A/N: Hey everybody I hope you all had great weeks! So I am introducing a sort of oc in this chapter, but not completely. My thought for that comes because Link and Zelda have been reincarnated before, and I wonder if Din Farore and Nayru would do it to others if they deemed it necessary. I know that Link is that way because of the first hero's spirit, Zelda because she was once Hylia, and Ganondorf because of Demise but still I pray you indulge me in this thought. It does not absolutely have to be taken that way though and completely works if you do not, but there are similarities. They share the same name, but you could see it simply as passing down through families, or like what Link, Zelda, and Ganon are, I leave it up to you. It does not change the tale either way. Thanks for reading!

Yami no Nokutan- Thanks for the review. I thought I should do something different, and she never really came of a wolfish to me XP I like your idea for a companion. TP Link does have a hunting hawk.

Gojira Geek- I couldn't agree more! That is a completely epic thought picture by the way XD

Storm Dragon Wolf Princess- you may indeed be very right about Jade. I agree with you about the companions and Epona (I liked how you could pick your own name for the horse in TP) I am glad you like the dragon. Thanks for the review! :)

Scarlet Curls- I think we need to stop your inner fangirl before she seriously wounds a lot of my favorite characters. I shall give your periscope back as soon as I resolve all the conflicts in this tale hehe… Zelda might indeed do that. That actually sound like a really cool idea to have a companion like Raava (did I spell that right?) It would be totally awesome. To me, The Legend of Korra seems to be reminding me very much of a Loz plotline lately (especially FSA) I mean even the villains name sounds similar… *strokes fake beard thoughtfully* thanks for the reviews! Midna may or may not have something to do with this story later *evil laugh* Link shall be dancing very dangerously on the tip of a metaphorical knife blade for a while.

Also, special thanks to silverheartlugia2000, and xXx skytale xXx, you guys are awesome!

The Remnants of a Forgotten Race

Link sat in a miserable huddle towards the edge of camp. He pushed his back further against the pine trunk he sat in front of. Wrapping his arms tighter around himself, he watched his breath disappear into the darkened starlight night in wispy white puffs.

It had been two days since Ganon's troop had started their ride for the mountains. They were now in the heavy wooded pine forest of the upper peaks. Fall's cool fury had been released with a vengeance in the higher elevations. Although the troop had not yet reached the snowy crest, the air had rapidly become chiller with the altitude and fall of night. He shivered, lightly rattling the chains that bound him to the stoutest pine in the camp. Each of his limbs was chained by a four foot tether to the tree. It allowed him the freedom to either stand or lie down or sit as he pleased, and yet took all freedom at the same time. He had long since moved the dagger, for easy access, from his hatband to the belt he had made by tying the half that remained of Zelda's colors across his middle. He had done this as soon as he had gotten the chance because he had felt strangely naked without a belt of some sort. He had not yet spotted an opportunity to use his dagger because he was heavily guarded at all times. The solid shadows of four of his watchers wavered in front of him, dancing eerily on the light of the army's camp fire.

He glanced longingly towards the fire at the center of camp where the soldiers sat eating. The flames were tauntingly close, but too far away to offer any warmth. The aroma of roasting meat wafted tantalizingly towards his nose. He tried his best not to think about how hungry he was, but it was no use. In retaliation for losing the Twilight Shard, Ganondorf had put him on no rations for three days. Aside from this, and having no way of shielding himself from the elements, he had not been too mistreated. He had taken a few hits for resisting his captors for saying some snide rebellious comments and for the simple fact he was an enemy prisoner; but he had certainly not been beaten or badly wounded. Ganondorf had no need to torture him, because he needed no information. Generally, Ganon kept away from him and, on the few occasions, when he did take it into his head to taunt or be cruel, the methods he used were mental and emotional not physical. Ganondorf seemed to want him to be relatively healthy, probably for some hidden nefarious purpose, Link assumed miserably. The scent of food wafted towards him again and he put a hand over his aching stomach, fiercely telling himself he was not hungry, not cold, not sore and hurting, and not trapped.

