Chapter Twelve: Magic!

"You're a lucky one indeed, young man, hoo, I would not have imagined she would take such a liking to you. You're more than ready for your next task, I think, hoot."

It had only taken a few minutes to describe what had taken hours to transpire, and now Kaepora Gaebora swiftly descended to the base of the mountain, close to the guarded gate. Gently, he lowed link close enough for him to let go, dropping only a few feet, and the old owl landed on the ground beside him, ruffling his feathers as he tucked his wings in.

"If I'm not mistaken, you still need one more stone, yes?"

"You know about that?" Link asked, surprised. The owl chuckled.

"Indeed I do, hoo, and I know where it can be found. Follow the Hyrule River upstream, and you will find where the proud Zora, an aquatic race, make their home. For centuries they have protected the river's source, hoo, and they are well known for generally turning away all save those of the royal family, whom they are loyal to. I should think though, hoo hoo, that you'll hardly have trouble entering."

"No, I don't think so either," he answered, bringing his hand up to touch his ocarina. The owl nodded, satisfied.

"You catch on quick, hoo, you're a smart kid. From Kakariko, it is perhaps a day's journey on foot, if you get an early start you can reach it before sundown. I advise you to take some time to rest though, you've done much in little time, and I'm sure you'd like to familiarize yourself with your newfound power."

"That is an excellent idea," Navi chimed in, coming out from Link's hat to float beside him. "Now that you have magic, I have to teach you how to use it. The Great Fairy said you had innate magic in you, which means you would have your own special abilities. We may as well find out what those are before you go off learning anything else."

"Wow, really? That sounds like fun!" Link grinned, imagining what he might be able to do. He had heard many stories of wizards using powerful magic, and now that he had seen magic for himself, he wondered if he could do the same. Navi shook her head, trying very hard not to smile with him. Though she understood his excitement, he was still only a kid, she would have to teach that magic was not something to be trifled with. She couldn't help but shake the feeling that was going to be a task in itself.

"Remember though," Kaepora added, casually swiveling his head around, "You have a mission. I do not believe that time is strictly of the essence, hoo, but I advise you do not linger too long either." He swiveled his head upright again, unfurling his wings. "I shall depart here, but I shall see you again before long, I think. Stay strong, and may the Goddesses light your way, hoo. Farewell!" Lifting himself off the ground with a tremendous heave that blasted the pair with a gust of wind, the great owl swiveled around and was quickly lost from sight by the mountainous terrain.

"Let's head back to the village and get some rest Link, tomorrow we'll start your new education." Link smiled wide, still excited.

"I can't wait to learn!"

Navi sighed, beginning to think that maybe the Great Fairy had made the wrong choice of gift. Goddesses help me.

~0~

"Close your eyes and take a deep breath Link. For this you'll want the least amount of stimuli possible."

Link did as he was told, sitting cross legged on top of a crate beside the house he had stayed in that night previous, the same one as he had before. It was still early morning, the sun was not yet risen over the horizon, but already there was life stirring. The cuccos were being cared for in their pen, and the carpenter brothers were busying about, but no one paid him any mind.

Good, she thought, He doesn't need any distractions.

"Now, we know you had innate magical sense before, with your connection to the spirit realm. The dreams you've had is proof enough. That's good, because that means it will be much easier for you to feel the magic, rather than trying to learn it from scratch. Now that your senses are awakened, you should be able to feel it by simple concentration and focus. Even so, it will be difficult to start, so don't feel discouraged if you can't get it at first."

"Before we start, though, after what you felt yesterday, can you think of any other time you've consciously, personally, felt it before, even the faintest touch? No need to answer right away, take your time to think about it."

Link frowned a little, eyes still closed, as he mulled over her inquiry. Had he ever felt magic before? Just as she said, he was aware now he could sense things. His dreams of the shadows over the Great Deku Tree and…he had been having new dreams lately. Should he say something about that? Maybe later, he thought to himself. What he saw in them was troubling though.

Hyrule Castle stood alone, its stone walls cracked, parapets crumbling in disrepair, and unnatural shadows fell where they should not have. The sky was rolling and deep grey; no light could pierce the thick veil above. The empty field it stood on was dead, dirt and dust picked up and whirled around in the cold, bitter wind. White lightning splintered the sky, yet no sound followed. With another flash, the whole image shattered like glass, falling into nothingness. In the blackness he suddenly saw the Triforce, alone, its divine light fading away, until it was dull shade of its former splendor, and with a crack he watched as the pieces scattered into the distance, no longer in sight. The blackness rippled, and then a rush of wind blew against his formless presence, but it wasn't a normal wind, it was dark, chilled by evil. Whispers could be heard, unintelligible, but then they swiftly grew loud, shrill and screaming. The sound left him frightened and fearful.

