Link, the Kokiri, keatons, wolfos, Hyrule, Termina, et cetera. This story has been written for the fun of it, not for the sake of money.
I do, however, own all the identities and personas of the characters such as Trey, Shadow, White Foot, Twiggy, Blaze, et cetera.

Author's Notes: Link is a little boy with no friends, no parents, and no male to look up to as a father figure (save for a Shakespeare obsessed tree, who doesn't really help much in his life.); is he not allowed to cry?

-oOoOo-

Wolfos in Sheep's Clothing
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Chapter Six: To Look Past the Shell

-oOoOo-

The sound of silence that followed this statement was unmistakably deafening. Trey shifted his weight on his paws, suddenly very self-conscious. All eyes bore into his body, but he did not turn his head to read their expressions; all that mattered was the threat of Fish. The keaton remained silent, jaw clenched tightly and claws raking the ground dangerously. "Oh, sod off! Your meaningless taunts are nothing to me." He finally spat, eyes narrowing as his ears flattened snugly against his skull.

Fish stopped stalking the keaton and stood firm in front of him instead. "Taunts? Who said anything about taunts?" He smirked, white fangs gleaming in the dulling light of the day.

Trey opened his mouth to speak, but his throat had gotten in a knot, preventing him from speaking. What was this joker getting to exactly?

"You, dear Trey," Fish's smirk widened as his eyes deviously glowed with a satisfaction of making someone suffer. He pushed his nose close to Trey's, the smirk still on his lips. "…Are a keaton."

The tension in the air tightened, and Trey could feel the apprehension blow through his thick pelt, giving him shivers down his spine. He suddenly became light-headed, dizzy, as a hot sensation crawled up his neck. His mouth became drier than the desert in the west, but he forced himself to speak. "You lie!" He snapped his jaws at Fish's nose, who recalled back from the movement. "I am a wolfos, and I always have been!" He swung his head slowly side to side, looking at the expressions of the silent wolfos. They were very solemn, faces almost unreadable, and some even shifted uneasily under his gaze. "Right?" He spun around, looking at Twiggy with almost pleading eyes. "Twigs," He started softly, swallowing the knot in his throat. "T-tell 'em Twigs; tell them I'm a wolfos."

A frown, a very rare sight for Twiggy, was slapped clear across his face. His tail and ears had drooped, and instead of saying something to his friend, whether it be a piece of witty humour or words of encouragement, downcast his eyes, away from the keaton.

The forest began to spin, and Trey began started to swagger on his paws uneasily. "Yeah, you get it? You're a keaton; you were never one of us from the moment you joined the pack!" Fish's voice jeered over his woozy state. "You don't belong with us!" Trey shook his head, ridding the dizziness for a moment.

He spun around; fur flaring up and lip drawn back as far as it would go, showing his razor sharp teeth. "Shut the hell up!" He then swore colourfully, lunging at Fish with unknown ferocity.

Fish's eyes widened as he sidestepped just in time. He didn't have much time to think as Trey came flying at him again, this time finding his target. His claws raked Fish's beautiful silver coat with a surprising easiness, like a knife cutting into butter, creating scratches all along his flesh, some bleeding faster than others. Fish pushed him off with his hind legs, snarling and spitting at the attacker now.

Trey didn't wait another second; he was in a confused, anger-driven state and hardly anything could stop him. He bowled Fish over with all his weight, wrestling the older wolfos on the ground, growling, yipping, and spitting all the while. He sunk his teeth into his foreleg, making the young adult scream in agony. "Augh, get him off of me!" Fish yelled, scratching Trey back. "He's a monster!"

The keaton could taste the bitter tang of Fish's blood in his mouth, but he cared not. He lunged again, now hanging onto the silver wolfos' back, flipping him over. His claws dragged themselves across his foe's sides, creating a small stream of sticky crimson blood. Fish countered his attacks with some of his own, but the keaton was smaller than the almost fully-grown wolfos, so he ducked easily at some swipes. Finally, Fish's massive paw came in contact with Trey's face, leaving a not-too-deep scratch on the cheek. The keaton yowled and recoiled, about to lunge once more.