As if he could sense Link's discomfort, Tirkon headed over and set about obnoxiously devouring a piece of steaming meat in front of him as a taunt. Link ignored him. Tirkon, detesting to be snubbed, pushed past the guards for some fun.

"You hungry?" he sneered nastily, "Here, eat this."

Tirkon tossed a mangled piece of gristle and tendons to land in the dirt in front of him.

"Eat it dog," he commanded with a laugh, drawing his blade.

Link did not know what Tirkon's game was, but he was determined to keep the few shreds of pride and dignity that remained to him.

"What's the matter boy? Are you deaf? I said eat it."

"I normally don't eat food that has been handled by pigs," Link said back coolly with a smile, looking Tirkon right in the eyes.

He may as well have jabbed Tirkon with a hot poker. The soldier stepped forward and kicked him viscously in the shin. Calling to the darknut guards, he ordered them to secure and gag him. This took much longer and considerably more effort than he had planned for because of Link's spirited resistance. In the end however, that mean was achieved and the darknut guard stepped away.

"You leave that on until your insolent tongue is curbed," Tirkon laughed, roughly twisting Link's still-healing arm to make sure he heeded his point.

Link clenched his teeth and glared at him silently. He knew he had asked for it, but this knowledge did nothing to keep his mind from filling with indignant protests at the cruelly tight gag. It was humiliating to be treated with less respect than a animal. Closing his eyes for a moment, he tried to control his anger. He refused let his enemies see that he was capable of such a misstep. It would only prove that they were the masters of him. He quickly calmed himself and made his eyes, since his mouth could not, smile back mockingly at the soldier from behind the near strangling gag. Tirkon scowled at his coy response. The fact that he stayed calm seemed to irritate Tirkon just as much as his insult; this gave Link some comfort as he gingerly rubbed his stinging shin and throbbing arm.

Tirkon was about to make another attempt at cruelty, when he was interrupted by a disturbance at the other end of the camp. Xiphos had finally rejoined the troop, having completed his lord's mission. The white plume on his helmet caught the flickering light of the flames as he dismounted and tethered his steed to the trees. Link watched as the knight pulled a wriggling object off of his horse. As he turned fully into the light of the fire, Link saw what it was. It was a girl about his age and she was struggling furiously. He watched as Xiphos took her directly to Ganon's tent.

They were in there for about a half an hour before Xiphos exited the tent alone and headed straight towards where Link was imprisoned. Xiphos and a few darknuts prepared a set of chains just like his, right next to where he sat, to the same tree he was secured to. He assumed they were for the girl. Xiphos then left without a word, back to the tent. Some shouting and several agonized cries emanated from Ganon's pavilion and Link winced.

The guards, momentarily distracted by what was going on, edged closer to the tent. Link took the time, while the guards were distracted, to check around for any edible or useful plants. He knew that the soldiers would not stay distracted long enough for him to try and make an escape, so he settled on the next best thing. His search was rewarded with an arnica plant just within his reach. He would have smiled at the results of unexpected luck were his mouth free from the constraints of the gag. He hid it in his tunic as the soldiers headed back to their posts. He had a nagging feeling that he might need the plant.

About an hour later, Xiphos emerged from the tent carrying the limp form of the girl. He dumped her unceremoniously next to Link and secured the chains. Then he went over to the fire for some food, totally unconcerned with the condition of his prisoner.

The darknuts guarding them tuned carelessly to the side, their momentary curiosity forgotten. They stood, their attention only half on the prisoners, obviously bored now that the excitement had passed. Link turned worriedly towards the hapless girl and winced at what he saw. Half of her face was covered in bruises and her left arm was badly swollen under and around its shackle, as if they had twisted it or tried to break it. Torture, Link glared at Xiphos. 'What kind of scum would stoop so low as to beat up a girl?'