He would always wake up then, his heart racing and with cold sweats. It was a dark foretelling of the future, he could feel it, but he could not bring himself to imagine what it could mean. It left him wondering if his quest was true, if what he was working toward would really save Hyrule. With more than a little effort, he pushed those thoughts aside for another time.

Yes, he was aware he could sense the energies in the world. But feel them? That was much harder to answer. He thought back as far as he could remember to his life in Kokiri Forest, growing up from his earliest childhood memories. After several long minutes had passed, he shook his head slightly, frowning again. No, even in the presence of Father, he had not felt it from him until he had given him the Spiritual Stone of the Forest, but everyone had felt that who lived in the wood. And from what he had gathered, everyone, even outside the forest, had felt his passing. No, that wasn't what he was looking for. What about after? Not much time had passed between his forest departure and now, so he took it day by day. Slowly, he shuffled through his memories and experiences.

Navi watched him silently, smiling as he watched him visibly struggle with this. He was legitimately trying, and he was being persistent in it too, having continued this in silence for nearly a half hour now. She had thought he would have given up by now, in his haste to learn magic, eager as he was in it, and he had made it abundantly clear, pestering her with a wide array of questions that night and even as soon as they had risen.

Link's eyes flew open, searching for Navi.

"The castle," He said simply. "With Zelda."

"The Ocarina?"

"No, before that."

That got her attention, and she listened as he recounted when the princess had detailed her dream, and when he had touched her shoulder, he had felt...something…leaving him. It was almost imperceptible, he had explained, but it was a physical effect, with visible aftereffects, as he told her how Zelda had garnered strength from it. At the time, he had thought nothing of it. Navi nodded, satisfied, and admittedly quite surprised to hear this. He had, without realizing it, summoned his magic, with positive effects. And the way he described it, the action had been delicate and controlled, despite the unconscious nature of it. If this was his first use of magic, she thought to herself, just how powerful is he, I wonder?

"Alright, that's much better than I had hoped for, well done," she said, and Link smiled at the praise. "Now close your eyes again, this is where it'll be tricky." She waited a moment as he did so, readjusting his seating on the crate as well. When he was finished, she continued.

"Now that you have that memory, can you imagine that feeling, remember how it felt?"

He nodded.

"Good. Concentrate on that feeling, try to imagine that feeling is all of you. What we're trying to do is bring what is called your aura out. When strong enough, aura can be seen, like how yesterday you saw the Great Fairy's and my own, I am sure. Because we're fairies, spiritual creatures, we naturally have our aura dispersed from us, but it's different with the other races. Getting a feeling of your own aura is what will help you control and ultimately master your own magic. No one else can see aura unless they have mastered magic of their own. Eventually you will be able to see it naturally as well, but this takes a lot of practice, for now we just want you to bring out yours."

"How will I know when it's working?" he asked.

"Trust me, you'll know. When you do, open your eyes and tell me how you see me. For starters, we'll do this for the next half hour, before we'll break for some breakfast, and continue later, alright?"

Link nodded, saying nothing. Already he was concentrating as much as he could on the memory, trying to imagine what he had felt leave him being part of him instead. He toyed with it, conjuring up multiple ways of looking at it, wondering what he was supposed to feel. She said he would know, but what did that even mean? He at first tried to imagine what he had felt yesterday, that energy suffusing him, but toning it down until it was almost nothing. After a few minutes of that, he had to admit it still didn't feel the same, so he abandoned it. He tried a few other different feelings along similar lines, to no avail.

In the end, Navi called time with no success. Again, she reassured him that she was not surprised, and that it was to be expected. Still, he was a little annoyed with himself, and he spent breakfast mulling over other ideas to try. After the meal, Navi suggested walking around town to refresh himself, stretch his legs, and even take some time, perhaps near the local graveyard, to practice his swordsmanship and new sword skill.

"Once we can get you to summon and maintain your aura, we'll work on putting some magic into it, then it'll be really powerful! Have you thought of a name for it even?"