The spectators said nothing, only watching with silent horror at the battle. They could not find the energy or the words to stop the fight, and all they could do was to watch as droplets of blood from both participants splattered on the grass.

"What is the meaning of this?" A way too familiar deep voice boomed throughout the clearing, frightening away crows in the trees. Fish and Trey instantly stopped fighting, panting and groaning from their wounds and the energy they had used. Blaze stood at the entrance to the clearing, Shadow beside him. The alpha male's eyes were narrowed to tight slits and his ears were flat against his head. "We can't even leave you children alone for a couple of hours without something going wrong!"

"I thought we told you no fighting!" Shadow scolded, taking a step forward. "…Who started this?"

"It was Trey, sir." Skunk said immediately, resulting in a death-bringing glare from the keaton. "He attacked Fish first, and despite how the rules of push and shove said 'no deathly wounds', he did so anyway."

"Is Skunk speaking the truth?" Blaze yowled again, causing terror at his power to run through everyone's veins. They all nodded, except for Twiggy and Sandy, who kept their eyes downcast. "Autumn! Take Fish home, now." He nodded curtly to his daughter, who dared not to question her father's authority. "His wounds will need to be treated immediately. Skunk, follow me back to my den; we have much to discuss with Blizzard." The black and white wolfos nodded, silently following his leader's footsteps out of the clearing. "And Shadow," Blaze called out once more before leaving. "I trust you will find a suitable punishment for your…pup?"

The dark grey wolfos nodded. "I will, sir." He followed the alpha's moves with his eyes, but turned them to his adopted son when Blaze was out of sight. "The rest of you may stay here or may go home." He declared unemotionally, eyes still fixed on the keaton. "As for you, Trey, I want to speak with you. In private." Some of the wolfos juveniles "oohed" in immature simultaneous voices, watching as the aggressive keaton shot glares at them before approaching his father.

"Dad, I can explain—" He started, but was cut off by Shadow.

"Then explain on the way home." He spun around curtly, Trey sulking at his heels.

Once they were out of earshot from the clearing, the skies had finally turned dark and stars had come out. Neither one of the two males had said a word since the scene in the clearing, Trey too embarrassed with actions and Shadow too disappointed with his son.

He stopped, suddenly, catching Trey unawares. He looked up at his father, his large nougat eyes filled with guilt. Shadow sighed exasperatedly as he sat down silently on the grass. "I'm very disappointed in you, Trey." He started emphasising each word as he stared off into the thick clumps of Lost Woods foliage.

The keaton bowed his head low, ears drooping. He had mentally recoiled when he heard his father say that wretched word, "disappointed"; for all children, it was an unpleasant word to hear from your parents at any time.

"Why on earth would you attack Fish? He could've been even more injured if Blaze and I hadn't arrived in time…It isn't like you. What's up?"

Trey sighed as well, marvelling briefly at how the night air was so cool and crisp against his pelt, a definite change from the blazing summer heat in the afternoons. "…He said some pretty cruel things." He finally said, lying down on his stomach, the long green grasses tickling his nose as he went down.

Shadow frowned. "So you attacked someone else because they were being mean to you? Trey…We've gone over this; you have to ignore the others when they tease you. They pick you as a target because your fur colour is different."

Trey shook his head, licking absently on a small cut on his forepaw. "I know…I just couldn't let this one go that easily."

The dark grey wolfos' ears perked at this as he turned his head slowly to face his adopted son, green eyes trying to bore into his mind. "What did they say?"

The juvenile paused for a moment, recollecting the scene. "He said I wasn't a wolfos...I was…a keaton." Shadow sucked air in sharply, heart pounding in his chest. "Of course, it isn't true." Trey nervously laughed. "…Right?" Again that deafening sound of silence hung in the air, mocking the two males' fears; both equally different than the others'. Shadow tensed as he watched his son rose slowly from his position, hazel eyes now looking very serious.

In that very moment, Trey suddenly looked very mature, and not the energetic young pup that Shadow once knew. It seemed like just yesterday when he came home from guard duty, only to find the ragged-looking keaton pup nestled snugly against his mate's thick white pelt.

How time has gone by… His mind suddenly thought, heart still pounding louder than the mighty waterfall's crash against the rocks.

