A/N: The last chapter actually got some reviews. Thank you so much :). It makes me very happy!

In this chapter (and the chapters that follow), the first person perspective might change in the middle of the chapter. After you see a horizontal bar, if you see Link: or Cody:, then the perspective has changed. Sorry for any confusion.

One last thing: whenever fairies speak, they speak in italics. "Link! Look out!" would be an example

Chapter 9: Kokiri Forest

Cody:

Right before nightfall, Link made sure to tie some torches onto the four corners of the carriage and light them. After the sun went down, I found out why.

Small skeletons with giant heads (they called these little horrors Stalchilds), started rising from the ground and chasing after the carriage (albeit slowly). For some reason, the Stalchilds (Stalchildren?) did not seem to like the torches all that much and would usually turn away before they got too close. The ones that were a little more adventurous would get shot by Link with his bow, which he seemed to have pulled from nowhere (does he have an Infinity Bag too?). It was only an hour or so after sunset that we made it to the forest.

The forest entrance was strange. The trees were packed in very tightly, and the only way in was through a log tunnel. We proceeded through the tunnel and came to a wooden bridge. We had to get off at this point (no way that the bridge could support the weight of the carriage and the horses). We went the rest of the way on foot, and we soon wound up in a small village.

There were many houses here, most looking like they were made from hollowed out trees (giant ones at that). There did not seem to be much activity, but to my surprise, there were children running around. One of them spotted us, a blonde haired little girl with shoulder length hair that was done up in twin pigtails. She was wearing a green hair band and had on green clothes similar to what Link wore. For some strange reason, she had a glowing green orb of light floating around her head. It seemed to have wings.

She ran up to Link with a smile on her face, "Hiya Link! I thought you were going to be gone for a few days."

"Hello Larina, how was your day?"

"Oh, the usual. You know me," she said with a giggle. She then turned to look at Zelda, Malon and I, and asked, "Who are your friends?"

Link gestured to each of us in turn, "This is Cody, Malon, and…" he paused for a second when he got to Zelda, "and Sheik. We need to see Saria. Is she home right now?"

Larina looked over to a house that was almost right next to the tree house, a look of worry on her face, "Saria has been holed up in her house all day since you left. Mido tried to speak to her, but she even kicked him out. The Great Deku Tree told us to give her some time but…"

"Don't worry," Link said, "I have a feeling she will be willing to talk to us."

"If you say so," she said uncertainly.

"Oh, Larina?" I said as I got onto one knee so that I was eye level with little Larina, "If you don't mind, could you tell us where to find an adult that could help us get lodging for the night?"

I was feeling kind of useless right now, so I figured that it would be a good idea to be proactive for once and make sure we could get some sleep. I knew that I was feeling rather exhausted. However…

Larina looked at me as if I had sprouted two additional heads. Link was busy laughing his head off. Malon just shook her head.

Zelda walked up to me and whispered into my ear, "Remember what I said about the Kokiri?"

The little immortal children of the forest… Now that you mention it…

"Uh… sorry Larina. I guess I just put my foot in my mouth," I said standing up, feeling my face flush with embarrassment.

Larina smiled at me again, "Don't worry mister. It's alright."

After Link finally stopped laughing (he was doubled over and everything), he stood back up and with a smile said, "Don't worry about a place to stay Cody. It will be taken care of. In the meantime…"

Link turned to Larina, "Thank you for your help Larina, we'll go see Saria now."

"Good luck Link," Larina said.

Larina ran off, waving her hand as she left, the orb thing following her.

"Just wondering," I said as I watched the orb thing fade into the distance, "What is up with that orb of light?"

"It's Larina's fairy guardian," Link said a little wistfully, "All the Kokiri have one."

Zelda looked at Link, "I remember that you had one too…" she paused for a second, and then asked, "What happened to Navi?"

Link turned away and was silent for a few seconds, before he answered, "She… disappeared... I haven't seen her since I put the Master Sword back…"

With his back turned to us, it was hard to tell what he was feeling. His voice was emotionless, but his actions spoke louder than words ever could. I guess that Navi meant a lot to him…

Would Katie miss me as much as Link misses Navi?

I shook off those thoughts as Link finally turned around, "It doesn't matter right now. Let's just go see Saria so we can figure out our next course of action."

Link walked off quickly. He probably did not want to be dragged into any more conversations about his missing companion. The rest of us looked at each other, and then proceeded to follow him.

As we were walking, I leaned over to Zelda, "So, if Link had a fairy companion, does that mean he is a Kokiri?"

I looked back over to Link, who looked to be as old as me, and looked back to Zelda, "He doesn't look like an immortal child."

"He isn't," Zelda said, "He is a Hylian like me and Malon, but he was raised by the Kokiri. For the first 10 years of his life, however, he thought he was a Kokiri."

"Oh," I said as I looked back at Link. Link traveled through time and was forced to lose his best friend. On top of that, he found out that everything that he knew about himself was not true.

Link's past truly was complicated.

We arrived at what I figured was Saria's house.

Link paused at the entry way for a moment, and then called inside, "Saria?"