"Oh yeah, in my head I just called it a spin attack. Keeping it simple, y'know?"

Twice more Link tried that day to summon his aura, both times he failed again. The next morning, before even the faintest rays began creep up on the horizon, Link awoke with a start, bolting upright. The same dream, again. It took him several minutes to finally calm himself down, and, accepting sleep to be impossible, he shuffled himself quietly out of bed, taking care not to wake Navi, dressed himself, and stepped outside.

The air was chilly still, and he was the only one up. Well, not quite. In the middle of the field in the center of the village, towards the entrance, was a solitary tree, and underneath it a rather pale, thinly built shirtless man sat by himself, and kept to himself. He saw him turn to look at him as he stepped out, nodded, and turned away, paying him no more mind. Link looked over to his right, staring at the crate that was still there. He frowned. So far his meditations had proved fruitless, and now he wondered if maybe he was thinking about it wrong. Shaking his head, he turned the opposite direction, and silently walked through the village, listening to the peaceful sounds of the night.

He had always liked the nights when he had stayed up in the forest. There, the night was just as busy with life as the day was, the birds' songs were replaced with the crickets', and fireflies and other florescent critters danced through the air. On the nights where the moon shined bright, the greens were bathed in silver sheens, and as the sky brightened in the early dawn, the dew would glow brightly like the diamonds he had seen in the marketplace.

Link paused where he walked, looking up into the sky. The land he walked was not his home, but the sky was the same wherever he had been so far. A sad smile came upon his face as he realized how much he missed the forest. He would return, someday, he promised himself. No, that wasn't right, he had already made that promise, to Saria. He wondered if she was also awake, looking at the same sky he gazed upon now. He resumed his slow walk, going nowhere in particular. She wouldn't believe half of all that's happened, would she? It's been one heck of an adventure, he thought, bringing his hand up to his ocarina, the gift Saria had given him.

He found himself standing before the crate again. He stared at it for a few minutes, almost daring it to do…something, anything. He shrugged finally, knowing full well of course it would do no such thing, and moved to sit on it as he had thrice yesterday. He had no idea why he decided to try again, other than he had nothing else to do. This time though, he decided, without knowing quite why, not to focus as intently as he had before on the sensation. In fact, he hardly thought about it at all. He simply sat there, content to sift through the feelings of nostalgia. The Great Deku Tree, Mido, Fado, Lana, Kili, Brin, Julie, the three know-it-all brothers. Saria. They were his family, the Kokiri, all he had ever known. Until recently, until he had left.

He had left the forest, and had found the world. Talon, Mr. Ingo, Malon and Epona. Princess Zelda, Impa, Darunia, Roddrin, the Great Fairy of Power, Kaepora Gaebora. All the while, Navi had been by his side, as Father had commanded. He felt she no longer stayed by his side out of duty though. They had quickly grown close, and they were true partners, and she was a dear friend.

He had been charged by Father to find the princess, now understanding that he must have known that doing so would set him on this path. Father had charged him not just to carry the stone, but the pride of the Kokiri. And Darunia had similarly given him the pride of the Gorons, and called him Sworn Brother. To the Royal Family, he was a messenger of the princess, and he had no doubt the Zora people would give him their favor and friendship. Even on Lon Lon Ranch, he was called family, and was promised a home there always. He had a duty to them all, a responsibility, to see through his quest, and fulfill his promises. This, he realized, was his destiny.

Warmth suffused him, but still he saw no light through his eyelids. He smiled. He understood what Navi meant now. He had expected when he had found it, it would be much more dramatic, more memorable, and that he would be ecstatic. But even as he let the warmth flow through him, he felt calm, content to let it be. This was not a power for himself, but for selfless service to others. This was his magic. His weapon was his courage, to stand between all that would do harm to his friends, allies, family, and the world.

Sounds could be heard now, voices too. Dawn was fast approaching, and the world was awakening. Behind him, within the house, he could feel Navi's presence, felt it grow as she herself awoke, and when she came outside to find him, he couldn't help but smile as he heard her gasp. He opened his eyes finally then, and found her as she flew to face him. Like the day before, her aura surrounded her as her light did, gently flowing out, but softly and ethereal, not sharp and vivid as it had been.

"I found my aura…partner."

She continued to stare, wonder still painted on her face. Then she smiled, and he could have sworn he saw the smallest tear run down her cheek.

"So you did…it suits you. Have you looked at yourself?"