They stayed in silence for moments later, the hammering of their hearts the only sound drumming through the night time atmosphere. Emerald eyes locked on with hazel, neither males needing to say a word. It was as if they knew what each other was thinking. "…So," Trey said, snapping the silence as if it were a brittle twig. "It's true."

Shadow slowly nodded, never ripping his eyes off of Trey. "I'm…I'm sorry you had to find out this way, Trey." His ears drooped a little bit, showing signs of remorse.

The keaton hesitated before speaking, trying to grasp the right words to say; there was too much information to process at the same time, all built up from his entire puphood. "Tell me the truth." He whispered, his eyes darting away from Shadow, a little anxious about looking the wolfos in the eyes.

"Pardon…?"

"I want to know the truth." He growled lightly, raising his voice a couple notches. "I need to know about my past."

The dark grey wolfos nodded again, kneading the grass between his forepaws. "It is only fair you know…

Several months ago, when you arrived in the pack, White Foot took our first litter of pups on their first training expedition. She took them to the ranch, wanting to practice their hunting skills on cuccos, but it was a mistake. The farmer caught the pups and…slaughtered them.

After returning and informing everyone, including myself, of the news, she went off into the woods to clear her head. Only, when she returned to the hideaway, she carried a small yellow pup in her mouth. You." He looked up at Trey. "She told me later of the story…Of how she found you. Some keatons, probably from your old pack, were bullying you, driving you out of the forest. White Foot stepped up and stopped them, taking you as her own…That is how you became part of our pack."

Trey's eyebrows furrowed in thought, soaking up all facts with meticulous accuracy, making sure he understood everything correctly. He rose to his paws and turned around, heading into the forest without a word.

Shadow, a little startled at the action, turned his head around and asked, "Where are you going?"

The keaton stopped in his tracks, tails drooping. He didn't turn to face his adopted father, rather, stared out into the thick cluster of trees ahead of him. "I need to think about everything. Don't be worried if I don't come back soon."

He was about to take a step forward into the woods, but stopped, back still turned to Shadow. "All this time…" He trailed off, feeling slightly dizzy as all facts and events collided into his mind in one colossal meteor of mixed emotions. "…I've been a wolfos in sheep's clothing."

-oOoOo-

Faeries of varied pinks, blues, yellows, and even some greens danced with pure hearts and light-hearted wings around the large, placid spring, giggling innocently as they did so. Gossips of the forest, they were often called, and it almost seemed like a perfectly fitting title; the way they conversed with each other was in their own language that only followers of the Great Faerie could understand, and so, they could talk and talk without anyone knowing what in Nayru's name they were discussing.

Sparkles and dust trailed behind them, like a loyal pet, and as they danced merrily round the spring, it sprinkled daintily on the calm surface of the still-moving water, making small reflections of colour and majesty, illuminating the clearing. According to some superstitions that the forest folk held, it was good luck for faeries to dance around a body of water, for it meant that the liquid had not become contaminated with foul insects and deadly diseases, and that the water had its blessings of the Great Faerie herself.

Trey lay in the silk-like grasses, head resting on his forepaws lazily. His muzzle was raised above the surface of the spring, allowing him to look freely at his reflection whenever he desired. He darted his brown eyes away from the rippling, coloured surface of the spring, and forced himself to admire the beauty of the faerie dance.

Most other times when he had visited this place, "The Super Secret Spring", he would have found joy and happiness out of the faeries' enlightening steps, but he had not found any satisfaction out of this trip at all. He had come here hours ago, after his discussion with his father, to meditate on everything that he had learned.

So…He was a keaton. The bottom line was simple, yet so complex. It meant he was an outsider, like Fish had said, and that he wasn't part of the community bond that the wolfos shared with each other. It was clearly understandable now why so many of the pack members had shied away from him over the years, and it was simply not because of his coat colour; it was his ethnicity. He supposed it might feel the same if a wolfos joined a keaton tribe; it would be extremely difficult for pack members to comprehend this new change in their way of life. Ever since he was a tiny pup, he could remember everyone talk about keatons with hate and anger, as if the very word were poison in their mouths. Why? He wondered silently. Why did it have to be this way? Why couldn't everyone just get along, and why did the hate of keatons and wolfos have to even exsist?