No one was paying much attention to him, so he made use of the arnica plant. She had probably passed out because of the pain. He had no water to make a proper poultice but he did what he could with what he had. The arnica plant was used to heal swelling and bruising. Her arm was not broken, only strained. He carefully crushed some leafs into a mash and smeared it over the injury before wrapping it in the arnica leaves, using the roots and a few spindly vines to secure it like a bandage. He knew it had to hurt terribly; he hated seeing people in pain. He did the same for her face, minus the makeshift bandage and then sat back.

'What,' he wondered, 'could Ganondorf possibly want with this girl, and who was she?' From the half of her face that he could see, he could tell she was very beautiful. Her skin was a golden-dark color, her hair a silky copper red.

After Xiphos was finished eating he headed over to join the darknuts in guarding him and the girl. There was no chance of escaping tonight and even if there was he couldn't just leave the girl. There was nothing more he could do for her so he lay down, preparing himself for another long miserably cold night. He silently thanked Uli for her insistence in teaching him the arts of an herbalist. Happy memories of the past and his friends flashed through his mind and he gritted his teeth, not allowing himself to admit that he might never see them again.

"What boy? You're not going to take advantage of the night?" Xiphos sniggered wickedly at him gesturing towards the girl. "To judge by the way you were all over her a moment ago, I was hoping for a show."

Link's mind filled with several insolent retorts, 'I'd much rather take advantage of your face with my fist,' or, 'that's just what I would expect to hear from someone with a mind like a chamber pot, and that's an insult to the chamber pot;' or, 'what do you think I am a half witted animal like you?' He would have said at least one of these except for the gag. So instead he glared darkly at his captor. Xiphos disgusted him in more ways than one.

He lay a respectful distance away from the girl, positioning his body to take the brunt of the chill wind, so his injured companion could have some shelter from the cold. As soon as he was sure that Xiphos was no longer watching, he slipped the annoying rag out of his mouth so he could sleep.

~x~X~x~

Aveil woke with a jolt in the middle of the night and found to her horror that she was chained to a tree. Memories of what had taken place flashed through her mind, and she tried to shove them away. Being captured during the first battle of a rebellion, followed by nearly a month of slavery, and the knowledge that she had been separated from and lost everything that she had once held dear to her heart, were not things she wished to dwell on. Her miserable existence as a captive had been terrible but bearable while she still enjoyed a sense of obscurity. The last thing that a slave ever wanted was to be noticed. She had known all along those that this could not last, she knew that her captors would sooner or later figure about who she was and what her family had been hiding, and she had not had long to wait for that expected but dreaded outcome.

About a day ago she had been taken again from her confinement by that plumed knight only to be brought before her kingdoms worst enemy, the one who was responsible for all her pain. And he had quite enjoyed giving her some more. He had been exceedingly cruel in trying to get her to talk. For generations her family had been guardians of an ancient power. It was her duty to protect it from power hungry maniacs like the traitor Ganondorf. She had sworn not to tell its location and had kept that promise fully, enduring Ganon's savagery, until he had threatened the lives of her fragmented family and closest friends. Now Ganondorf knew where it was. She had failed. Everything was as good as lost. She gritted her teeth. She had not wept since the day everything had been taken from her, and she would not weep now or ever again. Crying did nothing, so instead, she clung to her anger and her pride, for that was all she had. She was the granddaughter of Nabooru, one of the greatest leaders of her race, named after Nabooru's second in command, and she would live up to both their names. She was better than the hopeless feelings that surrounded her, or at least she often told herself that when the world was at its darkest.

She was never one to give up without a fight. She swore that her enemies would pay dearly for their cruelty and their deeds. She swore vengeance right then and there. Thinking of her enemies' cruelty she lifted a hand to her face, surprised to find that it did not hurt as bad as she had expected. Her questing fingers encountered some mashed leaves. Her arm was similarly tended and all that was left of the once biting pain was a dull throb. 'Why would her enemies bother to heal her?' Puzzled, she looked around.

She was not the only prisoner. There was a boy chained in much the same manner as she, lying right next to her. Fat lot of good that was, boys were completely useless stupid mindless fools who only wanted one thing in life. She crinkled her nose in a pout of disapproval, but soon, her curiosity got the better of her and she went in for a closer look at the peacefully sleeping figure. Even from a distance she could tell he had the look of a woodsman and a warrior, and he wore the colors of the forest except for his belt which was like a purple sash.