Silence reigned for a minute, then a soft voice called from inside, "Come in…"

Link motioned for us to follow. He then ducked inside, and the rest of us followed.

Inside was a single room. To my surprise, the room was more than tall enough for me to stand in. The room was mostly empty. There was a rug in the middle of the room, a table and chair shoved against the far wall, and another table to the right. On the left was a small bed and on the bed was a young, green-haired girl. She had a green hair band that was similar to the one that Larina wore. She had on a green tunic as well, but she also wore a green sweater underneath. She was looking rather forlorn as she sat there. Like the last Kokiri that we just met, this girl also had a fairy floating around, though this fairy was pink in color. Unlike the last one, however, this one seemed almost… agitated. It was bouncing around a lot, making strange noises, the whole nine yards…

As soon as we stepped in, the fairy noticed Link, and flew straight to him, "Link! Saria has been acting strange all day since you left!"

Link nodded to the exited fairy, "Thanks Ami."

He then walked over to the bed and got down on one knee so that he was eye level with Saria. She finally noticed him and looked up.

She did not say anything at first. She just seemed to inspect Link for a minute until her eyes landed on the sword hilt that was peaking over Link's shoulder.

Saria smiled sadly at Link before she said, "You look just like you did when you rescued me from the Forest Temple."

He rescued her from a temple? So, are all temples in this world dangerous!

Saria finally noticed that she and Link were not alone. She looked up at us and smiled in a friendly manner. I got the feeling that she was one of those people who were always nice and everyone wanted to be friends with.

"I recognize Zelda from the other timeline, but who are your other friends Link?"

"Saria, meet Malon, next in line for ownership of Lon Lon Ranch, and Cody, the Hero of Dimensions."

I do not think that I will ever get used to being called a hero…

Saria got up off her bed and curtsied to us, "It is very nice to meet you. My name is Saria, Sage of the Forest."

Wow. I know she is an immortal, but she seems kind of young to be a sage. I wonder how old she truly is. Would it be considered rude to ask an immortal her age? It is not like there is any kind of basis where I come from for how I am supposed to act around an immortal…

Malon and Zelda returned the curtsy. I sat there for a moment, wondering why we were being so formal, when I got an elbow in my side from Malon. She gave me a pointed look. Getting the message, I quickly bowed. Formal situations are definitely not my cup of tea.

Saria smiled at us, "I get the feeling that you guys aren't here just to check up on me. Does it have anything to do with why I got my memories back?"

It was Zelda's turn to speak up, "Please, let me explain…"

Zelda explained everything about the robed man, the sacred swords, and the orbs we needed in order to neutralize the Sword of Darkness.

"So you think I know where one of the orbs is?" Saria asked doubtfully.

"It would be instinctual. Just concentrate for now. Let's see what happens."

"All right," Saria said. She sat back on her bed and closed her eyes.

She sat there for a few minutes, unmoving. It was taking so long that I thought that maybe it was not going to work.

Suddenly, Saria's eyes snapped open and she blurted out, "We need to go to the Forest Temple!"

Link looked surprised, "The orb is there!"

Saria shook her head, "No, I don't think so. But I think we will find a way to find the orb once we get there."

Zelda nodded, "Then we will head out first thing tomorrow morning," she looked at Saria with some concern, "Please be sure to get some rest. You look like you need it."

She nodded and smiled at Zelda, "Thank you. I'll be sure to do that."

We turned to leave, but Saria stopped us, "Link, do you think I could talk to you. Now."

Link paused, but before he could say anything, Zelda interrupted, "Yeah, go ahead."

She put her arm around my shoulders, a mischievous smile on her face, "Me and Mr. Williams have something to take care of."

I have a terrible feeling that I am really not going to like where this is going.

Link nodded, and then turned back to Saria. Zelda steered me out of the room, Malon following behind us.

"So Zelda, what are you and Cody going to be doing?" Malon asked us, looking curious.

"The only thing that two people could do at this time of night," she said with a grin, "we are going to train."

Link:

Saria patted the spot right next to her on her bed. Accepting the invitation, I sat down beside her. Saria remained silent. For some reason, I felt really nervous. What did she want to say to me? It seemed serious.

Saria did not look at me as she asked, "Link, are we friends?"

My head snapped around as I stared at her incredulously, "How could you say something like that! Of course we are!"

Saria took a deep breath before she turned to me and said, "Then why didn't you tell me about what happened in the other timeline?"

I was silent for a minute. I looked her in the eye as I said, "I did not want you to know about that horrible time if you did not need to."

She was silent for just a minute, "Link… It may have been hard for me to hear, but I would rather have heard it from you then for it to just pop back into my head…" she took another breath, "I would have preferred to be there for you."

I nodded to her, "I'm sorry Saria, but…" I paused for a minute, "it is because you are my friend that I did not tell you. I did not want you to needlessly suffer."

After a moment more of silence, Saria grabbed my hand and said, "Promise me something Link."

"Anything."

"If something like that ever happens again, and I don't know about it, or I lose my memory, you have to promise me that you will tell me immediately, no matter how hard it may be for me to hear."