Why…Such a question puzzles the ingenious minds of beings everywhere, it's simple structure only a superficial look on how baffling the word could be. The keaton sighed again, closing his eyes to reflect even further.

When the teasings from his peers had started, he was not but a couple weeks in the pack, he supposed. They had said cruel things about the way he acted, by the way he had done things differently than the others, and by his appearance. Come to think of it, He recalled, his voice echoing in the depths of his mind, They never said anything about my tails…It was always of my ears and my fur colour. Maybe that's why he had not realized he was a keaton sooner, for everyone knew keatons had the tri-tail, a dead-giveaway. White Foot had always told him, time and time again whenever he would run up to her, tears in his eyes from the jokes from his peers, that they just teased him because he looked different, nothing else. She had, well, lied when she also told him after an inquiry about his fur that it was from a very ancient relative, whom carried the distinct trait of yellow fur and long ears. He one day allowed himself to discover important secrets about an attack the keatons planned to pull off, and warning his wolfos pack soon afterwards of the danger. He was considered a hero.

Lies. Why hadn't his parents told him the truth? Why did this have to be so secretive? Were they apprehensive? Were they frightened? Were they…ashamed?

He clutched his head with his forepaws, groaning in annoyance as his thoughts continued to badger him relentlessly. A sudden itch on his back caught his attention as he swiftly, and instinctively, rolled on the grass, ridding himself of the pest who had settled into his fur. He panted for a moment, ceasing the rolling as he felt the itch disappear like magic. Through the small openings the overhanging trees made, he could tell that night had passed, and it was light out. How far into the day, he knew not, but he was still incredulous to the fact that the night had passed so silently and swiftly, like an owl on silent wings.

He rolled back into his rightful position, glimpsing into the cool waters of the spring at his own reflection. He rose onto his paws with narrowed eyes, and with a discouraged grunt, he spat forcefully at his reflection, disturbing the waters and startling the faeries. They glided over to him, sensing something was amiss in his soul, that he was fighting a something inside of him, for faeries are very sensitive to the emotions and needs of all creatures both big and small.

"Shoo, shoo, the lot of you!" Trey snapped lightly, swinging his head to rid the faeries of his presence. "I don't need your pity!" The faeries stopped instantly, whimpering in sorrow and remorse; they had not wanted to upset the keaton, only to make him feel better. The happy, luminescent glow that hovered around them faded unhappily, showing their apologetic aura to the young keaton. "Oh, no, I didn't mean it like that," He quickly blubbered on, seeing this downhearted appearance. "It was very thoughtful of you to think of me, really, but…I'm just a little confused, and I'd like to solve my problems on my own, alright?" He smiled faintly, trying to encourage the faeries again.

The glow brightened up almost immediately, and with happy chirp-like squeals, the gossips of the forest fluttered back to their place around the spring, dancing gaily once more.

His faint smile subsided faster than a speeding rabbit as he sighed and turned tail, exiting the Spring. He blinked and squinted a few moments, adjusting to the new light that poured in from the cloudless sky. Once adjusted, he looked properly at the skies, deciding mentally with himself on what time of day it was. Nearly afternoon. He thought, wondrous. Had it really been that long since he had fled from the discussion with his father? It was hard to believe, really, that he had spent the whole evening meditating and not sleeping. It didn't bother him though; he wasn't tired, just hungry.

Speaking of hungry…

His stomach spoke its own words, ones clearly audible and understandable; the language of hunger. It growled and rumbled fiercely, as if saying "Feed me!" Trey swallowed, but it was uncomfortable due to dryness. He'd have to look out for some sort of pond on his hunt, for this dryness was most displeasing.

With a frustrated groan, he watched as the tenth squirrel he stumbled upon in the past hour and a half scrambled up a tree, scared half to death of the frightening threat that had chased him around the clearing. The keaton issued a grumble of displeasure as he plopped down, back against the tree trunk, tiredly. He was growing tired of always having to chase a small animal around in circles, then ending up nowhere in the end; stomach empty and prey gone. His stomach roared again, and shot small jolts of pain from not eating enough through his abdomen. He had to find something to eat soon.