She leaned nearer for a look at his face. The moon was just bright enough to see by; its light fanned out through the canopy of slender gently rustling needles above her head. She shivered as she leaned in closer to see him clearer; the pine forests had never held an appeal for her. She preferred to be out in the open sunlit mesas around the mountains. She hated to be cold. As she had that thought, she noticed that he had position himself to take the brunt of the chilly wind for her. She did not know if he had done that by accident or design, and she shrugged the thought away. He had dark ashy golden blond hair, and although she hated to admit it, he had a rather handsome face, aside from a bruise over one eye. 'Why would Ganon want a boy?' she wondered and then her pondering was replaced with a suspicion and a small hope. She gently, so as not to wake him, moved a lock of his tousled blond hair to reveal the pointed ears of a Hylain. She felt excitement rising in her as brightly as the sun after a winter's night. If only he had blue eyes. As if to answer her unspoken query he spoke with his eyes still closed.

"Having trouble sleeping?" he asked softly, his voice caring with it a hint of sarcasm. He then opened his eyes to reveal a clear dark blue.

Link had woken from his light sleep as soon as he felt someone staring at him. That always woke him up especially when he was on guard. Even if the stare hadn't woken him, the feeling of someone messing with his hair would have done it just as successfully. He stared into the amber eyes of his fellow prisoner who was staring back at him in an odd manner. He sat up feeling a little self conscious.

"I, uh… I don't believe we were ever introduced," he started. "My name is Link."

He saw an almost triumphant light grow in her dark amber eyes before they narrowed and a rather condescending sneer spread across her battered face.

"So, you are just as vulnerable and fallible as the rest of us aren't you?" Her unpleasant smile faded into a serious expression as she considered him.

"Whoever said I wasn't?" Link asked guardedly, a bit taken aback by the strange direction their simple conversation had turned.

"By the way the servants of Ganondorf whisper your name and your deeds of defeating the warlord previously, I had expected someone a bit, well, more to belong to your name."

Link narrowed his own eyes at her, "I am what I am, nothing more, nothing less." He said his tone still cautious.

The girl looked completely flustered for a moment, and then slightly apologetic. She hesitated for a moment then spoke. "I meant no offense," she finally said. "I have done a damn fine job of introducing myself. My name is Aveil." She shook her head ruefully, "And I am one to talk." She tugged at the chain that bound her uninjured wrist. She bit her lip thinking furiously. To ask for help was a sign of weakness. To willingly swallow her pride was a hard thing to do, but perhaps, if the end result was worth it, it could compensate for her fall. Making up her mind, she continued. "But, if you are in fact Link, and now that we have met; what do you plan to do about Ganondorf?"

"Excuse me?" Link asked questioningly.

"Ugh, boys can be so stupid sometimes," she said with a sigh.

Link ignored the slight and listened as she explained.

"About a couple months ago, Ganondorf invaded this kingdom with an army. He conquered it and captured our king. My people have been forced into slavery, forced to give him all our crops and supplies, to make weapons and armor, and build fortresses, and do anything else either he or his soldiers command. Some people managed to escape and they formed a small band of rebels, but they are so outnumbered and outmatched their cause is almost hopeless. During these horrible months we heard the soldiers whisper tales of you and how you freed your land from Ganon. The soldiers that came from Hyrule were afraid that you would try to defeat Ganondorf again." She paused and when he did not deny what she had said she continued. Her gruff mannerism wore off slightly to reveal a hope born of sheer desperation. "I have never been keen on the idea of trusting a Hylain much less a man, but if it is in-fact true then we finally have an advantage. You can join our rebellion. You know Ganondorf's weaknesses. We can free our land from tyranny, and I can get some well deserved revenge on Ganon and his cronies for their cruelty."

"That's a great plan, but in case you haven't noticed you and I are a bit chained up at the moment."