He stretched out his hand, watching his own aura emanate from him. Unlike Navi's blue, His was a light-infused green, flowing out of him in the same ethereal manner, but richer, more vibrant.

"How do you feel?" she asked, coming close to land on his shoulder. He could see their auras colliding, blending together, remaining apart but hopelessly intertwined.

"I feel…like I understand myself better now, just a little." She nodded, chuckling.

"Sounds about right. Care to meditate with me before breakfast then?"

"I don't think I'd mind that at all."

~0~

During breakfast, Link told Navi about his dream, and his speculation on its pertinence to the future. Just as it troubled him, Navi also appeared uneasy by this news.

"I've had no such dreams, but I have felt a sense of disquietude. You say you've had this dream more than once?"

"Every night since meeting Zelda," Link replied, "Before though, it was like looking at it through a fog, but twice now it's been clear. I think the clarity comes from my magical sense being awakened. I was hoping maybe getting the Goron's Ruby would cause a change, but I feel like it's only gotten stronger." Link stared down at his empty plate in front of him, shuffling the crumbs of his meal around with his fork. "It just makes…Are we doing the right thing, Navi? I want to believe we are, but I'm scared. I don't want that future." He looked up at Navi, who sat across from him at the edge of his plate.

Navi returned his gaze, reading the worry in his eyes. It troubled her too, hearing this. He was absolutely correct in his judgement of the Great Fairy's blessing having an effect on his sensitivity, that was to be expected. Hearing him voice his own misgivings though, that gave her pause. For goddesses' sake, the child was only 12! Fate was being cruel indeed, but fate did not always wait for you to grow up to question such things. And about the fortune of the world, no less.

"I think, Link," she finally spoke, choosing her words carefully, "That we should have faith in the Great Deku Tree. He believed in us, and believed in you especially. In life, there are many hard decisions we have to make, especially as we grow older. We can never know for certain if all of them are the right ones, or even if there are right ones sometimes. And you can even make the right choices and hardships come from it still. It takes great personal courage to stand by our choices, more than facing down any monster. Father saw that courage in you, and I believe that, because I believe you have that too."

"It's OK to be scared," Navi added reassuringly. "But that won't stop us from saving Hyrule, now will it?"

Link listened to his partner, and found reassurance in her words. She was right, Father had believed him. And not just Father either. Everyone he had met on his journey this far believed in him. He could find strength in their faith, and trust, for their sake, the path he walked was the right one.

"Thanks Navi," He finally said, glad she was his partner. He pushed his chair back and stood up, and Navi flew over to his side. "The faster I learn about my magic, the faster I can get going to find the last stone."

"Right, then let's go out by the graveyard to practice some more aura summoning, once you can do that fairly well, we'll try putting it to good use. We need to get you to where you can summon your magic within a few seconds."

"Will that be hard, you think?" Link asked, exiting the house and turning around the corner, heading towards the steps leading up to the well and windmill. Navi shrugged

"That depends on how well you've grasped your aura. You were able to find it without me, with luck you might just be a natural." And he very well could be, she thought to herself, she had a hard time believing it to be a fluke. She had expected him to struggle with summoning his aura, and had planned on further tutoring him extensively in aura alone for almost a week, never mind implementation, yet Link had managed to successfully grasp it in the span of a single day. Even a week in her mind seemed too short; properly speaking, most students of magic took upwards of 2 months or more to find their aura, a week was essentially a hellishly demanding crash course. That kind of progress was prodigious, almost scary. No, he is a natural prodigy, she corrected herself. Blessed by the goddesses, I'm sure of it. She had one hell of a partner.

A few minutes later, the pair were positioned beside the entrance to the local graveyard. Simple in design, tall wooden fences on either side of the archway, it betrayed the historical significance of the place. For the members of the royal family, and those sworn to serve and protect them, the Sheikah Tribe, this was their final rest. Kakariko itself found its origins in the Sheikah, and to this day, the natives of the village were duty-bound to the royal family, were they ever to be called upon.

On the other side of the entrance, opposite them, a simple, single room shack was erected, and would have almost been assumed abandoned, were it not for the small garden in front that was clearly well cared for. This was where a man named Dampé the grave keeper lived, an older man who lived a solitary life. Some of the local children made fun of his appearance, for he was a hunchback, and this likely contributed to his decision to live alone.