He closed his eyes and breathed in and out deeply, readying himself for another search for prey. And as if sent by the goddesses themselves, a rabbit sat before him a distance away when he opened his eyes. He smirked, pleased, as he silently rose to his paws and positioned himself in a hunting crouch. The wind was on his side today, luckily, and the rabbit could not smell his scent that easily. He stopped, waited, then lunged after the rabbit, who sprinted away from him before he even had the chance to snap his jaws at the prey.

"Oh no you don't!" He barked, his smirk growing, partly because of the rush of adrenaline, partly because of annoyance. "I've waited too long to eat breakfast! You're not getting away that easily!" And with that, the race was on.

He tore through the bushes in an almost barbaric manner; the only thing relevant to him at the moment was the speeding bundle of meat in front of him. It was an older rabbit, and so its pace was slower than that of the rabbit he had chased a week ago for training. Nevertheless, it sped through the undergrowth of the Lost Woods, panicked because of the threat on his tail. Trey's eyebrows furrowed in determination as he pushed his strength to the limit, all energy focused on running and running alone. This helped and soon, he was directly behind the prey. He prepared himself, then, with a mighty lunge, he landed, paw-out, on the rabbit's rump, claws hooked into the flesh. It squirmed and writhed underneath his grasp, eyes wild with terror. The keaton swiftly ended the small creature's life, and not wasting a second, devoured the body hungrily.

He swiped a pink tongue over his muzzle, satisfied to the brim on his catch, and even more satisfied that his stomach had ceased its rather annoying reminders of how hungry he was. The meat definitely hit a spot, and even though he still felt slightly uncomfortable with the fact he was carnivorous, he felt better. It dawned on him; something that his father once said…Keatons didn't eat meat! Something clicked inside his mind, and as if all questions had been suddenly lifted from his shoulders, he realized that the reason he felt odd when he had a meal, was the fact that he was supposed to eat only vegetation of the forest, and that his keaton instincts were nagging at him like an old shrew. Although, he had grown accustomed to the meat wolfos ate, and it would be hard to switch. Was it so bad if he ate meat once in a while…?

He paused suddenly for a moment, ears erect and straining as a sound of something sorrowful became tangled in his hearing. His eyes remained still, staring into the fabrics of time itself as he listened with all his skill to what the noise was, and more importantly, where it was coming from. It was distinctly familiar to the cries of sadness, but it didn't sound like any animal's crying that he had ever heard before. It didn't seem like a threat to the juvenile, so he proceeded towards the melancholy cries.

Hesitant, and now pretty sure he was in the right spot for the crying became louder, he poked his face through the bushes, just so much that one could only see his eyes and front muzzle. He saw a small body, clothed in a forest-coloured fabric, hunched over sadly, his back turned to the curious keaton. Trey cocked his head to one side, trying to make heads or tails of what this being was. His smell was very peculiar, one that he didn't quite recognize, as was his appearance; what sort of animal was this?

He turned his attention to the creature, whose shoulders shook as he wept and cried in the grasses. Why was he so sad? "It's not fair!" He heard the creature shout, woe tainted his tone. His voice made Trey jump in startle; he was not supposed to be able to understand words that were not spoken by wolfos and keatons! How in Din's name did he understand this? "It's just not fair!" He wailed again, more cries emitting from the creature.

Curiosity knocked harder on Trey's door as he compelled himself to go forward towards the strange being; he wanted to know what it was and what it was doing in the forest. With a cautious step, he proceeded forward; the front-half of his body now could clearly be seen from the bushes. The creature's scent grew steadily stronger even with that one step forward and Trey racked his brain, trying to think of where he had smelt the scent before.

"W-why do the others pick on me?" The being sobbed harder, resting his head on his brought up knees. "All I want is some friends, I just…I want a friend…" His breathing irregular, he hiccupped slightly through crocodile tears. "Why doesn't anyone pay attention to me? Why do I have to be the 'Boy without a fairy'? It's not fair!" And in his anger, he clawed at the grass, ripping it up from its roots, startling Trey for a moment, who witnessed this small destruction. The creature sobbed harder than ever before as he grasped at flowers around him, one by one pulling them from the ground or ripping them to shreds. He wailed, shoulders shaking aggressively, obviously troubled by something. Through his destruction of the flowers, his hand came across a rose, which he grabbed roughly with his left hand.