"So," she scoffed, "if you are anything at all like me than you have already come up with at least two escape plans."

"Two exactly," he replied with smile, he was having a lot of difficulty reading this girl, but he saw no cause to mistrust her, but at the same time no reason to trust her either. "Look, I am flattered that you think that I am some sort of hero, but I didn't defeat Ganondorf all on my own, I had help."

"I know that," she snorted derisively. "So where is she?"

"Who?"

"The woman who helped you on your quest."

"She… She's gone now," he said quietly, feeling an ache in his heart. "She sealed herself in the land of Twilight, but how-"

"How did I know that you had a companion and that she was a woman? It's because you men wouldn't get anywhere on your own."

"I take it you're not a fan of men then?" he asked with a grin, not at all put off. "Not even one like me?" he queried teasingly.

Aveil gave him her best withering stare. "Not even one like you."

"What? You don't trust me?"

"Of course I don't. I don't trust anyone, for all I know you could be a spy of Ganondorf's," she said boldly although this was not exactly true. She trusted many of the people of her race and she found that she wanted to trust this boy in front of her. 'Where in the name of the Dark World had that thought come from?' She wondered to herself. She shook her head, feelings like that could get her killed, she knew.

He raised one of his eyebrows, "Yeah, you can easily tell what an evil crony I am by the deceitful look in my eye. Its' no wonder you managed to see through my disguise. I suppose you could also tell by the way I'm being treated by my fellow bad-guys, I mean it's obvious they love me, and I them."

"Ha ha," Aveil said dryly. "I assume Ganon captured you to keep you from stopping him," she said finally.

"I don't think so; he would have killed me already were that the case. He wants me for some other reason, something to do with gaining more power. Also, he is after some ancient power in these mountains."

When he mentioned that Aveil's face paled visibly and she closed her eyes for a fleeting moment, her mouth twisting into an uncomfortable frown.

"Is something wrong?" he asked looking concerned. "Perhaps you should rest a bit, I mean after all you just got-"

"No it's not that," she interrupted, "It's about the power source in the mountains, Ganon knows where it is."

She looked away, signaling the end of that conversation, though it was clear to Link that she was hiding something. He did not press her and, surprisingly, she opened up a little more.

"My family has been the guardians of that power source since our race came here," she said," her voice was neither timid nor hesitant in this affirmation, but it was quiet. "Keeping it save is my duty, and I have to keep Ganondorf from finding it."

"If you're planning on making Ganon's life miserable, then count me in," he said with grin.

She spoke of herself as if she was not Hylain, and he supposed that was true. She had an exotic look about her and her views seemed different from the values of his own people. It sounded more like what he had heard of the Gerudo. She even looked how Shad had described them; sharp featured and red haired, like Ganondorf. That could not be right though, he thought with the hint of a frown. They were extinct, weren't they? Before they could converse further they were halted by a command.

"Silence," Xiphos growled from where he stood guard. "The next person to speak gets my spear pole across their backs. Especially you," he menaced as he pointed his blade at Link.

"Oh yeah, I was being punished for impertinence or whatever it was," he muttered as he slipped the gag back over his mouth.

His unperturbed and unafraid manner soothed her nerves slightly. Truthfully she was terrified of Ganon and Xiphos. She was afraid of what might happen to her, her family, and her kingdom. She and Link lay back down in silence. When Xiphos's back was turned once again got up the nerve to whisper.

"Thank you for your healing skills, my arm and face feel much better. You're not a bad herbalist."

"You're welcome, and thank you," he replied in a quiet slurring muffled voice because of the gag.

A bit of calm before the storm…Thank you for reading! Please leave a review and tell me what you think as they fill my heart with rainbows!

Question: Since we are on the topic of feelings, do you think that SS Link harbors any resentment towards Zelda for using him? Or do you think he understands why. Or do you think that, if he does have resentful feelings, they are directed more towards Hylia and not really with the Zelda he grew up with? Do you think he sees the two as interchangeable, or different?

Hehe, bit of a double question I know, but I am very curious…