Chapter 3: The Festival

Ashwin was seated on one of the many logs placed around the bonfire as he enjoyed a deku berry. It was delicious; tasting and appearing like something between an apple and a cherry. He hadn't eaten since he passed through the tree hollow and was famished. He was sitting with Evie and other Kokiri children who he surmised were her friends. It was difficult to make out much of the conversation as there was quite a loud party going on. A band of Kokiri kids performed live music. They had large brass instruments resembling tubas with multiple horns. Others banged their hands against a series of drums. A multitude of Kokiri danced around the fire in an impressive choreography. It seemed like hundreds of children turned up for the event. Their shadows danced behind them as the fire light seemed to play tricks on them in the darkness.

Ashwin felt quite content and comfortable having filled his belly with the tasty treat. He was nice and warm near the fire in the dry clothes that Evie had provided for him. He wore a long green tunic, fastened with a brown leather belt, over white tights. Evie had also given him tall brown leather boots and a green cone shaped cap with the point resting backwards. He felt quite silly in these clothes, particularly the hat, but he fit right in with the Kokiri.

One thing stood out to Ashwin as he scanned the scene of the Kokiri party. There were only children here. "Where are all the adults?" Ashwin asked.

Evie's friends looked up at Ashwin from their Deku berries, as if puzzled by the question. "You mean like Hylians? They aren't allowed in the village." One of Evie's friends was a boy with mop-like orange hair that seemed to always be getting in his eyes. His name was Ornus. "Do you let outsiders into your village, Ashwin?"

Evie jumped in before the silence became awkward. "No, all Kokiri villages don't allow outsiders. Ashwin's village is just a bunch of Kokiri kids that never grow up just like us." Ornus seemed a bit suspicious of this reply but before he could speak, Evie jumped up and pulled Ashwin by the hand. "Come on, let's join the dance."

Once again Evie was tugging Ashwin around. She was strong for such a little girl. Evie's friends stuffed themselves with the rest of their deku berries and hopped out of their seats to follow them. Ashwin now found himself holding hands with Evie on one side and Ornus, the mop-haired boy, on the other, dancing some sort of jig around the fire. He felt quite awkward at first trying clumsily to match the steps of the Kokiri. However, the pattern was quite repetitive and soon he was in step with his Kokiri friends. Eventually, he started to enjoy himself.

For a while, Ashwin forgot his worries of trying to get home, and he was happy. He had made new friends with whom he ate well and was merry. There were no adults around to tell him what to do. Maybe this Kokiri village with no grown-ups was a pretty nice place.

Eventually they found themselves back on the log seats.

"Do you guys party like this every day?" Ashwin asked.

"I wish!" Ornus chimed in. "Today is the day of the Great Deku Tree Festival! It's the biggest night of the year in honour of the Great Deku Tree!" He waved his arms in excitement, almost falling off his log.

"What's the Great Deku Tree?" Ashwin asked. He didn't want to risk being exposed as an outsider, but he was so fascinated with this place.

"The Great Deku Tree?" Now Ornus was really getting worked up. "He's the source of all life in this world!"

Ashwin found this very amusing. "Wait, so you guys believe that everything was created by a big magic tree?"

Ornus' surprise was visible behind the long hair covering his face. He was obviously not used to anybody talking about the Great Deku Tree in this way. Ashwin looked over at Evie and noticed that she was visibly upset. This made him feel terrible. Evie had been such a good friend to him, taking him into her village and even saving his life. The last thing he wanted to do was offend her.

Ashwin didn't know what to say to break the silence. The awkwardness was becoming more than he could bear. Without another word, he hopped off the log and decided to go for a walk.

It must have been quite late but the festivities showed no signs of stopping. Ashwin passed between Kokiri, some sitting and laughing together, some eating, and some dancing. He approached an area with a series of stands like in a carnival. Various games were taking place. At one stand, kids were taking aim at a target with a slingshot. Another stand appeared to have some sort of guessing game involving a series of small chests.

Ashwin came across one game where some children were trying to kick a ball through a hole in a vertical board. The ball was made from some bundle of straw and was a bit smaller than a soccer ball. He watched their clumsy attempts to kick the ball. It produced a loud thump as it struck the board. The hole was fairly large, at about eye level.

"Let me try it." This was something Ashwin felt he could do. He played with the ball between his feet, then performed a few keep ups with it. It was a bit heavier than what he was used to. He set it down behind the line marked out by stakes in the ground. After taking a couple of steps back, he trotted forward and struck the ball. It took a slight deflection off the bottom of the hole, but passed through.

"We have a winner!" The Kokiri running the game reached up and removed a small leather scabbard hanging high up on the board. He pulled on the wooden handle to draw a sword with a small metal blade. "Here is your prize! A proper Kokiri sword!" He slid the blade back into the leather sleeve and handed it to Ashwin.

Several of the Kokiri congregated around Ashwin as he examined the sword. This wasn't a toy. The edge was sharp. He couldn't imagine what he would use a sword for. Nevertheless, he thought it was really cool. The small size was comfortable for him to hold. He threw the strap over his shoulder.

Ashwin looked back to where he left Evie. Her friends had joined back into the dance. She remained seated on the same log, now by herself, still looking dejected. Ashwin decided it was time to apologize.