Link stood with his back to the fence, hands extended and palms facing up, while Navi hovered a few feet away from him, watching. This time he was allowed to keep his eyes open, to better judge his progress himself.

"Do you remember how you did it this morning?" She asked. He nodded, telling her what he had had going on in his thoughts.

"You have a strong sense of duty to others," Navi stated. "That's what called to your magic. I'm actually impressed, most have more simplistic causes. The strength of your magic is largely dependent on those feelings, and the stronger your resolve, the stronger your magic will be. Your magic is unusual in the sense that it is not based on yourself per se, but instead is influenced by outside forces, but commanded by your will. Under the right conditions, and I think you meet them, this can create very powerful magic."

"Go ahead and try to capture that again, let's see how fast your aura responds."

He did as she told, and recalled the same state of acceptance that had accompanied it. At first, nothing happened, but he remained persistent, and after a several minutes, he felt it rise again, and this time was able to watch as his aura manifested. Navi smiled, happy with the result.

"Excellent, and well done with the wonderful control you have of it. Right now we're practicing without any stress factors, you'll find it'll be a lot harder to keep it like this when you're under pressure, like in a fight. For now though, this is fine, practice is the only thing that will help with that. Let it go, and try again, let's see how long it takes for you to get it down to…well, how about a minute for starters?"

"Alright," he agreed, and watched his aura disappear, shifted his weight a little, and started again. The second time took less time than before, only about five minutes, and the third time took even less than that. Each time, Navi asked him how he did it, Link would answer, and she would make a suggestion and drop a word of encouragement, and the cycle would repeat. She marveled at his progression, but she refused to let on just how adept he was, not wanting to let it go to his head.

On the eighth attempt, he brought his time down to just under a minute, fifty seven seconds.

"How do you feel right now, any fatigue maybe?" she asked him as she watched him let his aura disperse again. "Aura won't expend any of your mana ̶ the store of magical energy within you ̶ but it will deplete once you start applying it. If you're not used to it though, you can still get tired."

"No, I feel fine. What happens if you run out of mana?" He asked, sitting down. "Is that bad?"

"Nothing bad will happen to you, You just won't be able to use any magic until you recover, and that just takes time. Running out of mana will also usually tire you out. Once we get to using your magic, it'll be easier to understand."

"Can we try right now?" Link asked excitedly, jumping back up to his feet. Navi considered it for a moment, before she shrugged, relenting. Why not? She thought, He probably has more mana to spare than he knows what to do with.

"Alright, let's see if we put some magical energy into your spin attack, but just once though, ok?"

"Ok! How do we do that?" he asked, drawing his sword.

"Go ahead and summon your aura, we'll take this step by step. After you practice enough, you'll be able to do this fluidly, so there's no delay in execution." Even as she finished speaking, she could already see his aura flickering into existence. More time cut off; he was excelling at a continuously alarming rate. "Good, now get into stance like the Great Fairy taught you, we'll practice both at the same time. Wide stance, sword arm behind you, shield arm up…good. Now, the tricky part, you feel like you have energy flowing in you now right? Imagine that energy extending into your sword too. Hold that image in your mind, remember to keep your aura focused too though. I'll let you know when you get it."

Link remained still, and for a few moments, nothing happened. Navi continued to watch carefully, waiting for any signs of progress. The seconds dragged on, and Navi was about to call for a timeout, when the Kokiri Sword suddenly flashed, and she gaped, watching his aura pour into it, changing colors from green to red, and spinning around the blade rapidly, fast enough for a whistle to be heard. Without skipping a beat, Link whirled about in a wide 360-degree arc, letting loose a battle cry. While the Kokiri sword lacked the reach of a traditional sword, the spun energy that was loosed extended far beyond its reach, creating a torrent of wind that would have sent her colliding into the rock wall behind her, had she flown any lower. The energy packed into that wave was tangible, and she was sure any lesser monster would be felled in an instant. By the goddesses, what power! He hadn't just let his aura flow into the blade, he had deliberately forced it there. That was the next step of the process she had planned, but she could only assume he had done it instinctively, the whole thing!

"Well, I guess you don't need me to tell you, but, you got it," she laughed, taking pride in her partner's achievement. "How did it feel? How do you feel?"

"That was incredible, I feel great!" He answered, laughing with her. "I feel like I can take on a King Dodongo again!"

"Let's hope you never have to! Congratulations though, Link, I can't believe you got that on your first try. We can keep practicing that later, and then, we can get that last stone!"