I smiled at her, "If it will make you feel better, then I guess I can tell you everything from now on."

Saria threw her arms around me suddenly, burying her face in my tunic.

"Thank you Link," she whispered.

"Awwwwww!" Ami commented.

Saria pulled away, her face flushed with embarrassment.

She wiped away some tears that had appeared in her eyes, then smiled and asked, "So, anything you think you want to tell me?"

I chuckled to myself, and then abruptly turned serious, "It might take a while."

"We have time."

I sighed, and then began, "Well, when I was travelling through Lost Woods, looking for Navi, I stumbled upon a parallel world called Termina…"

Cody:

We were standing in front of the tree house in the village, Zelda standing a short distance in front of me. Malon had climbed the ladder and was sitting on the porch area of the tree house, her feet dangling over the edge. Our weapons were leaning against the tree. I just had one question: how did I get into this situation!

"Ok Cody Williams," Zelda told me, "I'm going to assume a fighting stance, and you just need to concentrate. You should be able to fight like a Sheikah."

"But aren't the Sheikah like ninjas?" I asked, confused (Impa had looked like a ninja to me), "I don't think fighting like a ninja will be useful when I'm using a long sword."

Zelda gave me a confused look, "What are ninjas? Are they warriors on your world?"

I sighed, "Never mind, it's not important."

"You say the strangest things, Mr. Williams," she said with a giggle. At least I am still amusing… I guess…

She dropped down into a crouch, "Well, do you recognize the stance?"

I rolled my eyes, and then analyzed Zelda's fighting stance. For some reason, though, I could not place it.

I wracked my brain, until the problem popped into my head, "Wait, there's something wrong with your stance."

"Oh?" she said, still smiling, "How about this."

Her stance instantly adjusted and became perfect.

I narrowed my eyes as I looked at her, "You did that on purpose didn't you."

Her grin widened.

Sigh.

"Now Mr. Williams, see if you can perform any of the combat moves without me showing you…"

We practiced for about two hours. It turns out that once I concentrated on a particular fighting style, I could easily access all knowledge about that style. I was able to perform all the moves (even the more advanced ones) with ease. Zelda was no slouch either. She had a little trouble, but it was almost completely because she had a different body when she last used these moves (magic… it's starting to make my head hurt just thinking about it).

About the time we finished up, Link finally walked up, "Zelda and Malon, you will be sleeping at Saria's place. Cody, you will be at mine."

"Really?" I asked, surprised, "Which one is yours?"

Link pointed up. I looked up to see the tree house.

"Ummm… Will that support our weight?" I asked doubtfully.

Link rolled his eyes at me and said, "We will be getting up at sunrise tomorrow, so don't stay up too much later."

"That's okay," Zelda said, "We were just finishing up anyway. Malon and I will head over to Saria's soon"

Link nodded, "Okay then. Good night."

Link bowed briefly to Zelda and then climbed up the ladder and headed past Malon into his house. Malon jumped down and landed gracefully on her feet.

Zelda turned back to me and said, "I guess that will be all for tonight. We shall continue this at a later time Mr. Williams."

"Please," I said, "Call me Cody. I feel like I'm about to get a lecture every time you call me Mr. Williams."

"I'm sorry… Cody Williams," she said with a smile, "I keep forgetting. I'll try to remember that more in the future. Now if you'll excuse me, I will go retire now."

With that, Zelda turned and headed out towards Saria's house.

As I stared off after her, what was sure to be an incredulous look on my face, Malon giggled behind me, "I think she just likes your last name."

I shook my head, "Mr. Williams is too formal for my tastes. I much prefer to be called Cody, especially among peers," I said as I turned around.

Malon looked confused, "Zelda is a princess though. She's not really a peer is she?"

Oh yeah, I forgot. I thought about that for a few seconds. I guess, technically, it was true, but…

"Well, she's currently a travelling companion. She isn't here to lead. She's here to help us look for the orbs and help us fight," I said with a shrug, "In my opinion that makes her a peer."

"I guess," she said doubtfully.

I shrugged again (I do that a lot), "Well, it is easier for me to think that way since she is not the princess where I come from."

She smiled, "Yeah, guess so."

We lapsed into an awkward silence once again. I was never really good at talking with girls. To be honest, Katie was the only one that I could talk to without any kind of prodding (the only reason I can talk to Zelda is because she talks to me).

"Well, good night Cody," Malon said, and she quickly left for Saria's place.

I stood there for a moment, alone in the quiet village (it must have been past the Kokiris bed time). I let out a deep sigh. My parents have probably figured out by now that I am missing. Will Katie try to call me when I do not show up for school tomorrow? I wonder if there will be a search…

I guess that it does not really matter at this time. The only thing I can do is find those stupid orbs. Once that is done, then I can go home. At least… I hope so…

If I even live to find the orbs…

Shaking off my momentary depression, I grabbed my sword from by the tree and climbed the ladder to Link's house.

A/N: Next chapter will introduce a new character, as well as reveal the name of a certain individual (three guesses who). Stay tuned :)