Thorns went into his palm and he cried out in agony and in even deeper sorrow as he recoiled his hand, quickly quieting his sobbing down to a small cry as he inspected his injured hand through tear-stained eyes. A small trickle of blood was caressing its way leisurely down his hand as he removed the thorns. The creature whimpered, shoulders still shaking slightly. "It's not fair!" He again sobbed, still clutching his hand, while repeating the words over and over and over.

Trey took another couple steps forward when a wave of remembrance hit him; the smell! The smell was…

He gasped. It couldn't be!

The exact same scent was heavy around the huge log-tunnel he nearly went through a week ago, the exact one that his mother said not to go into…The one that led into the Village. Was this strange being a…Hylian cub? A small sense of paranoia and caution washed over him as he stood on the spot, looking at the sobbing cub with questioning eyes. Common sense told him to run now, to run as fast as his legs would carry him through the forest, away from this foul being. But a more instinctive side argued, saying that it would be alright if he stayed and watched the Hylian. Especially seeing the tiny cub in such a state as this, how could he be the wretched killers his adopted mother had always spoke of? He was weak, vulnerable, young, and obviously upset…Surely he wouldn't be a bloodthirsty monster!

He took a tentative step forward, eyes never leaving the back of the cub, as if he were waiting for him to suddenly leap out and attack him. One could never be too sure in such situations. Although, as he proceeded straight onwards, he failed to notice a stray twig on the ground, and with an echoing crack!, he stopped, in taking air sharply.

The cub spun around abruptly at the noise, screaming, "Get away from me Mido! Go and make fun at somebody else—" He stopped in mid-sentence, looking at the cautious keaton with watery sapphire eyes.

The two stayed like that for some time, looking at each other hesitantly, not knowing what the other was going to do. Both had never seen such a creature before, and curiosity played at their minds like a harp. The keaton stood stock still in the grass, muscles tensed and ready for action, with paws planted firmly into the ground, trying his best to show the "killer" that he wasn't afraid, that he would be willing to fight. The cub also stayed still, except for breathing and a few stray sniffles left over from his cries.

"Golly," He breathed, never taking his eyes off of the magnificent specimen in front of him. He turned slowly around, Trey taking a cautious step back, shivering slightly at the thought of being slaughtered like his adopted family's young. Such horror stories of massacres of wolfos and other creatures of the forest were fairly common in the pack, but it was mostly the older ones who would pick on the littler children, just to frighten them for a good laugh or two. The Hylian slowly crawled towards the keaton, wonder still evident in his eyes. A few tear tracks were visible down his cheeks, and a few stray tears had escaped even as this was going on.

The keaton, thinking that this was some sort of movement to signal a fight, darted back in nothing but a golden blur into the bushes which he had just emerged from. The leaves on the shrubbery rustled as he ran through them, and the Hylian cub stared blankly where he had disappeared to, bottom lip quivering again as he plopped himself roughly on his rump. "…Even animals don't want to be around me!" He cried again, the tiny droplets of salty water escaping again from his large, shinning blue eyes. He brought his attention back to his bloodied left hand, whimpering and crying more at the sight, and pain, of it.

Trey did not sprint further into the woods after his escape from the encounter with the cub, rather, he stayed just behind the bushes, poking his nose through the openings of the leaves, wanting to see what the reaction of this creature was going to be. The sight of the crimson substance lingering down his hand caught his attention, and feeling a pang of pity, hesitantly stepped out again, this time feeling braver for his actions. He gulped as his heart beat faster and faster by the minute, taking tiny steps towards the cub, who whimpered while locking his sky-blue pupils into his hazel ones.

Seeing that the keaton was apprehensive to be in his presence, the Hylian cub swallowed his sorrow, piping up in a mousey voice, "I-It's alright, boy, I-I won't hurt you," He just silently hoped that the animal could understand him; he didn't want it to run away again. "I promise; I'd never hurt an animal. I…I like animals." Trey understood his words as clear as day, and faintly smiled in his mind, thinking over the possibility that this "monster" was actually speaking the truth to him.

His nougat eyes darted away from the watery blue ones of the Hylian cub, and fixed themselves on the cub's palm-up left hand, which had now stopped bleeding, although there was the mess of a thin layer of blood that had made its home in a circle-like pattern on his palm, around the areas where the Hylian had gotten punctured with the sharp thorns of the rose. Trey raised a forepaw onto the cub's left wrist, applying a little pressure, telling the boy that he wanted him to bring down his hand. Slightly puzzled, the sad Hylian cub obediently did so, and watched with fascination as Trey bent his head towards his outstretched hand.

With a gentle tenderness and caution, the keaton begun to lick slowly at the cub's hand, cleaning off the crimson substance, while also cleaning the wound in a sort of an animal-like fashion. He did so for a few moments, the Hylian cub still watching with incredulous interest at this manner that a complete animal stranger was showing him. The keaton stopped when the blood had been cleaned off completely, and sat directly in front of the Village-folk, still staring at him, smiling faintly. Their heads were the same height when sitting down, and so they had a clear, direct view of each other's faces.

Still in awe, the blond-haired cub looked briefly down at his newly cleaned hand, then back at the marvellous creature in front of him, grinning happily as well. "Thank you." He said after a while, rubbing away his tears and tear-tracks from his face absently. "That was very kind of you." He tentatively outstretched his right hand, inching it closer to the top of the keaton's head. Trey, seeing no threat from his move, allowed the cub to do what he wanted, which was nothing for than a simple petting and scratching on his scalp.

The blond cub grinned wider, a renewed happiness sparkling in his previously saddened eyes. "You're a good doggie!" He said innocently, still patting the keaton on the top of his head. "I like you! You're the first person, besides Saria, that cared about me in a long time!"

Trey smiled, glad that he had made someone feel better, although this was supposedly another enemy of the forest animals. He licked the cub's right hand quickly, answering the Hylian in his own special way. The boy giggled at this as he withdrew his hand from the animal and brought his knees up to his chest, where he folded his arms on top of them. "Yeah, I like you." He said again, still staring with fascination at the keaton. "I ran away from the Kokiri Village, that's where I live, because Mido rallied up all the Kokiri to start teasing me again." He frowned, continuing his story; he needed to get it off his chest. "I hate it when Mido does that. He thinks he's the boss of us all, but he's dumb! I don't have a fairy, see, and that's why everyone picks on me…Because I'm different than the others."

This statement, as innocent as it was worded, struck a definite chord in the keaton; the little "Kokiri's" problems were very similar to his own. Although they had just met, the keaton felt compelled to protect the vulnerable child from sorrow and woe, and to keep his spirits high. He knew what it was like to feel alienated from a large group and the pain and experience was so fresh, that he almost knew how to handle the situation with strangers. The child's eyes cast downwards, evidently saddened by the truth of his own words. Trey smiled to himself as he thought of a plan that might cheer the kid up.

He grabbed the long, flowing green cap on top of the boy's head and jerked it off in one smooth move. The boy, startled by this, watched with amusement as the keaton danced around in front of him, swinging the hat around from his mouth as if it were a freshly caught fish from the river. The Kokiri giggled at this sight, but it soon ascended into laughs at the antic, observing as the keaton came back to him, hat in his mouth and tails swinging back and forth. The boy pulled Trey close to him, hugging his neck. "You're a funny doggie; I like you all the more!" They stayed like that for a couple more moments, enjoying the friendly body heat they shared through the hug. The blond grinned, letting go of Trey. "My name's Link! Let's be friends!"

-oO T.B.C Oo-

Dairokkan: I think he is too influenced by his friend, Skunk. Stupid Fish.

Ri2: Poor Trey, no?

Jaderill: Thank you! I figured the creatures of the forest would name each other after things that they knew of, such as fish and skunks and rocks, rather than giving them names that would be more commonly seen in our human lives. Besides, how would they know of the names such as "Simon" or "Jude" or perhaps "Alfred" even? Hehehe…That would be quite humorous, actually. x3

Harrypotterfan: No, it's alright, really. I understand if you "do not have a large vocabulary" as you said, and it's just great enough that you take the time to submit a review to my story. :)